I love traveling and visiting other affiliates across the country. I also love being an affiliate owner and having people from across the country visit us!

As you are traveling to or from here, there are a few things to remember to be a courteous and welcomed visitor.

1. Never show up unannounced. NEVER. make a phone call at least three hours beforeSome affiliates have Visitor registrationand payment on-line. Coaches want to know if a new person will be joining their class that day. They want to know a little bit about you before you show up and they are expected to coach you.
2. Don’t expect them to allow you to attend Open Gym. Many gyms will welcome you will open arms if you want to attend a regular CrossFit class with them. Don’t expect to be able to just show up and use their gym and equipment to do your own thing. You may be a Games level athlete, but the Coaches don’t know you or anything about your abilities. Take the time to enjoy a class at a new affiliate and get to know the people of the community. You are never too good to focus on the basics.
3. Arrive early to meet the coaches and the other members. And you KNOW you are going to have to fill our waivers and liability forms. There is nothing worse than having someone come in right as class is starting and trying to get paperwork filled out and get them warmed up.
4. Expect to pay a Drop In fee Expect to pay. You are using up that affiliate’s time and resources. Remember you are a Drop In Visitor.
5. Scale for yourself according to your abilities. The coaches there won’t know you very well. Now is not the time to show off and attempt an Rx workout if that is beyond your abilities. Err on the side of caution. You may be in a different climate zone or elevation, and trust me, that will affect your workout.
6. Be courteous and respectful. Remember that you are the guest and being their guest is a privilege, not a right. Not every affiliate allows Drop Ins. Don’t  take away from the Members that pay a monthly membership fee to be there every week.
7. Have fun and enjoy yourself! You can learn a lot from visiting other affiliates. New warm ups, new stretches, and new ways of doing things.

Don’t expect freebies

We run a business. be humble and gracious That applies to all areas of life not just visiting CrossFit gyms! If you are extra-courteous and  show flexibility in mind they will certainly appreciate your understanding of their schedule.

Again, this goes back to being respectful. Arrive 10 minutes early and introduce yourself to the coach and get familiar with the gym

This is basic common sense stuff people remember that you are a guest in someone else’s

Contact them! Let the box know you’re coming
There’s nothing worse than having someone gate crash your party uninvited. Same goes for dropping in unannounced at a box—it’s disrespectful to the coach and the athletes at the gym.

The coach wasn’t expecting them and doesn’t know anything about their ability or experience. Don’t be difficult! Most gyms have their drop in policy listed on their website.

let the box know when you’ll be coming, how long you’ve been doing CrossFit and if you have any pre-existing injuries the coach should know about.

Join the class!

One of the best things about CrossFit is the community.

“If you are following your super special competitor programming from home, missing one day of it by throwing down with the mere mortals in the group class isn’t going to make you less fit. “

We get emails all the time asking if people can drop in and just “use our space” to follow their own programming. Nope. Sorry.

You won’t get to experience that if you’re in the corner doing your own thing because you can’t miss a day of your Invictus programming.

We treat everyone that walks through our doors like family. We want to work, suffer, get to know you and sweat it out with you. You might just meet some cool people and discover some things that you never would’ve learned otherwise!

As members visiting other gyms maybe you’ll get a new cue that gets you your first muscle up or just improves something that hasn’t been improved upon in a while. Hearing things said in a different way from another coach can sometimes be just the thing that you need to switch the light on between your ears and drive improvement.

Respect the equipment

Don’t walk in and start throwing bars loaded with 5kg plates around. Ask if you can first! Believe it or not, many gyms in Europe don’t allow bars to be dropped due to being in close proximity to others. When in doubt look around and see what others are doing or just ask!

Check Your Ego at the Door

https://breakingmuscle.com/fitness/the-crossfit-l1-cert-doesnt-make-you-a-coach

Please check your ego at the door. You’re going to be first in workouts – and last.

Allowing athletes to break down their barbells and do their own thing, or leave early skipping out on skill work, dilutes the cohesiveness of the class and the community.