Strongman Programming

CrossFit Journal (Video)

Programming isn’t hard, says stongman guru Rob Orlando. While it’s easy to get lost in the minutia, you need to see the big picture.

“We’re doing this to get healthier, fitter, faster 10 years from now—not next week,” Orlando explains.

In this video, the Hybrid Athletics owner has a Q&A with a group of nine Israeli CrossFitters who visited his box late last year.

“I can teach somebody how to open their hip and use it in less than five minutes,” he tells them. “The beauty of these movements is that they don’t take much practice or skill. But you get a whole lot of work, so it’s a high return on investment.”

And strongman translates well to every other movement—including the Olympic lifts—Orlando says.

“One of the things that we see in strongman is … how important it is for the athlete to use hip extension and to open those hips violently,” he says. “And the beauty of the movements that we employ is that they don’t have to be taught; they just need to be remembered.”

9min 2sec

Additional audio: CrossFit Radio Episode 202 by Justin Judkins, published Dec. 14, 2011.