CrossFit Coaches Post-Open Chat: Key Takeaways and What to Expect at Quarterfinals

The 2026 CrossFit Open is in the books — and there's a lot to unpack. In this conversation, Eric O'Connor, Nicole Christensen, and Denise Thomas break down the programming, the community moments that made this year's Open special, and what coaches and affiliate owners should be thinking about as Quarterfinals approach. Open programming breakdown: Was it too much squatting? Not varied enough? The coaches dig into the movement patterns, time domains, and metabolic demands across all three workouts — and make the case for why the programming did exactly what it was designed to do. The psychology of the redo: What drives athletes to go back for a second attempt — and what can coaches learn from those decisions? The group shares personal redo stories and explores why the psychological challenge of the Open is one of its most underrated features. Community highlights from the affiliate floor: From a 14-year-old and a 79-year-old competing side by side to spontaneous judging moments and athletes hitting movement milestones for the first time, this year's Open delivered on its promise of inclusivity. Affiliate strategies for Quarterfinals: Nicole shares how CrossFit Roots is structuring the Quarterfinals — from group-class heat formats to dedicated time slots for athletes who need to film their workouts — and why every affiliate owes it to their qualifying athletes to support them through this next phase. What to take forward as a coach: Key post-Open reflections for coaches, including tracking athlete breakthroughs, adjusting programming based on what the Open revealed, and the one phrase coaches should stop saying immediately. Subscribe for more conversations built for CrossFit coaches and affiliate owners → https://www.youtube.com/@crossfit Explore CrossFit Certificate Courses → https://www.crossfit.com/certificate-courses #CrossFit #CrossFitCoach #CrossFitOpen #CrossFitQuarterfinals #AffiliateOwner — CrossFit is the world’s leading platform for improving health and performance. In the 20 years since its founding, CrossFit has grown from a garage gym in Santa Cruz, California, into the world’s most effective program for improving health and performance through nutrition and exercise. CrossFit is the world’s leading provider of accredited performance-based training courses and certifications and has more than 125,000 credentialed coaches across the world. The program can be modified to welcome people of all ages and abilities and millions of people have already experienced CrossFit’s transformational benefits in more than 13,000 affiliated gyms across 158 countries. CrossFit also directs the CrossFit Games season, beginning with the annual CrossFit Open, through which athletes at every level compete worldwide, and culminating in the CrossFit Games, where top athletes compete for the title of Fittest on Earth®. Learn more about CrossFit → https://www.crossfit.com/what-is-crossfit/?utm_source=social&utm_medium=youtube&utm_campaign=crossfit Find a CrossFit gym near you → https://www.crossfit.com/map?utm_source=social&utm_medium=youtube&utm_campaign=crossfit Find CrossFit Courses near you → https://www.crossfit.com/courses-near-you?utm_source=social&utm_medium=youtube&utm_campaign=crossfit View CrossFit workouts → https://www.crossfit.com/workout?utm_source=social&utm_medium=youtube&utm_campaign=crossfit Subscribe to CrossFit email newsletters → https://www.crossfit.com/newsletters/?utm_source=social&utm_medium=youtube&utm_campaign=crossfit Learn more about the CrossFit Games → https://cf.games/games-learn-more