Do a "Murph" workout in honor of Memorial Day

If you have ever done Crossfit you might already know what a Murph is. It's dedicated to Navy SEAL Lt. Michael Murphy, an avid Crossfit buff, who was killed in Afghanistan in 2005. Here is his namesake's routine: run 1 mile, do 100 pull-ups, 200 push-ups, 300 air-squats and run another mile, all while wearing a weighted vest or body armor. You do this as fast as you can. If you're like me there are parts of this workout that are non-starters. I can do 4 pull-ups, maybe. I do not have a weighted vest or body armor and would not even conceive of getting anything to make these difficult exercises that much harder. I did a modified version of this last year by swapping out pull-ups for burpees—not easy but at least it was possible for me.

via Men's Health:

On August 17, 2005, Greg Glassman the founder of Crossfit, posted the details of the workout to CrossFit.com as the WOD (Workout of the Day) and included a note:

In memory of Navy Lieutenant Michael Murphy, 29, of Patchogue, N.Y., who was killed in Afghanistan June 28th, 2005.This workout was one of Mike's favorites and he'd named it "Body Armor." From here on it will be referred to as "Murph" in honor of the focused warrior and great American who wanted nothing more in life than to serve this great country and the beautiful people who make it what it is. . . . If you've got a 20-pound vest or body armor, wear it.

If you are interested in officially participating by doing a Murph yourself and submitting your results (or even hosting your own event. It could be done at any time. It doesn't have to be on Memorial Day) go to themurphchallenge.com. It's a good way to recognize Memorial Day with a good workout, a donation and maybe even a social media post to help spread your support and brag a little about being able to finish a "Murph." The proceeds from the murphchallenge.com support the LT. Michael P. Murphy Memorial Scholarship Foundation.