Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Day 156


A.) Every two minutes, for 10 minutes (5 sets):

Front Squat (5-5-3-2-2)

*Set 1 – 5 reps @ 55%
*Set 2 – 5 reps @ 65%
*Set 3 – 3 reps @ 75%
*Set 4 – 2 reps @ 85%
*Set 5 – 2 reps @ 90%

B.) Every two minutes, for 6 minutes (3 sets):

Back Squat x 10 reps @ 65%

C.) For time:

Row 60 calories
60 Walking Lunges (70/53) in Farmer’s Carry Hold

D.) Three Rounds of:

Plank Hold x 60s
Cross Body Mountain Climbers x 40
-Rest 60s-

Monday, September 29, 2014

Day 155


We are going to do Yasso Progressions once a week as we are training for our 10k run on November 9th. We should be up to 10x800m (5 Miles) the week before we head out.

Track Session

A.) 6×6 Hurdle Hops

B.) 3 x 10-20 yard shuttle, out and back

C.) Yasso Progression 5x800m, rest equal to run time. - Goal is to run each 800 at exactly the same pace. Don’t go out too hard.

Friday, September 26, 2014

Day 154


A.) MetCon (For Time):

10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1
Bench Press (205/135)
10 Pull-Ups between sets

- Rest 5 Minutes -

B.) MetCon (AMRAP) x 10 Minutes

15 DB Snatch (70/50) *Alternate arms each round*
30 Double Unders

C.) Single Arm Dumbbell Row (4 x 10)
Rest 90 seconds between sets. Goal is heavier than last week.

D.) Banded Face Pulls: 5 Sets Of 20
Rest 60 seconds between sets.

Thursday, September 25, 2014

Day 153


John Giacalone is our local Mobility Specialist. If you are having any issues or just want to get better, please check him out. You can schedule an appointment online. 

Active Recovery: These days are not "Rest days". You will recover faster, perform better every other day of the week, build up tolerance to volume, and be a better all-around athlete by moving on your recovery day. Doing something outside the box will get you more exposure and expand your margins of experience.

These days is about pro-actively speeding up your recovery. This involves getting blood flowing, massage, ART, active recovery, mobility work, foam rolling, yoga, compression, voodoo flossing and anything else that might promote recovery. The activity selected must be restorative for you. It can also be an opportunity to work on a skill, but the effort expended should leave you feeling energized at the end of the session, not depleted. Get some blood flowing to aid in your recovery. 

A.) Aerobic Restoration

25-40 minutes of one of the following performed at 60-70% effort – easy, restorative pace:

* Swim (this is our first choice)
* Row (focus on mechanics, smooth and efficient with a very low stroke per minute pace)
* AirDyne (keep the pace conversational and relaxed)
* Cycling (get outdoors and enjoy the scenery as you ride)
* Hike (nothing crazy, find a nice easy slope and go for a walk outdoors)

B.) Mobility and Maintenance

Choose 1-2 Thoracic Drills (upper back) and spend 5-10 minutes on them.
Choose 2-3 Lower Body Drills (hips, ankles) and spend 10-12 minutes on them.
Choose 1-2 Upper Extremity Drills (shoulders) and spend 5-10 minutes with them.

Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Day 152


A.) Every 2 minutes, for 20 minutes (10 sets) of: 

Power Clean + Hang Clean + High Hang Clean

*Sets 1-3 – 55-60%
*Sets 4-6 – 60-65%
*Sets 7-8 – 65-70%
*Sets 9-10 – 70-75%

B.) Four sets of: Front Squat x 5-6 reps @ 41X1 
(Rest 3 minutes)

Please note the tempo prescription – this is a slow, 4-second descent followed by a 1-second pause at the bottom. The athlete should then attempt to move the barbell quickly back to the starting position, pause for a full breath and brace at the top, and repeat for 5-6 reps.

Start around 70% and use today to build to figure out what you are capable of for this rep scheme. 


D.) With a partner complete 2 rounds of:

20 Deadlifts (185/135)
20 Sumo Deadlifts (185/135)
20 Banded Good Mornings
20 Russian KB Swings (70/53)

One partner completes all 20 reps of a movement while the other rests then switch.

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Day 151


Max-Effort Upper Body

"Not much about the max-effort movement has changed since my original article was published. I still prefer a 3-5 rep max (RM) - as opposed to a 1RM - for my skinny bastards. The one thing that has changed – you’ll notice this later on in this article - is the second movement on max-effort upper body day. We recently started having our athletes perform two high-rep sets of an exercise immediately following the max-effort movement.

This high-rep movement is usually an exercise that’s closely related to the max-effort movement. For example, if our athletes performed a 3RM in the bench press, their second exercise may be two sets of dumbbell benches. We don’t do this all the time, but it’s a new “twist” in our templates that wasn’t covered in previous articles." 

- Joe Defranco

A.) Max-Effort Exercise – work up to a max set of 3-5 reps in one of the following exercises:
  • Thick bar or regular barbell bench press
  • Barbell floor press
  • Rack lockouts / Suspended chain lockouts
  • Incline barbell bench press (regular grip or close grip)
  • Close-grip bench press (index finger on smooth part of bar)
  • Weighted chin-ups
  • Board presses or foam presses
  • Chain bench press (*recommended for not-so-skinny bastards)
  • Band bench press (*recommended for not-so-skinny bastards)
  • Reverse band bench press (*recommended for not-so-skinny bastards)

B.) Supplemental Exercise – perform 2 sets of max reps in one of the following exercises. 

(Choose a weight you can perform for 15-20 reps on the 1st set. Use the same weight for both sets and rest 3-4 minutes between sets).
  • Flat DB bench press (palms in or out)
  • Incline DB bench press (palms in or out)
  • DB floor press (palms in)
  • Barbell push-ups (wearing weighted vest)
  • Blast strap push-ups (wearing weighted vest)
  • “Criss-cross” chain push-ups
  • “Triceps death”
  • Chin-ups (don’t perform these if you chose to do weighted chin-ups for your first exercise)

C.) Horizontal pulling / Rear delt superset - Superset one exercise from “Group 1” with one exercise from “Group 2.” Perform 3-4 supersets of 8-12 reps of each exercise.

Group 1
  • DB rows
  • Barbell rows
  • Seated cable rows (various bars)
  • T-bar rows
  • Chest supported rows

Group 2
  • Rear delt flyes
  • Scarecrows
  • Face pulls
  • Seated DB “power cleans”
  • Band pull-aparts

D.) Traps – Perform 3 – 4 sets of 8-15 reps of one of the following exercises:
  • DB shrugs
  • Barbell shrugs
  • Safety squat bar shrugs
  • Behind the back barbell shrugs

E.) Elbow flexor exercise - Perform 3-4 sets of 8-15 reps of one of the following exercises:
  • Barbell curls (regular or thick bar)
  • DB curls (standing)
  • Seated Incline DB curls
  • Hammer curls
  • Zottmann curls
  • Iso-hold DB curls
Here's what we did:

A.) Thick Bar Bench Press (Fat Gripz)

- Work up to 5RM

B.) Incline DB  Bench Press (2 x max)

C1.) Seated Row 4 x 12
C2.) TRX Scarecrow 4 x 12

D.) DB Shrugs 3 x 10

D1.) Barbell Curls 3 x 10
D2.) Rope Tricep Push-Down 3 x 15

Monday, September 22, 2014

Day 150


We are going to do Yasso Progressions once a week as we are training for our 10k run on November 9th. We should be up to 10x800m (5 Miles) the week before we head out.

Track Session
A.) 6×6 Hurdle Hops
B.) 3 x 10-20 yard shuttle, out and back
C.) 300m Shuttle (6×25 yds out and back)
D.) Yasso Progression 4x800m, rest equal to run time. - Goal is to run each 800 at exactly the same pace. Don’t go out too hard.

Friday, September 19, 2014

Day 149



A.) Every minute, on the minute for 5 minutes:

Push Jerk + 2 Split Jerk (starting @ 60% ascend in weight each set) 

B.) Pause Front Squats (5 x 2)

Warm-up as needed. Rest 90-120 seconds between sets. Pause in the bottom of each rep for 3 seconds.

C.) Every Minute on the minute for 20 minutes: 

Odd: 15 Wall Balls (20/14)
Even: 10 Toes-To-Bar

D.) Single Arm Dumbbell Rows (4 x 10)

Rest 90 seconds between sets. Heavy as possible. 

E.) Face Pulls (5 x 20)

Rest 60 seconds between sets. Use a mini-band for these. Make sure your shoulder blades are pinned back and are pulling to the face, you should feel this in your upper back/traps.

F.) Weighted Hip Extension (4 x 8)

Rest 60 Seconds between sets.

Thursday, September 18, 2014

Day 148


John Giacalone is our local Mobility Specialist. If you are having any issues or just want to get better, please check him out. You can schedule an appointment online. 

Active Recovery: These days are not "Rest days". You will recover faster, perform better every other day of the week, build up tolerance to volume, and be a better all-around athlete by moving on your recovery day. Doing something outside the box will get you more exposure and expand your margins of experience.

These days is about pro-actively speeding up your recovery. This involves getting blood flowing, massage, ART, active recovery, mobility work, foam rolling, yoga, compression, voodoo flossing and anything else that might promote recovery. The activity selected must be restorative for you. It can also be an opportunity to work on a skill, but the effort expended should leave you feeling energized at the end of the session, not depleted. Get some blood flowing to aid in your recovery. 

A.) Aerobic Restoration

25-40 minutes of one of the following performed at 60-70% effort – easy, restorative pace:

* Swim (this is our first choice)
* Row (focus on mechanics, smooth and efficient with a very low stroke per minute pace)
* AirDyne (keep the pace conversational and relaxed)
* Cycling (get outdoors and enjoy the scenery as you ride)
* Hike (nothing crazy, find a nice easy slope and go for a walk outdoors)

B.) Mobility and Maintenance

Choose 1-2 Thoracic Drills (upper back) and spend 5-10 minutes on them.
Choose 2-3 Lower Body Drills (hips, ankles) and spend 10-12 minutes on them.
Choose 1-2 Upper Extremity Drills (shoulders) and spend 5-10 minutes with them.

Wednesday, September 17, 2014

Day 147


A.) Hang Snatch: 5 x 3

Warm-up as needed. Rest 90-120 seconds between sets. 

Establish a heavy set for the day, that counts as (1) working set, your other 4 sets should be at 80% of your days heaviest or higher. Use straps if you need them them. All reps are full Squat.

B.) Back Squat: (10-8-6-6-6)

Warm-up as needed. Rest 90-120 seconds between sets.

60% x 10
65% x 8
70% x 6
75% x 6
80% x 6

C.) Front Squat (5-5-5-5)

Warm-up as needed. Rest 90-120 seconds between sets.

60% x 5
70% x 5
75% x 5
75% x 5

D.) Conditioning

Every 3 minutes for 18 minutes (6 Sets): 

400m Run

E.) Accessory Work

Banded Good Morning: 3 x 15
BPA x 25

Tuesday, September 16, 2014

Day 146


A.) Bench Press (10-8-8-8)

Warm-up as needed. Rest 2-3 minutes between sets. 

Set 1: 60% 
Set 2: 65% 
Set 3: 70% 
Set 4: 75% 

B.) Strict Press (5-5-5-5)

Warm-up as needed. Rest 2-3 minutes between sets.

Set 1: 60% 
Set 2: 65% 
Set 3: 70% 
Set 4: 70% 

C.) Pendlay Row: 4 x 8

Rest 90 seconds between sets. Build as heavy as possible.

D.) For Time: 50 Strict Pull-Ups

Keep track of total time and sets to complete.

E.) Hollow Position Hold: Accumulate 3 Minutes

Keep track of total time and attempts to complete.

Monday, September 15, 2014

Day 145


A.) Track Session

1.) 6 x 6 Hurdle Hops (demo)
2.) EMOM x 14 Minutes: 100m Sprint

B.) Front Squats

5×2 Front Squats, across

C.) Accessory Work

3 x 15 Banded Good Morning
3 x 15 Hip Extensions

Friday, September 12, 2014

Day 144


A.) Back Squat (10-8-6-4)
Warm-up as needed. Rest 90-120 seconds between sets.

60% x 10 
70% x 8
75% x 6
80% x 4

B) Front Squat (5-5-5-5)
Warm-up as needed. Rest 90-120 seconds between sets.

60% x 5
70% x 5
70% x 5
70% x 5

C.) Deadlift (5 x 5) banded @ 40% plus band tension
Rest minimally between sets

D.) Tabata

Hollow Rocks

E.) Row

3 x 750m row, 1:30 Rest between efforts.


Thursday, September 11, 2014

Track Session Template


Here is a overview on how we set up our Speed/Agility work:

  • General Warm-up / Movement skills (5-15 minutes) – The goal of this portion of the workout is to increase your core temperature by performing basic movement skills and calisthenics. (Example: air squats, jumping jacks, skipping, back pedaling, etc...)


  • Central Nervous System Activation (2-3 minutes) – We like to conclude our warm-up with 1 or 2 drills that excite the central nervous system before beginning the speed training portion of the workout. These drills should only last 5-10 seconds, and we recommend 4-6 sets total. (Example: Tuck Jumps, Agility Ladder Drills, Hurdle Hops, etc...)

  • Training– We always separate “speed training” from conditioning. When we refer to speed training, we're talking about distances of 100 yards or less, with complete (or close to it) recovery between sprints. The goal of this workout is to actually get faster. For example, an athlete who wants to incorporate drills for the Combine tests.

  • Speed Training - A few examples below:

1.) Agility Drills: 

10-yard starts – 8 sprints with 1 minute rest between sprints
20-yard shuttle – 5-6 reps with 1-2 minutes rest between sprints
3-Cone drill – 4 reps with 2-3 minutes rest between sprint

2.) “Flying 40′s” 
These sprints are 80 yards total. Start by running at 20 yards at about 80%, without changing direction sprint another 40 yards, and then cruise another 20 yards.

3.) Shuttle Runs 

300 yard Shuttle, 6×25 yards out and back
rest 5 minutes
300 yard Shuttle, 6×25 yards out and back

Simply put, this workout should consist of short, explosive sprints and agility drills with full recovery.

  • Conditioning - A few examples below:

1.) “Tosh” 

3 Rounds for time of:

200m Sprint, rest equal time + 400m Sprint, rest equal time + 600m Sprint, rest equal time.

2.) “The New England Patriots Conditioning Test“

10 x 50 yards – :30 rest between sprints - goal is all under 7 seconds.
rest 3 minutes
10 x 50 yards – :30 rest between sprints - goal is all under 7 seconds.
rest 3 minutes
10 x 50 yards – :30 rest between sprints - goal is all under 7 seconds.

A passing score is completing all 30 sprints under 7 seconds. 
Post the number or sprints that you completed under 7 seconds.

3.) Every 3 minutes, on the minute for 18 minutes (6 rounds):

400m run - attempt to hold the same pace for all six sets.

Day 143


John Giacalone is our local Mobility Specialist. If you are having any issues or just want to get better, please check him out. You can schedule an appointment online. 

Active Recovery: These days are not "Rest days". You will recover faster, perform better every other day of the week, build up tolerance to volume, and be a better all-around athlete by moving on your recovery day. Doing something outside the box will get you more exposure and expand your margins of experience.

These days is about pro-actively speeding up your recovery. This involves getting blood flowing, massage, ART, active recovery, mobility work, foam rolling, yoga, compression, voodoo flossing and anything else that might promote recovery. The activity selected must be restorative for you. It can also be an opportunity to work on a skill, but the effort expended should leave you feeling energized at the end of the session, not depleted. Get some blood flowing to aid in your recovery. 

A.) Aerobic Restoration

25-40 minutes of one of the following performed at 60-70% effort – easy, restorative pace:

* Swim (this is our first choice)
* Row (focus on mechanics, smooth and efficient with a very low stroke per minute pace)
* AirDyne (keep the pace conversational and relaxed)
* Cycling (get outdoors and enjoy the scenery as you ride)
* Hike (nothing crazy, find a nice easy slope and go for a walk outdoors)

B.) Mobility and Maintenance

Choose 1-2 Thoracic Drills (upper back) and spend 5-10 minutes on them.
Choose 2-3 Lower Body Drills (hips, ankles) and spend 10-12 minutes on them.
Choose 1-2 Upper Extremity Drills (shoulders) and spend 5-10 minutes with them.

Wednesday, September 10, 2014

Day 142


A.) Bench Press (10-8-6-4)

Set 1: 10 @ 60%
Set 2: 8 @ 70%
Set 3: 6 @ 75%
Set 4: 4 @ 80%

Rest 2-3 minutes between sets

B.) Weighted Chin-up

• Warm-up set of 8 reps
• perform 4 sets of 6, across

C.) Weighted Dips

• Warm-up set of 10 reps
• perform 4 sets of 8, across

D.) Seated DB Overhead Press
• Perform 4 sets of 10, across

E.) Barbell Curls

• Perform 4 sets of 10 , across

F.) Three rounds, for quality

25 AbMat Sit-Ups
20 MB Slams
40 Cross Body Mountain Climbers

Tuesday, September 9, 2014

Day 141


Track Session

1.) 6×6 Facing Hurdle Hops (demo)

2.) 6 sets of 3-cone drill, Cones are 5 yards apart. (demo)

3.) 300yd Shuttle (6×25 yards out and back)

4.) “Tosh Sprints” 

3 Rounds for time of:

200m Sprint, rest equal time + 400m Sprint, rest equal time + 600m Sprint, rest equal time.

Monday, September 8, 2014

Day 140


A.) Snatch Skills

1.) Snatch Grip Push Press – quickly work up to a heavy (not max) triple

2.) OHS – quickly work up to a heavy (not max) Double

3.) Snatch Balance – quickly work up to a heavy (not max) Single

B.) Squat

10×2 Box Squat, across (demo)


C.) MetCon:

7 Rounds for time:

7 C2B Pull-ups
7 Push Jerks (155/105)
7 Burpees

Saturday, September 6, 2014

Day 139


A.) Skill

Hang Squat Clean (10 x 2) @ 65-75% - be fast under the bar. 

B.) Strength

EMOM x 12 Minutes: Deadlift (3 sets at each cycle) 

Sets 1-3: 60% x 5 
Sets 4-6: 70% x 4 
Sets 7-9: 80% x 3 
Sets 10-12: 85% x 2 

C.) Odd Objects/ Movement, For Time:

100 1-arm DB Snatch (70/50) 

D.) 10 Rounds for Time: 

30 Unbroken Double unders

Friday, September 5, 2014

Day 138


A.) Squats

3×5 Back Squats, across

B.) Pause Squats

3×3 Pause Front Squats, Pause for 10 seconds at the bottom.

C.) For Time:

30 Calorie Row
30 Barbell Facing Burpees
30 Hang Power Cleans (135/95)

D.) Ring Extensions – demo video

2×10 alternating arms – pause 1-2 seconds at extension
2×5 double arms – pause 1-2 seconds at extension

Thursday, September 4, 2014

Day 137 (Active Recovery)



John Giacalone is our local Mobility Specialist. If you are having any issues or just want to get better, please check him out. You can schedule an appointment online. 

Active Recovery: These days are not "Rest days". You will recover faster, perform better every other day of the week, build up tolerance to volume, and be a better all-around athlete by moving on your recovery day. Doing something outside the box will get you more exposure and expand your margins of experience.

These days is about pro-actively speeding up your recovery. This involves getting blood flowing, massage, ART, active recovery, mobility work, foam rolling, yoga, compression, voodoo flossing and anything else that might promote recovery. The activity selected must be restorative for you. It can also be an opportunity to work on a skill, but the effort expended should leave you feeling energized at the end of the session, not depleted. Get some blood flowing to aid in your recovery. 

A.) Aerobic Restoration

25-40 minutes of one of the following performed at 60-70% effort – easy, restorative pace:

* Swim (this is our first choice)
* Row (focus on mechanics, smooth and efficient with a very low stroke per minute pace)
* AirDyne (keep the pace conversational and relaxed)
* Cycling (get outdoors and enjoy the scenery as you ride)
* Hike (nothing crazy, find a nice easy slope and go for a walk outdoors)

B.) Mobility and Maintenance

Choose 1-2 Thoracic Drills (upper back) and spend 5-10 minutes on them.
Choose 2-3 Lower Body Drills (hips, ankles) and spend 10-12 minutes on them.
Choose 1-2 Upper Extremity Drills (shoulders) and spend 5-10 minutes with them.

Wednesday, September 3, 2014

Day 136


A.) Max Effort Exercise - work up to a max set of 3-5 reps:

Bench Press

B.) Supplemental Exercise – perform 2 sets of max reps 
(Choose a weight you can perform for 15-20 reps on the 1st set. Use the same weight for both sets and rest 3-4 minutes between sets).

DB Flat Bench Press 

C.) Horizontal pulling / Rear delt superset - 
(Perform 3-4 supersets of 8-12 reps of each exercise.)

Seated cable rows x 8-12
- rest 30 seconds
Face pulls x 12
-rest 30 seconds

D.) Joe D's "3-6-12" Badass Biceps Builder

1.) Eccentric Chin-ups (close, underhand grip): 3 reps, 10sec. each lowering

2.) 1½ rep Incline Dumbell Curls: 6 reps

3.) Band Curls: 12 reps

- Rest 10-15s between each exercise. 
- Rest 3 minutes between each tri-set.
- Repeat for (3) tri-sets.
DEMO