Wodapalooza Recap: Part One!

It’s been a week since we’ve returned from Miami and I can say that I do miss it! Caught a sinus infection when I got home but I am back to 100%. Miami was an absolute blast. Wodapalooza was a wonderful competition and glad it was my first experience! I broke up all four days into two post because I had a lot to share! Part Two will be up Thursday!

Wodapalooza Recap: Thursday

Jordan and I flew out to Miami on Thursday. He wanted to finish work so he took an evening flight which meant I had the afternoon to explore on my own. Shortly after landing and getting the rental car, I made a beeline to our Airbnb. We stayed in a super cute Casita about 10 minutes from Bayfront Park which is where Wodapalooza was held. Choosing to stay in an Airbnb turned out to be perfect as there was a full kitchen and it was close enough to get some rest between events.

The first day of Wodapalooza is open to the public so everyone can go in and explore. There were two Elite events to watch and TONS of vendors available. Once I checked in and got my athlete credentials, I made my way around the festival space. The thing that threw me for a loop is that I was considered an athlete. Like, I get it, I’m there to compete but in my mind that made me different than the elites? But they just treated all of us the same, we all had the same workout area and aid that they did. It was so confusing to me to walk around the vendor village and having so many people wishing ME good luck. I don’t know, I wasn’t prepared for that and it was strange to me, lol!

Thursday wasn’t too busy as most people still had work and stuff so I enjoyed the best tasting $14 quesadilla (holy moly pricing!) while watching some of the Elite Women and Team events. I had so much fun watching people that I normally follow on Instagram. Plus I was pretty close so that was nice.

Wodapalooza Recap: Friday

Friday was when the rest of the divisions began. Each day there would be two workouts for a total of six. They had been announcing the workouts on Instagram leading up to the weekend so I had an idea of what to expect. My division had the honor of kicking off the whole day so my first workout was at 9am on the Bayside stage which was right next to the water! The sun was shining and it was so cool.

This workout was a leg burner and where I quickly learned that Miami was not as humid as I expected. I was expecting to be dripping sweat but that wasn’t the case. I also quickly got cotton mouth which was a pain in the butt. This workout had a ridiculous amount of box jumps with the option for step ups. I THOUGHT everyone else was going to do the jumps but apparently I was the only one doing that. This was a bummer because I ended up not finishing the workout in the time cap but I am still proud of myself!

I’m going to pause for a moment on this and talk a bit about the judges. The judges for the event were volunteers and throughout the weekend there were many, MANY questionable decisions made by them. Some judges were wonderful and others were way off the mark. On this event, I lost precious time having a heated conversation with a judge about my kettlebell placement. Later I heard I was not the only one. Many elites complained of the same and honestly, I think we all had a right to be upset. However, after venting about it to Jordan after the event, I just moved on.

The second workout of Friday was much later in the day. I actually took a LONG nap because even though it wasn’t too much time in the sun, I was wiped. The second workout was a short one but it was a ladder workout. 3 Hang Cleans, 3 Front Squats, 3 Shoulder to Overheads at 95#. Two of each movement at 105# and then one of each at 115#. Now 115# is my max when pulling from the floor. I’ve done it before but when I was well rested. Doing that after finishing with the other barbells would prove to be tough.

Before the event, I went to the warm up area and found the other girls in my division. We warmed up together and when I picked up the bar my legs let me know they were feeling the box jumps. At that moment, I knew it would be a spicy workout. The girls were so nice to me and told me I looked good so I focused on that as we walked onto the floor.

Jordan took a picture of me right before we started. I had the BIGGEST smile on my face because I just couldn’t believe I was finally in Miami and doing what I love. I mean, you could tell I was happy. Plus I told Jordan afterwards that I knew the fitness Gods were smiling down on me because they played Bad Bunny right before the buzzer went off and it reminded me of all my Peloton friends supporting me.

The buzzer went off and I picked up that first bar and got moving. I blew through 95# with no problems. Then came 105# and that’s when I started to really feel the fatigue. It wasn’t that pretty but I got through it. When I walked up to the 115# bar, that’s when I started to get nervous. I knew I just had to Hang Clean it and then it would be smooth sailing. The Front Squat and the Shoulder To Overhead wouldn’t be an issue for me but I just had to get that bar UP.

I think I failed twice and just looked up at Jordan in the stands and shook my head. However that’s when the fitness Gods smiled on me again and my judge (an angel sent from heaven) cheered me on and told me that I had it. I don’t know why but hearing her say it just made it all click for me. I picked up the bar and I was able to knock out all three moves with no problem!

It was only two minutes but it felt like an eternity. It was also the best feeling because it proved that barbell movements are really my strength. I felt so vindicated with that workout. I ran to Jordan afterwards and hugged him so hard. In my book, that was a win and I absolutely killed it! It was also interesting to see that some people didn’t finish the workout because I came into this competition feeling like I would be dead last but I was pretty much mid-pack all weekend!

After that workout, we went back to the Airbnb and relaxed. I watched the Elite competition on YouTube while resting in out bed. I was wiped out and knew I had to reserve my energy for the next two days!

That’s part one! I’ll be back on Thursday to share the rest of my weekend and how everything wrapped up!