18.3 Thoughts & Strategy

EVANS AVENUE PARKING REMINDER During Construction (click for details).

Open Athletes - if you haven't already, please watch the 18.3 standards video below (which briefly covers only Rx standards), and read the full workout details here on the CrossFit Games website.  This will ensure that everyone is on the same page with movement standards and expectations (both Rx and scaled) prior to every athlete and judge starting their workout/heat.  In particular, everyone should be familiar with how to accurately judge/count double unders - here's the gist of it: COUNT EVERY TIME THE ATHLETE'S FEET HIT THE GROUND UNTIL THEY MISS. THEN WRITE DOWN WHERE THEY ARE ON THE PAPER SO YOU DON'T LOSE TRACK.  Don't even watch their hands.  Easy.  Also, record the "tiebreak time" which is what the clock says every time they finish a set of 100 DUs.

As we've covered previously in this post here, we'll be running the Open Workout ("18.3") during rolling heats in all of our Saturday morning classes.  If you haven't already please sign-up for class in advance and plan on doing the workout AND judging another athlete while in the gym (no, you do not have to be a certified judge who has taken the judges course).  

For those new to Arena Ready please note that these Saturday morning classes will be very different from our usual protocol.  The warm-up will be self-directed and written on the board in AR North for you to follow.  Please plan on showing up 10-15 minutes early for class if possible, so that you can sign-up for a heat time when you arrive and get yourself situated for warming-up. 

If you're not officially entered in the Open then ask a coach on site to help you decide on a reasonable scaling for the workout if needed -- based on availability & logistics we may assign you to a particular station to give priority to the athletes who are officially registered.  

Let's break this one down a little and get you thinking about how best to approach the workout given your current capacity...

WOD & Movement Prep

You want to get some aerobic work in so the workout is not a shock to the body, but no need to "do the workout before doing the workout."  Make sure your feet/calves/Achilles are primed and ready for the volume of jumping, and warm-up your shoulders thoroughly for the OHS/MU/DBSn.

This is not the time to make up for lost technique or skill work (particularly for double unders), lest you end up adding hundreds of jumps before you even start the workout.  Your calves, feet, shins, and Achilles can only take so much in one day, friends!  This is obviously a lot of double unders so prepare for the impact as best you can (and for those prone to lower extremity issues you may want to set your own "personal volume cap" as a responsible way to keep yourself out of the zone of "crap, I should've been smarter and stopped before I aggravated my connective tissue issues").  

Double Unders

This workout is primarily about DUs for many levels of competitors, from beginner to fairly advanced.  For those still tying to master the DU this is 14 minutes of "get as far as you can" -- and assuming you can overhead squat 115/80 lbs safely you'll have an opportunity to possibly try another set of 100 DUs (or as many of that second set as you can before time is called).  If you cannot OHS 115/80 then this is "get to 100 DUs as fast as possible in order to have the best possible tiebreak time."  For those who will be limited with movement proficiencies (whether it be with DUs or any of the other movements) our coaches can help with recommending how best to proceed in order to both maximize your official score and give you an opportunity to progress through the workout (unofficially, of course) if you're stalled at any point.

If you're good at DUs and can do all of the other movements fairly well (or even most of them) then this is about picking a pace and rep scheme to break up the DUs into sub-maximal pieces.  That is key -- do everything in sub-maximal sets for as long as you can (this applies to the DUs especially, but also to the other 4 movements).  If you have the ability to do 100 DUs unbroken several times then great, but if that leaves you increasingly gassed each time and unable to progress through the OHS/MU/DBSn in a smooth and steady fashion then the time "saved" going unbroken on the DUs is not saved at all, and actually quite the opposite (unless you're near the end of the time cap and trying to accumulate reps OR aiming to hit a faster tiebreak time before a movement you know for sure you will struggle on and possibly get stalled).  Think of it this way: you can accomplish a lot more work after a smooth & steady 1:20 spent doing 40-30-30 DUs (or even 30-30-20-20) than you can after 0:55 spent going 100 unbroken.  So while it feels silly early on to break intentionally, you're actually banking time by limiting your rest on all the other movements... and the next several sets of DUs. 

Now if you're good at DUs but know you'll hit a stall on one of the other movements then it may be worth it to race through the DU sets to get better tiebreak times, knowing your "built-in" rest will come during your focused attempts to move through the OHS/MU.

Overhead Squat

The big gap between the Rx and Scaled loadings from CrossFit HQ make this movement fairly easy to decide on for those who might otherwise be on the Rx/Scaled fence in this workout.  Can you safely OHS 115/80?  If yes, then (obviously) go Rx -- if the weight is easy for you then the set should be 20 unbroken, if it's so-so for you then aim for 2-3 sets (I like descending sets like 12-8 or 10-6-4), and if it's heavy for you (but you can do it) then break it up as much as you need to (including doubles or even all singles with a power snatch or clean to overhead each time). 

For all levels my main reminder is not to waste any reps -- get all the way below parallel and stand all the way up at the top.  You've all squatted so many times at AR that you know what full range-of-motion feels like, and I won't be shy about no-repping folks (and will tell judges the same).  We do you no favors if we give you reps that shouldn't count, and intention does not equal accomplishment -- squat all the way down because I know you can, and because that's the standard.  No one, including athletes at the very highest level, should be rushing the OHS (it's 20 reps in a hundreds-plus rep workout)  -- take your time, stay solid and stable, and move with full range-of-motion.              

Ring Muscle-ups

Good at MU and fit enough to get to the rings?  Then (shocker) sub-maximal sets that keep you moving is the way to go.  Remember that (as an example) a calm 4-3-3-2 is ALWAYS faster than 7 unbroken and then 2-1-1-1 while looking like you're going explode.  Remember that fact when you still feel good after the first few reps and you think (incorrectly) that you should "just keep going for a really big unbroken set" to start. 

Alternatively if you can do MU but you're not great at them, then set yourself up in the best situation to maximize your reps -- for many this will be 12 singles, or maybe a double or two followed by singles.  On Thursday night Brianne did all singles and finished the 12 Ring MUs with enough time to be back on the DUs and racking-up easy reps.  It was the most MUs she had ever done in one day by far, but her methodical and intelligent approach allowed her to do that -- she never missed a rep, and by not "over-reaching" and possibly flailing for a double here and there she calmly slayed those 12 reps in calculated fashion.     

If you're "close" but haven't yet gotten your first ring muscle-up then this may be the day!  Please remember that in order to attempt one at Arena Ready you must have the prerequisite strength, mobility, and stability to do so -- or we may veto your request (for your own safety).  If you're not sure if you meet the prerequisites then ask us in the gym and we'll help you out -- here's a preview... can you do strict unassisted ring dips and strict unassisted pull-ups?  The answer for both should be "yes."

This is the time of year when I usually give my PSA that sounds something like "We have Open Gym Sundays nearly 50 weeks out of the year, and I'm almost always there -- AND some of my favorite movements to teach are ring muscle-ups (and HSPU).  Just throwing it out there, friends.  I can even provide references from current AR members if you need to verify that it works if you work at it with some guidance."

DB Snatch

You know how to snatch a DB, we do it all the time.  If you get here this will feel like the easiest part of the workout, so enjoy it.  Set your back and don't drop the DB.  Advanced athletes will be tempted to break the set of 20 because you'll be breathing hard -- don't, unless you can keep your one break strictly under 5 seconds.  Catch your breath on the next set of DUs by going smooth and steady, and breaking them into SUB-MAXIMAL SETS WHICH YOU'VE BEEN DOING THE ENTIRE TIME.

Bar Muscle-ups

If you can get here then it's likely that you don't need too much of our help, other than maybe some technical considerations and how to break up the reps (uh, sub-maximal sets anyone?).  There may be an outlier or two in the gym that are fit enough to get here but for some reason are not yet proficient with Bar MUs.  In an effort to not make this already long post any longer I'll point you to this video here and this snippet here which are two of my favorites when it comes to Bar MUs.

Also, see above PSA in the Ring MU section.  I also love Bar MU, and especially enjoy teaching them in an environment where we can break things down and take our time.  And in Open Gym we can even get all crazy with props, drills, and different set-ups to give you some tools for progress.  2019 starts now, yo.     

Closing Remarks (Since I Said I Would Keep Re-Posting Them)

Be smart and move well.  You know what that means, I don't have to explain that one to you.  The weights (and jump ropes LOLOLOLOL) will be here tomorrow... will you be?    

Cheer for your fellow athletes, and be a good judge.  We do things the right way at Arena Ready -- with integrity and to the standards of the competition.  Our movement is clean, our technique is admirable, our effort is 100%, and our members know the difference between intent and accomplishment (e.g. giving your fellow athlete a respectful but deserved no-rep when they're working their ass off but simply didn't accomplish a valid rep).  The spirit of the Open is amazing - there's nothing like the energy and positive family vibe of these 5 weeks.  Many of your buddies will do things they never thought possible, some will fall short of what they wanted and be frustrated for a bit, and others will have experiences on both sides.  But in the end this is our community, and our AR family, and we support each other in success and in failure... knowing that we're all just trying to get better every day.

GO TIME!

WOD For 03-10-18:

"Open 18.3"

2 Rounds For Time (14 Minute Cap):

100 Double Unders

20 Overhead Squats @ 115/80 lbs

100 Double Unders

12 Ring Muscle-ups

100 Double Unders

20 Dumbbell Snatches @ 50/35 lbs

100 Double Unders

12 Bar Muscle-ups

Click here for the scaled workout movements and loading.