Back Squat
Performance
3 x 12
Leave a rep or two in the tank. 12s will be programmed again next week, so these should not be max effort sets. Use full range of motion and control.
Fitness
3 x 5 Linear Progression
Start your linear progression light enough to increase weight by 5-10 lbs each week over the next 8 weeks.
Deadlift
1 x 10
Warm up and perform one heavy (and perfect) set of 10 reps. Touch-and-go is permitted.
Post loads to comments.
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For Time:
1000m Row
Rest 4 Minutes
270m 1-Armed Farmer’s Carry
Go hard on the row. Carry 1 heavy object to 4th and back, switching arms as needed. Top end load for the farmer’s walk would be about 1/4 x body weight all the way to 4th in one hand with no rest, then all the way back in the other with no rest. Start light if you’ve never done these before. Any time the object goes down you must switch hands. Stay braced and as upright as possible.
Post times and Rx to comments.
Ropes and rings are now up at 608! There’s more to come (including a cargo net!) in the very near future
The Mileage We Put on Our Joints Outside the Gym
By David Osorio
We often focus on our positions, alignment, and mechanical efficiency inside the gym, but less often discussed is the the mileage we put on our joints and connective tissue in our everyday lives outside the gym. The deleterious effects of extended sitting are well documented, and Kelly Starrett talks a lot about basic posture and foot positioning during our everyday life. What else should we be thinking about?
My own exploration into posture started when I was in high school. At some point, I began waking up every day with back pain, and it seemed intuitive to me that a 15 year old should not have back pain. So I began researching the most ergonomic way to sleep for someone who biases overextension (not that I knew what “overextension” meant when I was 15—I figured that part out later). The research I found recommended sleeping with a pillow under your knees, which creates a slight posterior pelvic tilt and puts the lumbar spine into less extension, as well as using a contoured pillow that allows your cervical spine (neck) to remain neutral while sleeping. I also side sleep, so when I shift to my side I try to put a pillow between my legs to keep my pelvis neutral and use a slightly thicker pillow under my neck. (Have you been keeping count? Yes, I do sleep with 3 to 5 pillows at my disposal.)
Years of doing this have made it second nature. I do it throughout the night without even being aware of it. I used to nap on my stomach but eventually curbed that habit, too. It’s the worst way to sleep, because it puts your back into overextension and forces your neck into extreme rotation for hours. At first it may seem daunting to make these changes, but like anything else, with consistent practice, you can gradually develop a habit that becomes a default behavior.
Similarly, I used to always hear my former roommate stomping up and down the stairs to our walk-up. One of our neighbors even called him “Bigfoot” because of how loud he was on the stairs. I often think of the mechanical wear we put on our bodies walking the hundreds of thousands of steps we climb up and down over the course of our lives. Whenever you walk up or down stairs, two things to consider are the orientation of your feet, which should point straight ahead (as opposed to duck-footed) and how lightly you tread. Think about the difference between smashing down hard at the top of a Box Jump and a graceful landing. Aim for a relaxed and quiet trip up or down the stairs.
Pick one new ergonomic habit you can improve and start working on it today. Simple, small changes add up over a lifetime.
What ergonomic habits have you been working to develop, or which ones would you like to work on?
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Japan’s Female Pro Wrestlers Blur the Lines Between Decorum and Beauty CBC
Not a Creampuff Workout CrossFit
Ahhhhhhhh feeling awesome after this morning's workout! Thanks cfsbk!
HBBS 225x12x3. This is a lot less than last Monday's DIY volume squats, but I was also scorched for days afterwards. Here's to not walking like a pirate.
Deadlift 205×10. Achieved my goal of not dying.
Then I carried something for a while and tried out the assault bike. "this adds up fast," I thought to myself.
++ I sleep with up to four pillows at my disposal, in a variety of sizes and levels of fluffiness. Also useful for creating a wall to block the light from my wife's phone.
AG last night
Easy warm up
5×5 kipping pull ups… kept this as a standard kip and did not try my hand at butterfly like everyone else.
WOD 16 minutes and some extra not really sure since the clock was on the other end of the gym
This was alot of fun, except for my embarrassment in getting the rep scheme wrong not once, not twice, but three different times! I think I pushed Ro's patience into the redzone with my stupidity on this one. Not to mention that I wanted to scale the box jumps up bc I didn't think we had alot of work to do. Idiot.
Looking forward to tonight although my back probably isnt.
7 AM. I was debating whether to do 7 AM or lift on my own at OG, given that I've deadlifted twice in the last 5 days. In the end the extra 30 minutes of sleep won.
HBBSQ 135x12x3. I figured based on what other people did yesterday that I might go up in weight, but holy hell, this was hard! Sets of 12 are freakin' long. I'm not sorry I won't be here for sets of 12 again next week.
DL 185×10. I am so not picking a bar up off the floor for at least a week.
Assault bike instead of rowing, I screwed up the reset button so I did like 35 calories in about 3:45? I think? Then farmer's carry with a 16kg bell. Made it the whole way to 4th with my left hand (yay, I can do farmer carries on my bad side!) and switched to right hand for the return trip. Very pleased that farmer's carries can be part of my repertoire.
6am
HBBSQ at 185/205/205
12 is a ton of reps and my second set felt plenty heavy so I stuck with it for the third set. I'll make a jump to 215 for sets across next week.
Deadlifts at 275#. Took a second between each one to set my back and fill my belly. Nice and lightheaded after this.
Raced Michael and James on the 1,000m row and went into a dark dark place in the last 250m for a final time of 3:39.4.
Nice morning for a brisk walk farmer-style. Used 55# DB since the 50s were taken. It was heavy.
QOD: I have a desk setup at work with a downward-tilting keyboard. REALLY helps with my angry wrist, and I'm going to keep using it long after the left side is healed. My PT told me that the amount of time someone with a desk job spends with her wrists bent up instead of in a neutral position causes an equivalent amount of stress to the system as walking 10 miles a day does to your feet.
I also quit games on my smartphone cold turkey. Normally it's hard to break a bad habit, but this was not hard at all since at one point playing games actually hurt. I don't miss it.
6:30 am Strength Cycle
LBBS 200 x 3 x 3
Slow as molasses.
Strict Press 105 x 5 x 3
Not so bad.
Strict Chins
Was aiming for 3 sets of 9, but only made it to 8 on the third round. Jeremy is still going to let me add weight next week, so I can feel like one of the cool kids with plates hanging between their legs (sounds like a euphemism, but isn't).
9am session:
heat up: inchworms, handstand hold, dead hang, passthroughs, etc.
warm up: 3 rounds
5L, 3R lateral box step up (24")
10 pistol transition side-to-side
10 Groiners
F-rack box step up (20")
3 sets: 10L, 5R @ 68#
-slower down tempo
-L side = death. trying not to push off R foot too much, but i know I am as I get fatigued.
1 Arm Press:
4×6 each side @ 12kg kb
-slower down tempo
-feeling good
Snatch:
3 position snatch @ 63#, 77#
88x1x3
“Broly”
For Time:
21 Power Snatches (115/80)
21 Lateral Barbell Burpees
15 Overhead Squats (115/80)
15 Lateral Barbell Burpees
9 Squat Snatches (115/80)
9 Lateral Barbell Burpees
Time: 9:14 RX
PS: 5-4-3-3- then 6 "quick" singles to finish
OHS: unbroken
SS: singles, relatively good pace
sprinted last 9 burpees. other than that they felt like molasses. took five deep breaths before picking barbell up after each set of burpees.
10 min cooldown/stretch
QOD: standing desk! Cured many of my ills.
Now if I could only become a side- or back-sleeper rather than a stomach-sleeper (super bad for your neck.)
in other news, do you need a job? we're hiring basically all the people here at Shutterstock. check out our careers page for positions in software development and testing, product management, and way more. ping me directly if you see anything you'd like to pursue: mignyc at gmail dot com.
Yeah! New toys at 608! Thanks D.O.
HBBS: 185x3x12
Deadlift: 225×10
Row in 3:53 – farmers walk with 45lb DB.
@ Whit…. Some of your workout today looks "Bulletproof" 🙂
re: QOD–a lot of the back problems I was dealing with last year were alleviated substantially by making two changes:
1. I got a higher foot rest at work (actually, I just turn my empty trash can on its side every morning and use it as a foot rest. It's the perfect height.) Apparently what the office had provided me with was two low for my short legs.
2. I also sleep with a pillow under my knees or between my legs to prevent overextension.
I think of these as "minor" changes because they were easy (and free!) to implement, but, considering I spend at least two thirds of my time sitting (ok, sometimes standing) at my desk or sleeping, they really aren't that minor at all. I've added some glute activation exercises to my warm-up, but I think these out-of-the gym alterations made more of a bigger difference in reducing my discomfort.
Next steps: finding strategies to prevent me from sticking my neck out towards my computer screen and hunching my shoulders forward all day.
Ran too late for noon class.
BSQ
245x5x3
This was my top weight on last weeks 10s but felt right today.
Deadlift
315×10
Dead starts. Grip was a mess from doing Saturday's deads with a hook grip.
Bench
205x8x3
Moved slower than I expected.
@Rob F… you betcha! Incorporating some pieces to work the weaknesses!
Yesterday.
4 rounds
5 x T2B
5 x strict HSPU's (1 x abmat- doubles and singles)
Bench Press
45 x 5, 75 x 5, 95 x 5, 105 x 5, 120 x 3, 135 x 5 (rep out 95%)
Press
45 x 10 x 5
AG
Worked on kipping pull-ups. Butterfly pull-ups still far away.
Metcon in either 14:16 or 16:14. This kicked my ass. Squats, push-ups and sit-ups were really fast. Box jumps were easy peasy as they felt way low after the 24 inch box jumps last week. Burpees were terrible (ascending rep scheme??!!!! So mean!!!) and v-ups/ tucks made me want to puke. Thanks Ro!!
Fun though 🙂
***
Today- mild tequila hangover was not going to get the better of me.
Ran to the gym.
Front Squat
45 x 5, 75 x 5, 95 x 5, 135 x 5, 155 x 3, 170 x 5 ( beltless rep out 95%)
Back Squat
135 x 10 x 5
Ran to the park, did the loop and ran home and somehow PRed my time!! Felt awful and thought I was moving slowly but managed a 8.29 minute mile for 5.74 miles. I think I'm getting better at running!!
Sorry forgot- did the deadlifts which were programmed for today.
135 x 10, 185 x 10, 225 x 10- all touch and go. Felt appropriate for Week 1.
Re: QOD:
@David.. you were 15 years old and still in MIDDLE school?? That explains a lot. 😉
One of my biggest postural habits is that I shift all my weight to my R side and sit into my R hip a lot when I stand. Short leg/strong leg takes the weight. So… I first just consciously correct myself and stand on both feet. But I also practice standing on just my left leg when I wait for the subway to balance things out a bit.
I recently spent a few nights on one of those tempurpedic/memory foam beds — i think that's what it was. After just one night, I noticed I started having a big nagging ache in my thoracic spine by the middle of the day. After the second and third night… I was noticing it throughout the day and it became very uncomfortable and even painful. I wasn't sure exactly the cause… but after sleeping in my own bed for one night, the pain was totally gone. I was amazed at what a serious, negative impact just a few nights of sleep on that bed had on me!! And glad I don't own one like that!
Afternoon with the Hubby and the some other riffraff coaches. 😉
3rnft: barbell back squats, false grip ring rows, single arm DB press at 20#
Hbbs:
(45×10, 95×5, 125×3) 145x12x3
-overall easy. Chris noticed I was tucking a little in my first set so I paid more attention to a tight brace and driving my knees out more. Much better and easier after that. Will make 10# jump.
Deadlift:
(145×5, 185×3, 205×2) 225×10
-used a regular grip for the warm ups but a hook grip for the work set. All touch and go. Tough but doable. Probably a 10# jump here as well.
1000m row
3:58.8
-tried to keep my 2k pace and that was still hard.
270m carry
20kg unbroken except for a little pause at 4th to switch hands.
-that was hard!
Following this cycle's programming remotely (my garage gym) because it looks awesome!!
Warm Up Option C
Bulletproof Legs Work
Squat
75 x 8
115 x 5
165 x 12 x 3
DL
95 x 5
125 x 5
165 x 10
Clearly Quad Dominant
WOD
1000k row @4:02
Rest 4 min
#45 DB carry @3:98
Happy Birthday, Dave P!!!!
Back squats were fun; love me some high volume. 100# 3×12
Deadlift not as fun. 125# x10. Went light, still re-building trust with this lift.
Row: 4:3something? PR territory because the last time I tested it was well past 5:00.
Farmer's Carry 16kg kettlebell.
Considering I only recently switched to real pillows after months of sleeping on throw pillows after moving to park slope, I could stand to be more ergonomic. I'm just trying to workout every day, eat healthy most of the time, not drink too much coffee or alcohol, work hard and be kind… is there really another thing to add to the list?
I love today's article and topic. This topic comes up a lot for me.
I have had a tendency, like many people, to round my shoulders. I have practiced being aware of this and consciously correcting my posture. I now continually "reset" my shoulders throughout the day without thinking about it.
I am also aware of an asymmetry between my shoulders (left higher than right) and since I always have a backpack on, I make sure the straps are an even length (which started out feeling really weird, but I have been getting more used to it) to make sure the weight of my bag is evenly distributed and to adjust my posture accordingly. I made this up. Not sure if it's the solution, but it seems like a good way to reinforce better symmetry in my regular life outside of the gym.
Today's class by myself (minus DL which I did yesterday)
1 lap
3 rnds
3 pull ups strict
10 push ups
10 squats 45, 45, 95
HBBS
135# (67%) x 12 x 3
1000m row 4:40 — started out way too slow (2:30, kept it around 2:20 at 250m, 2:10 at 500m and tried to keep it under 2:10 after 750m mark, which felt tough in the end
20kg single arm farmers carry 270m – one arm each way