Training to Go the Distance

Ready the body and mind for the unexpected

Team! 
This week we are using a variety of physical movements to develop the skill of mental and physical resilliency. It's one thing to sustain a single movement for long periods, it's another thing to switch and adapt among different movements for a duration! 
Enjoy! 
-Carla

This workout targets a number of very cool things. The goal of the workout is to keep moving during all the working intervals for the entire minute. This requires skill in pacing - not just with repetition speed, but with the selection of movement options that you can perform for an entire minute. This level of insight into your physical abilities is valuable when you are presented with a physical task that is unexpected or a response to fatigue that is unanticipated. This could be the workout of the day (WOD) at a CrossFit box, a race on terrain you have no experience with or a firefighter who needs to perform a rescue in an unfamiliar place. In all of these situations, it is essential to be able to pace and change movement and manage fatigue so that you can continue moving for the amount of time needed and not “hit the wall” too early before the task is done.

Movement for longer time periods requires muscle stamina - the ability of muscles to move lighter weight over longer periods of time. These are higher-volume movements. Endurance athletes are specialists in this realm as they excel in high-volume activities such as marathon and triathlon competitions. But what this workout introduces is volume training involving different movements and muscle groups while adding an element of cardiovascular endurance fatigue to make it more challenging. Finally, the last little “nugget” this workout offers is a reminder of the high level of core engagement that is needed for all 4 movements. You will realize this during the plank hold because it will be tougher than you think!

The strategy for approaching this workout is to utilize pacing the speed of repetitions and choosing movement options that are challenging, but sustainable to accumulate as many repetitions as possible.

The challenge for this workout is to be working for the ENTIRE minute of each interval. If you find yourself needing to stop, then switch movement options. For example, if you can’t hold a strict plank for the entire minute, switch to a plank on your knees, then back to the strict plank so that you can last the entire minute doing some form of a plank . There is a 1:00 rest interval after the 4 x 1-minute movement intervals.  The series is a total of 20 minutes.

Scoring: Record your APPROXIMATE reps per 1-minute round during your 1 minute of rest – not during the working rounds! … and if you don’t want to count and just stay in a mental zone, then no scorekeeping is necessary!

Warm Up

TABATA 20 seconds of work/10 seconds of rest. (Total is 6 minutes, 4 rounds of these movements in sequence)

How to: Set your SmartWOD app for TABATA 20 seconds work/10 seconds rest for a total of 6 minutes. Perform the air squat for 20 seconds, then rest 10 seconds, then 20 seconds of push-ups (easy option), and 10 seconds rest, then the burpees, and back to the air squat for a total of 4 rounds of the sequence of 3 exercises. ** This is low to moderate intensity as this is your warm-up!

• Air Squat

• Push up

• Burpees

Movement Practice

Watch the videos and take note of the various options for the movements. To manage fatigue, you will want to have “Plan B” movements that are your go-to if the fatigue is too great and slowing the repetitions is not enough to keep you moving for the entire minute.

Take 5-10 minutes to run through all the movements in sequence for 5-7 reps to find your options for the workout. Select options that are challenging but sustainable for the entire minute. You will use pacing of repetition speed and alternative movement options to control fatigue. The goal is to move smoothly from one movement to the next as each minute turns. You get a rest for 1 minute each round.

Workout

4 Rounds

• 1:00 Dumbbell or Barbell Thruster

  (Alternative: Tempo Air squat 2-2-1: down for 2, hold for 2, up for 1)

• 1:00 Plank hold (choose your variation)

• 1:00 Walking or stationary alternating lunge

• 1:00 Burpees (choose your variation)

• 1:00 rest

Score = total number of reps

Cool Down

In keeping with the theme of developing mental and physical resiliency, this cool-down focuses on flexibility while dialing down the nervous system for effective recovery. #dontskiptheyoga

20-minute yoga for flexibility