Should you be Scaling? by Connie Keathley

You did great!  Way to push through.  “Yeah but I was the last one finished”.

Dude, you smashed that WOD, way to go!  “Ugh, but I snatched way lighter than prescribed.”

That was amazing.  Good push today!  “Thanks but I used a lighter kettlebell”.

So proud of you!  “Yeah but I used a band for pull ups today”.

The ability to scale is what allows athletes (you are all athletes) of all ages and abilities to obtain the benefits of CrossFit. Scaling is also what allows CrossFit athletes to progress.  They meet a goal and then move beyond it. Scaling is definitely a challenge and is accompanied by certain pitfalls. For example, scaling without specificity reduces the opportunity to maximize workout intensity, thus removing one of CrossFit’s core fitness principles. On the flipside of scaling, namely the obsessive focus on performing WODs RX, can hamper potential elite athletes’ development, again by making them perform at loads that aren’t optimal for maximizing workout intensity.

What happens when you scale WODs by loading them as close to “the standard” as possible, without paying much attention to how long it takes you, the athlete, to complete the WOD? We certainly satisfy the first part of what CrossFit is about, since we’re generally prescribing the same or relatively similar movements as the “standard” WOD. The problem lies with the loading. Loading a WOD as close to standard as possible may make for a brutal and taxing workout. However, it usually fails to maximize power output, and it often runs the risk of eliciting the wrong and inferior training response for which the WOD is intended.

For example, let’s take the example the WOD “Diane”….defined as consecutive rounds of 21, 15, and 9 reps of 225 lb. deadlifts and handstand pushups for time. “Diane” is designed to be a short, super-intense workout, tapping the glycolytic pathway and emphasizing muscle power and stamina. To elicit this kind of training response, completion times should generally be well under four minutes, and elite CrossFitters do this WOD in under two minutes.

Now, let’s take the example of an intermediate level CrossFitter. who has been training hard enough to the point where he can do heavy deadlifts and handstand pushups, but with difficulty. As a result, he can get through a “Diane” WOD loaded to standard, but it takes him ten minutes, as he repeatedly has to stop to reset on his deadlift and catch his breath.

Many of us look at this achievement and applaud the athlete for pushing through and reaching the standard load for the WOD. He can now write “as Rxed” on the board next to his time, which certainly feels good. But that definitely comes at a cost. By stretching out the completion time for the WOD to ten minutes, he has sacrificed intensity, and has moved outside the prescribed time domain for the WOD. What was supposed to be a short, super-intense test of power and muscle stamina has turned into a mid-length test of pure strength.

Here’s the general problem that I see: making consistent fitness gains requires a careful collection and variation of workout intensity. Working at moderate intensities relative to max has the benefit of producing neurological gains through neuropathway efficiency and motor unit recruitment while also providing some potential muscle building if working at increased volumes. Using lighter weights makes you better at the skill of moving the weight through a particular range of motion, which is useful for developing efficiency and economy of movement to use when training at higher load-based intensities. However, if loads remain sub-maximal at every training session with any and all variations in volume, then athletes will remain weak at best. On the other hand, working with excessive volumes at greater than optimal percentages of max significantly increases the risk of injury and taxes the nervous system excessively, which results in a negative training response.

It isn’t easy for athletes or coaches to make these decisions regarding scaling.  And, everyone wants that RX next to your name.  If you’re not seeing improvement in strength or stamina then we’re doing something wrong.  Even the Elite scale.  Even I scale.  There is no shame in regressing today to get better tomorrow.

Scaling is how you get from where you are now to your future kickass self.

Scaling is how you stay safe and healthy.

Scaling is how you improve your movement and learn to lift heavier.

Scaling is how you finish the workouts and feel obliterated after, using a band instead of just staring at the bar for 10 min doing one pull up at time.

Scaling, is NOT, however, something to be ashamed of or something that you can use to write off your WOD as a poor performance.

So next time you are crumpled on the floor gasping for air, be proud that you choose the right scale for you.

Be proud that you killed the WOD, and that the WOD killed you.