I love this time of the year. It’s a great time to reflect on your goals, set new goals, and spend time with friends and family. For me, not being a shopper, I enjoy the music of the season and getting ready for the new year. As part of this preparation, at Pat’s Gym we always do the 12 Days of Christmas as the monthly challenge. It’s always a tough challenge, but it really exposes your weaknesses with any movement, muscle group, or exercise.
The format of the 12 Days of Christmas Challenge is always the same. The format makes this workout a grind, so you need to pace yourself. When you start, it may seem easy but be aware it won’t be. Have an idea of where your strengths and weaknesses are before you start so you know where to conserve your energy. For me (and for most people), this won’t get hard until around Round 9. The weight may appear to be aggressive, but I know you can do it. The 120 calories on the bike (the 12th Day of Christmas) is no joke; however, you only have to do it once.
Good luck in performing this challenge. Remember that the top two athletes for men and women, will be filmed at the end of the month, in a face-off-challenge.
Challenge Workout: 12 Days of Christmas
1 – Body Weight Clean and Jerk (females half bodyweight)
2 – 1 1/2 Body Weight Deadlift males, Bodyweight for females
3 – Pull-ups
4 – Box Jumps Males 30”, females 20”
5 – Burpee pull ups
6 – Weighted Walking Lunges (each side) (Men use 30# dumbbells and Females use 20#)
7 – Burpees
8 – KBS (Men use 55# and Females use 35#)
9 – Deck squats
10 – Push Ups
11 – TTH
120 – Calorie bike
This Challenge should be executed just as the ’12 Days of Christmas’ song is sung. Start with one clean and jerk, then do two deadlifts and one clean and jerk, then three Pull ups, two deadlifts and one clean and jerk, four box jumps, three muscle ups, two deadlifts and one clean and jerk, etc. It’s a grind, so let your mind go elsewhere. You should try to do this workout early in the month, then focus on the exercises that are your weaknesses throughout the month, then try it at the end of the month. See how your performance will improve with focus on your weaknesses.
I want to congratulate the November Challenge Winners for the 1000m SkiErg sprint. The November Challenge is always a tough one, but we have two great winners. Katie finished with a time of 3:41.8, and Jake finished with a time of 3:02.9. There is no face-off for this challenge because the numbers on the SkiErg are pretty objective and don’t lie.
