Raising the Bar – Crossfit Competition!

by ~jenniferlynn on April 30, 2013

in CrossFit

Where did the weekend go?? I feel like I have neglected this blog lately and know I have been close to silent on Twitter, but now that my very first competition (other than The Open) is over, and now that I’m officially an ISSA Certified Fitness Trainer I can finally start to finish up some of the million draft posts that I have started! However, I first must talk about the awesome time I had at my competition this weekend!

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When I first saw that a competition was announced and they specifically encouraged new Crossfitters to sign up, I was quite interested. Participating in the Crossfit Games Open was one of the best experiences in my short “Crossfit career” and it gave me this competitive drive that I never had before. I hoped that signing up for a real, live competition would do something similar – push me out of my comfort zone and make me do things that I did not think my body was capable of.

While the main point in any other competition is to go to win, I looked at this one similar to how you look at a race. Most people don’t go to a race expecting first place. You are going to show that all of your hard work and training has paid off and to compete against yourself. It also worked out pretty awesome that the two ladies that I dubbed my biggest competitors (I feel like we are all just about the same size, and almost similar strength), both signed up for it, too. So while I was competing against myself, of course I silently wanted to kick their butts as well. 🙂 We had a total of 11 athletes representing our box out of 87 total competitors across all divisions.

The WODs were announced ahead of time so we had just over a week to prepare. For the Women’s Modified division, the WODs were:

WOD 1:
AMRAP 10:00
10 Power Snatch 55#
10 Burpees
10 Hands-off-ground Push-ups

WOD 2:
Clean & Jerk Ladder, starting at 55# and going up 10# each round;
2 burpee buy-in
Once a rep is failed, complete toes to bar for the remainder of the minute

WOD 3:
“Running Karen”
200 run w ball
50 Wallballs (12#, 9′)
3 rounds for time

Lovely, aren’t they? After a restless night, and packing an abundance of food and snacks, we made it there bright and early at 7:30am.

raising the bar crossfit competition jennifer stretching pvc

They ended up making some modifications like shortening WOD 1 to 7:00 from 10:00 due to time; thanks to some awesome, cold and rainy Michigan weather, switched WOD 2 and 3 to try to beat the rain (fail), and to make things simple, they changed the women’s weight on the wall balls to 14# from 12# AND made it 4 rounds of 30 wall balls instead of 3 rounds of 50, with a 15 minute time cap. More running – great. 🙂

Either way, I had a great attitude to start and was excited, nervous, scared, ready to go!

crossfit competition raising the bar wod 1 nervous

The first workout started with snatches, which is probably my weakest lift (right next to overhead squats). I am still not comfortable with the whole wide snatch grip, but since the weight was only 55lbs, I knew I could physically push through it. We had practiced the first workout the prior Sunday using a 10:00 AMRAP with strict push-ups; I felt okay, but not great. In practice, I had managed 2 rounds, 10 snatches, 10 burpees, and 3 push-ups.

raising the bar wod 1 pre-snatch

When I got up to the bar, it did not feel right. In my box, I always use the “girl” bar at 35lbs, regardless of what weight I am putting on it, so I am used to the grip on the smaller bar. However, we used man-bars for this workout, which made everything just seem so much heavier!

raiaing the bar wod 1 snatch

The push-ups were extremely difficult for me! I absolutely need to go back and finish my 100 Push-ups program and work on these as my form as all sorts of bad!!

raising the bar wod 1 pushup

With a shorter time cap than practice, and the luxury of more friendly push-ups, I managed 2 rounds, 10 burpees, and 1 push-up.

raising the bar wod 1 burpee

I ended up in 22nd place out of 27 for this workout.

Next up was the workout I feared the most: Running “Karen”, which combined wall balls and running. Not just running (cause you know how much I love to run… ha!), but running with a 14lb ball. In the cold. In the rain. Then coming back and doing more wall balls with the wet ball. And returning to the cold rain for some more running. Repeat.

raising the bar wod 2 pre-workout

Again, all you can do is stay positive and just go!

I felt awesome on the wall balls! I had NO “no-reps”, which was a miracle. When I did the Open workout with wall balls, twice, and got so many no-reps, I knew that this one was going to be a struggle, but I nailed all of those wall balls!! Whoo!!!

raiaing the bar wod 2 wall ball squat

But then there was the 200m run. In the rain. With the ball.

raising the bar wod 2 wallball carry

Let me tell you, there is absolutely no comfortable way to hold a large, 14lb ball while running 200m. Especially in the rain. I tried on one shoulder, than the other; on one side, then the other. Even tried to put it up on my back like a back squat, but could not find a good place at all!

Hardest. Workout. Ever. Did I mention it was cold and rainy? 😉

Endurance is the weakest part of my training (trying to avoid saying “I suck at..”) and I am trying so hard to become better. I have been pushing myself into the Endurance classes and I have been doing interval training and doing multiple WODs in a week, but endurance is progressing so much slower than my strength, which gets super frustrating. Alas, I tried my best.

I love the pic below as it has me struggling with my ball, a girl from my box trying to run me in, and in the background is another athlete from my box doing the workout, and another fellow athlete from our box running alongside her. It was awesome to have these ladies pushing us through the finish (though they could not even begin to understand the difficulty we were facing!)

raising the bar wod 2 wallball carry support

I ran out of time before I finished the last set of wall-balls and the run, so they penalized my time (no clue how it got calculated), but I did 3 full rounds and 10 wall balls. At this point, I dropped to 24th place from 22nd.

Last came the workout I had the most anticipation for – the clean and jerk ladder! Now, if you remember when I did the Crossfit Games Open I hit my PR for the Clean and Jerk at 95lbs. This was an awesome accomplishment for me, especially since after that workout, I seemed to psyche myself out and never get 95lbs again (even when we had 20 minutes to work on it!). But last Sunday I did it a handful of times, so was pretty confident I could get 95lbs this time. However, we only had a minute to try it. And you had to do two burpees before the attempt; if you failed your attempt, you immediately had to go to Toes-to-Bar for the remaining minutes and then you were done.

I made it through 55#, 65#, 75#, and 85# (which seemed lighter than 75# – turns out they had they switched!). Then, I faced my nemesis: 95lbs.

BAM! Nailed it!

I had never attempted any more than 95lbs, so was so happy to make it this far, considering my body was quite a bit fatigued and I had struggled with this weight so many times before! And then I stood in front of 105#, took a deep breath, listened to my coach, and went for it.

No such luck, BUT it was a PR on my Clean, which I am thrilled about! Now I am SO ready to knock out a C&J at 105lbs!!! Then I had to do my toes-to-bar and cranked those out one at a time (still can’t string more than one in a row).

raising the bar wod 3 toes to bar

Even though so many other ladies creamed me on this workout, I came in 15th place in this WOD, which bumped my overall ranking to 21st place!

Overall, I had an amazing time and even though it was an extremely long day, the event was well-organized and I hit a PR, so cannot complain about that! We had so many amazing people from our box show up to cheer us on and the atmosphere was unlike anything else. My fellow athletes and coach are the most supportive people and I would never have had the confidence to enter a competition if it were not for them continuously encouraging me!

Plus we got a cute t-shirt! 😉

raising the bar competition tshirt

Your turn..

Have you ever competed in a Crossfit Competition?
If you do Crossfit and have not, what is holding you back?
Do you run races expecting to win?

Lisa
Twitter: fantabulouslisa
April 30, 2013 at 10:19 am

OMG this was so much fun to read! I felt like i was there!!! I want to do another competition:) I have done a few, but never as an individual–I’ve only done competitions on teams of 4 or 6… Which is weird because I’ve done 4 different competitions now. I’m adding “individual compeition” to my list. I think avoid it because I can hide my weaknesses on a team, but as an individual I would have to face up to the things I’m not very good at, like gymnastics. I actually had an opportunity to compete individual this weekend but bowed out because 1. its my birthday and 2. I saw bar muscle ups on the movement list. Eek.
Lisa recently posted..Hillbilly Mud Run 5kMy Profile

Emmy
Twitter: BodyByEmmy
April 30, 2013 at 10:44 am

You rock!!! I ran an obstacle race that involved carrying a log…probably not as heavy as your ball, but there was no easy way to carry that thing! I’m super-impressed with everything you did!

Now that I know we have another Crossfit location here (I thought we only had one, and it is full of really young college students) I might give it a try at some point. I’d like to get a little weight off and be stronger first.
Emmy recently posted..Ready to Be Schooled?My Profile

Tamara
Twitter: bluetamarai
April 30, 2013 at 10:50 am

Looks intense, but so fun! Way to go!
Tamara recently posted..Kind of SweetMy Profile

Jennifer
Twitter: squatstilettos
April 30, 2013 at 11:06 am

i CANNOT believe they made you guys snatch with a mens bar! i almost had to c&j with one in last week’s competition and would have told them straight up “no” – my hands barely fit around them!

awesome job lady! now you’re ready to take on some more. maybe one in the chicago area? 😛
Jennifer recently posted..Friendly CompetitionMy Profile

Bethany Lee
Twitter: bethanyjolee
April 30, 2013 at 11:09 am

Lovely Jen! You are a jock now. Total jock. 🙂
Bethany Lee recently posted..Weightlifting: Four Lessons It Has Taught MeMy Profile

Claire April 30, 2013 at 11:17 am

So proud of you!! Nice work lady!! I have still never done a competition (well, other than the Open) and I really want to do one, I think it would be such a fun experience. But seriously you are awesome!
Claire recently posted..Shit You Can Only Say to CrossFit GirlsMy Profile

Danielle @ itsaharleyyylife
Twitter: itsaharleyylife
April 30, 2013 at 11:23 am

great job. I’m so scared to sign up for a competition. I can’t do anything really rx’d yet so I still need some more practice before competing!
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Joanna Broadbent April 30, 2013 at 11:29 am

You did awesome! The smile on your face after the 95# clean says it all! Congats girl you look great and are getting strong! Your delts look phenomenal!!!
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Courtney Sheldon
Twitter: eggsandoatsfit
April 30, 2013 at 11:42 am

Great job, lady! Looks like you were totally in your element! 🙂
Courtney Sheldon recently posted..My FIRST Figure CompetitionMy Profile

dena @ 40 Fit in the Mitt
Twitter: denajeanneb
April 30, 2013 at 11:54 am

So cool! I was super excited to read this post and see how you liked it.
dena @ 40 Fit in the Mitt recently posted..Bestowed Box and A GiveawayMy Profile

Lori
Twitter: lorioutloud
April 30, 2013 at 1:13 pm

You totally blow my mind…you are awesome!!
Lori recently posted..Lessons LearnedMy Profile

Mary
Twitter: inmyheadspace
April 30, 2013 at 1:30 pm

This is really awesome Jen. You should be very proud of yourself!

beka
Twitter: rebeccaroams
April 30, 2013 at 2:04 pm

Wow what an intense day of WOD’s! That is pretty dang amazing. I can’t pick up 95# to save my life 🙂
beka recently posted..Weekly Workouts Roundup+ER Visit #2My Profile

Cindy April 30, 2013 at 2:31 pm

You are so awesome! You must be so proud of yourself despite the running and the rain! 🙂
Cindy recently posted..“Paleo” week 4 review + Lyrica week 1My Profile

Kat
Twitter: KatSnF
April 30, 2013 at 2:35 pm

WOW! I’m so so proud of you! you took your courage and will to sign up and delivered in an awesome competition!
Kat recently posted..Motivational Monday – Featured Sneakers #25My Profile

babs April 30, 2013 at 2:58 pm

Loving this post! Awesome job on your comp and setting a new PR! That is rally so exciting. Keep kicking butt woman!
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Tasha @ Healthy Diva April 30, 2013 at 5:19 pm

Great job, you should be super proud of yourself! I did my first, and only, crossfit competition in January. It was a lot of fun and I wasn’t last which I appreciated. I have gotten much stronger since then, but I have only been going 2 days a week. After my marathon in a couple of weeks I will ramp back to 3-4 days and start crossfit endurance.
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masters2marathons
Twitter: mast2mar
April 30, 2013 at 5:26 pm

Wow Jen! Seems like you killed the 3rd round for sure! That’s awesome! So glad you are participating in competitions, its great to hear about everything you are accomplishing through Crossfit! And running is hard enough, but with a ball, how awkward! I’d be worried about my form since the ball would be totally in the way…. I’d probably try to cradle it with hands under ball against chest since I used to be a goalie and that was the best/most comfortable way to keep the ball secure.

Great job this weekend Jen!!!! So proud!
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Mandy @ fatgirlgonehealhthy
Twitter: fatgirlhealthy
April 30, 2013 at 6:01 pm

Great job lady! I’m sure a crossfit competition will be in my future at some point. The thought makes me nervous but I know I will love it. You WILL get that 105 lbs!
Mandy @ fatgirlgonehealhthy recently posted..Ditching the daily grind to have a good timeMy Profile

Nj Paleo April 30, 2013 at 6:45 pm

Great job, Jen! You did a fantastic job! And you look great too! I hear you about hating running with the ball — there’s just no good place to put it! Way to go on tackling that competition! And as for winning races…..no, I’m probably never going to win a race outright. The closest I’ve come was 2nd female finisher twice. But mostly for me winning a race means giving it my best effort, no matter what the day brings.

GiGi Eats Celebrities
Twitter: dubagee
May 1, 2013 at 12:04 am

WELCOME BACK TO YOUR BLOG! Definitely WON’T hold it against you that you have been mildly MIA – you have been crazy busy! 😛
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Kyle May 1, 2013 at 7:33 am

Way to go Jen! Nice recap too. It’s looks like you had a great time.
Kyle recently posted..Crossfit: I’m gonna love it or I’m gonna pukeMy Profile

Sara, Food Blogger on a Diet / Ms. Adventures in Italy
Twitter: rosso
May 2, 2013 at 6:16 am

Awesome and congrats! I loved the play-by-play 🙂 And I love how it sets you up to hit even more PRs in the future. I simultaneously love and hate the competition part of Crossfit, but I think it might be fun to do some smaller events like this to build up confidence 🙂
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Honeybee
Twitter: HoneybeeGB
May 3, 2013 at 3:40 am

I save 10-minutes crossfit video from YouTube and that is the only crossfit I did. It looks tough, but fun.

-Honeybee
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Emily February 5, 2014 at 11:38 am

I did my first CrossFit comp. a few weeks ago! it was a lot of fun and i hit a PR too! i came in close to the bottom overall, but now i know i need to work on wall balls. 😉 congrats on your PR!!

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