Murph Workout

Competitions in fitness come and go. Powerlifting and Olympic meets are recurring monthly events. CrossFit competitions are held regularly throughout the year, both locally and nationally. We can easily find a 5k, marathon, or other running competition because regional Spartan Races, Tough Mudder, and other obstacle course races occur regularly. Every Memorial Day weekend, the fitness world gets something new when the Murph workout Challenge takes place.

With the help of social media, a once-a-year test of endurance, willpower, and commitment for beginners and advanced athletes emerged from a CrossFit exclusive hero workout. This hero exercise has a special place on the fitness calendar because it honors the memory of Lieutenant Michael Murphy, a United States Navy SEAL who lost his life in Afghanistan while serving his country.

Lieutenant Murphy performed this workout frequently and was well known for his challenging activities and capacity for pushing himself. So CrossFit HQ decided to give it his name. The “Murph workout” challenges an individual to complete the following as quickly as possible:

A 20 lb weight vest for men and a 15 lb weight vest for women.

• Two-mile run
• 100 pull-ups
• 200 push-ups
• 300 squats

Additionally, it can be scaled, performed without a weight vest, and modified with different movement patterns, such as rows using only body weight in place of pull-ups.

How do you actually tackle the Murph?

You might have similar thoughts to the following at this point: “How am I supposed to accomplish all of that?” “I can’t do it all.” “I’ll need to spend the entire year training for this.”

There are several techniques to tackle this issue and improve oneself as you go. It ranging from first-time participants to yearly veterans.

Even if you’ve never done Murph workout before, I will show you how to get the most out of it by breaking down some tried-and-true techniques.

Ensure that you get a good night’s sleep the night before. Make sure you have some whey protein, BCAAs (branched-chain amino acid supplements), or pre-workout to drink. Avoid eating foods that will make your stomach upset before beginning the challenge. As you start to maintain your typical training routine, you want everything to go as smoothly as possible.

Step One: Assess Your Strengths and Weaknesses

We all know what a workout entails. It’s straightforward. Which one of the four movements do you think is your strongest? That will be the movement you use as a baseline for pacing yourself.

A critical factor in performing your best Murph workout is getting little moments of rest. You’ll be forced to try to move equally at the same speed if you can’t rely on one particular movement to move slowly.

You’ll see that people in the room start and stop their reps chaotically when you look around. They’ll stretch their arms or legs, take a few breaths, and then reportedly have to motivate themselves to try another rep.

You can squeeze every bit of recovery without entirely stopping and allowing lactic acid to build if you know you have one movement that you can count on.

The first step is, to be honest with yourself. What are your strongest and weakest movements?

Step Two: Doing Math

We want to increase your pace at this point. This has nothing to do with taking control of any one movement or attempting to win the CrossFit Games. What’s the fastest you can maintain?

Start with your weakest movement

Now that you’ve figured out which movements are strongest and weakest, the first movement in your sequence is ready. The first of your weakest motions is performed with the fewest repetitions.

When we look at Murph’s bodyweight component, we must accomplish the following:

• 100 pull-ups
• Do 200 push-ups.
• 300 squats

You can divide up those reps, however you like, but they must be fully completed and be bookended by two separate 1-mile runs.

I’ll perform 5 reps of pull-ups as my base “weak” movement. I would break it down as follows: 20 sets, or average, the result of dividing 100 total pull-ups by 5 reps.

• 5 pull-ups.
• 10 push-ups
• 15 squats

This is based on the assumption that you want to do 20 sets. Start with four pull-ups if you know you can only perform four pull-ups simultaneously before failing. The pause after 4 reps to complete all 5 reps in a given set will significantly lengthen your total workout time, and the struggle will worsen as fatigue sets in.

You will also prevent lactic acid from building up by continuously moving during Murph. While the sheer volume of the workout will burn you out quickly, you can minimize it to a degree by constantly moving. There’s no need to hurry, but try to keep moving throughout a set.

Here is how our math would change with four repetitions of our weakest movement.

Pull-ups are performed in sets of 25, or an average of 100 reps divided by 4 reps.

• 4 pull-ups
• 8 push-ups
• 12 squats

Right, that seems much more manageable.

Break it up to manage fatigue

Another method for managing fatigue while keeping active involves dividing the workout into two separate sets and rep schemes. Remember, keep moving to achieve your goals. Here’s how it would look:

Start with 5 sets:

• 10 pull-ups
• 20 push-ups
• 30 squats

After your 5th set of the following routine, you move on to the following setup for 10 sets:

• 5 pull-ups.
• 10 push-ups
• 15 squats

Even though the first five sets are laborious and take longer, you won’t have trouble doing the same number of reps per set while resting for a bit more.

A Look at This Year’s Strategy

When wearing a weight vest, I have used the set/rep scheme below, and I intend to do so once more this year.

50 sets:

• 2 pull-ups
• 4 push-ups
• 6 squats

This enables me to maintain constant motion and avoid taking extended breaks to stretch my arms or legs. I find that it is easier to keep track of the numbers when they are small mentally, and I rarely have to pause in the middle of a set to complete it fully.

My point is that there is no one right approach or “best” plan to employ when working with Murph. You must be able to recall your actual count; this is crucial. You’ll have a longer workout regardless of how you break it up, so try to stay away from complicated setups and start being honest with yourself.

Step Three: Establishing a Constant Pace

Although I’ve already touched on pace briefly. I wanted to emphasize how crucial it is to set a pace early so you can keep up. Don’t start with 15 reps while you’re still fresh; then decrease the number as you go if you know you can only perform 10 squats simultaneously. If you’re unsure whether or when to change up your repetitions after 5 rounds, you’ll probably get confused and lose your place.

Over the long weekend, with your friends and family, perform this exercise as a tribute to a fallen hero. You don’t have to say everything immediately, especially working with others. Learn about the training methods that people in your area are using.

A few months before Memorial Day, many CrossFit gyms offer “Murph Prep” classes, and some even schedule “Half Murph” so that participants can get accustomed to particular aspects of the challenge. When you add a weight vest, you have to get used to the extra weight and an entirely different dimension. If you don’t usually wear a weight vest, it will take some getting used to–especially if you need to wear it for an extended period while being out of breath.

Step Four: The Running

I purposely split the running into its sections because it seems to be the area where most people have trouble. Additionally, it pays to maintain miles of roads actively.

I’ll give the same advice to someone who hasn’t run in years as I would to an endurance athlete who runs daily. Ensure you don’t burn it out too early and hit your lactate threshold.

Because neither of their tissues can handle the lactate threshold demand, among other activity-specific activity requirements. A powerlifter will struggle to run a half-mile, and a marathon runner will struggle to perform a maximal effort squat.

We all agree that jogging is more intense than walking, and sitting on your couch is less intensive than walking. Your body works with a higher heart rate and greater demands for oxygen intake with every slight increase in exercise intensity. Your conditioning significantly impacts your ability to control and move lactate out of your working muscles. If you’re in good shape, you’ll be able to handle the lactate better.

Because neither of their tissues can handle the lactate threshold demand, among other activity-specific activity requirements, a powerlifter will struggle to run a half-mile, and a marathon runner will struggle to perform a maximal effort squat.

Importance of Running

Every athlete understands the importance of running because when your body reaches its lactate threshold, any lactate that cannot be cleared will be transferred to your lower body. What’s the most powerful muscle in your body? Your legs, of course! As lactate begins to build up during any activity, a portion of it will be transported to your lower body to eliminate it.

Research previous Murph workout challenges by watching videos online. You’ll notice that almost everyone shakes their legs frequently during bodyweight exercises, despite having two upper body movements for every lower body movement. I don’t mean to imply that the first-mile run or the squats are simple; instead, I’m illustrating how lactate acid shuttling functions in the real world and how it will quickly make you feel exhausted.

This is why you want to go as slowly as possible on your first mile, even if you are a seasoned runner. Save your energy for the body weight section instead of burning out early.

Step Five: The Last Mile

You will be astonished to learn that your strategy for the last mile differs significantly from your strategy for the first mile. After fatigue and all other completed repetitions are considered, you’ll want to go slower on the first half-mile of your second run.

There will be some mile markers in each location where you do the Murph workout. I’ve been too many CrossFit gyms, most of which make you run around the block until it’s exactly a mile. This can be used to your advantage.

The first time you run, take it slow and pay attention to your surroundings to remember the route. After completing all 600 repetitions, you’ll experience an extraordinary sensation. If you’re doing a second run, don’t just try to get over it as fast as possible; your timing will be worse. The first half-mile of your second run is a great opportunity to flush the lactate from your legs. Once you’ve completed the mental half-mile, you may now utilize the jets to finish the Murph workout.

You’ll notice that those who tried to finish the run as quickly as possible will be miserable for the final half mile.