Lactate Training, week 2

Workout of the Day

WOD 1 – 10:00 am… 5 minute AMRAP for reps: Max HSPU (5 repetition cap) Max 20” Box Jumps (15 repetition cap)

WOD 2 – 1:00 pm…

For Time: 21-15-9-6 Hang Power Snatch (95#) & Wall Ball (20#)

WOD 3 – 4:00 pm…

Row 1000 meters @ sub 1:25 pace Every time pace is lost, complete 10 abmat situps as fast as possible

This was the second iteration of lactate training, so I raised the desired time domain from 4 minutes to 5 minutes, and spaced the sessions 3 hours apart. The first WOD was gymnastics focused to maintain the symmetry of my training week, utilizing a movement that I’m not historically fast at (HSPU) but need to improve. I kipped them the entire way from a slight deficit and actually felt faster and more aggressive than I ever have. The first few sets I managed 5 and 15, but that quickly fell off. When doing this type of format the tempo of the exercise is more important than the number of reps. At the first sign of muscular fatigue the switch between exercises should be made. The only thing I would change with this particular WOD is the capped number of box jumps—15 is too many. I think 10 would have been more appropriate given the level of pump out I was feeling in my quads by round 3. At the end of 5 minutes I totaled 122 reps of the two exercises combined.

The second WOD was, in a word, shattering. In order to mimic the pace and ensure the correct lactate response, you have to pick a weight for the power snatches that can be done unbroken, or very close to unbroken. The same for the wall balls. If you have to stand around and wait for your grip, back, or shoulders to recover before completing your sets than the effect is lost. I say this was shattering because halfway through my second round of power snatches I thought there was no fucking way I was going to make it to the end unbroken. My shoulders felt shot, the bar was digging through my hook grip, and my legs were still shot from jumping like a jack-rabbit earlier in the day. Then, it was like my life skipped forward and I was on the wall balls. Halfway through I was jumping off the ground as high as I could to get the ball to the target but I was still getting it there. The rounds of 9 and 6 were much the same, complete in a quasi-daze and with barely enough muscle power to make the standards. But I did it, finishing the WOD in 3:54 and twitching on the ground for minutes afterwards. This ability to finish when I was sure I wouldn’t engenders a lot of confidence, and I have to believe the physical response mirrors the psychological one in terms of growth.

The final WOD was a kick in the nuts. Trying to pull sub 1:25 on the rower requires full power output on my part, so if you try this protocol be sure to pick a number that makes you sprint. My distances got shorter and shorter as the work accumulated, but that’s to be expected. I finished the 1000 meters in 6:39.

Definitely going to need a couple days to recover, so I'm looking at Tuesday of next week for my next training day.