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"APACHE CHIEF"
Obj: Power/Power Endurance
Warm up: 5 Rounds
15-ft Rope Climb
10x Dumbbell Push Press @ 35#
Training:
(1) Work up to 1RM Push Press
(2) 5 Rounds
2x Push Press @ 90% 1RM
5x Slashers each side @ 24kg
(3) 5 Rounds
1 minute bag pull and sprint
1 minute Swing @ 20kg kb
1 minute Sandbag getup @ 60# bag
1 minute Row
1 minute Burpees
1 minute Rest
Comments:
In "Quantum Strength & Power Training" Coach Pat O'Shea describes the Push Press as the "king of standing
upper body lifts." He continues, "The push press is considered the upper body counter part of the squat."
Finally, somebody else who likes the push press!!! I love this exercise, and favor it over the push jerk for these reasons
(some lame, I know):
1) Little Coaching involved. Demonstrate the lift, and athletes "get it." By comparison, the push jerk is complicated.
2) More functional outside the gym. Athletes will use the push press movement in the real world before trying to deploy
the barbell-specific jerk.
3) Safer - you can't push press as much as you can jerk.
4) More strength oriented than the jerk, which uses the legs for the final part of the lift instead of the shoulders,
chest, back and triceps like the push press.
5) I personally can barely perform a "serviceable" jerk after quite a bit of coaching. It's hard to coach something
I can't do myself (weak, lame, I know, I know ....)
CrossFit founder Greg Glassman makes a great argument for the Push Jerk. It's faster, and more powerful, he says accurately.
Plus, in metabolic conditioning circuits, the push press will devolve into a push jerk anyway, and he's right. Even I start
doing jerk-like things when I get tired.
But dang it, I'm sticking with the push press. I acknowledge Coach Glassman's arguments, and he's a much more experienced
coach than me and is probably right, but for some reason, I really like the push press.
Speaking of Coach Glassman, the Power Endurance part of this session (#3) is a total rip off from CrossFit's classic "Fight
Gone Bad" workout. Give credit where credit is due.
E-MAIL QUESTION FROM ALEX -
"Your comments today confirmed what I thought you would say about 1RM efforts that follow the barbell complex "warmup".
It doesn't matter if the 1RM is a squat, clean, push press or bench press- I found myself thinking "Jeez, each of these
1RM efforts deserves an asterix after suffering through that barbell complex ! "
On the other hand, if the 1RM efforts and numbers are to be used to measure progress over time, I would argue that there
is a benefit to approaching them in the traditional manner you mentioned- a light unloaded dynamic warmup, some light front
squats, leading into the typical series of single attempts (usually after a couple of sets of 3's or 2's).
I like finding out what I can do when I'm fresh, and if I do my 1RM attempts first in the workout each time, I feel it's
a better way to see if I am getting stronger.
I understand your point about not really caring how much your athletes can lift, and it's kind of cool to see what I can
do AFTER the BB complex sufferfest, but sometimes, when it comes to a strength/power workout, there's value in the traditional
approach for this reason. I'll typically do the BB complex later in the workout, or make a whole workout of practicing it
, or "The Exercise" or "The Drill" (Dan John) or the bear complex (power clean-front squat- PP-back squat-PP
and repeat). Come to think of it, I almost always do snatch or OHS first.
You'd probably say get over your weighlifter fussiness, but these explosive lifts are hard enough fresh. And if I remember
correctly , the BB complex isn't your only warmup that's a warmup in name only.
You said yourself that if you were concerned solely with strength you would do things differently.
Do you think your athletes would benefit from some workouts that are strictly strength or power-oriented, with no metabolic
or strength-endurance elements at all?
Segregation of these two capacities from the others, to reap maximum benefits? Thanks for your thoughts on this.
COMMENTS/ANSWER
While strength is king, increasing the horsepower of my athletes is my number one goal. This squishy term involves all
of the things we train - strengh, strength endurance, power, power endurance, metabolic conditioning (cardio) and mental toughness.
Power Endurance and metabolic conditioning both have a heavy breathing component, and I've evolved to the point where
in just about every session, at some point I want my athletes breathing really hard. Even on strength days (hence, the tire
drag and sled push - killer!)
From the horsepower/work capacity perspective, perhaps the barbell complex is a better conditioning tool and test than
any 1RM max. Increasing a front squat max from 95# to 105# is a 10% strength increase only.
But going from a 95# 4th barbell complex to a 105# 4th barbell complex is a whole different animal which brings into play
not only strength, but strength endurance, mental toughness, work capacity, etc. It is a much greater gain. I'm sure some
data-oriented gym rat out there could calculate the cumulative wattage generated by each effort and prove my point - but that's
way too much math for me. I just know that the 105# complex, after doing 3 prior at 75#, 85# and 95# is much, much harder.
The traditional strength coaches would certainly find more wrong with my "strength" days than an intense warm
up. Other things they would find wrong include:
- No one else I know of does a 1RM Max first, then drops down to do Max Effort work sets based on that max immediately
in the same workout. Rather, most coaches program 1RM max tests weeks apart, with several work sets across in between. I'm
sure many would say this is CNS overload.
- No 3-minute rest between work sets. In fact, there is no appreciable rest at all with our super-set approach.
- Intense metabolic conditioning (cardio)above 70% of MHR. In his new book, Eric Cressey advises very little "energy
system" work noting that studies have shown it negatively impacts strength gains.
- And my long, slow, endurance work? I ran 2.5 hours Sunday. Boyle would wag his finger at me!
Alex, you could be right and my programming and training session design might be hurting the strength progress of my athletes.
But I've seen steady gains on those 1 Rep maxes across the board, as well as heavier barbell complexes, faster power-endurance
efforts, etc.
After doing these super active, work-filled training sessions for so long, I think a traditional strength training session
with the dynamic warm up, light sets and long wait periods between lifts - would just bore me to tears.
Finally, I Coach Rutherford of Kansas City, inventor of the ME Black Box combining Max Effort work with CrossFit, wrote
in June 2008 Performance Menu that he is no coupling Max Effort work with a CrossFit-inspired MetCon workout in the same training
session.
SEMINAR - A recent cancellation has left spots open for the Seminar later this week. Come to beautiful Jackson and sponge
off us for a couple days. Click "Seminar" above for details. 1.6 NSCA CEUs for you CSCSs and NSCA-CPTs out there.
- Rob Shaul
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| Heavy Push Press - the "squat" of upper body lifts! |
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| No rest here. |
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| Can't hide during the swings. |
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| Get ups crush the chest. |
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