Workout of the Day:
Deadlift
3-3-3-3
and then,
As many rounds as possible in two minutes of:
5 Burpees
10 Pull-Ups
Rest for one minute after each two minute interval, and perform a total of four cycles.  The workout will be 12 minutes total with only 8 minutes of work – go hard!

Don't let the pixie-like appearance fool you, Baby Belle is merciless as a coach. Here she adds a little extra weight to Coach Sun's sled drag.
Don't let the pixie-like appearance fool you, Baby Belle is merciless as a coach. Here she adds a little extra weight to Coach Sun's sled drag.

Warm-Up Sets
Written by Calvin Sun

As you all know, we like to do some heavy lifting before our conditioning workouts. Typically you’ll see something like 5×5 or 5-5-5-5-5 written on the board. This simply means that you will perform five work sets of five repetitions each. Prior to your work sets, you should do a few warm-up sets to practice the movement, demonstrate you are capable of good mechanics under load, as well as prepare your neuromuscular system for the heavy work sets that lay ahead.

225 pounds should not be weight used for the first warm-up set of any exercise. If we are back squatting today and you know you’ll perform your first set of 5 at 225lbs, you’ll probably want to start off with the following warm-up sets: 135lbs for 5, 155lbs for 4, 185lbs for 3, and 205lbs for 2. This serves as a method to ensure that you are really truly capable of lifting 225lbs for 5 repetitions, a 5-rep work set should never turn into an accidental 1-rep max attempt.

Warm-up sets should not take much time at all. Work together with your partner to help change weights on the barbell, you don’t need much rest between these lighter sets. Increase the load with relatively even increments, typically warm-up sets will have relatively larger increases in loads. In the example above, the increases ranged between 20lbs and 30lbs. An advanced or elite level athlete would have much larger jumps between warm-up sets. For example, the following rep scheme is taken directly from my own workout log:

Deadlift 5-5-5-5-5

Warm-up sets
135×5
225×4
315×3
385×2

Work sets
395×5
405×5
415×5
420×5
425×5

Remember, this is always relative to your level of strength and the type of lift we are performing. Warm-up sets serve to help improve your proficiency in any lift as well as ensure you are properly warmed-up for the loads you will attempt to lift.

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Carla MacCynthiaPOSMark Riebelcourtland Recent comment authors
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Carla Mac
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Carla Mac

DL: Last set at 92K. Old DL PR is 125, but that is for a single.

7 rounds, 2 pulls/4pulls? I can’t remember now. Pullups with red band.

Yeah burpees!

Fun class.

courtland creekmore
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courtland creekmore

This horse claimed to have been vegan.

Cynthia
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Cynthia

Courtland! You DO realize that horse is meat, right? 😉

POS
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POS

Thanks Courtland, Now the horse = paleo but the bag of oats not so much paleo!

courtland creekmore
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courtland creekmore

POS that is some good work. Last set of 3 @ 335 was rough and the bar mashed my the top of my knee cap a bit, but okay now. I did 7 rds of Burpees and band assisted/jumping pull ups. I promptly ate a horse and his bag of oats thereafter.

POS
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POS

Well I knew today’s workout was going to be tough. Rounds of 4,4,3+3burpees,3+3burpees. And all 4 sets of DL at 365.

Mark Riebel
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Mark Riebel

Calvin really only pulls about half of that. He just wanted to impress everyone.

courtland creekmore
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courtland creekmore

Those are some good numbers that I hope are my warm ups one day. Deadlifting should be called Alivelifting.

FAQ - Workout of the Day (WOD)

What does WOD mean in CrossFit?

WOD stands for Workout of the Day. Most CrossFit gyms post one workout each day for their members and online followers to complete. Invictus currently offers THREE free programmed WODs each day (shown above)... and even more personalized and online supplemental programs through Invictus Athlete.

Which program is right for me? Can I move between them?

One thing that sets Invictus apart from other CrossFit gyms and online training programs is that we recognize everyone has different fitness goals, abilities and needs. Be sure to pick which programming is right for you so you can get a great workout that meets your needs.

What does 30X0 mean? (How to read the WOD)

Another thing you might notice that’s different about our programming is that we use ‘tempo training’ - almost always in the Fitness programming and in various cycles for the Performance and Competition programs. Those extra numbers (ex: @30X0) might seem confusing at first glance but you’ll totally get how it works and why we like to use it after reading this. Trust us, you’ll soon witness the many benefits firsthand. Learn more about tempo training.

I need help with some standard movements and warm-up ideas!

Whether you’re new to CrossFit or have lots of experience with the WOD, our coaches will help you get the most out of every workout. It doesn’t matter if you struggle with a particular movement or if your goals are pushing you toward the higher skilled and more elusive movements, our professional coaches support everyone with advice and feedback.

They have worked with all athlete levels and know what it takes to get people moving to the best of their abilities. Whether it’s burpees, double-unders, muscle-ups, or tips for the Assault Bike - we’ve got a coach who can help you.

Don’t worry, we’ve got your warm-ups covered, too. Our coaches are constantly learning from other modalities and love to use what they learn in innovative warm-ups focused on both preparing for the workout at hand and maintaining the body for a pain free life. Check out this full body routine to keep your joints functioning and free of inflammation. We also post warm-up suggestions in the Workout of the Day for each of the programs that are tailored to that day’s movements.

Workout on your own and don’t have much time for your warm-up? Here’s a couple of quick and simple ones for your shoulders, squat day, deadlifts, and everyone’s problem area, the thoracic spine.

What if I can’t lift the weight or do the movement as prescribed?

Scaling is part of the beauty of CrossFit because it enables workouts and programming to be tailored to anyone’s ability. When it comes to weight, you can and should ALWAYS scale the weight down if it is unsafe for you to lift it, or if it changes the intended stimulus of the workout.

Here are some rules of thumb for scaling weight in metcons (lifting for time). For gymnastics movements, there are some simple scaling solutions as well. If you are unsure, reach out to your Invictus coach! We are here to make sure you get the safest and best workout possible - proper scaling allows for that.

How many days per week should I train? / How many rest days should I take?

At Invictus, we offer programming 6 days a week, Monday-Saturday and we realize not everyone’s schedule - or training needs - are the same and therefore, you must use your best judgement and listen to your body when it comes to deciding how often to take a rest day.

If you have been doing CrossFit for a while now, you recognize that our program excels due to the high intensity component. With that being said, one thing you have to keep in mind is that you can’t sustain that high intensity every single day; otherwise your body ends up breaking down.

You can learn more about how often someone should take a rest day in this article.

What does EMOM stand for?

EMOM stands for Every Minute on the Minute. When you see that come up in a workout, you have up to one minute to complete the exercise required. Normally what’s prescribed won’t take the entire minute so you also have whatever is left of the time to rest until the next minute starts and you do the next set of prescribed work. And so on.

What does AMRAP mean?

AMRAP means “As Many Rounds (and Reps) as Possible” in a certain time period. For example, the workout might say...

AMRAP in 10 minutes of:

30 Double-Unders
20 Pull-Ups
10 Thrusters

So you would keep going through the cycle of those three exercises until the 10 minutes is up. Your score is the number of complete rounds plus any extra reps you did. So if you did four complete rounds plus 15 Double-Unders in the fifth round, your score would be 4+15.

What does OTM mean?

OTM stands for “On the Minute” and is the same thing as an EMOM. When you see that come up in a workout, you have up to one minute to complete the exercise required. Normally what’s prescribed won’t take the entire minute so you also have whatever is left of the time to rest until the next minute starts and you do the next set of prescribed work. And so on.

What does NFT mean?

NFT stands for “Not for Time” and means that you shouldn’t rush or try to go fast, but instead, focus on technique, skill, form or whatever you are working on for that movement.

How heavy should my first set be?

You might also be wondering where to start your first set if, for example, the workout of the day calls for 5 sets of Deadlift x 5 reps. Is the first set a warm-up or is that the first working set? Here’s our recommendation for how to properly build to your starting weight and what we consider warm-up sets and working sets.

How can I figure out my 1RM?

We frequently use percentage references in prescribing the number of reps to perform, so it’s essential that you have a good idea on most of your maxes.

Let’s say it’s been awhile since you have attempted a 1RM; maybe you had an injury a few months ago, or maybe you just somehow keep missing the 1-RM test days, or maybe you just forgot to write it down in your log book. If you have a multiple-rep max, you’re in luck. There’s actually a simple equation you can use to calculate an estimated 1RM based on the max number of reps you can do at a given weight.