“Hey, Masters and CrossFitters over the age of 35,” opens the first episode of CrossFit’s new online show. “I’m Rory McKernan, and this is your show.”
The new show doesn’t appear to have a name yet — it’s just titled “New Show For Athletes 35 and Up” — but CrossFit HQ has launched a new program aimed at their slightly older contingent. The first CrossFit Games to include a Master’s category was in 2010, and last year over 158,000 of the athletes that competed in the CrossFit Open were over 35 years old.
[One of our favorite videos from McKernan is the time he showed us what happens when you drop a 135-pound kettlebell on concrete.]
CrossFit HQ has been doing a solid job of including these participants in the sport, including launching a division just for those aged 35 to 39 last year. (This decision brought Chris Spealler out of retirement, though the age group was ultimately won by Kyle Kasperbauer and Stephanie Roy.)
The first episode of the show, hosted by CrossFit, Inc.’s television host and producer Rory McKernan, is largely a collection of shoutouts for athletes in the CrossFit Masters Facebook group. He first celebrates a 43-year-old female athlete’s squat double of 231 pounds, which he notes was the 1-rep max of many female athletes who competed in the 40- to 44-year-old age group at last year’s Reebok CrossFit Games.
The highlights finish with a strict bar muscle-up from 53-year-old Magnus Nirell and a link to their playlist of several videos featuring Master’s athletes, including this one focusing on Lucie Hobart entitled “Fit at 56.”
[Nutrition needs also change as we get older. Here are 4 nutrients that are extra important for athletes over 50.]
Although CrossFit does a lot of work encouraging athletes over 35 to get involved with the sport, it’s a smart move to create a video series dedicated to popularizing the movement. McKernon ends the show by asking viewers what they would like to see from a video series focusing on the 35+ age group. How would you answer?
Featured image via @chrisspealler on Instagram.