Monday 10.21
Name game: What’s the most serious injury you’ve had?

Warm up: for 4 minutes, round of 20 jump rope skips, 10 kip swings, 10 scap push-ups

Strength: bench press 4×6
*Athlete’s choice to build in weight or use the same load across

WOD: 12 minute AMRAP
8 chest-to-bar pull-ups
16 ring push-ups
40 double unders

How to scale: Modify to keep rounds under 2 minutes, at least to start.

Chest to bar: Try to maintain the expanded range of motion. Do banded or jumping chest to bar, banded or jumping pull-ups, or challenging ring rows.

Ring push-ups: Do regular or hand-elevated push-ups.

Double unders: Spend no more than :45 making attempts or accumulating single-single doubles.

Objective: We’re back to bench press today. If you were here for the 4×8 on 10/1, try for heavier today. The workout features a pull and a press with extended ranges of motion along with some double unders to give your arms a break. It’s relatively short, so move as quickly as you can without sacrificing good range of motion.

Score: max bench load and rounds & reps

Tuesday 10.22
Name game: What’s the most relaxing vacation you’ve been on?

Warm up: coach-led barbell

Strength: Every :45 for 12 sets
snatch pull + squat snatch

WOD: For time *12 minute cap
21-15-9
wall balls 20/14
lateral burpees over bar
overhead squats 95/65

How to scale: Adjust so you can beat the cap, meaning a pace of 12+ reps per minute, and complete all skills in 2 sets or fewer every round.

Wall balls: Use a lighter ball and/or go to a lower target.

Burpees: Do straight-arm burpees and/or step over the bar.

Overhead squats: Reduce the weight so you can do these in 1-2 sets each round. If mobility is an issue, do front squats.

Objective: Two weeks ago we did a pull plus a hang snatch; we’re now adding some complexity with a pull plus a squat snatch from the ground. Prioritize hitting that squat properly over adding weight to the bar. The workout is a quick 21-15-9 triplet that’s heavy on lightweight squats. A pace of 12 reps per minute beats the cap, and good scaling means being able to get through these skills in 1-2 sets each round.

Score: max snatch load & time to complete

Wednesday 10.23
Name game: Would you rather have your hands replaced with forks or your feet replaced with spatulas?

Warm up: for 5 minutes rounds of 150m row, 10 sit-ups to straddle, :15 active hang

WOD: Every 5 minutes for 6 rounds
Odds: 1000m row
Evens: AMRAP
10 strict knees to elbows
:45 double KB front hold 24/16
*Pick up where you leave off on the AMRAP

How to scale: Cap the row at 4:50. Do strict knee raises as high as possible and reduce the weight of the kettlebells such that you’re capable of completing the hold unbroken.

Objective: Consider today as two different, simultaneous workouts. The first is simple: 3 by 1000m row. The goal is not to simply finish the distance within 5 minutes, but to make a strong, 80-90% effort that is challenging but repeatable for three intervals. The second is about core work under fatigue. Like Monday’s AMRAP the goal here is to not abandon good movement for the sake of speed. Challenge yourself to do true strict knees to elbow and to hang on to a good front rack position, even when it hurts.

Score: slowest row (record all 3 in SugarWOD) and rounds & reps (1 second = 1 rep)

Thursday 10.24
Name game: What was the last board game you played?

Warm up: 2 minute bike/row then rounds of 10 air squats/jumping squats, 5 burpees, :15/side active lizard stretch

Strength: pause back squat 5×4 (3 second pause at bottom)
*Same load all 5 sets.

WOD: For time *10 minute cap
24 single arm alt. devils press 50/35
12 right arm DB overhead alt. lunges 50/35
12 left arm DB overhead alt. lunges 50/35
16 single arm alt. devils press 50/35
8 right arm DB overhead alt. lunges 50/35
8 left arm DB overhead alt. lunges 50/35

How to scale: Do straight-arm burpees and reduce the weight of the dumbbell so that you can do the lunges unbroken. Err on the side of too light; if conditioning is a weakness reduce the reps to two rounds of 16-8-8. This is a workout that all athletes can and should finish under the cap.

Objective: By now you know the drill: we’re squatting again, which means it’s time to add some weight to the load you used for the tempo squats last Monday. The workout looks like a lot but it should be quick. If you’re unsure of what weight to use, err on the side of too light. This should be about managing cardiovascular fatigue, not muscle fatigue. You need to average only 8 reps per minute to beat the cap, so times significantly faster than 10 minutes are attainable.

Score: squat load & time to complete

Friday 10.25
Name game: What’s the most unexpected place you’ve run into someone you know?

Warm up: coach-led barbell and rope climb review

WOD: Every :30 for 20 minutes
Odds: 1 power clean*
Evens: 1 rope climb
*Load is athlete’s choice. Make it heavy!
** Reverse the order to share ropes

How to scale: Focus on technique and do 2-3 lighter cleans in each interval, starting from the hang if needed. For the rope climbs, go part way up or do a ground-to-stand + 2-3 hanging knee raises on the rope.

Objective: It’s a choose-your-own-adventure Friday. This workout asks you to complete just two repetitions in each minute, so there’s room to take some risks here. First is a single power clean, and the load is up to you, with a goal of keeping it heavy every round. Next is a single rope climb. Pick a way to scale the climbs that helps you make progress toward that skill, again bearing in mind that you do not need to scale in the same way for each interval. Note, however, that there are potentially 20 total rope climbs in this workout, so be mindful of grip fatigue as you get toward the end.

Score: clean load (lightest used)

Saturday 10.26
Name game: What kind(s) of candy are you stocking up on for Halloween?

Warm up: coach-led funzies

WOD: With a partner, 30 minute AMRAP
800m run (together)
40 box jumps 30/24
40 deadlifts 185/125
*In case of rain, partners split 60/50/40 calories on the Echo bike

How to scale: Reduce the height of the box to one you’re comfortable jumping to and reduce the deadlift weight to one that is an easy set of 10. Reduce the run distance only if there is a significant difference in speed between you and your partner.

Objective: This is about as straightforward as a partner WOD can be. Keep the runs at a moderate pace that allows the stronger runner to begin work right away on the box jumps. From there, alternate sets of 5 to 10 reps at a time. Transitions on these skills are quick, so it pays to switch off before you start slowing down.

Score: rounds & reps

Sunday 10.27
Strength: front squat 4×8