Gymnastic Capacity Protocol
Gymnastic Capacity Program
16 weeks (Four 4 weeks phase)
2 Days per week (30 minutes per day)
In CrossFit I have always found gymnastic ability of athletes to be the largest separator amongst the field in a competitive setting. To be even more specific it's the athletes ability to display capacity in these gymnastic movements. CrossFit workouts that require high volumes of high skilled gymnastic movements to be performed always show who has spent the time putting in the work on them.
The four phase program I have created below will prepare you for the high volumes of gymnastic movements that are a regular part of the CrossFit competitive world. Below I will touch on the purpose of each phase and why they are ordered the way they are.
Phase 1: Realization Phase
The purpose of this phase is to give athletes the opportunity to understand there capabilities in gymnastic movements. It will give you an understanding of how big of sets you can hit unbroken under fatigue for an extended period of time. This phase can be repeated once the program is finished as measurement of improvement.
Phase 2: Development Phase
The purpose of this phase is to allow athletes to explore different rep scheme options based on their ability, so they can figure out which one allows them the to accumulate the most reps of many short intervals. The stimulus is similar to a CrossFit workout that will require athletes to perform many low to moderate rep sets of gymnastic movements.
Phase 3: Accumulation Phase
The purpose of this phase is to build of the previous phase, it requires athletes to stick with one given rep scheme and utilize it through out the entire interval. The longer intervals during this phase will create the stimulus of a CrossFit workout that requires many large sets of gymnastic movements to be performed in one workout.
Phase 4: Testing Phase
This last phase is intended to test the athletes gymnastic ability over longer time domains and how fast they can recover during the rest intervals. The stimulus of this phase is similar to performing very large sets of gymnastic movements (50-100) and will help you develop the robustness to recover from them and be prepared to train hard again the next day.
Gymnastic Capacity Protocol
Gymnastic Capacity Program
16 weeks (Four 4 weeks phase)
2 Days per week (30 minutes per day)
In CrossFit I have always found gymnastic ability of athletes to be the largest separator amongst the field in a competitive setting. To be even more specific it's the athletes ability to display capacity in these gymnastic movements. CrossFit workouts that require high volumes of high skilled gymnastic movements to be performed always show who has spent the time putting in the work on them.
The four phase program I have created below will prepare you for the high volumes of gymnastic movements that are a regular part of the CrossFit competitive world. Below I will touch on the purpose of each phase and why they are ordered the way they are.
Phase 1: Realization Phase
The purpose of this phase is to give athletes the opportunity to understand there capabilities in gymnastic movements. It will give you an understanding of how big of sets you can hit unbroken under fatigue for an extended period of time. This phase can be repeated once the program is finished as measurement of improvement.
Phase 2: Development Phase
The purpose of this phase is to allow athletes to explore different rep scheme options based on their ability, so they can figure out which one allows them the to accumulate the most reps of many short intervals. The stimulus is similar to a CrossFit workout that will require athletes to perform many low to moderate rep sets of gymnastic movements.
Phase 3: Accumulation Phase
The purpose of this phase is to build of the previous phase, it requires athletes to stick with one given rep scheme and utilize it through out the entire interval. The longer intervals during this phase will create the stimulus of a CrossFit workout that requires many large sets of gymnastic movements to be performed in one workout.
Phase 4: Testing Phase
This last phase is intended to test the athletes gymnastic ability over longer time domains and how fast they can recover during the rest intervals. The stimulus of this phase is similar to performing very large sets of gymnastic movements (50-100) and will help you develop the robustness to recover from them and be prepared to train hard again the next day.
Warm Up Generator
Tired of writing the same boring warm up for yourself and your clients everyday?
Then all you need is the Warm Up Generator, it instantly creates an endless variety of warm ups that are programmed based on the movements you are performing that day. The exercises are pulled from a large database of movements I have created over the last 10 years of coaching, to provide you with exercises that are both effective and enjoyable.
Each warm up consist of 5 main parts and last 20, including the cool down
- Monostructural Cardio: elevate hear rate
- Walking Dynamic Movement: mobilize
- In-Place Movement: activate & stabilize
- Specific Movement Prep: prime
- Post-Workout Recovery: mobilize & cool down
Barbell Cycling Protocol
BARBELL CYCLING PROTOCOL
12 weeks (Two 6 weeks phase)
3 Days per week (30 minutes per day)
Being able to cycle a barbell at a fast rate efficiently has become a very crucial part of the sport of CrossFit as the competitive field deepens every year. There are many factors that affect an athlete's ability to cycle a barbell, the two major ones being strength and fitness level. Outside of those are movement pattern, grip strength and endurance, and breathing. This program can be used to address any of those five factors. The factor you choose to address is dependent on how you approach each day of your training and what modifications you make to your strategy. Below I will touch on how each of these different factors can be the focal point of your session.
STRENGTH FOCUS: If your goal is to use this program to develop general strength pacing all the mono-structural work down to a conversational/comfortable pace (even if that means scaling down a few calories) is very important. Doing that will allow you to put all of your focus on performing the barbell reps at the highest level possible. Make it your goal to always be working at the upper end of the percentages provided and keep the barbell unbroken.
FITNESS FOCUS: If your goal is to use this program to develop general fitness the focus of each interval should be to complete it at a fast, but repeatable pace. This is done by pushing the tempo on the machine, then choosing a weight for the barbell that can be completed unbroken even under high amounts of fatigue. The goal is to finish each interval as fast as possible, with minimal difference from the first rep to the last rep of the day.
MOVEMENT PATTERN: The ideal movement pattern you use to perform a 1RM Clean & Jerk efficiently and effectively is very different from the on you would use to perform "Grace" (30 Clean & Jerks@135/95) as fast as possible. For a 1RM lift you are positioning yourself to have as good as leverage on the bar as possible to lift maximum load and for "Grace" you are positioning your body to move a light/medium load as fast as possible. As for the movement pattern itself everyones will look a little different. The point I am trying to make here though is how you move the barbell during these intervals will look different from your max attempts if your goal is to cycle at a fast rate.
GRIP STRENGTH/ENDURANCE: To maximize your grip training the first goal will always be completing each intervals with all reps unbroken on the barbell. As you are able to complete reps unbroken continue to increase the load of the bar to tax your grip strength to a higher degree. iIf you are still capable of completing all reps unbroken even at the highest intensities within the recommended percentages, then increase your speed on the mono-structural machines to put your body under more strain prior to starting the barbell reps.
BREATHING: I believe breathing is the most overlooked aspects of barbell cycling ability and also the lowest hanging fruits to increasing your barbell cycling performance the easiest. The biggest issue I see is athletes (including myself) holding their breath for the entire duration that they are cycling the barbell because they are so focused on being powerful and fast only, they forget to relax. This may work for the first round or two of a workout, but eventually it catches up to the individual and they can't continue to cycle the bar while holding their breath. To focus on this during training, I recommend slowing down your pace during the mono-structural portion of the interval, so when you get to the barbell you are under control. Then, when you pick up the barbell during each rep breathe out during the concentric portion of the movement and in during the eccentric portion of the movement. This will get you in the habit of breathing during every rep and be very helpful, especially in longer workouts.
KEYS TO SUCCESSFULY USING THE BB CYCLING PROGRAM
1. Understand that each day of the week has a different focus based on the duration of work, rest between intervals, number of repetitions on the barbell, and percentages used on the barbell.
2. Within each of the two Phases there are three 2 week microcycles focusing on a specific mono-structural machine and barbell lift. On week 1 always leave a little gas in the tank, then on week 2 push your self knowing its your last week with the exercise.
3. Lastly the two methods of overload used during the BB Cycling Program are time under tension and load used. The time under comes into play by increasing the range of motion on the barbell lifts used and the load used is increased by the intensity that is prescribed for the lifts being performed.