Exercise Questions

What type of training do you guys do? Is it a lot like P90X?

CrossFit training includes three basic elements- gymnastics, weightlifting and monostructural exercises.

Gymnastics would be any time you’re moving your body through space. Your body is the load lifted. These would be basics from- push ups, pull ups, squats, sit ups, and burpees. We can even get more challenging by going for rope climbs, burpee pull ups or muscle ups on rings or bars.

Weightlifting would include movements with an external load. Typically involving a barbell or dumbbell. These movements would include- squat variations (back, front or overhead), press variations, deadlift, clean & jerk and snatch.

Monostructural events include running, rowing, biking (not done at CFW), or swimming (we don’t have a pool). These movements can be applied in various distances and mixed with the two other elements above.

The variation of these three domains of exercise in what makes our workout unique. At any time we’ll work on one, two or all three of these elements. We’re always striving to improve in all areas of fitness- short burst, heavy load, or moderate to long distance. By changing the stimulus (not quite muscle confusion) we keep the body progressing in areas of strength, power, stamina and endurance.

No, it’s not like P90X.

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The WOD (Workout Of the Day) only lasted 4 minutes. Is that all we’ll do?

All of our workouts are different. For a WOD that is short, we generally warm up really well and then hit it! Something like this would be a really intense day of training. A workout like Fran can leave you lying in a heap in only 2-10 minutes. 500m row efforts can hit hard and they only last 90 sec or so.

Along with a good warm up, post WOD mobility, stretching and cool down is important. At CFW, we have several items of prehab (fix it before it breaks) for you to use after your workout.

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What does ME stand for?

ME = Max Effort. Typically working to a 2 rep max for 5 sets but not limited to that. If 1RM PR is there take it, if not don’t. To perform the max effort method progress to heavy weights for 1 to 3 repetitions per set. The heavy load (near max weight) recruits the most motor units. The lifter will learn to fire these motor units in a more efficient way and improve motor coordination (your body’s “wiring” for using muscle). During max effort we are primarily training muscles rather than movement. I will clarify. The purpose of an agility ladder is training a movement. Heavy squat is for training muscles. (Synergy Athletics)

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What does DE stand for?

DE= Dynamic Effort Typically taking 50-70% of 1RM for that exercise and moving through exercise with maximal speed (controlled!). Usually 2-3 reps on 90sec – 30sec Dynamic effort lifts involve moving a submaximal weight with maximal speed. The percentage of your 1 RM used for dynamic effort workouts depend on how trained and experienced you are with the dynamic effort method. Example of a dynamic effort set: Bench Press 8 x 3. Lower the weight quickly to right above the chest, reverse directions and press it to lock out as fast as humanly possible. If the lifter’s 1Rm is 400 lbs example sets could be 185 x 3 sets, 200 x 3 sets, 225 x 2 sets. Increasing weight is not as important as increasing speed and rate of force development. (Synergy Athletics)

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I only workout at CFW 2-4 days a week. Should I do anything else? If so, what?

We believe that in order for you to get the most benefit to our training at CFW, you should definitely do supplemental workouts on your own. Monostructural elements like running or biking are what we generally recommend. You can pattern your workout based on your schedule and how you’re feeling after the CFW WODs. The easiest way to do this is stick to a diet of short intervals one day during the week (Tue or Wed) and longer runs on the weekend when you may have more time. For an example of interval training and longer weekend mileage, check out CrossFit Endurance. They post interval training for Tue/Thur and longer efforts for the weekend. Look for the “Endurance WOD” and pick one from the Single Sport (SS). I’d suggest cutting back on the intervals a bit at first- if they say do 6 400m efforts, cut it in half. Same goes for the weekend mileage- cut it in half or so based on your history and ability.