when to shift back from oly. WL only to CF only

[Garrett Smith]

I think something like this would work for you:

2 days WL

2 days gymnastics strength training

1 or 2 days of CF metcon, one workout 5min. or less and heavy, the second one 5-20min. long

How does that sound?

[Emily Mattes]

Torsten, my goals are very similar to yours, and I started Oly lifting for the same reasons--I was going to do it for a while to learn the lifts, and then transition back to Crossfit.

However, two things happened: One, I fell in love with Olympic lifting. And two, I found out that doing Olympic lifting 4-5 days a week, with short, heavy metcons 2-3 times a week, improved my strength, conditioning, and overall fitness at a rate that was DRASTICALLY quicker than Crossfit. I cannot over-emphasize exactly how much more effective the combination has been for me than mainpage WODs. I have been doing this regularly for over six months and don't see myself ever looking back.

If I were you, I would do Oly-lifting mainly. Then, after your workouts (ideally four hours after, but I always do mine immediately after due to time constraints) pick a metcon that's on the short-and-heavy side, 10-15 minutes or less. I pick mine from the Performance Menu/Catalyst Athletics WOD. There's a "Short, Heavy Metcons" thread on the CF forums that has more ideas, and I heard the metcons on the CF Football site tend more towards the short and heavy end as well.

If you are feeling your endurance suffering, then make one of your 2-3 metcons a week one of the longer types. But give that programming a try for a couple of months and see how it works for you.

(I also see now that you're interested in gymnastics, so maybe throw that in a couple of days a week in lieu of the lifting if you so desire)

[Justin McCallon]

I like Emily's advice.

The Plandomization article that Everett released recently is pretty spot on here, too. You want to do just enough metcon type stuff to keep your current muscle/cardio endurance and stamina. The rest of your workout should be focused on developing your strength.

I am a similar height/weight and I have pretty similar goals. Looking at the events from the regional competitions and the previous years of CF, I decided that I want a 300lb C&J, 225lb Snatch, 500lb deadlift, 375lb deep squat, +150lb pull-up, and 205 lb strict overhead press. After that, I planned to mostly focus on cardio and muscle endurance, and do just enough strength work to keep my strength from regressing.

You could also do this more cyclically if you wanted. i.e. strength-focus for 4 months, cardio/muscle-endurance (etc) focus for 2 months, and repeat. I'm debating which method is better and having trouble making up my mind.

Either way, spend the next 3 months working with this guy. Good Oly lifting coaches aren't always easy to find.