Tabata Special Sauce

Special Sauce

Every year before the CrossFit Open season begins, we ramp up our conditioning work in preparation.  You will notice a couple changes in our Programming over the next couple months.  We will be doing more longer workouts in class to adequately prepare up for the demands of the Open style workouts.   In addition, we are adding the “Special Sauce” extra at the end of every class.  This year we have decided to make the special sauce very simple.   We will be using the Tabata Interval for all of our special sauce work this year.

To better understand the Tabata Interval and its applications we have chosen an excerpt from the CrossFit Journal written by CrossFit founder Greg Gassman in June 2003:

Tabata Interval

Dr. Izumi Tabata experimented with intervals and published in the journal Medicine in Sports and Exercise the results of an experiment in which he produced excellent improvements in anaerobic and aerobic conditioning in a group of accomplished athletes with a four minute (3:50) protocol of 20 seconds of all out work followed by 10 seconds of rest repeated 8 times.

Significantly, Dr. Tabata’s 4 minute high intensity group got better V02 max improvement than the control group, which followed a 60 minute moderate intensity regimen.

Clarence Bass and Peak Performance both give great accounts of Dr. Tabata’s research and understand the important implications.

Tabata Applications

Dr. Tabata’s research subjects exercised on stationary bikes; we decided to test other applications.

Our favorite and most effective application has been the “Tabata” squat – a 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off repeated 8 times squatting effort scored by the lowest number of reps performed in any of the eight intervals. This single drill tests for and develops elite athletic capacities. Rankings for this drill accurately predict ranking performance on a wide variety of fundamental athletic skills and performance.

Another of our crew’s favored applications is to use the Tabata interval in a workout where an athlete moves from the Concept II Rower to squats then pull-ups, situps, and push-ups. Each exercise is performed like the Tabata squat – 20 on/10 off X 8. Adding the weakest link from each exercise tabulates a final score. The Rowing is scored in “calories” and the other events by reps. We allow a minute’s break between exercises.

Both of these simple workouts are very demanding and surprisingly potent. Trying either will convince you of their potency. Our experience is that improvements in scores for both Tabata workouts suggest strongly that an athlete is likely to show substantial improvements wherever we test them.

Try the Tabata workouts, experiment with varying interval design, and repeat noticeably difficult protocols from time to time. Trust that particularly challenging efforts speak directly to your opportunities for physical gains, and that improved performance in those efforts is the best measure of those gains. Chase the toughest intervals.

The most important point to remember is that high intensity efforts can produce dramatic aerobic benefit without the muscle wasting seen with endurance training.

At the end of every programmed workout Mon-Fri, we will add an additional 4 minute Tabata Interval. Each day will be a different movement, with movements repeating each week on different days.   The intention being that with repeated exposure to the Tabata Interval you will experience the aerobic, anaerobic and VO2 benefits on a global systemic level, and repeating movements will elicit an increase in total max reps achieved week to week.

5/3/1 Unpacked

This week we will be starting our 4 month Strength Cycle.  We will be using the 5/3/1 Program, which is the simplest and easiest way to add pure strength.   The original T-Nation article
5/3/1: How to Build Pure Strength 
was published in 2009 and the program has stood the test of time.

We have used 5/3/1 at CrossFit Gantry for the last 4 years during the fall season.  We have made some adjustments to the program to fit our gym population.  We will be doing two 3 Week cycles followed by a reload week.  After each successful cycle you will add 10 lbs to your previous 1Rm for Squats and Deadlifts, and 5lbs to your Press, BEFORE doing your calculations.  So each week, you will be lifting just a little bit more.  In addition, we have added what we call the Rule of 10, 8 and 6.  On a week where you see 5+, 3+ or 1+, the + represents at least 10, 8 or 6 reps respectively.   You must complete a minimum of 10, 8, or 6 reps on those weeks, EITHER unbroken or in one max set, and then however many more it takes you to get to the total ie. 8+2, 5+1, 3+3.

Below is an excerpt from the article about the basics of the program.  Read the full article for further detail.

5/3/1 by the Numbers

In 5/3/1, you’re expected to train three or four days a week. Each workout is centered around one core lift – the parallel squat, bench press, deadlift, and standing shoulder press.

Each training cycle lasts four weeks, with these set-rep goals for each major lift:

Week 1   3 x 5
Week 2   3 x 3
Week 3   3 x 5, 3, 1
Week 4   Deload

Then you start the next cycle, using heavier weights on the core lifts. And that’s where a seemingly simple system starts getting a little more complicated.

You aren’t just picking a weight to lift five times or three times or one time per set. You’re using a specific percentage of your one-rep max. And not your full 1RM. The calculations are based on 90% of it.

So if your 1RM in the bench press is 315 pounds, you use 285 (90%) as the base number for your training-weight calculations. Here’s how it works:

Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4
Set 1 65% x 5 70% x 3 75% x 5 40% x 5
Set 2 75% x 5 80% x 3 85% x 3 50% x 5
Set 3 85% x 5+ 90% x 3+ 95% x 1+ 60% x 5

When you see 5+, 3+, or 1+, that means you do the max reps you can manage with that weight, with the goal of setting a rep record in each workout.

Let’s walk through the Week 1 workout for bench press. Using the example above, if your 1RM is 315, you calculate all your percentages from 90% of that max, or 285 pounds.

So you’re using 185 (65% of 285) x 5, 215 x 5, and 240 or 245 x 5 or more. (In my 5/3/1 ebook, I provide detailed lists of weights and percentages so you don’t have to carry a calculator with you to the gym.)

After you finish the first cycle, you add five pounds to your 1RM calculations for the two upper-body lifts and 10 pounds to your 1RM for the squat and deadlift.

These specific instructions for 1RM percentages and monthly progression are what set 5/3/1 apart from less useful systems. When I see a program that says three sets of eight reps? That’s the stupidest fucking thing ever.

If it doesn’t have a specific percentage based on a specific max, it’s useless. That’s the hallmark of someone who doesn’t understand basic programming.

One Goal Per Workout

With 5/3/1, you accomplish a goal every workout. Some programs have no progression from one day to the other.

Another unique feature is that final balls-out set in each workout. You don’t have to go beyond the prescribed reps if you don’t feel like it, but there are real benefits to doing so.

I’ve always thought of doing the prescribed reps as simply testing your strength. Anything over and above that builds strength, muscle, and character.

Yes, that last set is the one that puts hair on your chest, but the system doesn’t work without the sets that precede it. I tried cutting those out but I got smaller and weaker. There might be only one really hard set, but the other sets are still quality work.