Invictus Masters Spotlight: Bastiaan Rejen

Invictus Masters Spotlight: Bastiaan Rejen
Interview by Tino Marini

Bastiaan has been a part of the Invictus online family since 2015. I first met him when he attended an Athlete Camp in Sweden. Not long after the Camp he decided to become a private client and has flourished over the last year, finishing 40th Worldwide and 3rd in Europe in the Masters 40-44 division in the Open. The Open has only spurred him on to make a run for a place at the 2017 Games and has already shown he is capable of competing with some of the best by winning the French Throwdown Masters Division. It has been an honor to work with him!! Bastiaan, tell us…

How long have you been doing CrossFit?

I have been doing CrossFit exactly 5 years now.

How did you get into CrossFit?

A friend of mine owns Reebok CrossFit Northern Ireland and when we were on holiday he put me through my first workout. One week later and after three sessions I was hooked!

What was your athletic background before CrossFit?

As a child I did Judo; then in my teenage years I discovered MMA. With MMA I competed as a professional and got the chance to fight with some of the best in Japan and Brazil. I was also the European champion at grappling.

How did you become part of Invictus Athlete?

I followed the Invictus Competition Program for about two and a half years. I then attended an Invictus Athlete Camp in Sweden in October 2015 and after that experience I decided to start the Individual programming.

You recently got married and have a young family. How do you balance work, training and family commitments?

Finding a balance between spending time with my family, training and running my own box is a challenge but with the support and help from my wife we are able to make it work. Sundays are strictly a family day for us where we can spend quality time together. I always bring my son Pierre to his Judo class and football training so I can spend some quality time with him. When I have two training sessions per day or during the period where the volume of training goes up, my wife takes over my classes so I can train and rest more. We work as a team and our son is always around the gym so I get to see him. He loves to come support me at competitions too. I’m extremely lucky and grateful that my family supports me on my CrossFit journey.

How do you mentally prepare yourself for competition?

The week leading up to the competition I visualize a lot. When the workouts are released I will run through them so I can work out what the best strategy will be for me when it comes to game day. I will then visualize the event over and over again, going through exactly how I want to perform it. I try to stay as relaxed as possible on the lead up to competition but I also accept that there will be moments of nerves and doubt. I use these moments to fuel my motivation to go out on to the competition floor and give my full effort.

What is one tip you would give to someone who is looking to be a more competitive Masters Athlete?

The most important thing as a master athlete is recovery. This means forcing myself to go to bed early and when possible taking power naps between sessions or coaching classes. I also look at the quality of food I eat, especially my protein. I have been going to a butcher for my meat and the local market for fish and vegetables. I try to make sure that I am properly fueled for each session so I’ll increase my carb intake between my sessions. This seems to really help.

Another important change I have made over the past year is to trust the program and trust the process. Before I always wanted to do more and was stressed that I wasn’t working on all my weaknesses. However, from the moment I accepted things and let go that allowed me to focus more on what I am doing right now instead of what I am not doing.