Every rep counts, keep moving, onlookers yelled as a competitor in the Reebok CrossFit Open wrapped up the last 10 seconds of his workout.
During a course of five weeks athletes all over the world have competed in the Open to qualify for regionals. Once a week a judge and the competitor will complete a world-wide assigned AMRAP (as many rounds as possible) workout at their home gym consisting of weight lifting, running and gymnastics. In a set rhythm the competitor has to finish as many rounds as possible in the allotted time. Results are submitted online and are ranked among other competitors in the region. The Top 48 in the region will be chosen to go on the regionals competition.
Kevin White of CrossFit ATM said CrossFit represents a new brand of fitness.
Its a completely different way of working out, White said. Theres always a new challenge to it and you can always improve at it.
The games last for four months out of the year. An athlete must register and qualify to compete in the games. CrossFit nonetheless is a year-round sport that is available for personal training and gain. The athlete will instead complete a WOD (workout of the day) versus an AMRAP.
College Station has five CrossFit-affiliated gyms participating in the Open: BodyLab CrossFit, CrossFit 979, CrossFit ATM, Boom Fit and CrossFit Aggieland.
CrossFit Aggieland is a new gym, having opened its door a month ago, and has 13 members participating in the Open.
Football is the closest workout to this, said Seth McKinney, owner of CrossFit Aggieland and former NFL player. Its fun but always a hard workout. Almost everyone who comes in here to try it out comes back. Its that effective.
CrossFit is a military-based workout in which any age can participate, Seth said. It was created to fill a void because no other true fitness test existed, according to the CrossFit games website.
I have muscle where I didnt, said Paige McKinney, another owner of the CrossFit Aggieland and a three-year veteran to the sport. Its so much fun. You come and work out in a group and its different every time.
Matt Murski, owner of BodyLab CrossFit, said CrossFits versatility helps it stand out.
CrossFit is the sport of everything and its unique because its all about the individual, Murski said. We can be specific to peoples needs.
According to the CrossFit games website, in 2007 the first games gathered 70 athletes in northern California, the following year the participants more than quadrupled to 300 athletes.
CrossFit has grown exponentially over the years, said Megan Wilson, a coach and judge for CrossFit ATM. Last year there were 600 to 700 women competing, and this year that number has doubled and for men has tripled.
Boom Fit, another CrossFit affiliate in College Station, has 50 athletes registered to compete in the Open this year. The athletes work out every week and do their AMRAP workouts on Thursday nights from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. People from all different age groups compete.
Last year we qualified for regionals and placed 11th in the South Central region, said Austin Long, Class of 2012. We are the best team in College Station, thats for sure.
BodyLab CrossFit is the oldest CrossFit affiliate in College Station. Murski opened the gym in 2006 after holding his first session of 40 clients in his garage. Satisfying his growing clientele and the popularity of the sport, he opened a gym on South College with a clientele standing just less than 400 members ranging from seven years old to 87 years old. In this years Open, the gym has about 100 members participating. While the Open just began, the workouts and mentality of the athletes have not changed.
Nothing has changed with the Open, Murski said. They are just doing a national workout to determine certain rankings in the region.
Murski and his partner Laurah Hawkins are the only ones in the area who have been to the CrossFit games. They both represented themselves in the 2008 games and even had a documentary, Every Second Counts, made on them. Passionate about the sport and the results, they are determined to train their athletes to the best of their ability. They incorporate nutrition and have built a business, Eatology: Paleo-Zone, to meet this demand.
We want to build the best you ever, Murski said. We want to turn all your weaknesses into strengths.
The journey through this fitness test consists of three stages: the Open, Regionals and the Games. The five-week Open will determine the top 48 athletes in 17 regions. Regionals, the second stage is a three-day live competition and will qualify the remaining 100 athletes of the fittest men and women for the CrossFit Games.
Each athlete is scored on the number of reps completed in each round. Form has to be precise in order for the rep to count. Every round is different and involves different exercises and rhythms. The winner of both the female and male division will each be awarded $250,000.
Theyre out to see whos the fittest in the World, Long said.