You’ve done many, many conditioning workouts at your local box, you’ve done a few fitness competitions, you’ve tried random workouts on the internet and some from reputable sources and now you’re getting the itch to write your own! Getting excited to write and experiment with your own workouts is a great place to be. It means you are enthusiastic about your fitness and wish to take ownership of it. I have created a foolproof guide to writing your own conditioning workouts- at home or in the box, in big groups or grinding it solo. After reading this article you will have a good idea of how to write a conditioning workout that is not only productive, but also fun.

Before we get down to the nitty gritty, let me share a few pro tips. I’ve written workouts for myself for years and have had the pleasure of writing the programming at CrossFit NYC, so I understand how overwhelming and stressful the undertaking can be. Let’s take the pressure off and make the process of writing the workouts just as fun as doing them.

1. You never have to get it right the first time. Writing a workout that doesn’t go exactly as you imagined it is okay; it’s part of the fun of the project. Make a mental and physical note of what went wrong (and what went well), so you can use that for future workouts.
2. Know who you’re writing for (and how to scale it). The workout templates explained in this article are primarily geared towards programmers who are writing for themselves and perhaps a few buddies. Most of the basic tenets carry over into group workouts so it’s easy to transfer it over into a group and I’ll speak briefly to that at the end. Either way, start your programming journey by jotting down a few notes on who your RX (as prescribed) or target athlete is. This will give you a much-needed point of reference as you make decisions, especially with exercises and weights. If your RX athletes can only back squat 225 pounds for 1, programming sets of 10 at 185 pounds is a hefty task. If your athlete can only do 10 unbroken kipping pull-ups, programming sets of 20 strict pull-ups will slow them down significantly.
3. Imagine your RX athlete doing the workout. Being able to “imagine a workout” becomes easier over time. You get a better feel for how long something should take and, even more importantly, you get a more precise understanding of how movements compound upon one another. (What does it feel like to deadlift after doing burpees? There’s only one way to find out…)
4. Err on the side of easy… especially your first time. Imagine the person/s you’re writing the workout for doing it for the first time. Would you rather see them move “too fast” with a light, technically proficient snatch? Or move “too slow” with a sloppy snatch? Moving faster is always almost better. After the workout is over, if you decide they can handle more, you can always throw appropriate work into a cash out of some sort.
5. Test, then rewrite. The first time you do a workout you always learn something you hadn’t imagined. Keep all these lessons, the positive and the negative, handy and hone the workout to make it more appropriate to the training stimulus you intended.

Things to consider when writing for a larger population

Writing for large populations could be another article entirely, but here are just a few notes to tide you over.

1. Consider logistics. A beautifully crafted workout can be ruined by the fact that a class of 20 people can’t all use barbells at the same time. Consider the logistics of your particular box as you’re writing the workouts so you don’t run into this frustrating issue too often.
2. Know the range of athletes you’re writing for. You know your RX athlete (male and female). In a population of athletes from 0 to 10, 0 being the least fit and 10 being the most fit, you should write programming for 8. Athletes 0 to 3 will do the easiest scaled version, 4 to 6 will scale slightly, 7 to 9 will do it RX, and 10 can scale up.
3. Write your scaling options before game day. Scaling on the fly is no fun and you may miss the opportunity for a more appropriate or productive scaling option. If you’ve really thought through all the options, you’ll be better prepared to serve the full range of abilities.
4. Be ready to say you made a mistake. When I was writing for the entirety of CrossFit NYC, I would often learn a lot about a workout after doing it with my first class. Oh wow, that was a lot harder than I expected, or the opposite. Be humble enough to change it, optimize your athlete’s workouts and get your ego out of the way. Don’t stand by a bad idea.

Excited to get started? Grab pen and paper, make a few notes on your RX male and female athlete, and let’s jump right in!

How long do you want the workout to take?

We have three time frames for considering the durations of conditioning workouts.

1. “Sprint”: 1 to 3 minutes (those numbers are somewhat arbitrary, but they give you a of range.) Go all out. Take no prisoners.
2. “Mile”: 5 to 14 minutes. An uncomfortable but sustainable pace.
3. “5k”: 19+ minutes. Just keep moving, just keep moving, just keep moving.

We’ll go into greater detail for each time frame in the next article, but let’s first generalize some things that do work in each category:

• “Sprint”: Movements that are relatively easy to perform and can be done at a demanding pace (An appropriate movement is a burpee. An inappropriate movement is a legless rope climb.) Some can sprint what others can’t; keep that in mind based on your RX athlete.
•  “Mile”: This time frame allows for the largest range of movements. An athlete should be okay with the idea of doing 2 minutes of the workout and nervous about how it will feel after 7 ½ minutes.
• “5k”: Movements and a structure that provide for near constant movement. Nothing should be too hard, you want your athletes to move more and rest less.

What movements should you include?

Before considering specific movements, consider the action your body is performing for any given movement. Each category below includes exercises of all sorts: barbell, gymnastics, odd object, etc.

• Upper body push (horizontal or vertical). Includes: push press, handstand push-up, ring dip.
• Upper body pull (horizontal or vertical). Includes: pull-up, ring row, rope climb.
• Core: any exercise focused on strengthening the trunk (front, back or sides.) Includes: sit ups, toes to bar, hip extension.
• Lower body (knee dominant). Simply stated, in the lower body department, these are the movements that include a squat. Includes: front squat, box jump, lunges.
• Lower body (hip dominant). These movements are a lower body “pull.” Includes: deadlift, kettlebell swing, tire flip.
• Full body: These movements are a combination of the above. When you’re figuring out how to include them in your workouts, consider what is the limiting factor in each of the movements (what fatigues first?) Includes: clean and jerk, kettlebell snatch, heavy med ball clean.
• Cardio: All the old standards that we’ve all done to get sweaty and breath hard forever. Includes: running, rowing, ski erg.
• High skill: This category can be from any of the above but deserves its own label because it requires a high level of skill, fortitude and attention. Includes: snatch, muscle up, swimming, triple-unders (double-unders for some).

Here is a long list of exercises (broken down by muscle group). Not all of these movements are appropriate in conditioning workouts because they don’t require enough full body exertion (isolation exercises are generally a no-no). When you’re just getting started writing conditioning workouts, stick with the tried and true movements you see in all the popular WODs.

Note: putting too many movements from any single category in a workout will overload that system and slow the athlete down a lot (though this can be done on purpose, of course.) A workout that includes only upper body pushing movements (for example: ring dips, handstand push ups and push ups) will specifically test that athlete’s ability to work in that domain. If you want an athlete to move more and rest less, vary the types of movements you’re using.

Next month we’ll address the application of these templates, and take a look at how to put together “sprint,” “mile” and “5k” workouts. We’ll also take a look at some other categories and their structures. In the meantime, pay particular attention to the workouts you are doing and always ask yourself, “What is the goal of this workout and is it achieving that goal?”