Sometimes, we all have to take time off. Sometimes there is just no way around it.

This applies as well to our CrassFit initiative. Due to the circumstances, we took two weeks off before starting again. Dominik proposed the following workout already two weeks ago, so I was longing to finally do it – together with Peter, who accompanied me.

For this workout, we changed locations. The Freinberg park is great to train in summer, but as it gets dark it is hard to do the work there, as you are confronted with absolute darkness. Our new location is a playground on the Donaulände, next to the Urfahrmarkt-Gelände. Darkness is no problem here – the lights of the city provide light enough to see what one has to see.

Pre-Fatigue

After our last kettlebell-workouts, we put the focus on increasing pressing power for the overhead press. One of the best exercises to achieve this is the Sots press – an overhead press from the bottom squat position. While this sounds not much different to a regular press, it is a magnitude more difficult.

We did the following:

3 rounds of

• 1-2-3 repetition ladder of clean, squat + sots press with 16 kg kettlebell (left + right)
• 10 marine dips (on the Jungle Gym)

I struggled a lot with both Sots press and dips, due to my time off (I was sick once during the last two weeks) – more than two presses were impossible to do and I did no more than one dip – the others were excentrical only. I supplemented the set with push-ups to make up for the missed dips.

The Sots press is a lot about technique, I had to learn. One time they worked well, another time I struggled with even one repetition. It all is a matter of experience, I am convinced.

Metabolic Conditioning

4 rounds of
Sprint (approx. 100 meters)
10 + 10 Snatches 16 kg kettlebell
5 Burpees
6 Towel Pull-Ups

The met-con was especially hard to do after an already intense pre-fatigue workout. Doing snatches after sprinting are a delicate matter: You have to watch your technique tightly or you lose your form – and risk injuries. Towel pull-ups are a killer finisher – the grip is already exhausted and yet you have to pull your body up. Here is where you can go beyond your own limits.

A finisher was not necessary after this workout – we already had enough.

On to another great workout next week – I am still feeling it, although it’s Saturday already.

Train on and stay strong
Simon

Good evening and welcome to the world of chill!

Our climate has opted to skip autumn and flowed from late summer directly into pre-winter conditions. But cold conditions are not enough to stop us from working out (we even did a training camp at Dominik‘s premises last winter amid a snow storm – no problem at all!). The advantage of working out in the cold is that the temperature itself is little of a problem, as your body is challenged constantly and thereby warmed from within.

Nontheless, it is of great importance that you keep your workouts short in the cold season – especially the rest pause between sets and exercise blocks should be minimized as you cool out almost immediately and thereby are likely to catch a cold. Opt for a workout that is of short duration but of high intensity.

For this workout, I did likewise. The core of the workout is a system that I read about on Testosterone Muscle, authored by (who else ) Dan John: The Litvinov Workout. Hammer thrower gold medalist Sergey Litvinov has a very distinct training pattern: He combines heavy basic exercises with sprint intervals. This type of workout is very short yet extremely intense and therefore more than suited for our timely needs.

We therefore did:

Warm-Up

Pre-Fatigue

5 + 5 Push Press 24 kg Kettlebell
3 x Rope Climb
- 3 rounds

5 + 5 (or 3 + 3) Turkish Get-Up 16 kg Kettlebell as finisher.

The pre-fatigue training targeted the upper body musculature, as it would not be challenged too much in the upcoming Litvinov circuit. We did a pushing exercise, a pulling exercise and (to my knowledge) the best abdominal exercise – the get-up. Needless to say that this part of the workout was very intense already – just try to read it from Peter’s mimics. The foremost problem with the exercises was the lack of grip strength we were able to show – if you have no feeling whatsoever in your hands, climbing is an utter struggle.

Peter was the only one attending (besides me) this time. Dominik and Rainer didn’t make it and Harald will be in Graz for studying for quite some more time.

Metabolic Conditioning

Litvinov Circuit
Front Squat (16 + 24 kg Kettlebell), 8-15 reps
400 meter sprint (including a hill sprint)
3 rounds

The Litvinov circuit is not to be underestimated! I tried to do the number of squats prescribed but utterly failed by doing 6-5-3 squats in the respective rounds – it simply was impossible to accomplish more than that, despite slow running on my side. Not only fatigue is a factor in metabolic conditioning training, nausea is another critical one. The degree by which I was feeling nauseous during the second sprint already was close to the edge of being bearable. Still, this is what gets you further and nothing else

Post-Fatigue

Kettlebell Complex of

• Clean
• Military Press
• Front Squat

5 repetitions, 3 rounds, using one 16 kg kettlebell

The post-fatigue training was incorporated as the Litvinov circuit is intense but still we somehow felt like it was not enough – the capability of the body to come back is tremendous. Three rounds of this light-weight complex was a good finisher to use up the last reserves

Ironic: After the completion of our workout, the feeling in our hands had returned. We were able to perform better rope climbs after the workout than at its start.

I am very much looking forward to the next workout. Dominik has revealed a hard nut to crack as the next workout suggestion

Train on and stay strong,
Simon

Yesterday we assembled once more for a heavy CrassFit workout – with one thing to surprise us positively – Dominik found the time to join us again. He is a great motivator and I really feel that he is the true core of our group – the workouts overflow with intensity and motivation whenever he joins us.

After I wrote about the least crass of CrassFit, as Peter put it, I knew that it would become harder this time – but little did I know about how hard it really became.

We did the following workout:

Pre-Fatigue

Three rounds of

Ladder one up to four repetitions of the following complex

• Swing
• High Pull
• Clean
• Military Press or Push Press
• Squat

using either the 16 kg or the 24 kg kettlebell.

Paired with rope pull-ups for the same repetitions.

Metabolic Conditioning

3 rounds of
Hill Sprint
10 Burpees
Jog to start of hill

[---]

Initially, we planned for five rounds of the metabolic conditioning but cut it down to three, due to the sheer fatigue we experienced after the strength part, which really was the main part of our workout.

I brought a 24 kg competition kettlebell with me – a weight most of us weren’t used to. As for me, I have never (push) pressed it more than three times – only Dominik is used more than this. We struggled in our fight against gravity – and prevailed. Rainer used the 16 kg kettlebell and did a great job – it is high time he purchases his first one for private use

Handling a weight you have never handled before is a tremendous challenge that forces your body to progress in strength. We got together in pairs and paused in the time our partner did the kettlebell complex – a pause that we were in dire need of. As I neared the last repetitions, a stiff feeling in my forearms was the most urgent problem apart from the fatigue in my legs – especially when you do push presses, your legs are working all the time.

We talked a lot about the transfer from kettlebell training to other feats of strength and share the experience that kettlebells are a tremendous help to become a monster in regards of strength, velocity and full body stability. Just focus on the basic movements (swings, (deadlift) high pull, clean, press, snatch and squat – supplemented with the get-up) and master them.

After the strength workout, I had a hard time finishing the metabolic conditioning work. Already after round 1 I was barely able to jog my way down to the foot of the hill. If I have ever been close to vomiting during a workout, it was yesterday – a degree of intensity I have never experienced so far.

This is, what gets you further. Incorporate as much intensity into your workouts as you can possibly sustain and grow stronger than you have ever been!

Train on and stay strong!
Simon

Yesterday we went for another great CrassFit workout. After a short break of one week without workout (attendees were either sick or had no time – I wouldn’t go for it all alone, did kettlebell complexes instead ) we got into gears just fine.

Unfortunately, Harald and Dominik were absent, for good reasons: Harald is back to Graz and Dominik occupied with heavy manual labor – so it was only Rainer, me and Peter.

We did the following workout:

Pre-Fatigue

5 x 5 Frog Jumps uphill
5 + 5 Turkish Get-Up (with water bottle or 16 kg kettlebell, according to level of expertise)
5 x 2 Lengths rope climbing

For the frog jumps, it is especially important to gain momentum with the right arm work. Look at how Peter is doing the jumps and what impressive horizontal leaps he can take. This is due to long training (he is an active track & field athlete). Lead the arms from down below up and forward and time the movement of the hands with the movement of the feet to achieve maximum leaps.

The Turkish get-up is one of the best exercises to train your abdominal strength but also one of the most dangerous. I highly recommend that you start training it using no weight at all. Start to add resistance only when you have learned the technique! It is important that the shoulder is resting in its socket and the arms are straightened toward the sky – and the look is always facing the hand reaching out of the clouds.

Start slowly and always part the movement into steps. Watch Peter’s form – he is doing great!

Finally, the rope climbing was the first exercise I couldn’t film due to the darkness – I will make sure that I take a good source of light with me in future to enable video capture also amid night hours.

Metabolic Conditioning

5 rounds of:
5 L-pull-ups (easier variation: tucked in knees)
16 Lunge walks
10 L-push-ups
200 meter running

The darkness and other circumstances prevented us from documenting this one. To explain the L-pull-up and the L-push-up, I will provide videos.

The L-pull-up works abdominals as well as the back and arms – it is a lot harder than a regular pull-up. Tucked in knees are the easier version that I used, due to the inability to perform an exercise this hard.

Watch this video at 3:00. Here you see a variation of a push-up with legs up the wall. This is how the starting position of a L-push-up looks like – from there on, it is like a handstand push-up: Descend like you are to ram your head into the ground and push yourself up again. Any wall or elevated platform is fine for doing this – just keep in mind to have a right angle between legs and torso.

We shortened the run a bit due to the circumstances and used it for regeneration issues. In total, this was the easiest workout of the CrassFit series up to date and will be remembered as such. The preparation was suboptimal and will be augmented next time.

I am looking forward to next week’s workout. It will be a major test for metabolic and muscular endurance, I guarantee Hopefully, with good lighting assistance to be able to capture it properly.

Train on and stay strong,
Simon

Good morning, fellow readers!

Yesterday we did another CrassFit training session with the following program:

Pre-Fatigue

Focus: Strength + Jump Power

2 rounds of
10 knee tuck jumps
10 whole body jumps (explosive push-ups with the whole body up in the air)
5 explosive pull-ups
5 squat-clean + press (2 x 16 kg kettlebell)

During the pre-fatigue part of the workout we started to realize that it would become a harder workout than we thought Our metabolism was truly fired up by these two rounds – the explosive form of these exercises make them really hard on the body. As a rule of thumb, the metabolic stress is determined by the vertical leap of the movement and its resistance. Squat cleans (with presses) totally destroy the metabolism and if you continue with knee tuck jumps, you are sure to shoot your pulse frequency up into new all-time heights.

Metabolic Conditioning

Focus: Timed Workload (Minute Drills)

60” of

• Split jumps
• Clap Pushups
• Rope pull-ups
• Burpees

with approx. 20” rest between exercises

approx. 2′ rest

75” of

• Jump squats
• Push-ups
• Pull-ups
• Kettlebell swings 16 kg

with approx. 20” rest between exercises

approx. 2′ rest

90” of

• Squats
• Puppy push-ups
• Body rows
• Mountain climbers

With the metabolic conditioning, Peter (who designed the workout) was not 100% correct about the nature of the workout. All of the attendees experienced muscular failure before systemic failure (which is the intention of metabolic conditioning). But not too much of a problem – we did what we could. Initially, we planned the three blocks as 60”, 90” and 120” time under tension blocks but opted to reduce the load as we experienced enormous fatigue after the first block already.

Harald told me between the blocks, that time is relative, after complaining about my level of fatigue. And how relative it is These were amongst the longest seconds I have ever experienced.

Post-Fatigue

Focus: Static Holds

60” static hold of

• Body row (arms 90° flexed)
• Wall sit (30” 45°, 30” 90° leg flex)
• Push up (variable positions)

The static work was the crowning of a tremendously intense workout. The sheer intensity and density of the workouts is the reason that we were unable to do filming this time – so there is no video documentation, I am afraid Apart from the workout intensity, it gets dark earlier and earlier these days so we have to put up with training in darkness in future, I guess. At the time we finished this one (20:00), darkness was embracing us already.

Darkness will not stop us, for sure. The next workout session is scheduled for next Tuesday, 22nd of September 2009. This time, it’s Dominik‘s turn to design the workout. He already told us that he will take a barbell with him. What diabolic intentions he has on his mind? Stop by here in one week’s time to find out

Train on and stay strong,
Simon

Odd objects in movement – this was the slogan of our latest CrassFit workout. Our comrade Harald supplied us with tremendous tools to train in classical strongmen-fashion:

Water tubes filled with cement (25 kg each)

A gym ball filled with water (circa 42 kg)

The biggest advantage of these training utilities is their price. Harald calculated the tubes for us. Buying the PVC tubes, the metal grip and the cement (50-50 with water), he invested around 15 Euro for both of them. The waterbag is even cheaper – depending on how much money you spend on the gym ball you may well afford it for a few Euros.

After a warm-up session consisting of numerous coordinative exercises (ducked backward lunges for instance – a hard challenge for the CNS), we split up in groups of 3 and 2 persons. One group started with workout A, the other with workout B.

Workout A

3 rounds of
Farmer’s walk with 2 Tubes, 100 m (2 x 50)
Sprint, 200 m (4 x 50)

Workout B

5 rounds of
Waterbag shouldering 5 each side (NOVICE: 5 waterbag lifts, bearhug)
Pull-Up x 5
Kettlebell military press 5 each side (16 kg kettlebell)

Workout A was short, sweet and hard. The tough part was the waterbag lifting in workout B. If you haven’t had the chance to lift a waterbag yet, I highly anticipate trying it. Without a center of gravity, the whole body has work the stability constantly in order to balance out the water masses and their force of gravity. Explosive lifting and absolute control are key factors of this exercise –pull-ups and military presses are like rest, in comparison.

As a ‘finisher’, we tried out overhead presses with the cement tubes. It was beyond my capabilities but well within Dominik’s abilities – hats off to my strong comrade!

In conclusion, this workout was a highlight for our CrassFit course. It was inspiring and motivating and we look forward to more workouts with even more attendees – with five of them we set a new temporary record at this stage.

More to come next week – training is scheduled for next Tuesday 18:30, Freinberg park.

Train on and stay strong,
Simon

P.S.: Dominik delivered my new kettlebells alongside yesterday’s training. I will put them to good use

A novity introduces the coverage of this week’s CrassFit workout – a video introduction. Kudos to Dominik for filming the introduction.

This week’s workout was suggested by Dominik and inspired by strength coach legend Dan John. We did:

Pre-Fatigue

3 rounds of
Double Kettlebell Complex (2 x 16 kg): Clean, Push Press, Front Squat, 5 repetitions
2 repetitions rope climbing

Metabolic Conditioning

5 rounds of
15 Overhead squat with wooden pole
200 meter run

The workout was short and strenuous – I still feel it two days afterwards. The overhead squats are amongst the best exercises to train the whole body in union. Use a wide grip on the pole and try to do this workout – it looks easier than it is. The hardest part is to sustain form even in a state of fatigue. This workout is not aimed at muscular but at systemic failure. If you are short in cardiovascular endurance, take breaks to assure proper form. Remember that even if your weight is a wooden pole only; act as if it was heavier. If you tend to use bad form with a heavy weight, overhead squats cannot be performed. They are an exercise that requires absolute correctness in form.

Enjoy this workout and post your thoughts and experiences in comments!

Train on and stay strong
Simon

This evening, another instalment of CrassFit took place in the park behind Jägermayrhof, Linz, Austria. Dominik was absent (building one’s house is tough work ) and Peter, as reported, is in Canada. Today, I had a new training mate who I already knew from Dominik’s seminars – Harald.

We set out for the following workout

Power Circuit

5 to the power of three – 5³. 5 exercises, 5 reps, 5 rounds.

5 rounds of:

5 Pull-Ups

5 Forward Lunges (2 x 16 kg kettlebell)

5 Skin-The-Cat

5 Front Squat (2 x 16 kg kettlebell)

5 Ring Dips

Metabolic Conditioning

30 to the power of three – 30³. 3 exercises, 30 reps each.

30 body rows (on rings) – 200 meter sprint (we used 4 x 50m)

30 kettlebell swings (16 kg) – 200 meter sprint

30 burpees – 200 meter sprint

I’ll admit it: We shortened the power circuit to four rounds, due to fatigue. Otherwise, the metabolic conditioning would not have been possible – I reached my limit. This workout really challenged us to get the best out of us – after 40 minutes of hard work, the battle was over and out – time to go home.

Good night and have fun working out – post experiences in comments.

Due to the heat of the day, we postponed our CrassFit workout today from the scheduled start of 6 PM to 7:30 PM, which turned out to be a great idea – otherwise, the heat of the summer day would have melted us away!

This time, we settled for a more ‘humane’ workout than last time. Dominik couldn’t attend this time, sadly, so it was just me, Peter and his sister Josi.

We did (NOVICE level in brackets)

Pre-Fatigue

3 rounds of

5 Double-Kettlebell Front-Squat + Jerk (2 x 16 kg) (5 Kettlebell Front Squat 8 kg)

5 Dips (either bar or rings) (Dip support hold x 5)

2 x ~2m rope climbing (5 body rows)

Main workout

I decided to call it “Dauerwurst” (German classification for sausage like salami), after its inventor Wursti, a fellow from Muscle Corps who equipped me with training routines last year and the long duration of the workout (for a circuit trial).

5 rounds of

15 Burpees (10-15 Burpees with push-up progressions instead of push-up)

15 Body rows (15 Body rows)

20 Kettlebell swings 16 kg (20 Kettlebell sumo high-pull 8kg)

20 Russian twist 8 kg Kettlebell (20 Russian twist with water bottle)

20 Jumping jacks

Post-Fatigue

Walking lunges + overhead press with 16 kg Kettlebell (same with 8 kg Kettlebell)

We did a great job getting to our limits and beyond – systemic failure is the goal of this workout, so make sure that you do not go for muscular failure – the body rows are especially dangerous to go too far. Give yourself some leeway with them and go for the highest anaerobic workload you can manage.

Have fun working out and post your experiences in comments. We did not time this workout – the core workout should be about 25 minutes if done properly.

Peter will be away the next two weeks and head for Canada, so expect at least Dominik and me the next two weeks for workout coverage!

Train on and stay strong!

Simon

Light rain could not stop us from performing at our very best at this second CrassFit meeting.

The workout routine:

Pre-Fatigue

Hill Sprint
Clean + Squat x 5 ( 2 x 16 kg Kettlebell )
Double Rope Climb
Dips x 5

Main Workout

“Joachim”
8 Burpees
4 + 4 Push Press (16 kg Kettlebell)
8 Pull-Ups
8 Swings (16 kg Kettlebell)

Post-Fatigue

Zac Even-Esh Circle #1 + #2

#1:
Clean + Push Press + Walk (extended arms) + Push Press x 5
Rack Position Walk + Squat x 5
Farmer’s Walk + Rows x 5 + Push-Up x 5

#2:
Push-Up explosive + Clean + Squat + Push Press x 5
+ Circle #1

—

We all felt pretty much wasted after this extremely intense workout session. This is nothing like anything I have experienced before – the finisher was almost too much. For me – at least – it was beyond my limits.

Watch the video footage of the finishing exercises:

Zac Even-Esh Circle #1 – GMX Video

Zac Even-Esh Circle #2 – GMX Video

Zac Even-Esh Circle #2 – GMX Video

Zac Even-Esh Circle #2 Dominik – GMX Video