Last week we started a series of posts about the different categories of workouts that we do at CrossFit Kent Island, or the major physical traits that we are developing with our training. We started by discussing Strength — what it is, and why we train for it. Check out that post here if you haven’t yet!
Now we move on to Endurance, definitely another one of our foundational skills. We all love to work on Strength – it’s fun to lift heavy weights and it’s the one physical trait that you can outwardly see. That guy has big muscles, he is Strong. But Strength without Endurance is just that, a one-sided version of fitness training. Maybe you can deadlift twice your bodyweight, but if you can’t run a mile without stopping, your fitness program has fallen short.
Endurance is a foundational skill because like Strength, the other skills depend on it. You must develop a baseline level of Endurance, or cardiovascular efficiency, before starting to seriously develop Stamina or Work Capacity, two of the other classic domains of fitness that we train every day in CrossFit. You develop Endurance when you train for longer, continuous stretches of time, traditionally with one “cardio” movement but as we see in our CFKI workouts it doesn’t have to be that way! Many of us in the CrossFit world have come “running” into the gym and away from endurance training because of boredom or overuse injuries. But you can train for Endurance by mixing in lots of different, relatively low intensity movements. Running, rowing, biking, skiing, jumping rope, burpees, box step-ups, and lightweight weightlifting movements are all fair game for endurance-type training. These longer workouts, generally lasting 20+ minutes, are intended to be done with little to no rest, and they rely on oxygen for fuel rather than stored glucose. Your coach will encourage you to be conscious of your breathing, and slow it down with big nasal breaths, in order to slow down your heart rate as much as possible to a level you can manage for a long time.
At the mental level, endurance training will help you develop the capacity to stay at a task for the long haul. Getting a college degree, working hard for several years to be promoted, finishing your first book, all of these take mental and emotional endurance.
Let’s lean into the longer Endurance-focused workouts! Let’s build our capacity to go for the long haul – it will help with the rest of our higher intensity training by allowing us to go longer into those dark moments where the big-time adaptations take place. And having a strong heart and big healthy lungs means longevity and the ability to go for those long vacation hikes when you want to!
Ryan