"Murph" — What It Is & How to Do It

Every Memorial Day, CrossFit gyms around the world do the same workout. The same mile. The same pull-ups, push-ups, and squats. The same mile to finish.

It's called "Murph" — and it's one of the most meaningful things we do all year. (Watch the story behind the workout.)

Who was Lt. Murphy?

This workout is done in memory of Navy Lieutenant Michael Murphy, 29, of Patchogue, New York, who was killed in action in Afghanistan on June 28, 2005. Lt. Murphy was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during Operation Red Wings, where he exposed himself to enemy fire to get a clear signal to call for help for his fellow SEALs.

The workout was one he used to do on his own. He called it "Body Armor."

We do it once a year to honor him, and to honor all the men and women who've given their lives in service. We don't take that lightly — and we don't want you to either.

The workout

The standard Murph:

• 1 mile run
• 100 pull-ups
• 200 push-ups
• 300 air squats
• 1 mile run

It's done for time. Some athletes wear a 20-pound vest. Most don't.

How to tackle the workout

Just because it's Murph doesn't mean you have to do all of Murph.

This is an intense workout — genuinely intense. Tackling 100 pull-ups when you've been averaging 30 in a given week is a real injury risk. Two honest checkpoints before you decide how to approach it:

1. Have you been consistently following the 3-1-1 Protocol for the past three months?
2. Have you attended our Murph Prep Mondays and seen pull-ups regularly in your programming?

If the answer to both is yes, you're ready to take it on. If not, that's not a failure — that's just useful information. Choose a version that challenges you without breaking you down.

The variations

Push-Up Saver (if push-ups are your limiter)

20 rounds of: 5 pull-ups, 10 push-ups, 15 squats — run as 5/5/5/15 splits per round as needed.

Leg Saver (if squats are your limiter)

15 rounds of: 5 pull-ups, 10 push-ups, 20 squats, then 5 rounds of 5 pull-ups, 10 push-ups.

Mini Sets (if you move well in short bursts)

33 rounds of: 3 pull-ups, 6 push-ups, 9 squats, plus 1 round of 1 pull-up, 2 push-ups, 3 squats.

Classic

20 rounds of: 5 pull-ups, 10 push-ups, 15 squats.

Partner Version (our favorite)

Run 1 mile together, then 10 rounds alternating full rounds with your partner: 10 pull-ups, 20 push-ups, 30 squats. Run 1 mile together to finish.

You can also mix in the running as 400s or 200s if the full miles don't fit your plan.

Class times

We'll run Murph on Memorial Day at 7:00 a.m. and 8:30 a.m. The clock runs for 60 minutes. If you want to push past that on your own, we'll be there with you — but plan to stay for the full hour. The warm-up will be short: just enough to prime you for what's coming.

Any questions? Ask your coaches. We're here to help you find the right version for you — and to make sure you come back on Tuesday.