Hey OS Fam!
In the last two weeks of September, we’re going to be running through a series of workouts in class that are structured as a comprehensive assessment of each individual’s current fitness level across 15 different categories. This assessment is part of our implementation of a system for our group CrossFit classes and our annual programming and training plan/cycle. We will retest these things again in mid January, mid May and next September to track our ongoing progress as individuals and to monitor our strengths and weaknesses on an aggregate basis for the entire gym.
The system is called The Level Method, and it’s really darn cool!
What the heck is the Level Method?
Well, it’s a system that will show you and our coaches exactly where you stand in your fitness journey.
It gives you the knowledge, and our coaches the tools, to help you achieve your goals even faster and safer than ever before. ⚡️
Now there’s a whole lot of psychology and science 👨🏾🎓behind everything we do — but the simplest way to think about how the Level Method works is to think of how the belt system is used in martial arts – white belt to black belt.
In the coming days, you will see this cool new thing called The MAP (“Method of Athletic Progression”) mounted on the wall near the TVs / Coachboard. The MAP is a detailed yet easy-to-understand chart of functional assessments that measure and reward greater achievements and gradual progression in physical capacity.
It’s a colorful board consisting of Levels moving left to right (separated by vertical lines), and Categories from top to bottom (separated by horizontal lines).
Each category has an upper number (MALE Standard) and a lower number (FEMALE Standard). There are 32 Levels in each of the 15 categories. Note that we fully support and recognize that some folks may not identify explicitly within the male and female categories, and those folks may choose to follow whichever track makes the most sense for their goals, and may certainly consult with our coaches whenever they’re unsure.
The Level Method measures your fitness across 15 categories that cover 10 “energy systems” and over 60 different functional movements and variations. 🏋🏽♀️
Basically, you’re going to see a TRUE snapshot 📸 of where your fitness is!
The 15 categories are comprised of things like Upper Body Pull, Deadlift, and Running.
Each category moves from left to right →, from beginner to advanced, and corresponds to colored levels, similar to a martial arts belt system.
The information that we obtain through these tests will show you EXACTLY where you are in your fitness journey. But it is your personal journey. This information will be private to you and our coaches unless you choose to share it with others.
You might be thinking, “Ryan, I’m just here to sweat. I don’t care about assessments.” That’s totally OK! However, even if you’re not a big fan of assessments/tests or not looking to be a competitive fitness person, these assessments will still be an important and powerful tool for our coaches, and it will be important for us all to complete these assessments. That way our coaches can become even more precise and nuanced with how we’re able to coach each individual person to make sure that their workouts are not only as safe as possible but also to make sure that we’re appropriately challenging each person to get the most out of their workouts and the fastest and most comprehensive health and fitness gains from their time in the gym, while having the most fun. Plus, if you’re “just here to sweat” – these assessment days will be run just like a typical class day, so you should just approach it as any old workout day and not worry about it.
Knowing exactly where you are in your fitness journey is the first step needed to safely and effectively progress toward your goals. It is truly a MAP from your starting point to your desired destination. The MAP is like your GPS. We can’t coach you how to get from point A (your current fitness) to point B (your desired fitness level) until we complete these assessments to get that accurate starting point.
In our next email we’re going to go over the THREE STEP SYSTEM the LM uses to push your fitness to new heights no matter if you’re brand new to any form of working out or someone highly advanced that wants to improve their athletic performance in any sport or strive for the CrossFit Games! 🛩
Be sure to watch for our next email coming to you soon 📬
Yours in Health,
Ryan & The Ohio Strength Team