Wow, what a year 2020 has been. We are almost through it…just a little bit longer. Indeed, just a couple more weeks. How will 2021 be different? The funny thing is, that we like to think of new beginnings, but you can't have a new, truly new beginning in life. Life is an amalgamation of experiences, good and bad. We cant throw the baby out with the bathwater, and just start over. We don't get to forget the past and expect everything to be different than it was yesterday. Like the New Year procrastinators screaming, “I will start tomorrow”, the problem is, tomorrow is always a day away. The best day to start WAS yesterday. All the baggage, the history, all the sweat, tears and triumphs that we have accumulated can not just be forgotten. And of course, should not be, for how else can we learn and move forward in a direction that is of benefit to the curious mind? Things that matter can not be bought, they must be earned. I am not saying that having the capital to throw in pursuit of certain endeavorers does not help, but I am suggesting that at the end of the day, the growth comes, from the challenge and journey, the struggle and failures. The victories. Not in the way of first place or the summit, but the overcoming of doubt, despair and setbacks. The victorious are those that never give up in the fight to become a better version of what they could be. Constantly vigilant, steering clear of the false trails that lead to half-realized greatness, and the dark depths, suffocated with the uninspired. The journey for many of us started long ago and has a long way to yet unfold. Be the author of that journey and write the future that you would want to look back on, and read aloud to a room full of your most admired peers.
Onto the last training of 2020.
Overview: One long hard conditioning Grind day. One new to us aerobic Sustain day. One upper body focus strength day, and one lower body focus strength day. One Olympic lifting focus day.
The upper and lower body day will consist of many rounds. Heavy lifting with opposing muscle groups, followed by a lower percentage dynamic movement. Should be fun. Definitely lower on the breathing scale than a hard conditioning effort, but wanting for no less in difficulty, just different. All the working sets of the push/pull movements should be HEAVY…but doable. By the end rounds, if loaded correctly you should feel a little sick, thinking about how many rounds you have remaining…
Long Grind session. Nothing to it, just hard work doing hard things. Keep a focused mind, keep a steady heart. Maintain an output that the gods would be proud of.
Interval Sustain session. We only gain competence in the range that it is trained. We are training our aerobic system with a classic lower and upper body push paired with a legendary hip extension pattern. And last but not least served with a little bit of cyclical consistency.
Weights should trend on the lighter side in these sessions, as all rounds must be done with identical pacing and precise movement patterns. Movements should be calculated and consistent throughout all intervals…We are trying to teach our bodies to contract and relax aerobically. That means all rounds are the exact same. Same pace, same amount of work completed.
Olympic weight lifting day…followed by an Every Minute on the Minute session. We will be working on different aspects of the Olympic lifts as we move through the next cycle. Stay light if needed, work technique, there is always something to explore and learn in new things.
Cool Downs. Hip mobility, shoulder health, and Searching for Bobby “Core” Fisher.
You get what you give. Here’s to 2021!
Coach
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