Every year 40 men, 40 women and 40 teams contest the Asia-Pacific Regionals in. From there, the top five men, five women, and five teams qualify for the CrossFit Games. The workout challenges they face are only revealed to contestants on the day of competition. How to prepare for such a crucial showdown? We asked former Australian champions, Kara Webb and Rob Forte, to share some of the secrets of their competitive success.

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PREP

Kara: “I usually travel to Wollongong on the Thursday morning so I have a whole day to shop for and prepare my food and settle in for a good night’s sleep. It also means I’m not too far away from home for too long.”

Rob: “The last three years I’ve arrived the day before, but this year I’m going an extra day  early. I just want to make sure I’m fully organised, make sure I’ve got everything prepped and ready to go with my food and getting the right amount of sleep.”

TAPER

Kara: “I do gradually taper down in the couple of weeks before competition, but I still maintain a strong training routine. The week of the competition looks a little different: I focus on activation and keeping a healthy body that isn’t overtrained for the big weekend. I have heaps of active recovery in that week and gentle treatment a few days before.”

Rob: “Two weeks out I back my training right off, and then I go even lighter in the week leading up. For a Friday competition, I’ll maybe do a little bit of heavy lifting on Monday, but back off again on Tuesday and only get the heart-rate up. Wednesday I get the heart-rate up, then Thursday complete rest. Friday I’m ready to go.”

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DOWN TIME

Kara: “Every year slightly changes with what I do. I always spend a big chunk of time cooling down properly; then, as soon as possible, I leave the stadium and go back to the hotel with my hubby where I change into normal clothes, eat, and try to do nothing. We usually put on a light-hearted movie or play games on my phone. Whatever it is, I search for separation from competition. You can’t be ‘on’ the whole time or you burn out. It’s important to find something that allows you to switch off.”

Rob: “You have to try and get away from the actual event itself. If you’re around it all day it can get pretty draining and tiring. So you get  into your hotel room and maybe watch a movie  or something so you can switch off. Then, when you’re just about to go again, give yourself time to get fired up again.”

FINAL ADVICE

Kara: “Prepare yourself mentally, familiarise yourself with the rep schemes and the plan,  plan your food, plan your clothes, and most importantly plan how you’re going to manage upsets and successes. Be ready for anything.”

Rob: “Definitely focus on what you need to do. Come up with a plan. For all the events, work out exactly what you need to do and when. Really work it out in your head. And then fire up when it’s time to fire up.”