Two Months of Crossfit Update w/ Q’s

[ppaws45]

Just wrapping up my second month of Crossfit. I posted here two months ago and y’all were great!

I think I am in love! I’ve never felt better in my life physically. I have extremely greater mobility and strength. I do have a few questions! Sorry if they are annoying.

I’ve been going 5 times a week consistently. I did one-on-one sessions for a few weeks, and recently I started going to open-gym sessions to get some extra lifting or other programming in addition to the WOD.

Q’s:

1. Why am I so anxious about partner WODs? I can’t seem to want to go to them (They are on the weekend).
2. I can’t overhead squat. I can’t go low even with just the bar. I can’t figure out why. Any literature resources for tips?
3. My push jerk sucks. I can’t go heavy. How can I go heavier? Same with snatches. They kind of really suck. Anything overhead honestly.
4. My endurance sucks. How can I improve this?
5. Sore all the time that is it hard to sleep. Sometimes I feel like pulling out a pipe and taking a hit of something because it’s toouncomfortable to sleep. Lats, triceps, and hip soreness are usually the culprits.
6. How do I know if I am ready to advance a skill. I haven’t tried ring dips, or muscle ups, or HSPUs. I predict someone might say “just try it,” but like what if... I die or something? Any particular order I should advance?
7. Are using gloves during the WOD stupid? I bought some cause I want to keep my hands cute and soft, but someone called my hand protectors b*tch gloves. He said that my hands will get used to it.
8. Most important question for last: why are some the guys who go to my box so delicious looking. Okay, I’m done.

Anyways, thank y’all! Love my box and community. Everyone has been awesome.

 

[zorges]

@ppaws45 Hi mate, from my POV may be overtraininig, especially at 5 sessions a week + extras.

Taking your points in turn;

1. They seem awkward because you don't know the community too well. Find a workout buddy and plan to go to that class together.
2. Talk to your coach, it will take time, but it's all down (IMO) to flexibility. If you're as tight as you say in Q5, a foam rolling/stretch session would be key here.
3. Again, talk to your coach. It will take time. Guys at the top of their game train for months to add 1-2kgs onto their heavy lifts.
4. You need to do engine specific training, look up Year of the Engine. It's talked about loads on this sub
5. Stretch, salt bath, and some more rest days are needed. Day 2 after a big session is always the worst for me.
6. Again, talk to your coach. There are some quite standard progressions for all of the advanced gymnastics, once you master these and get stronger in the specific movements you'll know you're ready.
7. Works for some, doesn't work for others. Do what works for you, and don't listen to prats that dish out their opinions. Hand grips do save your hands, and a large proportion of the community use them, so they may be better for you as I think they are more specific for our sport
8. Pass!

Hope that helps mate, and welcome to the fam!

 

[chantelle1989g]

@ppaws45 Work on T-spine mobility and hip mobility. Catalyst Athletics and Squat University are good resources for that. Overhead strength takes time to develop. Strict press and push press with help develop overhead strength but neither Jerk and Snatch require a lot of overhead strength - they depend on the legs primarily.

Skills have progressions. If you can do a few strict pull ups, you can try kipping pull-ups, and then as you get stronger, you’ll be able to do muscle ups. But there’s nothing in your way for ring dips and HSPU - but as a skill, not in a WOD. If they feel solid then keep at it. There is risk if your form breaks down and you get into a bad position but basically, you have to try it. Butterfly pull-ups and ring muscle ups are a bit higher-risk so you should have good progressions in place first. Performance Plus Programming is pretty low-impact if you want to work on skills.

Gloves are a personal choice but nobody serious in related sports wears them (gymnastics, weightlifting, rowing - nobody wears gloves.)

Pain will fade and endurance will improve. In a few months you can add something like The Gains Lab Engine Builder but if you’re not sleeping due to DOMS, don’t go there.

 

[grizzitup]

@chantelle1989g Beginner here, also 8 weeks in! I improved my Squat inmensely with Squat university

 

[laurapalooza]

@ppaws45 I didn’t like partner wods at first but now I’m fitter and stronger I love them. I used to think I was holding others back that’s why I didn’t like them. Now I’m not. But I’m 18 months in.

 

[christine2756]

@laurapalooza This is how I felt (and sometimes still feel) about partner WODs. I’m small & female in a gym with primarily big dudes so it’s tough to pair up with someone. If this is your issue (not just the potential social-awkwardness side of things) don’t be afraid to do your own scaling. I’ll partner up but still use my own weights because these spaghetti arms ain’t lifting much

 

[laurapalooza]

@christine2756 Yup. My weight is almost always the lowest. But I’m 50 and female so I’m okay with it. Getting stronger in my own time.

 

[qutcut]

@ppaws45 Not everyone likes to work in team. Reasons can be different. Figure out yours. May be you think you're too weak. Make friends and go with them.

Overhead squat – work on your shoulder and ankle flexibility.

work on your strength and technique

 

[aaronemill12]

@ppaws45

How do I know if I am ready to advance a skill. I haven’t tried ring dips, or muscle ups, or HSPUs. I predict someone might say “just try it,” but like what if... I die or something? Any particular order I should advance?

Some suggestions I would make:

Ring dips: You can safely try one if the rings are close to the ground. Maybe even put a foot down on the floor to reduce your weight. If you are really struggling, there are some progressions. First, work on ring support hold. Then you can work on ring dip negatives.

HSPUS: Can you get into a handstand against a wall yet? That is step 1. From there, the overhead press is really going to build strength that carries over. Also, you can do a headstand with abmats under your head and do shorter range-of-motion HSPUs.

Muscle Ups: Well, first get ring dips. And then pull ups. Then we can talk more

 

[zoyla1]

@aaronemill12 You can also wrap a band around a ring, loop it through the other, and use that to support you doing ring dips.

 

[theoph]

@ppaws45

1. Partner WODS - Probably b/c you don't know a lot of people and are worried about being "worse" than your partner. Just push yourself to go anyway, you'll get over it when you see that likely no one cares about being competitive and it's a good way to make friends at the gym. Secret - many people are just as nervous about partnering up as you are!
   
2. OHS - very common. The OHS requires a lot of mobility from essentially every joint in your body (the toughest part for me is actually my T-spine! Who would have thought? Shoulders and ankles are also prime suspects). At this point, only two months in it's probably useless to even try to isolate the issue b/c there is probably more than one weak (or inflexible) link in the chain. Don't sweat it and keep working on it (without weight) as well as continuing to work on your other squat variations and overhead variations. Likely it'll come in time.
3. Overhead. Practice & mobility. Be patient. Many people have trouble with this, don't let it get you down.
   
4. Endurance. Do more. This will improve with practice more quickly than most other things, so that's nice! Do some benchmarks now (like running a mile or doing 100 wallballs or something) so that you can compare in 6 months and you'll be so happy to see your progress!
5. Soreness. Hydrate, do mobility work, and take rest days. More is not always better. Keep in mind that the biggest way to torpedo your progress is getting injured, and that's much more likely if you are over training.
6. Skill advancement. Talk to your coaches to get progressions customized to you. That's what you're paying for! You wont die, but (depending on what you are attempting) you could injure yourself, which will set you back. Coaches love helping you and they love members that are interested in learning, that's why they became coaches.
7. Gloves. Ditch the gloves...but the person who made that comment was pretty rude! First of all, the gloves will get in the way of a good grip in many instances, and will just be gross and sweaty a lot of times. Most likely, your hands will remain soft and cute anyway. But if they don't, those calluses are hard won. Wear them with pride. Also, if you do get calluses it's a good idea to gently exfoliate your hands with a pumice stone or similar to avoid tearing.
   
8. Yummy dudes. Right? My theory is that functional fitness (rather than say, body building) builds the bodies were are evolutionarily pre-disposed to find attractive. Also, a lot less shirt wearing in crossfit, so you get a good preview of the merch. And if you start dating a guy from your gym he'll probably think your hand calluses are cool, so again, just ditch the gloves.

 

[ppaws45]

@theoph thank youuu!!!!!! so helpful

 

[dawn16]

@ppaws45 Here's a few I feel qualified to answer.

1 Just go or don't go. It's a workout not a war.

4 Do crossfit.

6 You won't die.

 

[luxdei]

@ppaws45

1. I guess it’s because you are still new and don’t know the other guys that you might be matched with. It’s normal, try making friends and go together to partner Wods.
2. It’s normal too , you are missing the flexibility and the mobility aspects . Try googling Overhead squat progression or even better ask your coaches if they plan to have a pre-wod “skill section” with overhead squat . Might even make them think and do it.
3. You are only two months doing CrossFit. Might even be the “bad” mobility like question2.
   Just keep on training and eventually you will find the weights get easier. Don’t expect miracles in such a small time.
4. Training in general. Same things apply like question 3
   and maybe quit some bad habits if you have them (ex smoking)
5. I’d say your muscles are still getting used to the killer wods you are having. Or you aren’t doing any stretching after the WOD.
   I’d say get a good massage or use a foam roller yourself. Won’t be treated but it will feel a bit better. Also after the WOD is done make sure you push yourself and do stretching for like 10 Mins maybe more
6. Well depends how confident you are.
   Ex: I did my friend strict HSPUs randomly in a WOD as everyone else was doing so and I was jealous that I “couldn’t” so I tried. And I did a couple of rounds until I had to scale again so yeah Just try.

Although you should ask your coaches to give you a couple of tips while watching you. To make sure you are doing it correctly.
Ex: a progression for HSPU is Pike up Push ups on a box.
Also get a good warm up on those muscles. Don’t want to end up with an injury

1. Most people use grips, others use gloves. Other just some tape and others nothing.
   If you want your hands to be cute and soft well keep using them. But always make sure they aren’t “slippery” when you exercise else you might get an injury by falling down or something. Have some chalk by your side if they are . And if it’s still bad try barehanded then with chalk and see how it goes. Maybe you would need another pair of better quality etc etc.
2. Hehe. Focus on training and yourself not the others

 

[lewisofthenorth]

@ppaws45 Partner WODs make me very uncomfortable even though I've been at my gym for 2 years and have friends there. It just pushes me out of my comfort zone. Go and try one. I promise you'll be fine, and there are advantages to training outside of your comfort zone.

Your coach will let you know about progressions because there are usually set paths. Like kips - strict pullups - kipping pullups - chest to bars - muscle ups. Work through the progressions and don't try to get there too fast. (I speak from experience - my pullup form was shit and I had to essentially start over, but now that I did I'm making much more progress.)

You're doing a LOT of work. I think I'd pick extra skill work OR open gym. Rest is important. I'm so glad you love it!

 

[hbyej60]

@ppaws45

1. I personally struggled with partner wods, too, mainly because I didn't have a go-to partner. I had several people I was friendly with and saw each day, but no one close enough to be an automatic partner. I would get anxiety about being "picked last" and the awkward look around the gym for someone else without a partner - but our coaches are awesome and never let it be awkward. Some of my favorite workouts were with partners who I didn't know! .... another source of anxiety could be the "pressure." Its one thing when your score only depends on your own effort... but its a different game when your effort affects someone else's score, too! But honestly... no one cares. It's just about having fun, as cheesy as it sounds.
2. Overhead squats are tough. They're definitely my weakest lift, too. It might be an ankle mobility issue. My shoulder mobility is awesome but I still struggle because my knees don't drive very far over my ankles. Maybe download the GoWod app and take the free mobility assessment and find out your weakness and then google exercises to rehab it!
3. Going heavy comes with time and improvement of technique. You can only go so heavy with shitty technique before you plateau. Staying light and really nailing down good technique will allow you to keep going heavier. Its hard to focus on form during fast metcons or even during the brief strength portion of the class. Does your gym offer Oly classes, those were SO HELPFUL for me and honestly 100% necessary if you want to become a better lifter without getting injured.
4. Do more endurance activities. Running, working on double unders, rowing, burpees. It gets better with time. There's not a secret hack. You have to put in the work.
5. Soreness gets better with time, but never goes away. You just get used to it. However, having a good mobility/stretching/foam rolling/massage gun routine can do wonders. Also, I take some Calm magnesium powder before bed and it helps me sleep AND I notice less soreness the next day. Placebo? Who knows.
6. PROGRESSIONS! It isn't smart to "just try!" a HSPU if you don't have the strict strength to be able to control yourself. That's how people get hurt. Google "HSPU progression program" and you'll find a ton of drills and movements to slowly get you ready. It isn't sexy or exciting, but slow & steady improvement will ensure you don't get hurt.
7. If you want to truly do crossfit.... you're not going to have cute and soft hands. Sorry bout it! Callouses are necessary - but ripping isn't. Make sure to take care of your hands and file down callouses in the shower so they don't rip on pull ups and TTB. Try WodWelder or a special callous razor. After your first few rips and PAINFUL showers afterwards, you'll figure it out! Gloves make your grip go to shit... and you need good grip strength for most lifts. However, GRIPS for pull ups are helpful, but wont prevent ripping. I swear by Victory Grips.
8. Strength and confidence are sexy! I agree... crossfit dudes are the best.

 

[ppaws45]

@hbyej60 thanks very helpfulll!!!!!