Everyone loves a good chipper (except for those people that we all know that are just a little crazy and enjoy that AMRAP pain). I especially like this one. It's a really good combination of different skill sets and tests every athlete at some point during its 13 minutes of pain. There is no way to hide a weakness in this one as it pretty much covers the gamut of anatomical movement. Pulling, squatting, rowing, pressing. If you have a strength this workout likely highlights it while at the same time revealing a weakness. Dave hinted in his Instagram post that this one has something for everybody. In true CrossFit form however it also has the reciprocal.
Below are a few tips to consider when strategizing and planning an attack to this chipper as well as a movement and mobility video for creating a warm-up and maintaining efficiency in the handstand push-ups:
1- Strategy, sets, reps, and timing on your transitions will be athlete specific. If you are really really good at deadlifts but terrible at handstand push-ups then planning your strategy will need to match those traits. There really is no one-size-fits-all attack plan for this one. Be aggressive on the movements you are good at while at the same time reserving some strength to handle your weaknesses. If your buddy standing next to you has extremely long femurs and really long arms while you have T-Rex arms and a Klokov-esque torso you probably should have different strategies for the deadlift.
2- Don't let your weaknesses ruin your strengths and don't let your strengths make your weaknesses worse. While it is important to make up time and gain an advantage on the movements and the skills you are good at, it is critical that you don't push the metabolic gas pedal so hard on those movements that you are too fatigued to handle the weakness movements later. I can see this problem showing up for those of you who are extremely tall and really good at rowing. You will hop on the tower and crush the calorie count then crash and burn on the handstand push-ups because of your long arms.
Also, the reverse is true. Be smart about how you handle your weaknesses. Don't believe you're better than your training has exhibited. Lean on past data and operate inside that scientific truth. If I know that at full speed I'm able to row 55 cal in around four minutes then the last thing I need to do is be anywhere close to that. Don't think that just because it is an Open workout that you're going to have some new "magical capacity." Look at the truth of your training and base your rep scheme accordingly. The last thing you want is to push too hard on the movements you ARE NOT very good at only to find that you have ruined the movements you ARE good at. I could see this happening on the rower as well. A 5'2" gymnast hops on the rower with an excitement to get to the handstand push-ups and spikes her heart rate by rowing too fast. Then she gets to the wall and, because she is so fatigued from a movement she's not very good at, she loses the ability to complete big sets with relative ease on the handstand push-ups. Find a game plan that allows you to highlight your strengths without making your weaknesses was while at the same time allows you to mediate the toughness of your weakness movements without costing the advantage you have in the movements you are good at.
3- For most of you there is going to be a point where this is really going to have to hurt. Some of you may end up having to chip away at the handstand push-ups and this workout will become a matter of efficiency not desire or pain threshold. However, for some of you who make it into that second round, the deadlifts are going to be the defining factor for your final score. Just as I said last week, you cannot be good at CrossFit and not embrace and even enjoy pain. Set your mind on this truth and prepare for the pain that will come should you make it back to the beginning of this chipper. Every rep will count at that point. Embrace this part of the workout. It's the reason most of you started CrossFit in the first place.
Be sure to check out the video below for efficiency pointers and warm-up/mobility tips. Good luck! Go get it!