2018 Cycle 1 – Week 12 of 12 – Program Your Own Week
5 Conditioning : 3 Lifting: 2 Gymnastics
The purpose of this cycle is to maximum conditioning for The Open, while maintaining lifting and gymnastics strength.
This is the final week of The Open and the final week of Cycle 1. Next week we will start maxing lifts and gymnastics, and we will move to a 4 Conditioning : 4 Lifting : 3 Gymnastics structure for 12 weeks.
Program your own week this week with a 5 Conditioning : 3 Lifting : 2 Gymnastics structure. Structure the week in a way that it gets you ready for 18.5 and, also, work on movements that need some work before maxing them in Cycle 2.
Conditioning (5 workouts) – 18.5; Open Prep Day (80% intensity); and 3 other workouts
The benchmark for the week will be Open 18.5 – announced on Thursday.
Structure your week so that you can do 18.5 with maximum intensity. Example:
Workout hard on Monday and Tuesday, rest Wednesday, move with 80% intensity on Thursday (Open Prep Day), complete 18.5 on Friday, workout hard on Saturday.
Lifting (3 workouts)
Complete 3 lifting workouts that will get you ready to max over the next 3 weeks and, also, keep you primed for Open 18.5.
Try to work on lifts that are weaknesses.
Examples:
5×3 Back Squat
5×5 Bench Press
7×1 Hang Snatch
Gymnastics (2 workouts)
Complete 2 gymnastics workouts that will get you ready to max over the next 3 weeks and, also, keep you primed for Open 18.5.
The 2018 CrossFit Open season has almost come and gone. Although I tend to like training more than I like competing, I have joined hundreds of thousands others to compete in The Open. I enjoy it. In fact, I enjoy it so much that I watch a handful of strategy videos and spend a couple hours every week keeping up with who did well on the previous week’s workout. Of the many enjoyable parts of CrossFit, being able to compare your performance against the rest of the world, including the professionals, is one of the most enjoyable. However, there is at least one thing in the process I find excessive.
Every week, I watch the strategy videos and glean some important information. Advice on how to specifically warm up for the workout and how to orient your equipment for fast transitions is well received. Mostly, I am so excited about the workout that I just want to hear somebody talk about it. The part of the videos I find excessive is the talk about pacing. I get it that pacing is an important part of CrossFit, and that some general tips about how to break up reps during the workout may be helpful, but, since every workout and each person completing it is so unique, I think each workout is going to be completed largely by feel. It is probably a problem with me rather than the videos, but the more I listen to talk about workout pacing, the more I tend to overthink the workout. I do not truly know how I am going to break up the reps until I get in the workout.
For instance, 18.3 was a workout that contained a LOT of double unders, some muscle-ups, and a small amount of barbell/dumbbell work. It was hard to know exactly how that many double unders was going to affect your muscle-ups, and how both were going to affect the weighted movements. For instance, my grip was far more fatigued when I got to the ring muscle-ups than I expected, and my feet/calves were far more fatigued when I got to the dumbbell snatches than I expected. It may have helped a little to have heard someone share that experience, but that may not have been a problem for other people, and, regardless, my response was going to be the same even if I knew. I just needed to find a way to “move”.
CrossFit workouts are largely about staying moving. Whoever moves productively the most and rests the least, is probably going to earn a better score. Scientifically speaking, each person is trying to figure out how to be as productive as possible while staying aerobic for most of the workout.
The aerobic system is the biological system that uses oxygen to break down glucose into ATP in the mitochondrion:
A person, if properly trained, can use the aerobic system for a long time (definitely long enough for a CrossFit workout). If one wants to go faster than the aerobic system allows, he or she can only do it for a minute or two:
The graph shows how the ATP-CP system can produce a lot of power (90-100% maximum output) for about 8 seconds. The ATP-CP system works with the molecules that are already in your cells. The molecules don’t need to be made, they are just ready to go. This is largely why you can lift a lot of weight for 1 rep, but the weight drops considerably when you lift for 10, 20, or 30 reps.
If work is completed intensely for longer than 8 seconds, the anaerobic system will take over for a minute or two. The anaerobic system can use the carbohydrates that are in the cell’s cytoplasm and break them down without oxygen, but they produce lactic acid as a waste product, and lactic acid burns. This is why a 400m can be run very quickly and with great power (70-80% of maximum output), but it is also one of the most painful track events.
After a minute or two (some literature says anaerobic work can be done for 1 minute and others say up to 2 minutes), the power output must decline because the aerobic system must be used. The aerobic system can only provide about 50% of a person’s maximum output, and it requires oxygen be used in the cell’s mitochondrion. Since Open workouts typically last 7 to 20 minutes, CrossFitters largely live in the aerobic system.
Why does this matter?
Because, staying within the aerobic system demands a certain mindset. Have you ever pushed really hard for the first 2 minutes of a 10 minute workout and then spent the rest of the workout trying to figure out how to move without falling on the ground? This is probably because you used too much of the anaerobic system for the first 2 minutes and then spent the rest of the workout trying to clear the lactic acid that was produced. Instead, you should have focused on figuring out how to stay moving for the first 8 minutes of the workout and pushed for the last 2 minutes.
The science says that you can only push your anaerobic system for a maximum of 2 minutes, so you are fighting nature (and making yourself miserable) if you are trying to do more than that. Now, there are some people that can recover from anaerobic exercise very quickly. And there are some people that have such good aerobic systems that the power seems to be coming from the anaerobic system. But the best general strategy is to ride on the edge of your aerobic system until there are 1 to 2 minutes left in the workout and then empty your anaerobic system. When you are done with the workout, you can lay on the ground, walk around, or ride smoothly on the exercise bike to clear the lactic acid, but, during the workout, you don’t want to be trying to clear lactic acid and completing the work at the same time.
How does all this relate to pacing and, specifically, pacing in The Open? It all relates to what your mindset is going to be. I have found that the best aerobic cue for me is “move”. If I keep telling myself “move” throughout the workout, then I naturally find the aerobic pace for myself in that workout. If I am focusing on “moving”, I will not push myself into anaerobic territory, because my body knows that anaerobic now means I’ll pay for it with rest later.
But, I can’t just “move” for the whole workout. If I did that, I would be neglecting the power of the anaerobic system and leaving reps on the table. During 18.3, for instance, I focused on moving for the first 12 minutes of the workout. There was a 14 minute time cap, and I could complete the most work for the first 12 minutes by using my aerobic system. That doesn’t mean the hundreds of double unders were not painful, but they were not hands on my knees, gasping for air painful. Nor was I tripping on a bunch of double unders, because my breathing was out of control. Instead, I was trying my best to keep a steady, but fast, pace by telling my body to “move” as much as possible.
It wasn’t time to “push” until there were 2 minutes remaining. That is how long my anaerobic system could work, and it is why the 11 bar muscle-ups I ended the workout with were probably the most painful bar muscle-ups I have ever done, and why I spent 5 minutes lying on a bench after the clock hit 14:00. I made a conscious choice to only “move” during my last 100 double unders from 10:30-12:00, because I needed to be able to “push” when I got to the 12 bar muscle-ups. There was no reason for me to accumulate lactic acid during the double unders and then spend time clearing that on the bar muscle-ups.
This “moving” and “pushing” does not only apply to 18.3. In my 4.5 years of doing CrossFit, every workout follows a similar pattern: the most effective strategy is to move fast, but sustainably, for the first x minutes of the workout and push till it hurts in the last 2 minutes of the workout. If it is a 10 minute workout, I “move” for 8 minutes and “push” for 2 minutes. If it is a 4 minute workout, I “move” for 2 minutes and “push” for 2 minutes. If it is a 24 minute workout, I “move” for 22 minutes and “push” for 2 minutes. There is no guess work.
So, when a workout is set before me, the only real pacing decision is where the “push” line is. I recently did “Helen”:
3 Rounds
Run 400m
21 Kettlebell Swings (53/35)
12 Pull-ups
Based, on my fitness, I knew I could complete 200 meters of running, 21 kettlebell swings, and 12 pull-ups in about 2 minutes. Therefore, my best strategy was to “move” until I reached the last 200 meters of running, and then it was time to “push” with everything I had.
In “Open 18.2”, which was:
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10
Double DB Front Squats (50/35)
Bar-Facing Burpees
The decision was to figure out where the “push” line was. In 18.2’s rep scheme, you are about half way done with the work after the round of 7 and hardly anyone was finishing the workout under 4 minutes. Therefore, I decided the best pacing strategy was to “move” for all the sets up to 7. At 7, I would check the clock and see what my projected finish would be. For instance, if I finished the rounds up to 7 in 2 minutes, I would know I was about 2 minutes from finishing the workout and it was time to “push”. In my case, I finished the round of 7 at about 3:20, therefore my projected finish was 6:40. As a result, it was time for me to “push” when the clock hit 4:40. To continue the example, if you finished the round of 7 at 5:00, you could know your projected finish was 10:00. Therefore, it would be wise for you to “push” at about 8:00.
In reality, the 18.2 example is one of the most complicated examples of when to “push”, because of the ascending rep scheme. When the workout is an AMRAP (as many reps as possible), just subtract 2:00 from the AMRAP time and you know when your body can “push”. If the workout is 4 rounds for time and you think each round is going to take you 4:00, then you “push” when you are halfway through the final round. The guess work is gone, and, hopefully, so is the standing around and heavy breathing that results from working too hard before it is anaerobic “push” time.
I’m going to keep watching The Open strategy videos, because I have a hard time fully satiating my appetite for CrossFit talk. I’m going to listen to what they say, but as soon as I start overthinking my pacing strategy, I am going to remind myself to find the point where 2 minutes remain in the workout. Once I find that point, I am going “move” until I hit it, and “push” until I am done. After the workout is over, I can have peace that I “moved” and “pushed” as much as my aerobic and anaerobic systems could possibly “move” and “push” that day.
The purpose of this cycle is to maximum conditioning for the open, while maintaining lifting and gymnastics strength.
Conditioning
The benchmark for the week will be Open 18.4 – announced on Thursday.
Structure your week so that you can do 18.4 with maximum intensity. Example:
Workout hard on Monday and Tuesday, rest Wednesday, move with 80% intensity on Thursday (Open Prep Day), complete 18.4 on Friday, workout hard on Saturday.
1) Light Sprint
Light – Choose weights and movements that allow you to keep moving for most of the workout.
Sprint – Write your own workout that is approximately 1:30 seconds of work, followed by 2:30 of rest, repeated for 5 rounds.
2) Short Bodyweight
Short – Write your own workout that lasts between 4:00 and 10:00.
Bodyweight – Use movements that use your bodyweight as resistance (weight vest permitted).
3) Medium Heavy
Medium – Write your own workout that lasts between 10:00 and 20:00.
Heavy – Use weights that are 65% or more of your 1 RM. Choose gymnastics movements that you can complete less than 20 unbroken reps of when fresh. Use monostructural movements as desired.
4) Open Prep Day
Workout – write your own that takes 10:00 to 20:00 minutes to complete. Complete at 80% intensity and use the time to prime movements that will likely be in the open.
Day – the day before you complete 18.4.
5) Open Workout (Benchmark)
“Open 18.4”
Lifting
Only complete a lifting workout on Open Prep Day if you are confident it will not leave you sore.
This is week 2 of the 3 week intensity block (heavy weight with low reps). We will max each movement next 3 week block.
1) Upper
Push Press 5×3 @ 80-90% Every 2:00
2) Lower
Deadlift 5×3 @ 80-90% Every 2:00
3) Full
Overhead Squat 5×3 @ 80-90% Every 2:00
Gymnastics
Only complete a gymnastics workout on Open Prep Day if you are confident it will not leave you sore.
This is week 2 of the 3 week intensity block (big sets with long rest). We will max each movement next 3 week block.
1) Push
Ring Muscle-ups 3 x 70-80%; Rest 2:30 between sets
70-80% of max reps set
When max reps set exceeds 20, add a weight vest.
If unable to do 3 consecutive ring muscle-ups:
Blue Level: 3×5 Ring Swings + 5 Jumping Muscle-ups; Rest 2:30 between sets
White Level: 3×5 Rings Swings + 3 Jumping Muscle-ups; Rest 2:30 between sets
Red/Green Level: 3×5 Ring Swings + 5 Challenging Ring Rows
2) Pull
Pull-ups/Chest-to-bar Pull-ups 3 x 70-80%; Rest 2:30 between sets
70-80% of Max Reps Set
If max pull-up reps exceed 30, complete chest-to-bar pull-ups.
The purpose of this cycle is to maximum conditioning for the open, while maintaining lifting and gymnastics strength.
Conditioning
The benchmark for the week will be Open 18.3 – announced on Thursday.
Structure your week so that you can do 18.3 with maximum intensity. Example:
Workout hard on Monday and Tuesday, rest Wednesday, move with 80% intensity on Thursday (Open Prep Day), complete 18.3 on Friday, workout hard on Saturday.
1) Bodyweight Sprint
Bodyweight – Use movements that use your bodyweight as resistance (weight vest permitted).
Sprint – Write your own workout that is approximately 1:00 seconds of work, followed by 2:00 of rest, repeated for 6 rounds.
2) Short Monostructural
Short – Write your own workout that is 3 rounds of 4:00-10:00 of work followed by 5:00 of rest. Attempt to keep the 3 rounds fast but consistent.
Monostructural – Bike, row, run, swim, etc.
3) Medium Heavy
Medium – Write your own workout that lasts between 10:00 and 20:00.
Heavy – Use weights that are 65% or more of your 1 RM. Choose gymnastics movements that you can complete less than 20 unbroken reps of when fresh. Use monostructural movements as desired.
4) Open Prep Day
Workout – write your own that takes 10:00 to 20:00 minutes to complete. Complete at 80% intensity and use the time to prime movements that will likely be in the open.
Day – the day before you complete 18.3.
5) Open Workout
“Open 18.3”
Lifting
Only complete a lifting workout on Open Prep Day if you are confident it will not leave you sore.
This is week 2 of the 3 week intensity block (heavy weight with low reps). We will max each movement next 3 week block.
1) Upper
Strict Press 5×3 @ 80-90% Every 2:00
2) Lower
Front Squat 5×3 @ 80-90% Every 2:00
3) Full
Snatch 5×1 @ 85-95% Every 2:00
Gymnastics
Only complete a gymnastics workout on Open Prep Day if you are confident it will not leave you sore.
This is week 2 of the 3 week intensity block (big sets with long rest). We will max each movement next 3 week block.
1) Push
Ring Dip 3 x 70-80%; Rest 2:30 between sets
70-80% of max reps set
When max reps set exceeds 30, add a weight vest.
If unable to do 5 consecutive ring dips:
Complete 3×10 Ring Push-ups at the most challenging ring angle you are able to complete 3×10 well.
2) Pull
Toes-to-bar/Bar Muscle-ups 3 x 70-80%; Rest 2:30 between sets
70-80% of Max Reps Set
If max toes-to-bar reps exceed 30, complete bar muscle-ups.
If unable to complete 5 toes-to-bar:
White Level: 3 x 70-80% max feet raises (feet get to hip level; kipping allowed)
Red/Green Level: 3 x 70-80% max knee raises (knees get to hip level; kipping allowed)
The purpose of this cycle is to maximum conditioning for the open, while maintaining lifting and gymnastics strength.
Conditioning
The benchmark for the week will be Open 18.2 – announced on Thursday.
Structure your week so that you can do 18.2 with maximum intensity. Example:
Workout hard on Monday and Tuesday, rest Wednesday, move with 80% intensity on Thursday (Open Prep Day), complete 18.2 on Friday, workout hard on Saturday.
1) Monostructural Sprint
Monostructural – Bike, row, run, swim, etc.
Sprint – Write your own workout that is approximately 30 seconds of work, followed by 1:30 of rest, repeated for 8 rounds.
2) Short Heavy
Short – Write your own workout that lasts between 4:00 and 10:00.
Heavy – Use weights that are 65% or more of your 1 RM. Choose gymnastics movements that you can complete less than 20 unbroken reps of when fresh. Use monostructural movements as desired.
3) Medium Chipper
Medium – Write your own workout that lasts between 10:00 and 20:00.
Chipper – Write sets that take a while to “chip” through.
4) Open Prep Day
Workout – write your own that takes 10:00 to 20:00 minutes to complete. Complete at 80% intensity and use the time to prime movements that will likely be in the open.
Day – the day before you complete 18.2.
5) Open Workout
“Open 18.2”
Lifting
Only complete a lifting workout on Open Prep Day if you are confident it will not leave you sore.
This is week 1 of the 3 week intensity block (heavy weight with low reps). We will max each movement next 3 week block.
1) Upper
Bench Press 5×3 @ 80-90% Every 2:00
2) Lower
Back Squat 5×3 @ 80-90% Every 2:00
3) Full
Clean and Jerk 5×1 @ 85-95% Every 2:00
Gymnastics
Only complete a gymnastics workout on Open Prep Day if you are confident it will not leave you sore.
This is week 1 of the 3 week intensity block (big sets with long rest). We will max each movement next 3 week block.
1) Push
Handstand Push-up 3 x 70-80%; Rest 2:30 between sets
70-80% of max reps set
When max reps set exceeds 30, add a deficit.
If unable to do 5 consecutive handstand push-ups:
White Level: 3 x 70-80% max handstand hold; after completing the handstand hold go directly into 10 reps of push press at @ 55-65% 1 RM. Rest 2:30 between rounds.
Red and Green Level: 3 x 10 Push Press @ 60-70% 1 RM; perform new set every 3:00.
2) Pull
Strict Pull-ups 3 x 70-80%; Rest 2:30 between sets
70-80% of Max Reps Set
When max strict pull-up reps reach 20 or more, switch to chest-to-bar.
If unable to do 5 consecutive strict pull-ups, complete the workout with ring rows instead.
Heavy – Use weights that are 65% or more of your 1 RM. Choose gymnastics movements that you can complete less than 20 unbroken reps of when fresh. Use monostructural movements as desired.
Sprint – Write you own workout that lasts for about 4 minutes. Rest 3 minutes afterwards and complete for a second round.
2) Short Chipper
Short – Write your own workout that lasts between 4:00 and 10:00.
Chipper – Write sets that take a while to “chip” through.
3) Medium Light (Benchmark)
“Helen”
3 Rounds
400m Run
21 Kettlebell Swings (53/35)
12 Pull-ups
4) Medium Bodyweight
Medium – Write your own workout that lasts between 10:00 and 20:00.
Bodyweight – Use movements that use your bodyweight as resistance (weight vest permitted).
5) Long Monostructural
Long – Write your own workout that takes more than 20:00 to complete
Monostructural – Bike, row, run, swim, etc.
Lifting
1) Upper
Push Press 5×5 @ 72.5-82.5% Every 2:00
2) Lower
Deadlift 5×5 @ 72.5-82.5% Every 2:00
3) Full
Overhead Squat 5×5 @ 72.5-82.5% Every 2:00
Gymnastics
1) Push
Ring Muscle-up 5 x 50-60%; Rest 1:30 between sets
– 50-60% of Max Reps Set
2) Pull
Pull-up/C2B Pull-up 5 x 50-60%; Rest 1:30 between sets
– 50-60% of Max Reps Set
– When max pull-up reps reach 30 or more, switch to chest-to-bar.
Short – Write your own workout that lasts between 4:00 and 10:00.
Light – Choose weights and movements that allow you to keep moving for most of the workout.
3) Medium Bodyweight
Medium – Write your own workout that lasts between 10:00 and 20:00.
Bodyweight – Use movements that use your bodyweight as resistance (weight vest permitted).
4) Medium Monostructural
Medium – Write your own workout that lasts between 10:00 and 20:00.
Monostructural – Bike, row, run, swim, etc.
5) Long Heavy
Long – Write your own workout that takes more than 20:00 to complete
Heavy – Use weights that are 65% or more of your 1 RM and/or choose gymnastics movements that you can complete less than 15 unbroken reps of when fresh. Use monostructural movements however you please.
Lifting
1) Upper
Strict Press 5×5 @ 72.5-82.5% Every 2:00
2) Lower
Front Squat 5×5 @ 72.5-82.5% Every 2:00
3) Full
Snatch 7×2 @ 75-85% Every 1:30
Gymnastics
1) Push
Ring Dips 5 x 50-60%; Rest 1:30 between sets
– 50-60% of Max Reps Set
– When max ring dips exceed 30, add weight
2) Pull
Toes to bars/Bar Muscle-ups 5 x 50-60%; Rest 1:30 between sets
– 50-60% of Max Reps Set
– When max toes to bar reps reach 30 or more, switch to bar muscle-ups. If max bar muscle-ups reach 20 or more, switch to strict.
Sprint – Write your own 2:00 on; 2:00 off for 5 rounds workout.
Light – Choose weights and movements that allow you to keep moving for most of the workout.
2) Short Benchmark
“18.zero”
21-15-9
Alternating Arm DB Snatches (50/35)
Burpee over DB*
*Burpee standard includes jumping into plank with both feet and jumping to standing with both feet. Lateral jumping over the dumbbell is permitted and encouraged.
3) Medium Monostructural
Medium – Write your own workout that lasts between 10:00 and 20:00.
Monostructural – Bike, row, run, swim, etc.
4) Medium Heavy
Medium – Write your own workout that lasts between 10:00 and 20:00.
Heavy – Use weights that are 70% or more of your 1 RM. Choose gymnastics movements that you can complete less than 20 unbroken reps of when fresh – attempt to complete reps in big chunks.
5) Long Chipper
Long – Write your workout that takes more than 20:00 to complete
Chipper – Write sets that take a while to “chip” through.
Lifting
1) Upper
Bench Press 5×5 @ 72.5-82.5% Every 2:00
2) Lower
Back Squat 5×5 @ 72.5-82.5% Every 2:00
3) Full
Clean and Jerk 7×2 @ 75-85% Every 1:30
Gymnastics
1) Push
Handstand Push-ups 5 x 50-60%; Rest 1:30 between sets
– 50-60% of Max Reps Set
– When max handstand push-ups exceed 30, use a deficit
2) Pull
Strict Pull-ups 5 x 50-60%; Rest 1:30 between sets
– 50-60% of Max Reps Set
– When max strict pull-up reps reach 20 or more, switch to chest-to-bar. If max chest-to-bar pull-ups reach 20 or more, add weight vest.
320 Gym 
