Fran Time & CrossFit L1 Certification Thoughts........

Last weekend, I finally attended my long awaited CrossFit L1 Certification Course. First and foremost, I have to give the biggest thanks to Coach/Owners Maggie Dabe and Jeff Tincher of CrossFit Reston and CrossFit Fairfax. They graciously gave me one of their host spots for the course. Now, anyone who knows me knows that school and I go together like gasoline and a lit match. It isn't that I am stupid or have a hard time studying; it's that I simply hate school. Most of the training course I have had since leaving the Army have been IT Technical in nature and we all can imagine just how exciting those are. This course, however, was something completely different.

I am not going to talk about the course material or give you any kind of hints for passing the test here (as of this post I still do not yet know if I passed the exam). What I am going to talk about are three interesting points I observed in the class.

Professionalism! I have never seen such professionalism in a training environment. While the trainers would joke with you and made learning and practicing the fundamental movements interesting and enjoyable, they also ensured everyone operated in the safest manner possible. Their knowledge about CrossFit and kinesiology were top notch and collectively, they never struggled to answer any question that popped up.

You are going to be sore! While the bulk of the class is instructional; requiring you to take notes and observe the trainers, the breakout sessions will make you sore. And let's be honest, crossfitters don't get together very often without working out so you know the weekend will have WODs. (again, not going to talk about what WODs). With that said, I found myself very sore on Monday. 

You are going to discover your deficiencies!!! Admittedly, I have some form issues. I scale weight but my form for a lot of things has always been off. During the class, I found ways to correct my form exponentially as well as how to work on overcoming my prosthesis and the difficulties it poses. I have been able to fix (or at least have the tools to fix) my form in the squat, deadlift, push press, push jerk and clean and snatch. 

"Fran"

During the course, we discussed "Fran" and how it's the benchmark workout now for CrossFit. How many times have you been asked "What's your Fran time?" As Chuck Carswell (our lead trainer for the L1 last weekend) mentioned, at the globo gym, you measure someones gym stature by asking how much they bench. These two measuring sticks are very different but it's funny to me that these are what we gauge someones gym prowess with. In case you were wondering, my 1 RM Bench Press is a paltry 275#. 

My Fran time is not great; 6:30ish. Anyone who knows Fran knows the workout is 21-15-9 95# thrusters and pull-ups. My issue comes with the thrusters. Thrusters suck. I seriously hate them. I hate them because I have hips that get lazy and I end up doing front squats to overhead press without the explosive opening of my hips. So to force me to do this properly, I scale the weight to 75#. Do I feel cheated? No! At the end, I feel like I am going to puke! The reason I scale is mechanics. I simply do not have reliable enough mechanics to increase intensity. So, what do I do? Do I throw the Rx'd weight on the bar and muscle my way through the workout with poor mechanics and an even worse time? Or, do I scale the weight and focus on consistent mechanics (lumbar curve, elbows high, violent opening of the hip, transitioning into a push press) and still get a good workout? 

As taught by CrossFit, before you dial up the intensity (weight/load) you have to have the ability to show the proper mechanics CONSISTENTLY! Scale the weight. Work on mechanics. Instead of using your Fran TIME as your benchmark, use your mechanics. Have another crossfitter watch you and correct your form. Better yet, you'll learn even quicker if you fail on form and your reps are not counted. Don't get wrapped up in trying to Rx everything. Demand more of yourself especially when it comes to proper consistent mechanics of the compound movement.

That is all.