Well, Open WOD 13.3 was a tough one. I wasn’t looking forward to it, but I survived and managed to beat my previous score, so I’m happy.
Workout 13.3
12 minute AMRAP of:
150 Wall balls
90 Double-unders
30 Muscle-ups
To prepare for the Wall ball madness, I practiced my technique at home. I always feel like I get crushed below the 14-pound ball when I do them, so I asked Mal for some tips. He suggested catching the ball higher and then riding it down. I guess I was catching it too lowāāhence being crushed under the ball. I dunno. My Wall balls need work.
Please note my mismatch sneakers in the photo above. I was trying to decide if I liked the Nanos or the Sublites better for CrossFit, so I was wearing them around the house and doing random exercises to test them out. Verdict: Nanos. Best CrossFit shoe ever.
While I practiced my Wall balls in the living room, Murphy looked on from the couch.
I guess watching all of that physical activity exhausted him.
His lifeāĀ¦
āĀ¦ is so hard.
Workout
A little while later, Mal and I headed to 781 to tackle 13.3. On Thursday nights, our box holds an āAdvanced Open Preparation ClassāĀ to prepare for the next Open WOD. The majority of the people in the class do a trial run of the workout and then do it āfor realāĀ on the weekend. Mal and I both just wanted to get it over with, so we planned to do it āfor realāĀ last night. Thankfully, there were a few other people who wanted to do it last night too.
When we arrived, a few of the coaches were measuring the Wall ball targets for the workout (9 feet for ladies; 10 feet for men). Apparently, the painted line at our new box is higher than 10 feet, which made the 9-foot target so much more manageable!
Mal’s heat went first.
He flew through the Wall balls and Double-unders.
And made it to the Muscle-ups with about 2.5 minutes left.
He got his first Muscle-up, no problem, but then struggled to get any more. Mal wasn’t happy with his performance because he got the same score as he did last year during 12.4 (13.3 is a repeat workout), so he’s debating doing it again this weekend.
I, however, will not be doing this workout again. It was brutal, I’ve done it 3 times now, and I just don’t want to put myself through it again. Plus, Wall balls are truly my nemesis.
Not joking or exaggerating, I was no-reped 20 times during the Wall balls for either missing the target or not getting below parallel with my squat. Wall balls are just not an exercise that my body likes to do. I finished the Wall balls with more than a minute to spare, so I busted out as many Double-unders as I could, but I kept messing up and only managed 43. Mal said I looked āfranticāĀ and āspastic,āĀ so I definitely need to work on keeping my cool when Double-unders come up in workouts. Ya need to be loose!
I’m a little bummed about all of my no-reps during the Wall balls, but, obviously, it’s my own fault. These workouts have standards that need to be upheld, and I totally get that. I guess I’m just mad at myself for wasting time and energy trying to get through the Wall balls. Imagine how much time I would have had to do Double-unders if I didn’t do an extra 20 Wall balls! Ha! Oh, well. I still managed to get a higher score than the last two times I did this workout, so I’m happy that I improved.
Dinner
After CrossFit, Mal and I came home and made dinner, which was a Mexican Hash Egg Bake from PaleOMG.
This meal was so frickin’ good! I ended up using a can of Rotel instead of fire-roasted tomatoes and adding black beans (there was half of a can in the refrigerator that needed to be used up), which were delicious additions. Definitely try this recipe! You won’t be disappointed!
Question of the Day
What exercise is your nemesis?
108 Comments
Box jumps. I still haven’t gotten over my fear of them. I always think I am going to miss and hurt myself.
Also, this isn’t healthy, but I thought of you when I saw it. http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2013/03/carrot-cake-ice-cream-recipe.html
Yummmmmmm! That looks delicious!
@Andrea: Thank you! My bestie and I have a mental block with box jumps and we thought it was just us.
I am definitely trying this recipe- like tonight! Great workout!
I am not a huge fan of wall balls, but my form and technique are ok so they aren’t quite a nemesis. I would have to say that HSPU are my current nemesis. I can kip a few of them together, but my feet like to leave the wall and I can’t get my head fully down when doing them strict. Ah, CrossFit problems š
I’m doing 13.3 tonight so we’ll see how the wall balls go – I’m hoping to at least get through the DUs, but we’ll see!
Thanks for sharing your experience, I love reading about your CF journey and delicious recipes!
ANY. KIND. OF. SQUAT. hate ’em š
I HATE wall balls – so awful. My nemesis is split jerk – my technique isn’t great and I never really get under the bar aggressively.
Dog is like “Damn i am getting tired just from watching” š
Awesome Awesome job Tina. Regardless. I’ve just started XFit and omg the patience required to stick with it. Can only go 2xs a week which is making for slow progress. I’d love to be able to do what you did yesterday!
Hey Tina! I moved my blog (Blurb Column) from blogger to wordpress and changed the name to Casa Beebe. It’s still me!
I wonder: do you think you mentally psyched yourself out about this WOD before you ever walked in the door? If you had written “I’m gonna kick A..” on your chalkboard or thought that to yourself throughout the day do you think you would have had better performance? I mean, I have no room to talk because I cannot even imagine doing those workouts, and I am super impressed with everyone that does! I just believe in the power of the mind. Awesome job either way! You finished, and did better, so good on you!
I’m with you on the wall balls. Our coach makes everybody (men and women) use a 10-foot target, and I still can’t hit it consistently with anything heavier than 8 pounds. Plus I ALWAYS manage to get smashed in the face with the ball at least once during any WB workout. š
Ahhh Murphy is cute…
my exercise nemesis=tricep dips…blergh. Oh and that dinner looks really good.
Looks delicious!!! Will def try.
Muscle ups look pretty darn hard from this pic. Woooo
For wall balls — try putting your arms closer together and cradling the ball a little more, with elbows close together. A coach at BRICK SpeedX showed me that and it makes wall balls a lot more bearable.
@Doug: Great tip! Also, keep those elbows up and stay on your heels! It’s so easy to drift on to your toes with Wall Balls, but with weight on your heels, you can jump and drive the ball up with your hips instead of pushing it up with your shoulders. When my arms start to get smoked, I catch the bounce in the squat and think “JUMP!”
Haha! Murphy looks too funny – he sort of reminds me of Dobby from Harry Potter with his ears all folded over! š Gahhh those wallballs look terrible. Burpees are definitely my nemesis. They steal every ounce of my energy, so if I actually do them well I pretty much have to forget about the rest of my workout. Hate them!
Ok I just had to look it up – See?! Dobby! http://www.alicia-logic.com/capsimages/hp2cs_322Dobby.jpg
I’ve never tried wall balls, but I can certainly see them being my nemesis. Right now I would say Burpees are my nemesis. I know they’re good for me, but man do I hate doing them.
Tricep Push Ups are my nemesis right now. Sounds silly I know but they are so hard for me.
It used to be burpees but I don’t dread them as much now …I guess I’ve just done so many that I’ve conquered the fear with them! ha
I was wondering why your titled this 170 wall balls! haha… No reps=NO FUN. Nice job though.. 13.3 was tough!–definitely a leg burner.
That workout sounds ridiculous!! Seriously, wall balls are killer!
My exercise nemesis is pull ups.. I feel like I hit a wall after 3, unless I do a kipping after that I need a band to help me.. it’s so frustrating!
I despise pull ups or negatives…. I start out okay and after 2 or a lucky 3, I struggle, my form is terrible, and its all down hill from there.
Kind of a random question, but i figured you’d know the answer! How do people get whip marks on their forearms from double unders? I’ve seen/heard of this happening, but I just don’t understand how the jump rope even gets there? Or maybe I’m doing something completely wrong!!
Improvement is improvement!
I can’t deal with box jumps. They kill me.
I detest snatches. but as my technique is getting better they are getting easier I just feel like a wimp every time I do them. Needless to say, 13.1 didn’t go too hot š
Wall balls are a huge mental obstacle for me too, no worries. My hands are sweating just reading your recap of the workout (which I am doing in 3 hours!!). Ha! I also struggle with the Oly Lifts simply because body weight exercises have always been my forte…it takes a while to build up the strength to push weight around rather than just improve your body weight strength exercises. Patience is what I need!
Also, I’m having a Lara Bar giveaway on my blog (gluten free, paleo, vegan and vegetarian!) if you are interested!
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I’d have to say burpees are the worst for me, although wall balls are always way harder and more painful than I’m expecting.
I also despise wall balls… I get so disheartened when I see them on the board. I hate them almost as I hate turkish getups. I do however love me some burpees and box jumps.
I couldn’t agree more when it comes to wall balls. They are one of my least favorites. And while I do hate them while I’m doing them, I do enjoy the soreness i feel afterwards. Sick, I know. My form could use some work as well…
Those pictures of Murphy are so cute I almost cried laughing tears! The push up and the pull up are no doubt my enemy – I’ve got horrible upper body strength and pull ups drive me crazy! But like you said, I’m improving and that’s what matters!
Pull-ups! I can’t do them!! Box jumps used to freak me out as well because I have bad knees and was afraid they’d give out or that I’d eat it on the box. I think I would be able to do them now, but I’m afraid to try them.
Push-ups are my absolute least favorite workout move to do!
Phew! man oh man that workout looks intense. Crossfit is so intimidating!… but it looks fun š
Good job! I did Karen in December and it took me over 16 minutes, so I was skeptical about it today, but determined to get through it in 12 minutes. I did the best I could, but fell short by 11 reps. I’m still happy though because that’s a huge improvement from December. Wall balls are also my nemesis. I have great form, but horrible cardio-respiratory system–i gas way too fast.
@Nicole of Raspberry Stethoscope: Also, I honestly feel like, in terms of true suckfest, Karen> Fran by a long haul.
Box. Jumps.
My thoughts on 13.3: EW.
I did it yesterday morning b/c I am away this weekend for a workshop! I was unimpressed with my time for the 150 wall balls–it was shorter than mine in september. That being said, I actually got no reps this time and respected it whereas in september i think i slacked. I got through the double unders and stared at the rings for 2 minutes, thinking about what a boss I’ll feel like when I can do a muscle up!
My CrosSFit challenge is pistol squats — also pullups, handstand pushups, muscle ups, knees to elbows, ring dips — but there’s something SUPREMELY frustrating around not being able to do a single pistol!
Burpees!! I will never, EVER like them.
Do you do the muscle ups? I cannot do one yet. Is there a modification or can one just “skip” it?
What was your strategy going in? I originally thought 25-25-20-20-15-15-10-10-10- with 10 second rests would be best for me. At the last second I switched it up to even 15 balls and 10 second rests strait through and Im happy to report a 8:25 off the wall! I have nothing to compare it to but Im still pleased. I agree with frantic double unders…I totally spaced and snagged my feet for the first minute into them!! Glad its over.
NICE WORK! I know you’re not super happy – but I’m super jealous. I only could do 1 wallball – I broke my ankle Wednesday night so I am out š I’ll be living through you and some other awesome bloggers and their scores/updates and cheering on my own box! š Keep it up love!
Box jumps are my nemesis. SO mental.
The photos of Murphy are amazing, especially the last one, haha. Great job on 13.3!
Burpees. I will hate them forever.
Wall balls and DUs are my nemesis….soooo yeah. 13.3 would have killed me, had I chosen to do the Open this year. Congrats on your awesome job and getting through it!!