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CLOSE TO YAKKING
Obj: Power Endurance
Warm up: Row 500m (easy)
Training: (1) 100x Curtis P
1x Curtis P = Hang squat clean, right leg
lunge, left leg lunge, push press
Comments:
Twight names these type of events "Single Movement Mind Fucks" and the description fits today. One hundred Curtis
P's takes the athlete on a difficult mental journey.
I can't remember where I found this exercise. If I remember right, I modified something really similar. I named it after
a great workout partner I had in Pinedale - an intense welder named Curtis P. Neil. We used to race to 30 reps of these things,
and in the middle of his reps, with sweat flying, spit shooting, and eyes blazing, Curtis would scream, "I love this
fuckin' exercise! I love this fuckin' exercise!" - so I named it after him.
When loaded just right, the Curtis P has the unique ability to cause muscular and cardiovascualr failure at just about
the same moment. It can be a devastating full body exercise.
I rarely prescribe these mostly-mental sessions now. I've grown weary of the "killer" workout hype. I'm not
not out to prove anything.
All the same, completing 100 Curtis P's in one session is a mental and physical struggle, rewarded with a fantastic sense
of accomplishment.
I try to load so this is an extended effort - 35-50 minutes. Some athletes will do smaller sets of 3-5 reps, with shorter
rests. Others will do longer sets of say 10 reps, and take longer rests. How they break it up I leave to the athletes.
If loaded correctly, 15-20 reps in, athletes will begin thinking this is an impossible task, and the room will grow dark
and quiet. At around 50 reps, they will realize they can finish - and the mood will pick up.
Three or four of my athletes, after their first or second set, wanted me to decrease their load. I resisted. There's some
danger here. The obvious one is the load is actually too heavy, and they won't be able to finish. But if you know your athletes
like I do, this is rare. Usually, they just don't think they can.
Second, and less obvious, is that you decrease the load for them, they are able to finish, but feel less about themselves
because the other athletes in the session stuck it out as loaded. So as a coach you may think you are helping them out by
decreasing the load - but you might actually be cheating them.
I used 95#, was fighting stomach flu, and finished in about 50 minutes, "close to yakking." My last sets were
4 or less reps. For my strongest male athletes, I prescribed 85#. Most women used 45, or 55#. My strongest woman used 65#.
Several commented that this was one of the hardest sessions they've ever completed in the gym.
EMAIL QUESTION:
Rob, great web-site I got turned on by a freind. I wanted to know if you support any type of nutrition plan or go into
any detail in your seminars? Any input would be greatly appreciated.
- Kristin
COMMENT/ANSWER
I'm certainly no expert, and have played around with the paleo diet myself. It seems two things are at work.
First, CrossFit advocates the zone diet, with extra fat. I know several top CrossFit athletes do the Paleo diet instead
of or as a "bridge" to the zone because it doesn't require measuring.
But in the gym we've found that Paleo/Zone are difficult to sustain for endurance events and my guides, with their hectic
lives, just have trouble getting enough fuel, and don't have time to bother with restrictive diets. When I do endurance stuff,
I start with a carb breakfast like oatmeal or a bagel.
I seems the Paleo/Zone is ideal, but is it really if it's not sustainable? One of the problems with Paleo, for example,
it it's expensive - something mentioned by my younger, dirtbag (poor) climbers.
So, to answer your question, I do speak about nutrition in general terms like these at the seminar, but don't go into
it indepthly. I'm still working to find a the right balanced healthy, performance oriented diet, that is reasonably priced,
and sustainable too.
- Rob
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| Cara |
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| Andy |
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| Claire |
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| Mark, Ben |
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| Kevin, between rounds, near the end. |
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