U.S. Army First Lieutenant Dimitri Del Castillo, 24, of Tampa, Florida, died on June 25, 2011, in Kunar province, Afghanistan, from wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked his unit with small arms fire.
His CrossFit Hero Workout is:
25 burpees
400 m run with medicine ball
25 weighted pull ups
400 m run with medicine ball
25 handstand push ups
400 m run with medicine ball
25 chest-to-bar pull ups
400 m run with medicine ball
25 burpees
This was a great workout to do without utilizing a barbell. All body weight movements with added weight. Fun to do. A great recovery workout. Perfect at home workout as well.
For the third year in a row, I’ve celebrated Thanksgiving by doing a CrossFit WOD called
Preparing for Work
Murph. A hero workout named for Lt Michael Murphy, who died in Afghanistan serving our country, it consists of:
1 mile run
100 pull ups
200 push ups
300 air squats
1 mile run
This is one of the most famous CrossFit workouts and is traditionally programmed for Memorial Day around the country. However, I began doing this on Thanksgiving as well three years ago to commemorate the Fallen.
The weather was perfect: 55 degrees and sunny. I invited one friend and it was him and me who performed it. It was fun. It wasn’t my best time, but I wasn’t pushing all out. It was, again, just doing the movement and enjoying life. Thank you to all who have served our country and especially to those who have made the greatest sacrifice and given their lives. Words are not enough.
If you’re like me, getting out of bed in the morning can be rough, especially if you’re exhausted, sore, cold, and sleep deprived.
This morning, the absolute last thing I wanted to do was workout. I’m sore still from heavy snatches. My wrist has been hurting for some reason. I just have no motivation, and my mental capacity is not there.
3 Tips for When You Don’t Want to Get Out of Bed
Have a motivating factor. For me, this is coffee and my space heater. I heat up the bathroom and sit in there for a few minutes. Then I drink coffee.
Go over in your mind your day. This helps me get started when I think of all the things I have to do that day, and all the things I just want to be over (like heavy snatches).
Keep in mind the end game. I love it when I’m done for the day, and I just get to sit and do my own thing (like blogging!). Work is part of life but we all live for play — whatever that looks like for you. Get work over with, so you can do what you want to do with the rest of your day.
CrossFit Training
3 Tips for When You Don’t Want to Go to the Gym
Do your own workout at home that caters to your needs. Today, I didn’t want to do anything heavy or any pulling. So I came up with my own workout of the day (WOD): 200 m run, 10 sit ups, 10 push ups, and 10 air squats for AMRAP 20 (as many rounds as possible in 20 minutes). It was perfect as an active recovery, and what I needed that day.
If you’re not there mentally, take a rest day. Today there was no way I was going to accomplish any workout cause I needed a mental break. Sometimes you don’t have to push yourself. Rest days are okay.
Go for a walk. I find being outside — no matter what I’m doing — is more exhilarating than a workout sometimes. Take a walk, listen to nature, and ponder the universe. We all need to do this occasionally.
You know yourself better than anyone. Listen to what your body needs, and don’t stress about a change in routine. Your mind and body will thank you!
Usually by the end of the week I’m wiped out from CrossFit. On Fridays, I like an active recovery workout that tends to go long.
Enter CrossFit Hero Workout Jenny.
Named for U.S. Army Capt. Jennifer M. Moreno who died Oct. 6, 2013, in Zhari District, Afghanistan, when enemy forces attacked her unit with an improvised explosive device.
Jenny consists of: 20 min AMRAP (as many rounds as possible) of:
20 Overhead Squats 45 lbs
20 Back Squats 45 lbs
400 m run
What I love about this CrossFit Hero WOD (workout of the day) is that it’s light weight and cardio-dominant. You’re at peak heart rate most of the time. This one was fun and definitely one I’ll do again!
I told you all I did Manion on Sunday, a CrossFit Hero WOD consisting of back squats and 400 m runs. I liked it and didn’t think it was all that bad.
Until Monday. When it was hard to walk.
And then Tuesday. When it was even harder to walk.
And Wednesday. When I could walk but standing up was rough.
CrossFit Dumbbell Lunges
It’s Thursday. And I FINALLY feel back to normal. I can walk. I feel good. When I rolled out, my hamstrings were still a bit sore but nothing major.
I don’t think about these CrossFit Hero Workouts until they are said and done, which is probably a mistake on my part.
Doing the numbers, in one round, I moved 2,755 lbs. In all 7 rounds combined, I squatted 19, 285 lbs. Not the most intelligent thing to do. But CrossFit Hero Wods are meant to be hard, and I’d dare say, meant to destroy you.
Tips for Surviving CrossFit Hero Workouts
Just cause CrossFit Hero Wods are hard doesn’t mean you shouldn’t ever do them. They are meant to honor the fallen who have given their lives so we can still workout and do all the things we love doing in this world. Here’s some quick survival tips for CrossFit Hero Wods:
Plan ahead. Do these when you have rest days coming up or not a lot planned for the next few days.
Crunch the numbers ahead of time. Sometimes this can be detrimental mentally if you look at the sheer volume of reps and pounds moved. However, you’ll want to plan your other workouts around the Heros so you’re not lifting heavy the day before.
Increase expectations. I didn’t think much about this CrossFit Hero Workout. I just knew it would be long. That was my mistake. Plan for these workouts to take you out. Just like Bruck, it’s the unexpected that can kill you in the end.
Recover properly. Hydrate. Refuel with protein and electrolytes. Plan active recovery workouts in the following days. Keep moving but not too much.
CrossFit Hero Workouts are some of my very favorite. But each are tough in their own way. Some are tougher than others, but if you plan accordingly, these will become some of the best workouts, the funnest, and some of your favorite workouts in CrossFit.
