1-1-1-1-1
Find a heavy single
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(e7/8) compare to 4.13.11 and 3.23.11
Superset the Following two movements:
3×10 Good Mornings (add 5-10lbs to last exposure)
3×10 Strict Knees to Elbows
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Scott L. on Games Open WOD #4
Heavy: A Response
By Margie Lempert
“How did your squats go?” I ask.
“Heavy. More weight than last time. But heavy,” you say with a mixture of disappointment, exhaustion, and maybe even a hint of disbelief.
As if you wish, you think, you expect that your increase in weight will feel lighter by virtue of the fact that you got a little stronger. And that’s your goal: to be strong enough that heavy weight feels light.
Well, I think you’ve got your goal backwards.
Weight should be heavy. You should be required to push. Getting strong is hard work, as Mark Rippetoe often says. It is a commitment; not something you suddenly arrive at, but rather a slow, deliberate journey that becomes more challenging over time.
Stress adaptation – a fundamental principle of physiology. When you tax your body it rises to the challenge by growing stronger. Your bones get denser, your muscle fibers increase their contractile potential, and your ability to recruit those muscle fibers becomes more efficient. Increase weight, increase capacity; increase capacity, increase weight. It is a harmonious vertical see-saw.
Once you gain enough technical proficiency to use loads that stimulate growth, you are at the glorious beginning of not just building tolerance for, but ushering in struggle. Struggle signifies progress. “Feeling good under the bar” means you gave it a fight, and are rewarded with the tired satisfaction of getting your reps done. It does not mean an effortless set of 5 where you barely breathed hard and didn’t ever once ask: “Is this rep gonna happen?”
Sure today’s weight will feel light one day: when it’s your warm up on the way to lifting something heavier. Relish heavy weight, it never gets easier. And you shouldn’t want it to.
The Penultimate CF Games Sectional WOD is Now Up!
AMRAP in 20 Minutes of:
5 Power cleans (145lbs / 65kg)
10 Toes to bar
15 Wall balls (20lbs to 10′ target/14lbs to 9′ target)
Check out the description and demo!
Good luck to team SBK who’ll be throwing down on WOD 11.5 this weekend at CrossFit LIC!
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Update on the Open: Week 4 CrossFit Games
The Legume Manifesto Whole 9
What is the Single Best Exercise? NY Times
