Why You Need To Work On Dumbbell Lunges For The CrossFit Open

The Dumbbell Lunges Are Coming…

As the new year starts, many of us are looking toward February 21st with excitement and anxiety. What will Dave Castro throw at us this year? Please, no more dumbbells.

2018 was the year of the dumbbell and it’s highly likely that we’ll see them again in 2019. The dumbbells humbled nearly everybody who was over prepared with two arms and barbells, underprepared to stabilize something with one arm. They humbled people with small hands and poor grip strength/endurance, who could barely re-grip the dumbbells on the way back to the hang position (not saying this was me…).

2018 was the year of the dumbbell and it’s highly likely that we’ll see them again in 2019

We saw dumbbell snatches, cleans, jerks, and squats.

Interestingly enough, we didn’t see any lunges in 2019. Nor did we see any dumbbell overhead holds…

So, my prediction for the CF Open 2019 is…….

Single Arm Dumbbell Overhead Walking Lunges!

Single Arm Dumbbell Overhead Squats!

These will be absolutely devastating to anybody with shoulder mobility or shoulder stability issues. So, if you haven’t already, you should be incorporating some direct single arm training into your programming 1-2 times/week. Be prepared with either a dumbbell or kettlebell (DB or KB) because Dave Castro is a monster.

So, if you haven’t already, you should be incorporating some direct single arm training into your programming 1-2 times/week.

Your prep could include an EMOM of any of the following:

1) Dumbbell (or KB) Overhead Carries

2) Dumbbell (or KB) Overhead Squats

3) Dumbbell (or KB) Overhead Lunges

4) Dumbbell (or KB) Front Rack Walking Lunges

5) Dumbbell (or KB) Left arm OH and Right Arm Farmer Carries

6) Bottoms up Kettlebell Walks and Presses

7) Dumbbell Single Arm Presses/Push Presses/Jerks

8) Dumbbell (or KB) Turkish GetUps

Try these out, and don’t let the CF Open 2019 sneak up on you!

Bonus: You might even find that your cranky shoulder starts to feel better from more single arm stability training!

As always, we hope this helps! If you have any questions or if you would like to read about certain topics, feel free to send us an email at TeamSP@SportsPerformancePT.com.

-Dr. Marissa Rescott, PT, DPT, CF-L1