Back Squat / Dumbbell Row | Handstand Walking

BACK SQUAT / THREE-POINT DUMBBELL ROW SUPERSET*

A1) Back Squat:
4 x 8-10

A2) Three-Point Dumbbell Row:
4 x 8-10

Use a heavy load for the rep range that allows you to move with perfect form. Keep rest to a minimum, 30-60 seconds between movements.

*Warm up and then perform a set of Back Squat, followed by a set of Dumbbell Rows. Repeat for 4 work sets of each, resting 30 seconds to a minute between movements.

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Exposure 3 of 8

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Handstand Walking/Balancing

Choose one of the following scaling options, and spend 15-20 minutes developing your hand balancing:

A) Hand Walking (free or 2′ from wall)
B) Wall Inverted Hip Shifts with Hand Release (from a Wall Walk or Kick Up)
C) Box Piked Hip Shifts with Hand Release
D) Floor Piked Hip Shifts with Hand Release

Rest after each set or attempt and don’t turn it into a 20-minute AMKAP (As Many Kick Ups as Possible). If you’re not spotting someone, you can use the rest periods to do some light stretching or light rowing, jogging, cycling, etc.

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The Long Haul: What I Learned from My 6th Year in the CrossFit Open, Part II

By Whitney Hubbard

Editor’s Note: This is the 2nd part of a 2-parter on Coach Whit’s 6th (!) year of competing in the CrossFit Open. Part I was posted yesterday.

As I mentioned at the end of yesterday’s post, focusing on getting stronger in certain areas for the 2018 Open meant a few other things temporarily fell by the wayside. The Open has a way of reminding you of what you’ve been neglecting. Let me show you what I mean:

2017 Best Regional Placement: 350 (17.2, the one with Bar Muscle-Ups)
2017 Worst: 824 (17.5, the one with Thrusters)

2018 Best: 194 (18.2, the one where you go as fast as possible)
2018 Worst: 1629! (18.2a, the one where you try not to die lifting heavy weights after going as fast as possible)

So, obviously I have some questions about my strategy on 18.2a, but it certainly shows a weakness—lifting heavy under fatigue. That one score took me way down. And the Deadlift/Handstand Push-Ups workout, which also featured picking up heavy things after a whole bunch of other work (Diane!), was my second lowest placement.

But this year I also had two more scores under 350 on the leaderboard: 18.1 (aerobic capacity at it’s finest) and 18.3 (ALL of the skillz). And the Thruster workout was not the thing that destroyed me! Not to mention that I made it pain-free through 45 Handstand Push-Ups without having done a single kipping rep in the past year. So the areas that I specifically trained this season markedly improved. And that’s something I really need to pause and acknowledge. My plan worked! I got better! And the best part is that I stayed healthy—sleep, nutrition, and not repeating workouts went a long way for me there. The tradeoff is that I wasn’t ready for the heavy Deadlifts and max Clean under fatigue, and it showed in the scores.

The challenge is how to blend it all together now, to keep my strengths and start to fill in the holes. This is where the fun and magic are for me. I’ve said it many times, but one of the big reasons that I’m still doing CrossFit after 8 years is because there’s always more to learn, skills to refine, strength to gain, and greater virtuosity to chase. “Working out” always sounded like a really boring thing to do, but engaging in this multi-faceted process of improvement keeps me interested. It’s a never-ending opportunity to learn about myself (not to mention the athletes around me and the awesome humans I get to coach). It’s daily self-discovery and self-reflection. It’s approaching those larger, daunting dreams we might dare to consider and asking, “How could I get just one step closer to that, today?”

So it’s possible that all those numbers up there just bored the hell out of you. That’s okay. I don’t need you to care about my scores and results. But I encourage you to dive into your own. To acknowledge where you’ve put in the work and made improvements, no matter how small they may seem. To reflect on what you might have been avoiding this past year, and what you’ll set out to do with what’s left of 2018.

Maybe you’ve been coming to CFSBK for years already. Maybe you’re just a few weeks or months in. When I walked through these doors for the first time, I certainly never thought I’d still be coming to classes 8 years later, much less making my living here. In a lot of ways, I think the process is the goal. I’m grateful to have found a place that makes room for a long journey. And I’m so happy that I’ve created a lifestyle I can sustain, and that will sustain me.

Every year The Open reminds me of how I’m not just in it for the competition, I’m in it for the long haul. I’m in it for hours and hours of practicing a more efficient kip swing and fixing my bar path. I’m in it for those many conversations in my head where something says, “I can’t,” and I respond with, “I will.” I’m in it for the many years of a healthy, happy life ahead. I hope you are, too.

News and Notes

• Great news! We’ve added another Short Circuit class on Saturdays at 10am. Another great chance to reprogram your body in the spring! (It is spring, isn’t it?)
• Missing something? It might be in our most recent lost and found dump! You can also now see photos of our lost and found clear outs via the link under Member Resources. Be sure to claim your stuff at the front desk before we donate it to CHIPS!

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Yesterday’s Results Board: Rest Day
The “Pedestrian” Who Became One of America’s First Black Sports Starts Atlas Obscura
Scaling Back & Saving Dogs: Why This Games Athlete Cut Her Training in Half Athlete Daily