Crossfit has “the girls.” Runners track their mileage and their pace for each distance. Bodybuilders track their weights used. Powerlifters and strongmen have their max lifts. Having a certain workout that you do periodically to check your progress can be extremely beneficial in all workout routines.
When you focus on your personal fitness performance, you become more motivated. You strive to become stronger, faster, and more efficient and everything else falls into place. When you know that it takes you 10 minutes to run a mile, you know that you want to be able to run a mile in 9:45. When you know you can squat 100 pounds, 8 times, you want to be able to squat 105 pounds 8 times. It becomes addicting in some ways.
Benchmark workout routines are workouts that you can track. For example, if you do the following:
1 mile run
100 squats
100 push ups
100 sit ups
and it takes you 26:30, then the next time you do that workout, you’ll want to do it in 25 minutes!
It’s a great tool of measuring how much fitter you are becoming! When you can look back and see that it used to take you 3 minutes longer to do that workout, or you could barely even do 30 pushups on your toes 4 months ago, it’s super exciting to see how far you have come! Benchmark workout routines help you gain confidence!
Not to mention, benchmark workouts keep you honest. If you know you are testing a specific workout routine, you will be more likely to stay on track or work harder when that workout is coming up. For example, I have a client in the military and she has her fitness test coming up in two weeks.
Until then she’s on track with her food so she can perform at her highest level, she is working really hard to feel her best during that test and she’s pushing herself so she can dominate the test and do better than ever!
It’s these little mini goals that keep you going all year long. Sometimes in the middle of March it becomes easy to skip a daily workout here and there, and have a few too many Guinness’s and Easter candy. But if you know you have a benchmark workout coming up, it will help you to stay on track when you sometimes wouldn’t.
Give this one a shot:
Three Rounds For Time
25 squats with 10# dumbbells
20 jumping lunges
15 sit ups
10 close grip push ups
5 burpees
So if you don’t have benchmark workout routines in your program, I highly recommend it. If you don’t, sign up to train with me! My online personal training program includes over ten benchmark workouts that are tested sporadically all year long.
Your Coach,
Kyra
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