In the Open: Thoughts on 18.4

leggings | tank | shoes

Four weeks down one to go… I can’t hardly believe the open is over after Friday! I’ve loved the process this year even if the workouts are totally random. Sometimes I wonder what HQ is thinking. I mean scaled this week had bear crawls?! That’s not a workout that’s a warmup drill! Anyway, embrace the process right?

Without further adieu…

THE WORKOUT


For time:

21-15-9
deadlifts, 155 lb. + handstand push-ups

then…

21 deadlifts, 205 lb.
50-ft. handstand walk
15 deadlifts, 205 lb.
50-ft. handstand walk
9 deadlifts, 205 lb.
50-ft. handstand walk

Time cap: 9 min.


INITIAL THOUGHTS
Yup, my neck and back are going to HATE me. Deadlifts are not my jam and I’ve said it before — no one should ever do heavy deadlifts for time. With that said, the new HSPU standard didn’t really phase me. You just do what you can do.

MY PERFORMANCE
Last year the 55 rep DL workout KILLED my back. Although overall I’m in much better shape this year, I was very conservative in this workout. While I could have gone with big sets on the deadlifts I did all singles. Yup, that’s right, ALL singles. Then busted out big sets on the HSPUs. But guess what? My back didn’t lock up on me and I feel great. I finished with 79 reps… not my best performance. Oh, and the new HSPU standard didn’t bother me at all. I made sure my HSPUs were slow and controlled so I made each rep.


FINAL THOUGHTS
While I know I could have pushed harder and logged more reps I’m not advancing this year so why kill my back and be out for weeks?! Yes, I want to push, but I’m also in this fitness thing for the long haul. However, even with an extremely low score, I’m still sitting top 10% worldwide in my age group. This is HUGE. Last year I finished top 25%!

Did you do 18.4? Love it or hate it? Any predictions for 18.5?