Fall Training 2017!
Fall is here. The heat still lingers. But training is due for a change, and a change for the better! We got to see you all go through an extensive testing period with two weeks of testing out most lifts and certain workouts, and resulted in everyone demolishing old PR’s and crushing some tough workouts. Everyone’s energy and dedication has been unreal, and the hard work is paying off. Now it is time to switch things up. Those who were with us last year around this time of the year know what’s coming; those who were not with us last fall at Upper Park CrossFit are in for a treat. This is the time of the year where we start fresh. “Back to basics” is what we like to call it, and we are so excited for you all to dive into the next 6 weeks of training and really take full advantage of what is about to be dished out. So here is what you will see this fall:
STRENGTH:
This will be simple. We will squat, deadlift, and press. You will see more of front squats this time around and with the front squat us coaches will be looking for controlled descents, finding that perfect squat position, and driving out with speed and intent all while maintaining the front rack and midline. The sumo deadlift was great to mix things up but now it is time to move back to the traditional position. Doing so, we understand that some days deadlifts feel great and light and other days might feel like gravity doubled over night. So do not think that you must hit the percentage that we prescribe. Go by feel each time you step into the gym and all will go well. For the presses — strict press and bench press will remain! Those that are used to a wider grip position in the bench press, we will ask to start playing around with a closer grip that will force you to keep your elbow position closer to the body. Learning this style will help with pressing efficiency when it is translated over to other pressing movements such as dips, push-ups, handstand push-ups, etc… The shoulders are a smaller muscle group and can burn out extremely fast. So any moves towards efficiency and keeping the shoulders healthy are definitely something that you should jump on right away.
OLY WORK: (Clean & Jerk, Snatch)
Ok, I am not sure how many people read this, but those that do, listen up. This is probably the most important time of the year to make incredible leaps and bounds in your Olympic lifts. It does not matter whether you are new to these lifts or experienced. It is time to put your lifts under a microscope and start fresh. If you are worried about weight on the bar and try to go as heavy as you can with sub-par technique, then you are missing the point of this entire section and will most likely get left behind. What is the rush, right? We all are looking to elevate our fitness and we all know that it does not come overnight, it takes time. So does Olympic lifting. We will be doing a ton of pause high hang and basic hang position work. These positions will make you think, they will make you stay technical, and they will make you strive for perfection. Which is all we ask. Do not worry about your strength in these movements going anywhere. Remember we will be doing a lot of heavy squatting and pull work in our strength portions. Lastly, by all means ask for our eyes and attention as much as possible. That is why we coaches are here, to make you better than yesterday and for you to crush your goals.
CONDITIONING:
The sprinter. The 800m runner. The marathoner. Those are the systems that you will be building and we will be building them in a simpler sense. We will still take advantage of getting outside and doing sprint work and longer distance runs before the rainy season arrives. Primarily, you will see the longer distance conditioning pieces on Thursdays. 30 minute steady state runs. 1k row repeats. 2k Assault bike work. I guess we can call this the new Thirsty Thursdays. You really do not want to miss out on this work; it may be just what you need. It is simple and very effective in the long run. Literally.
Don’t worry, we will still be hitting WODs as the week goes on but they will not be the primary focus this time of the year. There is plenty of time as the year goes on to be focusing on the WOD. But if there is ever a time to be less focused on the WOD and more focused on other pieces of conditioning, now is the time.
ACCESSORY:
Finally, this is where you get to be a little selfish, but there is a catch… You need to pick the things that YOU need to work the most. Also known as weakness work. We all have them. Nobody is perfect. The accessory work will provide options for you. Options that you need to try and take full advantage of. The payout is huge if you confront your weaknesses, we can guarantee that. The accessory work will be slow so that you can just focus on the work at hand and that’s it. Some days you might do one accessory piece and other days you might do all of them. You do you right?
It has been an incredible journey thus far watching all of you grow under the roof of Upper Park CrossFit and being a part of this community. You will also notice we have set up a monthly goals board at the gym. Go write up a short term goal that you can focus on throughout the fall and also take notice to others achievements! Let’s all get after the fall training cycle together and have some fun with it. Cheers everyone and see you at the gym.
