Written by Pamela Gagnon (@pamelagnon)
“Murph” is coming up this weekend, and hopefully, you have been doing some preparation for the month of May.
Remind Me
“Murph” is a popular CrossFit Hero WOD created to honor Lt. Michael P. Murphy, a Navy SEAL who lost his life in Afghanistan on June 28, 2005. CrossFit gyms across the U.S. and beyond perform this workout on Memorial Day to remember and pay tribute to fallen military personnel.
Murph
As written, the workout is unpartitioned — you finish all the pull-ups before you move onto the push–ups, etc., while wearing a weighted vest or body armor — but there are so many ways to participate in Murph and be a part of this great tradition in our community.
Now, let’s break down how to take on this workout, whether you’re a newbie CrossFit athlete, an elite competitor, or anyone in between!
Notes for Newbies
First, make sure you wear your red, white, and blue!
It’s a tradition to honor the day and reflect on why we are enduring this workout as a collective group.
Workout Volume
This high-volume workout can take some mid-level athletes an hour or more to complete, but don’t worry, Murph is meant to be challenging, and the volume is a big reason why.
- As a newer athlete, it’s crucial to scale the volume for safety.
We want to avoid rhabdomyolysis and aim for a time domain of 45 to 60 minutes to keep pace with the majority of athletes doing the workout alongside you while achieving the intended stimulus of the workout.
How Can I Scale or Adjust the Workout?
First, partition the movements. This means you will break up the pull-ups, push-ups, and air squats into sets and rotate through them.
Next, cut the entire workout in half or more!!
Workout Skill Level
Not everyone has or should be doing pull-ups [especially kipping] even when we cut the volume in half. Not to mention, those push-ups and air squats can wear you down fast.
How Can I Adjust the Skill Level?
For Murph, it’s highly recommended to scale the skill level along with the volume.
- For the pull-up portion, do ring rows or one pull-up plus four ring rows per round. For push-ups, elevate your hands to a box to deload the body and make them more attainable. For air squats, you can always squat to a chair or box.
How to Approach the WOD
For the First-Timer/Scaled Athletes
Option 1: Partner-Style, Work/Rest
Turning the workout into a partner WOD is a great way to lower the barrier of entry for this community event. Partners will share the workload, and while one is working, the other rests.
- Run 200 meters each to accumulate one mile together.
- Return to the gym and complete anywhere from six to 10 rounds of body weight work, depending on your conditioning level. Ten rounds each would be a half Murph, which is an excellent start for the newer, well-conditioned athletes.
- Run 200 meters each to accumulate one mile together.
Athletes can scale the pull-ups into ring rows and elevate their push-ups, placing their hands on a high box. If they need more assistance, they can perform their air squats to a box as well.
Option 2: AMRAP with a Time Cap
For this option, the athlete, as an individual, adds a time cap and performs the workout as an AMRAP:
Complete as many rounds in 45 minutes:
- 200-meter run/walk
- 5 ring rows, 10 elevated pushups, 15 air squats to a box.
Done this way, if the athlete needs to rest, walk, or grab water, they can do so, knowing their pace is adjustable within that time domain.
For the Old-Timers
If you have been doing Murph for years and always break it into 20 rounds after the run, this year, try performing 10 rounds instead, completing 10 pull-ups, 20 push-ups, and 30 air squats each round.
- Consider wearing a vest for the run, but removing it for the bodyweight exercises. You can even try it unpartitioned with a friend beside you to keep each other motivated. Remember, tackle small sets to chip away!
However you do Murph, make sure to high-five each other at the end and continue honoring our fallen heroes. As always, listen to your coach’s suggestions and your own body, and make sure you choose a volume that is right for you.
Pamela Gagnon is a former D1 Gymnast, a four-time Masters Games athlete, and co-owner of Performance Plus Programming. Since 2016, she has helped over 50,000 athletes Rx their skills. She also currently writes Mayhem Gymnastics and spent eight years as Seminar Staff for CrossFit Gymnastics.
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Featured Image: @b.a.w_media / Instagram
