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Fitness

The Max Effort Black Box Program for the Family Man (or Woman)

While I’ve had success helping aspiring athletes, I derive the greatest pleasure from helping the family man or woman.

Michael Rutherford

Written by Michael Rutherford Last updated on Nov 22, 2021

Last week I shared my story of the creation of the Max Effort Black Box (MEBB). But truth be told, I learned quickly that while the three-on-one-off MEBB rotation worked well for the independent contractor or self-employed, home-based business consultant, it turned out to have some limitations for the typical family man.

And while I’ve had my successes with helping the aspiring athlete run faster, jump higher, and put more weight overhead, I derive the greatest pleasure from helping the family man or woman. He goes to work, he is likely in a relationship, and he has a family and probably volunteers in some capacity. These athletes have different stress and value systems. Elite performance and personal records are important, but not at the expense of other values.

I recently received the following e-mail, which was the genesis of my variation on the original MEBB – the Max Effort Black Box for the Family Man:

My name is Jason and I hope you are doing well today.

I think I am experienced enough to answer my own question, but wanted to see if you had two cents to add. I am going to begin the ME Black Box routine. (Thanks by the way!) However, as a devoted father of small children, and a husband and coach of recreational baseball, I will not be going to the gym on the weekends. I reserve those days for foam rolling, active bodyweight recovery, and family. So if I am trying to adapt the MEBB to a five-day program how do you feel about CrossFit M/W/F, ME Total on Tuesdays, and alternating upper/lower each Thursday? I know this does not fit the three-on-one-off parameters, so I may find myself needing a rest day towards the end of the week. I am looking for a starting point with the barbell.

Thanks for your time and I hope you have a great day.

The Nuts and Bolts

At this stage of the game I trust that everyone is familiar with the ME Black Box. The MEBB will provide the necessary strength and power stimulus to accelerate your fundamental strength and propel your CrossFit workout times and benchmark scores. But there are slightly different rules for the family man:

The Family Man MEBB Rules:

  1. All training must be performed Monday through Friday.
  2. No workouts are performed on Saturday and Sunday, as these are reserved for the family and other pursuits.
  3. No workout can exceed 45 minutes.
  4. Other healthy practices should be in place.

coach rut, michael rutherford, MEBB, max effort black box, MEBB crossfit

The Family Man MEBB Training Template

This template is quite simple. The athlete will us an A/B split:

  • A = Max Effort (ME) Day
  • B = CrossFit (CF) Day

Since there are five days for workouts and two primary focuses of training, there will be a week of three ME sessions followed by a week of two ME sessions. I have included the ME Day tier rotation information below:

coach rut, michael rutherford, MEBB, max effort black box, MEBB crossfit

Rep Rotations:

  • Week 1 – 5 x 5
  • Week 2 – 5 x 3
  • Week 3 – 5 x 1

The randomization of your program is completely your call. If your relative strength is the limiting factor then you should only incorporate short duration CrossFit workout challenges.

I believe this training template offers even the busiest of family folks an opportunity to maintain top tier performance while maintaining a balance of family time. If you give it a try, come back and leave a comment and let me know how it’s working for you.

Photos courtesy of CrossFit Impulse.

Michael Rutherford

About Michael Rutherford

Michael Rutherford (a.k.a. Coach Rut) has over a quarter century of fitness coaching experience including working with competitors from the ranks of international, Olympic, collegiate, high school, middle school and elementary school-aged athletes. Coach Rut also has worked in hospital wellness environments and rehabilitation clinics. All of these experiences have allowed him to bridge the gap between the needs of the competitor and those of the man, woman, and child seeking enhanced personal health and fitness.

Coach has been a regular contributor to the CrossFit Journal, The Performance Menu, Whole9 and here on Breaking Muscle, where his Max Effort Black Box (M.E.B.B) collection is the most requested back issue. He has produced five DVDs ranging from nutrition to program design, and his Dumbbell Moves series is the number one selling DVD on the application of the most underutilized tool in any strength training program.

Coach holds academic degrees in biology and physical education, and Master’s degrees in exercise physiology and sports biomechanics. He is a certified Club Coach by the United States Weightlifting Association and is a CrossFit level III certified coach.

Coach Rut participates in the sport of weightlifting and is a four time National Master Champion at 94kg. He also holds the National Masters snatch lift record of 103 kilograms.

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