CrossFit Open 26.1 in Portugal

The 2026 CrossFit Open runs for three weeks from 2/26 to 3/17. It completely overlaps with the first three weeks of my Portugal trip, so I had to carefully plan my travel schedule to find CrossFit affiliate boxes near my destinations. Thanks to my wife's endless support (Crossfit First!), we even changed our original travel plans and accommodation bookings to make sure I could participate in all three Open workouts.

In Lisbon, our first city, I did a 3-day drop-in at The Barn. I didn't realize it was an affiliate box at first since "CrossFit" isn't in the name, but their website confirmed it. They offer various programs including HYROX, Pilates, and strength training. I was impressed by the warehouse-style space—super spacious and incredibly clean. Turns out they'd only been open for about a month.

They announced that Open workouts would be done all together on Saturday. I asked if I could join as a drop-in, and they happily agreed. We all warmed up together, then went through the 26.1 workout explanation and, most importantly, the no-rep standards.

26.1 WORKOUT

For time:
 20 wall-ball shots
 18 box jump-overs
 30 wall-ball shots
 18 box jump-overs
 40 wall-ball shots
 18 medicine-ball box step-overs
 66 wall-ball shots
 18 medicine-ball box step-overs
 40 wall-ball shots
 18 box jump-overs
 30 wall-ball shots
 18 box jump-overs
 20 wall-ball shots
Time cap: 12 minutes

♂ 20-lb (9-kg) medicine ball, 10-ft target, 24-inch box

I'd been nervous since watching the 26.1 announcement video and reading reviews the day before. My heart rate kept climbing as the start time approached. I kept running mental simulations, trying to stay calm. My plan was simple: don't break up box jumps and step-overs, break wall balls into sets of at least 10. I got assigned to the first heat and they even gave me an official judge sticker since I'd registered on the Open site.

Score: 164 reps [Rx'd]

Details:
 20 wall balls
 18 box jump overs
 30 wall balls
 18 box jump overs
 40 wall balls
 18 med ball box step overs
 20 wall balls
 Tiebreak: 9:42

The tough part was the wall ball station. Unlike my home box, the target here wobbled a lot when hit, and there was no wall behind it—just open space. This made every throw feel awkward. Getting the timing and power right for consecutive reps was tricky. I got about 10 no-reps because of this. Even without the station issue, wall balls are my weakness—they're so condition-dependent. Some days I can do 25-30 unbroken without getting winded, other days 10 reps feel brutal. I stuck to sets of 10 until the 40 wall balls, then dropped to sets of 5. The wall balls after the last step-overs? Absolutely brutal.

Looking at my division (40-44), I'm in the bottom 25%. Not thrilled about it, but I definitely don't want to do it again. The median is 196 reps—feels so far away. But I'll keep practicing until wall balls become a strength!