It’s a Celebration!

It’s a Celebration!

People love to celebrate! I love to celebrate! But what warrants a celebration in terms of a fitness journey? Here are a few examples of celebrations you will encounter at the gym and my thoughts on them.

1. The Slow Lift PR: This is your Squat, Deadlift, Bench or Shoulder Press. These slower lifts can see some incredible growth in a relatively short time frame with those who are newer to the lifting game. Almost any type of program will elicit some positive change. As your training age increases these gains will become harder and harder to obtain. More variety of exercise is needed and at some point an individual program will be necessary for continued progress. Obviously these all warrant a CELEBRATION!
2. The Fast Lift PR: This is your Snatch, Clean, Jerk, Push Press or other variation. These faster/explosive lifts require more attention to technique and skill development. There is no “Grinding” your way to these PRs as their Neurological properties tax the body in a different way that may have you feeling physically strong, but without the fine motor skills needed to correctly execute the lifts. These require PRACTICE and PATIENCE, as 10,000 reps are needed to form a motor movement, if those are 10,000 shitty reps (or for you who think you are already great, less than perfect reps) the end state will be a less than ideal ingrained movement pattern. So we say PERFECT PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT! When PRS are obtained in these lifts a CELEBRATION is most definitely warranted!  
3. The MetCon PR: These are your Bench Mark Girls and Heroes. These are the heart and soul of Old School CrossFit and measure your ability to move large loads, over long distances, quickly. A MetCon is all about how much work you put in to increase not just your ability to SUCK WIND and SUFFER, but how much did you work to increase all 10 general physical skills. They are Cardio Respiratory Endurance, Stamina, Strength, Flexibility, Power, Speed, Coordination, Agility, Balance, and Accuracy. If you are lacking in 1 or more of these tasks your MetCon times will show it. It takes a broad, general, and inclusive program to develop all 10 of these physical traits together. When you hit a MetCon PR you have increased 1 or more of these traits and it warrants a CELEBRATION!
4. Virtuosity PR: This is being able to do the common, uncommonly well. The elusive 10 out of 10 when a movement is being judged. Technique, Consistency, Intensity should only be applied in order and repeated in a cycle. This cycle will drive all other progress in a safe and continuous manner. To obtain a perfect Air Squat, you must first learn all about the Air Squat, practice the air squat in a slow and controlled manner for your body to apply the correct muscles and movement at the right time. As you continue to do this for many many reps consistency is built. Once the squat is perfect over many reps you add speed (intensity) as your speed and reps increase with that ideal form you can now add load. As load is added your form breaks down and you begin the cycle over from the beginning. Obtaining a Virtuosity PR should be a top priority and warrants a huge CELEBRATION!

In closing, these are just the top 4 categories that have been on my mind recently as we come to the end of our annual strength biased program and move back towards a classic CrossFit schedule. Look for ways you can apply these ideas to other aspects of your life. Number 4 is great to apply to your nutrition as well. In short, everything and every piece of progress you make in regards to your Health and Fitness should be a CELEBRATION! Enjoy the journey, CELEBRATE the small victories each day, and keep that GAINZ TRAIN ROLLING! See you in the box!