CrossFit Conditioning

CrossFit athlete Zack George explains how to train for complete fitness

Work your weak points for complete fitness

Although he recently had to withdraw from the upcoming CrossFit Games due to injury, Zack George – the highest-ranking Brit at last year’s Games – knows better than most what it means to forge total fitness. In a sport that rewards multi-discipline mastery, George has established himself as the best of British, and here he tells MF the secrets to his seriously diverse skillset.

“In CrossFit,” says George, “we talk about the ten elements of fitness in order to assess how fit we are.” Those elements are as follows: Cardiovascular and respiratory endurance Stamina

Strength

Flexibility

Power

Speed

Coordination

Agility

Balance

Accuracy

“The best way to train to be truly fit,” George continues, “is to have a training regime that incorporates each of these ten components. If your goal is optimum performance and unlocking everything your body is capable of, all elements need to be considered.”

While most people tend to lean towards aspects they enjoy or excel in, George says complete fitness – and indeed overall health – depends on training your weaknesses as well as working to your strengths.

“Generally speaking,” he says, “people are good at improving their endurance, stamina, strength, flexibility and power. These are the categories most easily trained, and there are many programmes and plans out there based around these elements. There becomes a point, though, when people plateau in their performance: they reach a peak and can’t push past it.”

George says that’s exactly when the remaining five elements should come into play, providing, as he terms it, “the secret sauce” to fitness gains.

Here, George outlines some ways to train the ‘final five’ fitness elements: speed, coordination, agility, balance and accuracy.

1. SPEED

Put simply, this is the ability to minimise the time taken to perform a movement or activity.

“One of the classic tests,” says George, “has to be the 100m sprint.”

TRY THIS:

5 rounds of 3 sets of 100m sprints. The first at 80% max capacity. The second at 90% max capacity. The third at 100% max capacity. Rest 3 mins once your 5 rounds are complete, then perform a 5-min EMOM (every minute on the minute) of 50m sprints at 100% max capacity.

3. AGILITY

This is the ability to minimise transition time from one movement pattern to another: to quickly change direction, start, stop and go.

“One of the best exercises for agility practice is the agility ladder,” says George. “You can create your own using lines, tape, or chalk on the floor.”

TRY THIS:

Forward run: step one by one through the ladder, making sure your feet hit the centre of each box.

Lateral run: move along the ladder sidewards from end to end.

Hops: jump lightly landing on both feet as you move down the ladder.

In and out: start with your left foot in the ladder, then change to the right into the second box of the ladder, and continue alternating until the end.

Single-leg hops: jump down the ladder on one leg only and return back on the other.

2. COORDINATION

This is the ability to combine several distinct movement patterns into a singular movement. To train for better coordination, you need practice and repetition to fine-tune your motor skills. “Performing double-unders – where the rope passes twice under your feet in a single jump – is an amazing test of coordination,” says George. “You need to be able to time your feet and hands in a systematic fashion, in order to perform and perfect the movement.”

4. BALANCE

This is simply the ability to control the body’s centre of gravity while performing a movement in a stable and controlled manner.

“A great test of balance is a single-leg squat, or a pistol squat,” says George.

TRY THIS:

1. Pistol squat

Standing with your feet hip-width apart, bring one leg up and out in front while you push your hips back and down into a single-leg squat position.

Keep the chest upright, eyes forward.

2. Balance drill

A very simple drill, which is actually a lot harder than it sounds, is to stand upright, slowly lift one foot off the ground, arms by your sides, and balance on one leg for as long as you can.

5. ACCURACY

This is the ability to control movement in a given direction or at a given intensity.

“Similarly to coordination,” says George, “accuracy requires a great deal of spatial awareness of your body parts during a movement. Again, practice and repetition are key here – it’s about neurological adaptation. Also, if you’re accurate in your movements, you’re less likely to injure yourself.”

TRY THIS:

10 min EMOM of 10 wall ball shots to a target.

Record the number of perfectly accurate shots and repeat the exercise regularly to record improvement.

Gradually build up by making the EMOM longer.