Are You All In? Communicating the Value of Competition to Your CrossFit Members

While out for coffee with a few of your members, one of them pulls up your gym’s app and glances at tomorrow’s workout — a 5K — and their demeanor instantly shifts. “I’ll just run it on my own,” they say, already crafting excuses about the cold morning and empty treadmills in their gym at work. But before their solo plans take root, you interject with unwavering certainty: “You’re doing it at the gym!”

Despite their protests about convenience, predicted poor performance, and indifference to competition, you help them see beyond the temporary discomfort to the lasting value of showing up to do it with the group. The following day at 6:15 a.m., as the last runner crosses the imaginary finish line and everyone stretches on the floor, you’re reminded why defending these moments of shared challenge matters and the five reasons competition and accountability are so valuable for your members. They:

#1 – Make Them Work Harder

In the quiet moments right before a workout, you can almost hear athletes negotiating with themselves about how hard they’ll push today. But watch what happens once you yell, “3, 2, 1 … go!” during the Open — suddenly, it’s full send. That athlete who typically drops from the pull-up bar at the first sign of fatigue now grinds out 3 more reps. The one who habitually and excessively scales their weight now reaches for the heavier barbell.

This isn’t just about ego or winning — it’s about competition unlocking the essence of CrossFit’s methodology: intensity and accountability. In the presence of peers and performance metrics, athletes naturally find their red line. They find a little more in the tank, realize they can get by with a little less rest, and find that extra gear that surprises the hell out of them.

What’s fascinating is how this competitive intensity rewrites their understanding of “hard.” The athlete who discovers they can sustain a blistering pace during the Open workouts brings that new standard back to regular classes. The one who survived Murph alongside their community now approaches every workout with a deeper reservoir of grit. Competition can serve as both a catalyst and a teacher, showing athletes what intensity feels like and how much more they’re capable of when they choose to play along.

#2 – Help Them Build Connections

Amid shared suffering, CrossFit helps forge connections that go beyond ordinary gym buddies. Consider what happens during a partner workout: Two people who’ve barely exchanged words before suddenly strategize, encourage, and push each other beyond their comfort zones. Something special happens when people struggle together through that final round of thrusters or share knowing glances when Fran appears on the whiteboard.

These moments of collective challenge create that special sauce we all feel when we walk into a CrossFit gym. We see athletes grind through their last few reps not just for themselves but for their community. And the cheers they can hear through the gym aren’t just noise — it’s the voices of people who understand their struggle because they’ve been there, too. These shared experiences build relationships rooted in vulnerability and respect. The member who sees another fight through their first muscle-up, who knows exactly how hard they worked for that pull-up, who understands their journey because they’re on their own becomes more than just another face at the gym. They become part of their story and support system that makes showing up every day so meaningful.

#3 – Show Them What They’re Capable Of

Competition reveals what hours of daily practice often conceal. In the comfortable rhythms of daily training, athletes often settle into their perceived limits — a familiar row pace, a predictable weight on the barbell, a known threshold of discomfort. But something electric happens when you add the elements of competition and accountability: the clock becomes more than just time, the barbell more than weight, and the workout more than movement.

Watch an athlete in a regular class complete a workout, then watch them tackle the same workout during the CrossFit Open. Suddenly, they’re lifting weights they swore were impossible, pushing through the pain they would have yielded to before, and discovering reserves of strength they didn’t know existed. This is the power of community expectations, shared suffering, and the itch to discover their capabilities.

#4 – Give Them a New North Star

Competition is a powerful reality check, revealing strengths, weaknesses, and the next challenge to tackle. Watching others excel — whether in muscle-ups, thrusters, or endurance — helps athletes sharpen their focus and reset their goals. Suddenly, the clean and jerk feels like a challenge to conquer, and machine work gets the attention it deserves. This shift transforms vague ambitions into concrete targets, turning each class into a game they can play to improve their skills and fitness. Competition doesn’t just show athletes where they are — it shows them where they could be and fuels the drive to close the gap.

#5 – Have a Ripple Effect

When an athlete finds courage in competition, the impact reaches far beyond the gym. A PR on a heavy lift isn’t just strength — it’s a mindset shift that carries into work, family, and daily life. The executive who embraces discomfort in Murph faces boardroom challenges with resilience, the parent who conquers that 5K models perseverance for their kids, and the teacher who holds their own in a tough workout brings newfound confidence to the classroom. One breakthrough inspires another, proving what’s possible. CrossFit competition doesn’t just build better athletes — it forges stronger, healthier, and bolder humans.

The CrossFit Open is an amazing and sometimes life-changing gift — an opportunity for athletes to show up, push their limits, and redefine what’s possible. While affiliate owners and coaches like you have to handle the planning, constant questions, craziness, and logistics of the Open season, athletes get to just work out and reap the rewards — growth, PRs, surprises, friendships, and a new benchmark for progress. By reinforcing the value of competition and accountability year-round, you help them achieve more during everyday workouts AND in the Open — not just on the gym floor, but in life.

Are you and your gym all in for the 2025 CrossFit Open?

If you have a newsletter and would like to adapt this article for your members to get them even more excited for the Open, feel free to do so.

about the author

Eric O’Connor is a Content Developer and Seminar Staff Flowmaster for CrossFit’s Education Department and the co-creator of the former CrossFit Competitor’s Course. He has led over 400 seminars and has more than a decade of experience coaching at a CrossFit affiliate. He is a Certified CrossFit Coach (CF-L4), a former Division 1 collegiate wrestler, and a former CrossFit Games athlete.