CrossFit Open Workout 19.4 is in the books. It is:
3 Rounds of:
Rest 3 min
Then:
3 rounds of:
I only got 4 bar muscle ups. I used to be much better than that. That’s because since last summer all I’ve been doing is practicing ring muscle ups, not bar. And my bar muscle-up form sucks. So until I fix that, it’ll always be crappy.
I was satisfied. Could have been better. But glad it’s over.
CrossFit Open Workout 19.3 is:
Time cap is 10 min. 35 lb dumbbell for women, 50 lb dumbbell for men
This would have been my workout if I would have had strict HSPU. I was hoping to get at least one, which I didn’t. It would have been my first. Am I disappointed? No. Why?
I was telling my daughter who does CrossFit that unless you’re a professional CrossFit athlete, you don’t have time to work on every skill. For me, I have chosen ring muscle ups and handstand walks, which I’ve been trying to get for the past year. I am not doing anything to allow me to get a strict HSPU, and I don’t really care about them — not until I get these other two skills down. Plus, as a woman, it will take a lot of work to get them, just like it is taking hours on the my ring muscle ups, and I just don’t care about them to invest that time. How many times do they show up in a CrossFit WOD? Once. Here. In CrossFit Open workout 19.3. So, yeah, I’m good.
Although it was a short workout, I’m sore — my shoulders especially. Always something with CrossFit.
CrossFit Open Workout 19.2 was a repeat of CrossFit Open Workout 16.2. It is:
If you finish in under 8 minutes, you get 4 more minutes to do another round with heavier squat clean weight.
I didn’t finish this round, but I was happy with it. I almost did.
After 2 weeks of CrossFit Open workouts for 2019, I’m just not into it. Without Regionals to measure yourself against, you’re against everyone, and being in the thousands tells me nothing of my fitness level. The CrossFit Open used to be a way to measure your improvement over a year. Now, the only way you know if you’ve improved is in your head. Can you do a muscle up this year that you couldn’t last year? Can you string more double unders together? Can you lift heavier weight?
The CrossFit Open to me is not what it used to be. And that saddens me.
CrossFit Open Workout 19.1 is:
AMRAP 15:
As much as I didn’t like this workout, it played to one of my strengths: stamina. I did well. I was happy with my score. I exceeded my goal. That’s all that matters.
What will CrossFit Open Workout 19.2 be? Give me a barbell or dumbbells. I do believe since this one was all lower body, we’ll see something upper body. Either heavy push jerks, pull ups, or muscle ups even.
This is the first year since I’ve started CrossFit that I haven’t cared about the CrossFit Open, which is technically how you qualify for the CrossFit Games, but as average athletes, it’s just a test of how you’ve improved since last year. I believe there are several reasons for my apathy:
I’ll still do the workouts and log my score and check my standings with others in my age group and region. However, I definitely won’t be re-doing any of the CrossFit Open workouts this year. And I’ll have to try to look forward to it. Tips and advice are always welcome.
I may be in trouble.
The CrossFit Judges course is known for being a preview of what moves you might see during the Open.
In the 2019 CrossFit Judges course, there were pistols, split cleans, and split snatches — moves I’ve never done before in my life. Usually split cleans and split snatches are optional moves to the regular clean and snatch, but we’ll see.
No surprises otherwise on this year’s 2019 CrossFit Judges course. In the CrossFit Open, we can expect to see bar muscle ups, ring muscle ups, and double unders, along with thrusters, some sort of pull up, rowing, a wall ball or a box jump. And handstand walks will appear again most likely.
I’m looking forward to the 2019 CrossFit Open, but at the same time, my ring muscle up is a bit aways yet, so we’ll see.
The 2019 CrossFit Judges course is required to judge the Open. Good luck, everyone!
This morning I did Bert, a CrossFit Hero Workout named for U.S. Marine Cpl. Albert Gettings, 27, of New Castle, Pennsylvania, who died on Jan. 5, 2006, while conducting counter-sniper operations in Fallujah, Iraq. 
This one, like most CrossFit Hero workouts, is long. It’s:
I finished in 1 hour and 6 min, including time to take my jacket and gloves on and off for the runs. Fun workout. All body weight exercises. Great cardio.
I’m trying to get motivated for the CrossFit Open. This was a good workout. I’m beginning to log my food again with My Fitness Pal. I’m hoping to get stronger and gain more skills. Really, I’m hoping to stay fit and healthy and be happy with how I look.
The CrossFit Open officially kicks off February 21st, 2019.
This is the qualifier for the 2019 Games.
And I am not ready.
I don’t feel like I’m any more ready than last year.
Between injuries, surgeries, and frustrations, I just haven’t been caring much
I have 75 days to prepare.
Once I get my stitches out next week, I think I’ll be ready to hit it hard core.
But we’ll see.
It’s been tough mentally this year for me. I just haven’t cared all that much.
I finished 28th in my state for the CrossFit Open in my age group.
I finished 67th in my region for the CrossFit Open in my age group.
I finished 716th in the United States for my age group.
I finished 1077th worldwide for my age group.
Last year, I finished 56th in my state.
I finished 127th in my region.
I finished 1244th in the United States.
I finished 1845th worldwide.
A substantial improvement in one year’s time. To be exact, that’s 48% in my state higher. 52% in my region. And 57% in the US. 58% worldwide.
Am I satisfied with the results?
No, not really.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad I moved up. But I’m not happy with my scores.
I don’t have ring muscle ups. I’m not as strong as I need to be yet. My chest to bar, pull ups, and handstand push-ups all need work. So does other holes in my wheelhouse.
The fact of the matter is I’m not happy unless I’m on top.
Period.
The fact of the matter is I won’t ever be on top because there’s always someone out there better than you. I get that.
The other fact of the CrossFit Open is it’ll never cater to my strengths and thus I’ll never be on top as well.
My strengths are the long game (workouts over 20 minutes), running, body weight exercises, light-weight barbell moves with many repetitions, and double unders. We’ll never see Murph in the Open. Or running (too hard to measure). Or probably the long game.
These are the workouts I need in order to be on top.
My lamentations are irksome, I know. I just had to vent.
One thing’s for sure: I am determined to make vast improvements over this next year. To have all the moves mastered. And quickly. To perfect them as much as I can. To get stronger.
Then we’ll see what next year holds…
The Open pushes you to do things you normally wouldn’t. It’s a gauge of where you are fitness wise. It exposes your strengths and your weaknesses. It drives you to do better next year.
18.1 My best performance. It played to my strengths: long, short repetitions of movements, and pure mental game.
18.2 I PR’d my clean. Strength is something I always have to work on, which just takes time.
18.3 I’m closer to a ring muscle up than I thought. I almost had one, and I’m confident I’ll have one soon.
18.4 Handstand push ups. I learned I’m not as good at these as I thought I was.
18.5 Chest to bar pull ups. I know I’m not good at these. Last year I could only strict them. This year I kipped them. Another weakness to work on.
I’m very competitive for my age group. Next year, I’ll be near the top.
Overall, this was a challenging year. If I could have done all the movements, I would have enjoyed it. Instead, frustration reigned and by the end, I just wanted to be done.
What I’m looking forward to: doing some competitions, Murph, improving Olympic moves, getting stronger, getting my final pieces in place, dialing in my nutrition, and continuing to improve daily. That’s what CrossFit is all about. Being healthy. Using your endorphin rush to fuel the crap in your daily life, and thriving despite adversity.
The year ahead couldn’t be brighter!
My Journey to the CrossFit Games 