It’s OK to scale. We know that – if we didn’t then we would consistently not finish workouts because the weights are just too damn heavy or the movements too difficult.
It’s also OK to not train everyday at a balls-to-the-wall competition pace. Do we know that? Many of our “seasoned” athletes do, because they know that if they come into the gym for an Open workout on Friday, they need the whole weekend off or even more in order to just stumble back in for a light movement day. What can we learn from that?
BACK IN THE DAY when I first started in the CrossFit space, the workout cadence was 3 days on, 1 day off. Go as hard as you can for 3 days, and then take a full day off to recover and nurse your wounds.
These days, we’re into more of a 6 days on, 1 day off mentality, if you want to maximize your Unlimited membership and get invited into the Committed Club. And I love that… but…
You can’t compete every day. You can’t effectively compete even two days in a row, unless you’re actually in a competition and you have to – aka the CrossFit Games or the online semifinals leading up to it. So if you’re coming to the gym 6 days a week, what are you supposed to do? Our own “seasoned” veteran of CrossFit and competitive rubgy, Tod Grantham, offered to research the subject and found that this ratio of training volume works well:
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- Training (70-80%) – This is where most of the volume occurs, focusing on building strength, endurance, and movement quality. Training should include progressive overload, skill refinement, and metabolic conditioning. The goal is to develop a solid foundation without overtaxing the nervous system or increasing injury risk.
- Practice (10-20%) – This is lower-intensity work focused on refining technique, movement efficiency, and skill acquisition. Sessions here prioritize deliberate practice rather than maximal exertion.
- Competition Effort (5-10%) – High-intensity efforts that simulate competition conditions. These workouts are mentally and physically taxing and should be used sparingly to avoid burnout or excessive fatigue before actual competition.
Do you find yourself always in “Competition Effort” mode when you come into the gym?
Do you dread coming to the gym because you think you need to compete?
Do you have to take extra, unplanned rest days because you’re too sore and too fatigued?
The Open is behind us, and we crushed it. Competition, done. Let’s spend some time now refocusing our efforts on training, and practicing. Once in a while, if you’re feeling like a champ and the workout is in your favor, maybe we go ahead and turn it up to 11 and COMPETE. But most of the time when you’re in the gym, I want you to focus on TRAINING and PRACTICING, so that when the time comes, you are primed to COMPETE.
Using the ratios above, if you come to the gym six days a week, 4 days should be TRAINING – working hard and getting a good sweat in but not to the point of failure. 1 day should be PRACTICE – focus on building a skill. And 1 day should be dialing it up to COMPETE.
Thank you Tod for the research and prompting this important point. And thank you all for being intentional with your training.
Train smart, train safe, get awesome.
Ryan