Jimmy’s turn….

Friday, June 8, 2012

Mobility:
Row 250 meters
25 Hip-Back Extensions
25 GHD Sit-ups
Hip/Shoulder prep as needed.

Workout:
“Crossfit Total”
1 Rep Back Squat
1 Rep Shoulder Press
1 Rep Deadlift

Notes: Take 3 attempts on each lift.  The lifts must be completed in order.  Take as long as you’d like to warm up and rest as long as you need.

Cool down:
Plow, 2 minutes
Samson stretch, 30 seconds
Hip mobility on box, 1 minute 

For my first real post I wanted to talk about the shift in programming that the gym is currently experiencing. This a subject I am invested in as I volunteered for the role of a guinea pig to try this “Outlaw” programming I had been hearing about. My own interest in this “Conjugate Method” of programming stemmed from watching some of the elite athletes at Regionals and being astounded by the weight being snatched on Event 5. These were not huge guys but the skill and speed with witch they moved 225-275# was breathtaking. It struck me that getting better at this stuff is just that, getting better. It is not about being bigger or trying to brutishly rip weight off the ground with horrible range of motion. It is about patience and power and being able to fearlessly and gracefully drop under a loaded barbell knowing that you can literally catch the weight in order to stand up and complete the lift. If an athlete can do all these things with technical proficiency than the rest of this CrossFit stuff becomes easy by comparison. This is the thrust in our shift in programming, to constantly drill the high skill Olympic Lifts and gymnastic movements in order to make more powerful and efficient athletes out of all of us. And it works. 

Before Regionals I was following a program I called BEATING THE SHIT OUT OF MY BODY. It consisted of double and sometimes triple days on end. On two separate occasions, I went 14 days without a rest day. Each of these swaths of over training were followed by a necessary three to four days of complete rest to bring the fatigue and inflammation back to manageable levels. My goal was to expose myself to every aspect of training possible. I was following a mix of main site, Mike’s Gym, practicing the regional workouts, and making up WODs to fill the gaps. If I entered Regionals as an individual athlete I do not think I could have sustained the volume of the weekend without a marked decline in performance. 

Since Regionals, my programming on a daily basis looks very similar to what you would now see written on the white board for regular class. Basic mobility work followed by Olympic lifting practice, maybe some absolute strength work, and then a high intensity WOD working in the 5 to 15 minute range. This is over one session and I love it. I can attack each part of the workout and the volume is sustainable on a daily basis. I am even taking two rest days a week, something I have to force myself not to question. And its working. In the span of a weekend I hit a 405# back squat, a 235# snatch, and a 295# squat clean. I have also been putting up competitive times on the “metcon” portion of the day. These are things I never thought I would do, but that is CrossFit and that is where our programming is leading. To have people constantly progressing and surprising themselves on a daily basis. 

By no means is this new programming set in stone. We will always be experimenting and trying to get better, because it is just so damn fun. I believe in what we are doing as a gym and I love this stuff, especially the Olympic Lifts. No matter who you are, my advice is always the same. Come in, commit to doing the movements with good range of motion and some measure. And go to place on the workouts that you aren’t sure you can sustain. The Dark Place or whatever you want to call it. That place will then continue to get further and further away and you will find your times and your lifts drastically improving. 

Other than that, enjoy yourself and feel free to ask me anything concerning training or otherwise. Thanks for sticking it out through this post.