Keep Things in Perspective
by Erik Castiglione
Another Open Season has come and gone, and now it’s time for some self-reflection. Did you do as well as you hoped? Was there a particular WOD or two that didn’t go so well for you? Did you finish lower than expected in the gym, or in the region? As with any competition, it’s important to look back at your performance and learn from your mistakes. At the same time, it’s important to keep things in perspective and take pride in the things you did well.
From 2011-2014, there was no scaled division in the Open. The WODs were designed to be inclusive (at least, from 2012-2014) so that everyone could do at least some of the WOD. For example, you wouldn’t see muscle ups until the end of a workout, but the beginning would feature a much more accessible movement like wallballs. Starting in 2015, with the advent of the scaled division, the workouts became more grueling. And, as many of you commented this year, there is also a big divide between the Rx and Scaled movements and weights.
The reason for this divide is the same as the reason for movements getting progressively more difficult in previous years’ WODs: to force you to push yourself. As many of you discovered in 17.5, you are capable of handling more weight than you thought. How many of you surprised yourselves with double unders? How many got your first chest to bar pull-up, or did your first workout with toes to bar? How many of you improved on your 17.4 performance from last year?That extra push that helped you get those PRs, the community that cheered you on through your last grueling reps, THOSE are the reasons for doing the Open. Celebrate your achievements!
Examining each WOD individually is also a good way to figure out what you need to work on for next year. Was it toes to bar that prevented you from doing 17.2 as prescribed? Did you get to the bar muscle ups and stall? Did you get to a snatch weight in 17.3 and fail to lift it? Was it the chest to bar pull-ups that made you scale? Did the double unders trip you up in 17.5? These questions are simple and give you straightforward answers as to what you need to work on.
If you had whole workouts go to crap, you may need to dig a little deeper. If your DB snatches were light but you failed to finish 17.1, chances are your motor needs work. If you struggled with 17.4 even though each individual component was not particularly challenging, you need to practice long sets of movements, rather than just doing lots of rounds of low reps. (If you’re like me, you need to work on all of this!) Figure it out, work on your weaknesses, and come back fitter for next year. Just make sure you keep things in perspective and take the time to celebrate your victories along the way!