CrossFit at MVMT42 – Part 2

MVM42

I have completed two weeks of my MVM42 membership and have learnt so much already and certainly feel more athletic.

Becoming more athletic

From what I can tell so far the Crossfit programming is based on regularly trying to improve your personal best (PB) or if your from the US personal record (PR) 😉. I have to say, I really like this. As a personal trainer I carry out fitness tests on my clients to find out where they are in relation to where they want to be, I then plan the best journey to get them there (programming). The tests that follow any baseline testing showcase my client’s progress, which is great for intrinsic motivation, but the data also highlights any areas that need more focus. After just two weeks of training at MVM42, I already have a very clear understanding of what my focus should be.

My focus

So far I have been holding my own pretty well and logging some fairly decent results after each session. My endurance appears to be my strength, running, rowing, high rep ‘air squats’, skipping etc I manage well. However, it has become really clear to me that if I want even better results and become more athletic I need to develop my lifting strength and calisthenic strength.

Lifting strength

A lot of the workouts involve throwing around heavy barbells (snatch, cleans, overhead pressing etc). The stronger guys excel here because the barbell obviously feels lighter to them and therefore has less effect on the heart and lungs when it is incorporated into a workout. I’m still refining the mechanics of the movements so can’t push myself too much on these until I can do the movement pattern safely.

Learning to Snatch with Coach Sam Wildman

https://youtu.be/x5o_kw-1Qg8

Calisthenic strength

This could also be referred to as relative strength, as a large part of this is how strong you are in relation to your own body weight. Although, there is also a skill element involved. Like most gym jocks I have spent most of my gym years training to move an external load (barbells, dumbells, resistance machines). When you move your own bodyweight it requires enormous skill and proprioception. For example, a handstand push up is very similar to an overhead press, except with a handstand push up you require a lot more muscles to engage to assist the pressing movement and stabilise the rest of the body parts. This type of strength I have been neglecting for so many years is actually a very important part of athleticism because a high relative strength increases one’s ability to move faster and jump higher.

Look out Matt Fraser!

crossfit games GIF

As I have said before I am loving the learning experience and I am totally confident that with the help of the team at MVM42 I will soon be much more an athlete than I have ever been. So look out Matt Fraser, I’m coming for you 😜

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