This template will be split into:
- Task Oriented Workouts (TAO) – These will always be done with exercises where external torque (ET) is needed. They are designed to hit the sympathetic nervous system, so you should go at them hard and with the proper mindset. No pacing here: I want 100% explosion on each rep. Put on System Of A Down or something similar, get angry and go kill ’em reps! Do not cheat yourself. If you go too light, the workout will be ineffective.
- Til You Quit Workouts (TYQ) – These will always be with internal torque (IT) exercises. They are designed to hit the parasympathetic nervous system, so I want muscle failure with each and every one of them. Pacing is welcomed, as long as you push to that last rep. I would recommend a more mellow music, as the mindset is quite different. You will push just as hard and it will hurt just as much as the TAO workouts, they will just be a different kind of effort.
- Overtraining – I believe that if you respect the order of TAO followed by TYQ, you will create a strong arch of tension within your nervous system that will allow you to increase the intensity without crashing mentally, which is what overtraining is. This way to approach workouts will change the way we train. We will train based on the affect on the nervous system more than just on the affect on muscles. You will be exhausted physically, but mentally sharp.
- Intensity Training – Any who have worked with the StrongFit templates or methodology before understand that this is the foundation. Intensity is best done in a group setting to truly push mental and physical boundaries. Beyond routine conditioning, true intensity work moves beyond the usual domains and aims to “scare” the system into rising to the next notch. This portion of the templates is not necessarily targeting the muscles, but mental fortitude and truly anaerobic threshold so don’t be let down if you can’t complete it every time. In fact, it’s designed that way. If by the end of these sessions you aren’t cursing the name of Julien, you may need to reconsider your efforts.
- Structural Work – This would be considered your accessory work and will be specifically used to ensure the structure is strong and balanced to handle both training and sport. You will use both traditional and unique exercises of StrongFit to rebuild your foundations and further grow from there.
- Mobility Exercises – Mobility work will be done through the StrongFit Openers and some additional assistance exercises.
- Static Lifts – Performed with “awkward objects” such as the sandbag, you will be prompted into more natural movement patterns that minimize risk of injury or even learning time. Barbells do not always mimic the most functional patterns due to the weight being on the outside of the body. In comparison, most of our day to day “lifting” has been done between our hands for our entire human existence. For that reason, you will use objects that will more naturally follow basic patterns of movement that will prove incredible benefits to CrossFit athletes.
- ‘Gym’ Work – These will be classic accessory exercises performed with traditional gym equipment that can be performed as a stand-alone session or in addition to another, but must be performed once or twice per week. These will be movements focused on internal rotation torque and may be followed in any order:
- Lat Pulldowns – Get a pump and feel those lats. Engage your pecs as hard as possible as you perform the rep. 2-3 sets of 10-12 reps.
- Cable Crossover – The eccentric is external torque and concentric is internal torque here. Do not do this exercise mindlessly. The point is to teach you to create tension correctly through the range of motion, which is the very definition of mobility itself. Being able to do this correctly will tremendously lessen the stress on your shoulders. 2-3 sets of 10-12 reps.
- Breathing – So as a rule: if you have issue on a movement (whether it is discomfort, trouble with the skill, lack of awareness & mobility) inhale through your nose on the phase that gives you trouble (eccentric or concentric). You can even inhale through the nose on both phases, making the entire movement one long nose inhale. Do not discard the importance of this, it has allowed our people to make huge improvement. The TAO wods are all action, all ET so inhale through your mouth and exhale short & forcefully.
- Openers – Mobility is range of motion while maintaining proper torque. The point here is to work on mobility, not flexibility therefore tension is paramount. This is not about performance, so do not focus on how many reps you can do, the weight or how far you can go. This is about quality and finding torque, nothing else. Be patient, you will get better over time. For reference, I worked the Shoulder Opener for two sets, three sessions per week for 12 weeks before I got good at it.
- Hinge: https://youtu.be/eL2RAFOa1CE
- Shoulder Opener: https://youtu.be/C6GcYZi7G7k
- Biceps Opener: https://youtu.be/MTmUnExmBXc
- Jeffersons: https://youtu.be/pJK7LGDCgK0
- External Obliques Opener: https://youtu.be/uihlk3ki78M
- External Obliques Opener Variation Leg Raises: https://youtu.be/7FqzZFzH-UU
- T-Spine Opener: https://youtu.be/lONjflzDsu8
AM vs. PM Training
Based on when you train, you may want to reorder the elements of each workout. Read on…
AM:
If you are training in the morning and you want to give your body a push for the day, finish with the last TAO portion (assistance work). This will trigger your sympathetic nervous system and give you more energy for the remainder of your day. I know it is hard to do more work after TYQ, but give it a shot and thank me later for winning the day and staying awake in your meetings.
So you will do e.g. Skill Work – TAO – TYQ – TAO.
PM:
If you are training in the afternoon/evening and you want to give your body a chance of having a good night’s sleep, finish with the TYQ portion. This will trigger your parasympathetic nervous system and mellow you out.
So you will do e.g. Skill Work – TAO – TYQ – TAO – TYQ.
As always – try it, test it, do it the other way around and see how your body reacts. Don’t blame me for falling asleep at work though if you finish with TYQ in the morning.
Maintaining tension in the arch concept
The concept of maintaining tension in movements is being able to switch between internal torque/IT, starting with the main arch being the core (external obliques, lower abs, etc.) and external torque/ET (starting with the main arch being the core internal obliques, six pack, etc.) as needed without form breaking. It requires changing to what is needed to successfully execute a movement. Your body just wants to make sure you survive, sometimes quite literally. So it won’t disengage one torque to work on the other. You will increase tension through both, with more focus on the most appropriate one, depending on the more dominating torque chain.
Take a look at the picture below. If you have ever tried to create an arch without using adhesive materials, you noticed that you have to apply equal pressure from both sides of the arch to hold the keystone in place. If pressure is applied unequally, the arch will collapse to one side or the other.
I recently witnessed this with a bunch of kids at the California Science Center using soft toy bricks and it was fascinating to see how they applied basic principles of engineering and physics to build the arch. By the way, in real life using real bricks/stones, you will need a supporting wood construction in the shape of an arch to hold the weight until the final stone (the keystone) is inserted, making the arch hold itself. Does that sound like a helping hand in order to build tension and torque? Welcome to coaching. We are the supporting wood construction that can, and at some point has to be, removed in order for the arch to hold itself.
Each session should not take more than 90mns, hopefully 75mns. Have all the equipment set up and the correct weights chosen already. Keep the rest times on target, and if you need more time, cut the number of sets down. Do not lengthen the workout. The point is to keep the intensity going, not to have marathon sessions. As you get used to the programming and fitter you will be able to do more sets but still keep the sessions short(ish).
More is not better, better is better!
DAY 1
Openers
See explanations above. You do not necessarily need all of the Openers each session. Work on your needs, choose 2 or 3 and go at them with maximum focus.
Skill Work
The Crab
Go 15m facing each way
Rest 1mn
The Crab w/ Push-ups
Go 15m facing each way (break in between)
Rest 1mn
The Rabbit
Go 15m
Rest 1mn
The Panther
Go 15m
Rest 1mn
The Cricket
Go 15m
Do it again 🙂
Wide-Grip Strict Pull-ups
2 sets of max reps. When/if you can get to 8 reps STRICT, start adding weight.
The point here is to find a width at which you cannot default to your traps and have to engage your latissimus dorsi to the max. The elbows are pointing toward the floor.
1-Arm Sloth Press
Work up to a max 3 reps.
This is also one of my favorites to work on lat mobility. The point here is to keep tension throughout the body. Do NOT relax at the bottom of the squat, stay around parallel with as much tension in the glutes, quads and hamstrings as possible. Pressing is internal torque, engage the lats and pecs as hard as possible and you can NOT shrug during this movement at any time. Shoulders should be down, lats and pecs engaged.
Here is a short demo: https://instagram.com/p/_
Stiff-leg Deadlift
This should be done with weights only AFTER you are efficient at hinging. If you are not, keep working on the Opener.
Once you know how to hinge, work your way up to some weight for a max reps for 60 sec for 2 sets with 2mn break in between. Keep the weight light, around 25% of your max deadlift. I am currently doing those with 60kgs and am sore for the next 2 days.
The key points are:
- Focus on internal torque at the hips
- Focus on the eccentric. The inside head of your hamstrings should be talking to you.This should be slow tempo down (around 3 sec)
- This isn’t about depth, this is about hingeing at the hips, so don’t stress about lack of depth. It will come with time
- Do not rest at the top, tension has to be maintained in the inner hamstring
- Do not count the reps, the only things that matter are form and the time spent under function
Farmer’s Walk
Work up to a max weight for 60m with a turn at the 30m line for 2 sets
It is a Load + a Carry + a Hold, making it very balanced. It teaches you internal torque by engaging your lats and pecs, it strengthens your grip as well as your traps while keeping your shoulders down. The pick-up is a hinge and will strengthen your lower back. Overall, this is one of the best structural exercise out there.
Let’s get after those sandbag front squats again!
AMRAP 5 minutes of: (As Many Reps As Possible)
- Sandbag Front squats 5 reps
- Sandbag Push-Presses 5 reps
Use a light sandbag (30kg or so) and do not put the bag down. Here is a link on how to clean a sandbag correctly and do the workout: https://youtu.be/Z74m0YgDx1U
Rest as needed
Cool-down (ish)
200m Sled Sprint DO NOT WALK- I don’t care how much it hurts
DAY 1
Openers
See explanations above. You do not necessarily need all of the Openers each session. Work on your needs, choose 2 or 3 and go at them with maximum focus.
Skill Work
Wide-Grip Strict Pull-ups
2 sets of max reps. When/if you can get to 8 reps STRICT, start adding weight
The point here is to find a width at which you cannot default to your traps and have to engage your latissimus dorsi to the max. The elbows are pointing toward the floor.
3 sets of:
Superset of
- Supinated Barbell Rows x 5 reps (choose the weight for 6 hard reps)
- Ab-wheel x12 reps (focus on the eccentric part
Rest 60sec in between sets and keep the form STRICT on both exercises
1-Arm Press
Work up to a max weight with a barbell for each arm
Focus on the lats and pecs throughout this movement. On the descent, you should feel yourself almost cramping through your lats and ribs. If you don’t, try harder. At the end of this movement, my lats feel like I just did lat pulldowns, and that’s the idea. This is a press on the way up, so create internal torque.
Here is a short tutorial video:
1-Arm Press seminar demo
https://instagram.com/p/
1-Arm Press Julien
https://instagram.com/p/
Sandbag Press
Work up to a max weight
The sandbag will make you engage the pecs and lats, keeping you in an internal torque throughout the press – that makes it as functional as it gets.
Video tutorial: https://youtu.be/izLUVd-zszw
Overhead Yoke or Sandbag Overhead Carry
Max weight for 20m for 2 sets
For this distance, I expect you to do at least your Snatch 1RM and the benchmark is your Clean & Jerk 1RM. This is another very important exercise. This one teaches you how to properly engage your lats in an overhead position. It will work the low traps (always very tricky), lat mobility, anti-rotation (great oblique work), erectors, etc. The yoke forces you to stabilize toward and away from you (frontal plane) and not up and down (sagittal plane). If the yoke at the gym is too heavy (or they do not have one) create a yoke by drilling holes on 4x4s and stick them on an Axle bar. Put some nails at the bottom of the wood to carry weights and voila – yoke! A sandbag works as well, albeit not as well. You can use a bar with chains (not bands), but be aware that the weights moving side to side make this very aggressive on the shoulders.
Rope Pulls
Max weight for 20m for 2 sets
These are a cornerstone of all my templates. It is the absolute best exercise to get strong lats and healthy shoulders. The main points are:
- Your main focus should be to move your hands as fast as possible.
- Chest faces the ground. Do NOT stand up, this would cause you to use your biceps more and your lats less.
- Try not to use your hips too much.
Sled Drags
Max weight for 20m, 2 sets with as much rest as you need
Think of this as strength training session, not conditioning. This will destroy your quads but work your glutes as well. The weight should be on the ball of your feet and move your way backwards with very short, fast, choppy steps. Put the absolute most weight you can on that sled, move your feet fast and get it moving. Focus on weight first!
Rest, then…
Harnessed Bear-Crawl Sprints
Max weight for 20m. 2 sets
Think of this as strength training session, not conditioning. This will finish up your glutes and hips. Most of the weight should be on your hands as you bear-crawl your way forward with very short, fast, choppy steps. Put the absolute most weight you can on that sled, move your feet fast and get it moving. Focus on weight first – absolutely murder yourself!
Here is a short demo video: https://instagram.com/p/6-
Rest 5 minutes
Sled sprints
max weight for 100m, 3 sets with as much rest as needed. Those should be done with maximum intensity.DO NOT PACE those.Start as fast as possible and try to make it to the finish line.You die you die
Feeling those glutes yet?
Cool-down(ish)
400m Sandbag Carry