Back to the Games: Joey Warren

June 28, 2012

John Bourgeois

Warren's mantra this year is, "Train hard, have fun and stay within myself."


Nothing went as planned for Joey Warren at this year’s Northern California Regional. After a disappointing 2011 Regional, falling just one spot shy of a return to the Games, Warren made some changes to his preparation.

Although excited to be returning to his third CrossFit Games, he says Regionals wasn’t what he expected. “Not one of the workouts went as planned.” 

As the weekend progressed and his times weren’t what he was shooting for, Warren had his eyes on that final workout, and was hoping to put himself in a position to qualify. He says the final event was well suited to his strengths. When the time came, with four competitors in contention for the final two spots, Warren says he stopped thinking, and tried to have fun. His performance clinched a spot to the Games. “I tried to take it as a learning experience, but it felt good to beat Maddox at something,” Warren says.

With Khalipa and Maddox taking first and second on almost every workout, Warren says these workouts were well suited for them. Warren’s response to their performances was simply, “Holy crap!” he laughs. “I told Jason, when they were trying to figure out the workouts, ‘Did Dave Castro call you?”

Warren says he tries to workout with Khalipa and Maddox on weekends when he can. But he’s working on different things with his training – including Olympic lifting strength, stamina and swimming. His goal is to keep up variety and be as well rounded as possible. He says he expects and is hoping for more endurance and skill movements at the Games, which will play to his strengths.

Preparation for the Games isn’t all Warren has on his plate. He is also wrapping up his teaching credential, and will bring his laptop to do homework during the Games. On top of that, he’s getting married just two weeks after the Games. He credits his fiancée and her mother for taking on the bulk of the planning, so he can stay focused on school and training.

With everything going on in his life right now, and with a fresh perspective after missing the Games last year, Warren’s mantra is “Train hard, have fun and stay within myself.” He says he believes a top 10 finish is within his grasp. And no matter how the competition unfolds, he’s got a wedding and honeymoon in Italy to look forward to after the Games.