That's the most common experience, I think. They figure out that just doing "Fran" does not improve "Fran" after the first two months, and that getting strong improves all the things "Fran" does not, including "Fran" herself.
Member
My 2 cents
Coach,
I would like to thank you for this forum. You and Dan John have had quite an impact on how I train due to the fact you both have answered questions that I have asked. Having said that I wanted to make a statement to all the people on here who seem to worry about losing there cardio and putting on weight.
I was an avid crossfitter for several years and I decided to do starting strength thinking the gained strength would help with the CF W.O.D.'s. Im about 8 weeks in and 2 days ago me and some friends got together and had our yearly "Mud Bowl" football game in a mudhole. By the time the game was over I decided to just move on to the Texas Method after the linear progression stops and scrap the CF. My cardio was about the same but I have gained an amazing amount of strength. Any weight I have gained has been what I consider very good weight. So to anyone worried about there cardio and gaining weight you should just DO THE PROGRAM and stop worrying about your fucking abs.
Lastly Coach am I alone or do you find that a lot of people start the program to improve on WODS and wind up saying fuck the WODS I would rather be strong??
TMPHBITEU
That's the most common experience, I think. They figure out that just doing "Fran" does not improve "Fran" after the first two months, and that getting strong improves all the things "Fran" does not, including "Fran" herself.
Member
I "thought" I was strong thats the funny thing.....
TMPHBITEU
Brainwashing will do that to you. You probably thought you were "elite" too.
Member
Then can you tell us what if any benefits can be gained from CrossFit ?
You were closely associated with them at one time, clearly you must have seen something you liked.
In one of the CF videos, Greg Glassman asks Louie Simmons if he thinks "Fran" trains strength. Louie replied "I think it trains strength endurance" Would you agree ?
For the record, I also have bought into the notion that strength is the most general and useful of the physical adaptations, bought SSBBT, PPST, and your DVD and spent all of 2010 on linear progression, no WOD's. Now I wish I started this way.
Member
I don't know how it happend, but let me tell you my experience on cardio: I stopped taking care of cardio runs(was afraid it would impact my strength training during SS) completely, I was doing 3-4 cardio workouts before SS regularly, around 4-5KM runs at a time. Having stopped them almost completely the strangest thing has happend, I actually went on up a treadmill, (added 17KG to my body weight in 7 months) and I was able to run faster with a lower HR, again I was able to run almost 1kmh FASTER with the SAME heart rate as before.
Knowing about the adaptaion our body goes through after reading SS and a few articles here I figured out my cardio would suck since I did not run for more then 200 meters for something like 7 months, I don't know what it was, maybe the fact I was incorporating PC with smaller rests, maybe the fact my legs got way stronger and my muscles were making me run faster.
The only thing I did noticed was a tibial "burn" after the first 3KM, which I would assume just happend because my bones were not used to the extra 17KG, but that doesn't concern me, knowing about wolf's law I am sure they would get stronger in a matter of a few weeks.
SS- best thing that happend to me in the gym
Member
You're a little off base. Just doing Fran isn't the best way to get better at Fran. You gotta do Fran/Murphy/Cindy/Grace/Helen/Run 10k/handstand ring pushups/Zone and THEN you'll destroy Fran.Originally Posted by Mark Rippetoe
TMPHBITEU
Any program works for a novice, and so does CrossFit. But it is not training; it is exercise, and many people don't need or want anything more than that. For many people, CrossFit -- like P90X -- is their first experience with a program that is actually hard, and damned if that doesn't make a difference in their perception of its effects. http://startingstrength.com/articles...t_rippetoe.pdf I saw a lot of potential, which has since been overwhelmed by silliness and an apparent emphasis on the commercial aspects of the program. I think Louie thinks Fran is never "scaled". I think CrossFit has had a positive impact on the industry, but I also think it has become its own embarrassing caricature.
Member
Just imagine my dismay when I first realized I was not in fact elite..what the fuck??....and more dismay when I figured out hand stand pushups did not mean a bodyweight press what the fuck?? and 1 legged squats did not mean 2 times bodweight squat what the fuck?? HA...I will add that I am now close to both of those things and could care less about the HSPU's and 1LS's...just saying
Member
Don't forget the 1 armed barbell snatches, those don't mean double bodyweight snatch either.
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