2011.1.18

Today's WoD was a pretty quick one. The fastest time was around 10 minutes, unfortunately I had to leave right after I finished mine, so I am not 100% sure the longest time was.

The warm up is simply used to get the blood flowing. This is much more of a cardio workout, compared to some that are more strength based.

For the WoD, as always, pay attention to your form.

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Warm Up
2 rounds of

• 30 seconds Jumping Jacks
• 30 seconds Running in Place
• 30 seconds Mountain Climbers (rt/lft = 1) on a box

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WoD

• 50 Jump Box
• 40 Squats to the box
• 30 Scissor Kicks on the box or floor
• 20 Push Ups with Hands off Ground
• 10 Burpees
• 50 Jump Box
• 10 Burpees
• 20 Push Ups with Hands off Ground
• 30 Scissor Kicks
• 40 Squats
• 50 Jump box

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Exercises

• Mountain Climbers on a Box
  Place your hands on the same box you will use for Jump Box and get into a postion 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.
  
  Both of your legs have to come forward one time to complete a single rep. For simplicity's sake, we describe that as "right/left = 1."
• Jump Box
  Set up a platform with stackable risers. Shoot for at least 4 risers; the most anyone uses is usually 6 risers. Before you even 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.
  
  When you do jump on it, you want to make sure that you stand tall once you're on the platform. If you stay hunched over the whole time, you're not getting the full effect of the exercise. One way to think about this is that you want your hips to "open up" on both the jump up and the jump down; all that really means is that your butt shouldn't be sticking out at all and your hips should be pushed forward.
  
  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.
• Squats to the Box
  Make sure that when you go down, your bottom touches the Jump Box... this should be at parallel or further (don't bounce off the box!). If you have to do your squats slower to accomplish this, that's fine. Regardless of how far you squat, you want to keep your weight on your heels the whole time. That will help ensure you keep a good lumbar curve & will help with any potential balance issues. For some people, it helps to look up at about 45 degrees to ensure you're not leaning forward & straining your lower back. To ensure this happens, you can throw your hands up to 45 degrees and focus your eyes on your hands on each rep.
  
  Scale down: If you can't squat that far, you should aim to end up with your thighs parallel to the ground at the bottom of your squat.
• Scissor Kicks
  Lie down on top of the platform you set up, facing up with your back against the platform. You want your legs to be parallel to your body, hanging off of the edge of the platform.
  
  From that position, lift one leg so that it is several inches higher than your torso while keeping the other leg parallel to your torso. Bring your leg back down to the starting position. Now switch legs, and lift the opposite leg several inches higher. Bring your leg back down to the starting position to finish the rep (it's "right/left = 1").
  
  In practice, most people do this quickly and make it a very smooth, continuous motion. There's nothing wrong with that, so long as you're still completing the full range of the motion. If you're barely moving your legs, you're not really getting the full effect of the exercise.
• Push Ups with Hands off Ground
  Unlike "normal" push ups, start by laying face down on the ground. A mat is likely to be helpful, but it's up to you. Push hard/violently off the ground so that your whole upper body comes off the ground while your toes stay planted on the ground. Your hands should come off the ground at least an inch (note, you don't have to clap). Bring your hands back to the ground so that you catch yourself in the "up" position of a regular push up. Go back down to the starting position to finish the rep.
  
  Scale down: From the starting position, do a push up on your knees. Then lift your torso up so that your upper body is perpendicular to the ground. This forces your hands to come off the ground, so it's a similar motion (it's just not as explosive a movement). Go back down to the starting position to finish the rep.
• Burpees
  It's a 5 step motion: 1) squat down & touch the ground, 2) kick your legs out into a push-up position, 3) do a push up, 4) jump back to the squatting position, 5) come up from squatting and jump 2 inches off the ground.
  
  Scale down: Step back into the push up instead of jumping. Same goes for when you go back to the squatting position (step 4); step forward instead of jumping.

As always, have fun with it.