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.
- 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
1-Arm Barbell Press & Overhead Squat
1-arm press followed by an 1-arm overhead squat. (This constitutes 1 rep)
2 sets of max weight for 10 reps per hand
This is about form, so don’t worry about the weight too much. This is 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. As you lower the weight, engage your internal obliques and also feel it through your glute medius and latissimus dorsi. Pressing is internal torque, so on the way up you must engage your external obliques, the lats (teres major) 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.
TAO
Supinated Barbell Rows & Heavy Dips
EMOM 5 mns, 5 barbell rows and 5 dips. Both exercises on the minute.
Barbell Rows
Max weight for 5 reps – supinated grip
Make sure you use ET on this. That means biceps (long head), latissimus dorsi, NO TRAPS, and internal obliques and glute medius. You need to go heavy, if you can do 5 reps throughout the workout, the weight was too low. By the end you should only be able to do 3 reps correctly.
Straight into:
Dips – Max weight for 5 reps
This is a press, so normally internal torque, but I want you to use external torque to target the lateral head of the triceps. This will disengage your pec major to a degree, this is a trade-off to work on tricep strength.
Key points:
• Use bars not rings. The rings would require stabilization and thus the pec major. This is not what we are after here.
• Use weight around your waist and put the weight behind you, not in front. This will target the triceps even more (I got that one from the Chinese Oly lifters)
• External torque means strength. Go heavy.Not everyone can do this with weight and that’s ok.If that’s you just make sure you gage correctly so that you can do a max 5 reps strength exercise
• External torque means internal obliques and rectus abdominis. Use both on the way up.
• It is very important you go as heavy as possible, while maintaining good form. This is all ET so should be done as a strength training workout.
TYQ
Sandbag Lunges & Sandbag Presses & Sandbag Squats & Sandbag Carry
AMRAP 6mns – 50′ Sandbag Lunges, 5 Sandbag Presses, 5 Sandbag Squats, 50’ Sandbag Carry
Choose one sandbag that challenges you to do all 4 exercises.
Start with 50’ of SB Lunges. Then, press the sandbag 5 times. Perform 5 sandbag squats then finish the round by carrying the sandbag to the starting line. That’s 1 round. Repeat for 6mns
TYQ
Sandbag Press & Push Ups & Rope Pulls TYQ
2 sets to muscle failure
Sandbag Press
Press until muscle failure. That means on the last rep your elbows can’t fully lockout anymore. Push Press in the end if you have to. The point here is to keep tension throughout the body. As you lower the weight, engage your internal obliques and also feel it through your glute medius and latissimus dorsi. Pressing is internal torque, so on the way up you must engage your external obliques, the lats (teres major) 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. Find a challenging weight for 20+ reps.
Straight into:
Push Ups
Press until muscle failure. That means on the last rep your elbows can’t fully lockout anymore. The point here is to keep tension throughout the body. Pressing is internal torque, so on the way up you must engage your external obliques, the lats (teres major) 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. 1 set. Max Reps.
Straight into:
Rope Pull
The rope pull is for around 30m, but keep going if you can. Stop the set when your form breaks down to the point that you have to stand up and switch to external torque. The idea is intensity through muscle failure, so still pull as fast as possible. If you are not cramping everywhere after the second set, you either went too light or too slow. This exercise is VERY difficult, even for me, and I am really good at rope pulls. We want MAXIMUM blood flow into the lats – this is far more important than you know. 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. Here is a video demonstrating rope pulls: https://instagram.com/p/BQOh0bQA2ZA/
You should get a lovely pump…
TAO
Bicep Curls & Rear-Delt Raises TAO
EMOM 5mns of 5 reps for each exercise, both on the minute
Biceps Curl
The idea is to get the long head (outside head) of the biceps to do the work so create external torque. Your chest should not be engaged. You may use dumbbells, kettlebells or a barbell.
Rear Delt Raises
Use dumbbells, go heavy and create external torque through your whole body. That means using your lumbar spine, yes.
TYQ
400m Sandbag Carry into 200m Sled Sprint
On the carry, make sure you breathe through your nose. No mouth breathing allowed. If you feel yourself panicking a bit, take 3 breaths through the mouth and switch right back to nose breathing.
DAY 2
Openers
Always start with the External Oblique Opener
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
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
Pec & Shoulder Burner
2 Sets of: 2 min (:20 palms up raises, :10 Hercules hold)
With a supinated grip, perform front delt raises, squeezing and pushing through the chest. Do this for 20 seconds burnout. The 10 seconds “rest” is a hold (thumbs facing back).
Here is a link for demo: https://www.instagram.com/p/BYIcrw5gCc0/?taken-by=rarebarracuda
TYQ
Overhead Yoke Carry + Sandbag Over Yoke
3 rounds:
OH Carry the Yoke for 25m + 10 Sandbag over Yoke
Overhead Yoke Carry
As heavy as possible for 25m, but don’t stop just because you got to the finish line. If you can keep going with that weight, keep going. Obviously your pecs and triceps are tired so you might not be able to use the weight you normally use. That’s ok. This very important exercise teaches you how to properly engage your lats (teres major) in an overhead position. It will work the low traps (always very tricky), lat mobility, anti-rotation ( great external obliques 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.
I expect you to do at least your squat weight MINIMUM, although my benchmark is 150% of your back squat weight for 20m, so you should get around 125% for 30m at least. This is THE best structural exercise for the barbell squat and one of the best overall. It strengthens the T-Spine structure (think lats, pecs, etc…), the erectors (in an isometric way/in accord with their primary function) and obliques.
It is a Load + Carry + Load, making it very balanced. The “carry” part means you have to use both legs equally (to a degree) while working on anti-rotation on both sides – winning! It also means you are into internal torque chain.
Sandbag Over Yoke
This is ET work so go HEAVY. Put max power in it. This is not a curl, I want a power clean and a throw over the Yoke or Barbell. Here is a video of the clean & jerk with a sandbag so you can see how to perform the clean: https://youtu.be/izLUVd-zszw Get that triple-extension going. This is not an over-the-shoulder thing, this is an aggressive clean. Go as high as possible on every rep.
TAO
Sandbag Clean & Press
Find your 3RM Clean and Press
Sandbag Clean & Jerk tutorial: https://youtu.be/izLUVd-zszw
TAO & TYQ
Box Jump TAO & Sandbag Squats TYQ
3 rounds with 3 mns rest between rounds
5 Box Jumps + Max effort (ME) Sandbag Squats
Box Jump
The point here is to get to max power. Set up a box or use a flight of stairs for your max jump and try to hit it every single time. Don’t break your shins obviously so be smart. That task-oriented mindset is most important! If you just “jump” without challenging yourself this workout will miss the stimulus we are shooting for.
Directly into:
Sandbag Squats (goal is to use a body weight sandbag for 20+ reps)
What was your weight last week? Reps? If you did 20+ reps last week go heavier. Did 15 reps? Go for 15+ this week at the same weight! Go to failure (shoot for 20 reps but keep going if you can.) You will notice that on the way down, you load your inside hamstring a lot which is exactly what I want, along with engaging the external obliques. Keep that loading to come out of the hole as well. Once you reach past parallel, engage in external torque (ET), through the internal obliques. This movement should actually not require you to think about it, those patterns come naturally (showing you the effectiveness of the sandbag). You will also notice that, after a few weeks, your ankles collapse less and less on those as you find proper torque. Do not rest on top, load the VMOs and just keep going. If you take more than three breaths, you’re done.
TYQ
Harness Bear Crawl Sprints
3 Rds with 90sec rest between rounds
Harnessed Bear Crawl Sprint – Max weight for 25m
Think of this as strength training session, not conditioning. 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-kgGfi83Z/
Eventually, you should feel this in your glute major. Again, keep your steps short and fast and try to keep your hips low. This is not a quad exercise, it is a Gluteus Major annihilator.
TYQ
400m Sandbag Carry into 200m Sled Sprint
On the carry, make sure you breathe through your nose. No mouth breathing allowed. If you feel yourself panicking a bit, take 3 breaths through the mouth and switch right back to nose breathing.
DAY 3 – OPTIONAL
Openers
Always start with the External Oblique Opener
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
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
Stiff-leg Deadlift
2 sets of 60 seconds, 1 minute rest in between
You are shooting for a weight that allows you to go for at least 60 sec. 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. 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. Make sure you keep your external obliques engaged all the time. If you haven’t done the External Oblique Opener today, do it now. The goal is to keep them activated and not focus on a specific rep count.
TYQ
Overhead Yoke Carry TYQ
2 rounds:
Max distance Overhead Yoke Carry
Burpees: 1 minute for max reps
Rest as needed between rounds.
Overhead Yoke Carry
As heavy as possible for 25m, but don’t stop just because you got to the finish line. If you can keep going with that weight, keep going. Obviously your pecs and triceps are tired so you might not be able to use the weight you normally use. That’s ok. This very important exercise teaches you how to properly engage your lats (teres major) in an overhead position. It will work the low traps (always very tricky), lat mobility, anti-rotation ( great external obliques 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.
I expect you to do at least your squat weight MINIMUM, although my benchmark is 150% of your back squat weight for 20m, so you should get around 125% for 30m at least. This is THE best structural exercise for the barbell squat and one of the best overall. It strengthens the T-Spine structure (think lats, pecs, etc…), the erectors (in an isometric way/in accord with their primary function) and obliques.
It is a Load + Carry + Load, making it very balanced. The “carry” part means you have to use both legs equally (to a degree) while working on anti-rotation on both sides – winning! It also means you are into internal torque chain.
TAO
Side Delt Raises & Supinated Strict Pull-ups TAO
EMOM 6mns. 5 reps of each exercise on the minute.
Side Delt Raises – Max weight for 5 reps with two heavy dumbbells.
Key points are:
You are to create External torque – internal obliques, rectus abdominus (Sixpack)
Standing tall with torso upright
External obliques (T-Spine NOT lumbar spine “rounded”) on the way down
Internal obliques (T-Spine NOT lumbar spine “arched”) on the way up
Wide-grip Strict Supinated Pull-ups
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 (NOT your teres major, that is coming next), to do that engage your internal obliques first. The elbows are pointing toward the floor. Once you can go over 6 reps, start adding weight. If you cannot make your chest touch the bar, it’s ok. Do not use momentum. You need lat and biceps mobility to achieve the position and by that I mean, as always, range of motion while maintaining proper torque. DO NOT SHRUG.