How To Get the Most Out of Your Everyday CrossFit Athletes

Our job as coaches is to get the most out of our everyday athletes. But what does that look like? How do we stay consistent with everyone? What does the best hour of an athlete’s day look and feel like? Over the years, I’ve learned to double-click on the following six ways to get the most out of my athletes.

#1 – Make Personal Connections

As coaches, we need to forge personal bonds with each athlete. This is not just a task; it’s a commitment we make to our athletes, a commitment to understand their why, what makes them tick, and what they do outside the gym. These personal connections are the foundation of our coaching, allowing us to empathize with their journey and support their goals.

Making personal connections can be challenging in a group class environment, but it’s not impossible. Having an intentional plan for how you will achieve this is necessary. Set a goal to have a quick personal conversation with one or two athletes in each class. This chat can occur as they enter the facility, during the warm-up, or the cool-down. These personal conversations are not just a formality but a way to show our commitment to our athletes and our engagement in their journey.

#2 – Motivate Appropriately for Their Style

We want to create a positive environment by giving our athletes 100% of our energy each day. Coaches should be motivating and engaged to their full potential, even on their most challenging days and regardless of the class time. If we can motivate an everyday athlete who sometimes struggles to get a lift or complete an exercise while continuing to work through it, they will return for more. Like us, they will learn to build a never-quit attitude.

Motivating your athletes does not mean you need to become a cheerleader; however, you can be conscious of giving positive verbal feedback for improvements in mechanics and appropriately managing their threshold at each class. Maybe you even acknowledge some of the specific improvements you have seen with them due to their consistency. This type of feedback and input can motivate athletes and even help them realize you are keeping track of their performance. 

#3 – Understand Their Goals

As coaches, it’s not just about understanding each athlete’s focus but also about empathizing with their long-term goals as they relate to their lifestyle. Whether it’s the ability to lift their child, play a sport, help their elderly parents, or just feel more confident, it’s our responsibility to understand and support them. This understanding helps us provide the personalized support and motivation each athlete needs.

Understanding goals can be part of your initial on-ramp sessions or during quick conversations before and after workouts. I know of many affiliates that have succeeded by having athletes write a goal on a whiteboard for everyone to see. When the goal is achieved, it gets crossed off, and everyone notices the athlete’s success. You might even want to get a PR bell people get to ring when they crush their whiteboard goal.

#4 – Challenge Their Limits

Mindset is crucial when working toward a goal. I focus on challenging my athletes to push beyond their limits, often shocking themselves with their capabilities. If they come every day, do the beginner workouts, yet see the same results, it’s our job to push them to do a little bit more. This constant push for more challenges them physically and mentally, promoting growth and development.

The CrossFit Level 1 Certificate Course talks about threshold training as a means to provide the appropriate challenges to your athletes. There will be times when they need to increase or decrease speed, increase or decrease the load, etc., based upon how their mechanics are and if they will achieve the intended stimulus of the workout. With athletes who are understandably nervous about new challenges, help them make the most minor increases possible. Ask them if they are cool with the challenge, and let them know they have earned it and you are comfortable with their performance and safety. You may even need to tell them they will plateau if they don’t start to push the envelope a little.

#5 – Tap Into Their Competitive Edge

Most people who have chosen CrossFit have a competitive spark within them. Therefore, I treat everyday athletes as I would professional athletes. Individuals want to be valued, see success over time, and be part of a professional team. Here are some of the tools I use to meet them where they are:

• Acknowledge everyone when they walk in the doors, no matter how busy you may be.
• Always be positive, smile, and use names.
• Have a plan for every class. Know the timeline and specific details for each section of the class.
• Set all the equipment up before every class so there is a systematic process and flow to the class. 
• As athletes move through all portions of class:
  • Provide small cues.
  • Observe the movements and make corrections.
  • Hold them to the standard.
  • Provide alternative movements when necessary.
  • Keep the energy high.
  • Provide motivation.
  • Say each person’s name at least three times throughout class.

• Create a culture of positivity and celebrate all successes. 
• Create a culture where improvement is expected — my coaching included.

#6 – Ask for Feedback

How do we know if we’re meeting our athletes’ expectations? Are we basing this solely on their performance, weekly or monthly attendance, or comments and confidence when they enter and exit each day?

As a coach, I provide two to five minutes each week for our athletes to give me feedback on my performance. I give each of them time to let me know how I am doing. I always ask for three things they appreciate about my coaching (sustains) and three areas where I can improve (improvements). This feedback is not just a formality but a crucial tool that helps me provide the best professional environment to ensure they reach their goals. At the end of each month, I ask that they complete a quick survey to provide additional feedback on their likes and dislikes. Being a humble coach is essential. We must remember we provide a service and we need to give our best daily.

about the author

With over 20 years of military service, and a background as a professional soccer player and USA Military Soccer athlete, Jeremy Dornbusch discovered CrossFit in 2009 during a deployment to Afghanistan. Since then, he’s competed in local CrossFit competitions across the U.S. and is currently training for the Oslo Throwdown in Norway in October 2024. A CrossFit Open participant since 2012, Dornbusch advanced to Quarterfinals for the first time this year. He holds a CrossFit Level 2 Certificate and is currently pursuing his CF-L3. Through CrossFit, he has maintained elite fitness despite multiple knee surgeries, and he continues to educate himself to better support athletes in achieving their goals.