Feb 28, 2010

Tabata Sunday

Yesterday was an unscheduled rest day. Husband's mom is visiting, and my gut it leaky. I keep getting frustrated that it doesn't get better, and when I get frustrated, I eat something non-Paleo. I know, I know -- counterproductive. I'm vowing to do better, for my own good, starting today.

Ran for about a mile as a warmup, and then I did some tabata.

Tabata squats (not bottom-to-bottom, just regular) were awesome today. Score of 130! Here's the breakdown from my last 3:

01/22/10: 17-15-14-12-13-13-14-13 = 111
02/14/10: 17-17-15-16-14-15-13-13 = 120
02/28/10: 17-17-17-17-16-16-15-15 = 130

Yes, I am supposed to be doing this two or three times a week in prep for my cert. Gotta get cracking. :)

Situps: 15-16-13-14-12-12-13-12 =107
Doubleunders: 19-7-3-11-3-5-3-6 = 57

Then, I cried. Seriously. I cried. Damn double unders. At least I was just in my own garage and only husband saw me...

Finally, pushups. Husband did these with me, which helped motivate me.

Pushups: 12-8-4-7-6-7-7-5 = 56

After round 3 I remembered to only try to do 2 at a time, so I didn't go to failure. Then things went better.

Time to shower up -- we're going down to St Augustine to see the light house on this beautiful sunny day. :-D

PS - I need an ab mat

Feb 26, 2010

25's Chipper

WOD:
Complete the following for time:
25 GHD hip extentions
400m run
25 double unders
25 suitcase deadlift left (40lb/25 dumbbell)
150m run
25 suitcase deadlift right (40lb/25 dumbbell)
25 knees to elbows
25 ring dips
25 ball slams 
25 kettle bell sumo deadlift high pull (24k/16)
25 ab mat sit ups
Results:  19:59 -- skinny band for ring dips

I can't say I really put "all out" effort into this one... Honestly, chipper-style WODs with a gazillion exercises kind of annoy me, I would rather focus on 2 or 3 movements.

K2Es weren't that bad -- but I allowed myself to use some momentum to get started so I could get my legs the whole way up. My sumo deadlift highpulls with the KB felt odd -- like I just wasn't doing it right? Had fun with knocking out my double unders nice and quick. :-D

--
Words of wisdom from Lisbeth Darsh of CF Waterton: Listening Ears. Something I am working on, and need to do better with.

Feb 25, 2010

Resting on Thursday

Today is a rest day, and I really need it! Starting yesterday I was having some wicked delayed-onset muscle soreness in my shoulders -- assuming that was from going up and down the rope on Monday.

Today won't be a complete day off, though -- I'm on the hook to clean the house up for a visit from husband's mom this weekend. We're excited, it's her first time visiting since we moved down here a year ago.

--
Great quote today from CrossFit KoP:
"Whatever you think you can do or believe you can do, begin it. Action has magic, grace and power in it." - Goethe
Reminded me of another quote that I absolutely love:
"We should be taught not to wait for inspiration to start a thing. Action always generates inspiration. Inspiration seldom generates action." - Frank Tibolt
--
Yesterday I attempted to roast a spaghetti squash, and even cooked up a big pot of sauce in anticipation of some spaghetti-like goodness.

The spaghetti squash came out on top this time -- even after an hour roasting in the oven, the squash strands ("noodles") were still kinda crunchy. Not exactly what I had in mind, since I am a big fan of overcooked noodles. I'm not really sure if I did it correctly, and I just don't like it, or if I did it incorrectly and that's why it was horrible?

I will be trying the spaghetti squash experiment again, irregardless, because I think for me finding "substitute" foods will go a loooooong way in helping me stay on track and avoid dosing myself with gluten.

--
Yesterday was also completely gluten-free, but I was still sick this morning... I think I'll need to go another few days without gluten before I see healing in my gut.

I'm anxious to return to the world of healthy BM's, because once I do, I'm going to start taking some supplements.

After listening to the first 6 episodes of the Paleolithic Solution Podcast, put out by Robb Wolf and Andy Deas, I've really become convinced that I need to add their 3 recommended supplements:
  • fish oil (7250mg / day)
  • vitamin D
  • magnesium

I've procured some sources for the above, but I don't want to waste my money by taking them while my gut is still irritated, and my body won't be able to absorb them. So, we wait...

--
Some recent online purchases:
--
I have been described as inspiring! Thanks Melli! That is so damn cool! Between this linky love, and my new peep at the gym (Melissa) saying she wants to be like me after rope climb day, I am feeling the freaking love. :-D

And this is an awesome quote about finally mastering the kipping pullup -- "A whole new world of Crossfitting feels like it has opened up to me. It feels like freedom." I know exactly how you feel Catherine!

Feb 24, 2010

Press & metcon, redemption, Be More

We did strength + metcon today. And MaryAnn from the pool / Rec Center came, which is awesome. She is my first recruit to the box! I'll be working with her on my lifeguard training prep class as well as the "real" class. I might also do Water Safety Instructor with her, just to round it all out. Gotta work on finally learning the butterfly for that, though. Anway, back to CrossFit!
strength
press
5-4-3-2-1-1
Results: 65-70-75-80-85-90m


I'm not surprised that I missed on 90, and I'm very happy that I matched my current PR of 85. If we had some 1 or 2 pound weights to add, I'd like to try to find a middle spot between 85 and 90...
metcon
2 rounds for time of:
400m run
30 sit ups
30 push ups

Results:  10:48

Um, yeah... I was happy with my runs, OK with my situps, and freaking annoyed with my pushups. To get them *good*, they are S-L-O-W. Bummer. I was ahead of everyone after the 2nd run, and then got beat by a good 2 minutes. With knee pushups I would've smoked everybody, but that's not going to help me in the long run. I just get tired of having such slow times sometimes... On a day like Monday where we did rope climbs and stuff, it doesn't bother me. But for the simple stuff, like pushups and pullups and ring dips, I just get angry that I'm not stronger and faster...

--
I was talking to my friend and her husband about CrossFit this weekend, and said that women tend to lack confidence when they start CrossFit because they've spent their lives viewing their body as an adversary, and not as a tool that they can use for their benefit. I really liked that idea as soon as I'd said it. It sums up how we hate our bodies despite all the things they make possible for us -- it is just so wrong, on every level...

Then today I read a post by Cindy where she's talking about redemtion, and I loved this paragraph:
I look at CrossFit as a redemptive act as I am slowly undoing all the years of fear, poor habits and self-loathing every time I complete a WOD.
Fear, poor habits and self-loathing. That just completely sums up my body image experience in my life so far... When I think of my 16-year-old self doing 2.5 hours of track practice every day after school, barely eating 500-600 calories for breakfast and lunch, and willing my body to get smaller, smaller, smaller when it was already absolutely tiny at 130 pounds...

Wow. I am so grateful that I've come so far, and have learned so much. I hope as part of my redemption that I can get involved with teenage girls who are in a similar situation, and teach them about nutrition, about athletic bodies, about disordered eating and how to recognize it in yourself and fix it. Think about the kind of athletic success I could've had with some nutritional counseling and someone to talk me through my horrible ideas about how I should fuel my body and how I viewed my body...

I will continue to redeem myself so that maybe I will have the ability to help others in the future.

--
I had to throw in a link to this post/article, though it is awesome enough to merit its own post.
We do not do enough to honor ourselves

We bend over backwards for approval and pats on the head from our bosses, spouses, siblings, parents, coaches, friends, and teachers. We strive with hideous effort to say “look at me look at me! I’m here! I exist and that’s a good thing!”

Often, we have no sense of identity beyond what we are worth to another person. That is not the mindset of a confident, healthy  individual. That is the mindset of a weaker person expecting to be dominated by another. Perhaps even thinking that that is what they deserve.

Feb 23, 2010

Row, row, row

WOD:
3 minute row, all out effort
Rest 3 minutes
2 minute row, all out effort
Rest 2 minutes
1 minute row, all out effort

Track meters rowed in each round,
score is total meters rowed.
Results:  732 + 499 + 261 = 1492

I came in first for all the women, and next-to-last for the guys.

I know I could've done more with my 2 minute row. When I realized I was hardly going to get 500, I was pissed! I don't know what I was thinking! I remember watching my split, which was hovering just above 2:00, and thinking, "that's good". But it wasn't! I should've been able to get over 500 in 2 minutes.

During the first round, I think I rowed my fastest 500 ever for me, I really smoked it. During the 3rd minute my pace started going up near 2:10, which kinda sucked. Need to keep that shit consistently down around 2:00.

I know I really went "all out" on the last round, the 1 minute. I think it's because mentally I knew it would fly by, and I really wanted to do better than I did in round 2.

Did 15 double unders in a row after the WOD, as part of the DU practice we did as a cool down. Woot! Also did a set of 10 and a set of 9. Getting there, slowly but surely. :)

Feb 22, 2010

Bridge Run, rest day and rope climbs

It has been a busy weekend and Monday!

Saturday I was up bright and early to run across a big-ass bridge, and it was really fun! The weather finally did what it's supposed to at this southern latitude, and we had a really beautiful, sunny and warm morning. Unfortunately I was dressed for the weather we've been getting for the last 2 months, so I was way too hot. Oh well. I still had a *great* race.

Little known fact about me -- I love running up hill. Don't know why, but I do. Probably because I'm really good at it. Or because I'm from Pennsylvania, and hills are how we roll. But either way, this run was made for me. The part I didn't like? The downhill. Just put tons of stress on my ankles -- I have no idea how to POSE downhill. Time for some additional studying. Oh yeah, and I wore my flat shoes for the first time on a long run. :)

Official chip time:  27:10, which is a pace of 8:46, and placed me 8th out of 25 in my age group

Woot!


--
Sunday was a much-needed rest day. Oddly my legs had been sore all week, but on Sunday they felt awesome. Maybe they were just really anxious for the race. :-p

--
This morning's WOD made me very nervous when I read it last night... Which means you know it's gonna be a battle in the gym...
WOD
5 rounds for time:
9 hang squat cleans (155/95)
3 ascents, legless rope climb
Results:  41:10; 85# cleans, standard rope climbs

A leg-less ascent of the rope might be in my future, but it is not in the realm of possibility right now. While I may have the physical strength necessary, I'm too damn scared to even try it! Climbing the rope with hands and feet together literally makes my heart race. And it's not just from the exertion -- it's like this anxious fear thing and I get all shaky.

The great outcome of doing this WOD is that with each climb, that fear response lessened. After a climb in round 3 or 4 or 5, I would feel my heart beating fast, but it was from the exertion. I wasn't so afraid that I was completely jacked up. I guess the easiest explanation is that I overcame fear by doing the thing that I feared. How freaking powerful is that experience? For me, hugely powerful.

I allowed myself a lot of mental prep time and rest time in this WOD because of fear of falling off the rope - hence the 40 minute finish. But now I know for sure what I'm physically capable of, so I will push myself harder next time to just jump on there and GO, no stopping to think and prep.

I'm glad I downgraded the hang squat cleans because I barely had enough grip left in my forearms to do 85#, I'm not sure how 95# would've panned out. And also, heavy hang cleans wasn't where I was focused today. It was all about climbing the rope.

--
I found Leah VanHoose's "Why I CrossFit" through a random link on Twitter posted by crossfitnews, and then saw that she's a finalist for Survivor. If she makes it on the show, I might watch it for the first time! Ah, the power of the CrossFit community. :)

Here's here video. To vote for her, go here.

Feb 19, 2010

Food choices, guilt and punishment

There are many "voices" in my online life who are constantly reminding me to live with a spirit of acceptance about the present state of things, to not "beat myself up" over choices but to accept and move on, to live mindfully. They state those ideas much more eloquently that I can, but that's my best attempt at summary. (Thanks to Steph, Cindy, Mark and Margarita for their positive influence.)


Where I struggle most is in the area of food, and food choices.

I want to embrace the idea that I can make choosing and eating food a positive experience, and I'm inspired by things that Cindy and Mark wrote recently.

But it's very hard for me.

I'm not sure what exactly set off this most recent bout of self-sabatoge in the area of food... Maybe it was something to do with completing the 1/2 marathon, and feeling like I had "arrived" at some mythical place where I could just put whatever into my mouth and it would all be good? Or was it the Paleo Challenge that we are doing at our box? Sometimes it seems like the moment I "have" to do something, it becomes a chore to make the right choice, regardless of whether or not I was making the right choice previously.

So yeah, the food I've been consuming in the last few weeks hasn't always been the best choice. And I am trying not to beat myself up for it, or punish myself for making less than optimal choices...

What makes it so hard is that my body itself seems to dole out it's own brand of punishment, even if I can refrain from negative and guilt-ridden thoughts. Lately it seems that even the tiniest of mis-steps on a given day results in catastrophic gut and digestive issues. I'm relieved that I don't have any (noticeable) stomach pain, but that final step in digestion is not at all pleasant (and obviously signals that there are bad things going on in my intestines).

This is depressing, because I thought that I had finally ended my history of crappy (hah!) digestive issues after my first few weeks of eating Paleo. Now I feel like I will never have a healthy gut, and I'm just very overwhelmed and defeated by it all.

I wish I could live the 80/20 lifestyle, and be healthy and happy when 80 percent of my choices are good, but it seems like I have to be completely perfect. And if I'm not perfect, my intestinal tract will dole out punishment...

And that brings me back to the "have to" = rebellion idea. Because I will get sick, I have to eat strict Paleo all the time, and therefore I don't want to. But this doesn't make sense, because it was improvement in the area of digestive upset that helped me stay true to Paleo when I first started...

Maybe there is something more complex going on here, it needs more thought on my part, and more writing. Especially since I'm not even sure I made a point with this post; it was just important to me to write about this issue so I can start working through it...

Lots of links, Friday's WOD, Saturday preview

I'll start with the links today. :)

This "burpee tag" warmup looks so fun! If we didn't have so much equipment blocking the edges of our area of mats, I would totally do this for a warmup. Maybe if we go to the track one of these day for sprints, this would be a good warmup to do on the football field.




20 tips for improving your squat, shared by CrossFit East Sacramento, originally from the "Squat Clinic" article of the CrossFit Journal.

I finally gave in and signed up for Twitter -- I'm ceewiss, since cwiss was already taken. I only did it because one of my friends won't sign up for Facebook and we are having a heck of a time staying in touch. Guess she won that standoff. :-p

Yesterday I cooked up some yummy veggies and beef in my CrockPot -- I posted about it on the CrossFit Camden Paleo Challenge blog. :)

--
Today's scheduled WOD was "JT" -- handstand pushups, ring dips, pushups. With my (still) tweaky shoulder, I knew that was not a good idea. So I made up the workout from the 17th, with some modifications.
WOD:
20 cal row
20 wall ball shots (20lbs/14)
20 clapping push ups hip extensions
20 knees to elbows GHD situps
20 double unders
20 star jumps
20 pull ups
20 lunge steps (each leg)
20 slam balls
Results:  13:27

The only shoulder exercises I left in were wall balls, pullups and slam balls. I did a test K2E during my warmup, and it did not feel good, so those were out. The pushups I took out just to be on the safe side. I want to rest this as much as possible so I can get back to improving my skills for the cert in March.

I was feeling a little bit scared and wussy on the pullups -- those took me probably close to 1/2 my time. The double unders I did in 2 sets -- 9 and 11. That felt awesome. :)

--
Tomorrow is gonna be interesting -- I'm running a 5K that is completely on a bridge. With a 6% grade. ZOMG. It's the Sidney Lanier Bridge, which goes over the Brunswick River and essentially connects Jekyll Island to the rest of the Golden Isles / Brunswick, GA. This bridge is super-pretty, and I love driving across it. It should be painful fun to run across -- and then back again.

 

 

Feb 18, 2010

Feeling run-down

Ever since the 1/2 marathon, things have just not been right with my body... My diet has been off since then, maybe that is the real culprit for the muscle soreness that I am experiencing the last 2-3 days... Why would I be sore today, when I had a rest day yesterday? Frustrating...

I need to write a post about what I've been experiencing with my eating lately. When I start sabotaging myself, those actions deserve some additional inspection...

That said, I felt like crap, but got out and got my WOD on with my peeps. Got to work out with 2 great chicks this AM, Allie and Melissa. Melissa is new, but she is gonna see some fast progress. Her form is strict and movement is excellent -- I predict massive PRs every time she does the Oly lifts.

We did back squat today: 3-3-3-3-3

I did 100-115-120-120-130.

I whined a lil' and said it felt heavy, but nah. It was totally do-able.

Then we did a metcon, which I was so excited about since last night when I read the WOD on the website.
10 minutes total, continuosly running clock
Alternate between movements, 1 minute each
Score is total reps
 - kettlebell swings (24k/16)
 - burpees
 We only have 3 16k kettlebells, so I did burpees first and then kb swings -- Allie and I shared a bell.

Total reps: 152
Burpees: 19-17-10-9-9
Swings: 19-17-16-16-20

Not as good as I thought I could do... But I'm happy I came out so strong on my burpees, though they went to shit at the end. For the last 2 rounds I was in the middle of my 10th burpee when time was called.

Swings were weak. I think it was my whiny attitude that did me in. I got aggressive and confident on the last minute, and banged out 20. All my scores should have been at least 18.

Feb 16, 2010

Chilly Tuesday morning, fitness education update

I was feeling stiff and sore when I woke up, but husband is off work early this afternoon, so I needed to get a WOD in for my 3rd day. Did this WOD at the 0830 with two of my fav CF peeps -- Allie and Paul, so that made it better. :)
WOD:
3 rounds for time:
400m run
20 power snatch (70/50)
15 ring dips

Results:  22:?? -- can't remember my exact time
Didn't have as much intensity today as I did yesterday -- I think I used it all up on Fran. :) However, I do think my runs were decent. I still need to hit up the track for some legit 400m sprints. Note to self -- go on a day it's not super-windy and 30 degrees. :)

Rings dips were frustrating... I couldn't even do 5 in-a-row to start like I usually can... But my shoulder is a bit tweaked from the 10 minutes of HSPU the other day, so that might be affecting me. On Sunday I tried to do tabata pushups after my tabata squats, and just collapsed after 2 rounds. Seems like it's a tiny bit of tendonitis. Time to go heavy on the ibuprofen, and lay off the shoulder exercises for the rest of the week. Thrusters and pulups last night didn't feel bad, but they probably didn't help...

Snatches felt solid. I'd like to try some heavy snatches and snatch balances soon -- I haven't ever done those, so I'd just like to get a feel for them.

--
Blogger totally lost my update I just typed up... Argh! Here's a quicker and shorter version.

Since I'm already helping to coach at CF Camden, and I'm scheduled to get my CF Level I Trainer certification in March (1 month to go, woot!), I decided that I need to get moving fully in the direction of learning to be the best trainer that I can.

As of yesterday, I am officially enrolled in 3 certification classes through ISSA (International Sports Sciences Association).
  1. Personal Trainer Certification
  2. Fitness / Exercise Therapist Certification
  3. Senior Fitness Certification
I'm really, really lucky because as a military spouse I have access to a tuition reimbursement program for training in portable career fields, which includes fitness careers. That's what is making it possible for me to take these classes, and I am so grateful that I have the time to devote to completing them right now. 

In addition to taking those courses, I'm also signed up for a Lifeguard Training course at our local rec center. That will include training in first aid, CPR and AED. I think it will just help me be a more well-rounded coach, and also give me confidence that I can deal with any health/safety issues that might arise. I'd also like to look into teaching a water aerobics course on base, since that is something they don't have right now. And hopefully I can make some money lifeguarding if I can't find any paying gigs for training. :)

The next year is looking super-bright, I'm so excited to be learning and trying so many new things. :)

--
Great "what is CrossFit" summary to give your friends and family, from CrossFit Coastal, whose box I would love to visit someday, so I can meet TStorm, a fellow badass military spouse. :-D

Feb 15, 2010

Fran

"Fran"
21-15-9
thrusters (95/65)
pullups

The build-up to this workout was crazy -- I laid in bed last night obsessing about the last time I could remember doing thrusters, which was at CF KoP over Christmas vacation. I distinctly remembered that I could only do 5 at a time, which I verified by checking out the blog post for that WOD just now.

When I was warming up, the 65# bar felt soooooo heavy... I was totally psyching myself out... But then I pumped out 11 thrusters in a row on my first set. Hollah!! I think I'm more impressed by how much better my thrusters are than by the fact that I can do unassisted pullups now. Seriously, those things are a *bitch*, and I really expected to only be able to do 5 at a time.

I feel like my Oly lifts haven't been "there" the last couple weeks, so I'm happy to see very direct evidence that I'm still getting stronger.

Pullups... well, they were kind of what I expected. I did 5 in a row during the first round of 21, and that was the max I could string together. I think I did a set of 3 later on in the WOD, but I'm not sure which round. I got most of them as singles, and a lot of them were "ugly kips" -- my name for kips where I don't get up to the bar, and I have to muscle up the last few inches. Getting more pullups in a row is going to be the key to getting a faster time on this WOD.

And now, the moment you've been waiting for -- my score!

10:59

My goal was 10 minutes or under, but I'm still happy with my time. Now that I've done Fran once, I won't be so intimidated by it next time I attempt it. I will kick her ass and get a time under 10!

--
Side note -- why did I *not* have Fran in the list as one of the benchmark WODs in my 1Q2010 goals? I included most of the WODs that have pullups in them, but skipped over Fran for some reason. Weird. Maybe I was just that intimidated by it... In any case, I am officially adding that WOD to the list, and crossing it off! Woot!

Feb 14, 2010

Living room workout

Today I went back to my vacation standby, "Annie", to get my workout in. Plus I have been wanting to do that WOD ever since I had my double under breakthrough.
"Annie"
50-40-30-20-10
double unders
situps
Results:  15:10

Holy PR batman! What a relief to finally be able to do double unders and not suck at this WOD. I'm excited. :-D

I do have to say I got stuck at 40 on my first set. It was ridiculous. I missed like 10 attempts. But later in the WOD I did 10 in a row, and at one point I did more than 10 consecutively, though I'm not sure exactly how many it was, maybe 12 or 13.

So I have officially completed that item from my 1Q 2010 goals! Woot! :-D

--
After "Annie" I walked the dog, then did tabata squats. I did slightly better than I did last time.

01/22/10: 17-15-14-12-13-13-14-13 -- 111
02/14/10: 17-17-15-16-14-15-13-13 -- 120

As a prep for my L1 cert, I'm going to start doing tabata squats at least weekly. And I think I might switch to doing them bottom-to-bottom. The one thing everybody says about the certification seminar is how long you have to hold in the bottom of your squat. So I might as well practice that ahead of time.

--
Some links.

Steph's testimonial on the CF KoP site.

Why almond flour? from Elena's Pantry.
This article has some great facts about the benefits of eating almonds, as well as helpful tips about baking with almond flour. For example, did you know that an almond is actually the seed of a fruit, and not a nut at all?

Feb 12, 2010

18 minutes

Interesting WOD today, I liked the format. Would be interesting to change up the intervals and the movements.
For total reps:
10 min of handstand push ups
5 min of squats
2 min of pull ups
1 min of push ups
Results: 200 (HSPU - 43, squats - 128, pullups - 10, pushups - 19)

Did the HSPU in the harness on the pullup bar. Wasn't really aiming for a certain number, so I guess 43 was good. Sometimes I feel strong with them, and sometimes I feel shaky. I need to nail down exactly how I should be positioning my hands, head, core/back and legs.

Squats were decent.

I was very pissed about my number of pullups... 10??? WTF? I'm glad I can do them without a band now, but I still have a long way to go...

After feeling so frustrated over pullups, I think that affected my number of pushups. I didn't even do 10 unbroken, which is lame.

Time to shower and hit the road. I'm off to visit my sis this weekend. Hopefully gonna hit up Ultimate CF or maybe try out CrossFit Charlotte, depending on how crappy the weather gets Saturday and Sunday.

Feb 11, 2010

Thursday with Allie

I coached the 0830 class this morning, but it was just my friend Allie and I, so we did the WOD together. Very nice surprise for a day when I was having a hard time getting motivated. :)

We did two shorter WODs today.
#1 -- 5 rounds for time of:
5 deadlifts (275lbs/165)
10 burpees

rest ~4 min...

#2 -- 2 rounds for time of:
400m run
40 kb swings (24k/16)
#1 -- 12:13, with 145

Deadlifts are probably my weakest lift at the moment, and 165 is only 20 off of my 1RM, so I decided to scale down and try to work on form and get more comfortable with the movement. I only had one attempt where I really started to roll my back, and I immediately dropped the bar when I felt it -- I had barely reached my knee. Burpees I did a lot slower than I am capable of, but I was pleasantly surprised at how easy the pushups felt. That used to be the part of the burpee that would kill me. Now it's my legs (quads) that get fatigued and slow me down. It's nice to feel like I'm improving. On the pushups I really focused on chest-to-ground to make sure I wasn't sagging like I did Tuesday.

#2 -- 10:18 Rx

First 400m -- the watch said 2:11 when I came in. I really need to hit the track and time some 400's to see how slow I really am... This was my first running WOD with my flat shoes, and I felt pretty good. I wear them all the time now to get my feet used to them -- now I just need to find a POSE coach.

I rested waaaay too much in this WOD. First set of swings was 30+10. Second set was 20+10+10. My arms got super tired for some reason. As usual I just freaking hate how the handle feels -- my pinkies don't fit, and then I don't know what the hell to do with them.

Feb 9, 2010

Lifting heavy things over my head

Hit up 0830am class this morning because I have a massage at 3pm. Finally using my "spa day" gift certificate my husband got me for my birthday. He rocks. :)

strength
press 3-3-3  --  65-75-75
push press 3-3-3  --  85-90-95
push jerk 3-3-3  --  95-100-105(2x, failed on 3)
metcon
AMRAP in 6 min of:
3 clean & jerks (135lbs/85)
9 push ups
Results:  5 rounds, 3 C&Js

My cleans felt sloppy, though I don't know why? Maybe it's just my posterior chain still being freaking wrecked by the damn 1/2 marathon. Still just not feeling "right".

Though it could be all the crap food I "treated" myself to as a reward for running 13 miles. Dumbass move on my part.

Pushups were all on toes, though I got some good feedback from Mandy afterwards that I was sagging. I know I feel my hips touch the groun first at times, but I didn't realize it was that bad... I need to video some pushups to get a visual. And also I need to get stricter with myself. Now that I'm past doing them on my knees, time to tighten up on form while on toes. Especially since I want to do a competition some time this year -- I don't want reps thrown out for crappy form.

Speaking of which -- note to self to follow posts at CrossFit Garage, because they hold quarterly competitions. Also watch the affiliate page on the main site...

Feb 8, 2010

Heavy on the arms for my first day back, 1/2 marathon race recap

Need to get caught up since I haven't posted since last Wednesday.

Thursday - rest day (really should've done something, but I was scared about the race!)
Friday - rest day
Saturday - Critz Tybee Run 1/2 Marathon in the morning, then treated myself to some Chik-Fil-A, went to see Sherlock Holmes and had a lovely fancy dinner with my husband. :)

I'm happy to report that I not only survived the 1/2 marathon, but also met my goal of finishing under 2 hours and 30 minutes.

My official chip time was 2:20:00. So fun that it was a totally even number. :)

That works out to an average per mile pace of 10:41, but I definitely wasn't going that slow the entire race. I wasn't wearing a watch, but my guess is that I did most of the miles between 9 and 10 minutes per mile, and then the last 3 were suuuuuper slow, like 11 or even 12 minutes per mile.

A friend told me beforehand that the first 10 miles would be no problem, but the last three would be brutal. She was totally right. I think during mile 11 I realized I was slowing down, and I tried to kick it up a notch, and just didn't have anything left in my legs. By the start of mile 13 I was barely hanging on. It was only by sheer force of will that I kept running the last mile. When I finally stopped, my legs were numb and I almost fell over. Holy shit. What an experience.

The pain in my legs after the day of the race was pretty bad. My shins were aching just below and outside my knees - I guess that maybe that was tendonitis? My hamstrings were freaking *shot*, and calves were sore too. Walking was not pretty, and I had to hang onto my husband to go up and down the stairs.

Oddly, my quads didn't hurt one bit. WTF??

The strangest thing about the post-race experience was how my arms weren't tired at all. It was just freaky odd. There have only been a few times that I've experienced leg muscle fatigue approaching what I felt after finishing the 1/2 -- that was after each of my 2 sprint triathlons and after a few select CrossFit WODs (Eva comes to mind). Those two situations led to more of a full-body fatigue, instead of such a completely leg-isolated fatigue. It felt a lot more "normal" to be tired all over, instead of just having busted legs...

Sunday - Turned tourist and climbed the Tybee Island lighthouse and walked around Fort Pulaski. Treated myself to one last stromboli from our fav pizza joint before the Paleo Challenge starts.

I was very happy that only the hamstring pain was still there on Sunday, and not the knee/shin ache -- I don't like even a hint of knee issues. A bit of soreness developed in my inner thigh -- I was expecting that, since shorter runs usually leave me sore there. I was worried about making it up the steps of the lighthouse (there are 178, I think), but I made it just fine. :)

Monday

Today is the second day after the race, and I'm still hurting pretty bad in my hamstrings. Hence why I chose to makeup an arm-centric WOD my home box did last Friday.
21-15-9 for time of:
Handstand push ups
Ring dips
Knees to elbows GHD situps
Push ups
Pull ups
Results:  48:10

I'm still healing up a palm rip from last Tuesday, and I was feeling wussy to boot, so I substituted GHD situps for the K2Es. Used the skinny band on my ring dips. Used the harness for HSPUs - green + blue with a loop.

Holy cow was this WOD a grind fest...OMG... I could barely get my pullups. They took forever. The best I did was 3 in a row to start off the first set. After that I only strung two together a couple times, most were singles. Even the pushups were a struggle.

Some of the time was taken up by me putting gauze and tape over my palm just before doing my pushups on the first round, but my time still really sucked.

HSPUs felt very strong, though. My shoulders are getting so much stronger in different ranges of motion, I love it. I need to take the loop out of the blue band and/or downgrade to white soon. Need to keep working on static handstands as well.

I'm glad I did something today, but boy was it a mental struggle. I've been on the couch the rest of the day. Oh the joys of quasi-unemployment. :)

Feb 3, 2010

Quiet Wednesday AM in the box

Usually Wednesday mornings are crazy since we don't have any classes in the evening, but things were really quiet today.

I need to get to the salon for a pedicure (getting ready for my anniversary weekend!), so here's a quick recap of what I did today.

Strength:
front squat
20-1-15-1-10-1
65-115-65-120-70-125

Metcon:
21-15-9
double unders
med ball cleans (20/14)
ab mat situps
Results: 7:17
--
Highlight for today -- I did 6 or 7 double unders in a row. Maybe I finally watched enough videos? Maybe it was practicing in my parents' basement between the rafters? Whatever it was, THANK GOD I can do double unders now.  Currently my goal is to do 10 in a row -- I may need to update that if I continue to rock the consecutive double unders...

Now we wait in suspense to find out what my next frustrating movement will be... Knees to elbows is certainly still on that list. Maybe wall balls...

Feb 2, 2010

100 kipping pullups!

Subbed out the muscle-ups in this WOD with 4x pullups and ring dips. Tough, but do-able. I am blown away that I can say that about a workout like this!

WOD:
"DJ" - in honor of one of our departing members
5 rounds:
5 muscle-ups
25 wall balls
Results:  47:03 -- sub x4 pullups and ring dips w/ floss

Time on this sucked, I think I could've dialed it in. But it's hard to get that intensity up when muscle failure forces you to stop and rest... I think for the rest of 1st quarter I'm just going to focus on strength. Then when April hits, after the cert, it will be time to work on that intensity, and getting myself mentally strong.

It is shit that I can't do 25 consecutive 14# wall balls; and shit that I can barely do 10 consecutive. I need to be doing those either during warm up, or in cool down, at least once a week. They are a big weakness of mine, and shouldn't be -- I have the strength. It's just getting comfortable with performing the movement.

My pullups were freaking awesome. I managed to get several with chest-to-bar during rounds 1, 2 and 3. Rounds 4 and 5 were more of "just get one at a time, then rest". Left hand ripped a little bit in round 4, right hand ripped in round 5, but also wasn't bad. Near the end I couldn't get the kip that high, and was still able to muscle up that last few inches.

Ring dips -- I thought I'd have to upgrade to the white band in the later rounds, but I didn't. I need to try some jumping dips or negatives to help learn to control the rings and keep them close to the body. I think my strength is there for doing an unassisted ring dip if I can do 100 with the floss.

All in all, I loved this WOD. The ones that make me nervous beforehand are always the ones that I'm happiest to finish. I feel like I learn about myself from a workout that scares me.