The Crossfit Open 2018- What Are Your Goals And Is Your Nutrition In Line With Them?
If you are like most of us, you want to participate, see how far you can push yourself each week and challenge yourself so that you can see how far you have come in your fitness this year. Even if you aren’t advancing past the Open, it’s crucial you are fueling and recovering properly!
A Few things to AVOID:
Now is NOT the time to try and “lean down” or lose those couple extra pounds! All this will do is deplete energy and under recover you! If you are periodizing your nutrition properly, you should have already gone through the phase in order to achieve those “leaner” results and should now be ramping up to kill it in the Open.
Now is NOT the time to “clean up” your diet, this will usually result in cutting down on calories which will result in suddenly being underfueled during the most intense 5 weeks of the year!
Now IS NOT the time to try new supplements, foods or nutrition protocols. Although in the long run some of those changes could ultimately be a good thing, changing things up can take your body some adjusting and could temporarily make you feel less-than-ideal during performance.
A few things you SHOULD do:
You SHOULD prioritze your fuel. The days leading up to your workout are going to set you up for success. Make sure you are getting appropriate calories and macronutrient balance so you can perform your best! There is a common misconception that during the Open you should lean down, therefore cut back on calories, but the days and weeks leading up to it should be a time where you are feeding your body the fuel it needs to perform at it’s peak (unless of coarse you are peaking for Regionals or the Games), this means more food is actually needed, especially in the form of carbs!
You SHOULD prioritize your recovery. Crossfit is a glycolitic sport, which means it’s fueled by carbs. When we go 110% in Open workouts, we are depleting glycogen, spiking cortisol and it is crucial we replenish those stores and bring the stress on our body back down. Making sure you have a proper post workout shake and/or post workout meal is crucial for recovery. The days following are important to make sure recovery continues, more calories may be needed then as well. If you are redoing workouts, achieving proper fuel and recovery can be even more challenging, so making sure you are taking the proper steps will ensure longevity over 5 weeks. Each time you do a workout, you go deeper into a recovery dept, don’t set yourself back each week by skipping proper post workout protocol!
You SHOULD priotize sleep and water intake. It all comes back to recovery! If sleep isn’t solid then recovery won’t be optimized, if recovery isnt optimized than there will be increased stress on the body. This can do some nasty things to your body over 5 weeks of all-out workouts. Water will help with hydration, muscle sorenss and energy levels.
You SHOULD have fun! This time of year should be fun. No matter what your score, remember what it’s all about! Testing your abilities, fitness and participating in the camaraderie in your gym and across the world is what makes the Open unique to any other sport.
Your nutrition SHOULD be periodized througout the year and should set you up to head into the Open in an ideal place. If you are unsure of how to periodize your nutrition or how to make sure you are fueling and recovering properly for the Open, we are your girls!
Contact us if you need guidance through the Open or if you want coaching on periodizing your nutrition going into the next season. Now is the time to care for your body and make sure you treat it right these next 5 weeks, then it’s time to set yourself up in an even better place in 2018!!
Wishing you all the fun in this Crossfit Open,
Katy
