Hey Everyone!
If you haven’t noticed, this is the time of year where we start shifting our focus to preparing for the CrossFit Open.
While some gyms do not focus on the CrossFit Open at all, and many CrossFittersdon’t even sign up for it even if it is a focus at the gym, it is still a great time of year to focus on ‘functional fitness’ as a sport.
Starting a couple weeks ago, I have started to sprinkle more of certain movements into the programming, as well as including more repeats of the Open workouts themselves.
For example, throughout the year, I only post chest to bar workouts about 1.4 times per month (in addition to 2.1 kipping pulls, 1.2 weighted pull ups, 1.2 strict pull ups, and 1.3 ring rows). But going into the Open I will start to increase the number of skill practice sessions and metcons with chest to bar in anticipation of them playing an important role in the Open.
There is nothing wrong with chest to bars, but we must keep in mind that they were basically ‘invented’ for the sport of fitness at the 2008 CrossFit Games as a way to make pull ups easier to judge (they made people do “Fran” with chest to bars to combat the fact that people were starting to do ‘butterfly pull ups’ – confounding the judges).
Other movements that I will tend to increase slightly are toes to bar, burpees, double unders, and other movements that aren’t necessarily a critical part of general fitness, but play a large role in the Open.
Now is also a good time to get people working on their ‘goats’ (movements that they are terrible at). Getting someone able to do at least one chest to bar pull up at a time, one toes to bar, one muscle up, etc., will set them up to be able to do all of the Open workouts ‘as prescribed’. If someone is terrible at double unders, getting them to start practicing now will help set them up for success when we see them show up in the Open.
Check out the attached chart (full sized PDF in the attachments) with all of the Open workouts to date. At the bottom of the first sheet is the frequency of each major movement. If some of these movements are things that you loathe, better start working on them now!
The other pages have the data on placement for the workouts from previous years.
Print these out and post them at the gym. Talk to your clients about the Open now so they can have a good showing and really enjoy the challenge (motivating them to train for next year)!
Thrive on.
-jj
What I am reading/watching (content for you or to share on your social media):
Is Responsibility Debt Ruining Your Progress?– Physiqonomics
“I mean, if you were walking home and found a dude sprawled out on the street bleeding his face off because he’d been hit by a car – you’d obviously help because you can see him, the experience is palpable, and thus, it’s easy to have empathy. (Holy cow balls, this dude is dying, I should probably call an ambulance.) But, who the hell is your future self? It’s just some random guy/girl way off in the future. Fuck that guy/girl, anyway – they can handle this shit tomorrow…”
Here’s How Sleeping Too Little Literally Transforms Your Brain – Futurism
Work published earlier this year found that not getting enough sleep can lead to astrocytes and microglial cells being overactive. Normally, these cells would take care of damaged brain matter and other debris, which is a good thing–but they can cause damage if they do more clean-up than is necessary. Research from the Marche Polytechnic University in Italy found that the brains of sleep-deprived mice had some of their synapses “literally eaten by astrocytes because of sleep loss,”
Diet Liars: “You’ll Never Believe What I Really Ate” – CrossFit Journal
“(People) need to understand that you’re 100 percent in their corner, won't judge them and want what’s best for them. With a lot of people, I believe they need to feel that you’re there for them regardless of what happens with their nutrition. If they feel like they're letting you down when they slip up with their diet, then they're less likely to share information with you,”
How sugar feeds cancer and makes it harder to treat, according to 'breakthrough' study – Daily Mail
In 1920, a German scientists called Dr Otto Warburg discovered that cancer cells rapidly break down sugars without producing much energy. To this day we still don't understand the phenomenon - known as the Warburg effect. But now a nine-year study has identified how sugar traps cancer in a 'vicious cycle' making it more aggressive and harder to treat. The findings could have implications for the diets of cancer sufferers
If the Low-Fat Diet Is a Lie, What the Hell Should We Eat? – Elle
Keys' flawed thesis might have been discredited if it hadn't served so many interest groups so well. Food manufacturers loved the low-fat diet. Sugar is cheaper than fat, so low-fat sweets had higher profit margins than the old-fashioned ones. Dairy farmers could sell low-fat milk, then use the cream to make butter and ice cream, which are, of course, sold separately. Public-health groups, such as the American Heart Association, which had jumped early onto the low-fat bandwagon, had their reputations—and their finances—to think about. Since 1995, the AHA has blessed hundreds of low-fat foods with its Heart-Check seal of approval—for a fee. Over the years, companies have paid the organization thousands apiece for approval of products that included high-sugar cereals like Cocoa Puffs and Lucky Charms.
Consistency Beats Talent, Luck, Good Intentions, and Even Quality – Medium
“Most people knock on the door of their dreams once, then run away before anyone has a chance to the open the door. But if you keep knocking, persistently and endlessly, eventually the door will open.” -Les Brown
On to the Programming!
VIDEOS:
Monday: 171127 Mon wk48 Baby 17point2 -
Practice context and doing very good form (or it doesn’t count), time guide for today, splitting the warm up to ‘before the class’ and ‘after the class starts’, notes on lunges, and why people round their backs on db power cleans, weekly overview
Tuesday: 171128 Tue wk48 Open 13point2 -
Mental toughness and going for big sets, hip mobility for deadlifts, notes on ring dips, box jumps or step ups, why rebounding box jumps are dangerous
Wednesday: 171129 Wed wk48 Del -
Competition context and going hard, how to do kipping pull ups with a medball, the sub for medball runs, notes on kipping handstand push ups and always using a pad, pacing the medball runs
Thursday: 171130 Thu wk48 Comrade Detective -
Practice context theme: abs, hip mobility and Lsits, how to do smaller jumps on the hspu, tips for goblet squats and American swings, time guide for today,
Friday: 171201Fri wk48 Love the Way You Lie -
choosing the right number of reps when doing 1 min intervals, how to do kipping drills when there is a lot of people at different levels, breaking up this workout when you don’t have enough rowers, Rowing sub: 2 muscle cleans (65/95lb or about 50% of max), 2 burpees = 2 cal
Saturday:171202 Sat wk48 The Conga Trio -
Teamwork and communication, hamstring flexibility and deadlifts, why double unders are hard after heavy deadlifts, why there is rest for the Indy version
Sunday: 171203 Sun wk48 Careless Wisper -
Why knowing how to spot is so important, spotting tips in general, notes on bench press and floor press, time guide, tips on bumper plate burpees and overhead lunges (no ‘suicide grip’)!