Pump and Run: The Pump

On Sunday, I participated alongside several of my box-mates from CrossFit Metropolis in CrossFit Hoboken's Pump and Run competition to benefit the Wounded Warrior Project.  There were two components, benching pressing for max reps and running a 5K.  Your score was your 5K time minus 30 seconds for each consecutive bench press rep.

The event was held outside on a pier in Hoboken.  When we arrived, there were six racks set up for the bench press, three 135 lb bars for men and three 65 lb bars for women.  The set up was intimidating, but it was a beautiful day and I was there with my crew.  We warmed up a bit and scoped out the crowd.  It turns out you really can't tell who the strongest people are just by looking, particularly when it comes to women. 

The event began.   I watched a few women go up and fail after a handful of reps.  At that point, I relaxed a bit.  I probably wouldn't be the worst lifter.  Then, I watched my friend Jen go up and knock out 21 reps like it was nothing.  That was awesome.  After Jen went, I watched the rest of the Metropolis crew PR.  On the morning of the event, I had blogged that I would be happy with anything over 10 reps, which is what I had done in practice.  I figured I could maybe do 12.  By the time I went, I was so fired up from everyone else's performance that I did 15 reps.  I wished that I had just a few more in me, but I was jazzed about my 50% PR.

Here's how it all went down for Team Metropolis (note our snazzy red shirts):

After the pumping, it was time to run.

To be continued...

-Gym Belle-