Hello Again!
First of all, I want to say thank you to all of you for your effort and patience as we work out the kinks! I have been beyond impressed with each of you during the last six weeks as you have shown up and shown out. Seeing so many new PRs at the end of the squat cycle was immensely satisfying as a coach, and that speaks to the hard work you all put in and the commitment you’ve shown.
However, the end of that six weeks means it’s time to mix things up a little. The CrossFit Open is looming large, so let’s get prepared! You’ll notice some change in how we approach the week, but I wanted to touch on some mainstays for the coming cycle.
The Strength work for the coming weeks will focus on Deadlifts. There is, however, a little tweak to a traditional deadlift cycle. We are not going to spend our time trying to hit an all time max but will instead focus on the quality, speed, and efficiency of our movement. You’ll notice deadlifts will be programmed as clusters and AMRAPs, allowing athletes to move the bar with speed and precision. This should carry over into the open, building your confidence with moderately loaded bars in a fatigued setting. I have the utmost confidence this will lead to stronger pulls in the future, as well.
We will be pairing our strength work with Power Output Intervals. The focus on these will be hard sprint repeats, allowing just enough time to recover before getting after your next round. Expect to see barbells, plyometrics, and sprint machine work pop up often!
One day of the week will focus on building Shoulder Endurance, encouraging athletes to hang on despite local muscle fatigue. You will see barbells, dumbbells, gymnastics, and body weight elements used to accomplish this goal.
Expect to see Longer, Mixed-Modality workouts pop up in the middle of the week. These will be about pacing. One day of the week will focus on keeping the intensity relatively high, challenging athletes to create a plan and execute. Another day will be about refining our movement speed and quality while getting touches on movements we are likely to experience during the CrossFit Open. The second type of workout will often be of a slightly lesser intensity.
Finally, for Fridays, athletes will be diving into tough, Open-Style Workouts. It is important to get acclimated to the intensity and structure of the open, so that when these workouts inevitably crop up, we know how to get after it!
To cap out the week, Partner Workouts are here to stay. This will be a chance to get touches on movements that were neglected during the week, making sure we all stay primed and prepped.
Looking forward to the coming weeks! As always, the coaches and staff at CFI are truly grateful to have your trust and confidence!
We are truly in it now,
WT and the CFI Staff
