Luka Dukic: Varna and Plovdiv Throwdowns could become European competitions
This year a young star captured our attention – a 21-years old boy won the two major Bulgarian throwdowns – Varna and Plovdiv. We talked with Luka about his training, goals and performance
Tell us about you – how did you find CrossFit – do you have sport background?
I was playing football for 11 years and i had injury where i break my leg. In recovery process i gained 5kg more than i used to have so i wanted something where i can cut that weight fast. In that time my older brother Lazar started with crossfit so i joined him on few trainings and then i went to some small local competition to compete in teens category and that is how everything started 😀
Is CrossFit what you do – are you a coach? Are you full time in?
I work as a coach for only 3 hours every day, from 17:00 to 20:00, all other time that i have in a day is focused on training or recovery or more training 😁
What does CrossFit give you and what does it take? What is it to be a competitor?
Like any other sport, if you want to be succsesfull you have to sacriface a lot, a lot of training takes a lot of time so you dont have time for too much else in your day. Your life is revolved around your training but if you love competition and you love to see that you are improving yourself every day, then crossfit is number one for that 😉 And of course every achievement is motivation to push even harder.
When did the results come – and when did you decide to compete? Did you achieve something specific or you just decided to challenge yourself?
I started with competing bassicaly the same time when i started with CrossFit, first i started with small local competitions in our country, then with scaled category on some bigger events and then i decided that its time for competing with big guys. After every competition I felt more ready for Elite category but first bigger results happened after a lot of setbacks.
Which is the rule that you follow everyday? Is there an universal truth or unavoidable tip for having results in CrossFit?
How do you eat – what is your regimen and daily calories intake? Is there a list of forbidden foods?
I try to eat good and healthy, but i am not counting my macros or calorie intake, i try to eat enough so that i can keep my energy high during the day and. List of forbidden foods is really long for me 😂 but i will say: nothing with too much sugar, bread, and cola drinks.
What would you say to someone, who is just starting CrossFit? What are the three most important tips?
Number 1: Build good movement patterns, tehnique and mobility before starting with more serious training.
Number 2: Decide if you want to do want to train for your health or for competition and set your goals realistic according to that.
Number 3: Leave your ego at the door, learn to listen and make that your best hour of the day!
Where is the difference between CrossFit as hobby and CrossFit as competitive sport?
Difference is big, esspecially with aproaching training, there is no competitive sport on this world that is 100% healthy and people have to understeand that, there is big difference in volume of training and pushing your body, esspecially on competitions.
Both side of CrossFit are beautifull but sometimes everyday people tend to forget how much work professional athletes are putting to stay healthy and that is moment when injury can happen.
What are your goals now? Are you ready for the Games given the new rules and the reach choice of Sanctional events?
At the moment my goal is to focus 100% on the Crossfit Games Open, the Open is really important cause you can earn ticket for the Games but also a lot of important Sanctionals are using the Open as the way to qualify so there is a lot on the line. I really like this new format because there is a lot of competitions out there and there is a lot of chance for athlete to make a living from competing if he wants to but also a chance to travel the world and do what you love.
Tell us about our events in Bulgaria – how do you feel, what needs to be improved?
I competed at both Varna and Plovdiv throwdown this year and i took first place at both competitions, i was really impressed with how big this events are and how much people love CrossFit in Bulgaria, i made a lot of new friendships and i enjoyed every second of both competitions, I think that everything was perfect at both competitions and that organizators did amazing job. This is way to go for both Varna and Plovdiv and if they keep the same level of competition for next years they will be well known in Europe!
English