Gymnastic Body Baseline

[Jason Stein]

Coach Summer, all ---

I've been trying to think of a way to introduce a baseline or control to my practice of the Gymnastic Bodies' daily WODs.

The idea being to establish a set of fundamental Gymnastic Bodies criteria of exercises, reps, and weights, around which I could occasionally test and measure myself.

It would accurately diagnose strength and flexibility deficiencies, allowing them to be addressed specifically with skill and/or strength work in addition to the main WODs. Also, demonstrable, measurable gains provide fantastic positive reinforcement, and for those of us who don't measure our strength and flexibility gains through competition or performance, gymnastic or otherwise, this would be invaluable.

I stumbled across Ido Portal's post regarding the bent- and straight-arm podkatchkas, and I think they would make a great metric. I'll post the two Podkatchkas below, reformatted.

I had thought to perform both (to the best of my abilities) every 10-12 weeks, at the end of a reduced-volume week.

Also, the ability to perform these exercises with increasingly shorter periods of rest seems to me to be another metric of increased muscular endurance.

To make the podkatchkas approachable, I thought to pattern them on Crossfit Portland's Athletic Skills Levels, so the repetitions, leverage positions, and time intervals as Mr. Portal has listed them would be considered Level 5, or the highest level.

One could establish progressively approachable variations for each exercise, and then group them together as Levels 1 through 5.

For example, Level 5 would be 15 Strict Muscle-ups (Straight through, no release of rings).

Level 4: 15 Strict Muscle-ups (Segment as needed).

Level 3: 15 kipping muscle-ups (straight).

Level 2: 15 kipping muscle-ups (segment as needed).

Level 1: 45 pull-ups/45 dips.

It seems most of the exercises are eminently scaleable, though a few are equipment-specific, specifically the P-bars.

(I think surviving the entire thing constitutes a workout in and of itself.)

I'm curious to hear any thoughts or opinions, especially regarding any blindspots or shortcomings it might have.

regards,

jason

[Jason Stein]

Bent Arm Podkatchka

Perform all group "A" exercises first, followed by all group "B" exercises.

Rest 90-180 seconds between stations.

Original post: http://gymnasticbodies.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=479

A1 Ring

Muscle Ups

15 reps

A2 PBar

Swinging dips to handstand.

10 reps (20 dips - on the way in and out)

A3 Parallettes

L-sit press to handstand with bent arms

10 reps

A4 Floor Cobra Presses

Press from cobra stretch into handstand

10 reps

A5 Rope climb in straddle-L-Sit

2-5 reps @ 6 m

(No rest and don’t touch floor.)

A6 Bar

Ice Cream Makers

10-20 reps

(As slow as possible.)

B1 Ring

Kip-Ups

10 reps

B2 Pbar

L-sit Dips

10-15 Reps

(Heels level with glutes, full ROM)

B3 Parallettes

Handstand Push ups

10-15 reps

(Full ROM)

B4 Floor

Straddle L-sit Press to Handstand

10 reps

B5 Rope

Reverse Chameleon Climb

2-5 sets @ 6 m

B6 Bar

One arm chin ups

5 reps per side X 5 second negative

Straight Arm Podkatchka

Perform all group "A" exercises first, followed by all group "B" exercises.

Rest 90-180 seconds between stations.

Original post: http://gymnasticbodies.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=479

A1 Rings

Teeter Totter

From an inverted hang, go down to full front lever, hold for 3 seconds.

Pull back to inverted hang and go down into full back lever, hold for 3 seconds.

Pull back to inverted hang.

Repeat for 3-5 reps.

A2 Floor

Domino

Go into a handstand.

Partner holds toes and lowers straight body to floor, hold for 5 seconds.

Partner lifts straight body to handstand.

Turn hands to the outside one after the other.

Partner now lowers straight body, open shoulder angle, to floor.

(Push into the ground with hands and use thumbs for extra pressure. No arch.) Hold for 5 seconds.

Partner lifts straight body to handstand.

Repeat for 3 reps.

A3 Swedish Ladder

Straight-arm Dragon Flags.

Lower slowly towards the floor and pull back up.

Use the lowest bar in the ladder for grip and keep an open shoulder angle.

5-10 reps.

A4 Parallettes

L-sit press handstand

10 reps

A5 Rings

360 circle pull

Pull through a FL, to inverted, to BL, to StC., to return, with straight body.

Perform 5 reps. Perform as slowly as possible.

A6 Pbars

Swing to handstand from support, lower slowly into planche/straddle planche, hold for 3 seconds, drop from the planche into a swing, and return to handstand.

Repeat for 5-10 reps.

A7 Abdominals

Sit on the edge of a pommel horse with a partner securing your legs.

Lower back from a sitting position into an arch, sit up, repeat 3 reps.

Lower into a hollow position, hold for 10 seconds, repeat 3 times.

9 total reps and 3x10 second static hollow holds.

Hold a 10 kg plate behind your neck.

A8 Lower back

Put your thighs on a pommel horse facing down with a partner securing your ankles. Start with 90-degree angle in your hips and perform 3 reps of hyperextensions into the highest position you can achieve.

After the third rep lower into a straight body position and perform 20 gentle rotations (10 in each direction) around the vertical axis of your body.

Repeat 3 times for a total of 9 reps and 3 X 20 rotations.

Take a 10-20 kg plate behind your neck.

B1 Rings

Cross pull outs + statics.

This exercise can either be performed with straps but also with a 10 kg plate strapped to your ankles, or without straps, normal grip, no added weight.

Perform 3 pull outs, hold a 3-second cross.

Repeat 3 times, 30-50 seconds cross holds and a normal grip cross.

B2 High Bar

Short kip-ups from support.

Start with a support on a high bar.

Lower back and down into a pike position, kip up back to support.

Perform 10-15 reps.

B3 Floor

Press handstand from pike.

10-15 reps. (Touch floor with toes and repeat.)

B4 Parallettes

Straddle l-sit to straddle planche.

Hold each position for 3 seconds, perform 3-5 total reps.

B5 Pbars

L-sit, V-sit combo.

Perfom a supported l-sit on the pbars. hold for 3 seconds.

Lift hips up into v-sit/manna hold for 3 seconds.

Repeat for 3-5 reps.

B6 Swedish Ladder

Hanging leg raises.

Attach 10 kg plate to ankles.

Perform 10-20 reps.

B7 Abs

Perform A7.

B8 Lower back

Perform A8

[Coach Sommer]

Great idea, Jason. Your segmenting of the muscle-ups for the various levels is very well thought out. I look forward to seeing your other ideas on segmentation.

I am heading out of town in the morning to the Olympic Training Center for a National Team Camp, but I will continue to give this some thought.

Yours in Fitness,

Coach Sommer

[Jason Stein]

The Podkatchka circuit above may be overly complex to function effectively as a Baseline, though I still think it would be a brilliant metric (and a workout).

I personally don't have a lot of experience with weights, but using a few simple lifts would also generate concrete data points. It would have to be lifts that don't require a lot of technique --- maybe deadlift, overhead squat, military press, weighted pull-up?

Again, I don't really know enough about weightlifting to know which exercises would accurately reflect carryover strength gains. Also, using weights requires access to a weight set-up. I also have observed that weightlifting does not task, require or measure the element of active flexibility required in gymnastic movements.

Maybe a GB Baseline ought to require simpler movements requiring less specialized equipment.

From what I've experienced in my own practices, a high volume of limited ROM exercises greatly impairs my flexibility. So I'll toss out some completely arbitrary numbers of reps that ought to be adjusted after experimentation, but the idea is if you can automatically bang out the requisite number, then in order to test any strength and flexibility gains, you would proceed to a progression at which you hit failure.

The idea would be to see if, at the end of the next Steady State, you have improved on your max effort.

Again, it's a circuit, to be completed with 90-180 seconds of rest between exercises. Total time would be measured, as well.

• 
  [*:1dapuiqj]1. Push-ups
  push-ups/45-degree-incline push-ups/headstand push-ups/L headstand push-ups/full ROM handstand-push-ups/L full-ROM handstand push-ups
  10 reps
  [*:1dapuiqj]2. Pull-ups
  Kip pull-ups/strict pull-ups/L pull-ups
  20 reps
  [*:1dapuiqj]3. Dips
  Dips/half-lay dips/L dips/V-sit dips
  10 reps
  [*:1dapuiqj]4. Squat
  air squat/SLS/crane SLS [don't let go of big toe]
  10 straight each leg
  [*:1dapuiqj]5. Rope
  Rope climb/no legs/straddle/L-sit/V-sit
  3 trips, 6 meters
  [*:1dapuiqj]6. Abdominals
  Sit-ups/knees to elbow/V-ups/toes to bar
  25 reps
  [*:1dapuiqj]7. Muscle-ups
  kip muscle-ups, segment/kip muscle-up, straight/strict muscle-up, segment/strict muscle-up, straight
  10

A neglected aspect is flexibility --- all the handstand pressing requires flexibility, so if one doesn't have hip, hamstring or shoulder flexibility, they are very difficult, impossible, or performed incorrectly. So maybe there ought to be a GB Baseline for strength and one for flexibility?

Though looking again at the Podkatchkas --- performing both the bent- and straight-arm versions will quickly diagnose flexibility deficiencies.

Anyways, I intend to reduce volume this week and see about those podkatchkas this weekend.

Regards,

jason

[Jason Stein]

Well, I went for it --- it was very, very burly, but fun.

I went for each exercise until I had to stop, let go of the bar, or come down. Or, towards the end, generate no lift.

I've had a fair amount of practice with straight-arm pressing --- but not as much with bent-arm pressing, which became apparent when it came time to perform multiple reps of these exercises. Also, it was a great test of muscular endurance.

The technical aspect, though, seems fairly advanced for a baseline metric --- our gym doesn't have quite the right p-bar set-up for swings to handstand, for example, and I've never practiced a few of these exercises, such as reverse chameleon rope climb or cobra press to handstand.

Also, pretty psyched on 4 strict muscle-ups without coming off the rings.

A1 Rings

Muscle-ups

4 strict

A2 P Bar

Swinging dips to handstand

6 half-dips to planche

A3 Parallettes

L-sit to handstand

4 l-sits to shoulder stand

A4 Floor Cobra Press

4 press to planche

A5 Rope

Straddle L-sit

1 trip, 15 feet

A6 Bar

Ice-cream makers

5

B1 Ring

Kip-ups

NONE --- Skill deficiency

B2 P bar

L-sit dips

10 at half ROM

B3 Parallettes

HSPU

5, WAY limited ROM

B4 Floor

Straddle L-sit press to HS

1/2! Arms were cooked

B5 Rope

Reverse chameleon

1/2

B6 Bar

One-arm chins!

No way.