Hang Squat Clean 3-3-3-3-3
3 Rounds:
30 Ab Mat Sit Up
20 Alt Lunges with DB’s 45/30’s
400m Row
Rest 1 Min
I recently got a cancellation email from a member who stated that they needed to “change it up” for a while. This person is someone who has significant weight to lose, and was a member for well over a year. Although they may have lost some wieght, they certainly did not achieve the results they were looking for, and therefor are looking to find something else to try.
This got me thinking a bit about how this program works and why some people seem to come in here get amazing results, while others seem to get moderate results at best. We all know the real answer to this puzzling question comes down to diet. But truthfully, I have seen a few people get outstanding results without much attention to diet. So what makes the difference? I think I know. Intensity.
CrossFit as a fitness program is a relatively low volume exercise program. We do warmup and stretch and practice skills, but the actual workouts are short. We don’t ever exercise for hours at a time hoping to burn calories. This means, we have to learn to really push ourselves if we are going to experience the benefit. Going back to globo to do low intensity cardio is not the answer either. I watched the most deconditioned people in the gym ride cardio machines for years without losing a LB or ever going any faster than when they started, so we know “cardio” doesn’t work.
What I am saying is that you have to learn to dig deep inside yourself, and you have to push yourself to a level of misery that everything in your body tells you not to do. Your heart will pound out of your chest. You will feel like your drowning trying to gasp for more oxygen. Your muscles will burn, and your whole body will feel like your going to catch on fire at any moment. You have to learn to go as hard as you would if you were fighting for your life. The bottom line is that your goal has to become more important to you than your comfort level.
One key element in increasing your intensity is learning to scale your WODs correctly. If you try to lift too much on an exercise during conditioning, you will move slowly and intensity will fall. If you use a green band to do your pull ups during a WOD, that band is doing most of the work for you and your intensity will fall. If you try to do 50 or a 100 double unders at a time when you can only string together 3 or 4, you will spend a good deal of time standing around. Work your skills and strength hard before the WOD. During the WOD, scale to create the most intensity possible. Talk with the coaches daily about your abilities and how to scale your WOD for maximal intensity.
Next, you have to get out of your comfort zone. Far out of your comfort zone. Have you ever laid on the floor after your WOD and felt like you couldn’t catch your breath? Like the ceiling was coming down on you? Like you might see the light at the end of the tunnel? Do you know what it’s like to be feeling like that and have Alley walk up to you to give you a big lick on the mouth? If you have never felt that, then you can expect to see less results than those of us who end up in that position a few times a week. I know how many lights are on the gym ceiling, do you?
So what’s the difference between those who come in here and go through the motions without really pushing themselves, and those who lay on the floor gasping for air like fish out of water? Really it’s pretty straightforward. The people who push themselves are the ones who are determined to reach their goals.
