For Workout 1 of the 2024 CrossFit® Quarterfinals we have a “Fight Gone Bad” style workout, with rounds of minute-long stations of different movements going for max reps total!
That’s right, the score is based on the total reps completed across all movements. With that in mind, an effective strategy will be critical to maximize our reps overall, not just the most reps in the movements you like the most.
In this guide, we go over how to approach this workout so that you can get the most reps! Whether you're aiming for the top of the leaderboard or a personal best, our tips will help you tackle this workout with confidence.
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Make sure you warm up well for all of the movements and get your heart rate up a bit before hitting this workout.
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CrossFit® Quarterfinals Workout 1: When To Do It?
We recommend completing Workout 4, first on Thursday, April 18, 2024, taking a minimum of a 1-2 hour rest, and then tackling Workout 1 on the same day.
Completing Workout 4 before hitting this one will not negatively affect your performance in this workout. Following our recommended workout completion schedule allows for strategic rest and redo days while meeting submission requirements, and optimizing performance by considering movement demands and fatigue levels across workouts.
Workout 1 submission is due by 5 pm PT, Saturday, April 19, 2024.
Recommended Workout 1
Floorplan & Set-Up
Setting up a good layout for your equipment will be crucial to optimizing time in this workout!
We recommend setting up your camera and then in front of the camera, from left to right, placing your box, rower, and barbell. The box and barbell should be turned so the camera has a side view. The rower should be set up so that your back is to the camera, but positioned where the camera can see the monitor of the rower. The rower monitor must be seen by the camera for the video to be valid. It is okay to move the camera at the end of each round to meet this requirement.
There must be 5 feet of space between the barbell and the rower. You may want to give yourself wiggle room here as your barbell could move slightly and you don’t want to receive a penalty. While there is not technically a distance requirement between the rower and the box, for this setup, ensure that you give yourself plenty of space between the two.
Choose weights that do not bounce and ensure you are set up on level ground so you do not waste time and energy chasing your barbell or stopping it from bouncing.
We recommend starting with your dumbbells on top of the box, and placing them back there during rest and after sets so that you do not have to bend over to pick them up and place them down. This will save you time and energy.
Set all your equipment out in advance and thoroughly test your camera placement to ensure it captures everything!
Additional Gear
Some athletes may wear wrist wraps in this workout for the snatches. If you choose to wear wrist wraps, do not mess with the velcro on your straps throughout the workout. Messing with this gear will only eat up time. Once you put them on, leave them alone!
CrossFit® Quarterfinals Workout 1
Rep Scheme & Pacing
It will be important to pace this workout so that you do not red line, ensuring you can maintain movement and consistently grab reps during each movement. There should not be a moment that you are full-on resting.
Pacing & Rep Scheme For The Snatch
Athletes of all levels should be doing singles for the snatch. Going unbroken or doing large sets is only going to increase your time under tension and unnecessarily fatigue you going into the row. The time you think you may make up by doing sets here will only bring you closer to potentially redlining, slowing down elsewhere, and wanting to take rest that you shouldn’t.
Regarding how many reps you should aim for, think of your “Isabel” time. Hit these snatches at the pace you would attack “Isabel” at and you will be right on track! For example, if you finish “Isabel” in 3 minutes then you should aim for 8-10 reps each round.
We recommend stopping the snatch early enough to get on the rower so that you can start rowing at the exact start time for that minute. Do not snatch for the whole minute!
Get Tons Of Reps On The Rower
This workout is going to come down to the row. You can get calories done (and reps added to your total score) a lot faster than the other movements!
Make sure that you are starting your row right when that minute starts. This means you should stop the snatch and get set up on the rower before the snatch’s allotted minute ends.
You should row all the way until the end of the allotted rower minute. This will allow you to maximize your reps here. That will push you to start the dumbbell box step-ups past its allotted start time.
Rowing Form, Technique & Transitions
Make sure that you are rowing for calories! You don’t want to do long slow pulls like you might for meters. This is a relatively short amount of time to be on the rower and you will want to pull explosively while managing your heart rate, so you can move straight into the dumbbell box step-ups without rest.
Learn more tips on rowing form, technique, and common mistakes!
When starting on the rower, prioritize getting your rower up to speed as quickly as possible. Drive the legs and prioritize the lower body on your first big pull to avoid feeling the fatigue in your arms. Your arms will be feeling it after the snatch!
Do one big pull followed by ½ and ¾ pulls to get your flywheel spinning as soon as possible.
Keep your grip loose so that you do not fatigue your grip strength. Both the snatch and the dumbbell box step-ups are going to weigh on your grip.
If you are pushing the transition time between the snatch and the rower, we recommend placing one foot in, begin pulling, placing the other foot in, and then going to standard pulling.
Approaching The Dumbbell Box Step-Ups
The rower is going to hurt and you’re going to feel out of breath going into the dumbbell box step-ups. Push through this and all you have to do is hang on for less than a minute!
Try to do the dumbbell box step-ups steady state and unbroken for the entire time, since there is not much. However, you may start feeling that grip fatigue, because the dumbbells have to remain in the hang position. You can not put the dumbbells on your shoulders or in a front rack.
If you need to rest, set the dumbbells on top of the box, not on the ground, and rest as minimally as possible.
Get The Most Reps In CrossFit® Quarterfinals Workout 1
This will not only require your physical preparedness but also your mental fortitude! Hanging on in this “Fight Gone Bad” style workout will be challenging. We hope our outlined strategy helps you maximize your score on this test!
We wish you the best of luck tackling Workout 1 and the rest of the Quarterfinals 2024!
Keep pushing yourself, stay focused, and aim high.
Be sure to check out our strategy guide for Workout 2. It's the next workout we recommend completing in this series.
WODprep Academy1-on-1 Coaching
Useful links for the 2024 CrossFit® Quarterfinals:
CrossFit® Quarterfinals 2024 Workouts Standards
CrossFit® Quarterfinals 2024: Workouts Announcement, Dates & FAQs
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