Crossfit Games Open 15.3: So You Didn’t Get that Muscle Up

Spoiler alert. The title sums up my quest to log an RX score all of the 2015 Crossfit Games Open workouts. If you missed my first two events you can check them out, though nothing too revolutionary in there:

Crossfit Games Open 15.1
Crossfit Games Open 15.2

I’m not sure what it is about this Open that has just left me less than excited. I’m really trying to stay pumped, motivated, positive, but it’s just not happening this time around. It may be that my box hasn’t done as many organized events for the Open as they’ve done in the past, or because I’ve been following different programming from the Box that I feel a bit disconnected, but my heart is just not set this year (though seems to be a recurring theme with others I’ve talked to).

While I completely accepted 15.3 workout for what it was, and was up for the challenge, I had to consider the options if I didn’t get a muscle-up. I had done all my progressions. I worked on pull-ups and dips and played on the rings a lot lately. I’ve watched all the videos and tips and tricks and tutorials.

I went in on Saturday, pumped up, ready to display the result of my efforts; the culmination of all the progression drills that I had done. After countless attempts on the rings, I just blankly stood there, watching others complete the workout.. and then I cried. It has been a long time since I cried in a workout (other than that one lifting meet..), but I was just so upset with myself that I just couldn’t do it.

As much as I wanted to avoid skimming instagram and seeing everyone’s #firstmuscleup, I was crazy inspired when I did see them. I was excited to see so many women just crushing it, surprising themselves and hitting that pinnacle, both figuratively and literally. I wanted it even more. Some looked effortless. Some fought for it so hard. I wanted the struggle. I wanted people to be watching and cheering as I push through that dip, just as I have a million and one times before in my sleep. I dream about muscle-ups. I think about them all of the time.

Do you know I even wrote on my bathroom mirror, “I WILL get a muscle-up!”?

Suffice to say, Sunday I went into the box on my day of rest, ready to get back at it. Last week I had that thought process in mind with my chest-to-bar and it worked out well, so figure extra practice wouldn’t hurt. Two and a half hours later, all I walked out of there was with a bad attitude, more frustration, and ridiculously sore arms and lats, bruised hands, scraped wrists.

After a pretty heated debate about attempting the WOD RX and potentially logging an invalid score of zero vs completing the workout scaled, I was conflicted, confused, and even more mentally drained. Maybe I’ll get into it another time, but point was, I had to get one rep RX. Or make a decision to scale or not.

Monday was the day.

Nearly two more hours of warming up, mobilizing, pushing through the pain in my lats, ignoring the bruises on my hands in places I didn’t even know could bruise, becoming more and more mentally and physically exhausted, it was after 7:00 EST and I needed to make a decision.

So… after overhearing a conversation with a coach and one of our strongest girl athletes (who can outlift most guys, do HSPU away from the wall, yet doesn’t have her MU yet) about how it’s stupid to log a 0, and just give it your all, I grabbed the 10# wall ball, set up my jump rope, and painfully pounded through the reps. With each extension of my arms to throw the seemingly light ball up overhead, my muscles were screaming. Wall balls are quite up there in my suck bucket, and regardless of the weight, these were terrible. I was pushing through as my training partner was screaming at me not to put the ball down, reminding me that this is the Open, and that I have to fight for every rep.

My quads burned, my shoulders were smoked, my lats were on fire. With straight up metcon endurance not being anywhere near my wheelhouse, this workout was hard for me. Straight up struggle bus between already lagging endurance plus my biggest goat plus mental and physical fatigue in full force.

When they called, “Time!” I sat down after trying to catch my breath, signed my Open scoresheet with shaky hands, logged my score online, and surprise, cried.

No doubt that this workout was a tough one for everyone but for me, it was just so mentally draining. Tuesday morning, everything hurt. I couldn’t lift my arms from so many MU attempts. I slept miserably because I couldn’t get comfortable. It was one negative thought after another.

So I took a step back, forced a rest day, and re-grouped.

Now that I have taken a day to re-evaluate my life (okay, just re-evaluate this week), I am in a better place physically (I swear by epsom salt baths) and definitely a better place mentally.

I am not putting this goal of a muscle-up on hold, but I am approaching it with a more structured plan and not stressing anymore about it!

And who knew – taking a mental rest day led to two PRs this week!! 😀

Your turn..
Have you ever let an Open workout get to you mentally?
Do you listen to your body/mind when it says to take a day off?
What were your initial thoughts on hearing that 15.3 had muscle-ups?
How did your body feel during/after the scaled WOD?