Open workout 16.5 - the end.

Today I completed the last workout of my first Crossfit open.

I was quite pumped, as there was very little that I could not manage.

However, if you ask any crossfitter what their least favourite exercises are, the two most common answers would be thrusters and burpees.

So finding out the workout on Friday really wiped the smile off my face

21-18-15-12-9-6-3

Thrusters (20kg)
Burpees.

So do 21 thrusters, then 21 bar facing burpees, jumping over the bar,
then 18 and 18, and so on.
That's 84 of each exercise. 164 reps in total.

To give you an idea of what the exercises entail, see below:


Here are thrusters

And here are bar-facing burpees

Just to clarify, I did not do them nearly as quickly as this guy. I had to do a few steps to get up to the bar. But that's the gist.

Crossfit workouts are often both physically and mentally challenging, and this is what I like about them. For a normal crossfit day, I will check the workout the night before, psychologically prepare, and think up modifications. However, in the open, no such modifications are possible, everybody does the same.

However, no modifications are possible in the open workouts, and you have to do them exactly as prescribed - this is the "scaled" version, the Rx version for women was 29kg on the bar.

For the first time, I had a freak-out. I even contemplated not going and doing the workout. A few things were running through my head.

• It's going to take Foreverrrrrrr and people will be watching and I will be embarrassed.
• I will fall over and break my ankle jumping over the bar (often workouts prescribe jumping over a bar, and I don't do them out of this fear - I have a real ankle phobia after twisting mine a couple of times)
• I will hurt myself
• The workout will hurt.

However, despite my misgivings, I went in.  I went first. I was scored by one of the coaches.

It did hurt, and I did feel weak at times. I broke it up into chunks (ie 4 thrusters then rest). The burpees were super slow but I kept moving.

I did finish last. Everyone who finished came to cheer me on. They gave me a countdown to lift the bar up, so I didn't rest too long. When pausing to start the burpees, they yelled "get down" so I didn't rest too long. When I wanted to take a rest while I was face down at the bottom of a burpee they yelled "get up". They also yelled "you are doing so well" and "you are looking strong".

Finally it finished, and I got a big round of applause. I threw myself down on the floor and caught my breath. In fact, pretty much everyone who completed the WOD did that. It was difficult for everyone.

It's going to sound a bit twee, but I was proud of myself. I fought off the fears and excuses, which I have used frequently in the past. I often avoid movements or reps because I think I am too fat, too slow, too unfit. My mind causes a fail before my body does, often. This was a good lesson, and I now have confidence to work towards a box jump.

(It also helps that the coaches have bought padded boxes, so no skinned shins).

I think I will sleep well tonight.