Are you one of many Cross Fit practitioners who works hard but would like to get a little more from your workouts? You may have been doing Cross Fit for quite some time, and you are beginning to grasp the terms, the techniques, and what it’s all about. You are not a veteran by any means, but like to exercise and to push yourself, completing a variety of stimulating workouts, and setting yourself new fitness challenges?

If this sounds like you, then tune into this post, because we have some tips to help you boost your performance and take your CrossFit training to the next level…

1. Focus On Getting Stronger

Getting stronger is key if you want to be able to lift more weights, improve performance, and build lean muscle mass. It’s important to practice lots of compound movements, such as the clean and press, squats, deadlifts, and pull up variations (muscle ups if you can do them!). CrossFit strength training requires good grip strength. To improve grip strength you can use a wrist roller. Also, you can benefit from a hand joint support brace especially when doing exercises where your grip tends to fail before the working muscles (pull ups, muscle ups, etc). A hand joint support is also ideal if you are recovering from a hand related injury.

The aim with strength training is to make-sure that you are improving as frequently as possible, whether that’s weekly, or monthly, the aim is to keep getting stronger. You should be aiming to lift more weight, or complete more reps, or improve your speed in your current WOD. Aim for constant progression.

2.  Rest

Rest is very underrated BUT extremely important. Most crossfitters want to annihilate their body each and every session, and whilst it’s good to push your body to the limits, it can also lead to fatigue, and injury if you’re not careful. It’s super important to rest and take time off training, even if it’s just 1-2 days rest per week. If you really struggle to take time off, then do less intense workouts 1-2x per week, or spend some time working on your mobility, doing stretches and foam rolling out tight muscles.

Take a holiday every now and then, a week off training – this could be a sunny holiday with your family, or where you go away with friends and blow of some steam with some nice food, and drink, you could get some fun ideas for bachelor parties and spend some quality time with your mates, without feeling guilty about damaging your health. If you spend 48-50 weeks of the year looking after your health and fitness, then 2-4 weeks off each year will not do you any harm, if anything it will enhance your CrossFit training.

3. Mobility

Hopefully you already factor in some mobility training into your weekly crossfit routine? BUT if you don’t…then don’t worry, as long as you start adding it in now, it won’t be too late. Doing mobility work is a MUST – because it will help you to improve your performance, lifting power, and reduce your chances of getting injured.

There are lots of exercises which you can do to improve your mobility. For example you could do lower back twists, floor to ceiling touches, back rolls, and scapula drills. It’s also good to use other mobility instruments, such as a broom stick – great for practicing your overhead squat. Another great piece of equipment are resistance bands – you can use these to open up your shoulder blades, loosen off tight lat muscles, and free up other tight areas of the body.

4. Try Some New Exercises & Workouts

Variety is the spice of life, and it’s important to keep mixing up your workouts. Trying different WODs and new exercises is a great way to keep your body guessing and progressing. For example you could set yourself a goal to be able to perform a muscle up, you can then add in exercises to help you build up to being able to do a full one. For example practicing wide grip pull ups, dips, and working with bands – to help reduce your bodyweight, so that you can slowly build up to being able to do a full body weight muscle up.