CrossFit Open 22.2
I’m not looking forward to 22.2 - the simple yet elegant combination of deadlifts and bar facing burpees is going to be brutal. How hard can you push it?
That being said, can you push it? Or rather, should you push it? It depends. 😉 Keep reading!
Injured Athletes
As a physical therapist, my professional recommendation is if something hurts, don’t do it!
Shoulder/Arm Injury:
Deadlift: Hopefully this shouldn’t be much of an issue for shoulder pain, but if it is, consider decreasing the weight on the bar.
Bar Facing Burpees: If burpees bother you, try to let yourself just “fall” to the floor, versus trying to catch yourself with your hands and control the descent.
Modify to body builders (going down to high plank & then back up).
Do a single arm burpee, widen your feet for better support.
Choose a different cardio stimulus like a squat jump.
Perform DB floor press + jump over bar.
Hip/Knee/Leg/Ankle/Foot Injury:
Deadlift: Modify weight as needed to decrease load/stress on lower body.
Could also substitute with a similar “hinge” type movement such as good mornings, KB swings, try sumo deadlift, etc.
Bar Facing Burpees: Consider “kicking” your injured leg out as you go down and & use primarily your non-injured leg
Back Injury:
Deadlift: Heavy deadlifts are probably not your friend if you have a back injury. Scale the weight here as needed.
If you do decide to "belt up", please make sure you know how to properly use a weightlifting belt. It's more than just getting it as tight as possible.
A cue that helps me personal get my posterior chain to activate on deadlifts is trying to push your heels into the ground as you begin to pull. If you think of it more as a "push" with the feet and less as a "pull", this can help better activate the posterior chain.
Keep a neutral spine throughout - that includes your head/neck. Your gaze should change throughout the movement as you keep your neck in a neutral alignment, rather than trying to keep your head up and chest up all the time.
If you have a back injury, I would highly recommend scaling the deadlift weight at a minimum. Consider substituting the movement for something a little less scary for your back.
You could modify the deadlift itself to a sumo style or starting off on plates/blocks so not as low to the floor.
Bar Facing Burpees: Keep your core engaged as you come up out of the burpee.
Modify to body builders or choose another monostructural movement like squat jumps + jump over the bar.
Pregnant Athletes
Focus on moving at a consistent pace. Don’t get hung up on the weights or the movements, scale it appropriately & just move!
Deadlifts: I would highly recommend going in with an open mindset towards scaling the deadlift weight- risk vs reward here.
Signs you need to consider scaling the weight:
If you feel the need to hold your breath while performing the movement.
If you have a hard time maintaining good form (that’s for anyone really).
If it doesn’t feel great. If it feels heavy, that’s ok. Respect what your body is feeling & where it’s at. There will be more deadlift days in the future!
Exhale on the pull to avoid holding your breath & putting more stress on the pelvic floor.
Consider using a sumo stance if that is more comfortable for those who are farther along.
If it's uncomfortable to deadlift from the floor, another posterior chain movement would be a great substitute.
KBS, good mornings, bridges are some examples
You can also do deadlifts from an elevated surface such as blocks, plates, etc.
Bar Facing Burpees: Once the bump begins to show, I would not recommend “dropping” to the floor on burpees as some athletes do. If athletes still feel comfortable going all the way done to the floor, on their belly, that’s ok as long as they’re careful!
Do body builders instead (going down to just a push up plank position instead of the ground).
Step out & up instead of jumping out/up (jumping can put more stress on your pelvic floor!).
Watch for coning in the bottom position (if not on the floor), and as pushing back up. You can use a phone camera to watch this - see my post on this here.
Another popular modification is incline push up and air squat. Basically you want to find an appropriate movement that can serve as a cardio stimulus- this could be slamballs, KB swings, etc.
As for the jumping over the bar part, I’d recommend scaling to step overs once you’re in the mid-2nd trimester. Not only does the jumping put additional stress on your pelvic floor, but the last thing you want is to trip & fall when pregnant (that’s a straight to the hospital thing, if you didn’t know), especially under fatigue!
Inhale down, exhale up.
Postpartum Athletes
Focus on moving at a consistent pace. Don’t get hung up on the weights or the movements, scale it appropriately & just move!
Deadlifts: I would highly recommend going in with an open mindset towards scaling the deadlift weight- risk vs reward here.
Signs you need to consider scaling the weight:
If you feel the need to hold your breath while performing the movement.
Leaking is occurring with the movement.
If you have a hard time maintaining good form (that’s for anyone really).
If it doesn’t feel great. If it feels heavy, that’s ok. Respect what your body is feeling & where it’s at. There will be more deadlift days in the future!
Exhale on the pull to avoid holding your breath & putting more stress on the pelvic floor.
Consider using a sumo stance if that is more comfortable for those who are farther along.
If it's uncomfortable to deadlift from the floor, another posterior chain movement would be a great substitute.
KBS, good mornings, bridges are some examples
You can also do deadlifts from an elevated surface such as blocks, plates, etc.
Bar Facing Burpees: I would not recommend jumping over the bar for those who are really new postpartum (12 weeks or less). If you’re beyond 12 weeks postpartum, have you tried hopping? How does that feel? Have you been assessed by a pelvic floor physical therapist?
Do body builders instead (going down to just a push up plank position instead of the ground).
Step out & up instead of jumping out/up (jumping can put more stress on your pelvic floor!).
Watch for coning in the bottom position, and as pushing back up. You can use a phone camera to watch this - see my post on this here.
Another popular modification is incline push up and air squat. Basically you want to find an appropriate movement that can serve as a cardio stimulus- this could be slamballs, KB swings, etc.
As for the jumping over the bar part, you could always do a mix of jumping & stepping over the bar, switching to stepping over as you get into the higher rep rounds & more fatigued. Don’t forget- jumping put additional stress on your pelvic floor.
Inhale down, exhale up.
Coaches -
When considering scaling an athlete, try to keep in the mind what functional movement is being performed. Is it a variation of the squat, hinge, pull, push, etc.? Try to maintain the integrity of the functional movement, while modifying it a level that is appropriate for your individual athletes. If you would like to learn more about coaching pregnant and postpartum athletes, please look into Brianna Battles' coaching courses here. For questions regarding scaling/modifications for the injured athlete, please feel free to contact me and/or work directly with the athlete's healthcare provider.
***All pregnant and postpartum women should have their physician's approval to workout. If you don't, please do not workout. If you have any physician restrictions, to ignore them is placing you and your baby's health in jeopardy.
***I recommend all postpartum women get assessed by a pelvic floor physical therapist. Find one by you here. I also highly recommend finding a Pregnancy & Postpartum Athleticism coach by you to go over strategy with specific exercises, programming and recommendations. Find one here.
***At any sight of coning with any movement, stop. Stop if you begin experiencing "leaking", sensation of something "falling out" and/or anything that doesn't feel right. Take more breaks as needed, if it's due to fatigue. Focus on your breathing and movement strategy. If you continue to have symptoms, scale the movement more or stop the workout. If you haven't consulted with a healthcare provider and/or postpartum fitness specialist regarding your symptoms, please do.
If you have specific questions regarding this post, please comment below or contact via social media or email. I'm happy to help- but remember my advice is not accompanied with a hands-on assessment, which is the best way to make recommendations. If you are interested in meeting with me, please contact me. If you're interested in finding an appropriate healthcare provider/coach, please contact me and I will do my best to help you find one.