Build to your working weight!

I took this picture because Sheldon grabbed an assortment of Kettlebels on his own to warm up with prior to his workout. Look at that posture as he was putting the bell down too! Looking good Sheldon. Coach is proud of you! 

Every workout we do requires prep before we hit the movements at intensity. If I say we are are doing Deadlifts @225lbs and Pull-ups for 21-15-9 reps you aren't going to go load up your bar and wait for me to start the timer.

Every class you will come in and do a warm up which includes getting your heart rate up, waking up that central nervous system and getting some range of motion into those joints to get that body moving in ways that it didn't move during the day. Everyone does this together. Its a great way to break the ice and get physically and mentally prepared for the workout.

Once you decide which workout you will be doing (Fitness or CrossFit) we demonstrate the movements and variations required for the workouts and then you build.

When building for the workout I always recommend starting with a lighter weight and grooving those movement patterns. Now not everyone will be doing an RX'd workout (prescribed weight) but that doesn't mean that you still shouldn't build.

If the workout was Deadlifts and Pull Ups I would recommend getting your bar, getting in some deadlifts then doing some pull ups. Since the rep scheme is 21-15-9 I don't want you doing 21 deadlifts and 21 pull ups to start off with in your warm up. Today I had suggested the following as a build

1. Up to eight reps with the DL and 5 for the pull ups (strict).
2. Add more weight to the bar and do another 6 reps then go back to the rig and do 5-8 kipping drills and pull ups.
3. Add more weight to the bar and do another 5-6 Deadlifts then more kipping or butterfly pull ups if those are the style of pull ups you chose.
4. Get to your working weight and do another set of 5 DL's and 5 pull ups of your chosen style for the workout.

By this time you should have broken a bit of a sweat (ontop of what you did in the warm up), have that mind and body ready for the workout and should be firing on all cylinders. This is also a great way to figure out what kind of weight you will be working with for the workout. I have seen it before where people grab a weight and don't take the time to build then 2 minutes into a workout they are taking weight off the bar or switching the weight out.

The same goes for a workout that might have 5-8 different exercises. Make sure you hit all the movements and know the weight you are going to use and where you will perform all the movements before the timer starts. Being unprepared in a workout or in life is a great way to have a bad experience.

Move well, build smart, execute perfection.

Paul Dyck