Rx

Sweat on a kettlebell. If that doesn’t say CrossFit, I don’t know what does.

For any athlete new to CrossFit, the prescribed (Rx) weights and reps on most of the workouts can be daunting. For me, since I started going regularly late last year, they’ve ranged from “hey, I could almost… no I can’t” to “there is no freaking way.” For several WODs, I’ve been able to Rx two out of three exercises, but not that third one. Many of the overhead movements are just beyond my strength, I don’t have a whole lot of pull-ups strung together yet, and don’t even get me started on double-unders. Those are a long, long way off.

Even if the exercises present are things that I can do, sometimes I still can’t Rx the workout. Sometimes it isn’t a matter of the weight, but the volume. For instance, I can clean 135 lbs without too much trouble. But 45 times? Not so much. I can do pushups, but when the workout is umpteen sets of 20, I end up falling apart before it’s over and having to switch to a different movement to finish up.

All that said, CrossFit is nothing if not variable. It was only a matter of time before the right combination of movements, sets and reps came up together, on a day that I could go. A couple weeks ago, that day finally came for me. I checked CrossFit Dedication‘s site as I was getting ready for bed, and got more excited than a person really should get about an impending twelve minutes of grueling misery. It wasn’t complicated, it wasn’t flashy, but it was doable: ten reps each of kettlebell swings, box jumps and burpees, for as many rounds as possible in the allotted time.

I didn’t walk in the next evening with the idea of Rx-ing the WOD. The prescribed 53-lb kettlebell is still pretty heavy for me for swings, and this would be a high-intensity workout anyway. I figured I’d use the 35 pounder and call it good, but then two things happened: Katie picked up a 35 pounder, and Matt (our coach) mentioned a tweak for my form that suddenly made the KB fly up much faster and easier than I was used to. Just before the WOD started, I swapped my 35 for a 53, and then we went at it!

It’s a small thing, but it means more than you’d think.

I tried to set a steady pace from the outset, but the combination of the increased weight and the dynamic movements had me sucking wind by the end of my second round. Sweat was pouring off of me. My lungs begged for mercy. My joints popped and my muscles complained, but I stayed focused. The possibility of completing my first Rx served as added motivation, and I eyed the clock at the end of round 4, trying to catch my breath a little. There was just enough time for one more round, if I really hustled!

I banged out the swings as quickly as I could, trying to be careful about my form with the increased weight as I got tired. My fatigue became apparent as I started the box jumps. I was really working to make the 24″ height, and I had to pause between the last several reps for air. Things got a little crazy on the burpees, which I had to really hammer out to finish my set. I was breathing as deep and as smoothly as I could, but I wasn’t meeting the demands of my body, and my vision started to blur and swirl! I was basically falling to the ground for the last five reps. It was ugly, but it worked, and I finished my last round with a few seconds to spare!

It’s been awhile since I pushed myself that close to the edge, and while working hard enough to get dizzy sounds extreme, I’m happy to do it. Finding out how your body reacts when pushing it to the limit is what training is all about, as it will help you better understand how to deal with it in competition.

It may be awhile before I Rx another WOD, but I’m glad to have the monkey off my back. It’s a small step, in the grand scheme of things, but it’s one that every CrossFit newbie looks forward to taking.