Ever taken time off from training and found getting back to it feels like an uphill battle? In this episode, we dive into some of these challenges of returning to CrossFit competition and training after a layoff. Luke reflects on jumping back into a team competition after a five-year break, and Todd shares his journey of rebuilding post-Achilles injury. We discuss the hurdles of getting reacquainted with volume and intensity, dealing with unexpected cramping, and how to develop durability and resilience to help with this.

If you're not already subscribed to our newsletter, head over to www.legionsc.com to get a weekly selection of training tips and our favorite articles.

We run online workshops for coaches as well. Find out when our next workshop is here: https://legionsc.com/program-design-workshops

These podcasts are posted in video format on YouTube as well.

Show Notes:

• [1:00] Luke’s return to CrossFit competition
• [6:15] When general training doesn’t transfer over
• [7:45] Carryover for different populations and beginners
• [10:30] When specificity in training becomes essential
• [12:45] Todd’s Achilles recovery and return to training
• [15:00] Managing cramping in competitions and high-volume sessions
• [23:00] Building your threshold for volume and intensity
• [27:00] The endurance component of team competitions

In a varied sport like CrossFit, athletes often gravitate toward specific areas of focus, which can be influenced by their height and weight. Since weight is a changeable factor, some athletes set specific bodyweight goals. For example, some aim to lose weight to enhance bodyweight movements like pull-ups and handstand push-ups, while others seek to gain weight to increase strength in heavy lifts, particularly during off-season training.

A crucial aspect of CrossFit is determining whether a weight gain or loss plan translates into improved performance. For some athletes, increased weight can boost raw strength numbers, but it doesn’t always enhance repeated heavy lifts during a metabolic conditioning (metcon) workout. Conversely, losing bodyweight might make certain gymnastics skills easier, but applying this into the sport can present challenges.

We apologize for the audio issues in this podcast. There are moments of overlap, but we do manage to get to the main points each time.

If you're not already subscribed to our newsletter, head over to www.legionsc.com to get a weekly selection of training tips and our favorite articles.

We run online workshops for coaches as well. Find out when our next workshop is here: https://legionsc.com/program-design-workshops

These podcasts are posted in video format on YouTube as well.

Show Notes:

• [2:00] Jon's semi finals athlete looking to gain weight for next years season
• [5:45] Keeping up with the carbs as a competitor
• [8:30] Managing training volume with non-exercise activity
• [12:00] Does it translate back into the sport?
• [19:00] Luke waking up at 2am to take some weight gain shakes

Every athlete has probably experienced it at some point—hitting that wall in the middle of some mixed-modal intervals. One second, you're holding pace, and the next, it feels like everything falls apart.

Bonking on mixed modal intervals is more common than when doing cyclical work because you don't have immediate feedback on paces from the machine. There is also a lag effect: You will likely push too hard on one movement but not feel it one or two movements later.

In this episode, we take a closer look at why bonking happens and explore different strategies to navigate and adjust a session when it does. We also touch on the mindset athletes often have around numbers, paces, and metrics—how attachment to these can hinder performance when not recognising session to session variance.

If you're not already subscribed to our newsletter, head over to www.legionsc.com to get a weekly selection of training tips and our favorite articles.

We run online workshops for coaches as well. Find out when our next workshop is here: https://legionsc.com/program-design-workshops

These podcasts are posted in video format on YouTube as well.

Show Notes:

• [2:20] Jon's aggressive interval programming
• [4:00] How to avoid this in the workout prescription
• [7:00] Alternative ways of using RPE
• [8:00] The benefit of using machines in intervals
• [11:20] When athletes are stubborn on certain numbers and interval paces
• [14:00] Understanding the psychology of the athlete with pacing suggestions
• [17:15] How to respond in the middle of the session when this happens
• [21:00] Changing the movements on intervals

There comes a stage in training where week-to-week progress grinds to a halt, and it is often met with feeling like you have regressed or are stuck. You can even stretch this timeline out, and it might feel like noticeable progress doesn't happen for months. This can be a difficult realisation to overcome, and it is a constant battle that challenges many athletes and coaches.

But progress doesn't have to be measured by adding more weight to the bar or knocking off seconds on your interval split times. A lot of CrossFit is about maintaining your abilities under more duress and fatigue.

In this episode, we discuss some other, more discreet ways to measure progress and see if an athlete is improving. We talk about how this applies to different training modalities and how we can harness it to help motivate athletes, along with some other thoughts and ideas about programming.

If you're not already subscribed to our newsletter, head over to www.legionsc.com to get a weekly selection of training tips and our favorite articles.

We run online workshops for coaches as well. Find out when our next workshop is here: https://legionsc.com/program-design-workshops

These podcasts are posted in video format on YouTube as well.

Show Notes:

• [2:30] The goal of training is to create adaptation
• [4:30] Alternative and discreet measures of progress
• [6:00] Progress happens under the curve
• [8:45] Athlete confidence or progress?
• [10:00] Tricking athletes with different styles of programming
• [11:30] Accumulating work as a form of improvement
• [13:30] Making your performance more durable
• [14:45] Durability of gymnastics skills
• [17:00] Being flexible with gymnastics programming

For someone devoting themselves to the sport of CrossFit, the way they train and approach competition is pretty clear-cut. Similarly, for the person doing classes to be healthy and stay fit, the way you train is clear-cut. But for the person who wants to do local competition, treat CrossFit as a recreational sport, but isn't interested in overstretching themselves, it can be more challenging. 

It's this messy middle ground that can be hard for athletes and coaches to navigate. The sport of CrossFit is different from the training methodology, and it's a challenge to try to get the best from both.

In this episode of the podcast, we discuss our experiences working in gyms where this comes up and remote coaching athletes who try to do this. We also talk about some ways CrossFitters can take themselves a little less seriously in their training but still get something from the competitive side of the sport. We also discuss the recent move towards endurance activities for many CrossFitters as they get older and transition out of the sport. 

If you're not already subscribed to our newsletter, head over to www.legionsc.com to get a weekly selection of training tips and our favorite articles.

We run online workshops for coaches as well. Find out when our next workshop is here: https://legionsc.com/program-design-workshops

These podcasts are posted in video format on YouTube as well.

Show Notes:

• [1:00] Competing but not taking it too seriously
• [2:20] Competitors at South Loop SC
• [4:30] Competitors at CrossFit Omnia
• [6:30] CrossFit as a methodology versus a sport
• [8:13] Competitive landscape in different countries
• [9:30] When it might be inappropriate for someone to compete
• [13:30] Behaviour and competitiveness other recreational sports compared to CrossFit
• [16:00] Compartmentalising training and competing in CrossFit
• [17:30] Magical thinking in competitive CrossFit
• [19:00] CrossFitters transitioning into more endurance style events

Continuing with our very timely podcast release schedule about this year's CrossFit Games season, this week's podcast features a recap of the semi-finals for one of Jon's athletes, Jacob Schmidt.

This year, Jacob switched to individual competition after competing at the games for CrossFit Omnia's team in the last few years. Jacob's preparation was by no means a walk in the park. He had to get used to a different competition style, start training for a competition he didn't plan on doing and manage an acute back injury right when he should have been practising the workouts.

Check out this episode to hear Jon's reflection on all of this, as well as our usual unsolicited opinions on scoring, competition organisation, and the structure of the games.

If you're not already subscribed to our newsletter, head over to www.legionsc.com to get a weekly selection of training tips and our favorite articles.

We run online workshops for coaches as well. Find out when our next workshop is here: https://legionsc.com/program-design-workshops

These podcasts are posted in video format on YouTube as well.

Show Notes:

• [1:20] Making the jump from team to individual competition
• [4:20] Switching training focus from the games to semi finals
• [7:00] Scoring in quarter finals, semi finals and the games
• [9:30] Managing an acute back injury during prep
• [12:20] Training for the tests after workouts are released
• [16:50] The Snatch event

A little late on posting this topical podcast. Here are our thoughts on the quarter-finals penalties that happened this season. Jon experienced firsthand as a coach how these penalties were rolled out this year. Check out this episode where we discuss the events of this season, live versus in person competition as well as how these situations could be resolved in future years and competitions.

If you're not already subscribed to our newsletter, head over to www.legionsc.com to get a weekly selection of training tips and our favorite articles.

We run online workshops for coaches as well. Find out when our next workshop is here: https://legionsc.com/program-design-workshops

These podcasts are posted in video format on YouTube as well.

Show Notes:

• [1:00] The penalties in this years quarter finals
• [5:00] Jon's experience with the penalties and his athletes
• [7:30] Judging online versus in person
• [10:30] Nitpicking movements in slow motion
• [15:00] Video review in other sports
• [17:25] Real time movement versus snapshot movement
• [18:30] Grouping recreational athletes with the world elite
• [19:30] Balancing bad calls and nitpick enforcement of the rules
• [22:00] Logistical burden of running the CF Games season
• [25:00] Not reviewing everyone

It is easy to lose sight of the bigger picture in the fitness and performance industry. There is a lot of misleading information that coaches and athletes have to sift through, which is difficult when the information is accurate most of the time. 

But do many of these claims move the needle and improve an athlete on the things that matter? Does doing a lot of zone two work help with CrossFit performance? Do certain mobility protocols help with recovery?

In this podcast, we discuss developing skepticism with certain things in training and coaching and share some of the things we have fallen for as younger, more gullible coaches. 

If you're not already subscribed to our newsletter, head over to www.legionsc.com to get a weekly selection of training tips and our favorite articles.

We run online workshops for coaches as well. Find out when our next workshop is here: https://legionsc.com/program-design-workshops

These podcasts are posted in video format on YouTube as well.

Show Notes:

• [1:30] Overly scientific claims in the fitness and training industry
• [3:00] Knees Over Toes
• [5:15] Structural balance
• [9:30] Overly mechanistic explanations
• [11:30] Using studies to support claims
• [14:00] Making claims about the 'one' missing thing
• [17:30] Going all in on something
• [19:20] The appeal of very technical explanations
• [20:00] Luke's zone two rant
• [24:30] What slows people down in CrossFit workouts

This year's quarter-finals workouts were well received by the CrossFit community as a whole. Many enjoyed the simplicity of the workouts, which provided a good challenge for athletes of various levels.

We saw workouts that were more compartmentalised than in previous years. There was less chaos, simpler skills, and no crushingly high volume of work on things like GHD sit-ups. The workouts this year actually present some useful retests and KPIs for athletes to use in their training.

In this episode, we discuss what we liked and didn't like about the workouts, where we see their utility in testing and benchmarks, and how we will change our programming to adjust to these changes. 

If you're not already subscribed to our newsletter, head over to www.legionsc.com to get a weekly selection of training tips and our favorite articles.

We run online workshops for coaches as well. Find out when our next workshop is here: https://legionsc.com/program-design-workshops

These podcasts are posted in video format on YouTube as well.

Show Notes:

• [1:30] The ever changing landscape of the CrossFit Games season
• [3:00] This years quarter finals programming
• [5:20] Compartmentalising skills in
• [7:00] Using this years workouts as benchmarks and KPIs
• [9:00] You don't need to be peaked to do these workouts unlike before
• [11:00] Balancing the workouts for different levels
• [13:00] The legibility of the workouts helping make training decisions
• [18:00] What we're going to change in our programming this year

Qualifiers can be a stressful experience for athletes. The online leaderboard and the doubt created by not seeing other athletes perform all make for potentially neurotic self-comparison.    With quarter-finals being much easier to qualify for, the open has less weight than in previous years. And now you're starting to see athletes say they are not interested in peaking for the open, who then get upset when they perform not to where they expected.    Managing the psychology and framing expectations for athletes is very important. Because letting emotions spiral out of control and overreacting can be a big disservice to your performance in the later stages of the season.    This week, we discuss all things disappointment in qualifiers and specifically the open. We also touch on the importance of enjoyment in training and why in-person competitions are the way to go.   

If you're not already subscribed to our newsletter, head over to www.legionsc.com to get a weekly selection of training tips and our favorite articles.

We run online workshops for coaches as well. Find out when our next workshop is here: https://legionsc.com/program-design-workshops

These podcasts are posted in video format on YouTube as well.

Show Notes:

• [1:00] Why can athletes get too caught up in qualifiers
• [3:00] Self comparison spiralling out of control
• [4:15] The variance in the tests have a significant impact
• [6:30] Doing the open when you're not peaked yet
• [8:00] Getting carried away with competition when you don't need to
• [9:30] Training during the open for an athlete focused on quarter finals
• [11:00] Framing what a good performances are for the athlete
• [15:30] Being objective with the leaderboard
• [17:00] Enjoying your training and doing in person competitions

Often, when someone comes through the ranks of class workouts and starts to contemplate competing in CrossFit, they conjure up an image of their training having to dramatically change to "take it to the next level". In reality, they need to get more exposure to the sport and develop experience.

Telling someone to do more of the sport can seem like a cop-out answer, but there is so much to work on and develop in CrossFit; it can take a few years to see where you need to focus your training. In this episode, we talk about how an athlete can get more exposure in an intelligent and structured way. We also discuss the timeline of progress that different athletes have in the sport.

If you're not already subscribed to our newsletter, head over to www.legionsc.com to get a weekly selection of training tips and our favorite articles.

We run online workshops for coaches as well. Find out when our next workshop is here: https://legionsc.com/program-design-workshops

These podcasts are posted in video format on YouTube as well.

Show Notes:

• [1:30] Getting more exposure to the sport
• [3:50] Structuring your training more like a competitor
• [7:00] Getting experience to help with pacing
• [8:30] The low hanging fruit when getting started
• [11:15] Benefits to focusing on training hard and being consistent
• [14:00] Quickest timeline from beginner to semi-finals
• [22:00] Patterns of progress with different athletes