Compete From The Comfort Of Your Home

The past week has certainly been a tumultuous one, and the CrossFit community at large has felt the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic through the widespread closures of affiliates, and postponement of events for the foreseeable future. However, in times such as these where it can feel like disorder and panic are in the driver seat, bright spots are developing in response to the restrictions and lifestyle changes in place across the globe.

Making lemonade from lemons: One of the major positives to blossom in the past week has been the CrossFit community’s continued dedication to health and well-being by adapting various training programs to accommodate the growing population of people stuck at home. A handful of organizations are taking that a step further, and “at-home” online competitions are starting to form in order to provide people a much needed competitive distraction.

• The Norwegian CrossFit Championship is hosting a special online competition they’re calling the Norwegian Living Room Throwdown and will feature six workouts across two weeks of competition featuring workouts from Phil Hesketh and Prepared. Programming. The competition is 100% free and some custom prizes have already been announced.
• The Quarantine Online Open is another two-week, six workout online competition hosted through competition corner where participants need minimal equipment. A jump rope and single dumbbell is all that is needed to participate, and there is a scaled and Rx division for both men and women. The cost is minimal — ten dollars Canadian (which is $6.89 USD) — and there are cash prizes for the top three in each division. Winners will also receive three months of nutrition coaching from Married To My Macros.
• The Velites Home Games hosted by Spain-based Velites Sport, is a free online competition that will feature one workout a week for three weeks and includes weekly prize raffles and equipment packages for the winners of each workout. The competition includes support from some major players in Europe like WIT Fitness, and Fittest Freakest.
• Grey Matter Strength is hosting an online competition called the Virtual In-(your) House Competition. The workout will span four days, and include five workouts that do not require any equipment. The overall winner will receive a complete prize package, and male and female winners will receive a Grey Matter Strength prize package including a complimentary month of Grey Matter Strength Competitors Programming.

Our takeaway: We’ve seen a ton of people in the community step up to the plate to help others, and typically in times of chaos or disarray, sports act as a welcomed diversion from the issues that plague us at the moment. Unfortunately, the sports world is equally being held captive by this pandemic, as nearly every major sports league has suspended play. These online competitions are just a handful of ways that the CrossFit community is taking command of their situation, and we hope that more things like this continue to spring up.