Hi all,

Happy fifth and final Monday in September. We are going to continue to focus on laying a strong “Foundation” in Week 2 of this cycle. You’ll continue to see core bracing, stabilization, and Range of Motion building.

Let’s get into it.

Day 1 

Week 2 of 6 of the “Foundation” strength cycle!

• 0-10 - Dynamic Mobility and Intros / QOTD

  • Deep Squat + Arm Rotation

  • Samson Stretch

• 11-17 - Warm-up - 6 minutes, continue to cycle through…

  • 6 Empty Barbell Strict Press

  • 6 Air Squats

  • 6 Single KB Pull-Throughs

  • 6 Unweighted Good Mornings

• 18-19 - Debrief / transition / explain workouts

• 20-32 - Strength:

  • E2MOM12 (Every Two Minutes on the Minute, for 12 Minutes)

    • 7-7-6-6-5-5 Barbell Front Rack Reverse Lunges (per side)

  • Intended Stimulus - Ascend in weight throughout. The rep scheme is per side and is written as prescribed reps for each of the 6 rounds. For example, Round 1 and Round 2, you will do 7 Reverse Lunges PER SIDE. Round 3 and Round 4, you will do 6 Reverse Lunges PER SIDE, etc. Athlete should pick a weight that allows for full range of motion, with knee slightly grazing the floor at the back, and front shin nearly fully vertical. Flexing to lower abs helps keep the ribcage from flaring during movements that require high elbows such as these Front Rack Lunges.

  • Log weights in the heaviest set of 5 unbroken lunges (per side), noting any imbalances between one leg and the other in the notes.

• 33-35 - transition and set-up for MetCon

• 36-50 - MetCon

  • 3 Rounds of AMRAP4, Rest1:

    • (As Many Rounds and Reps as Possible in 4 Minutes, Rest 1:00)

      • 8 Burpees (Half Burpees / Full Burpees / Strict Burpees)

      • 8 Barbell Front Squats (<35 / 75 / 105+)

      • 8 Barbell Push Press (<35 / 75 / 105+)

  • Intended Stimulus - Pick up where you left off. All movements are meant to be completed unbroken throughout. Throughout the 4 Minutes, the slowest movement will be the squats. Screw feet into the ground and breathe intentionally as you squat (inhale into diaphragm, descend, ascend and slowly exhale). Shoot for 9+ rounds. Totals 14 minutes.

  • Log total rounds and reps completed across the three rounds.

• 51-52 - clean up

• 53-60 - Recovery

  • Massage Gun Quads - 2 min. per side

  • Figure Four Stretch - 2 min. per side

Day 2

• 0-10 - Dynamic Mobility and Intros / QOTD

  • Good Mornings

  • Inchworm Press Ups

• 11-16 - Warm-up - 5 minutes, continue to cycle through…

  • 4 Up Dog / Down Dog + Push Up

  • 6 Bootstrappers

  • 8 Alternating Plank-ups (4 per direction)

• 17-19 - Debrief / transition / explain workouts

• 20-40 - Capacity:

  • In 20 minutes, for quality (shoot for 5 rounds)

    • 5 Tempo Barbell 1 ¾ Deadlifts (3 seconds per direction)

    • 5 Strict Toes-to-Bar Variation (Strict Hanging Knee Raises / Strict Knees to Elbows / Strict Toes-to-Bar)

    • Plank (:20 Hand Plank / :30 Forearm Plank / :40 Forearm Plank)

  • Intended Stimulus - The 1 ¾ Deadlifts are the focus - which are meant to increase our “Time Under Tension” - or TUT. 3-second ascent, 3-second descent. Go up in weight each round on the 1 ¾ Deadlifts as long as form stays intact (lats engaged, heel and toe BOTH contact the ground through whole rep, healthy-sized bend in the knees at the bottom). While under tension, it is helpful to think about filling your belly (diaphragm) full of air and using that air to press out into your ribcage. Take the Toes-to-Bar as slow as you can (think about at least a 3-second descent on the legs as they travel back toward the ground).

  • Log DB weights used for the heaviest set of 5 unbroken 1 ¾ Deadlifts. Add variations for other movements in the notes.

• 41-42 - transition and set-up for MetCon

• 43-53 - MetCon

  • Barbell Thrusters for time (75 Thrusters at <45 / 100 Thrusters at 65 / 100 Thrusters at 95+)

    • Time cap is 10 minutes.

  • Intended Stimulus - Break up the reps early and often. Make the breaks short and thoughtful (do not take a full minute of rest between picking up the DBs - limit yourself to 10 or 15 seconds, for example). Pick a weight that you could start out with a set of 15 off the bat. If you can’t achieve that, you went too heavy and you should go down in weight for the remainder of the workout!

  • Log time it took to complete all Thrusters. Denote the count of reps completed, and the weights used, in the notes.

• 54-55 - clean up

• 56-60 - Recovery

  • Trap smash with empty barbell - 2 min. per side

  • EXTRA CREDIT: Legs Up the Wall (Wide Legged Variation) - 5 min.

Day 3

Rest Day

• Try and fit in two to three walks of 1.0-1.5 miles apiece.

• Another good option is a light jog / Stand-up paddle board / hike / slow bike / etc.

• Mobility and/or restorative yoga are other great options on rest days.

• Some is better than none.

• Getting outside in any capacity is encouraged!

Day 4

• 0-8 - Dynamic Mobility and Intros / QOTD

  • Single Leg Glutes Bridges

  • Scorpions

  • Up Dog / Down Dog

• 9-14 - Warm-up - complete 3 rounds of…

  • 16 Forward Lunges (8 per leg)

  • 8 Single DB Push + Pulls (4 per arm)

  • :40 Jump Rope

• 15-16 - Debrief / transition / explain workouts

• 17-32 - Strength:

  • In 15 Minutes, complete 5 rounds of…

    • 7 Barbell Bent Over Rows (3-second descent)

  • Off-time - 20 Scissor Kicks (Left + Right = 1) (Hand Under Tailbone / No Hands / Weight Overhead)

  • Intended Stimulus - For the Bent Over Rows, go up in weight throughout. Athlete should pick a weight that allows for full range of motion (bar touches the sternum at the top, with elbows driving toward the sky). Try not to “urge the weight up” with your torso by “jumping” as you row. Isolate the row to come only from your back muscles by driving the barbell straight up into a locked-in torso. On the Scissor Kicks, hover the heels and make sure to reach a full 90-degree angle at the hip joint (but not past 90!).

  • Log the heaviest set of 7 unbroken bent over rows, denoting Scissor Kick variation in the notes.

• 33-34 - transition and set-up for MetCon

• 35-43 - MetCon:

  • AMRAP8 (As Many Rounds and Reps as Possible in 8 Minutes):

    • 1 Renegade Rows + Push-up (<20s / 35s / 50s+)

    • 2 Lateral Jumps Over DBs (Left + Right = 1)

    • 2 Renegade Rows + Push-up

    • 4 Lateral Jumps Over DBs

    • 3 Renegade Rows + Push-up

    • 6 Lateral Jumps Over DBs

    • etc

  • Intended Stimulus - 8 Minutes is just long enough to require thoughtful pacing. If you come out of the gate too hot and you will likely crash and burn. Keep the foot distance wide (shoulder length) on the Renegade Rows to help keep the hips square to the ground. Squeeze the glutes, abs, and quads to further assist in keeping the hips square. Rep scheme ascends by 1s for the Renegade Row + Push-up, and multiples of 2 for the Lateral Jumps. Shoot for getting through 8 rounds.

  • Log total rounds and reps completed, adding weights used in the notes.

• 44-56 - Accessory:

  • In 12 Minutes, complete 4 rounds of…

    • :20 Single DB Farmer’s Carry (Side One)

    • :20 Single DB Farmer’s Carry (Side Two)

    • 10 Single DB Single Leg Romanian Deadlifts (5 per leg)

• 57-60 - Recovery

  • Pigeon Stretch (unassisted or assisted) - 2 min. per side

  • EXTRA CREDIT: Prayer Stretch (on Elbows) - 2 min.

Day 5

• 0-10 - Dynamic Mobility and Intros / QOTD

  • Thread the Needle

  • Wrist Circles

  • Arm Swings

• 11-16 - Warm-up - 5 minutes, continue to cycle through…

  • 10 Light Single DB On-end Strict Press (5 per arm)

  • 10 Cossack Squats (5 per leg)

  • 10 Sit-ups

  • 10 Lateral Jumps Over DB (Left + Right = 1) (5 per direction)

• 17-19 - Debrief / transition / explain workouts

• 20-35 - Capacity

  • In 15 minutes, complete the following 5 rounds…

    • 18 Single DB Strict Press (9 per arm)

    • 16 Single DB Strict Press (8 per arm)

    • 14 Single DB Strict Press (7 per arm)

    • 12 Single DB Strict Press (6 per arm)

    • 10 Single DB Strict Press (5 per arm)

  • Off-time - 8 Barbell Back Rack Good Mornings

  • Intended Stimulus - ascend in weight throughout. All rounds should be completed unbroken. On the Strict press, work toward full range of motion with the DB reaching fully above the crown of your head, your bicep next to your ear. Keep the glutes and abs braced as you press, and exhale on the ascent. The Barbell Back Rack Good Mornings can put a lot of pressure on the posterior chain (backs of legs and low back), so GO LIGHT. You likely won’t need much more than the bar on those. Also, make sure the torso angle only reaches parallel to the ground, no lower (i.e. shoulders stay above hips).

  • Log the heaviest set of 5 unbroken strict press (per arm), noting any imbalances between one arm and the other in the notes.

• 36-38 - transition and set-up for MetCon

• 39-52 - MetCon

  • 3 Rounds of AMRAP3, Rest2:

    • (As Many Rounds and Reps as Possible in 3 Minutes, Rest 2:00)

      • 10 Jumping Squats (Air Squats or Jumping Squats are both OK)

      • 10 Jumping Lunges (Unweighted Reverse Lunges or Jumping Lunges are both OK) (Left + Right = 1)

      • 10 V-ups (Tuck-ups or V-ups are both OK)

  • Intended Stimulus - Go fast, then rest. Structure of the workout is 3 minutes working, 2 minutes rest, 3 minutes working, 2 minutes rest, 3 final minutes working, for 13 total minutes. Pick variations of the movements that will keep your heart rate UP for the full three minutes, with minimal breaks. Pick up where you left off after each rest. Aim for 6+ rounds.

  • Log total rounds and reps completed, adding movement variations in the notes.

• 53-54 - clean up

• 55-60 - Recovery

  • Child’s Pose with Thread the Needle - 1.5 min. per side

  • T-spine Smash with lax ball - 1.5 min. per side

Day 6

• 0-8 - Dynamic Mobility and Intros / QOTD

  • Reverse Jackknives

  • World’s Greatest Stretch

  • Runner’s Lunge (high variation) 

  • Side-to-Side Lunges

• 9-15 - Warm-up - complete 3 rounds of…

  • 10 Empty Barbell Deadlifts

  • 10 Empty Barbell Front Squats

  • 10 Light Single DB Windmills (5 per arm)

  • 10 Mountain Climbers (Left + Right = 1)

• 16-18 - Debrief / transition / explain workout

• 19-22 - Additional Warm-up

  • Warm-up loaded Barbell Push Press, tempo (3-second descent) Push-ups, and loaded Barbell Deadlifts

• 23-55 - Long Workout Day!

  • 5RFT (Five Rounds For Time), capped at 32 Minutes

    • 25 Burpees (18 Half Burpees or 25 Full Burpees are both OK)

    • 20 Barbell Deadlifts (<75 / 135 / 185+)

    • 15 Off-set Push-ups (from knees / from toes / hand release)

    • 10 Double DB “Heavy For You” Push Press (<30s / 40s / 50s+)

    • 5 Double KB “Heavy For You” Front Squats (<26s / 35s / 53s+)

  • Intended Stimulus - All weighted movements (except the Deadlifts) should be using weights that are heavier than what we usually use for MetCons. Use the extra warm-up time allotted to really warm-up your FULL range of motion with those lighter weights, get the core body temperature up, and then try a couple small working sets at your working weights before going for it. For the deadlifts, it is imperative that you engage the lats every time you pick up the weight (even BEFORE you start your first rep and you’re just picking it up off the ground). Try to only allocate two minutes per round to the Burpees - the longer the burpees take, the less time you will have to bring it home under 32 minutes. CALLOUT: if you plan to scale back the burpees, you can perform 18 per round instead of the fully prescribed 25. That is OK and even encouraged for folks who want more time for the other movements!

  • Log time it took to complete all 5 rounds. Add the count of total reps completed and the weights / variations in the notes.

• 56-60 - Recovery

  • Hamstring Stretch - 2 min. per side

  • EXTRA CREDIT: Chest Opener (on a foam roller or yoga blocks if available) - 4 min.

Day 7

Rest Day

• Try and fit in two to three walks of 1.0-1.5 miles apiece.

• Another good option is a light jog / Stand-up paddle board / hike / slow bike / etc.

• Mobility and/or restorative yoga are other great options on rest days.

• Some is better than none.

• Getting outside in any capacity is encouraged!