It’s no secret that I’ve been writing free functional programs for several years, and I’m regularly asked in what order they should be performed. This article will explain exactly what order I would do them in, and how to add in my specialty programs, to help attack your weaknesses, without overdoing it.
As the title implies if you add up the total amount of free programming that I’m sending your way it will add up to around 72 weeks, and that’s with no breaks apart from planned deloads.
Obviously no one should really do this much work with out taking a week or two off here and there. This means that you are looking at almost two years of programming!
Who is this Programming For?
This plan is designed and sequenced to take the intermediate athlete and help them become an advanced athlete. Here are the standards that we use to judge an athlete’s status.
Here is where we are trying to get to. For the full list of standards click here.
As you can see this is quite the improvement. For an average male athlete you are looking at a starting deadlift max of 342 lbs, and a finishing weight of 418lbs. No big deal, just a 76 lbs personal record!
We are also looking at huge improvements in our benchmark WODs. Using Fran as an example we are looking at moving from a 5:45 time to a 4 minute flat time. These are huge PR’s!
You need to keep in mind that there are no free lunches here and you will absolutely be putting in many months of hard work to achieve these improvements.
The Programs
Before we do a deep dive into the programs and discuss why they are sequenced the way they are. Let’s first look at the over all plan.
You can see that all the primary programs on the left are black. The programs on the right, in red, are speciality programs that are designed to be done in conjunction with the primary program. Not everyone needs the specialty programs, but if you do, this is where I recommend performing them.
The 7 Week Open Prep Program
The 7 Week Prep Program has been around for a while and is very popular with a lot of athletes. It’s challenging, but not impossible for a newer, intermediate athlete to perform. Here is a sample week.
You can see this is very similar to other programs with a planned strength portion that is paired with a WOD. Be warned this is the lowest volume program that I have!
You will also notice that I have this program paired with the 6 Week Pressing Program . This pairing is for athletes that have a specific lack of pressing strength. If you don’t need that particular emphasis then don’t worry about this add on program and focus on the 7 Week Open Prep Program.
The 6 Week Muscular Growth Plan for Parts 1 and 2
This Muscular Endurance Program for athletes, is a total of 12 weeks in length as it is split in two parts. Here is part one, and here is part two.
Here is a sample of the programming.
You can see that this is similar to the 7 week program, but we have added in some additional strength work, as strength is one of the key factors that increases overall performance.
You’ll also notice that I’ve included the option to do the 8 week aerobic capacity program here if you so desire. Again, this is only for those that need to build up that specific energy system, it isn’t mandatory.
From here we move on to what is by far my most popular program.
If you like these programs but want more detail on which percentages to use and goals to shoot for then check out my most popular muscular growth program.
9 Week Strength Program for Functional Fitness
In this portion of our plan you will be doing a lot of heavy lifting, and I do mean a lot! It is split into two parts. Here is part one, and here is part two. You will generally be performing 3 main lifts each session with a WOD on most days to supplement your strength work. The goal of this program is to build strength as quickly as possible and maintain your conditioning.
Here is a sample week.
This program does take quite a while in the gym as the lifting alone is around 45 minutes on heavy days. You’ll notice that the WODs are intentionally kept shorter so you aren’t spending all day in the box.
Now that we have built a base of strength we need to shift gears into maintaining it and building our specific capacity even higher.
If you like fitness plans, nutrition advice, and fitness awesomeness, then click here to join the Tier Three Team. It’s totally free, and thousands are already getting the latest articles sent directly to them.
10 Week Advanced Program for Functional Fitness
This program is what I used last year to prep my athletes for fitness tests, with great success. This program is split into three parts: part one, part two, part three. Here is a sample week.
Here you can see that instead of multiple strength moves we have one strength move, and two WODs more or less. This is important as it will roughly double the amount of conditioning time you have, and really hammer your anaerobic energy system.
This is a lot of work, but for those following along at home you should be well prepared for it by now.
You will also notice that you have the option of adding on the 8 Week Running Plan. This is a great add on for those that need to run as a job requirement, for PT testing, or for those that really like running. Again if you don’t need this specific add on then don’t worry about it.
The 8 Week Bodybuilding Hybrid Cycle for Functional Fitness
This is another popular program and I’ve had great luck with this for athletes that are finishing their competitive season, whether that is the a local comp, or some other competition they are preparing for.
Here is the link to the 8 Week Hybrid Cycle.
Here is a sample week.
This cycle entails a lot of lifting, but it will not be as heavy as some of the strength cycles you have done previously. The goal here is to prepare you for the next training year by increasing your muscular size, which will then allow you to ultimately gain more strength. This leads us into our last program.
The Fitness Competitors Program
This program was written for advanced athletes and by now you most likely have reached that milestone, or are very close to it. It totals 6 months in length, and it is very high volume.
It is split up into 5 parts: part one, part two, part three, part four, part five.
It’s important that you check out the links for this one as there are a lot of downloads including: PDFs, spreadsheets, and calculators. Most of these downloads make it super simple to figure out what you are doing from day to day, but they are a little too much for what is already a pretty long article.
Additional Resources
So far we have strictly covered only the gym portion of this program, but honestly that might be the least important aspect of increasing your fitness, and moving up the fitness ranks.
You will need to learn the basics of nutrition. I recommend you check out the ultimate nutrition guide. It covers the basics very well, and I’m constantly surprised how often my athletes don’t have a solid understanding of this.
Once you’ve read that I recommend downloading the calculator in this article as it will give you the total caloric intake you need and your individual macro break down.
That should adequately cover nutrition which leaves us with this article that covers recovery practices that have been scientifically proven to work. Hint, Hint, that foam roller isn’t as great of a tool as you might think, and neither are ice baths.
Final Thoughts
This might seem like a lot of work, and it is, but that is only because you are looking at it in it’s entirety. Once you start looking day to day, and week to week, it’s really not that much more than you are already doing.
If you have any questions or comments then put them in the comments below where I can answer them quickly. Now get out there and start training!
Don’t forget to check out my other premium programs!
The opinions and information expressed in this article are solely those of the author and are not affiliated with any corporation, group, public or private entity.This web site is not endorsed by, directly affiliated with, maintained, authorized, or sponsored by Crossfit Inc. All product and company names are the registered trademarks of their original owners. The use of any trade name or trademark is for identification and reference purposes only and does not imply any association with the trademark holder of their product brand.
Hey, I see this program is designed for taking athletes from an intermediate level to advanced level. I currently meet the standards for an advanced athlete, would this programming work well for me?
Mark I think for you I would start at the competitors cycle. It’s 6 months in length and will be a little more advanced.
Hey Jake. I’m thinking about starting with the 7 Week Open Prep Program and combine it with the 6 Week Pressing Program.
Which Workouts are the best to combine these two?
Answered on your other comment
Hey Jake. Which workouts are the best to combine the 7 week open prep program and the 6 week pressing program?
I would say do the pressing on workout 8 and workout 10 type of days. If you see an upper body heavy day then put the pressing in that day. It shouldn’t affect the conditioning that way.
Hi Jake,
Thanks for the incredible programming, you are a lifesaver.
Just would like to ask if you have the whole 72 weeks in excel file. If yes, would it be possible send it over to me?
Thanks and keep up the good job,
Radek
Send it my way too if it’s available
Hey man!
Just stumbled across this. I’ve been doing a hybrid high intensity body building program. It’s. 30 day ebook and there’s a second ebook that’s 30 days. I’m new to CrossFit but have Olympic lifted and powerlifted so not new to the gym. After I finish this ebook workout, Do you recommend I start on week 1 day 1 and run it the full 72 weeks ? Or is there a place I should start? I’m trying to get aesthetically in good shape for this summer while being athletic and being able to run and do things I currently struggle with, but I also would love to slowly build strength up as well. Thanks!
Also what days should we put the secondary programs that are paired with the main? Like the pressing for example is done twice a week, how should we pair that with the 7 week open prep
I prefer to pair like movements with like movements. So if there are some shoulder intensive moves in the 7 week program you should do the pressing moves before that on the same day.
Is this yearly program laid out exactly like this? Or is there a specific way to perform the whole year, thanks.
You could rearrange some of the blocks. It doesn’t have to be exactly that way. This is just my suggestion.
What days should we do our cardio during the 10 week advanced program
i wanna start with 6 week grow muscular + 8 week aerobic u have both together how its possible do it in the same day ? or 4 days muscular 2 aerobic… ? im feelling in advanced crossfiter a two step get jump until elite hehehe need a good programa and grow up my strengh..
If you are going to do both I would substitute one wod per week for an aerobic piece. Otherwise you’ll probably have to do two sessions per day for the others.
two sessions for day or its possible do.. perhaps like a 2 hours ++ training.. need to better the stamina, in hight reps.. t2b snatch+ musclu up, anny lots sits ups…
pd: i bought u e book i wanna get in paper 😉
8 Week Running Plan for Crossfitters?????
Not sure what you’re asking Jorge?
hi
Any news about 8 running plan?
Sorry not sure what you’re referring to Akima?
I can’t find the link 8 weeks run ..
thanks
I was wondering which programming would you advise to follow if we aren’t quite to an intermediate standard? Is there another plan to follow or should I scale the movements that I can’t do.
Thanks!
I would start with the 7 Week Open prep program. I did this for my gym, and it’s doable for a wide variety of athletes.
Hi Jake,
I’m really interested in starting this 72 week training cycle, it looks really good! Is there any PDF/excel version of all the different programs? So that you can download it and easy take it to the gym in your phone or print it? It would be much more easy instead of go to the website every time or save each week as a picture.
Thanks
Kris
Hey Kris good question. I haven’t put that all together yet. But it might be something I do in the future.
Hey Jake, just wanted to say thank you for all this free programming. I am finishing up with a two month bodybuilding program and starting to feel like I need to get back into shape. I’ve put on about 15 pounds of muscle but I’m definitely not in the best cardiovascular condition. Going to start at the top of the list with your programs and just work my way down. If I have reviewed them correctly, it seems like the hybrid bodybuilding programs are the only ones that require a purchase to receive the full program? If that is the case, the price seems more than reasonable for what you are offering. My question is this: once purchased will there be limited availability/access? Or will I be able to come back whenever needed to run them over and over again? Would be nice to be able to print all of this out eventually and have it saved somewhere for future reference. Anyways, look forward to slowly working my way through the programs and giving you feedback. Thanks again for all this hard work.
Hi Phillip. Thanks for the kind words and it sounds like you’ve already made some great progress. Once you purchase those you will be emailed the pdf copy of the book. You’ll have it forever. If you ever lose it you can email me and I can resend it as well. Hope that helps.
I’ve recently open a cf box. I’ve followed your 7 week open prep and loved it!! How do I get the 72 week programming?
Marcus there isn’t a single resource yet for the 72 weeks. You have to go to each program linked in the article. Good luck with the new box!
How Do I access gain access to the 72 week program
You have to follow the links to each program.
I am having great success with this program. I’ve lost several inches while hitting new PRs! I have a question as I get to the 5×5 strength portion of the year. I came from a powerlifting background and this it he first “crossfit” program I’ve done. I have done SSL 5×5 before and wasn’t able to continue progressing on that plan when I did it a couple years ago (i maxed out). I ended up switching to GZCL and ultimately 5-3-1.
Should I a) still do 5×5 again even though I just hit new PRs or b) do something like 5-3-1 instead? If you recommend doing 5×5 again, what % of my 1rm should I start at to ensure I don’t burn out in the first couple weeks? Any help is greatly appreciated.
Rich I’m glad the series is working out for you. I would recommend trying the 5×5 for now. As this program has a lot more work than traditional 5×5 only. If it doesn’t work put another comment on here with the specifics and I’ll get you a more detailed answered for that program.
thnaks but how can we download this program
You have to go to the links for each piece of the program. Most of them have PDFs