324

I’m a week behind on C&J, so I completed 3 sets of 5 reps @ 75, 80, & 85% of 1RM. Sh!t felt heavy. I completed sets @ 120, 130, & 140#.  I then joined the 8:30 athletes for the awesome and spectacular surprise — “Death by Burpees”!

I positioned myself with my feet at the blue wall so that I could see the clock and my competition — Emily to my left and Kelli to my right. I also selected a bar that was 6″ beyond farthest reach, 2″ more than prescribed. I completed through the round of 15 unbroken, and then began to briefly pause after 5 or so reps. If I recall, most folks didn’t make it past the round of 14 or 15, so Coach Liz asked if she could start the cool down without me. Of course! I could barely hear some of the comments, as I was breathing quite loudly. I do think I heard the words “machine” and “inhuman”. Correct me if I’m wrong and let me know what I may have missed.

I made it through the round of 17 with about 10 0r so seconds to spare. And what did I do? I stopped. I was quickly catching my breath, and when the clock read 17:10 I contemplated attempting to complete 18 burpees in the remaining 50 seconds. I began to feel very disappointed in myself. I said to Coach Emily, “I’ll be back at 11:45 to try this again.’

And that’s what I did. I once again positioned myself so that I could see the clock and I once again choose a bar that was 6” beyond farthest reach. I once again made it through the round of 15 with unbroken reps. I was delighted when I completed round 17 with about 10 seconds to spare. Yes, I did have to pause when completing last round, but I did indeed complete all 18 burpees and with 3 seconds to spare. I had no intention or desire to attempt the round of 19.

I didn’t miss any reps during either workouts. I made sure to jump higher than I needed to to ensure that I’d touch the bar with both hands.

Let’s so some math, shall we? I completed 153 and 171 reps during the 8:30 and 11:45 sessions, respectively, for a total of 324 burpees.