Here's to another year of training!

So the Open is over. I apologize for the delayed post, but it took some time to get my bearings back.

I had 2 goals going into the open-
1. Place in the top 3 girls every week
I won't lie, I didn't have high expectations for my first goal. I workout with some amazing ladies, some of which have been doing CrossFit for years. With just over a year of CF (only 7 months of actual training), I tried to remain objective (read: not get my hopes up). Also, this would be my first competition experience so I had no idea how I'd react under pressure.

2. Make a muscle-up during an Open WOD
I made my first muscle-up a month before the open started. It was awesome and crazy and I had no freaking clue how it happened. I then spent the next month trying to figure out how on earth I did it. I could make the occasional MU, but they were no where close to consistent.


To make an extremely long story short, I somehow made top 3 every week (one week there was a tie, so not sure how that works). And I managed 1 muscle-up during one of the most hellish workouts I've ever done (Karen on crack), whilst being sick.

I'm definitely not trying to toot my own horn, AT ALL. In fact, I'm sure there were times I dropped the bar, or took a break when I should've kept going. I know that there is no way I could have done even a fraction of what I did without my coaches or friends supporting me. I tried to stay grounded and humble throughout the entire 5 weeks. Making my team's success priority over my personal victories definitely made that easier.
Overall, I'm glad I have a starting place and a something to compare for next year.

My Capstone Team ended up placing 50th in our region, which is in the top 22%. That being said, we didn't qualify for regionals this time. However, I know with another year of training under our belts, next year will be a different story!

My favorite thing I've taken away from the Open wasn't a new PR, or the feeling  of people cheering, or anything personal at all. The Open solidified our motley crew of athletes into an actual team. WODs and training has a new feel these days. Walking into the gym and knowing that it's not just about me, or my personal gains (#gainz) is an amazing feeling. I'm excited to see where this year take us!

13.1 Revisited

So 13.1 has came and went, and I lived to tell about it!

My first thought when they announced the WOD on Wednesday was "Crap. I can hardly land a 100 lb. snatch when I'm fresh, on a good day... when the wind is blowing in just the right direction". Needless to say they were 'iffy' at best and I knew that the reps at 100 lb. would be determining factors. I tried to play it cool, but I definitely left the gym knocked down a few pegs. I felt as if I all the hard work I've put in wasn't good enough. I was defeated.

Later that night my coach sent this in a group message (he may be a mind reader):

"If you go into anything scared or thinking you're gonna lose, you've already lost. You gotta go in with the attitude that you're going to win, and be successful."

- Scott Panchik, minutes before winning Open Workout 13.1

Wow. I was a bit embarrassed by my crappy attitude. I decided that, if nothing else, this would be a learning experience. I had to be real with myself. I am competing in the CrossFit Open with just over at year of CrossFit under my belt. I'm not 'Games' material. I'm not an elite athlete, but I had put in a lot of time and effort to be ready for this competition, and selling myself short wasn't going to get me anywhere.  I wasn't going to go into it defeated.

I spent the next couple of days working on my snatch form and attempting to perfect my 1 rep max of 100 lb. And also watching countless videos with tips and strategies for 13.1. My goal was to get through the 150 reps and at least touch the 100 lb. bar. I wanted to get a rep at 100, but I really didn't think I could do it, honestly.

By the time Saturday morning rolled around I was a nervous wreck.
I was in one of the last heats so I got to watch most of my fellow athletes compete first. I was super proud of each of them, but I could tell this WOD was more challenging than most of us planned.

I won't narrate my entire WOD, don't worry.
I tried to pace my burpees as best I could, without feeling like a turtle. Surprisingly, the 45 lb. bar wasn't terrible and I did sets of 10 semi-easily. I originally planned on doing singles for the 75 lb. bar, but I was able to sets of 2 for all 30 of those. I knew the moment was coming. I tried to plan in my head while doing my last set of (and probably the hardest set I've ever done) of 20 burpees. I remember telling myself "Just touch that 100 lb. bar. Just get to it and attempt 1." Well the moment came and my body was definitely not working with me. I attempted 3 and failed each of them. After my 3rd rep I saw my coach over to the side, he yelled at me to "throw it behind you". I thought "okay, let's be real. You want this. Touching the bar was never the plan. You want a rep at 100 lbs." and I did want that. I wanted it bad.

I reset on  the bar, took a big breath, and somehow got under it. After I stood it up, I saw so many people around cheering for me. It was definitely one of my proudest moments. I still had some time left on the clock, and although I was completely happy with my results, I wasn't about to stop there. I failed a couple more, and with about 10 seconds left on the clock I set up for my last attempt. I set up, pulled under the bar, and stood it up!  When I let the bar drop  I broke down. I was that happy and relieved. I did what I didn't think (and told myself) I probably could not do.

All that to say, I didn't have the top score (or even top 5) in my gym. I didn't write this to toot my own horn, in anyway. But hopefully, someone might read this and feel inspired. I hope they might feel inspired to try something they thought they had no business attempting.