Crossfit for Athletes – Really?
August 15, 2011 by danny · Leave a Comment
I get Crossfit questions all the time from people. I usually just forward them a link or two and tell them that these articles basically echo my thoughts. For example … The Truth About Crossfit
This saves me time.
But I thought I’d make a Crossfit post right here on my site. So, in the future I will be able to just forward this link onto those that ask me their Crossfit questions.
You could just read the above article, but in case you are not in the mood to do so, here are some of my thoughts.
-I do not think that Crossfit is all bad
-The camaraderie is great! This can’t be overlooked as working with a group of motivated people can by HUGE in getting great results. But this does not mean the program design is smart, safe, or optimal.
-If you are just a person that is looking to drop a few pounds and, “get in shape,” Crossfit certainly can “work.” They use big compound movements, work hard, and each workout presents a challenge in which they try to outperform previous performances. But again, this can be done with a program designed to meet the individuals needs - rather than randomly doing a little this and a little that, with no regard to the individuals goals, health history, training age, etc. etc.
Crossfit For Athletes
Now this is where it can get a little ridiculous. Eric Cressey wrote a great blogpost awhile back titled, “Crossfit For Baseball?” Even though he highlights baseball, the theme of his post holds true for all sports. This morning I went out for breakfast (second breakfast 
) and sitting right next to me was a former MLB player (I’ll keep him nameless). I overhear him telling another guy that they just opened up an AWESOME training facility. He tells the guy that it is over 15,000 square feet and as he starts to describe it. I’m thinking wow, this sounds pretty kick ass! He then goes on to say, ~ “we’re going to be training softball players, baseball players, and athletes from various other sports. We’re using Crossfit, blah, blah, blah.” NOOOOOO!
So here’s what we have; a big name MLBer that probably contributed to putting together this beautiful facility, and they get to use his name to attract many clients/athletes… to use Crossfit to train their athletes.?. Yeah, this MLBer had skills on the field, but this does not qualify him to make sound decisions (including the trainer(s) to hire) when it comes to program design to best meet the needs of their athletes.
Now, some Crossfitters may read this and say that they modify the program to meet the needs of their clients. That’s all good and dandy, and here’s my response; then you are not doing Crossfit. You are writing up an individualized program for your client. And again, if you are doing Crossfit with your athletes, then you are doing them a disservice (go read Eric’s article from above if you haven’t already).
Once again, I want to reiterate, Crossfit is not all bad. My advice is to take the good from Crossfit (and the good from other philosophies/methods) and use it all to give your client’s programs (or your own programs) individualization… especially if they are athlete’s that are expected to complete at a high level where improved performance and injury prevention is paramount.
Ah, done. Now I can just forward this blogpost to all the people that ask me about Crossfit. You feel free to do the same.
I know this is the kind of post that will probably bring the hate mail. That’s ok, I just hope posts like this will at least make people take a step back and consider their training methods/philosophies. If I made you think then I did my job.
My Current Training Block…
February 9, 2011 by danny · Leave a Comment
It has been awhile since I posted my training routine. I’ve had a few people in person and on facebook recently ask me what my training looks like right now. So I thought it was a good time to share. Those that are familiar with my methods, know that I believe that there are many ways to skin a cat in regards to the best training split to use. Throughout the course of the year, I’ll use a number of different splits… upper/lower split, body part split, full body training, “hybrid” split (i.e. Monday – Full Body, Wednesday – Upper, Thursday – Lower, Saturday – hit a body part or two that I’m trying to bring up). Each split has its potential pros and cons. I don’t seem to respond best to any particular split (as I mentioned in this blogpost with Bret Contreras), so I’ll rotate them in where I see fit (what kind of time I have available due to work/family/coaching obligations; what split fires me up the most to train; what split I haven’t done in awhile, etc). If you have found one that gives you the best results, I suggest you use that split for the majority of the training year.
For the first time in months, I’m using a full body routine. The great thing about full body training, is that it allows you to hit a muscle/movement pattern often throughout the week. As I mentioned above, you could also pick apart a few things about full body training, as you could with any split. But let’s not go there today. The increased frequency in which I am stimulating each muscle group with this program will (hopefully) lead to a sexier me! 
Day 1
A1) Hip Thrust 3 X 10-12
A2) Incline Chest Press – DB 3 X 8
B1) Front Squats 3 X 6-8
B2) Mixed Grip Pull-ups 3 X AMRAP (set 1 = a tempo of 211, the rest of the sets = a tempo of 201)
C1) Low Rope Hammer Curls 3 X 15
C2) Band Close-Grip Push-ups 2 X AMRAP (As Many Reps As Possible)
D) Seated Lateral Raise 1 Set – do 15-20 reps, take a 10 second and do AMRAP, take another 10 second break and do AMRAP
Day 2
A1) Standing Shoulder Press 3 X 10
A2) 1L (one leg) RDL 3 X 8L (per leg)
B1) TRX Row with ER (external rotation) 4 X 6 (tempo = 2011)
B2) Bulgarian Split Squat, Back Squat 2 X 7L, 1 X 15 (that is, 2 sets of bulgarians and 1 set of back squats)
C1) Hammer Curls 3 X 12
C2) Overhead Tricep Extension 3 X 12
D) Slight Incline Chest Press 1 Set - do 20-25, rest 10 seconds, perform AMRAP, rest 10 seconds and perform AMRAP
Day 3
A1) Barbell Elevated Deadlifts 2 X 3, 1 X 10
A2) Fillers
B1) Seated Cable Chest Press, Seated Cable Chest Fly 2,1 X 10,15 (2 sets of 10 presses followed by 1 set of 15 flyes)
B2) FF, RR Walking Lunges (Forward-Forward, Reverse-Reverse Walking Lunges) 3 X 5/Movement
C1) NG (neutral grip) Seated Cable Rows, Chins 2,1 X 8, AMRAP (2 sets of 8 rows and 1 set of AMRAP chins)
C2) Tricep Pushdowns 1,2 X 20,12 (1 set of 20 and 2 sets of 12)
D1) Ab Wheel Rollouts, Split-Stance Cable Lift 1,1 X 10 (1 set of each for 10 reps)
D2) Reverse Grip EZ Bar Curls 2,1 X 8,12 (sets of 8, 1 set of 12)
Program Notes
-The sets and reps you see are in accordance with week 1. I keep the volume a little lower in week 1 to try to reduce soreness. In the weeks to come I use a bit of cybernetic approach (going by feel) where I up the amount of sets if I am “feeling it.”
-I’ve been toying with hip thrusts for awhile, but haven’t really gone heavy yet because I just purchased my Hampton Thick Bar Pad. This thing makes the lift much more comfortable, as the bar does NOT hurt while digging into your pelvis. As I’m getting a better feel for this exercise, I’ll be going heavier and working in the lower rep ranges soon.
-My main goal is hypertrophy right now.
-I also train my wussy calves, but I usually do them on “off” days. Since my job is in a gym, I usually find a 10-15 minute gap between clients somewhere in the day to hit them 2-3 times per week.
Alright, there’s your sneak peak of my current training block. I definitely put thought into making sure I am balancing things out to keep myself healthy and strong. But even more important then what the “paper” tells you about a program, is the effort that goes into each session. And I always give it my all!
