Push-Push to Pull-Pull

The last two days saw variations of pushing/pressing (both lower body and upper body) so we see Wednesday’s program shift to a pulling focus with power snatches and chest-to-bar pull-ups. And how about some double unders and a repeating interval sprint format to add skill and intensity following that aerobic piece on Tuesday?

Enjoy.

WOD FOR 12-18-19:

Power Snatch:

4-4-3-3-2-2

-then-

FIVE Cycles of 1:30 Work / 1:30 Rest For MAX REPS:

10 Chest-to-Bar Pull-ups

50 Double Unders

MAX REPS Power Snatches @ 95/65 lbs

Please RSVP to our Jan 4th Holiday Party

A quick reminder before the holiday travel really picks up for most of us — please save the date of Saturday, January 4th (from 5pm to 8pm) for our 8th Annual Arena Ready Holiday Party!

We’ve created an Event here in our private Arena Ready Facebook group, so kindly RSVP to let us know who & how many to expect. More details will be posted to the Event page and the blog in the coming weeks, so stay tuned if you’re planning on attending — we look forward to celebrating with all of you.

WOD For 12-17-19:

AMRAP 20 Minutes:

20/16 Calorie Row, Ski, or Assault Bike

20 Single Dumbbell Overhead Walking Lunges @ 35/20 lbs (switch arms after 10 reps)

20 AbMat Sit-ups

10 Burpee Box Jumps @ 24/20 in

Welcome Katoa: AR's General Manager

We would like to officially welcome Katoa Ahau to the Arena Ready staff as he joins our team in the role of Coach and General Manager!  You’ve likely been in class with him, or had the entertaining misfortune of partnering with him in a team WOD (he goes hard, and he goes fast LOL), so many of you are already familiar with his impressive work capacity & strength, humble enthusiasm, and welcoming energy (I think they call that the spirit of Aloha).  Katoa has also been coaching many of us in class over the fall & early winter, bringing his experience as a former D1 athlete and lifetime fitness enthusiast to the community.

Here’s a little about him, from the man himself...

Hello Arena Ready Family!

I’m so excited to have been a part of the Arena Ready community for these last 3 months, working out, shadowing other coaches, and coaching some fantastic athletes. 

I was born and raised in Hawaii, on the island of O'ahu. If you ever need any food or activity tips, I’m your guy! Rob and I share the same alma mater, as I graduated from the University of San Francisco in 2018. Although I’m one of the younger members of the community, I bring a wealth of CrossFit and athletic experience that I look forward to sharing with all of you.

I was a 4 year student-athlete while at USF. I ran Cross Country and participated in Track and Field where I ran the 200, the 400, the 800, and threw the javelin. During my athletic career I underwent Tommy John surgery to fix a torn UCL, and as such I also look forward to bringing my rehab experience to the gym as a useful tool for our members.

I am an aspiring competitor, with aims to make it to the CrossFit Games. Before AR I was following a CrossFit program and training at a regular, un-affiliated gym. Prior to obtaining my Level 1 certificate I was captain of the USF Track team for 2 years, as well as a guest instructor at my brother's fitness studio in Las Vegas. 

If we haven't met yet there's no doubt you'll see more of me as I coach classes throughout the week. Don't be afraid to introduce yourself - I look forward to getting to know & coach everyone in the Arena Ready community!

Please join us in welcoming Katoa to the team!

WOD For 12-16-19:

Strict Press:

5-4-3-2-1-1-1

Use the seven working sets to build to a heavy single for today.

-then-

Back Squat:

1-3-1-5-1-7

The goal is three heavy singles, each followed by a “down set” of multiple (and ascending) repetitions.  The athlete should build to their first single with 3-4 warm-up sets, and then once the first single is taken there should be no “in-between” or “test” sets during the SIX total work sets. 

Since this type of session requires the athlete to “go by feel” some will inevitably ask for advice on loading - here is a rough idea of what a typical progression might look like for someone who squats approximately 250 lbs as a 1RM (keeping in mind that athletes will vary!):

Empty Bar + Three to Four Warm-up Sets, then…

1 @ 225 lbs

3 @ 205 lbs

1 @ 235 lbs

5 @ 200 lbs

1 @ 240 lbs

7 @ 195 lbs

Keep your rest strict at approx 1:30 - 2:00 between sets.  There is no “rule” about the singles going up or down in weight, and the same goes for the sets of 3, 5, and 7 (they can go slightly up, go slightly down, or stay the same) - it all depends on the individual athlete and how they feel today.  Take what’s there today, come back tomorrow.  

Reminder: Saturday's On-Boarding For Newcomers

We have a few spots left for Saturday’s “Introduction to CrossFit” class at 12:00pm. So tell your buddy or neighbor that’s been thinking about it to check out this post here and then sign-up for free here… boom.

Meantime, here’s a Sweaty Saturday Special that will make the rainy week feel like it’s ending with some rain inside the gym. You know, cause it’s sweaty. The workout. Is this thing on?

WOD For 12-14-19:

With a Partner For Time:

Partner A

400 Calorie Row (MF Pairs = 360 / FF Pairs = 320)

Partner B

4/3 Bar Muscle-ups

8 Shoulder-to-Overhead @ 135/95 lbs

12 Pistols (alternate)

Partner B completes one FULL round of 4-8-12 then partners switch. Time is called when all 400 calories are completed, or the team is scored as total calories completed at the time cap.

Friday the 13th: Deads & Dips

Happy Friday, friends!

WOD For 12-13-19:

Deadlift Triples:

8 Minutes to Build to a Working Weight Heavier Than to Be Used Below

-then-

FIVE Cycles of 2:00 Work / 2:00 Rest For Max Reps Ring Dips:

10 Deadlifts @ 245/165 lbs

20 Box Jump Overs @ 24/20 (no rebounding)

Max Reps Ring Dips

Med Ball Madness

Be glad that the rain saved us from the original version of this WOD which swaps the row/ski/bike for a 400m med ball run. Gross. And yay!

WOD For 12-13-19:

AMRAP 20 Minutes:

25/20 Calorie Row, Ski, or Assault Bike

20 Med Ball Sit-ups @ 20/14 lbs

20 Med Ball Cleans

20 Med Ball Box Step-ups @ 24/20 in

Calling All AR Member Referrals! Dec 14th On-Boarding...

REMINDER that our December 14th on-boarding for newcomers (click for details) is in less than three days!

We're lucky to have a community of members with a very high retention rate, and as such we have dozens and dozens of folks who have been with us for 3, 4, 5, 6 and even 7+ years (from the very beginning!). This creates the sort of unique and welcoming atmosphere we have at the gym... a close knit family of like-minded people from all different walks of life, who support and encourage each other in the pursuit of getting better. While we receive inquiries nearly every day from new people looking to join Arena Ready, we keep the intake & on-boarding process deliberate in order to keep our membership at a controlled number - putting us in that sweet spot of knowing everyone in the gym, and being able to coach each athlete in a personal manner that ultimately leads to real progress.

Why am I telling all of you this?  Because we want you (the members of AR) to help us continue to build Arena Ready with the sort of amazing people we already have in the building.  We want your significant others, your family members, your friends, your neighbors, your loved ones - those are the folks we want to be a part of this incredible community, and those are the people who tend to stick around and really make fitness a lifestyle... because they already have you as a built-in advocate and support system.  That's not to say we don't love the complete strangers who find their way to us and eventually become big parts of the AR family - we certainly have our fair share of those stories as well.  But since so many of you ask us on a regular basis when the next on-boarding opportunity will be (because you have someone special in mind who you think might really enjoy it and benefit from the program) we wanted to post this here to let everyone know.  

So send them our way and help us fill the place with the incredible people in your life.  They can register for the free class on our website here!  Existing AR members who would like to sit-in on the first half of the "Introduction to CrossFit" class can simply show up and hang out - no need to register for the class online.

Thanks, and let us know if you have any questions!

WOD For 12-11-19:

Hang Power Snatch + Overhead Squat + Squat Snatch:

Build to a Top Set Heavier Than to Be Used Below

-then-

For Time:

40 Russian KB Swings @ 70/53 lbs

30 Hang Power Snatches @ 95/65 lbs

20 Squat Snatches

10 Overhead Squats

Where will you plan on taking your intentional breaks in order to keep your movement quality high and your time fast? They are not mutually exclusive.

Tuesday Gymnasty Skills

A gymnasty Tuesday program builds volume and positional practice, and incorporates work/rest intervals after Monday’s sprints. Be smart about your grip with this piece, and see if you can hold a high level of accuracy with unbroken double unders as well!

WOD For 12-10-19:

Every 3 Minutes For 6 Rounds (18 Minutes):

3 Strict Pull-ups

6 Kipping Pull-ups (butterfly not allowed)

9 Toes-to-Bar

40 Unbroken Double Unders

Going unbroken on the bar/hanging movements is NOT required, but if you are a gymnastics ninja and can do so safely (without losing your grip) with solid positions & technique then have fun!

-then-

Weighted (or Unweighted) Plank Hold:

3 x 0:45 (Rest 0:15)

Monday Back-to-Back Sprints

Hope you all had an awesome weekend. Here’s to some thrusters to start the week!

WOD For 12-09-19:

Thruster:

12 Minutes to Build to a Heavy Triple

-then-

For Time:

250m Row

20 Single Dumbbell Hang Snatches @ 50/35 lbs

30 Burpees

… REST 4 MINUTES, THEN…

For Time:

250m Row

20 Thrusters @ 95/65 lbs

30 Front Rack Lunges @ 95/65 lbs

Winter On-Boarding: Saturday, December 14th

Our free "Introduction to CrossFit" on-boarding class for newcomers is next Saturday (Dec 14th) at 12:00pm.  There are a handful of membership spaces available so if anyone you know has been wanting to join as a newcomer make sure to spread the word!

For more details on how & why we on-board newcomers in small groups at carefully chosen intervals throughout the year click here to read a previous On-Boarding" post which details a bit of the background on our philosophy.  To lazy to read it?  OK then, here's the basic scoop: we do what we do to maintain quality, an ideal coach-to-athlete ratio in every class, and a caring community composed of like-minded people who consider fitness a sustainable, long-term lifestyle.  

So tell your friends and family to sign-up for this Saturday and get started at Arena Ready (click here for more details and to reserve an On-Boarding spot)!

WOD FOR 12-07-19:

With a Partner…

7 Cycles of 2:00 Work / 1 :00 Rest For MAX REPS of Wall Balls:

14 Hand-Release Push-ups TOGETHER

14 Deadlifts @ 225/155 lbs SPLIT

MAX REPS Wall Balls @ 20/14 lbs to 10/9 ft SPLIT

*Score = total number of Wall Balls completed

*HR Push-ups are completed together simultaneously (i.e. both partners do 14 reps at the same time and deadlifts cannot start until BOTH partners have completed push-ups)

*Deadlifts and Wall Balls are split with only one partner working at a time (reps do not have to be split evenly)

(Compare to 12-01-18)

Friday: Pre-Hab, Intensity, Accessory

Let’s start the weekend right with a three-part piece and a break from all the barbell-ing we’ve done over the last four days. Here’s some pre-hab/stability work for the shoulders, a deft dose of intensity and unilateral work, and then more mid-line accessory for that winter core-of-steel you’re building.

Happy Friday, fitness friends!

WOD FOR 12-06-19:

DB or KB Turkish Get-up:

1-1-1-1-1

For Quality (1 Left then 1 Right = 1 Set)

-then-

AMRAP 10 Minutes:

50 Double Unders

20 Single DB Hang Clean-to-Overhead @ 50/35 lbs (switch sides whenever)

5 Strict Pull-ups (any grip is allowed)

-then-

Tabata:

Med Ball Russian Twists @ pick load

Score = Lowest Round

Snatch Complex + Work/Rest Interval Capacity & Skill

After Wednesday’s 20-minute, heavy(ish) slog here’s a snatch complex session followed by a work/rest piece with some skill elements blended with interval work capacity.

Enjoy!

WOD FOR 12-05-19:

Power Snatch + Hang Squat Snatch + Overhead Squat:

12 Minutes to Build to a Top Set (not a max)

-then-

4 Rounds for Total Reps of Each Movement:

40 Seconds of Toes-to-Bar

20 Seconds of Rest

40 Seconds of Overhead Squats @ 115/80 lbs

20 Seconds of Rest

40 Seconds of Kettlebell Sumo Deadlift High Pulls @ 70/53 lbs

20 Seconds of Rest

Record scores for total reps of each of the three movements.