Al very kindly sent me this WOD while I was out of the office, but I was oh so very glad that I happened to miss it. This one wasn't just a Tabata WOD, but it was a special Tabata WOD. In case you've never done a Tabata WOD before, it involves 20 seconds of doing as many reps as you can, followed by 10 seconds of rest, with that 20-10 sequence repeated 8 times in a row for every exercise. That means 4 minutes of exercise for a single exercise. Multiply this by 5 exercises, and you get 20 minutes, from start to finish. So at least at it'll be over quickly.
This version, however, replaced the 10 second rest for holding a static position in which your muscles were contracted. I've heard people call it an "active rest," but really it just means that you don't get to catch your breath during those 10 seconds. Trust me, this was not an easy WOD.
You're only going to need a barbell as far as equipment goes, but be very, very careful when doing max reps with the push press. That goes double for when you're holding the weight over your head. The deadlifts can also tweak your back if you're not careful, so don't slack off on your form for those, either.
WoD
- 8 rounds of: 20 seconds of push ups, 10 seconds of holding a plank
- 8 rounds of: 20 seconds of sit ups, 10 seconds of 45 degree hold
- 8 rounds of: 20 seconds of air squats, 10 seconds of bottom squat hold
- 8 rounds of: 20 seconds of push press, 10 seconds of holding press overhead
- 8 rounds of: 20 seconds of deadlifts, 10 seconds of holding the deadlift in a high hang
Exercises
- Push Ups
Bring your chest to the ground for every single rep, and when you come up, make sure your arms are fully extended.
- Plank
From a push up position, lower yourself so that you are about two inches off of the ground. Keep yourself there without moving up or down for the full ten seconds.
- Sit Ups
Keep your feet in butterfly position (heels touching each other), since that isolates your abs. Come all the way up, but don't pull on your neck or lean forward. Doing either of those things reduces the work that your abs have to do.
- Sit Up Hold
This is a little bit like a V-Up, if you're used to those. Lay down on the ground, and extend both your arms and legs away from your body. Raise both of them to about a 45 degree angle, then hold yourself in that position for 10 seconds. You're not allowed to drop your legs to the ground during the full 10 seconds.
- Squats
Make sure that when you go down, your thighs are at least parallel to the ground. If you can, squat farther down than parallel, so that your bottom ends up closer to the ground than your knees. 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.
- Squat Hold
It's fairly simple: do a squat but don't stand up. Essentially, you're holding the bottom of a squat (hence the name) for as long as possible. Make sure you keep good form on that squat; in particular, keep a good lumbar curve.
You can set your feet as far apart as you like, so long as you squat deep enough for your thighs to be slightly lower than parallel to the ground. That means that your knees should be higher off the ground than your butt.
Lastly, don't rest your hands on your knees. It's easier that way, and you want to hold a legit squat for as long as possible.
- Push Press
Keep using the same barbell that you had for the power cleans. To start, hold the barbell slightly below shoulder level with both your palms facing away from your body so that you can see both palms in a mirror. If you've got enough strength and flexibility in your wrists, bring your elbows straight up so that they point away from your body. This will force more of the weight against your upper torso and put more of a strain on your wrists, so only do this if you can sustain this position through a lot of reps. Regardless of how high you bring your elbows, the weights are "racked" against your chest.
Do a quarter squat, and come up as explosively as you can. In reality, you'll end up end up hopping up a tiny bit because you're generating so much momentum/power from your legs. That's okay, but be absolutely sure that you're in control as you do this. You really don't want to trip or fall while holding a barbell. As you come up, press the barbell directly over your head. Remember, your legs should be driving the power in this motion, not your shoulders or arms. At the top of your motion, you want your arms to be fully extended and your legs completely straightened out. Also, bring your head forward a bit so that your arms, spine, and head are all aligned along the same vertical plane.
One last cue is to 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 horizontally, that's also going to make it difficult to press straight up & down. Your rep is finished when you bring the weight back to beginning/racked position.
- Overhead Press Hold
You simply need to get the bar overhead as if you were doing the push press, and then hold the bar there for 10 seconds. If you already have the bar at the top of a press when the 20 seconds of push presses are up, hold it there. If you have to get the bar back up to the top of the press, make sure you start from a racked position: hold the barbell slightly below shoulder level with both palms facing away from your body and your elbows pointed up as high as you can.
Do a quarter squat, and come up explosively to get the bar moving upward. Once your arms are locked out at the top of the press, hold your arms there so that the bar is locked into place. Hold this for 10 seconds, and then lower the bar to the racked position when the 10 seconds are up.
- Deadlift
Keep using the same barbell that you've been using for the push presses. Place the barbell on the floor pretty much right in front of your feet (with a full Olympic bar, you'd put your feet right underneath the bar). Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart, and bend your knees slightly (about 20 degrees) to reach down to grab the barbell. You want your hands on the outside of your legs/knees, and you want to start with the barbell to be high enough off the ground to be about halfway up your shin (this is about the same height as an Olympic bar resting on the ground with 45lb plates on it). Keeping your head up and your chest facing forward, lift your torso a few inches until the barbell almost hit your knees. Your arms shouldn't bend at the elbows, you're just lifting your upper body with the weight conveniently attached to the upper body. Also, the weight should move in a straight vertical line, with no horizontal motion. It can help to think about it as if you're trying to skin your shins with the weight.
Once the barbell is at about your knees, pop your hips forward to generate some more momentum. At the same time, contract your shoulder blades towards each other. This will naturally pull the weight up even more (again, in a straight line). You should be standing straight up with your chest out at the top of the movement. Even though it looks like you're pulling the weight up using your biceps, you should try to avoid pulling up with your arms. That actually decreases the amount of weight you can lift in the long run, and it's bad form.
- Deadlift Hold (High Hang)
Hold the barbell down near your thighs (this position is considered a "high hang" so that's where the name comes from).
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