The Wright's Tuff: Hammerhead Games, Part I

It feels strange and insignificant to post about CrossFit competitions instead of kayaking. I'm not that good at CrossFit yet, so my experiences are mostly local and probably fairly mundane to most. Oh well, it's my blog. Read at your own risk!

On Saturday, Crossfit Buffalo hosted the first round of the Western NY Hammerhead Fitness Games. It felt so good to get back into competition mode. Autumn in the gym was productive and fun, but for me CrossFit is not just a kayak lifting program anymore. It's a sport in itself, and I absolutely love going head to head with the girls from other gyms, especially because no one knows what the events are going to be ahead of time.

There were three workouts.The first was a 7-minute muscle-up/clean&jerk ladder (115# for women). I was excited to try out my muscle-ups for the first time in competition, and I was stoked to get 9 total during the workout.

C&J and MU

The second workout was a front squat ladder. Uh oh, leg stuff. I've been doing everything short of Sam's suggested gomad diet to strengthen my legs this autumn. Since progress isn't instantaneous, neither my squat nor my patience is yet close to adequate. The squat ladder started at 105lbs and went up incrementally by 15lbs, ending at 205. You had 30 seconds at each platform, and if you failed a lift you had the remainder of the time to do as many box jumps as possible. I ended up PRing at 135, which tied me for last place. No complaints, just facts. (Facts that will change.)

Box jumpin'

The third workout was 40-30-20 reps of 1-arm KB snatches and double-unders. There was no alternating arms, i.e. you had to snatch 20 on the right, then 20 on the left. Women's weight was 35 pounds, which was amazing compared to the guys weight of 70lbs. The women's workout was snappy. I think I finished in 5:38. The men's version was almost painful to watch, and took them much longer. I give them a lot of credit!

KB snatch

Double unders and KB snatching in a heat with Melissa, Anne, Erin, and Alicia

It was a great day overall: fun as always. Oh, and the weather was wacky: 60 degrees!!! They opened up the garage doors to the gym and it felt eerily like springtime. Thank goodness it's not, though. For one thing, I want to ski a lot more, and for another, I need more time to work on these kayaker legs before the big competitions come around!