The Week Ahead - 1/19/26
Team, Friends, Old Cityzens,
Dang, it’s grey outside. I’ll spare you the cliche about the light that is Old City or the inner fire that fitness creates. (Couldn’t help it!) A few quick announcements, then the week ahead:
Engine and Muscle Lab Programming - You should be able to see it now on our website and Zen Planner. On our website, immediately above the WOD there should be a drop down menu. Select that and you’ll see the other classes. Same as the WODs, they’ll be visible the night before. We will continue to make things more visible and obvious if this doesn’t work intuitively. Thanks for all the feedback.
Community Saturdays - Keep on coming! Bring your friends! But also have your friends sign up before by emailing Kara - admin@oldcitycrossfit.com
Lastly, thanks to those who came out to our third breathing seminar. Some amazing exhales were noticed.
Monday - Double Strength. Back squat paired with broad jumps. Heavy + Explosive = athlete. Then, Ring Push-Up paired with Yates Row. This is the 5th time through Back Squat and 3rd time through Ring Push-Up. You guys always ask if there’s a plan, well here it is… see if you can go heavier (or more reps, or lower)
Tuesday - Core Strength EMOM first, then probably the hardest WOD of the week. 19 Minute AMRAP rowing, Wall balls, and pull-ups. Three movements that are among the most frequent during the CrossFit Open.
Wednesday - Hang Power Clean. Then Sprint/rest WOD with burpees and moderate weight power cleans.
Thursday - Mary/Gymnastics day. Last week was a pistol-mary focus, this week a handstand push-up-mary focus. You’ll see DB Box Handstand Push-Ups (no Wall today!) paired with weighted pull-ups. Then a 12 minute AMRAP of HSPU/Step Ups/Ring Rows.
Friday - Heavy Deadlifts make their appearance during strength. Then a descending rep scheme of Toes to bar and double Unders.
Saturday - Incline Bench Press and Partner WOD!!
All my love,
Coach Jason
The Week Ahead - 1/12/26
Team, friends, Old Cityzens,
I promise I’ll get the year wrong on this blog at least twice in January. Wild that it’s 2026… it reminds me of my all time favorite Coach Jen joke… if you’ve got a minute to live, what’s the best thing to do? Hop on an assault bike and time stops.
More importantly, thanks to everyone who came to our Post-Holiday Party! Always a great time, and so good to see everyone (and their families!). The week ahead:
Monday - Pistol Practice! Some people may not enjoy it, but hey, it’s CrossFit. Plus pistol practice is one of the best things you can do for knee and hip resilience. The WOD builds on pistol practice: push press, strict pull-up, and pistols. This is our first go-around with “Mary” prep work. And of rest built in rest to create focus. (I’m really really good at strict pull-ups and I can’t even do 7 rounds of 5 reps to my standard without cheating. So use that rest.)
Tuesday - Another E90s, similar to last week: 16 rounds of every 90s. Power Snatches, Snatch Deadlifts, and a hodge podge of other movements, maybe a tad more cardio.
Wednesday - Double Strength day. Two Wednesdays in a row, I promise I try not to do that. Movements are same as last week, which I very much am trying to do. Back Squat, Box Jump, Ring Push-Up, Powell Raise. Maybe a bit more weight or better form than last week? A bonus rep? Even same as last week but increased confidence also a great step forward. This eye towards progression is everything, no matter your goal or demographic.
Thursday - Core Strength first. Then a cool WOD I stole from the CrossFit Mainsite: a ton of plank, a Farmers Carry, and a descending ladder of box jumps. Really cool and different WOD to challenge your core. Maybe 15-18 minutes long.
Friday - Weightlifting skill practice first, then we apply it to a 20 minute AMRAP of power clean and 200m running. It should end up at 1k-2k of running. It leans towards running volume, and the weight on clean is low by our standards.
Saturday - Second week in a row of Landmine Press and Bent over Row. Then Partner WOD!!! Come make gym friends.
All my love,
Coach Jason
The Week Ahead 01/05/26
Happy New Year to you all!
Don’t forget: Post-Holiday party at our place, this Saturday at 6! Sheryl and Jason are having a meat/no-meat chili off. So we’ll have some food and snacks… but be sure to bring a drink or three and any sides. We’ll also erase the 2025 goals board and look on 2026 with fresh eyes…
The Week Ahead:
Monday - A fast paced strength day, more specifically an extended E2MOM. All heavy lifting, but with scheduled rest. First 8 rounds power clean and strict KB press. Second 8 rounds Barbell RDL and Strict Chin-Up. I like the pairing of power clean and RDL every once in a while for extra practice keeping good posture.
Tuesday - Cardio focus followed by mobility. The classic benchmark Annie, sit-ups and double unders, but with a lap after each round. So total running is 2k. I think this takes 15-20 minutes. After the WOD, some of our favorite stretches.
Wednesday - Double Strength. Back Squat paired with an immediate superset of seated-start box jumps. After that, the return of the ring push-up and Powell Raise.
Thursday - Gymnastics day. Handstand kick-up practice along with weighted pull-ups. Then a short/medium WOD of handstand push-up, toes to bar, KB Swings. Mini-Nate, I think.
Friday - Core Strength (more?!). Then a WOD I think is pretty darn hard. Wall Balls and Burpee Box Jumps.
Saturday - Partner WOD. Half the point is hanging out with your friends. So just show up!
The Week Ahead – 12/29/25
Team, Friends, Old Cityzens,
Reminder that we’ve got a few new class options in the new year, Engine and Muscle Lab! We will start these on 1/8 and 1/9!
And because of New Year’s Day, we’ll stack our second week in a row with a grueling hero-style workout. Join us on Tuesday if you’re in the mood for a serious challenge! (Always and forever scalable to anything you need.)
The Week Ahead:
Monday – Strength is barbell split squat and DB Bent Over Row. WOD is just beyond a sprint time-wise, but should feel like a sprint: small reps and big rounds of Sumo Deadlift High Pull and Double Push-Up Burpee.
Tuesday – Hero-style WOD celebrating 1/31 and our new year, 2026. Expect a 30 minute or so WOD of double Unders, rowing, barbell shoulder to overhead at 135/95, and pull-ups.
Wednesday – New Year’s Eve, so a shorter schedule today. Core strength first, then an EMOM WOD of KB Squats, Landmine Twist, and Bike. If you want to work on your obliques (side abs) and rotation… today is the day!
Thursday – Closed!
Friday – Tied with Monday for my favorite day of the week. Barbell RDL and Rotating Ring Chin Up (our second go around here.) The WOD is CrossFit Open 22.1… a 15 minute AMRAP of Wall Walks, DB Snatch, and Box Jump.
Saturday – Bench Press, shoulder prehab, then partner WOD!!
Sunday – Ladies Who Lift! If you’re not yet familiar, this is a women’s only class led by women coaches. It’s entirely strength training, so don’t expect much cardio. Class is limited, so sign up before it’s too late.
The Week Ahead – 12/22/25
Team, Friends, Old Cityzens,
Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas Week. I hope you all have plans to relax and enjoy family… but also plans to get after it at Old City this week. A few notes to keep you all in the loop, and the week ahead below.
Speaking to the broad programming… the shortened weeks and hero WODs from Thanksgiving through January make it difficult to program an *exacting* plan, but hey, every day is an awesome workout, and it’s CrossFit after all… constantly varied. BUT! Expect a return to skill progressions, like pistols, and a monthly(ish) benchmark WOD in January.
Second, I decided to forgo the “12 days of Christmas” WOD this year. I’ve been threatening to do so for years, and this year seems as good as any. You may love it, but from a coaching perspective it’s a disaster. In an effort to set you all up for success, but to also give you a workout worthy of a holiday, I’ve programmed a different workout on Tuesday.
Also! Expect an email from our team on a few changes in the New Year, including a few new class concepts and increased options to work closely with our coaches to individualize your Old City CrossFit experience. We’re very excited, and every change we make is an effort to give you all more options for fitness and fun.
Anywho, the week ahead:
Monday – Back Squat paired with squat mobility. Then a push/pull couplet of push press and pull-up. Descending rep scheme, probably takes 8-12 minutes.
Tuesday – Your Holiday Hero WOD: “McGhee” The rare 30 minute AMRAP, heavy deadlifts, push-ups, box jumps. I took what was an incredibly complex WOD, nearly impossible to coach… and changed it to the incredibly simple.
Wednesday – Only morning classes and noon. Landmine Press and DB Benter Over Row. WOD is middle Distance, maybe 12-15 minutes. Rowing, Plank, Barbell Curl.
Thursday – Closed!
Friday – Only morning classes and noon. Evening classes cancelled. Hang Power Clean practice up front, then power cleans, toes to bar, running. The run is 200m and it’s a 15 minute AMRAP, so I’m guessing a strong score is 5-6 rounds… so 1000-1200m running.
Saturday – Partner WOD. This is actually a WOD we’ve done a few times that I really really like… I just doubled it. 40 Rounds, alternate with your partner, DB Snatch, Lunges, Box Jump.
All my love,
Coach Jason
The Week Ahead – 12/15/25
Team, Friends, Old Cityzens,
It is cold and everyone I know is sick. Don’t let it get to you: show up to the gym and kick some ass. Showing up is the hardest part. Or, show up and don’t try so hard. Both are really good options. The week ahead:
Monday – A new “concept” for strength period – really really short erg sprints. I’m calling them Erg Power Strokes… 10 pulls at the absolute fastest pace you can.
WOD is Sprint/Rest. Shoulder to Overhead, Pull-Ups, Double Unders, rest
I really enjoy the erg power pulls for a few reasons… first, it’s a low technique power drill… akin to a power clean with less thinking. I also use it on days where I’m cold and everyone I know is sick… it’s like a shot of espresso before your workout.
Tuesday – Hang SQUAT clean practice. Then an EMOM with hang squat cleans, burpees, v-ups. My favorite kind of workout.
Wednesday – Hannukah WOD. 8 rounds, 8 movements. It’s a grind, should take about 20-30 minutes
Thursday – Bench Press, Barbell Curl, and a short sprint WOD of 400m run and DB Snatch. Total running 1200m.
Friday – Double Strength: Split Squat (continuation of Pistols), Weighted RING Chin-Up (scale will be bar chin-up and negatives,) Barbell RDL (glutes!), KB Z press (third week in a row, handstand push-up progression)
Saturday – Core Burner and Partner WOD!!
The Week Ahead – 12/8/25
Team, Friends, Old Cityzens,
Hope everyone is enjoying the cold. Without the wind I like it a lot… but I like most every season!
The Week Ahead:
Monday – Pistols as Skill/Strength, paired with Weighted Pull-Ups. Second week in a row using negatives for technique, tempo, and to establish a scale for the WOD. WOD is very simple… KB Swings, Push-Ups, and Goblet Pistosl. Use weight if you can, but understand quality pistols are the name of the game today. Go slow and get them right… the payoff is huge.
Tuesday – Core Strength first to get the glutes and abs sore, then Ghost. Straight cardio, and one of my top 5 workouts. 20 minutes or so of rowing, burpees, double Unders, rest.
Wednesday – Third week in a row of hang power cleans, hopefully you’re starting to feel the improvement. Then a sprint WOD somewhat similar to last week’s deadlift sprint. Deadlifts and DB Push Press.
Thursday – Double Strength. Front Squat and KB Z-Press build on last week, and we’ve paired them with Landmine Twist and Yates Row.
Friday – 20 Minute AMRAP. Hang Power Snatch, Toes to Bar, Running. The Open starts at the end of February, so lets get those snatches and toes to bar now!
Saturday – Bench Press and Powell Raise (let’s keep those shoulders healthy (and round!)). Then partner WOD… come make some friends!