Welcome to a mini series of blog posts on the 2016 CrossFit Open. We wanted to to take you inside the eyes & mind of another during these 5 intense weeks. Every Tuesday following the conclusion of the whole weekend we will release a new post.
It's giving you a chance for you to live & breathe through these brilliant yet torturous workouts that seemingly keep coming back to us every Friday in March. You have probably all felt that anticipation in wanting to know what the "WoD" might be. And then there are the nerves that set n for hours before you even get a chance to throw your hat in!! (If you have never gone through this as it's your first Open or have never entered such an event then this could be useful to you to know that everybody goes through the same emotions.
We thought who should we ask to do this and then thought why not one of our Coaches! So without further a-due we give you Steph & her experience on 16.1. We hope you enjoy it .....
Sixteen Point One by Steph Bartlem
I have to say the nerves and the reality of this Open season really didn’t hit me until Friday morning – the announcement of 16.1. Last year the excitement was exactly the same. Leading up to the announcement, sitting at my computer at 11:30am on the games website watching the clock tick down…15 mins, 10 mins, 5 mins, hoping that someone wouldn’t walk past my computer or ring my phone to distract me from hanging on every word…waiting for the moment that Director of The CrossFit Games Dave Castro starts his infamous speech and we watch two amazing athletes (who competed at the Games last season) throw down. This year though, that excitement was compounded with a whole lot of extra nervous energy. You see, last year was a little different. I had just been diagnosed with bursitis in my left shoulder and had begun the long 12 week road back to health. And as such – the 2015 Open was out for me. It was completely unexpected that in those short hours leading up to finally finding out what 16.1 would have in store, to feel so nostalgic. It really forced me to look back and reflect on how far I have come, how much work I had put into healing and how much of a difference it has made. It also made me reflect on how much I wished I could have joined in last year and is why I am a massive advocate for competing in the Open whether you scale or not and whether you think you’re ready or not. FOMO was at an all time high every Saturday in March last year. Fast forward to the live stream on the games website, they are just about to cross to Castro and my hands are sweating and I’m practically bouncing out of my seat with nerves. I’ve had about 30 texts over the course of the morning from members feeling the exact same way as I am…questioning whether this event is something that they will actually be able to do or not. The first surprise of this announcement was Mr Castro didn’t take 15 minutes to spit out the workout. It was there right in front of me almost immediately. So fast, that at first I hadn’t quite comprehended what he had said. A 20 minute AMRAP? (As Many Rounds As Possible). It has been 5 years since there was such a long workout programmed in the open. Sure there have been a few workouts announced with no time cap, but this meant a 20 minute workout for everyone. First word that came to mind – pace. This was one that you couldn’t just through your all into from the start, this was one that really encompassed that mantra “find an uncomfortable pace and stick to it.” I knew that I would just have to keep moving. Another surprise this year – overhead walking lunges. This is a movement we haven’t seen in the Open before and one that I have never done before. The closest I have ever got to this movement is with a bumper plate overhead so I knew that balance and stability would be key to mastering this movement. There were three main things I was telling myself as I was watching Chyna Cho and Emily Abbott do their thing. 1 - Pace it. Try and leave something in the tank for the last 5 minutes of this workout, this is what could be the reason you separate yourself from the pack 2 - Don’t you dare drop that barbell in the lunges. Be ready to pick it up each and every time and don’t put it down until you reach the end 3 - Break up your pull-ups from the start. Pick a rep scheme and hold on until that clock counts down. As soon as the girls were finished a sense of calm washed over me. I can do this. I decided to write down those three things along with a couple of other decisions I made in that moment. My aim was to get 5 rounds plus and break up my pullups into reps of 2 from the beginning. I was ready. I was so excited that the Rooftop of Dreams was hosting the Open as Friday Night Lights this week. There is something really magic about throwing down in the middle of the city at night. The way the lights light up the tent with the city in full swing is pretty incredible.
As soon as I got to the box my excitement ramped right back up again. There was a huge crew there all getting ready to give it their all and I couldn’t wait to see what they were all going to achieve, who was going to get some PR’s and do some things they never knew they could. These guys did not disappoint.
As long as a 20 minute AMRAP was, especially when we only had room for 3 peeps to go at a time, it was my turn. Mihali (my judge) turned to me and said, “what do you want to get out of this?” It was probably the best thing he could have said to me in that moment. With everything going on, judging, taking photos, cheering I had forgotten to reflect back on those few things I had decided on earlier. So I replied back – I would like to get over the 5 round mark, break up my pullups from the start but most importantly I don’t want to go out of the gates too hard and die.
So that’s what we did. I say we because in every experience I have had with the Open your judge is in it with you, from start to finish. They care that you get that extra rep, that you don’t rest too long and that you fight. This is part of the magic of the open. Your peers become your cheerleaders and your biggest ally.
Therefore 16.1 went down a little like this. I didn’t go out of the gates too hard and I managed to stick to a fairly uncomfortable pace. I did however drop the bar on my second lot of lunges but I certainly didn’t make that mistake again. 
I broke up my pull-ups into reps of 2 and managed to hold that consistently right through. The burpees sucked, but they always do. 148 reps later I was done and I was damn proud that I had managed to get almost 6 rounds. Game plan – check.
- Still hurt at the end tho!!
smashed a Fitaid and got straight back into getting the rest of the gang through.
What an amazing night on the ROD. To those who hit their first open – what an amazing job you did. To those that PR’d or got their first ever C2B – relish in your moment, it is something you will never ever forget. To the rest of the CBD members – I am so proud of you all, you gave it everything you had and your support, your camaraderie and your encouragement does not go unnoticed.
Until next week – rest and recover. I can’t wait to see what "The" Dave Castro has in store for us next.
S xx
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