The training of any sportsperson goes through phases of stress and adaptation which will dictate what they do on any given day, and it’s no different for CrossFit athletes.
For the group I spoke to, and many others like them, the off-season is all about working on weaknesses. Then, they ramp up the intensity of their sessions as competitions like the semi-finals (May-June) and CrossFit Games (July-August) approach.
“For me, the off-season would start straight after the CrossFit Games,” says McQuaid. “So, winding it back to last season, there was a big emphasis for me on gaining a little bit more muscle mass and strength—that was the focus.
“Most years, we’ll pick an area that needs attention. In the past it’s been engine and capacity. Last year my sole focus was building strength and mass, so I had to massively reduce my training intensity and volume.
“It was a big change for me personally, but I think every individual has a different focus in the off-season, then start to build [for competitions] from January.”
Games athlete Emma Tall, on the other hand, says her training volume tends to stay fairly consistent throughout the year. “It’s more what’s in there that changes,” she tells me.
Aniol Ekai, meanwhile, says it’s the intensity of his sessions that switches, with his coach ramping up the duration of, and effort required for, his workouts as competition time approaches.
Fiebig, on the other hand, says he’s going to take a leaf out of McQuaid’s book and introduce an off-season after the 2023 CrossFit Games.
“I will learn from Emma because I had no off-season last year,” he says. “I went straight after the Games to another competition and then the next competition, then it was February again and time for the next CrossFit Open. This year I will do an off-season.”