Linchpin Conversations

How to do pull-ups with no pull-up bar & much more. We also discuss how to do the 03.18.2020 Linchpin workout of front squats, bar-facing burpees and toes-to-bar with literally zero equipment. A short talk about doing a workout "Not for time", as compared to doing it "For Quality" also takes place.

With many gyms closing because of COVID-19 we discuss how to workout whether you have a garage gym, limited equipment or literally no equipment. We also provide 50+ workouts that require little or no gear.

Do functional movements at LOW intensity have value? We answer a question from Ed, a member of the Linchpin community. He is 59 and has hurt his back, achilles and shoulder through mountain biking accidents. He has also put on 30 pounds of bad weight. Ed wants to know if doing the workouts with very minimal weight is still beneficial. We answer Ed's questions and we discuss scaling, injuries and how the choices you make early in life will come into play later in your life.

Is it okay to quit during a workout? The word "quit" has a negative connotation in our society, however, not all quitting is the same. We discuss "quitting" versus making an informed decision about what you do or don't want to pursue. Real life examples are provided from kid's sports, high school, Division 1 gymnastics, CrossFit and my time in the SEALs. Also covered is how "taking a break" from a certain activity is a smart thing to do before you get burned out. Taking breaks can be an intelligent decision and may help with long term compliance to any program, sport or activity.

If you can jump 2 inches off of the ground and move you hands...then why can't you do double-unders? We answer this through discussion of the 10 General Physical Skills from the October 2020 CF Journal article, "What is Fitness?". We talk about how some of the skills are organic, how others are neurological, and what that means. Training vs practice is covered, as well as why functional movements are challenging, yet essential.

Questions from a gym owner are answered: A gym owner's members want to learn the technique for kipping pull-ups, chest-to-bar pull-ups, snatching, clean & jerk, etc. With only an hour to use for class each day what is the best way to accomplish this? His members feel it is not enough time. The owner wants to know how to approach this moving forward and would having additional workshops and/or clinics a couple of times a month be beneficial? We talk through a class, using the workout "DT" as an example. Also discussed are ways to make the most of your warm-ups so that you are practicing skills at the same time...like, using the Burgener warm-up.

How to be amazing at your job. We discuss basic recommendations to be professional and competent, regardless of your chosen profession. The topics are simple, easy to do and profoundly impactful. The good news is you can start implementing them immediately!

Special Operations Selection & Ranger School...your olympic lifts will not save you. I answer a question from someone preparing for Special Forces selection. He asked if he should be spending more time in the gym. This question is answered and the discussion evolves into what actually matters & leads to success when the going gets tough.

SEAL training, Masters athletes & scaling. A shout out to the "Committed Club!", these are people who log at least 3 workouts a week. Scaling / modifying workouts for Masters athletes. Understanding scaling is a critical part of your long term fitness journey. I also share some stories from SEAL training and how those lessons apply to every day life.

"Relative Intensity"...discussed & explained. What is the definition of intensity & how is it measured? What is the difference between mathematical intensity & relative intensity? Contrary to popular belief, high intensity does not mean maximal intensity.

The Monday Monster Mash. What is it? Where did it come from? How to use it?

How to assess the "believability" of someone or something. Sometimes it is difficult to know who to listen to because of all the wanna-be, self-reported "experts" and useless noise on social media. We discuss now to "Believability weight your decision making", as stated by the billionaire investor, Ray Dalio in his book, "Principles". Also, the CF Journal article written by Jeff Glassman entitled "Conjecture, Hypothesis, Theory, Law" from 2007 is relevant and used to support the same concept.

Real life, real talk. 3 days of poor sleep & how if affected my workouts. Deadlifts were far less than I wanted, running was slower than usual and I significantly scaled the Hero workout "Nate". However, life goes on and fitness was still achieved.

Tips to improve your public speaking. We all engage in public speaking every day, whether we earn our living from it or not. In this episode I share some lessons I have learned over the years from my experience as a professional lecturer at roughly 200 CrossFit seminars as well as the live television broadcasts I've been a part of for ESPN and CBS.

The 3 types of questions. After lecturing at about 200 CrossFit seminars around the world and interacting with roughly 10,000 people in the audience, I noticed a pattern of questions. Not always, but often, it seemed questions could be lumped into 1 of 3 categories. We discuss this topic.

With the arrival of 2020 we discuss goal setting. I lay out 4 areas to focus on: Physical goals, Intellectual goals, Spiritual goals and Social goals. Tips are given to help achieve them, keep you on track and get you back on track if/when you slip. I did not create these 4 categories of goals, they just happen to serve me well so I wanted to share them.

The decisions you make in sports, the military or the gym to "not complain & just suck it up" may catch up with you later in life. Every time you walk into the gym or open the fridge you have a decision to make. Remove ego and make beneficial long term decisions.

We answer a question from the community. Mike G. is a member of the Linchpin private track and asked if there was value in attending a CrossFit Level 1 Seminar even if he does not have an interest in being a trainer or opening a gym.

A discussion on how to program workouts. We talk about movements, rep ranges, loadings, time domains and much more. Questions from the community are also answered.

Extra lifting is not what most people need to improve their fitness. We discuss the "Theoretical Hierarchy of the Development of an Athlete" from the 2002 article, "What is Fitness?". What people want and what they need are often not the same thing. Assess your strengths and weaknesses honestly so you can make informed decisions on how to improve.

Just because you can do something does not mean you should. The definition of Fitness compared to the definition of Health.

Why it is okay not to time every workout you do. Tips for maintaining a solid pace in workouts. When and how to experiment with pacing.

I completely discuss all the benefits of the Linchpin private track for individuals and gym owners. A look into the nutrition track also takes place.

Part 2 of a 12 part series dissecting the CF Linchpin 12 Tests. In this episode we dive into Linchpin Test 2. The Linchpin 12 Tests, aka, the Dirty Dozen are 12 benchmark workouts we created to help athletes and coaches assess their fitness across a broad range of movements, loadings, rep ranges and time domains. All 12 Tests can be found on our website at www.CrossFitLinchpin.com I also answer a couple of nutrition questions, one specifically about the Zone diet.

I revisit an article I wrote in 2015 entitled "A Reflection on 10 years of CrossFit". The article lists 10 lessons learned. I review the article to see if I would change anything now that another 5 years have passed.

Questions from the community are answered: 1. What is the best way to get back into working out after traveling, specifically international travel? 2. What is the best way to get back into working out after being sick? -Tips for staying on track while traveling, staying in hotels and recovering from illness are provided.

We answer questions submitted from the internet: "How do you recognize the difference between your training helping you vs hurting you?" and "If a lack of strength is holding an athlete back, should they keep the rx'd loading & scale the reps, or is it better to scale the loading & keep the rx'd reps to maintain intensity?". And of course, we also went down a couple of wonderful rabbit holes.

Part 1 of a 12 part series dissecting the CF Linchpin 12 Tests. In this episode we dive into Test 1. The Linchpin 12 Tests, aka, the Dirty Dozen are 12 benchmark workouts we created to help athletes and coaches assess their fitness across a broad range of movements, loadings, rep ranges and time domains. All 12 Tests can be found on our website at www.CrossFitLinchpin.com

We discuss the 10 General Physical Skills from the foundational CrossFit Journal Article entitled "What is Fitness?", from October 2002. This topic was inspired by a question from a member of the Linchpin community who wanted to know about the various aspects we hope to develop when we work out.

Some people consider "Scaling" a bad word. Is it? Should another term replace the word "Scaling"? Should loadings be assigned to workouts, or should we only use words like "light, medium or heavy" and let people choose for themselves?

Should photos & videos of "less than ideal form" be reposted on social media? Why or why not?

Topics Discussed: The importance of technique. Classic definitions of Strength. CrossFit's definition of Strength. Examples given to promote thought and discussion.

We break down the math about how many CrossFit athletes walk around at 90% of max ability at all times and that is AMAZING! We use the classic benchmark workout "Nancy" as an example.

We walk through various ways to scale the 11.01.2019 CF Linchpin workout. The movements were the bike, dumbbell push press, ring dips and chest-to-bar pull-ups.

How to avoid getting burned out in CrossFit. How to keep having fun while doing CrossFit year after year. Secrets to successfully doing CrossFit for 15 years. How much should you workout? How much intensity is too much? Accessory work, is it necessary? Remove Ego. Embrace Scaling. Shut the clock off every now and then. Ignore social media pressure. Work on personal development: reading, reflection, meditation, etc.

"Murph" is not just a Memorial Day workout. Various ways to scale/modify Murph so you are not destroyed for the next few days. Ideas on various ways to break up the pull-ups, push-ups and squats to help improve your performance. Scaling/modifying Hero workouts in general. Does "Murph" have to be done with a weight vest? Questions from the community.

An interview with Travis Denman, the owner of CrossFit Guild in Fayetteville, NC. and his head coach, Emily. We speak about his gym, his clients and the culture/community they have created. CF Guild is in a very military town and Travis explains what that is like. We discuss why he chose to have CF Guild follow the affiliate version of the Linchpin private track for their programming needs. It is easy to get people to show up for a lifting day and challenging to get them to show up for a running/sprint day, Travis and Emily discuss how they handle this. Travis also explains that his 67 year old mom comes to class 4 times a week and trains right next to local Army Special Operations members. Oh...and she even has a pull-up!

A member asked me if following the daily Linchpin programming would prepare him for the FBI Special Agent selection test. I also address physical preparation for SEAL training, aka, BUD/s and the Q-course selection for Army special forces. We talk about how following Linchpin programming will have you well prepared (over-prepared, actually) for anything life will throw at you, but...it can also be the perfect platform from which to layer on additional specific training such as Olympic lifting, power lifting, etc. Finally, we talk about the pros and cons of a gym outsourcing its programming.

Why the CF Games Open workouts for the 2020 season were not worked into the programming on CF Linchpin. If you are doing CrossFit why you do not need to "prep for the Open". A masters athletes asks my opinion on whether or not he should do the open based upon what he felt was poor media coverage of the 2019 CF Games.

I interview David Tate. He owns Risen Strength CrossFit in Gainesville, FL. He is part of a growing number of gyms that use the CF Linchpin private track for their programming needs. David tells us how his gym started and the evolution of his business. They started in a 600 sq ft barn and now they are in a 4,800 sq ft commercial space. He was able to leave his previous job and now runs his gym full time. He gives scaled workouts a cooler name and his members love it!

How to scale a "Heavy Day", specifically today's 7x2 Overhead Squats. What to do if your overhead squat is significantly lower than your front squat or back squat. Why you should consider lighter loading and doing tempo squats. How I personally scale/modify a heavy overhead squat for shoulder my issues.

After years and eventually decades of training, PR's occur with less frequency. What is the proper mindset and perspective regarding PR's? We relate repeating workouts to a science experiment. We provide tips to keep training fun and focus on the journey.

I answer this question from a member of the Linchpin private track, "If the scaled version of the daily workout is a bit too easy, is it okay to do the rx'd version even if I know it will take me longer than the recommended time?" The workout I use as an example is from 09.24.2019. It is 3 Rounds for time of: 20 Deadlifts, 185/135 15 V-ups 7 Bar Muscle-ups I also talk about scaling ring muscle-ups and pistols.

I answer a question from a someone who asked if they were a "bad CrossFitter" for not pursuing certain movements like snatches, ring muscle-ups and handstand walking. Should everyone try to do all the movements in CrossFit? Why or why not?

Tips for working out alone, finding motivation and the importance of community.

An interview with EC Synkowski, the owner of OptimizeMe Nutrition. She creates the content for the Nutrition option on the CF Linchpin private track We discuss how the nutrition option came into existence, The 800G Challenge, and also answer nutrition questions from the community.

I interview Ross Davey, the owner of CrossFit Caber in Scotland. Ross shares stories and insight about his gym, his members and running classes. CrossFit Caber uses the CF Linchpin private track for their programming.

Working out "For Time" also means "For Quality"

Oil City CrossFit uses the CF Linchpin private track for their programming needs. The owner, Westy Guill, tells me about why he chose Linchpin and how it is implemented at his facility.

-How to scale the workout, "Elizabeth". -General concepts regarding scaling workouts.