It’s the week of the CrossFit Total! The CrossFit Total, as many of you know, is this coming weekend on Saturday! Don’t miss out on the opportunity to max your deadlift, back squat, and press in one day! You get three attempts to max once you’re on deck. Usually this means your first is a given, your second is a PR attempt, and your third is something WILDLY crazy that may or may not actually lead to your getting petechia.
We do this two times a year and it’s always completely worth it to see how far your training has allowed you to progress. If you’re wondering why we've been emphasizing strength so much in this last cycle, check this explanation out from the Mayo Clinic. Also, remember to be familiar with this article from the CrossFit Journal, – strength plays a huge part in the foundation of a good athlete and an optimally healthy person.
For more information about the CrossFit Total go here.
What to do on the day of:
The gym will be open on Saturday morning by 8:30a for the 9a heat to start their general warm-up. You must sign up ahead of time for a specific heat on MindBody. No exceptions. The CrossFit Total is open to members of the gym ONLY, but spectators are welcome to come watch!
Upon entering the gym, I will direct you to the warm-up station. There will be general movement prep posted which will be things that everyone is familiar with. Should a movement be unfamiliar, just ask one of the many coaches who will be all around the space. Once your heat of lifting has begun, you are expected to report to the platform – aka, if you signed up for 10am – that’s when you move from general warm-up to warming up for your first lift.
There will be a designated back squatting area, including a back squat warm-up space. A coach will be there to get you from empty barbell to your first attempt on the platform so be ready to tell them what weights you’d like to open with if any. If you have no idea what your first attempt should be, we can help you figure that out as well. Trusted spotters will be available and will help to guide you should you need assistance in making fateful decisions about what weights to lift for your three attempts at the best back squat you can muster.
Once you have squatted you will ever-so-slyly be asked to move directly on to warming up for your Deadlift. You will be helped by another coach in ramping up to your first of three attempts at the MOST WEIGHT YOU CAN PICK UP, otherwise known as the Deadlift.
Your deadlift coach will be watching your deadlift attempts and will actually signal you to drop your deadlift if and only if they truly believe you have achieved full lockout. Pine for the signal, friends – it means real and good things have happened.
Summoning up all your courage you may take your buzzing spinal erectors to the strict pressing platform, where you will be asked to name your three attempts and simply work up to them as you are able.
After EVERY lift (and not at the end of all lifts) you MUST report your numbers to the desk for safe-keeping. They will be placed on a chart for posterity’s sake and will ne’er be forgotten – until you shatter through them at the next CrossFit Total.
How to prepare for the day.
The programming this week is intended to allow for a tapering of your training so that Saturday is the day you will be able to peak appropriately. We often perform lifts for a “peak set” – on the day of the Total, you’re looking to be at the peak of your peaks! This will be the one day out of the year that you are allowed to lift slow (once it gets really heavy).
Here are a few steps to making your CrossFit Total day as good as it can be:
1. Do train during the week. Every day of this week will attempt to keep intensity high, and volume low. You should feel powerful and a little antsy by Saturday. The movements of the total will be in the rotation but they will not be exhausted by any means. 2. Work on mobility all week, including at home. Gaining better mobility for the lifts is a bit like taking the parking brake off while driving a Ferrari. Without the mobility to complete certain lifts you’re really only partially experiencing your strength. 3. Get lots of rest if you can. Good sleep means good neural recovery which means – fast and strong lifts! 4. Eat before you lift and if you normally do coffee – definitely do it on the day of – but not too much. This may be a day that only focuses on 9 reps but these are some of the hardest reps you’ll do this year – fuel for them! Don’t eat too much and don’t eat anything that’s tough to digest, i.e. bacon and eggs and a bit of fruit BEFORE total steak, eggs, and potatoes AFTER ☺ 5. Set goals and know what you want to lift. Come prepared to talk to a coach about what you would like to do that day in the squat, deadlift, and press. Dream dreams of bigger deadlifts, deep squats, and speedy presses. 6. If you want, dress fancy. If you’ve got stuff that makes you look weird, strong, awesome, paleolithic, or more like a superhero – this is your day to strut your stuff. Many pictures will be taken.
WORKOUT OF THE DAY:
MOVEMENT PREP:
A. peanut to t-spine, 1:00 lax ball glutes, 1:00/side band OH, 1:00/side
B. 200m run
C. band around ankles: skater walk, d&b lateral walk, d&b 10 glute bridges (band around knees)
D. jog forwards d jog backwards b lateral shuffle, d&b high skips, d&b skips for distance, d&b karaoke, d&b
E. bar warm-up, 5 of each: front squats tall muscle clean clean pull under high hang clean hang clean
STRENGTH:
hang power clean, 15:00 to find a peak of 1
CONDITIONING:
By request on Kyra's birthday:
Tabata This!
Tabata Squat Tabata Pull-up Tabata Push-up Tabata Sit-up
score is the lowest scoring round per movement