“Commitment is an act. Not a word.” – Jean Paul Sartre
I had a very rough workout yesterday. I was so sore and super tight. I couldn’t get my lats to release, despite time spent mobilizing. And as soon as I reached for the barbell to warm up, I knew I was in trouble. The bar alone felt like a million pounds.
My programming called for me to snatch and clean to a max, and while my snatch came to within five pounds of my personal record, it was littered with misses on the way up, which I hate. And my cleans were terrible – my tight lats held me back in the front rack position, and my elbows were so slow getting around the bar. I felt like my body weighed a million pounds and my hips had absolutely no snap. In fact, about ten minutes into my training, I felt like quitting. Even my conditioning (one of the sauciest EMOMs I’ve ever done, involving deadlifts, box jumps, and burpees) which I usually love, was twenty minutes of hell. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t think. My body was screaming. I wanted to be done the moment I began.
I walked out of yesterday’s training feeling like a wet rag – stiff, sore, and seriously doubting my abilities. Why am I sharing this? Well, because it happens to everyone, regardless of ability or athletic talent, regardless of how well you eat or recover or train. Whether you just go to the gym to stay in shape, are prepping for a show, or are gearing up for a race or competition, there will be days when shit just doesn’t click. Some days even 75% of your max feels like a thousand pounds. Some days you can’t find the willpower to push, because honestly some days it just isn’t there, be it mentally or physically or both.
The process of becoming better is slow, and it’s going to be spattered with hard days. But quitting won’t get you there any faster. You have to be willing to take the bad with the good and ride out the rough workouts in order to experience the superhuman ones. Accepting and even embracing the toughest of training days is part of what builds athletic resilience. It builds character and puts commitment to the test.
Don’t allow one bad day or bad workout to defeat you. Remember why you’re doing this and stay focused on your goals. Weather the bad days and embrace the good. And be open to the process. Remember, progress is never linear, and we learn just as much from failing as we do from succeeding.
5:30am Training Session
1,000m warm up
EMOM (rotate), in a 25lb weighted vest:
- Minute 1: 2x Wall Walk + 10 shoulder taps
- Minute 2: 200m row
- Minute 3: 10 Heavy Wall Balls (20lb ball)
- Minute 4: 10 Burpees
(5 rounds)
P.M. Training Session
Aerobic: 20 minutes running drills, focused on form and movement efficiency
- 60 seconds Run @80-85%
- 60 seconds Backwards run @80-85%
- 30 sec High knees
- 30 sec Butt kicks
- 60 seconds Run @100%
(5 rounds)
Mobility: Lat warm up, bench T-Spine, dead bugs, lunges with a reach, some foam rolling, PVC pipe dislocates, banded shoulder work.
Weightlifting:
- Snatch @ 75% EMOM 3x
- Snatch @ 85% EMOM 4x
- Snatch @ 65% EMOM 3x
(NO MISSES!)
Clean and jerk @ 75% 5x
Snatch pull @97% Snatch 3×3
Snatch DL @ 105% 3×3
Strength:
- Strict overhead press 1×5@65% 1×5@75% 1×5@85%
- Good morning 3×8-10
- Kettlebell windmill 3×5 each side
Conditioning/Capacity:
8 rounds of:
- 60 seconds AirDyne, all out
- 15 seconds Rest
- 30 seconds AMRAP Clean @95lbs
- 15 seconds Rest
3 Rounds (50lb sandbag)
- 10 Sandbag cleans
- 10 Sandbag front rack walking Llunges (10 each leg)
- 10 Lateral sandbag burpees
- 500m Row
AMRAP 8 minutes:
- 10 Weighted ab mat sit ups (10 lbs)
- 10 Deck squats holding 10lb plate
Accessory Work:
4 Rounds of:
- 30 Double unders
- 30 Walking pistols
- 20 Toes to bar
- 60 second Handstand hold
- Reverse Tabata L-Sit 10:20 for 8 rounds
- Banded rear delt fly 2×25
EDITOR’S NOTE: Welcome to the athlete journal of Allison Moyer. Allison is a nationally ranked NPC Figure Athlete, nationally and internationally published fitness model, an avid CrossFit athlete, BSN, C.P.T, C.S.N, C.N.W.C, and owner of Alli Fitness Systems and Predator Diet. Read all about Allison’s unique approach to training and diet every other week.
