Author: cfdavis

  • May 12, 2023

    Skill
    EMOM for 5 minutes:
    Hang squat snatch plus squat snatch

    After the you’ve worked on that sequence for 5 minutes, take 8 minutes to work on squat snatch at your own pace. Feel free to load up to a max, or close to it, if you’re experienced with the lift. Newer lifters may want to stay on an EMOM clock and/or get more drill work from their coach.

    Workout of the Day
    AMRAP in 16 minutes:
    400 m run
    40 double unders
    16 deadlifts

    The double unders and deadlifts are both tough skills, but make it your goal in this workout to pick a slightly faster pace on the run than you normally would choose. Allow yourself to slow down a little bit on the double unders and deadlifts, breaking them up more than you otherwise would to accommodate that faster run pace. It’s often the case that the run is the first thing to slow down, and today you’re trying to reverse that.

    Choose a deadlift weight that you can easily hold sets of 8 on throughout the workout. Your jump rope should be scaled to take no more than 45 seconds to a minute fresh.

    standard: 135/95
    rx: 185/135
    sport: 225/155
    metcon: 4×3:15 on, 0:45 off

  • May 11, 2023

    Skill
    EMOM for 5 minutes:
    Squat clean and split jerk

    After the 5 minute EMOM, take 8 minutes to work on squat clean and split jerk at your own pace

    Use the first 5 minutes to slowly build in weight and warm up to the heavier lifts. After that, feel free to work up to a max clean and jerk if you’re an experienced lifter. Newer folks can take those 8 minutes to break down the form even more with their coach.

    Workout of the Day
    For time:
    21-15-9
    Toes to bar
    Burpee box jump overs

    12 minute time cap

    Happy Birthday, Lisa Fischer! When Lisa mentioned that two of her favorite movements were toes to bar and burpee box jumps, there was one workout that immediately came to mind. Almost 10 years ago, coach Kirsten and coach Alex realized at the end of a training day that they had never done a workout that was just burpees and toes to bar, and they came up with one on the spot to test it out.

    This is that exact workout, but with two changes.

    The first change is that the regular burpees that we did back then have been upgraded to burpee box jump overs. This is to bump the difficulty and volume up a notch. The second change is that the order has been switched. We did burpee first, toe to bar second back then. With the order switched, you’ll already have a fatigued core from the toes to bar by the time you get to the burpee box jump overs. You’ll also be ending on the 9 reps of the burpees box jump over, and that movement is very good for a final push in a workout.

    Enjoy!

    standard: 20/12″ box, V-ups instead of toes to bar
    rx: 24/20″ box
    sport: 24/20″ box, Toes to bar sets: 7-7-7, 5-5-5, 5-4
    metcon: 3×3:00 on, 1:00 off

  • May 10, 2023

    Skill
    Tempo Back Squat: 6 sets of 3 reps
    3 second descent, 3 second hold, full speed up, 3 seconds between reps
    Target 65-70% of your max

    We’re building off of last week’s work; add ~5-15 pounds from last Monday if you were around for those sets

    Do your best to hold for a full 3 seconds in an engaged position with the crease of the hip level with the top of the knee. If you normally have a very deep squat and use a bit of a bounce to get out of the bottom, be aware that the tempo squats today will be significantly harder for you. Adjust your target weight down by 5 or 10 percent if that’s the case.

    Remember to always use two spotters if you’re going for a heavy set. Never rely on a single spotter!

    Workout of the Day
    5 rounds for time:
    15 power snatches
    200 m run

    15 minute time cap

    Last week we had an old benchmark workout hiding behind some running, and this week we’re continuing that theme. Use a barbell weight with which you’re able to hit an unbroken set of 15 reps while fresh. You definitely don’t have to maintain this pace, but at no point in the workout should you be doing fewer than 5 reps at a time (with little rest between sets).

    If that volume of snatching isn’t a good idea for you, scale the movement to a power clean. Pick a run distance that you consistently hit in a minute or less.

    standard: 55/35
    rx: 75/55
    sport: 75/55 (trust me)
    metcon: 6x 1:20 on, 0:40 off

  • May 9, 2023

    Skill
    EMOM for 10 minutes:
    One or two rope climbs

    OR:

    10 minutes of rope climb drill and technique work with your coach

    Today you’ll either be practicing rope climbs on an interval or building the strength and technique needed to get started on the skill. Let your coach know if you’re interested in learning the basics of the rope climb technique, even if you aren’t up to the point of doing strict pull ups yet. It’s great to get early and regular exposure to the skill if it’s a goal of yours.

    Workout of the Day
    4 rounds:
    45 seconds of calories
    15 seconds of rest
    45 seconds of ring dips
    15 seconds of rest
    45 seconds of wall balls
    15 seconds of rest

    The ring dips will be a slower and more challenging movement for most people, but make it your goal to keep the reps coming for as much of the 45 seconds as possible on the calories and wall balls. A very advanced target would be to work for an unbroken set of wall balls across the whole 45 second work interval each round. Remember that you have the 15 seconds to transition between each movement; try not to get off of your station early.

    standard: 12/8
    rx: 20/14
    sport: 20/14, unbroken wall balls, ring dips on the high rings (muscle up to get there)
    metcon: 12×0:45 on, 0:15 off

  • May 8, 2023

    Skill
    EMOM for 10 minutes
    Deadlift
    Power clean
    Hang power clean and push jerk

    The 4 movement barbell complex in today’s skill work should be done as a single smooth and uninterrupted effort. Focus on the flow of the movements and the efficient cycling of your barbell from one position to the next. Experienced lifters are welcome to push for a heavier weight, and will find that this complex has a fun and natural cadence at even heavy loads.

    Workout of the Day
    AMRAP in 10 minutes:
    8 lateral burpees
    6 power cleans
    4 front rack lunges

    The big question on this workout will be what you do with your power cleans. The weight should have you right on the edge of small sets and quick singles. Some people may even be able to hold onto their bars for unbroken touch and go cleans into front rack lunges. Below are a few pacing strategies, starting with the easiest and working towards the most aggressive. Note that choosing the most aggressive pacing strategy will only maximize your performance if you have the conditioning to support it. Be deliberate about your selection of pacing strategy, keeping in mind your personal goals and your level of conditioning.

    Strategy 1:
    Steady burpees, steady singles on the power cleans, unbroken lunges

    Strategy 2:
    Steady burpees, 5 unbroken power cleans, drop the bar for a short rest, then 6th power clean and unbroken lunges

    Strategy 3:
    Steady burpees, 6 unbroken power cleans, hold onto the bar for unbroken lunges

    Strategy 4:
    Steady burpees, unbroken lifts, no rest between movements

    Strategy 5:
    Fast burpees, unbroken lifts, no rest between movements

    standard: 95/65
    rx: 115/85
    sport: 115/85, overhead lunges instead of front rack
    metcon: 5×1:40 on, 0:20 off

  • May 7, 2023

    Workout of the Day
    AMRAP in 25 minutes:
    40 Russian twists
    30 plate snatches
    200 m run with plate

    Today’s workout is the polar opposite of yesterday’s; where yesterday was a pair of short efforts at very high load, today is a very long continuous effort at very low load. The main challenge, aside from the duration and sustained work, will be the fact that the only break you’ll get from your plate will be during any rest you take.

    For the plate snatches, hold the plate with both hands, tap one edge to the floor, and then lift it all the way overhead. On the run, hold the plate however you’d like.

    standard: 10/5 pound plate
    rx: 15/10 pound plate
    sport: 25/15 pound plate
    metcon: 5×4:00 on, 1:00 off

  • May 6, 2023

    Workout of the Day
    AMRAP in 8 minutes:
    8 strict pull ups
    4 clean and jerks

    Rest 4 minutes, then begin:

    AMRAP in 8 minutes:
    80 drag rope single unders
    4 clean and jerks

    Today’s workout is split into two parts with the common element of heavy clean and jerks. The first AMRAP will move at a significantly slower pace than the second one, as the strict pull ups will likely bring most people to small sets or singles within a few rounds. Challenge yourself on the difficulty you select for your pull ups, allowing as much as 60-90 seconds to work through them.

    The pace of the workout will pick up significantly in the second half. The drag rope single unders are meant to be an easy conditioning piece that lets you quickly transition off your barbell and get a little recovery in before getting back on it for some more heavy lifting.

    Select a weight challenging enough that you’re forced to do singles. As always, don’t push the load or pace to the point that your technique gets sketchy.

    Record rounds and reps separately for each AMRAP.

    standard: 95/65
    rx: 155/105
    sport: 185/135
    metcon: 8:00 on, 4:00 off, 8:00 on

  • May 5, 2023

    Skill
    AMRAP in 8 minutes:
    3 strict toes to bar
    6 kipping toes to bar
    3 wall walks

    An engaged core and a strong hollow position are key to the skill work today. Take your time working through each movement, and rest as needed so that your positioning doesn’t suffer as you fatigue. If you’re feeling strong on the toes to bar you can definitely link the strict set to the kipping set, but it isn’t necessary to hold that across the whole AMRAP.
    The toes to bar can be scaled to partial range of motion for those that want to get some bar work in, or V-ups for folks staying off the bar.

    Workout of the Day
    3 rounds:
    1 minute of front squats
    1 minute of push presses
    1 minute of calories
    1 minute of rest

    We’re breaking down Tuesday’s thruster into its component parts today. Three rounds of this interval may not look like much with a full minute of rest thrown in, but if you maintain a strong pace on the barbell and then finish each round with a hard effort on the row then you’re in for a very challenging workout. Scale the lifts by selecting a weight that lets you hit 2 or 3 sets of 5 to 10 reps on both movements. If you’re sharing a machine with a partner, one person will do the normal order while the other goes calories->push press->front squat->rest.

    standard: 65/45
    rx: 95/65
    sport: 115/85
    metcon: 3×3:00 on, 1:00 off

  • May 4, 2023

    Skill
    Overhead Squat
    6 sets of 3 reps

    We don’t often do the overhead squat in isolation, so your coach will take a few minutes to cover the options available for getting the bar overhead. The strongest method will be taking the bar from a rack and doing a snatch-grip push jerk from behind the neck. Be sure you back far enough out of the rack that you can drop the bar after the third rep if needed. If you’re going lighter and would rather just snatch the bar, that’s an option, too.

    We’re off the clock, so take about 12-15 minutes to work through all six sets on your own.

    Workout of the Day
    4 rounds for time:
    10 devil presses
    30 double unders
    10 deadlifts
    30 double unders

    12 minute time cap

    Use a deadlift weight that lets you hit each round in no more than two sets; this workout should be a relatively fast and intense burner. Scale the jump rope to something that takes no more than 45 seconds so that you don’t get bogged down between your dumbbell and barbell.

    standard: 135/95, 35/20
    rx: 185/135, 50/35
    sport: 225/155, 50/35
    metcon:

  • May 3, 2023

    Skill
    5 rounds:
    1:30 of calories
    0:15 rest
    1:30 of plank (standard) or rest (rx&sport)
    0:15 rest

    We’ll be getting more practice with multiple conditioning pieces within a single day as we approach the Hoedown on May 20th. Spots are almost gone, so sign up on the board by the water if you’re keen on participating!

    Avoid hitting a max effort on your first round; although the rest interval is very generous if you aren’t doing the plank, 1:30 on the machine is long enough to completely drain you over 5 rounds if you pick too aggressive of a pace. You should be pushing hard, but with the fact that you’re doing another workout after this in mind.

    Add up total calories.

    Workout of the Day
    AMRAP in 15 minutes:
    15 kettlebell swings
    12 box jumps
    9 push ups

    Pick a lighter kettlebell and settle into a comfortable pace. All three movements should be relatively balanced and sustainable today, so focus on a steady cadence and smooth transitions. Be aware of how your body is doing after the conditioning interval in the “skill” work, and don’t overdo it.

    standard: 16/12 kg, 20/12 inches
    rx: 24/16 kg, 24/20 inches
    sport: 28/20 kg, 30/20 inches
    metcon: 5×2:00 on, 1:00 off