Monday

I’ve been asked about our programming style a few times from several different people, and would like to take the opportunity to elaborate on why we do what we do over by us on a weekly basis.

First, let’s look at the definition of CrossFit directly from CrossFit.com, and what is put out at the CrossFit Certification Seminars.

What is CrossFit:

“Constantly varied functional movements executed at high intensity”

-"High Intensity" or even just "intensity" has everything to do with your work output during various tasks and under various loads.

Next, let’s go over the CrossFit tenants that outline each day of training:

1. Mechanics

2. Consistency

3. Intensity

These are in order of importance to each workout from the first day someone walks in, through the rest of their CrossFit career. The first two are of the utmost importance, intensity is going to be relative based upon the work that someone is able to do safely and efficiently. More on this in a minute…..

6 reasons why we use a strength/skill bias on our workouts, rather than just doing the CrossFit.com schedule:

1. The Strength/Skill bias develops baseline and relative strength in new students, and develops overall strength in our more experienced athletes, to allow for increased work capacity for the prescribed workout loads.

A need I’ve seen in myself and amongst others when performing the named workouts (Fran, Diane, Elizabeth, Grace, etc), is the requirement for a strong strength base to prevent the breakdown of the movements as fatigue sets in. It feels good to pick up a load during a workout and have it feel manageable, even if you’re exhausted. The only way this is going to happen, is to develop the loads under different intensities.

2. The Strength/Skill bias allows us to refine and perfect the mechanics of our movements.

CrossFit is a “skill” based program. We need ample time to practice and refine the movement mechanics and develop our neuro-muscular pathways needed perform the workouts safely. There is a reason why we have everyone do Olympic Weightlifting, squats, deadlifts, and presses on a weekly basis. Regardless of experience level, there is ALWAYS something to work on with mastering these movements!

3. The Strength/Skill bias allows us to develop consistency in performing our movements.

Consistency is our ability to do a movement, perfect, over and over again with minimal to no breakdown in the mechanics. Failure to maintain consistency is a contributing factor to slower workout times, and injury. Whether that be during repeated reps while under fatigue during any given workout of the day, or under a heavy load, the consistency of your movements must remain high in order to avoid injury! We don’t need to put anyone under load if the consistency is not there, likewise we can test an experienced student’s ability to maintain consistency under a higher load. Greater consistency and practice equals FASTER workout times!

4. Your Olympic Weightlifing skill level directly correlates to your overall work capacity and workout times.

On a weekly basis our strength/skill bias includes a Snatch, Clean, and Jerk variation under a variety of different loads. Why? Because these movements are highly technical, requires ALL of our 10 General Fitness Skills to be successful at them.

The best CrossFitters in the world, both male and female, are also extremely proficient in Olympic Weightlifting! For example, Chris Spealler who weighs in at only 135lbs, has a Snatch of 190lbs, and a Clean and Jerk of 235lbs. He’s also a work capacity machine in every other intensity and modality that CrossFit offers. Check out some of the athlete profiles on the CrossFit Games site if you want more proof.

Athlete Rankings: Clean and Jerk

Athlete Rankings: Snatch

The CrossFit.com schedule and frequency of these movements is not enough to really make any significant progress in them. That’s we have everyone do them as often as we do. The great thing is about these movements is that ANYONE can learn them, the progress is obvious from a coaching perspective, and they develop everything that we’re trying to gain all at once!

5. The Strength/Skill bias gives every student an opportunity to get feedback on their movements, regardless of their membership frequency.

Not everyone can make it 5 days per week. We have students coming in from as far away as Westmont and Glen Ellyn, or sometimes work and life schedules get in the way of how often students can make it in. Having the Coaches yell movement corrections at them only during a workout where the clock is running, and the student is exhausted, is not very productive. It does not give us as Coaches the opportunity to really help fix any underlying movement issues the student may have. We offer a superior product and service to any other fitness program in the area. It has everything to do with our ability to help people move better and more efficiently.

6. The prescribed loads for the CrossFit benchmark and named workouts ARE NOT heavy!

They just feel and appear heavy if there is a strength deficiency. The Strength/Skill bias is our way of addressing this deficiency to make stronger, more durable, and faster athletes, moms, and grandparents! Scaling is still needed, but getting faster times under the prescribed loads will take you a lot less time with a thoroughly developed strength base!

ITS OK TO BE STRONG!!!!

Tomorrow's post: "Under-recovery", your potential, and confronting your weaknesses.

Back Squat:

5-5-5-5-5

3 Rounds for time:

Run 400m
20 Med Ball Cleans
50 Situps