While we are preparing for a weightlifting meet later in January, the Open season is right around the corner. With that being said, it’s time to assess some energy systems.
While the weights in the Open are traditionally lower in intensity, you can expect workouts with barbell cycling. Yesterday’s test was an assessment of one’s skill with cycling a barbell and the creatine phosphagen (CP) system and its ability to quickly recharge between efforts. In other words, can you lift a relatively heavy weight and continue to lift it over, and over, and over again?
We took 10 minutes to find a day’s max for the power clean. After that we took 90% of that lift and then proceeded to do an 8 min AMRAP of power cleans at that weight.
The great thing about this type of a test is that it has a built in governor, preventing you from absolutely crushing yourself and redlining. There is only so fast you can move with 90% of a max lift and hence the metabolic stress remains low. This test lights up the nervous system a bit, but still leaves other energy systems pretty fresh allowing you to hit a high volume aerobic piece like the workout below after a 10 min recovery period.
3 rounds paced effort
1000 meter row
25 toes to bar
5 muscle ups
The fall and winter is a time to build muscular endurance, aerobic capacity, and absolute strength. As the Open approaches, our programming will move more towards developing lactic power/lactic endurance, proficiency in barbell cycling, and continuing to build aerobic power more through mixed modal sessions instead of long cyclical efforts of rowing, running, Airdyning.