Off-Season Recap
Congrats to the athletes who just finished up our abbreviated (due to HQ’s latest schedule update here) off-season program! We hope you performed well in this past week’s tests and are resting up before we head into our next training phase. As a quick recap, programming was structured to build foundational strength, baseline skills key to CrossFit competition, and aerobic capacity. We also provided a few opportunities a week to stay mentally and physically sharp with challenging metcons that we would consider dark place worthy.
In-Season Kickoff
December 23 marks the start of our in-season cycle, 12 weeks in length that takes us through the conclusion of the CrossFit Open. Our collective goal is to equip you as best we can in order to advance to the later rounds of the Games season. Athletes can anticipate a general upswing in volume, intensity, and classic CrossFit metcons as a result.
Structure
The training structure will breakdown as follows:
6 Weeks to Build
3 Weeks to Prime
3 Weeks to Compete
Our building phase will continue to level-up athlete strength, core skills, and aerobic capacity with some added metcon volume and intensity as we transition into competition mode.
Three weeks out from the Open, we’ll focus moreso on high intensity metcons and revisit past Open, Quarter, and Semi’s tests to get reacquainted with classic online competing. We’ll also practice the skill of preparing fields of play, cameras, recordings, etc.
For the three weeks of the CrossFit Open, you’ll be handed a playbook and programming to do your very best in each week’s test. More details to come as we approach.
Next Six Weeks
Mondays will focus on the Clean and Jerk. We’ll work the movements separately from a strength and technique building perspective before bringing them together as one lift. Metcons will have some barbell involved as well, typically skewing on the heavier side. Sessions will end with mono-structural conditioning.
Tuesdays will keep moving core skills forward including Muscle-Ups, Handstand Push-Ups, and related movements in order to prepare them for competition metcons later in the cycle. Aerobic capacity building (Zone 2) in combination with functional accessory closes out this day that we want athletes leaving feeling fresh and ready for a challenging Wednesday.
The middle of our week has something for everyone. Athletes have barbell cycling, deadlift positional strength building, and multiple opportunites to build muscle stamina on this day. Metcons will also be offered plus accessory that builds pulling and core strength.
Thursdays will continue to be an active recovery day with the ultimate goal is walking into Friday feeling strong, pain free, and ready to work.
Fridays will continue with our foundational strength building backsquat program. Snatching will pivot into speed ladders and practicing heavy lifts under increasingly small amounts of rest. Additionally, we’ll introduce some stamina building on chest to bar pull-ups or toes to bar to prepare ourselves for these inevitable Open movements come game time. Metcons will be on the lighter weighted side that forces athletes to move fast. Accessory will be core focused.
Saturday is our last working day of the week that will continue our handstand push-up progression, introduce some power snatch cycling work, and a longer, grindy metcon aligned to common time domains and movements seen in the Open. We’ll also perform some VO2 max work on machines that vary over the cycle.
On Sundays we ask athletes to stay out of the gym and take a full day of rest and recovery so that we feel ready for the upcoming week’s work.
Need help?
If you’re unsure about some of these pivots or need something the general online program isn’t offfering, please reach out and we’ll try to help.
Ready to Train?
Our results based competitor program rooted in what propelled multiple CrossFit Games athletes onto the podium is ready for you. 14-day free trial via the link below.
New!
For those not quite ready to take the full plunge, we have a bare-bones free program to checkout.
See you on the app,
Chris