The other day I was talking with someone about an upcoming workout we’ll be doing at our gym. Next week will mark the third or fourth year we’ve participated alongside thousands of other gyms across the world to complete “Chad” on Veterans Day to raise awareness for suicide prevention.
The workout? 1000 weighted step ups for time.
Simple.
And to the person I was talking to that day….boring.
It made me almost immediately want to turn on my camera and rant, but instead I thought I’d share a little something here.
First of all, “Chad” is what we call a hero workout in CrossFit.
CrossFit.com explains Hero Workouts as:
a way of paying tribute to the fallen members of our community who made the ultimate sacrifice, and through the consecration of the values they lived by, paired with a workout bearing their name, we remember them and begin the healing process for those they left behind.
CrossFit Hero workouts are built on three pillars that symbolize the visceral and physical experiences athletes who undertake them endure to create a legacy for the fallen:
- Honoring
- Grieving
- Enduring
I’ve been doing CrossFit since 2007, and I’ve done a ton of Hero Workouts over the last 17 years. All of them have possessed the enduring part for sure. I’ve done one of the most popular Hero workouts, “Murph”, more times than I can count. Straight through, broken up, with and without a vest, in beautiful weather, in hot weather, feeling great, and hung over (just being honest here).
But as many times as I’ve done Murph or JT or Josh or Badger, none of them gave me the feeling of honoring and grieving like Chad did.
The first time I did Chad I was in my garage by myself with a rucksack on my back loaded with a steel 45lb plate. My wife and kids were gone somewhere so it was just me, the box, and my thoughts. I remember recording a video for social media afterwards holding tears back because I was so emotionally moved by what had just happened.
Somehow during those 1000 step ups during the pain and exhaustion that began to boil over, I couldn’t help but think this was just a small dose of what our military and first responders might go through on any given mission. The fact that they signed up to protect me and my family everyday is more than enough reason for me to honor them with this workout. The level of gratitude I felt for all first responders had never been stronger than what it was after the first time I did Chad.
To the untrained eye, the workout itself might seem boring, maybe even unnecessarily repetitive.
But I actually think it might be the best CrossFit hero workout ever designed to uphold the 3 pillars referenced above. It is not fancy or robust. It doesn’t possess high skill movements or heavy loads that might deter someone from attempting to complete it. It requires no excess of space or equipment that could excuse you from being able. In its simplicity lies no escape, no place for rest, no variance in movement or demand. It presents a level of isolation even if you’re surrounded by others doing the same workout. And it is in that isolation that I believe my mind, body, and emotions were overtaken by why it was important for me to do this workout.
So next week when we do 1000 step ups for time (or whatever variation we need to design for you) and really anytime we complete a hero workout, I encourage you to think of it as not boring or repetitive, but as a way to honor the fallen, grieve those we’ve lost, and endure maybe a small amount of the struggle those who paid the ultimate price might have endured.
If you’d like to find out more about how you can support The Step Up Foundation and their efforts to raise awareness for Veteran suicide you can check out their story HERE.
