Countdown to the CrossFit Games…8! : 100708

In only 4 years the CrossFit Games have evolved from a small gathering, jokingly referred to as a BBQ…

…to an epic upset of an intense documentary…

…to a match-up of pre-qualified, world class athletes…

…and now, in one week, what started as a friendly competition at a BBQ will be hosted in an 8000 seat stadium and broadcast live to the world. The CrossFit Games this year is sure to be an amazing display of athleticism, sportsmanship and of course, CrossFit community.

Join us in watching the events live online here and we’ll meet in person on the final day to eat, drink and watch other people work hard for the title “Fittest on Earth”!

The games are July 16-18th. We’ll get together to root for our favorite athletes on Sunday, July 18th. Stay tuned for details!

WOD:

Tabata This!

(the following description of todays’ WOD is copied from the CrossFit FAQ page)

Tabata Intervals ( 20 seconds of work followed by 10 seconds of rest repeated 8 times) is applied in turn to the Squat, Rower, Pullups, Sit-ups, and Push-ups with a one minute rotation break between exercises. Each exercise is scored by the weakest number of reps (calories on the rower) in each of the eight intervals. During the one minute rotation time allowed the clock is not stopped but kept running. The score is the total of the scores from the five stations.

Some performance insights and a scoring example from Mark Twight:

1. Lying down between exercises lowers HR faster than standing, sitting or walking, indicating better recovery in the short 60 second rest.
2. Alternating upright exercise (squat, pull-up) with prone or seated exercises produces lower heart rates, and allows greater overall level of work
3. Rowing first reduces reps on all other exercises
4. Rowing reps are not seriously affected if done last
5. Improvement happens really fast when the workout is done consistently (bimonthly).
6. High number of reps may be maintained for greater number of sets as fitness improves. Rep totals do not necessarily improve per set, but now I can do 6 sets of 7 pull-ups rather than doing 11, 8, 5, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, etc. which suggests that local area endurance and lactic acid tolerance improve with this protocol.

Scoring Example:
A total score of 53 (Excellent score, BTW) is determined by adding up the lowest number of reps in any set of each exercise.
18 squats
4 pull-up
6 push-up
13 sit-up
12 row (use the calorie counter and call each calorie a rep)
This score is a 53.