Despite being five years removed from his last CrossFit Games appearance, Josh Bridges remains one of the most recognizable and well-respected athletes in the sport. In fact, even though the three-time CrossFit Regionals champion hasn’t competed in the Games since 2018, he still looks more than capable of keeping up with fellow legends like four-time Fittest Man on Earth® Rich Froning Jr. and 2009 CrossFit Games winner Mikko Salo.
Bridges will have an opportunity to showcase the strength, stamina, and resolve that made him a fan favorite later this month at the 2023 Rogue Invitational in Round Rock, Texas. Set to take place from Oct. 27-29, the highly anticipated competition will feature a Legends showcase that should provide plenty of highlight-worthy moments over the course of three days.
With another trip to Dell Diamond on the docket, Bridges took his training to another level in a video posted on his YouTube channel on Oct. 15, 2023.
In the latest episode of his “Paying the Man” vlog series, the former U.S. Navy Seal put together a full-body workout that forced each of the participants to dig deep from start to finish.
Before Bridges and his two training partners, Tayler and Andrew Patterson, began the main part of the session, they completed a “warm-up workout” that proved far more taxing than hitting the treadmill or rower for a few minutes. To prepare for the HIIT-style workout to follow, the trio performed six rounds of a 100-foot sled push and eight bar muscle-ups.
Combining a heavy sled push (371 pounds/168 kilograms) with a gymnastics-inspired pull-up variation provided the perfect mix of strength and cardio training that set the tone for the rest of the session. Plus, utilizing a 1:1 work-to-rest ratio between rounds gave sufficient time for Bridges and his partners to recover as they trained outside under the heat of the Denver sun.
With the initial part of the workout complete, the group hit the stationary bike for a few minutes before ramping up the intensity with a four-part circuit that targeted just about every major muscle group. Rather than trying to hit a specific number of reps or rounds, the six-time CrossFit Games athlete utilized the AMRAP (as many rounds as possible) approach for the 30-minute workout.
“I love AMRAPs because it’s just you against the clock,” Bridges explained. “It’s not a set ‘how much work you’re going to get done,’ it’s a set ‘time you’re going to do work.’ So everyone has the same amount of time, but who’s willing to push harder during the work to get the more reps in, to get more work in.”
Bridges made sure to cover all his bases by selecting two conditioning exercises (the Jacobs Ladder and a 200-meter run), one lower body movement (back squat), and one upper body movement (flat dumbbell bench press).
The workout didn’t necessarily focus on building strength or utilizing heavy loads. Instead, Bridges utilized a relatively light weight (70 pounds/31.7 kilograms) to complete 10 reps on the dumbbell bench press. He followed the same strategy with the squats, opting for 195 pounds (88.4 kilograms) so he could hit all 15 reps on every set. For context on his output, the experienced athlete disclosed that he weighed 165 pounds (74.8 kilograms) several days prior to the session.
However, sandwiching the two muscle-building exercises between the Jacobs Ladder and 200-meter run proved to be particularly challenging.
“That workout is a trap because where you make and lose time is on the bench and squats, and everything else is like just maintain a pace,” Bridges explained. “It’s not long enough to gather spare seconds for the effort.”
Covered in sweat and clearly fatigued from the four-exercise HIIT session, it’s clear his style of programming paid off for everyone involved. Bridges, who impressively finished in 13th place at the 2016 Games as both the oldest (33) and shortest (5-foot 5-inch) Individual Mens competitor, delivered some words of wisdom from his home gym once the workout concluded.
“Like any sport, it takes time to realize who you are as an athlete and where you should push, where you shouldn’t push, and where you should back off,” he explained. “It’s really fun getting to share these types of workouts and showing her [Tayler] what kind of athlete she can become.”
30-Minute Full-Body AMRAP Workout
- Jacobs Ladder – 100 feet
- Flat Dumbbell Bench Press – 10 reps
- Back Squat – 15 reps
- Run — 200 meters (656 feet)
While Bridges may no longer be “in his prime,” the 41-year-old most certainly still has the mindset of a champion. And after representing the CrossFit Legends well a year ago, he looks ready to give the Round Rock crowd another classic performance at the 2023 Rogue Invitational.
Featured Image: Josh Bridges / YouTube
