If this is your first Open, welcome! Otherwise, welcome back!

This year, I will be recording my first attempt of each workout and giving some information regarding my score, what I experienced and what I recommend.

My hope is this will be more helpful and can give you a better sense of how to approach the workouts for yourself so you know what to shoot for on your first attempt.

 Here. We. Go!

Open Workout 17.1

For time:
10 snatches
15 burpee box jump-overs
20 snatches
15 burpee box jump-overs
30 snatches
15 burpee box jump-overs
40 snatches
15 burpee box jump-overs
50 snatches
15 burpee box jump-overs

M 50-lb. dumbbell / 24-in. box
F 35-lb. dumbbell / 20-in. box

Time cap: 20 minutes

This workout has a total of 75 burpee box jump-overs and 150 dumbbell power snatches with a load that, for most of us, is not exactly light. The unavoidable stimulus: extreme metabolic distress!

There is no escaping the hypoxic hurt, but one way to manage it is smart pacing. By pacing, I don’t mean make it comfortable, but rather find the fastest pace at which you can keep moving throughout the workout.

Going in, my strategy was to switch hands on the way down for each rep of the snatches and to move more quickly in the beginning in order to buy some time for the larger sets.

In theory, this is not a bad approach. However, by the set of 40, I slowed down considerably, and by the round of 50, I was taking approximately 5-10 second breaks every 10 reps. This tells me I went out too hard!

I learned that it only makes sense to switch hands on the way down if you think you can maintain it throughout the entire workout. Otherwise, do the snatches in quick singles from the ground – you will not lose much, especially if this means you do not have to stop moving in later rounds.

Important to remember on the snatches:

●      Both heads of the dumbbell have to touch the ground on every rep.

●      Your free hand/arm cannot make contact with your body at anytime during the rep. 

During the burpees, I found no real advantage in jumping back after the first round. Instead I switched to steadily stepping back and stepping forward for every rep. Feel this out for yourself and modulate the pace based on what you can maintain.

My profile may help you here; you can check my stats and determine if you should try to go faster or slower than I did.

The reps increase as we get more and more tired, and the sets of 40 and 50 are a real mental challenge. Not much to do here but suck it up and get the work done. Try to stay positive and stay away from self-critical/pitying thoughts. Remember, most importantly, you are doing this! You are strong and healthy and each completed rep is you meeting and overcoming this challenge.

Finally, this one took a significant toll on my erectors. For a few days afterward my back was fatigued and sore! Using more leg drive on the snatches can help. However, it will be inevitable that the back gets taxed pulling from the ground 150 times on the snatches.  

I think it’s highly unlikely you’ll repeat this one within four days and do better, so create a solid plan for yourself going in and give it everything you’ve got on that first attempt!

Good Luck!

Click here for more details on Open Workout 17.1.