Today's Workout: 102313

“Eva”
Five rounds for time of:
Run 800 meters
2 pood Kettlebell swing, 30 reps
30 Pull-ups
“Eva” is a tough, long workout. Its primary goal is aerobic capacity, and it’s a better developer than any long run. When runners do interval training, the speed and endurance benefits come from holding a higher speed, and then slowing back to ‘normal’ speed. The magic is in the recovery from fast heart rate to slow. But the body doesn’t know, or care, what caused the heart rate to increase in the first place.
A 2-pood (70lb) kettlebell swing is heavy. Every swing forces the Valsalva maneuver – you close your glottis and pressurize your ‘core’ with your diaphragm. In other words, you hold your breath, and that makes your heart race while under a pressurized vacuum. It’s not dangerous; you do it hundreds of times every day without thinking about it. Done repeatedly, it has the same effect on your heart as an all-out sprint.
The pullups in ‘Eva’ look to be the hardest part, but they may be your savior. If you can’t link 30 pullups without stopping, your heart rate doesn’t recover for the run, and you’re out the door (or on the rower) in a highly-elevated state. Of course, your time will also be much better…
As a tip, look at the clock before your first round of pullups, and again after your second run. The pullups+run time shouldn’t change on the next round: if you slow on the pullups, try to run faster to make up the time. This won’t be easy.
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