Crossfit Endurance vs Old School: Train with Restraint

Saturday, February 23, 2013

Train with Restraint

While recovering, the evil twin to the excitement of fast improvement is the danger of pushing it too hard too quickly. You are pain free and you are pumped up about being able to exercise without feeling constrained by your injury. With a little of pushing you feel like you can quickly get to the same fitness level from before. And if you are like me and have no patience, restraint is a four letter word.

Which again is a flaw to CrossFit and CrossFit Endurance approach. The goal of each WOD is to go as fast as possible – to do as many sets of 5 pullups, 10 pushups and 15 air squats in 20 minutes as possible. When you finish Cindy you should be exhausted – at least I have been when I have done it. There is no such thing as a moderate Cindy. Running 30 seconds on, 30 seconds off for 12 minutes is not about restraint. If you are restraining, you aint training. But you might reinjure yourself.

Which leads us to today’s run. It’s only been five days since I ran pain free and I am ready to start increasing the pace and distance so I am assured of crushing Mike. I ran 7 miles today in 55.28 – which is about a 7.54 pace. I can deal with that for now but it is not going to get me to a sub 3.30. Look for more speed tomorrow.

1 comment:

mywriteFebruary 24, 2013 at 6:29 AM
You make the common mistake of all Crossfit and CFE critics in assuming there is a one, single way to train, and if you aren't running or lifting yourself into the ground, then you're not doing Crossfit.

The reality is that Crossfit (and in many ways, CFE) is infinitely scalable and moldable to what an athlete or client needs, even injured athletes. You can see that in the range of classes and WODs offered at affiliates throughout the country, from "functional" fitness classes, to Oly-lifting and strength-specific tracks.

Would it be ideal if I could go 8 months without aches and pains and hit every CFE WOD with perfect intensity? Of course. But the reality is that is unlikely to happen, whether you get hurt or are just simply tired or not into it. You need to be able to back off and either rest completely or pace to maintain.

And I love that you finish your critique by saying you're going to run too fast tomorrow. Good idea.
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CFE v. Old School Concept

Merrill (Merrill) is a 48-year-old runner addicted to a basic weight routine (some might say an incredibly powerful and impressive routine) and 30 miles each and every week.

Michael (mywrite) is a 36-year-old Crossfit devotee of nearly four years who enjoys running, but not 30 miles each and every week.

Wise (old) vs. Youngish (stupid), follow the two as they train for a half marathon in the Spring, and a full marathon in the Fall with their chosen programs.

Michael will use Crossfit Endurance (www.crossfitendurance.com/) and Crossfit as his guides, with a mix of power and Olympic weightlifting, conditioning, sprint and mid-range running workouts.

Merrill will train as he always has, running four times per week 6-7 miles at 7:30 per mile pace with a longish run thrown in once a week at pretty much the same pace, and lifting three times a week (bench, curl, upright rows, triceps, squats and military press). And oh yeah, two sets of pushups (50), pullups (15) and situps (eight minutes) everyday. Like Rainman.