Mechanics -> Consistency -> Intensity
Go Hard! That’s a common theme around our box for many athletes. Everyone wants to finish first or set a new PR (personal record) or just beat the gal next to me. The desire to win and the will to compete is not easily muted. Coach Glassman, founder of CrossFit, once wrote that men are willing to die for points in competition and he was spot on.
I had a conversation with an athlete last week about this very concept and want to address it here for everyone to gain some perspective. In striving to reach the goals we set, in most cases we take on the mindset of willing to do whatever it takes to reach them. I love that attitude and it is great to see it in our athletes on a day-in, day-out basis. That being said, it’s imperative to realize that we will never reach our goals by simply increasing our intensity.
Our training methods are based on the progression of learning the proper mechanics, or movements; then demonstrating the ability to perform those movements properly in a repeated manner; and lastly, increasing the volume, speed or load (intensity). In fitness, increasing the intensity too soon in your training progression is a disaster waiting to happen.
Much like putting your 16 year old son behind the wheel of a corvette and saying “Step on it!”, letting an athlete increase intensity without the ability to demonstrate repeated efforts of perfect movement mechanics is just as silly and dangerous. While I know that my son could handle the corvette at 30-40 mph without issue, pushing it to 80-100 mph is insane. None of us would allow that! And we won’t allow the same attitude in training!
We take time each day to work on skill sets for a very specific purpose: to get better. The harder we work at improving our skill mechanically, the faster we reach a point of quality, consistent movement. When the quality of movement increases, the intensity can be ramped up. It isn’t rocket science…but it is science.
To improve your Fran time requires more than simply getting stronger. It requires increases in efficient movement and quality movement. That is exactly why we work through the progression: Mechanics -> Consistency -> Intensity.
One quality of good coach is to recognize when an athlete has skipped a step, or not spent enough time on a step in the progression and help them to reset. Because we measure fitness across broad time, it is okay to take a step back when necessary to “clean up” our movements as there is no deadline to meet in regards to securing proper technique.
So here are 3 steps to helping you through your progression at a steady pace:
1) Focus on your “Goat”. Each of us has those 1-3 movements that we struggle with. Invest extra time before or after your workout fine tuning the mechanics of that movement. Chances are, improving your “Goat” will transfer into other movements as well allowing you to further increase your intensity in other movements.
2) Mobility work. A majority of us struggle with specific movements due to the lack of mobility in the hips, shoulders, wrists and ankles. Spend quality time away from the box with a foam roll, band, tennis ball or whatever means necessary to increase your mobility. This pays huge dividends in the short and long term.
3) Work as hard during skill training as the WOD. Don’t just “get through” the skills portion of each session. Focus on the movements and the finer points of developing perfect form. This, too, will carry over into every other aspect of your training.
Now, get going. Your “Goat” is waiting!
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