Table of Contents

1. Choosing the Right Program

   1. Daily Programs

   2. Standalone Programs

2. Workout formats

   1. AMRAP

   2. EMOM

   3. RFT

3. Common Exercise Abbreviations

   1. Strength exercises

   2. Olympic weightlifting exercises

   3. Gymnastics

4. Set and Rep Annotations

   1. Complexes

   2. Weights

   3. Tempos

Choosing the right program is all about identifying the goals you are setting out to complete, how much time you have available to you for those goals, and to what extent you want to invest in your fitness future.

We offer two different free daily programs - Functional Fitness and Military Prep. This programs follow an overall progression and are usually part of an overall program with distinct macro/meso/microcycles.

In addition, CronusFit offers several free standalone programs (Rangers, SFAS, Functional Fitness, and Squad Fitness) for your enjoyment because those foundational guides should not be a secret to a future of health and fitness.

Functional Fitness

This is our CrossFit style daily programming. This programming is designed with the high end local or low end regionals level competitor in mind. As a result, movements and exercises are designed to challenge athletes up to around the regionals level. If you are not at that level, feel free to scale the weights/movements/intensities so that you are receiving the same stimulus as intended. Choose this program if CrossFit is your goal.

Military Prep

This is our functional fitness daily programming designed to prepare a base level of fitness for success in any military branch. Movements, generally speaking, are less complex and focus more on developing a solid aerobic/strength base. Choose this program is you are looking to increase your PT scores and to focus on being in optimal shape for combat operations.

Ranger School
Ranger School is a 62-Day Army School focused on leadership and small-unit tactics. The Ranger School preparation focuses heavily on preparing for a 5-mile run, rucking varying distances with weight upwards of 75# (95# at school), and conditioning metabolic exercises for longer PT sessions.

SFAS
The 3-WK Special Forces Selection in Fort Bragg, NC is mentally, physically, and emotionally challenging. Similar to Ranger School, our SFAS program focuses much more heavily on rucking, since the majority of your movements and phases will be conducted with increased loads, equipment, and shoulder strength requirements. Between the multiple movements, SFAS establishes “gates” for candidates to test different running distances, our program prepares athletes for these tests, by focusing on the lower body and increased distance run program.

Ranger Assessment and Selection Program
Known as RASP, the Ranger Assessment and Selection Program is 3-WKs long at Fort Benning, GA. Unlike Ranger School and SFAS, RASP includes significantly more weight lifting and testing, shorter metabolic conditioning events, and standard Ranger Regiment physical requirements. The RASP program will highlight movements like the HexBar DL, metronome pull up, bench/shoulder mobility, as well as speed and agility training. RASP incorporates more testing with kit on and more training for varying terrain running.

Running Program
The Running Program develops athletes for a 10k race. We recommend individuals pursue the running program if in a train up for Ranger School/SFAS, the biggest underlying issue is endurance. While a 10k is slightly longer than the standard 5-Mile and “gate” events, we find that the pace doesn’t vary by more than :10-:15 per mile and is a great distance for conditioning. The running program will also focus on maintaining general strength in the upper and lower body, as not to atrophy for military requirements or general aesthetics.

In the time provided complete as many rounds/reps as possible (AMRAP).  The workout will be written with a time standard followed by AMRAP.  Listed beneath the workout will be a series of movements and the rep scheme: during the workout you complete the required repetitions for the movement before moving to the next requirement.  Example:

15 AMRAP (15 min As many rounds/reps as possible)

10x Power Cleans

12x Toe to Bar

15x Air Squat

In order, complete 10x Power Cleans, then 12x toes to bar, and finally 15x Air Squats before moving back to power cleans.  Complete this round as many times as possible in the time assigned. 

Every minute on the minute (EMOM) is a workout set to rounds of :60 seconds.  An EMOM workout will either be one movement or several movements to be completed within :60 seconds.  Once an athlete finishes the assigned movements, he/she will resume at the start of the next minute and continue for as many rounds as directed.  Example:

10 EMOM (10 min, every minute on the minute)

20 Air Squats and 5 Burpees

 Start at :00 and complete 20 Air Squats, then 5 Burpees.  Any left over time is the rest period until :60, when the workout resumes for 10 minutes

Alternatively, EMOM can be modified to modify minutes of work. For example, E2MOM (Every 2 minutes on the minute), E3MOM (every 3 minutes on the minute), etc. Example:

10 E2MOM (10 min, every 2 minutes on the minute)

20 Air Squats

10 Pull Ups

This workout requires 20x Air Squats and 10 pull-ups every 2 minutes.

Rounds for Time is a workout where a series of exercises is written with the intent of finishing a prescribed number of rounds as fast as possible.  Example

5RFT

10x Dead Lifts

15x Snatch

20x Push Ups

Complete 10x Dead Lifts, then 15x Snatch, and then 20 push ups for one round, complete this circuit five times as fast as possible. 

BS - Back Squat (standard Squat)

FS - Front Squat

OHP/SP - Overhead Press/Strict Press (no leg drive)

PP - Push Press (leg drive, no second dip to catch)

DL - Dead Lift

KB - Kettle Bell

DB - Dumbbell

BB - Barbell

SA - single arm

SL - single leg

Automatically assume full(squat) unless otherwise specified

Clean - Squat Clean (Full Clean)

PC - Power Clean (Cleaning the bar from the ground with minimal front squat)

HPC - Hang Power Clean (Power clean from the hang position)

PJ - Push Jerk

SJ - Split Jerk

Hang Positions for OLY

1. Low hang - below the knee

2. Hang - slightly above the knee (standard hang)

3. High Hang - mid/upper thigh. Almost hip crease

4. Hip crease - bar is inside your hip crease

TTB/T2B - Toes to bar

GHDSU - GHD sit up

BJ - box jump

BJO - box jump over

BBJO - burpee box jump over

MU - Muscle Up

HSPU - Handstand Pushup

pHSPU - parallete HSPU

sHSPU - strict HSPU

Other Abbreviations

WB - Wall ball (With medicine ball complete a front squat then stand and throw the ball on a 9ft target on the wall, catch and repeat)

AAB - Air Assault Bike

Waiter Walk - Hold a weighted plate in an open palm, elbow bent to your hip with your hand bent out at a 90 degree angle

Suitcase carry - hold a DB/KB with one arm. Brace your core and walk keeping your torso upright.

Sets and Reps

Weightlifting prescriptions will be notated with the exercise, sets and reps, and then the intensity (loading). For example:

         Snatch – 5x2@75%

This would indicate snatching 75% of the athlete’s 1RM snatch weight for 5 sets of 2 reps.

If a load is not specified, the order is the same. For example:

         Pull-ups – 5 x 10

This would indicate 5 sets of 10 reps.

Single leg KB RDL 5x10 (ea leg)

This would indicate 5 sets of 10 reps each leg



For exercise complexes, notation will usually include reps for each exercise performed in the set. This would look, for example: 

         Power Clean + Power Jerk - 75% @ 4x(2+1 )

This would mean each set is 2 power cleans followed by 1 power jerk at 75%. 

         Power Snatch + Snatch Balance - 75% @ 5x2(1+1)

This would indicate that each set is 1 power snatch, then 1 snatch balance, then 1 power snatch, then 1 snatch balance for 4 total reps per set. You will then do 5 sets of the complex for 20 total reps.



Prescribed percentages are of the exercise they accompany unless noted otherwise. For example, Snatch 5x2@75% is 75% of your 1RM snatch. A notable exception is snatch or clean pulls or deadlifts: percentages of these exercises are calculated from the 1RM of the snatch or clean (this is usually noted in the workout for clarity).

No weight prescribed

If a loading prescription is absent for a particular exercise, the athlete should choose the loading to approximate the heaviest possible for the prescribed sets and reps unless some other quality is prescribed. The load should be challenging unless otherwise specified.

Certain exercises will be accompanied by a 4-digit number that prescribes a speed at which the lift should be executed. The first digit refers to the eccentric portion (lowering); the second to the time between the finish of the eccentric and concentric portions; the third the concentric (lifting/raising); and the fourth the time between the completion of the concentric and beginning of the following eccentric portion. An "X" indicates performing the portion of the movement as quickly as possible.

Examples:

Tempo BS (42x1)

This means a tempo back squat with the cadence of 42x1. This means 4 seconds eccentric (going down), 2 seconds paused in the hole, explode on the concentric (going up), and pause 1 second between reps

Tempo Pull-up (4444)

This means a tempo pull up with cadence of 4444. This means This means 4 seconds eccentric (going down), 4 seconds hanging at the bottom, 4 seconds on the concentric (going up), and pause 4 seconds at the top (flexed arm hang)

For specific questions about what program is best for you, reach out to us at HQ@CronusFit.org