Crossfit offers some great high intensity workouts, but not all are are created equal when it comes their effectiveness for OCR training. I’ve put together five of my favorites to prepare you for your next OCR or Spartan Race. Check out these 5 Crossfit endurance workouts that will take your OCR and Spartan race training to the next level.
Top 5 Crossfit Endurance Workouts for OCR
Hero WOD: Coffland
6 Minutes Dead Hang (cumulative)
Each time you drop from the bar perform:
– 800 meter run
– 30 push-ups
* This workout is performed in honor of U.S. Army Spc. Christopher J. Coffland, 43, of Baltimore, Maryland, died Nov. 13, 2009, in Wardak province, Afghanistan.
Notes: Coffland is a great benchmark for OCR athletes looking to test their grip strength. Keep in mind that you can mix/change your grip as long as you stay in a dead hang. When you do come off the bar treat it like a sprint and get back on ASAP, this will best prepare you for race conditions.
Hop Scotch
– 200m run at easy pace
– 100m sprint
– 400m run at easy pace
– 100m sprint
– 600m run at easy pace
– 100m sprint
– 800m run at easy pace
– 100m sprint
– 1000m run at easy pace
– 100m sprint
– 800m run at easy pace
– 100m sprint
– 600m run at easy pace
– 100m sprint
– 400m run at easy pace
– 100m sprint
– 200m run at easy pace
– 100m sprint
Total Run: 5900m
Notes: Hop Scotch is just a nice way to say “intervals” so you know this one is going to hurt. The plus side is that it’s one of the best pure running workouts for building endurance and top end power. Don’t worry about your time and if you feel like you going to get sick, that means you’re doing it right.
Hero WOD: Murph
– 1 Mile Run
– 100 Pull-Ups
– 200 Push-Ups
– 300 Air Squats
– 1 Mile Run
(partition pull-ups, push-ups, air squats to your liking)
* This workout is performed in honor of Navy Lieutenant Michael P. Murphy, 29, of Patchogue, NY, who was killed in Afghanistan June 28, 2005.
Notes: You knew it would be on the list and it’s here for a reason. A lot of people will be doing this with a 20# vest but I don’t recommend it. That’s for top athletes and and people trying to look cool while doing Memorial Day Murph at their local box. Real talk though, it’s not recommend to run with more than 10% of your body weight for extended periods. It will destroy your joints. So I recommend skipping the weight vest and keep it body weight to save the wear and tear during training.
Karen
How has your endurance training gone so far? Give it a test with one of the most-dreaded benchmark workouts in CrossFit: Karen.
150 wall balls for time (20/14 lb, 10/9 ft)
Notes: Prepare to go to your dark place. Karen is a Crossfit benchmark WOD for a reason. It’s designed to test you mentally just as much as it does physically. With every rep you will be telling yourself to put the ball down and rest. It’s so easy to do. This is where you learn that when you’re ready to quite mentally you still have a lot left in the tank, so push it.
Here is someone doing it in 4:40 for motivation.
Hero WOD: Zachary
For Time
– 10 Burpees
– 10 Burpees
– 25 Push-Ups
– 10 Burpees
– 25 Push-Ups
– 50 Lunges
– 10 Burpees
– 25 Push-Ups
– 50 Lunges
– 100 Sit-Ups
– 10 Burpees
– 25 Push-Ups
– 50 Lunges
– 100 Sit-Ups
– 150 Air Squats
*This workout is performed in honor of U.S. Sgt. Zachary D. Tellier, 31, of Charlotte, NC (USA), who died Sept. 29, 2007, of wounds sustained while on a ground patrol in Afghanistan.
Notes: I love this one. This is a great travel workout you can do it anywhere. It’s also a sneaky way to get in 50 burpees, 100 pushups, 150 lunges, 200 sit-ups, and 150 air squats.