WOD - 101022

Thanks Nick.

I guess my question has to do with what the "general theme" means for the WOD. What I mean is that for this workout, when looking at the "10 FL pulls" part: would just be doing a pulling excercise for somewhere between 3-10 reps and whatever you do within that window is ok and it's okay if you are going toward faliure (which is what I did), or does it mean you should be doing 10 reps of an exercise that will take you not to faliure but will still have you work hard and should be a pulling exercise? Do you know what I mean? If I'm getting to faliure not even at half of the required rep count, and with an exercise that is already the easiest one of that type, and I have to rest far far more than required by the WOD, taken all together am I no longer really following the idea/theme of the WOD? Should I then be scaling even further down?

Well, if you can do the intensity (meaning the more difficult workout) but not the volume yet, I would just do that. For example, scale the movements down to half that amount if you can still do them. If they are too difficult scale it down to wherever you need to. But I would do the hardest movements in that family that you can safely, while just lowering the volume a bit. Your capacity will build over time as your strength does, and by the next WOD of the same type, you should be be able to do more.

By the same token, if max strength is not your ulitmate goal, then you could also scale down the intensity and keep the volume the same. Find the hardest movements you can do for those prescribed reps and do that. This will build your strength endurance a little more, and you will still get stronger, albiet a little slower than the first way.

Finally, if you cannot do anything the WOD calls for, or it would just be very hard, consider what the overall theme of the day is. This was a pulling day. So if you have to, scale it to just pull ups and rows. On a pushing day, you may have to scale to just pushups and dips. You can follow this idea on any day if you incapable of following through the prescribed WOD yet, but it will still be following coaches plan, and you will still have results (albeit maybe slower than with other methods) and be overall balanced.

... if you can do the intensity (meaning the more difficult workout) but not the volume yet, I would just do that. For example, scale the movements down to half that amount if you can still do them ...

My preference would be for you to maintain the correct volume; rather than the intensity. Otherwise this workout simply becomes another maximum strength day which is not the intent. For example, rather than performing 4 towel pull-ups, perform 10 towel rows.

Yours in Fitness,

Coach Sommer

Coach Sommer said:

... if you can do the intensity (meaning the more difficult workout) but not the volume yet, I would just do that. For example, scale the movements down to half that amount if you can still do them ...

My preference would be for you to maintain the correct volume; rather than the intensity. Otherwise this workout simply becomes another maximum strength day which is not the intent. For example, rather than performing 4 towel pull-ups, perform 10 towel rows.

Yours in Fitness,

Coach Sommer

Roger that. Guess I had the idea a little confused. Probably need to take this advice myself, lol.

Great, thanks Coach and Nick!

I guess that was my basic question, intensity versus volume... a much simplier way to put it!

The question now is how do I know which days are a max strength days, and which are... uh, "other" days... that is which days should I scale to maintain volume, and which days should I scale to maintain intensity?

Ring strength series are the max strength days. Friday for example.

So on the max strength days, like ring strength days... how would I scale differently? If I could only do 5 reps of the required 10 (even at the easiest exercise) would I keep going with 5 to faliure, instead of scaling further to an even easier exercise in order to maintain the volume?