7 Best Habits of Successful CrossFit Athletes

There is no secret to becoming a powerful athlete, but there are a few things you can learn from others. Here are the 7 best habits of successful CrossFit athletes.

While for many pressure presents a threat they are trying to avoid, for the successful athletes, it simply means enhanced concentration, motivation and enjoyment of the road to the CrossFit goals they set for themselves.

So what are the habits you need to develop in order to climb up all the way up to the peak of your ‘success mountain’? Take a look:

7 Habits of Successful CrossFit Athletes

1. A healthy athlete is a successful athlete.

Although performance and WOD scores are the ultimate goal of every competitive CrossFit athlete, health should be a huge priority. You can’t improve if you keep getting injured. Even small injuries bring setbacks, slower progress and weaknesses that in a sport as diverse as functional fitness, can lead to a decrease performance output and lower overall results. I’d like to argument this fact with a quote from Andrea Massi (famous coach to a 2-time Sochi Olympic gold medallist in alpine skiing Tina Maze):

‘Training should be designed in a way that even professional athletes can finish their career healthy.’

2. They listen to their coaches.

Trust is a virtue that needs to develop in any coach – competitor relationship. As an athlete you have to realize that a coach can evaluate your current state and performance much more objectively, because their opinion is not fuelled with emotional triggers that often lead us to over-do things. The best CrossFit athletes trust their coaches and follow their programme without ego-driven opinions.

Source: High Intensity Photography

3. Never a failure, always a lesson.

They don’t fail. They make mistakes. And mistakes are what drive their effort for improvement. You can’t progress if you don’t stumble from time to time and learn a lesson from it. The best CrossFit athletes know how to overcome heavy emotions from not fulfilling their expectations. They use them as a fuel to work smarter and come back stronger.

Related: As the Open ends: Dealing with setbacks for future progress

4. They know success doesn’t come by being lucky.

Instead they develop years-long commitment and discipline to consistency. This is a virtue that guides them through years of training and leads them on top of the podium. They are whole-heartedly committed to the goals they set for themselves and are willing to get up and train, even on days when they don’t want to. If their coach’s training plan says so, then they are in the Box.

5. They believe – Habits of Successful CrossFit Athletes

…In themselves even when nobody else does. You never know what will the WODs be like, how you will feel on a certain day, how mentally tough you’ll be… But the best athletes find a way to work through these insecurities by believing they can. It’s called having faith.

6. It’s about the journey, not the destination.

The reason why they can believe it is so hard is because for them, CrossFit is a journey and is fueled by the passion they have for it. Sometimes this road is long and bumpy, and it’s definitely never easy, but it’s always worth it. At the end of the day, what the most successful athletes are really thankful for is the everyday opportunity to do the sport they love.

7. They posses a fighting spirit.

They are fighters. Not complainers. Simple as that.

Read More: Unable to RX Your WODs? Try This 30-Day CrossFit Skill Challenge