Day 14
"Mobility & Recovery"
WOD
3 Rounds For Time
25 Back Squats
**The link for the OH dumbbell lunges should be done with two dumbbell, not one, and both held above the head during the lunge. A good weight for ladies is 10-12lbs and guys should be 25-40lbs. Back squats could be done on Smith machines, done with dumbbells, or at the regular squat rack. I suggest any challenging weight for the ladies and at least body weight for the guys or 65% of you 1 Max Rep weight. For example, if you're max back squat is 200lbs, then your 65% 1RM (1 Rep Max) would be 130lbs. Keep a good pace and don't burn out!**
Review! It's Week 2!
- 2 weeks of a spotless living area, right?! We are half way there, keep up the tidy looking room so you can keep your mind clear for the next two weeks!
- Primal perseverance! How's your diet coming along? Have you had a cheat day yet? Isn't it tough? Challenging? Disgusting? Depriving? haha if you answered yes, it's OKAY! You have two weeks left to challenge yourself to get to the most discipline and focused all month!
- Have you tried the 'girls' yet? Even if you're at an LA Fitness or 24-hour fitness, you still can try one of the CrossFit benchmark girl workouts! Check it out on Day 4's blog!
- Share your experience, please! I can't stress enough how vital your social media skills can impact someone's life haha I meant it though, someone is LOOKING for the reason to get fit.
- How's your new _____? Have you gotten a chance to invest in your fitness and pick up any of the gym essentials I suggested? There's other ones like heart rate monitors, headphones for music, new yoga pants, etc. Just invest for the growth of your health!
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"Mobility & Recovery"
After experiencing my first CrossFit Open, I never realized how much stretching before, after, and during workouts are valuable. More than valuable, they are essential, necessary, and a MUST for CrossFit. During my first crack at CrossFit Open workout 13.3, which consisted of 150 Wall Balls, 90 Double Unders, and 30 Muscle Ups, I couldn't even pass the wall balls. The next two days I was unable to walk straight because my quads, hamstrings, knees, and ankles were on fire. My good friend, Steven, was the guru of finding mobility and recovery videos to show me to recover in time to get an even better score on the Open Workout.
Mobility can be described by an excerpt I took from one of my favorite CrossFit affiliates I follow, CrossFit Invictus:
Today, especially in the CrossFit community, we hear the term “mobilization” used in conjunction with or even in place of the word “stretching”. This has caused some confusion amongst coaches, clients, and their respective physical therapists, chiropractors, and massage therapists. In a clinical setting, joint mobilization typically refers to a type of manual therapy intervention where a therapist will physically move the joint to help restore function and/or alleviate symptoms. However, more commonly, coaches are referring to the definition popularized by Kelly Starrett of San Francisco CrossFit and MobilityWOD. He describes mobilization as “a movement-based integrated full-body approach that addresses all the elements that limit movement and performance including short and tight muscles, soft tissue restriction, joint capsule restriction, motor control problems, joint range of motion dysfunction, and neural dynamic issues. In short, mobilization is a tool to globally address movement and performance problems”.
Mobility should be a proactive approach, not a reactive one. In other words, don’t wait until problems arise before you address them. Too often I will see athletes finish a workout that might have hundreds of repetitions of loaded squats or pressing and do absolutely nothing to address the potential issues that are usually right around the corner. Having said that, there’s a great deal you can do to prevent injury, speed recovery, and improve performance. We can break down mobilization into three primary modalities: soft tissue work, stretching, and joint mobilization.
Soft Tissue Work
There are a number of modalities within soft tissue work. In gyms, self-myofascial release (SMFR) is the most common form of soft tissue work. Tools such as foam rollers, massage sticks, theracanes, and lacrosse ballsare common tools for this modality. SMFR can be performed before or after training sessions. Sometimes SMFR alone isn’t enough and an athlete will have to seek out a massage therapist, chiropractor, or physical therapist who is trained to deal with issues outside the scope of a fitness coach. Modalities such Active Release Technique (A.R.T.), Rolfing, Muscle Activation Technique, Structural Integration, and Trigger Point Therapy are amongst the techniques you will find utilized by professionals. If you are experiencing sharp, shooting pain, your coach should refer you to an appropriate medical professional.
There are a number of modalities within soft tissue work. In gyms, self-myofascial release (SMFR) is the most common form of soft tissue work. Tools such as foam rollers, massage sticks, theracanes, and lacrosse ballsare common tools for this modality. SMFR can be performed before or after training sessions. Sometimes SMFR alone isn’t enough and an athlete will have to seek out a massage therapist, chiropractor, or physical therapist who is trained to deal with issues outside the scope of a fitness coach. Modalities such Active Release Technique (A.R.T.), Rolfing, Muscle Activation Technique, Structural Integration, and Trigger Point Therapy are amongst the techniques you will find utilized by professionals. If you are experiencing sharp, shooting pain, your coach should refer you to an appropriate medical professional.
Stretching
Static stretching and proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) stretching are the two most common ways to stretch short, tight muscles. Static stretching normally involves using stretches that hold the target muscle in a lengthened position. Through autogenic inhibition, this method allows for increases in passive range of motion. Static stretches are typically held for at least 30 seconds. PNF stretching comes in a variety of forms but most commonly is performed by stretching the tight muscle, isometrically contracting the muscle, and then stretching the muscle further. Kelly Starrett recommends five cycles of 5 seconds of contraction followed by 10 seconds of passive stretching. Watch Kelly Starrett demo PNF stretching here:http://www.mobilitywod.com/2011/01/episode-148365-pnf-demo-deadlifting.html.
Static stretching and proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) stretching are the two most common ways to stretch short, tight muscles. Static stretching normally involves using stretches that hold the target muscle in a lengthened position. Through autogenic inhibition, this method allows for increases in passive range of motion. Static stretches are typically held for at least 30 seconds. PNF stretching comes in a variety of forms but most commonly is performed by stretching the tight muscle, isometrically contracting the muscle, and then stretching the muscle further. Kelly Starrett recommends five cycles of 5 seconds of contraction followed by 10 seconds of passive stretching. Watch Kelly Starrett demo PNF stretching here:http://www.mobilitywod.com/2011/01/episode-148365-pnf-demo-deadlifting.html.
Joint Mobilization
A variety of techniques are demonstrated on Kelly Starrett’s website, often involving stretch bands, to provide distraction at a given joint. The goal of joint mobilization is to help increase extensibility of a joint capsule by breaking up adhesions and/or stretching the capsule itself. Be cautious if you are experiencing pain or are prone to joint subluxations or dislocations as joint mobilization is contraindicated. Having said that, I would also advise against using any sort of band distraction if you are pregnant as the increased joint laxity can be problematic.
A variety of techniques are demonstrated on Kelly Starrett’s website, often involving stretch bands, to provide distraction at a given joint. The goal of joint mobilization is to help increase extensibility of a joint capsule by breaking up adhesions and/or stretching the capsule itself. Be cautious if you are experiencing pain or are prone to joint subluxations or dislocations as joint mobilization is contraindicated. Having said that, I would also advise against using any sort of band distraction if you are pregnant as the increased joint laxity can be problematic.
Mobility or mobilization is not to be confused with warm-up. The primary focus of mobility is to improve positions thereby improving power output and performance. Warm-up is designed to prepare the body for movement, it does not solve positional problems. Most group classes at Invictus involve a warm-up consisting of dynamic range of motion movements, which will certainly help to prepare you for the impending training session. However, if you are positionally inhibited you will need to supplement your training with mobility work in order resolve any positional problems you might have.
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I can't stress enough on how mobility utilization in my pre & post workouts help recover faster and be able to put my body to another WOD. The videos below are great examples of the types of mobility I put myself through after the workouts. Huge thanks to my buddy, Steven, for looking these up and sharing them with me so that I can share you the secrets of recovering. Try and do a mobility exercise at home or at the gym this week!
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