Why Doing Open Workouts on Friday and Then Again on Monday Is a Complete Waste of Time

Every year it plays out the same way. Friday night rolls around. The Open workout drops. The gym is buzzing. People stay late, hype is high and everyone sends it. You finish absolutely cooked… then say the magic words:

“I’ll redo it on Monday and clean it up.”

Monday comes. You repeat the exact same workout. Same movements. Same stimulus. Same stress and for most people? Repeating the Open workout on Monday after a Friday throwdown is a massive waste of time and in plenty of cases, it actively hurts your training. If your goal is long term fitness, performance, or simply not feeling broken for the next three weeks, here’s why doing the Open workout once with a solid strategy is more than enough.

1. You’re Throwing Away Prime Training Time

Most people train 4–6 hours per week. Some less.

That means every session matters.

When you repeat the Open workout on Monday after already hitting it hard on Friday, you’re sacrificing an entire training opportunity that could’ve been used for:

• Strength work that actually moves the needle

• Engine development (aerobic base, intervals, thresholds)

• Skill work that always shows up in the Open

• Hypertrophy or accessory work that supports long term progress

  
  

Instead, you double down on the same stimulus you already hit at competition intensity.

Repeating workouts doesn’t create adaptation. Smart variation does. You don’t get fitter by replaying Friday night.

2. Fatigue Doesn’t Reset Over the Weekend

This is where people lie to themselves. “Yes but I had Saturday and Sunday off.”

Cool, but you still didn’t fully recover. Open workouts are:

• High volume

• High intensity

• Neurologically demanding

• Joint and connective tissue heavy

  
  

Even if soreness fades, fatigue sticks around:

• Grip strength stays suppressed

• CNS output is reduced

• Sleep quality is often disrupted

• Minor aches don’t fully settle

  
  

So when you repeat the workout on Monday, you’re not testing peak fitness you’re testing how well you can perform while still fatigued.

That doesn’t build resilience. It just drags down the quality of the rest of your week.

3. Monday Redos Rarely Deliver Big Improvements

Let’s be honest about why people redo workouts on Monday:

They want a better score, but the reality?

• Most people improve by a tiny margin

• Many score exactly the same

• Plenty actually do worse

And when there is improvement, it’s usually because:

• They paced better

• They broke earlier

• They didn’t sprint the first half

That’s not improved fitness. That’s learning the workout. Which leads to the real question…

4. If You Need a Redo, You Didn’t Have a Strategy

A well thought out plan before Friday night eliminates the need for a Monday repeat.

If you:

• Understand your limiter

• Know realistic set sizes

• Decide transitions and breathing ahead of time

• Commit to a sustainable pace

You can hit 95–99% of your best possible score on the first attempt.

That means:

• No emotional attachment to Monday

• No derailed training week

• No chasing reps out of frustration

• No unnecessary fatigue carryover

Elite athletes repeat workouts because a single rep can change careers.

Most people? They just needed to think before starting.

5. Repeating Rewards Poor Decisions, Not Better Fitness

Here’s the uncomfortable truth:

Monday redos often exist to bail out bad Friday choices. Going out too hot. Ignoring pacing advice. Treating Friday like a “tester.”

Redo culture quietly teaches people:

• It’s okay to blow up

• You’ll fix it later

• Execution doesn’t matter the first time

But the Open isn’t meant to test retries. It tests composure, preparation, and execution under pressure.

Repeating workouts removes that lesson entirely.

6. Long Term Progress Suffers for Short Term Validation

Ask yourself this honestly:

Do I want to be fitter in 12 months or slightly higher on the leaderboard this week?

Because repeating Open workouts trades:

• Recovery

• Training consistency

• Strength progress

• Engine development

For:

• A few extra reps

• A marginal placement bump

• A short lived dopamine hit

Fitness doesn’t reward hype cycles. It rewards boring consistency done well.

The Smarter Way to Use the Open

For most people, the best approach is simple:

• Hit the Open workout once, on Friday

• Treat it like a competition effort

• Execute a clear, realistic strategy

• Accept the score

• Get back to normal training on Monday

Use the Open as:

• A benchmark, not a programme

• Feedback, not your identity

• One hard session not the centre of your week

  
  

Final Thought

Repeating Open workouts on Monday doesn’t make you committed. It usually just means you didn’t plan, you don't need three weeks of fatigue derailing long term progress.

Train with intent. Execute once. Recover properly. That’s how you actually get better year after year.