2010.09.02

Today's WoD was a modified Tabata workout. Luckily for us, it was modified to make it easier (unlike the "hold a static position instead of resting" version). We had to track reps, so we got 20 seconds of rest instead of the usual 10 seconds. If you've done Tabata before, you know that every second of rest is helpful. When you're done, add up your total number of reps for all the exercises; the highest anyone did was 710.

The warm up was more practice of double unders, so bring a rope. All of the practice is definitely starting to pay off, as more and more people are starting to get it. Once you can do one double-under, work on doing a few of them in a row. If you can't do double-unders yet, work on being able to do consecutive single-unders. Having a steady rhythm is the basis for doing the doubles, so if you need to work on that, spend the warm up doing that.

For the WoD, you have to do 8 rounds for every single exercise. Every round consists of doing as many reps as you can in 20 seconds, followed by 20 seconds of rest. The rest should be enough time to write down your reps, but keep a pen & paper handy.

---

Warm Up

• 4 minutes of double-unders

---

WoD

• 8 rounds of: 20 seconds of incline push ups, 20 seconds of rest
• 8 rounds of: 20 seconds of jump box, 20 seconds of rest
• 8 rounds of: 20 seconds of dips, 20 seconds of rest
• 8 rounds of: 20 seconds of mountain climbers (right/left = 1), 20 seconds of rest
• 8 rounds of: 20 seconds of push press, 20 seconds of rest

---

Exercises

• Double Unders
  Jumping rope, you want the rope to make two full revolutions each time you jump. The important part is actually the flick of your wrists, not so much how high you jump. If you worry too much about jumping higher, you’ll throw your rhythm off.
  If you don't have a rope, you can substitute platform steps (with weight in your hands). It's not quite the same, but it's a good approximation.
• Incline Push Ups
  Set up a platform with stackable risers (the most anyone used was 6). Do a push up with your feet on the ground, and your arms on the edge of the platform. Make sure you touch your chest to the platform as you come down, and fully extend your arms when you come back up. Keep yourself honest about your form even in the later rounds when you're tired.
• Jump Box
  Use the same platform that you used for your push ups. Before you start the WoD, stomp on it really hard. You want to make sure it'll support your weight & won't move around when you jump on it. Just in case, look down at the platform when you jump. If it does move around at all, keeping your eyes on it should help prevent injury.
  
  Scale down: Step up & step down instead of jumping on the platform. If you do step, make sure you alternate which leg is stepping up. Otherwise, you're only working one leg the whole time.
• Dips
  Use the same platform that you used for the incline push ups. Position yourself so your arms are holding you up/off the edge of your platform, with your legs straight out in front of you. You should just be barely forward of the platform; your butt should practically touch the platform as you do your reps. If you come forward too far, you'll put unnecessary strain on your shoulders.
  
  Lower yourself so that your butt touches the ground, and then raise yourself back to the starting position. That's 1 rep. If you do the exercise properly, you'll feel the exercise the most in your triceps.
  
  Scale down: Bend your legs, and put your feet flat on the ground before doing your dips. Since you're lifting less weight this way, this makes the dips easier
• Mountain Climbers
  Get down on all fours, almost as if you were about to start a race. It's also a bit like being in a push up position with a bend at the waist, with only one leg back. From the starting position, simultaneously bring your lead leg back & your rear leg forward. Make sure that your lead leg also slides sideways, so that it is outside of your arm on that side. Do it again to switch the positioning of your legs, again making sure your lead leg ends up outside of your arm. For these, both legs have to come forward once for a single rep (or, "right/left = 1," for short).
• Push Press
  Grab two dumbbells (heaviest anyone used was 15 lbs). Hold the two dumbbells at about shoulder level. You can hold them with both your palms facing away from your body so that you could see both palms in a mirror, or you can hold them so your palms face inward toward your body & face each other (the "hammer fist" position).
  
  Do a quarter squat, and press the dumbbells directly over your head as you come up. At the top of your motion, you want your arms to be fully extended and your legs completely straightened out. Because you do a little bit of a squat, your legs generate most of the momentum to drive the weights up. It's still a "dip then drive" movement, so make sure you do that quarter squat to generate the power for your press.
  
  Also, make sure you move the weights directly up & down; if you start moving the horizontally, you'll put extra stress on your shoulders. If your elbows flare out, that's also going to make it difficult to press straight up & down. Your rep is finished when you bring the dumbbells back to beginning/racked position.

As always, happy CrossFit'ing.