Our members dedication to their fitness and progress made this year, is truly inspiring. The good habits, that took a knock in 2021 and 2022, from the lockdowns are now well and truly back on track. The positivity, welcoming, friendly competition and constant support from members and coaches makes Saxon a brilliant place to be.
Here’s a few, from the many highlights, of 2023:
January
In January Saxon launched the well-received Goal Setting package. Members were able to sign up for a bespoke programme with the Coaches and embark on their own personal journey to improved health and fitness.
Of course, the epic Open was announced in January 2023 with the first workouts being announced on 16th February. What an amazing event this was for Saxon Members.
February
Who remembers the fabulous 70’s Disco workout? What a night to remember. Coach Jordan hosted this fun, groovy event and Mark agreed to be the Roadie, lending his disco lights and smoke machine. The clothes were funky, and the workout was enjoyed by all.
The 16th of February was the day that the first workout of the CrossFit Open was announced. Coach Alex and Sam worked tirelessly to ensure that any member who wanted to sign up felt encouraged and supported. The games began with members asking Coaches to judge their performances. What an epic event this turned out to be.
The 28th of February saw an event geared towards the final workout of the Open. Competitors, Members and family were all invited to support the event.
Coach Steph competed in the Rainhill trials in Manchester and qualified 24th out of 240 of the women and competed in the top tier group. What an epic achievement it was Steph, congratulations.
March
On Saturday 11th March Saxon hosted its first in- house competition of the year. It was a mixed teams of 6 event and was both inclusive and achievable for all members. The epic James Howes was the DJ for this event, and he mixed some brilliant tunes. Coach Sam’s joker rounds added an air of mystery to the event. Thank you, Coach Sam, for an amazing competition.
Coach Alex and Lisa had a special delivery on March 10th of a beautiful daughter named Primrose. Primrose thrived from the minute she was born and continues to develop into the most wonderful little girl, full of giggles and fun.
April
Who can forget the Easter Eggstravaganza on Saturday 8th April! Families and friends were invited to compete in a variety of CrossFit workouts and the weather was perfect for the second year in a row. The Easter egg hunt was a huge success, and many families were able to stock up on chocolate! It was followed by a picnic and a social. It was incredible to see so many Saxon families at this event. Let’s see if we can repeat this fabulous, fun event in April 2024.
Frances gave an amazing performance in the Nobull Open and finished in 12th place in the UK for her age group and 253rd in the world. What a brilliant achievement for this dedicated and inspirational CrossFitter. Let’s see what 2024 brings for this remarkable lady and other members who want to compete.
April also brought with it a Clean Eating Challenge led by Jess Bacon. This was well received, and several members decided to take up the challenge. Participants used each other for support and many recipes were shared. Habits that were formed are still in place for many members.
Thank you, Jess for your great leadership throughout.
May
Katrina and Jemma welcomed May in with a brilliant performance together at the Hyrox 2023 competition in London. Together they completed 8 runs and 8 stations in 1hr and 33 minutes.
The Coaches led the annual Murph which is always a big hit. A great opportunity for members to challenge themselves and find out what progress they had made. What a success it was.
Coach Sam and Louise welcomed a new, beautiful baby into the world. What a gorgeous little girl Dorothy is. She continues to thrive and is such a joy to her parents.
June
Saxon Smashed it in June with the first of several festivals which the Box were invited to.
The members who supported this event were brilliant- chatting with members of the public, explaining what CrossFit is and how they can attend Saxon for a free taster. The competition (how many calories can you burn in 1 minute on either the Ski-erg or the bike-erg) was bustling with people trying to get themselves added to the Leader board.
The day was very busy, and families tried lots of the kit and had fun. A massive thank you to the members who gave their time to support the Box on the day. The event was made possible because of their dedication and support.
Saxon’s once again celebrated the life of a much admired Saxon Member, Vearnon Johnson. This event is known as Big V’s memorial workout. The morning was again designed to reflect key dates and times in his life. Attended by so many members who wanted to remember Vearn and show their support for Lisa and Sharon. The workout was an absolute ‘banger’ in keeping with Vearnon and how inspired many members with his courage and dedication to CrossFit.
The second event that Saxon was invited to attend was the brilliant Morley Festival. The ski-erg was well used by the public and lots of fun followed. The new tear drop flag and gazebo were a big hit.
A huge thank you to the members who supported at this event. You were amazing.
July
Farmegeddon once again arrived in July. This annual family fun day is hosted by Sharon Johnson and is attended by so many Saxon Members. The day was beautifully warm, and the teams had fun. It was finished off with a picnic and a social. A huge thank you to all who helped to organise this and to Sharon for hosting it yet again. Watch this space for next year. The photos were brilliant again.
July also saw another Suffolk Games and what a day it was. Saxon went in force to with 7 teams competing.
With 7 teams competing at the Suffolk Games meant there was at least one team in each heat. All competitors left everything on the comp floor and we couldn’t have been prouder.
Saxons pop Greg’s cherry – 5th
Saxon – 22nd
Saxon Warriors – 39th
Here 4 the beer – 44th
The Beasts – 49th
Sexy Saxons – 63rd
Saxon Bites – 73rd.
August
As we move throughout the year and reflect on the huge number of things that Saxons have achieved, we welcomed the third event that the Box were fortunate to be invited to. Saxon was represented at the Wymondham Abbey Summer Fair. Again, the ski-erg was in use and well used by the public and lots of fun was had.
August also saw the arrival of the brilliant Paul Twyman who hosted two Handstand and Callisthenics workshops. This event was opened to the public and it was fantastic to see so many new faces. Paul’s workshops were a huge success.
September
Following on from the success of Paul’s handstand workshops a new Handstand class was created which was led by Ollie. These classes have continued throughout the Autumn and Winter months. They remain popular.
Also, in September we saw Saxon teaming up with For Time Fitness, a company which specialises in gymnastics merchandise. Members were offered 10% off each order they made.
October
The Suffolk Games mixed pairs event, as with previous competitions was well supported. The Saxon teams were awesome, challenging themselves and going above and beyond. Greg and Jenna finished 4th overall and Jenna PB’d her clean at 65kg
Steph and Maddison competed at RS3 Battle of the East and finished 5th overall. Maddison PB’d her OH squat at 70kg and Steph PB’d her squat clean at 72.5kg.
Amazing work from Saxon members at both competitions. Well done.
Battle Cancer, which takes place at Olympia in London is always brilliantly attended by the Saxon team. This brilliant event raises huge amounts of money for Cancer charities and Saxon is always proud to support it.
This year several teams went to the competition and lots of Saxon spectators. This is a huge event for all and there are Facebook lives’ of the teams on the Members page. They were awesome.
Who can forget the famous, annual SPOOKTACULAR Halloween competition. The CrossFit Box was transformed into a spooky, spider filled haunted venue yet again by some brilliant members who are such an amazing support. The costumes were fabulous, the work outs were excellent and the prizes incredible!
November
November saw the Box host an exciting Hero commemorative challenge,
On Saturday 11th November Saxon CrossFit took part in a brilliant Hero WOD, alongside many other CrossFit Boxes in the Country, in commemoration of Remembrance Day. This Hero WOD was named ‘CHAD’ after an incredibly brave Navy SEAL called Chad Wilkinson.
Sara Wilkinson (Chad’s surviving wife) presented this hero workout in honour of her husband Chad Wilkinson who took his life on October 29, 2018, because of numerous deployments, several TBIs, blast wave injuries, and PTSD. The workout was modelled on his amazing training for an upcoming deployment. When his wife, Sara, spoke at his funeral, she recounted the story about when she walked into the garage to find Chad doing step-ups wearing a weighted backpack. He was training in preparation to climb Aconcagua, the tallest mountain in South America, by doing 1000 step-ups at a time.
In honour of his bravery and sacrifice Saxons were challenged with a 55 Minute 1000 (or as many as possible) Box Step Ups. This event was brilliantly attended by members who wanted to show their respect for both Chad and his wife.
Olli attended the Teens Throwdown in November. He gave an amazing performance and was congratulated by members. Brilliant work Olli, well done.
In November the epic vending machine arrived at the Box. This continues to be popular, and Coaches are making it more and more bespoke to the needs of members as the months go on.
Finally in November a new range of merchandise was announced called the Saxon Archives. These were a limited edition print which complimented the popular Baywatch design from 2017. The design was re-imagined with new colours and the Saxon brand added. This line of merchandise was added just in time for Christmas.
December
As we moved through to December the fun carried on. Coaches Sam and Alex arranged a Super Saturday style competition which carefully incorporated all levels of ability. What a fun time everyone who participated had. Of course, there were festive nibbles available to keep the spirits up.
The Christmas Party, held in the evening, of December 9th was an opportunity for presentations and festive games. This year it was decided to host the party at the CrossFit Box. Members were invited to bring festive goodies to eat and drinks of their choice. What a feast we had. Members were so generous in providing food and it was delicious. The games were fun and had a festive theme with the prizes, once again, being epic!
Several members decorated the Box and turned it into a fun, Christmas wonderland. This is an annual event and whilst some winners are chosen by the coaches the Member of the Year is always voted for by you the members. Congratulations for 2023 go to.
Frances Peters – Member of The Year
Gareth Sims – Most Committed to Training
Chloe Howell and Arturo Santoyo – Most Improved
The Brooks family – Most Committed to the Community
To round off the year the legendary Christmas Eve Burpees was attended by a huge number of members. The fun hour was also attended by CrossFit Silverbeard and the Saxon team were pleased to welcome them. This annual tradition is both popular and festive. Saxons were able to start their Christmas festivities in the sure knowledge that they had given their all on Christmas Eve.