So I have had time to reflect. It’s been about a week since the CrossFit Open concluded for me. I am by no means moving on and I did part of the workouts Rx’d and others scaled.
18.1: Rx’d
As Many Rounds as Possible in 20 Minutes:
8 Toes-to-Bar
10 Dumbbell Hang Clean and Jerk (50 pound dumbbell)
14 Calorie Row
18.2A: Rx’d
1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10 Reps for Time:
Dumbbell Squats (50 pound dumbbell)
Bar Facing Burpees
18.2B: Rx’d
1 Rep Max Clean
All Needs to be completed in 12 minute time cap.
18.3: Scaled
2 Rounds for Time in 14 minute time cap.
100 double-unders
20 overhead squats (115 pounds)
100 double-unders
12 ring muscle-ups
100 double-unders
20 dumbbell snatches (50 pound dumbbell)
100 double-unders
12 bar muscle-ups
I couldn’t link more than two double-unders, cannot do a ring muscle-up. I completed the scaled version in 14 minutes which consisted of single-unders and pull-ups (instead of muscle-ups).
18.4: Scaled
As Far As You Can Go with a 9 minute time cap:
21 deadlifts at 225 pounds
21 handstand push-ups
15 deadlifts at 225 pounds
15 handstand push-ups
9 deadlifts at 225 pounds
9 handstand push-ups
21 deadlifts at 315 pounds
50 foot handstand walk
15 deadlifts at 315 pounds
50 foot handstand walk
9 deadlifts at 315 pounds
50 foot handstand walk
I couldn’t reach the standard for handstand push-ups, so I scaled the workout which consisted of hand release push-ups and bear crawls instead of handstand anything. I was able to finish the scaled in the time frame allowed.
18.5: Rx’d
Complete as many Reps as possible in 7 minutes:
3 Thrusters (at 100 pounds)
3 Chest-to-Bar Pull-Ups
6 Thrusters (at 100 pounds)
6 Chest-to-Bar Pull-Ups
9 Thrusters (at 100 pounds)
9 Chest-to-Bar Pull-Ups
12 Thrusters (at 100 pounds)
12 Chest-to-Bar Pull-Ups
15 Thrusters (at 100 pounds)
15 Chest-to-Bar Pull-Ups
18 Thrusters (at 100 pounds)
18 Chest-to-Bar Pull-Ups
If you were able to complete, you would go on to 21, 24, 27 of each exercise.
I had two repetitions left on the Pull-ups before round 18. But I could not link Chest-to-Bar Pull-ups and had to singles the entire time.
I Need to Learn How to Do Skills [Properly]: It’s frustrating doing the Open workout when you have to do things scaled. Because there are parts of the scaled workout that are challenging and other parts that are not. And during these open workouts, I found these skills to be my limiting factor.
Muscle-Ups
Double Unders
Handstand Push-Ups
Toes-to-Bars
I Have Missed “Competition”
I’ve been doing a lot of running and running races. I’ve been coaching high school football and track and field for the last two years. It’s because I was stupid and bypassed playing sports in college and for the last several years something was missing with all the training I was doing — it was for no reason. Part of coaching is because I miss being around competition and missed watching people compete at the highest level they can attain. CrossFit has brought that back to me, The Open was motivating. I didn’t finish the Top 1000 but I didn’t finish last either and being around the people who were also doing the workout and competing was really motivating to me.
Strength is a Fantastic Base to doing “CrossFit”
It’s a no-brainer. Being stronger helps with a lot of things and that’s what I need to do in order to get further along a workout and hopefully have fatigue set in later. It’s just not 1-rep max strength. It’s strength to to lift a set weight over and over again. That is also really important.
Don’t Run Half-Marathons or do other Competitions during the CrossFit Open
I feel as though it’s just common sense. I had schedule two half-marathons right before 18.2 workout. It it happened to be an endurance workout in a way. And well my legs were just shot. My burpees looked like step overs and my clean was a mere 200 pounds. Disappointing to say the least.
Mental Strength is a Pre-Requisite
The Open workouts (exception to the exercises listed above) are generally accessible to all participants, or the scaled versions make it doable for all. With that being said, it’s not the time requirement, the weight requirement, or the number of sets and repetitions that limit you, it’s the mental aspect that can be broken first. It hurts, the muscles start to burn a bit, the lungs feel as though you’re getting ready to shoot fire out of your mouth, and you just want to take a few extra seconds for some rest. And sometimes you just want to say I’m good and stop and other times you know you can physically continue you just don’t know if you can. That’s what this Open reaffirm, I have to get mentally stronger. I can do another rep, I can run the extra mile, I’ll be okay. It’s time to start getting into the uncomfortable stages of training and begin to build that tolerance up, just like wanting to get stronger and faster you have to train.
I’m going to do it next year. And I’m going to do better. It’s not the last time I”ll do The Open…
