Every year on Memorial Day, CrossFit gyms around the country come together to take on one of the most challenging and meaningful workouts in the sport. It is called Murph, and it was created in honor of Lieutenant Michael Murphy, a Navy SEAL who was killed in action in Afghanistan in 2005. The workout was his favorite, and doing it on Memorial Day has become a tradition that connects fitness, gratitude, and community.
Memorial Day this year falls on Monday, May 25, 2026. That gives you just over five weeks to prepare. Whether this is your first Murph or your tenth, smart preparation makes the difference between a workout that breaks you and one that you finish proud. Here is exactly how to train for it.
What Is the Murph Workout
Murph is a hero workout with a simple, brutal structure:
- 1 mile run
- 100 pull ups
- 200 push ups
- 300 air squats
- 1 mile run
For the full Rx version, you wear a 20 pound weighted vest the entire time (14 pounds for women). The middle portion of pull ups, push ups, and squats can be partitioned however you want. Most experienced athletes break it into 20 rounds of 5 pull ups, 10 push ups, and 15 squats. This is known as Cindy style and it spreads fatigue across all three movements instead of grinding through them one at a time.
Your mile times bookend the workout, and the middle is where most people fall apart. A typical Murph time ranges from 35 minutes for very fit athletes to over 75 minutes for first timers. Both finishes are honorable. The point is to do the work and remember why you are doing it.
Week by Week Training Plan
Weeks 1 and 2: Build Volume
The first two weeks are about getting your body used to high volume bodyweight movements. Most people who suffer in Murph have not done 200 push ups in a single session in years, if ever. Their shoulders give out before their lungs do.
Twice this week, after your regular class, add this finisher: 10 rounds of 5 pull ups, 10 push ups, and 15 squats. That is half a Murph without the runs and without a vest. Time it, but do not race it. The goal is to feel what 100 push ups in your shoulders actually feels like and recover from it.
For your runs, start adding two easy 1.5 mile runs into your week, ideally on rest days. Keep them conversational. This builds the aerobic base you need for the bookend miles without burning you out.
Week 3: Add the Vest
If you plan to do Murph in a 20 pound vest, this is the week you start training in it. Wear it for one of your bodyweight finishers and for one of your easy runs. Do not jump straight into vested workouts at full intensity. Your shoulders, lower back, and feet need time to adjust to the load. This is where injuries happen if you skip the ramp up.
If wearing a vest for the entire workout feels like too much this year, that is completely fine. Doing Murph without a vest is still doing Murph. Many of our most experienced athletes choose to do it unvested some years and vested others depending on how their body feels.
Week 4: Half Murph Test
About two weeks out, do a half Murph as a benchmark. That looks like this: 800 meter run, 50 pull ups, 100 push ups, 150 squats, 800 meter run. Time it. Treat it like a real workout. This tells you exactly where you are and gives you data to build a strategy from. If your push ups completely fell apart at rep 60, you know you need to break them into smaller sets on game day.
Week 5: Taper
The final week is about resting smart. Drop your training volume by about 40 percent. Keep moving, hit your normal classes, but do not test yourself on anything new. The fitness you have built is locked in. The goal now is to show up to Memorial Day fresh, not fried. Sleep more than usual. Eat well. Hydrate.
Game Day Strategy
Pace the First Mile
The biggest mistake people make in Murph is sprinting the opening mile. Adrenaline is high, the music is loud, your friends are cheering, and you take off way too fast. Twelve minutes later you are gassed before you have done a single pull up. Aim to run the first mile about 60 seconds slower than your typical mile pace. You will be glad you did when you reach the pull up bar with energy in the tank.
Break the Middle Early
Do not try to do 20 pull ups straight, then 30 push ups, then 50 squats. You will hit a wall hard. Use Cindy style from rep one. Five pull ups, 10 push ups, 15 squats, repeat 20 times. The math is simple, the rounds fly by, and your muscles get small bursts of recovery between movements.
Keep the Squats Honest
By round 15, your legs are toast and your form starts to slip. Squats are the easiest movement to no-rep yourself out of without realizing it. Hit depth on every single rep. Stand all the way up. The workout is not about a fast time. It is about doing the work right.
Save Something for the Last Mile
That second mile is where Murph either becomes a story you tell forever or a workout you wish you had paced better. Do not stop at the door after the squats. Walk if you have to, but keep moving. Crossing the finish line on Memorial Day under your own power is the entire point.
What to Eat and Drink
Eat a normal breakfast about two hours before the workout. Something with carbs and a little protein. Oatmeal with peanut butter and a banana works. Hydrate well in the days leading up, not just the morning of. If you are doing Murph in the heat, electrolytes matter. Bring a bottle of water and an electrolyte drink to sip between movements if your gym allows it.
Why We Do This
Murph is not just a hard workout. It is a way to physically remember the people who paid the ultimate price for the freedom we live in. Lieutenant Michael Murphy died doing his job at 29 years old. Doing one workout a year in his honor is the smallest possible way to say thank you. When the workout gets hard, and it will, that is the point. Discomfort for an hour. Discomfort that you chose. That is the whole reason it matters.
Join Us at CrossFit Fig This Memorial Day
Every Memorial Day, our gym in Grain Valley fills up with members, families, and visitors from all over Blue Springs and the Kansas City area to take on Murph together. We scale every part of the workout for every level, from first timers to seasoned athletes. There is no judgment, only support.
If you have been thinking about getting into CrossFit, the weeks leading up to Memorial Day are a great time to start. You have a clear goal, a community to train with, and coaches who will get you ready. Book a free intro session and come see what training at CrossFit Fig is like. We would love to have you with us on May 25.
