The CrossFit Open starts in 5 days. Wednesday night the first WOD will be announced and we will all be performing the open WODs on Thursdays in classes and then on Sundays from noon until 1 (sign up sheet will be at the desk for Sunday retest).
Last August I suffered a back injury. I had an MRI done and it was clear that I had 2 bulging discs, and one doctor diagnosed a fractured vertebrae and a torn labrum in my hip. Awesome. My body has always been pretty messed up, long before CrossFit. I remember going to the chiropractor in 7th grade. Injuries do happen and some take longer to heal than others. Since August I have been swimming and cycling mostly,even running was completely out of the question for a few months. I have been resting a lot, stretching, and giving my back the time it needs to heal. With all of this TLC I am now back to my feet and started working out with a barbell after I got back from our honeymoon (3 weeks ago).
Needless to say this time around my performance in the Open isn’t going to be what it was in the past. I competed at Regionals in 2010 as an individual, and then qualified as an individual in 2011 and 2012 and competed on the team at the Regional. On Thursday I did the 7 min AMRAP that was open wod 11.6 and then 12.5. I got 84 reps. In 2011 I scored 101 and in 2012 I scored 110. That is a 26 rep difference from last year! Obviously it is tough to swallow. Just because I know I am not going to do as well this year will not stop me for competing in the Open. As long as my back feels great I am a happy girl.
My point of all of this being, if you are following this competitor programming you need to compete in the Open. Otherwise, why are you doing competitor programming? The Open is the most doable competition there is. You get to do it here in your comfort zone, the weights are reasonable, and there is only one workout/week. If you are traveling you can do it at any local box, or submit a video submission. Nothing will get you better at CrossFit then competing. Competing forces you to stare face to face with your weaknesses and will ignite your passion to work hard and to settle no for less than your best effort. Competing will enhance your character beyond the 4 walls of this box. My mom and both my brother are doing the Open, it is fun to compare scores and have something to talk to each other about. It really is fun.
All that being said, the Opens are not the end all be all. Come in and do the best that you can. You shouldn’t be losing sleep over workouts and retesting them 5 times. Come in on Thursday ready to go. If you feel like the WOD went terribly wrong come in and retest on Sunday for your own sanity, but the goal should be to only do it once and have fun with it!!
If I am doing the Open, then you should be too. Click here to create an account and register.
P.S. I love Andrea in this picture!!
Skill
Strongman Practice. getting comfortable with stones, axle (fat bar cleans), yolk carries- Length of Green
WOD
A.Team of 2/Preferably 1 guy/girl
3x through each- One partner goes while the other rests
10 back squats(155,105)- bar starts from the ground
15 Pull-ups
Then as a team:
50 burpees jump and stand on the plate
75 empty barbell thrusters
100 Double Unders
B. From the time you complete the workout you have 5 minutes to load the bar and make 1 attempt each from the rack of max shoulder to overhead
Your score is your total time for A and your combined weight for B.
Ca$h OUT
Full body roll- Make this a priority. You will thank me later