The 2025 CrossFit season starts today with the release of Open workout 25.1.
To bring you tips and strategies for each workout throughout the Open, we’ve assembled a dream team of elite coaches: Matt Torres, John Singleton, Justin Cotler, and Perrin Behr.
They’ve coached podium and multiple-time Games podium athletes like James Sprague, Dallin Pepper, Kari Pearce, Bethany Flores, Alex Gazan, and Ricky Garard.
CrossFit Open Workout 25.1
Scorecards and Descriptions
As many rounds and reps as possible in 15 minutes of:
- 3 lateral burpees over the dumbbell
- 3 dumbbell hang clean-to-overheads
- 30-foot walking lunge (2 x 15 feet)
*After completing each round, add three reps to the burpees and hang clean-to-overheads.
Women: 35-lb (15-kg) dumbbell
Men: 50-lb (22.5-kg) dumbbell
25.1 Tips and Strategies from Elite Coaches
Right after 25.1 was announced, we caught up with coaches Kyle Rolfe, John Singleton, Matt Torres, Perrin Behr and Justin Cotler. Here’s what they said.
Rolfe
Kyle Rolfe, who coaches his wife—last year’s CrossFit Games bronze medalist Emily Rolfe—said the number one thing will be simply to “acknowledge that it’s going to absolutely suck.”
- “Go into the pain cave. Simple as that,” he added.
While the walking lunges are where you can “breathe and recoup,” pushing the pace on the lunges will also be important if you’re an elite athlete.
- “Get through them as quickly as possible to return to the dumbbells,” he offered.
One more tip: Because athletes aren’t required to alternate hands on the dumbbell hang clean-to-overheads, Rolfe expects some might try to “trash one hand” because it’s faster. But he doesn’t recommend this. Instead, he thinks utilizing both hands fairly evenly will be important. For the most part, though, it’s just about “grinding it out” for 15 minutes, he added.
Just for fun: Rolfe predicts Colten Mertens will log the top score for the men, saying he expects Mertens to get into the round of 33.
Singleton
John Singleton, the founder of The Progrm, a training system and training camp that is home to many of Europe’s top CrossFit athletes, offered some tips for each movement.
- Lateral burpees over the dumbbell: “Maintain a steady rhythm without unnecessary bursts of speed. Step down and step up if needed, which can save energy without much time loss. Stay low in the jump to maximize efficiency and minimize extra movement.”
- Dumbbell hangs clean-to-overheads: “Use a jerk instead of a press. For the majority of people, alternating will be a great option. If not every rep, then every three to five to avoid going close to muscle failure. Aim to stay smooth and not rush the movement.”
- Walking lunge: “Pre-plan the number of steps you can comfortably take in the warm-up, then aim to hit this same number each time, even under fatigue.”
Check out more tips from Singleton here.
Torres
Matt Torres, the owner of Brute Strength, who coached last year’s Fittest and Second Fittest Men on Earth, James Sprague and Dallin Pepper, stressed the importance of not going out too hard.
- “Pace is controlled [to] 80 percent. There is no reason to spring until the very end,” he said.
That said, “transitions matter,” he said, as much time can be lost there.
More Tips
- Lateral burpees over the dumbbell: “When you drop, it should be a bent elbow and feeling like you’re flopping on the ground [to save energy],” he said. Further, “step up the burpees to keep a rhythm and hop the burpees on your last round.”
- Dumbbell hangs clean-to-overheads: “Widen your stance. Split the reps [evenly between your left and right hand] as long as possible.”
- Walking lunge: “Wear knee sleeves, but they shouldn’t be tight. Be extra aware while you are lunging; a no-rep can be detrimental. Spin quick at the turnaround and keep moving. Tap the other foot on the ground to help with rhythm for hip extension.”
Behr
Training Think Tank coach Perrin Behr also stressed the importance of finding a “sustainable pace” and “being disciplined in transitions.”
- “Being able to hold a consistent pace from start to finish will be your key to success in this workout. The ascending rep count can pull you into a faster cadence that will be difficult to hold during denser sets late in the workout. Think about a pace you could sustain at the 10-minute mark, and that is where you want to start,” said Behr, who coaches Games veteran Bethany Flores.
She said this pacing will be especially important on the burpees, as most of your time will be spent there.
- “Mismanaging your pacing early on could lead to trouble in the back half of the workout. Maintaining a consistent and efficient technique while minimizing the distance traveled by staying close to the dumbbell will cut down on valuable seconds per rep,” she explained.
About transitions, Behr added: “There are a lot of transitions in this workout, especially early on. Be mindful of the direction in which you’re moving between movements. Practicing the transitions during your warm-up can help you stay disciplined deep into the workout.”
Cotler
Finally, Underdog Athletics founder and Alex Gazan’s coach Justin Cotler suggested taking the time in warm-up to figure out how long each movement will take you, at a repeatable pace.
After that, determine what’s best for you in each workout section.
Consider
- Is it better to alternate arms on the dumbbell hang clean-to-overheads?
- Is it better for you to step up on the burpees or jump up with both feet together?
- How many steps will it take you to complete the 30-foot lunge?
Determine your individual plan and then “basically shut your brain off and just go for 15 minutes,” Cotler said.
He added: “And finally. Don’t start out too hot. That’s the biggest mistake you can make during this workout. Controlled aggression is key and will result in a solid result. Be tough and have fun.”
Featured image: @crossfitgames / Instagram
