Every Minute, On The Minute, For 20 Minutes, perform the following couplet:
1 Deadlift
Max Double Unders until the :30 Mark
Men’s Deadlift Weight Options:
A 305
B 275
C 225
D 185
E 155
F Other..
Women’s Deadlift Weight Options:
A 185
B 155
C 135
D 115
E 95
F Other..
You have until the :30 mark to complete your Double Unders. If you can’t consistently complete 20 by the :30 mark, scale back. Modifications today will be single unders or double under attempts until the :30 mark.
Post Rx and lowest Double Under round to comments.
The Sophomore Slump
by Noah Abbott
It’s inevitable. At some time during this great journey that is Crossfit, things are going to get tough. Your strength numbers stop shooting up, and your metcon times stop plummeting down. At a certain point what Mark Rippetoe calls the “Beginner Effect” wears off, and you are now faced with the daunting prospect that each gain, each skill mastered, and each second shaved will be done so at the cost of a considerable investment of time, focus, and will.
Often, concurrent with this realization, you will look around and think “why isn’t this happening to anyone else!” The guy you share a squat rack with has added 40 pounds to his squat this exposure, while you’ve risked an aneurysm to add 15! The girl you did foundations with just hit 100 consecutive double unders, and you approach the jump rope like its an anaconda looking to wrap you up and eat you! You thought you were great at this stuff, and all of a sudden it feels like you barely deserve to wear the ol’ skull and crossbones and call yourself a CFSBKer.
For many, this phenomenon occurs somewhere between 6 and 18 months into an athlete’s development, although it can certainly happen sooner or later, depending on your previous training history. Often times this double edged revelation- That a) shit is gonna be hard, and b)that on the giant Crossfit spectrum your abilities rate closer to Jason Schwartzman’s than Jason Khalipa’s- results in a drop of motivation, general malaise, and sometimes a loss of CrossFaith.
Congratulations! You are now a Crossfit Sophopmore, and experiencing your first Sophomore Slump! At this time it may be meritorious to examine the roots of the word Sophomore. Although commonly used to refer to the second year of high school or college instruction, it derives its name from the greek sophisma, which means “acquired skill, clever device, method” which was further derived from sophos, meaning “wise or skilled.” Previously you made gains randomly, almost accidentally, and every lift or metcon was a PR. Now, as a Sophomore, you must practice sophisma and train methodically and with greater perspective to ensure continued success.
Redefine Goals and Timeframes
At the start of your Crossfit career, goals were short-term challenges and triumphs. Kicking up to a handstand, one (or ten, or twenty) push-ups or pull-ups, squatting to depth- these were things that you could identify, work on for a relatively short amount of time, and achieve. For further development as a Sophomore, a redefinition of goals is necessary.
Previously, we planned forward to achieving a goal. “I want to squat 200 pounds by the end of the month.” Looking forward, I challenge you to plan backwards. Identify your goal, figure out how many training days you can allot per week or month to work on it, and set a long enough timeframe that you will be able to keep progressing slowly and steadily towards success. Make sure to start submaximally (using weight/reps/etc lower than your current max) to make sure you have room to grow. The more you can delay hitting the ceiling of your current ability, the more room your ability will have to grow. By starting low, aiming high, and giving themselves ample time to grow Smart Sophomores avoid Ceilings (I think I just made up a new saying!).
Perspective
Even with perfect planning, great focus, and sustained intensity, some movements,workouts, or even time/weight modalities (Grace vs Murph) will always seem to crush us. Mobility, diet, sleep, injury history- all of these things blend into potent cocktails that besiege the fledgling (and intermediate, and expert) Crossfitter. Instead of getting frustrated why not try and re-frame the problem:
First, embrace every exposure to them as an opportunity to practice perfectly and gather experience and insight about a difficult adversary. Relish in attacking your weaknesses, and try your best to attend days when those weaknesses are programmed, or program them yourself during open gym days.
Second, actively try to maintain perspective about what Crossfit means in your life and your personal reasons for why you keep showing up to a funky old warehouse to get sweaty. Aside from the infinitesimal percentage of elite, competitive Crossfit athletes, most of us come to the gym for reasons that all fall under the umbrella of “Improving Quality of Life.” Increasing work capacity, being able to participate in new and challenging activities, looking better naked- all of these are broad, life-oriented goals that we work towards every single time we come to the gym, whether its a day when we hit a PR or where we bail on every set.
Last, remember what a great privilege it is that you have a life that allows you to spend a nice chunk of time each week picking up heavy stuff, running, jumping, and making yourself Mas Sexy (and I mean that in the broadest sense of the Spanglish malaproprism). There are a vast number of people out there too overworked, underpaid, untrained, ignorant or otherwise unable to do the things we take for granted. Your worst day at the gym is better than a day sitting on the couch mainlining Pringles.
Just Show Up
Which brings me to my last point and word of advice during slumps, Sophomoric or otherwise. JUST SHOW UP. Every day you are in the gym working is a day you are improving, even when it doesn’t feel that way. Tangible increases in strength or speed are important, but so are intangible gains in familiarity with movements and a greater understanding of your strengths, weaknesses, and limitations. Broadening your knowledge and confidence is just as worthwhile an endeavor as broadening your back and thighs. Sometimes you will surprise yourself with gains you make when you feel like you are standing still. Plus, your friends want to see you, sweat with you, and laugh with you, and, if you don’t show up, your coaches will have nothing to do but compare deadlift scars and throw chalk at each other.
A Long Crossfit Road
Hopefully after reading this, some of you will feel rejuvenated, and apply these humble tools to break out of the funk you are currently in. Although this article deals with the concept of a Sophomore Slump, rest assured there are Junior Slumps, Senior Slumps, and a wealth of postgraduate, doctoral, and extracurricular opportunities in Slump Science as well. Now you have the weapons to fight back. Redefine your goals and adjust your timeframes to allow steady progress towards said goals. Strive to maintain perspective and always reflect on what Crossfit means to you, why you do it. Most importantly, even when it’s tough, find value in simply stepping into the ring. So equipped, all of these Slumps will be just small road bumps on a long road. Trust me, one day you’ll look back at this stuff, and laugh.
________________
Why Do It Right When I Can Do It Wrong CF One World
CrossFit Warrior/Muy Thai World Champion Miriam Nakamoto CrossFit Community
CrossFit Strength Training, By Louie Simmons
michele ma belle says
a couple of recipes for this week's CSA box, including some special requests, up at The Daily Paleo.
thedailypaleo.tumblr.com
michele says
i'm an asshole, here's an actual link that works.
http://tmblr.co/Zx0iHwRWVGuQ
stellavision@gmail.com says
Fun WOD. I think I should have gone heavier on the deadlifts (I did 155#) since double-unders are not a metabolic challenge for me — I can't string enough of them together for them to be a gasser. Weirdly, I was getting them in 7s and 8s for about 10 rounds, and then around round 14 I suddenly forgot how to do ANY double-unders, much less string them together. Oof.
Peter says
6am with D.O.
275 for the deadlift and 20 DUs per round. On one round I managed only 17 DUs and I may have miscounted on a few others. Good WOD. Double unders started out great and then get a bit ugly towards the end.
DH3 says
I just want to say i am in awe of you 6AMers. That is some dedication
dan.betz@gmail.com says
6am with coach DO. I enjoyed the lax ball love before the WOD. I used 225 for the deadlift – perhaps being over-cautious with my stupid hamstring – but it felt great throughout. I did 30 DUs per round to get closer to the 30 sec mark, though I probably should have just kept going until 30 sec were up every round. Looking forward to tackling the rest of crush week: Diane ladder and Annie Get Your Gun (Annie + pistols)?
Mike says
Noah:
What a great piece! Words to Crossfit by.
Even though I felt I started CrossFIt 5months ago already In a sophomore slump (!), I appreciate your powerful motivational words! Perspective is what we all need to develop for continued growth both mental and physical.
scott@droolcup.com says
Having yet reached the point where I could qualify for a sophomore slump (3 months in!), I can only hope any that I may have is not as intense as my collegiate one.
On a different topic, saw an article today on the possibility of classifying lack of physical activity as an illness : http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2012/08/15/158831652/should-lack-of-exercise-be-considered-a-medical-condition
It mentions how insurance agencies are willing to reimburse for pills that deal with side effects from inactivity, but not visiting the gym. That's just nuts. Our insurance does offer reimbursements for going to the gym, it's pretty crazy that's not the norm.
JR says
@Scott that stuff drives me nuts. It's just a free out. "It's an illness. It's not my fault, I'm not accountable." Like Tiger Woods being a sex addict. Aren't we all? WTF.
If you're lazy, you're just lazy. If I have to start subsidizing that I am going to jump out of a window!
Todd says
Well I guess Sunday isn't going to be Annie with heavy deads, then! This looks like a fun one, see you there, after-work crew.
And I'm sticking with my other Sunday prediction, heavy Fran variant.
crossfitsbk@gmail.com says
Noon Class Today
I changed the workout slightly after seeing the AM classes. I modified it to max Doubles in the remaining time before :30. The Double Under Score is your lowest round.
Did this at 305lbs partnered with Cliff. I think I could have done 315. The workout wasn't really the stimulus I was exactly looking for, I thought it would be more of a claustrophobic 20 minutes of intervals, instead it felt pretty steady state after the 5 minute mark.
Ran a hard 400 after the WOD, was very happy to have most of the class join me!
Finished up with 5×5 Chin-ups with 30 extra pounds
stellavision@gmail.com says
Ha. I wasn't counting my double unders but if my score is whatever I got in my lowest round, I can remember ZERO quite easily. 😛
cjkaiser@post.harvard.edu says
@JR I don't think that's what the article is saying. Instead I think it's saying that if doctors start treating inactivity as a pathology (better word than illness I think) and "prescribing" exercise, we might see hehavior change–akin to when doctors started telling people smoking was bad for them and they should stop.
BTW, ask Jeremy about his treatment for sex addiction next time you are in the gym, it's genius.
jimmyr72@gmail.com says
@Charlotte, I am all for educating people, and that's great. Maybe I live in a bubble, but how is it news that it's important to be active and take care of yourself? I guess it's a big world out there, but it just doesn't strike me as ground-breaking science. Having said that, I agree, the article didn't imply that. If it's pushing people to be active and exercise, that's great, but all too often it's big pharma getting pushed on people. pills, stomach bands, fat sucking operations, all kinds of stuff. I'm generally not fond of that.
RonW says
265 and up to 275 for the last ten. was doin about 14-20 dus per round. of to la catch y'all next week!
Jules says
Oh crap, lowest re: DU counts? I'm close to Stella and that was 4. Best 14.
Fun WOD today! Dave E is back from his honeymoon and on fire with the comments, Stella in the house, et al. Anyway, good times even with yesterdays raw paws from the T2B. By the 6th round of DL's I think my hands just went numb.
I'm totally going to regret this.. but.. so far this is my most favourite Crush Week in a year and two months. I just jinxed myself I think.
Nice piece Noah! I have to say having a really solid core 7am group from almost day one has been exceptionally helpful to me. Familiar faces, knowing who likes what movements and such kind of makes it all better.
Sam says
Thought I'd post a link to the Pete McArdle 15K at Van Cortlandt (Bronx, end of the 1 line) on Sunday, December 2, 11:30 a.m., in case anyone's interested. It's basically three loops of NYC's main cross-country course, which is a real classic killer. The winning men get near 50 minutes, the winning women near an hour; average time more like 1:30. http://www.nyrr.org/races-and-events/pete-mcardle-cross-country-classic
cows_ski@hotmail.com says
I liked this WOD, did it at 255 (I was going to go heavier but I’m glad I didn’t)
Best round of DU’s was 40 and the worst was 25
See you all in a couple weeks, we’re off to VT and ME for some hammock time, lots of reading, some yoga and a hell of a lot of lobster.
CFSB Softball, kick some ass.
cows_ski@hotmail.com says
By the way, if anyone is looking for something to do over Labor Day and was thinking about going up VT way, check out my friend Daniel Kornguths Soap Box Derby. There will be bands, food and some crazy soap box cars (in the past there has been a Millennium Falcon, a Chariot with plywood horses and an armored rider and lots of crazy wipeouts).
You can check out the website (sorry I don’t know how to post links):
soapbox.erstwhileltd.com or
diyvt.org/derby
s.archenbronn@gmail.com says
@Dmak I WANT LOBSTER!! (also – I sent you a fb message)
*sigh*
So, today was one of those things that looks good on paper and then is a little nuttier than expected.
I subbed cleans for DL, considering the whole Subway Series on Saturday.
Cleaned @125#, got 20 DU every round except for the last, which I got 18. My DU were really good today and I think it was a great exercise in learning how to stay loose in them, even when really starting to fatigue. Also, great practice in regard to rhythm.
I completely didn't hear the whole instruction regarding as many as possible in 30 sec, I just kept shooting for 20, which by the end was just what I could eek out in the time allotted. Was a great burner. I wanted to be done with it by 8:30, so I was happy I stuck out the whole 20 min.
Lindsay says
Haha! I'm right there with Stella on the DUs! Deadlift 115# and my double under attempts were at least better than they've been. I got 4 in a row(previously only having 1 at a time) and a max of 8 in a round. All in all, feeling good about today. Thanks 5pm coach Josh! And She-Fox for the DU encouragement!
Todd says
Yep, this was a fun one, and a learning experience on DU's for me!
Went 225 for the deads to make sure I stayed clean. Felt good all the way through.
First round of DU's went swimmingly, 32, almost unbroken except for a false start, then things went haywire. I only managed 11 each for 3 rounds straight, couldn't figure out what was up with my rhythm, felt like Keith Moon on acid. Round 5 I reset a little longer, slowed my pace, and found my mojo. Really got a boom-BAP rhythm going with my wrists that I've never felt before and easily hit 21+ for rounds 5-20, many of which were unbroken. As soon as my calves aren't screaming at me I'm going to hit some DU practice twice weekly to make sure I don't lose that feeling.
Also great read, Noah. I'm going to have to come back to this one during those plateaus that feel like valleys sometimes.
Crystal says
I went to 7pm ladies hour with Melissa and Jess. I'm looking forward to next week getting drinks with umbrellas after!?
My partner Amy and I are relatively new to the game. We used 93lbs. It was easy the whole way through. The double unders were not.
I read the article about keeping form throughout the work out and thought about it coming in tonight. That being said, by the first round I ditched the plan to work on getting the rhythm for double unders down and just raced the clock hoping I would suddenly be able to do them. I will keep practicing and get them the next time!
dougjones771@gmail.com says
DIY: ring dips 5×3. Got some great tips from Fox, keep chin down, stay in a hollow position and externally rotate shoulders at the top. Was harder than they way I was doing it, but also felt more stable.
225#
16 – 27 on the DUs
Low back has been tight, so I really tried to set my back before lifting. Hopefully, won't feel to tight tomorrow.
s.archenbronn@gmail.com says
I need a ride too! Be there at 8