Named in honor of military and first responders who gave their lives in the line of duty, Hero WODs—or Workout of the Day in the CrossFit community—challenge participants’ endurance and allow the hero’s legacy of strength and sacrifice to live on.
Each year on or around April 29, the CrossFit community endures the rigors of the Manion WOD, an intense workout that honors 1stLt Travis Manion (USMC). In Denver, Colorado, hundreds of community members, including veterans, family members of fallen heroes, and 150 Marine recruits, gathered to perform the Manion WOD to pay homage to Travis’ legacy.
“The importance of this workout is to honor the sacrifices that so many, not just Travis, have made throughout the course of our history,” said Debbie Freeman, the TMF Denver Chapter leader who organized the event. “Especially with all the young people we have at the event today, it’s really important for them to understand what kind of legacy they’re going to be a part of.”
Inspired by the words Travis spoke before leaving on his second and final deployment, “If Not Me, Then Who…”, the Manion WOD requires of its participants the same integrity, perseverance, and courage.
“This workout is significant to me because it will start to dig at who you are as a person, what kind of character do you have, how much drive do you have, how badly do you want to complete the mission,” said Bill Lovelace, who served alongside Travis in the Marine Corps.
“What he stood for is such a good example for so many people to follow,” Bill said. “And that’s why events like this, we get people out and we get to start that process of people identifying, ‘Who am I, what kind of character do I have, what kind of character do my peers have, what kind of good lessons can I learn from those around me?’”
