Back to the gym!

[EvilYoda]

So, I haven't been on AT very much recently as I've been traveling nonstop since the start of December. Along the way, I was able to get in some hotel gym workouts and a few WODs at local CF boxes...but overall, I was realistic and didn't worry too much about my fitness. I don't have a car at home in Michigan so there's another reason.

Anyway, I'll be heading back to Phoenix on Wednesday and here's what I have in mind and what I need help with:

To get back to where I used to be (and then some), I want to start a hybrid strength and CF WOD routine (kind of like what Brikis does/used to do...just not as beastly). I want my schedule to be M, Tu, W, Th (off), F, Sat, Sun (off). My CF box isn't open on Sundays, so I can't stick to a 3 on, 1 off routine, but I don't mind.

I'm thinking that Monday, Wednesday, and Friday will start with a SS-type workout at 3PM (open gym time), rest for an hour, group WOD at 5PM. Tuesday is just a normal WOD. Saturday, there are 8:30AM and 10:30AM classes - I'm hoping to go around 9:30, do an hour of o-lifting work (I'll probably practice it throughout the week as well), and then the typically light Saturday WOD.

So, I'm looking for suggestions, comments, etc. My main concern is that I'm biting off more than I can chew. It seems like a lot of work, so maybe somebody else can suggest a better hybrid program. I really want to emphasize how much I want to increase my strength. That said, I'm uninsured, so overtraining is a definite concern of mine as I can't afford to get stupid and hurt myself.

If you're wondering how I can "afford" to spend so much time in the gym - I'm unemployed right now so I figure, why not spend some extra time in the gym, get back into shape and then start working on improving. I'm 165lb right now, but I've certainly put on some fat and lost muscle in the last 3 months. Within a few months, I'd like to be back under 10% BF but up to 170-175.

Long post, I know...if you made it through, LMK what you think.

 

[MJinZ]

I'm far too over the gym routine to take it much more seriously. I go to keep my weight down and strength up and that's about it. I find Tues and Thurs with either Saturday or Sunday to be perfect for rest and ease. As long as I can maintain a 225 bench, 10-15 pull ups, and around 300 on my squats I'm done lol.

Some ellipticals for the heart.

 

[brikis98]

Warning, long reply ahead

I'm thinking that Monday, Wednesday, and Friday will start with a SS-type workout at 3PM (open gym time), rest for an hour, group WOD at 5PM. Tuesday is just a normal WOD. Saturday, there are 8:30AM and 10:30AM classes - I'm hoping to go around 9:30, do an hour of o-lifting work (I'll probably practice it throughout the week as well), and then the typically light Saturday WOD.

Be more specific. What will the SS-type workout involve? What will the o-lifting workout look like? How long are metcons are you doing with the classes? It is certainly fun to design your own routine, but before you jump into that, it is worth considering the hybrid routines that already exist (not all of these are strength biased, btw):

Crossfit Strength Bias
Crossfit Football
Gant Grimes' Hybrid
Crossfit Endurance
Crossfit Wichita Falls Hybrid
SealFit
Max Effort Black Box (MEBB)

The biggest difficulty with hybrid routines is the delicate balance between doing enough to create the desired training stimulus (in both the your metcon abilities and whatever "bias" you are working on) vs. doing more than you can recover from. For example, a single SS-style workout (3-4 barbell exercises, 3-5 sets, 3-5 reps) can be very taxing on the body. Trying to do a metcon right after it is typically a bad idea: you'll be too weakened to hit the metcon 100% and your CNS and muscles will be totally destroyed. This means you don't get the training effect you want nor will you be able to recover from such volume long term. This is why the routines I linked above either intentionally limit the volume (ie, 1 barbell exercise + a short metcon per day) or split up the aerobic and anaerobic work entirely (3+ hours or separate days). I prefer the former approach (a short strength session followed by a short metcon), but it is largely dependent on your personal preferences, goals and schedule.

I would recommend grabbing one of the above routines and customizing it to your needs. For example, if you wanted to get better at the squat, deadlift, snatch and clean, you could use those as the 4 strength exercises you do in CFSB. This is more or less what I did for my own Hybrid routine, which I did for most of 2009 and saw pretty substantial gains across the board. The only place the routine was lacking was in monostructural cardio - namely, running. I'm naturally a terrible runner and I just didn't include enough of it in my hybrid routine, so my times did not improve. Part of this was me ignoring CFSB's suggestion of one purely metcon day - where I could've done some much needed longer runs - and as you can see, I paid the price. I'm now trying to rectify that by alternating days of my hybrid routine with days of CFE aerobic workouts.

That said, I'm uninsured, so overtraining is a definite concern of mine as I can't afford to get stupid and hurt myself.

If you overtrain, the most likely result is that you'll start to see crappy performance, be sore & tired all the time, get sick, etc. The solution doesn't require a doctor: you just need to take time off from exercise and let your body recover. Having said that, from personal experience, I would not recommend going without health insurance too long. When I hit myself in the chin doing split jerks (btw, writing these words still makes me chuckle), I didn't have insurance, and the stitches I got were not cheap. However, I realized something even worse: if I had gotten in a car crash or had some other more serious accident, the cost could have been FAR worse. Surgery, hospital stays and the like are the kind of thing that can bankrupt you in an instant. If you can afford it at all, at the minimum get the cheapest insurance you can find. I remember looking it up in MA and there were options for under $150 per month. The benefits were crappy (huge copays, deductibles, no prescription coverage, etc), but the key was that the worst case scenarios were covered. If you can afford a CF gym membership, you can probably afford that, and IMO, it is worth the peace of mind.

 

[EvilYoda]

Well, I wrote it intentionally vague as I don't know what type of strength-based program I'd want to do. The owner and head trainer at my box is great and he'd probably help me dial in the exact details. I've taken a look at CFSB and CF Football, CFE (did a few CFE workouts before I left in December)...I might use one of them, but not immediately. I think I'll just do a basic barbell program for the first month just to get myself back into the swing of things.

Glad to see what your response was, Brikis, as you have the experience that most closely speaks to what I want to do. I'll see what the trainer suggests and...go from there!

Warning, long reply ahead

Be more specific. What will the SS-type workout involve? What will the o-lifting workout look like? How long are metcons are you doing with the classes? It is certainly fun to design your own routine, but before you jump into that, it is worth considering the hybrid routines that already exist (not all of these are strength biased, btw):

Crossfit Strength Bias
Crossfit Football
Gant Grimes' Hybrid
Crossfit Endurance
Crossfit Wichita Falls Hybrid
SealFit
Max Effort Black Box (MEBB)

The biggest difficulty with hybrid routines is the delicate balance between doing enough to create the desired training stimulus (in both the your metcon abilities and whatever "bias" you are working on) vs. doing more than you can recover from. For example, a single SS-style workout (3-4 barbell exercises, 3-5 sets, 3-5 reps) can be very taxing on the body. Trying to do a metcon right after it is typically a bad idea: you'll be too weakened to hit the metcon 100% and your CNS and muscles will be totally destroyed. This means you don't get the training effect you want nor will you be able to recover from such volume long term. This is why the routines I linked above either intentionally limit the volume (ie, 1 barbell exercise + a short metcon per day) or split up the aerobic and anaerobic work entirely (3+ hours or separate days). I prefer the former approach (a short strength session followed by a short metcon), but it is largely dependent on your personal preferences, goals and schedule.

I would recommend grabbing one of the above routines and customizing it to your needs. For example, if you wanted to get better at the squat, deadlift, snatch and clean, you could use those as the 4 strength exercises you do in CFSB. This is more or less what I did for my own Hybrid routine, which I did for most of 2009 and saw pretty substantial gains across the board. The only place the routine was lacking was in monostructural cardio - namely, running. I'm naturally a terrible runner and I just didn't include enough of it in my hybrid routine, so my times did not improve. Part of this was me ignoring CFSB's suggestion of one purely metcon day - where I could've done some much needed longer runs - and as you can see, I paid the price. I'm now trying to rectify that by alternating days of my hybrid routine with days of CFE aerobic workouts.


If you overtrain, the most likely result is that you'll start to see crappy performance, be sore & tired all the time, get sick, etc. The solution doesn't require a doctor: you just need to take time off from exercise and let your body recover. Having said that, from personal experience, I would not recommend going without health insurance too long. When I hit myself in the chin doing split jerks (btw, writing these words still makes me chuckle), I didn't have insurance, and the stitches I got were not cheap. However, I realized something even worse: if I had gotten in a car crash or had some other more serious accident, the cost could have been FAR worse. Surgery, hospital stays and the like are the kind of thing that can bankrupt you in an instant. If you can afford it at all, at the minimum get the cheapest insurance you can find. I remember looking it up in MA and there were options for under $150 per month. The benefits were crappy (huge copays, deductibles, no prescription coverage, etc), but the key was that the worst case scenarios were covered. If you can afford a CF gym membership, you can probably afford that, and IMO, it is worth the peace of mind.

 

[EvilYoda]

Doh...the CF Strength Bias reminded me that my CFJ sub is expired. Doh. I've read that PDF before...but I should review it again, in light of my current situation.

 

[Koing]

If a Gymnastics club is local I recommend joining that for a mix up

Koing

 

[EvilYoda]

If a Gymnastics club is local I recommend joining that for a mix up

Koing

I've looked and unless I've missed one, all of the gymnastics places around me are purely for children. Not a single beginners adult program.