I was in the gym this morning, with what looked like a tough set to achieve. The set included Jerks (heavy), Bumps (heavy), Swings (heavy) and Farmer’s Hold, heavy, max time. I was going to struggle to get in 12 reps per minute with the Jerks, and the Farmer’s Hold, coming at the end when I was tired, was going to be testing.

I  have not always been best at warm ups, since if they are too neurologically challenging they tend to fatigue me too quickly. But these are getting easier now, and I have to weigh up any possible disadvantages against the risk of injury from going heavy without sufficient preparation. An easy mistake of mine in the past has been to relay on cardio without being sufficiently selective, simply because this felt manageable.  However, training is rarely about keeping to your comfort zone. So, to invest more time in this phase of the workout, not to pre-exhaust, but to ensure shoulder and hip mobility, I went with

– shoulder mobility exercises with lightwieght Indian clubs

– lightweight hand to hand swings

– hip and knee rotations

– bridge and reach

Factor in hydration, and I was ready to tackle the set. (It went okay, by the way!)