This Sunday, we are starting a competition program at Outlier. The class will be during open gym, from 10-11 am. At first, the class will be Sunday’s only. If there is enough interest, we will add more hours.

If you have no desire to compete, that’s ok, you can still do open gym:)

What is competitive programming like? There is one main difference. The purpose. The Outlier program is designed to make people fitter, happier, and healthier. Competitive programming is designed to make athletes better at CrossFit. Does this mean, that its way harder, not necessarily. Does it mean we will take advanced skills out of the Outlier classes, hell no. It means that we are going devote more time to working on movements that carryover specifically to CrossFit competition.

Who is welcome in this class? Anyone that feels like they need more help with muscle ups, handstand walks, handstand pushups, how to attack certain workouts. Maybe you have never done a competition but really want to, but just need a little help in certain areas. Maybe you have competed in the intermediate division, but you really want to do advanced. Maybe you have done advanced local competitions, but want to work toward regionals. Maybe you have no desire to compete at all, but you really want to get good at this stuff. If you are in any of these categories, this is for you.

In order to reach your potential, from your gym, you need expert coaching and programming, an environment that pushes you to do you best every time, and a community behind you. That is what we want to develop here at Outlier.

Andrew will be in charge on the class. It will involve some skill progressions on the movements scheduled for the day. There will then be a wod that will be something a bit different than would show up in the class.

There are many different ways to program that have value. We subscribe to a low volume, high intensity philosophy. We do that, in part, because of all the variables associated with gains, intensity is the one that has the greatest effect. If the volume is lower, and the intensity high, we maximize recovery, limit injury, as well as limit mental burnout. More is not better. Better is better.

The types of wods will differ depending on the time of year. To prepare for the open, this is how I have programmed for myself, and others in the past. During the off season, which is post-open to September, we will be working on fundamentals. Think brilliance at the basics. Brute strength, skill at gymnastics movements, and dialing in mechanics will be our focus. The preseason, October to Febuary. This is where focus on speed strength. Olympic lifting, more efficiency in moving quickly through gymnastics movements, and technique under fire are the game plan. At the open, it’s the in season. Now we strategize on how best preform the open wods. After the open, we dial in whatever gaps are there for regionals.

Now for this class, we will focus the program on dialing in whatever glaring weakness are present at the time. Currently, Andrew and I see gymnastics as where we need to spend lot of time. We are going to work very hard at developing capacity in all the gymnastics moves and this class will provide a setting where there is adequate time to do so.