Surprising Myself

That, my friends, is my golden ticket.  My scorecard.  I conquered 13.1.  No, not a half marathon, but workout 1 of the 2013 CrossFit Games Open.

My work day wasn't as productive as it should have been because all I could think about was tackling this:

source

My hamstrings and quads are knotted up like crazy from sprinting yesterday during dragon boat race tryouts. (I'll explain later...this post is reserved entirely for CrossFit love.)  So, I brought my old trusty tennis ball to work to roll out the knots.

I'm convinced I have the crappiest chair in the entire refinery.

My mind was consumed with those 75 pound snatches.  Our workout Saturday included a similar style snatch ladder and I tried and tried, but could not get 75 pounds up overhead.  My goal became to get one snatch at 75 pounds or a total score of at least 101.  

Caffeine and carbs were my pre-workout fuel. 

At 5:00 PM on the dot, I jetted out the door and headed over to the box.  4:30 class was finishing up.  The energy was awesome!  I yelled and screamed for those finishing up and anxiously awaited my turn. 

My sister came to support me, even those she took it on at 5:30 AM. (and rocked a score of 122!)

The burpees (aka my kryptonite) were tough.  The 45 pound snatches were manageable.  The second set of burpees sucked!  Then came the daunting 75 pound snatches.  I took my time, caught my breath, took a sip of water, chalked up, and almost forgot to switch the weights on my barbell.  

Attempt #1: fail.

Attempt #2: fail.

In front of me, a couple of guys were snatching heavy stuff.  I watched their form and their fight and got inspired.

Attempt #3: fail. 

Attempt #4: fail.

My coach, Megan, came up behind me and told me to take a breath, rest what I needed, and use my butt.  All drive from the butt.

Attempt #5: fail.

I knew this would cause a gap in the women's division.  There would be a whole slew of girls who couldn't complete a 75 pound snatch.  My rank would be so much higher if I could just get one.  Just one! 

Megan came and told me to get under it.  She said I was pulling high enough and just needed to drop under it and stand up. 

Attempt #6:  Butt drive.Drop under it.Just get one.Butt drive.Drop under it.Just get one. ----Success! 

Barely, just barely, I stood up and straightened my arms with that bar overhead!

There were 15 seconds left on the clock.  I pulled two more times with no success, but I was on cloud nine! I met my goal.  

Even though I would have LOVED to get more snatches, I couldn't help but be so proud of myself. I walked out of the box with a full heart and a smile on my face.  This is what the Games is about! Not just superstars who make it onto Regionals, but about everyone pushing themselves to a new level.  

Bring on 13.2!

When was the last time you surprised yourself or set a goal and accomplished it?
Anyone else signed up for the open?