Sunday, November 6, 2011

Where are you taking me!?


When it comes to CrossFit this is one of the questions that i would venture to say most newbies don't particularly question. Why are we doing this wod or movement? Because frankly they are very new to the CrossFit style of training and for the most part the feeling they have after finishing a wod is in itself enough to keep them coming back for months to come. Which is also one of major turn on's of CrossFit..."i go to class every day and end in a puddle of sweat without having to put any thought it to the daily workout, i just have to perform it". Yes, this is a good thing as you hopefully trust your trainers to do what is the best for you and they are the ones with the Certifications right? I've yet to hear of any trainer out who has purposely done anything to hinder an athletes training yet i also don't think that any athlete whether newbie or elite should be in the dark as to what it is they are working towards.

Now, yes i know we're all working towards each of our own individual goals but what the coach's are doing to get each of us to that point and how can they make us better understand (in lehmans terms not programming schematics) how that path is going to progress? I could go on an on about CrossFit's Level 1 Cert and how any person can drop $1000 for a 2day seminar which culminates in a test (which is a thorough test mind you) and when you walk out the door you've all of a sudden been catapulted from the sedentary couch surfer to a CrossFit Certified Trainer with athletes at their potentially disastrous training disposal...tell me how this should make anyone comfortable whatsoever!? That tidbit for thought is all i'll address on that for now, but hopefully you can see the flaw.

Getting back the topic at hand, i think each athlete needs to have a basic understanding of the path they are going down or at least have access to it (believe me not everyone cares to know). For those of you that follow mainsite on a regular basis, you may have found yourself surprised over the Spring and Summer as HQ actually posted reveiw video of the programming cycles they had finished and announced basics regarding the upcoming programming cycles. By no means do i not trust Mainsite and the programming that is put up there every day, because i know for a fact they have some mad scientists who put up these concoctions of workouts which have turned meager men and women in to legit athletes, i just like the idea of having a slight notion as to what direction they intend of sending us.

This very topic should be no different in any affiliate that you may a part of and i encourage you to ask your coaches/trainers to breakdown a cycle every now and again for your own curiosity to see how the programming is laid out. Are we strength bias? Endurance bias? GPP bias? How are these cycles and the programing that the coaches have laid out going to help me reach my individual goals? We invest a lot of time and of course $$$ into our fitness, the least we can expect is our Affiliates and trainers to help us better understand the boat we're riding in and for us to decide if our best interest is to grab an oar and row like mad as they instruct or if we need to grab out life-vests and jump ship for hopes of a better captain!

Don't over think this, i just want every athlete to have an appreciation for but also a basic understanding of what direction we're heading every now and again!

P.S. - if you're thinking about starting a Strength Bias routine, now may be a good time. With the Holiday season just around the corner, you may find yourself opting for a few more than usual indulgences and the good ol Calorie count may be on the rise through Jan 1...rather than fight the constant urges, why not use some of these extra cals to assist in the growth of new muscle!? This isn't a free pass and i'm not saying that you can eat a dozen of Grandma's cookies in a sitting but in moderation these indulgences could be quite beneficial depending on the individual goals!