- Cheer for the last man standing (and stick around for the cool down)
Nothing helps me out more on a tough WOD than having someone stand beside me, telling me to pick up the bar when I don’t want to. If you finish your WOD before others, help them get to the end by cheering them on, counting their reps and joining them on their final run. This camaraderie is really what makes CrossFit so great, and the push and the support is what gets results. If you don’t have to race off for work, wait for everyone to finish before you put your equipment away and then join in for the cool down.
- Put your stuff away
If you use it, put it back where you found it. We’ve even made it easier for you guys by putting up labels. It is so much simpler to find a pair of dumbbells when they are neatly stacked, rather than a scattered mess.
- Don’t drop empty bars (or 10lb plates. Or kettlebells. Or dumbbells)
This is how equipment gets damaged. Barbells are not cheap, so respect the equipment. This includes holding the bar so it doesn’t crash to the ground when you remove plates.
- Wipe up your sweat angel
When you’re wiping down your equipment, remember the floor too. Gyms are not the most sanitary of places, but we can all make it a little better by cleaning up our DNA.
- Chalk in the bucket
Please use the chalk, but make sure you shake off any excess in the bucket and avoid ‘making it snow’. Chalk handprints on the ground? Please wipe them up.
- Pay attention
Even if you’ve been here for 3 years and your technique is spot on, the person beside you may still not know the difference between a clean and a snatch. Respect your fellow members and coaches by listening. Technique is a lifelong endeavour and we must constantly strive to refine it, so listen up and you might pick up on a new tweak or tip that you could benefit from.
- Don’t cheat
Count your reps, and if you lose count, the next number is 1. If you don’t achieve full range of motion, no rep yourself. We write our scores up on the whiteboard to encourage friendly competition and to track improvement over time. When you cheat on reps, it is unfair on others and you end up cheating yourself of results.
- Say hi to new members
Walking into a CrossFit gym can be pretty intimidating to newcomers. Introduce yourself to new faces and make them feel welcome. We’re all in this together, so get to know one another. Some of my best friendships have been formed at CrossFit. As a bonus, fellow CrossFitters will talk about CrossFit with you to your heart’s content.
- Be on time
When you walk in late it interrupts the flow of the class and you miss out on a proper warm up. The warm up is crucial to your performance and safety, and it is designed to get you ready for the workout. The mobility, activation and stability work we do is incredibly important to get you moving at full range of motion with good mechanics. Plus it’s just annoying for your coach and members to have to repeat what we are doing as people trickle in.
- If it hurts in a bad way, stop
If something doesn’t feel right, stop. Talk to your coach, tell them what you are feeling and chances are, it’s a simple fix. Only you know how you feel. The reality is certain movements just don’t work for some people. That is okay. Either we modify, or we sub in something different. You’ll never see me run in a workout because of an old knee injury. I’ll be on the bike, rowing or jumping rope instead. Our job is to make the same WOD work for a diverse group of people, and we do so by scaling and modifying.
- Respect personal space
If someone is back squatting, don’t walk directly behind them. If someone is going for a heavy snatch, don’t walk into their line of vision. It’s dangerous and it’s distracting.
- Check your ego
Be humble. No one cares what score you write on the whiteboard. First or last, all that matters is you demonstrate integrity. This means not sacrificing form for speed, scaling appropriately, supporting other members and being honest. Listen when you are advised to slow down and don’t get offended if your coach tells you to go lighter. It is great to ring the PR bell and it’s totally okay to boast about your achievements, but people will only cheer if you are a nice person. Not if you’re that guy that refuses to take advice or throws a tantrum because he didn’t get a faster Fran time.
