How about Open Workout 22.2? Marek Vácha will tell you!

Author Marek Vácha and RUFF training team

Another week of CrossFit Open is here and with it the second qualifying workout. This week it's couplet combinations, a combination of two exercises, which are Deadlifts and Bar Facing Burpees. The exact scheme looks like this:

WOD 22.2

For Time:

1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1x

• Deadlifts @M=102kg / W=70kg
• Bar Facing Burpees

Time Cap: 10 min.

... so your goal is to complete the given combination of exercises in the shortest time possible, but no longer than the above mentioned 10 minutes.

Warm-up

If we told ourselves at the WOD 22.1 that we don't want to underestimate a proper warm-up, this is doubly true here. You may not think the workout in question is that bad at first glance, but believe me, the opposite is true. Be sure not to underestimate adequate movement preparation.

As a priority, you'll want to get your lower back and shoulders sufficiently limbered up and blood flowing. Additionally, I would spend some time working on your hips as well, try to get that area moving as much as possible, you'll appreciate it later on deadlifts. For the warm up I would do the following:

1. General Warm Up = classic body warm up, 5-10 min. work on any machine will serve well for this purpose.

2. Specific Warm Up = here you would want to focus on the aforementioned hip and lower leg area first.

A. Try working on hip mobility for a few minutes first - try a Couch Stretch for example. Next, I would spend a moment on specific activation of the hamstrings and gluteal muscles. For example, you could try one set of a few reps of these two exercises:

• Half Kneeling Hamstring Lift Off / Knee Banded Hip Bridge

B . Then follow with 2-3 sets of this combination:

• 10x Romanian Deadlifts + 10x Hollow Body Rocks + 7x Inchworm + Push Up

C. After that, you'll want to go to the actual competition combination, which is Deadlifts + Bar Facing Burpees.

• 1 set:

1-2-3-4-5x

Deadlifts @lightweight

Bar Facing Burpees

• 3 min. Bike Erg @lightweight pace
• 2 sets:

30-20-10s. Air Bike

@increase the intensity of the movement each time

• no rest
• 1 set:

6-4-2x

Deadlifts @racing weight

Bar facing Burpees

... then take about 5 min. break and go into 22.2 sharp.

Effectiveness of movement patterns and game plan

Let's face it, maintaining quality technique on heavier deadlifts in a workout like this is no easy thing, but it should be everyone's priority. And not just from a health and movement safety standpoint, but for the sake of efficiency itself. Because if you perform the exercise with poor technique, your lower back will soon stiffen and you will be forced to slow down. Some tips on how to do our two movements here:

Deadlifts

Try to keep in mind that you want to perform the movement through hip flexion, not through the flexion in the lower back area. Thus, your goal should be to engage the lower limbs well to perform the movement itself and keep the center of the body in neutral. Keep in mind that you also want to take a sufficient breath before each repetition to firm up your center. In the top position of the movement, just bring your legs up, you don't want to go into an unnecessary bend. Additional tips for working more efficiently with

Deadlifts:

• Set in your mind how many repetitions you would like to go "unbroken" (without pauses). Of course, ideally we would like to go the entire WOD this way, but not all of us have the strength for that yet. So determine, for example, that you want to go 10 reps without pauses, and then when you split the axis into more sets
• Transitions do a lot, going from axis to English is easy, on the other hand starting axis work after English is another nut to crack. So ideally try to keep the transitions from Burpees to axis short, as longer pauses here will then have a significant effect on the result
• Always try to go several reps without splitting. So ideally try to avoid 1s, as the first lift off the ground is always harder than the follow-up reps

Bar Facing Burpees

Here you need to touch the ground with both your chest and hips in the bottom position for each rep. As you lift, keep in mind that it is more effective to step forward with one foot than to jump out with both feet at the same time. At the same time, keep in mind that you don't want to stay in the bottom position for long; if you need somewhere to rest, you're more likely to be on top. The better you can firm up at the English and not bend over (during the push-up phase), the easier it will be to do the movement and also save your lower back from premature fatigue. Additional tips for working more efficiently with Burpees:

• Make sure all reps ideally look the same. Test the movement sufficiently and learn one technique that you will then stick to for all reps
• Try to stay in a lower position when you jump the axis, you don't have to brace yourself for each jump
• Proper tempo for burpees is everything. The first five sets are easy, the break won't come until longer. You don't want to go fast for the first few reps and then slow down, set a pace that you can maintain through the entire workout

... for most people a given wod will be more of an AMRAP x 10 min than a time trial. Therefore, to get the best result you need to think hard and set the right pace. Either way the given combination will be hard, but if you overdo the initial pace you will get a much more unpleasant experience. Consistently try to get through most of the reps and in the last two minutes or so try to speed up and leave everything you have on the table. If your goal is to qualify for the second part of the CrossFit season, the quarterfinals, then in my opinion your goal should be to complete 6 Deadlifts +6 Bar Facing Burpees on the way back.

Good luck to all of you !

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