Karen!

Why are the CrossFit benchmark workouts named after girls?  I heard it was for the same reason that tropical storms were traditionally named for women: Because of the devastation they cause.  Two days after Karen I have to admit I still feel wrecked.

So how can a WOD so simply and short be so tough?

150 Wall Balls with a 20# wall ball thrown to a 10′ target (14# and 9′ if you are a woman)

A 5 to 15 minute effort depending on your fitness level.

And now my whole body hurts!

You need everything to propel that ball, upper body and lower body.  Within 25 reps your lungs are burning and heart is pounding.  But the ball is light enough that you never need to stop for very long.  You may want to, but you don’t need to.  And that intensity is devastating.  There is no comfortable place inside these big movements, a full squat followed by an explosive overhead extension to launch that ball at the target.

Accuracy is required too and those missed reps when you fail to hit the target are heart breaking and soul-sucking!

Then you must receive the ball as it accelerates in its descent to crash into your waiting body.

Don’t misunderstand me, I bear no love for Karen.  But I do admire her elegant simplicity and brutal efficiency.  A perfectly wicked fitness tool.  And she is coming to visit Dunbar Street in Vancouver.  Enjoy!