“Memorial Day Murph” is something you may have heard in passing before, but have never thought to try for yourself. As this year’s version of the event approaches, we figured it would be a good idea to not only discuss how you could prepare for this sacred “hero workout” but also why you should consider taking it on every year moving forward. Now let’s get started!
The Murph workout isn’t just a random workout with a funny name. In its essence, it is a memorial to a specific fallen soldier (United States Navy Lieutenant Michael “Murph” Murphy) as well as to all soldiers who have fallen in service to the country. With this in mind, it should come as no surprise that it is performed on Memorial Day every year by people not just in the United States but around the world.
The Murph Workout at a Glance
If you’ve ever gotten a chance to take a look at what the Murph workout entails, you may have felt at least slightly intimidated and possibly overwhelmed. Although it does not require any large pieces of home gym equipment (as long as you have a pull-up bar and a place to run, you’re good to go!) the sheer number of repetitions is daunting.
The workout begins with a one-mile run. Immediately after finishing this run, 100 pull-ups are performed. Once these are completed, 200 push-ups are up next, followed by 300 air squats. These squats are the last of Murph’s calisthenics portion, and the workout concludes with one more one-mile run.
Modified Murph
The Murph workout is designed to be inclusive and accessible to trainees of all experience and skill levels. Because of this, it offers a number of modification options. Some of the most popular modification options are:
Partition Option: Instead of performing all 100 pull-ups, 200 push-ups, and 300 air squats directly after one another, mix up the repetitions as desired. For many, 20 circuits of 5 pull-ups, 10 push-ups, and 15 air squats works best and do not lead to any body part becoming overly taxed too quickly.
Half-Murph Option: As the name suggests, this option involves cutting all of the repetitions, including the running, in half. In practice, this equates to an 800-meter run followed by 50 pull-ups, 100 push-ups, 150 air squats, and another 800-meter run. Still a very challenging option without the excess volume.
Weight Vest Option: Murph doesn’t just allow trainees to make things easier; for those who need more of a challenge, there is always the option to wear a 20-pound (for men) or 14-pound (for women) weight vest during the workout. This is the standard option for athletes participating in high-level competitions, with the vest’s added resistance making each step and repetition exponentially more fatiguing.
These are just a selection of the possible Murph modifications you can try. Feel free to get creative with how you approach and ultimately perform your workout. As long as you combine the elements of running, pull-ups, push-ups, and squats, you’re capturing the essence of what Murph is all about.
Murph Workout Preparation
Despite Murph’s historic reputation as being the workout to do on Memorial Day, you can give it a try any day of the year. This is good news if you happen to be reading this at some time of the year other than the days leading up to this solemn holiday. It is also good news if you have a strong desire to give Murph a go, but may not feel quite up to the task just yet.
If you fall into the latter group above and are keen to prepare yourself for the rigors of the Murph workout in the best way possible, let’s discuss some of the best ways to quickly upgrade your performance:
Run…a lot: With mile runs bookending the Murph workout, it should come as no surprise that run training should be heavily incorporated into your training regimen. Due to Murph’s high volume of bodyweight movements, this work will benefit all aspects of your performance on the workout, as its metabolic conditioning benefits will assist with everything else.
Pushing and pulling movements: Ideally, you’ll perform a high number of pull-ups and push-ups as you prepare for the rigors of Murph. However, any types of high-volume pushing and pulling movements will be very beneficial to your performance. These can include light weight bench presses, dips, triceps extensions (push movements) and lat pulldowns, barbell rows, and low lat pulls (pulling movements). Getting your hands on a good multifunctional rack like the M1 or Buffalo, a few bumper plates, and a barbell will allow you to incorporate any and all of these exercises into your Murph prep.
High-volume leg work: With 300 air squats to take care of before the final run, it’s safe to say that your lower body needs to be accustomed to a lot of volume before giving the Murph workout a go. Of course, having strong legs never hurts and working low volume, heavy weight barbell back squatting into your training will reap major rewards. However, don’t sleep on the benefits of high-rep, low weight leg pressing. High-rep squatting is preferable to leg pressing due to balancing requirements of the movement, but getting a lot of lower body reps in on a machine like the Gazelle or the BLP-01 will condition your legs for the seemingly endless squats that await you.
Remember that Murph is one long, continuous workout that combines elements of both cardiovascular fitness and bodyweight strength capacity. If you’re accustomed to more classic strength training or bodybuilding work, you’ll have to incorporate the above elements into your routine in order to make it through!
Murph’s Essence
We’ve talked a lot about the movements that comprise the Murph workout and how to best train for it, but, as we close things out, we want to re-emphasize the non-physical aspects of this beloved workout.
As difficult as the workout appears on paper and as gruelling as it is when performing it on “game day” be aware that everyone who performs it reports feeling an ever-present “wind at their back” throughout its duration.
Maybe this is due to collective feeling of knowing that thousands of other people around the world are putting in the work at the exact same time you are.
Maybe the knowledge that you’re honoring some of the most valiant heroes is especially motivating.
Regardless of what it is, power through your Murph attempt knowing that you have a massive support system propelling you to victory!
