Quick SSC question

When using the SSC for statics and you are doing statics for 60 seconds total time, can you increase the time spent in the position, i.e, go from 10 sets of 6 seconds, to 5 sets of 12 seconds. In the middle of a SSC, or would this count as increasing workload?

Thanks for the info beforehand,

The Newguy

That's not an increase in workload, but that is also not how the SSC is designed to be performed. Obviously, you COULD do that but you will be increasing the strain on your nervous system.

During your SSC you want to keep doing the EXACT same thing over and over. At the end of the SSC you will feel like what you are doing is super easy, and especially in the beginning you will make pretty large jumps forward in your ability from cycle to cycle. Allowing things to get easy is part of why this works.

Okay, thanks Slizzman

You're welcome! In my personal opinion, not increasing set times is the hardest part of the SSC.

I'm about to start my first SSC and I can imagine that resisting the urge to increase intensity will be one of the hardest things for me as well. Any tips on overcoming this urge? Working more on skills?

You have to learn to think of the getting easier as your progress. As the weeks go by and you feel like you can do more, you want to think to yourself "Good, good! This is getting super easy, I like it!" instead of "Wow, this is getting easy, I better do more!"

That's a great point, thanks Slizzard.

No problem! I wrestled with that one for a looooong time!

Newguy said:

When using the SSC for statics and you are doing statics for 60 seconds total time, can you increase the time spent in the position, i.e, go from 10 sets of 6 seconds, to 5 sets of 12 seconds. In the middle of a SSC, or would this count as increasing workload?

Yes, this would count as increasing the workload. During an SSC all the possible variables (FSP position, duration of hold and number of sets) should remain constant.

Yours in Fitness,

Coach Sommer

Including the rest between holds?

slizzardman said:

That's not an increase in workload, but that is also not how the SSC is designed to be performed. Obviously, you COULD do that but you will be increasing the strain on your nervous system.

During your SSC you want to keep doing the EXACT same thing over and over. At the end of the SSC you will feel like what you are doing is super easy, and especially in the beginning you will make pretty large jumps forward in your ability from cycle to cycle. Allowing things to get easy is part of why this works.

To clarify: I mean that the TOTAL workload (total volume) does not change. You're still doing 60s in the given position.

However, switching to longer sets in the middle of an SSC is harder and will stress your body much more, both because you will be burning more sugar and therefore creating more metabolic waste products and because your body will not have had the time to slowly shift the work to lower-level motor groups as it gets more efficient. You will literally be doing more work in each set, so your workload per set IS increasing. This also puts more stress on the CNS and if you increase your set times before your body becomes efficient at what you are currently doing you will start to depress your nervous system, which basically means you will run into a wall or plateau, so to speak. You won't understand why you seem to be unable to progress past a certain point. It is absolutely imperative that you do not alter your SSC in any way while you are performing it. One of the "secrets" of a gymnast's strength is the exceptional efficiency of their nervous systems. You have to give yours time to adapt as well.

As Coach has said, it is equally important to keep your body position exactly the same for the SSC. You will still be working against your natural adaptive responses if you keep sets and reps the same but alter your position in the middle of an SSC. That could be as simple as flattening your back more as you feel yourself getting stronger in a tuck FL or BL, or holding your legs straighter or higher in one of the L-sit variations. Every time you change positions you are using slightly different neural patterns and this will cause the body to constantly be working in a position it has not maximized efficiency in. This means you will be taxing your CNS more, and this WILL interfere not just with recovery but also with your performance in basic conditioning (the WODs).

I apologize if I seem to have contradicted Coach in my earlier post, that was not my intention. This post gets a little deeper into WHY it is important not to change anything, but like Coach said the most important thing is to remember that ANYTHING you change will increase the stress on your body in some way, and this WILL negatively affect your progress with the SSC. Keep everything the same and you will get great results!

Newguy: Yes, that includes rest between holds. This is probably the LEAST disruptive thing to change since it is changing things for the energy systems used and not for the actual movement itself (unless you cut so much rest out that you can not maintain your position properly, in which case you would REALLY be screwing things up), but it takes your body time to develop more neural efficiency, faster energy substrate regeneration and the ability to quickly clear waste products. This could potentially change motor unit recruitment patterns and stress your body more that way as well. You will be BEST served if you keep them the same and then reduce them slightly in the NEXT SSC.

Before I start my first ever SSC on monday I got one more question (I am excited about it :twisted: )

I am just going to be doing my statics and the WODS on this SSC, should I do the statics everyday or just on the 4 days I do the WOD?

Just WOD days.

KTHNKSBAI (In other words Okay, Thanks bye. )