look at us: we design workouts… We’d far rather be happy than right any day. And this is what was designed for last nights workout:

After warming up with some light weight front squats, push-press, and thrusters, the bars were set to workout weight. Weight for the thrusters was RX’d as “heavy” (heavy in this sense meant able to complete 10 reps , but more than 12 would be a struggle). Sit-ups, as noted on the board, were butterfly (feet together and legs open) and unanchored! The workout was run in two groups, with Reggie showing some serious stick-to-it-ivness and going it alone at the very tail end of class.

There’s a bit of a common theme in the pictures posted, and that’s the prevalence of socks-only feet. Removing your shoes (well, running shoes to be specific) prior to lifting is a subject we’ve touched on many times before, and will continue to harp on in the future. There are big reasons to remove your running shoes when lifting: (1) all running shoes are constructed with a gradient, meaning that one end (the heel) is higher than the other end (the toes), tilting your body forward and making it extremely difficult to center your weight over your heels when lifting – this is then compounded by problem number two; (2) the heels of running shoes are extremely absorbent, and thus rob you of the ability to sit back on your heels and adequately stabilize your center of gravity/mid-line during lifts.

To Summarize: RUNNING SHOES PITCH YOU FORWARD AND ARE UNSTABLE – virtually the opposite of what we want during any lift. The remedy is easily obtained by simply removing your running shoes. You can also buy a pair of shoes for lifting – you don’t need to get all fancy and get the latest Vibram’s or other “minimalist” shoe; a pair of Chuck Taylors or other 0-grade, minimally soled shoe will do you just fine.

Please feel free to sound off or ask questions in the comments section, as well as to post weights used last night and time you completed the workout in.

Open Qualifiers workout 11.5 is here:

Complete as many rounds and reps as possible in 20 minutes of:
5 Power cleans (M:145lbs / W:100lbs)
10 Toes to bar
15 Wall balls (M:20lbs to 10′ / W:14lbs to 9′)