Sometimes a Step Back is the Strongest Move Forward

“It is necessary sometimes to take one step backward to take two steps forward.” – Vladimir Lenin

Thought of the Day

We once had a guy at our gym who was incredibly strong. He could back squat well over four hundred pounds and front squat in the high three hundreds. But he struggled and was unable to overhead squat ninety-five pounds—less than a quarter of what his legs could handle. To help him, we had to take him back to the empty barbell and rebuild his mechanics.

Can you imagine how humbling that would be? After spending time getting so strong, only to be out-lifted by some grandmothers while trying to fix your overhead squat! But I’m happy to report that the step back was worth it. In a short time, he rebuilt his form and was able to hit heavy weights well past the ninety-five-pound barrier.

In the gym—and in life—sometimes a step back is exactly what you need to move forward.

Last week in the varsity class, I shared this story. Now that I’m back on the coaching floor, it’s important to help set these athletes up for success by refining their movement. This ensures they stay healthy and keep progressing. It's crucial to get them strong, flexible, and moving well to help prevent youth sports injuries.

In our programs, we have athletes competing at high levels and others training simply to live better. Regardless of their goals, we're here to teach them how to move well, feel comfortable, and be capable in any gym space. They’ll be prepared—whether it's for the field of sport or the arena of life.

If you have a youth athlete who is struggling, feeling burnt out, or simply wants to improve their physical capacity, we’re here to help. Even if it means taking a few steps back first—so they can leap forward later. We’re building strong youth to create a brighter future.

Thursday

Warm-up | 4:00

2 sets:
50' bear crawl
5 inchworms to downdog
10 Spiderman lunge with OH reach

10 Goblet squats

10 Russian KB swings | American style KB swings

TECH | 3:00

Demonstrate: wall walks, front squats, and KB swings

Specific Warm-up | 11:00

Wall Walk Warm-up | 3:00

10 shoulder taps in a downdog position against wall

5 scaled wall walks

5 wall walks

Front squat warm-up | 3:00

Using an empty barbell, perform:

5 reps of the three-position pause squats (pause at quarter-squat, above parallel, and below parallel)

5 front squats with a : 02-second pause at the bottom squat

Front Squat Build-up | 5:00

3 sets of 2-5 front squats

·         Build to starting load

WOD | 12:00 - 15:00

RX:

3 rounds for time of:
7 wall walks
14 front squats
21 kettlebell swings

Women: 115-lb barbell, 53-lb kettlebell

Men: 165-lb barbell, 70-lb kettlebell

Intermediate option:
3 rounds for time of:
4 wall walks
14 front squats
21 kettlebell swings

Women: 75-lb barbell, 35-lb kettlebell

Men: 115-lb barbell, 53-lb kettlebell

Beginner option:
3 rounds for time of:
4 inchworms + push-up
14 front squats
21 Russian kettlebell swings

Women: 35-lb barbell, 18-lb kettlebell

Men: 45-lb barbell, 26-lb kettlebell