Murph Part 2!

Not too far to go now – Murph is on the horizon! And it coincides with a long weekend, so that is fun. But more importantly, Murph and our first get together in a long time! If you are unaware of what I am talking about, please go back and read the previous post about Murph as that will fill in some of the blanks. This post is going to explain and break down some of the ways that you can actually perform the workout to give you some food for thought on how you want to participate on Memorial Day.

I am going to break it down into three categories: full Murph, partial or partner Murph, no Murph. We’ll start from the back.

No Murph

If you fit into this category, you are not doing the workout. Hence the name. This is for those that just want to show up, watch people do the workout, or just hang out and enjoy some time with friends. You are more than welcome to show up early to watch or just show up at the cookout afterwards and enjoy some food. Friends and family also fit into this category.

Partial or Partner Murph

For those that want to go alone, you may do a partial Murph. In this option you will generally want to stick with a half or quarter Murph, and you may or may not decide to cut the full workout or just parts of it. For instance, you may decide to do a half Murph (50 pull ups, 100 push ups, 150 air squats) but still run the full mile before and after. Or you may do 800m runs instead of the miles and the rest of the reps full. The options are endless. Feel free to check with a coach if you are unsure of what you should do.

You may also choose to do a partner Murph! You and a friend (or two) can partner up and attack the workout together. The most common way to do a partner Murph is to split up the reps evenly (or unevenly, it’s up to you) and either work at the same time or do a “you go, I go” to get the work done. Again, options are endless.

Full Murph

In this case, you will be doing the full workout. There are many ways to partition the workout as I will describe below, but note that the only rule you need to adhere to is that you must start with and finish with a mile run. 

When doing this workout it is a good idea to pick your weakest movement and base your rep scheme off of that. If you know that your push ups are the sticking point, and that you can only do five in a row before tiring, it probably doesn’t make sense to do more than five at a time, right? Therefore, the first step is to find the weak movement and set realistic expectations of what you will be able to accomplish in a set. Then, browse the following common rep schemes and find one that works for you!

2 pull/4 push/6 squat for 50 rounds

This is a great place to start for those who are newer and have the ability to perform small sets of pull ups and push ups. Small sets means frequent transitions (read: rest) and a lower likelihood of muscle fatigue.

3 pull/6 push/9 squat for 33 rounds + 1 round of 1/2/3

Same as 2/4/6, but with higher reps to reduce the number of transitions.

5 pull/10 push/15 squat for 20 rounds

Probably the most common method, this one is recommended for those who have been doing CrossFit for a while and can consistently perform pull ups and push ups. The push ups do get difficult in the later rounds, so you may choose the following partition if you know you struggle with those.

5 push/5 pull/5 push/15 squat for 20 rounds

If push ups give you trouble, this method gives you smaller sets so that you can maintain your push ups for longer.

10 pull/20 push/30 squat for 10 rounds

If you are really proficient at push-ups, go after this rep scheme. This is also great if you don’t want to count all of those rounds… however, it does mean larger sets which can be problematic.

5 pull/10 push/20 squat for 15 rounds, 5 pull/10 push for 5 rounds

Ok, now we’re getting into the weeds here, but this option front loads the squats so that you can save your legs for the final mile on the last 5 rounds. As a result, your arms will get blasted without rest the last five rounds, but if you know your legs are the issue, then go this route.

20 pull/40 push/60 squat for 5 rounds

This one was done at the 2016 CrossFit Games.

100 pull/200 push/300 squat (Unpartitioned)

There’s no requirement to do this rep scheme, but without a doubt, I can say that it is the hardest. Muscle fatigue and failure is definitely a reality, and I would caution all but the most conditioned to attempt this format.

Final Thoughts

With all of these options, remember that these are just options for you. You may choose to do something entirely different, and that is ok. These options also do not mention any specifics about scaling or partitioning the movements, only the reps. You are of course encouraged to scale the movements to meet your abilities and the coaches will gladly help you find the movements and reps that work for you on that day, just reach out!

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