Richard Gibney's 365 Days of Fitness: Day 148
Day 148 Today I met Fran, and quite Frankly she was bitch. A few weeks ago, I mentioned that a client of mine who has dabbled in Crossfit told me about a workout that I should try. That workout is called Fran. It involves 2 exercises (Barbell Thrusters and Pull-ups) alternated back and forth for 3 rounds, with the reps decreasing with each subsequent round. The goal is to finish the workout as fast as possible while performing the exercises correctly.
My client told me that he thought I would be good at Fran, so I thought why not give it a try. However, before jumping right in and destroying myself I decided to try the individual components and see how I did. A few weeks back I did a workout involving the 2 exercise components, but with them separate from each other. It was tough, but I didn't die, so today I decided to give the actual workout a try.
Today's Workout: Fran
After a long dynamic warm-up to get the body primed and the blood pumping, I jump into my first attempt at Fran.
Alternate the following 2 exercises, using the descending rep scheme in as little time as possible.
Exercise 1: 95 lbs Barbell Thruster (Front Squat to Overhead Press) 21, 15, 9 Exercise 2: Pull-ups 21, 15, 9
My time: 6:49
The fastest time I could find on the internet was 2:25, which after having experienced it seems absolutely inhuman. The average time is apparently just over 7 minutes, so at least I don't suck. I can confidently say that I'm pretty good at the thrusters. I was able to them unbroken the whole way through with speed and good form. The pull-ups I fear will be my nemesis if I'm to get faster. I was able to do most of my pull-ups without any breaks but I can't do them very fast. I watch crossfit guys and they get this cycle thing going with their kipping pull-ups and are able to knock off 20 in a row in about the same time I could do 20 body weight squats.
Well I might try Fran again. I'll have to work on getting faster with the pull-ups. I don't think getting anywhere close to 2:25 is even slightly realistic, but I do think I can get faster. I'd like to try and get under 5 min.