This will be my last post from this blog -- I'm moving everything to a new URL.
For a while now I've been wondering if I should've put the word "crossfit" in my blog URL. There have been some Facebook profiles deleted recently due to their use of the word "crossfit" and I've also heard of a company having to give away shirts that had the word "crossfit" on them.
Since I just created a website to basically be my online resume as a coach/trainer, it seems like a good time to switch to a new, non-crossfit-containing URL, just to be on the safe side. :)
Hope you will come and visit me in my new space: http://ceewiss.blogspot.com
And here's my "resume" site, still VERY much a work in progress: http://coachwiss.com
Sep 29, 2011
Sep 19, 2011
Squat cleans
Got to practice squat cleans in a WOD this morning.
5 rounds:
5 squat cleans (185/135)
100m sprint
10 AbMat butterfly situps
Results: 11:03 @ 95
I had a hope of using 115 in this WOD, thinking that maybe my squat clean capacity would be higher since my power clean PR went up by 10#. However, I quickly realized that until I do a ton of heavy front squat training, I won't squat cleaning more than 95 or 100 in a WOD. Stripped weight from 115 to 95 after my first 2 reps, boo.
Also had my first experience with blocking my airway with the bar on a squat clean. Woo, that was crazy! I think it's because I was using a men's bar -- that little bit of extra thickness probably threw off that delicate balance of keeping the bar on my shoulders without chocking myself.
Many of the clean felt like the flew up off the ground, and then the trouble was standing up with the bar. Again, the answer to this is heavy front squats. They are in my post-marathon strength training plan for sure.
5 rounds:
5 squat cleans (185/135)
100m sprint
10 AbMat butterfly situps
Results: 11:03 @ 95
I had a hope of using 115 in this WOD, thinking that maybe my squat clean capacity would be higher since my power clean PR went up by 10#. However, I quickly realized that until I do a ton of heavy front squat training, I won't squat cleaning more than 95 or 100 in a WOD. Stripped weight from 115 to 95 after my first 2 reps, boo.
Also had my first experience with blocking my airway with the bar on a squat clean. Woo, that was crazy! I think it's because I was using a men's bar -- that little bit of extra thickness probably threw off that delicate balance of keeping the bar on my shoulders without chocking myself.
Many of the clean felt like the flew up off the ground, and then the trouble was standing up with the bar. Again, the answer to this is heavy front squats. They are in my post-marathon strength training plan for sure.
Sep 18, 2011
Sunday @ Audie Murphy
Went to the CF gym on base with husband today to get a Sunday afternoon workout in.
I made up a WOD that I missed last week.
Deadlift
2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2
Rest 60 seconds between sets.
Results:
115-125-130-135-140-145-150-155-160-165
Not exactly earth-shattering numbers, but I think those loads were appropriate as I'm working on dialing in new form on this lift. The true test of how well I did will be what hurts tomorrow when I wake up. If my hamstrings and glutes are as sore as my back, victory, and I can continue to get heavier. If not, then I go back to lots of reps at a lower weight and take the load up slowly.
I had a couple minutes after finishing before the gym closed, so I did 5 cycles through the bear complex with 55#: power clean, front squat, push press, back squat, push press. Love that one. :)
I made up a WOD that I missed last week.
Deadlift
2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2
Rest 60 seconds between sets.
Results:
115-125-130-135-140-145-150-155-160-165
Not exactly earth-shattering numbers, but I think those loads were appropriate as I'm working on dialing in new form on this lift. The true test of how well I did will be what hurts tomorrow when I wake up. If my hamstrings and glutes are as sore as my back, victory, and I can continue to get heavier. If not, then I go back to lots of reps at a lower weight and take the load up slowly.
I had a couple minutes after finishing before the gym closed, so I did 5 cycles through the bear complex with 55#: power clean, front squat, push press, back squat, push press. Love that one. :)
Sep 17, 2011
Kitchen WOD
Modified the good old standard at home WOD today.
50-40-30-20-10 lunges (total)
25-20-15-10-5 pushups
50-40-30-20-10 butterfly AbMat situps
25-20-15-10-5 PVC OHS
Took me roughly 30 minutes. Experimented with some "hollow" position stuff on all my movements. Had a bit of an interesting feeling in my triceps during round of 15 of pushups that I think was promising. Also trying something different with my squats, to hopefully feed into a stronger bottom position in my snatch and C&J. Due to my "special" alignment issues, I think I need to take the "butt thrust" completely out of my squat, and keep my pelvis pointed straight up during the entire movement. Obviously this won't be good with a low bar back squat, but I don't intent on doing any of those for quite some time. All high bar for me for the forseeable future, Greg Everett says so, and I believe him.
50-40-30-20-10 lunges (total)
25-20-15-10-5 pushups
50-40-30-20-10 butterfly AbMat situps
25-20-15-10-5 PVC OHS
Took me roughly 30 minutes. Experimented with some "hollow" position stuff on all my movements. Had a bit of an interesting feeling in my triceps during round of 15 of pushups that I think was promising. Also trying something different with my squats, to hopefully feed into a stronger bottom position in my snatch and C&J. Due to my "special" alignment issues, I think I need to take the "butt thrust" completely out of my squat, and keep my pelvis pointed straight up during the entire movement. Obviously this won't be good with a low bar back squat, but I don't intent on doing any of those for quite some time. All high bar for me for the forseeable future, Greg Everett says so, and I believe him.
Sep 15, 2011
5th Element and Primal Challenge
First off, yesterday I published my first solo blog post for my new blog, 5th Element Fitness. OMG it made me soooo nervous!
You'd think that after ~4 years of blogging, in one place or another, that one more post wouldn't be a big deal. But this is the first time I've blogged without a psuedonym and also declared the type of stuff I'll write about. I switched over to using my real name on this blog several months ago to help me get over the anonymity hurdle. But the stress of feeling like I need to have something truly interesting and well-written before hitting "publish" is still getting to me. I almost jumped out of my chair as I clicked "Publish Post".
Check it out if you are so inclined. :)
Curiosity.
--
Also, Kelsalynn and I are attempting the 30 Day Primal Challenge via Mark's Daily Apple over the next few weeks.
In the interest of full disclosure, my current nutrition status is best described as "free for all". There was a short-lived revival of my Paleo/primal habits from Dec 2010 to Jan 2011 in order to fit into my shorts for my vacation to St. Thomas. That petered out once I returned home from my trip.
And it goes a bit deeper than just eating poorly... This past spring I began seeing a counselor because my on-off issue with binge eating (since adolescence, really) had gone completely out of control. You know the saying -- once something starts affecting your ability to live your life, it's time to get help.
My counselor suggested that I read a book -- Intuitive Eating. The book outlines a step-by-step process to follow to help retrain your behavior from unhealthy restricting or bingeing, to an intuitive way of eating. One of the concepts in the book is that placing any concept of good/bad or restriction on food is detrimental to developing a healthier relationship with food.
This concept made a lot of sense to me, and it gave me a lot to think about as I tried to implement it for myself. But since I never really went on to the next steps of the program (counseling took a bit of a different angle at my request, not my counselor being lax!), I find that I'm stuck in this mindset of "eating junk is OK, if I restrict myself it will be bad".
But I'm left weighing a lot of things in my head...
I don't want to try to start some kind of strict challenge, because I KNOW that is very likely to trigger bingeing behavior, and I do not want to cause that to happen. Things are 100% better than when I started counseling, and I do not want to have a huge setback...
However, I also am not happy with the weight that I've put on while eating "freely", which makes it really hard for me to resist the temptation to start "forcing" myself to eat Paleo again. I know that it works, and that I'd definitely lose this extra bit of weight if I started eating that way again. But even if I get the 8-10 pounds off that I am carrying, will it really be worth it in the long run if things start getting out of control again? Again and again I keep telling myself "no, not worth it".
So, back to the challenge. For me this challenge is not necessarily going to be about eliminating anything from my diet, or stopping anything, or having a list of "bad" foods that I won't eat.
It's going to be about a commitment to learn more about the practicalities of eating the way that makes me feel, perform and look great.
Of course I feel overwhelmed when I start removing foods, because as an inexperienced cook I start to feel like there's nothing I can eat. And the only way to remove those feelings of "there's no food!!" panic (which lead to bingees) is to learn to procure and prepare food that I love eating and this is healthy.
I guess the good thing is that because I never learned to cook many dishes, it's not like I'm starting over. I'm just starting fresh. Except for lasagna, I make a freaking killer lasagna. :)
--
This week I've done a few things to support my goal of learning and practicing how to feed myself great tasting and healthy foods.
- I stocked up on a bunch of healthy fruits and veggies that I enjoy snacking on -- strawberries, carrots, cucumbers, cauliflower.
- I bought jicama from the grocery store; Mel always mentions these, so I felt I should try it, just for shits and giggles. I haven't attempted to do anything with it yet...
- I made a batch of meat sauce with grass-fed beef; sauce is a staple for me, especially since I use it to cook up my famous stuffed peppers (need to make those soon). I also got a big spaghetti squash which will be good for 2 or 3 meals.
- I took fish oil today for the first time. 2 capsules and no weird burps yet, so I think I'll up to 3 tomorrow and see what happens. :)
Still more to do, but this is a start. My next priority is to get some more MEAT into my house. Learning to cook tasty protein sources is probably the number 1 way I could help myself eat healthier.
You'd think that after ~4 years of blogging, in one place or another, that one more post wouldn't be a big deal. But this is the first time I've blogged without a psuedonym and also declared the type of stuff I'll write about. I switched over to using my real name on this blog several months ago to help me get over the anonymity hurdle. But the stress of feeling like I need to have something truly interesting and well-written before hitting "publish" is still getting to me. I almost jumped out of my chair as I clicked "Publish Post".
Check it out if you are so inclined. :)
Curiosity.
--
Also, Kelsalynn and I are attempting the 30 Day Primal Challenge via Mark's Daily Apple over the next few weeks.
In the interest of full disclosure, my current nutrition status is best described as "free for all". There was a short-lived revival of my Paleo/primal habits from Dec 2010 to Jan 2011 in order to fit into my shorts for my vacation to St. Thomas. That petered out once I returned home from my trip.
And it goes a bit deeper than just eating poorly... This past spring I began seeing a counselor because my on-off issue with binge eating (since adolescence, really) had gone completely out of control. You know the saying -- once something starts affecting your ability to live your life, it's time to get help.
My counselor suggested that I read a book -- Intuitive Eating. The book outlines a step-by-step process to follow to help retrain your behavior from unhealthy restricting or bingeing, to an intuitive way of eating. One of the concepts in the book is that placing any concept of good/bad or restriction on food is detrimental to developing a healthier relationship with food.
This concept made a lot of sense to me, and it gave me a lot to think about as I tried to implement it for myself. But since I never really went on to the next steps of the program (counseling took a bit of a different angle at my request, not my counselor being lax!), I find that I'm stuck in this mindset of "eating junk is OK, if I restrict myself it will be bad".
But I'm left weighing a lot of things in my head...
I don't want to try to start some kind of strict challenge, because I KNOW that is very likely to trigger bingeing behavior, and I do not want to cause that to happen. Things are 100% better than when I started counseling, and I do not want to have a huge setback...
However, I also am not happy with the weight that I've put on while eating "freely", which makes it really hard for me to resist the temptation to start "forcing" myself to eat Paleo again. I know that it works, and that I'd definitely lose this extra bit of weight if I started eating that way again. But even if I get the 8-10 pounds off that I am carrying, will it really be worth it in the long run if things start getting out of control again? Again and again I keep telling myself "no, not worth it".
So, back to the challenge. For me this challenge is not necessarily going to be about eliminating anything from my diet, or stopping anything, or having a list of "bad" foods that I won't eat.
It's going to be about a commitment to learn more about the practicalities of eating the way that makes me feel, perform and look great.
Of course I feel overwhelmed when I start removing foods, because as an inexperienced cook I start to feel like there's nothing I can eat. And the only way to remove those feelings of "there's no food!!" panic (which lead to bingees) is to learn to procure and prepare food that I love eating and this is healthy.
I guess the good thing is that because I never learned to cook many dishes, it's not like I'm starting over. I'm just starting fresh. Except for lasagna, I make a freaking killer lasagna. :)
--
This week I've done a few things to support my goal of learning and practicing how to feed myself great tasting and healthy foods.
- I stocked up on a bunch of healthy fruits and veggies that I enjoy snacking on -- strawberries, carrots, cucumbers, cauliflower.
- I bought jicama from the grocery store; Mel always mentions these, so I felt I should try it, just for shits and giggles. I haven't attempted to do anything with it yet...
- I made a batch of meat sauce with grass-fed beef; sauce is a staple for me, especially since I use it to cook up my famous stuffed peppers (need to make those soon). I also got a big spaghetti squash which will be good for 2 or 3 meals.
- I took fish oil today for the first time. 2 capsules and no weird burps yet, so I think I'll up to 3 tomorrow and see what happens. :)
Still more to do, but this is a start. My next priority is to get some more MEAT into my house. Learning to cook tasty protein sources is probably the number 1 way I could help myself eat healthier.
Sep 13, 2011
PP KBS BJ
AMRAP in 20 minutes:
10 push press (115/85)
10 kb swings (1.5/1 pood)
10 box jumps (24''/20'')
Results: 6 rounds + 6 PP, Rx
The verdict -- SLOW. A better total for me would have been 8 or 9 at the Rx weight. I'm wondering if I should've scaled that down, seeing how low my score is compared to others...
I got sick over the weekend - some kind of gross sinus thing - and even though this morning it was better than it had been yesterday, I could still tell I wasn't 100%. I had no "oomph" on my dip-drive on the push presses, and failed on a couple attempts. Just didn't feel "on". Plus the PP's hit me right where I'm still fatigued from the gymnastics seminar this weekend. I definitely used every muscle in my arm and shoulder this past weekend! I'll be posting a recap of that this week sometime, or maybe this weekend.
10 push press (115/85)
10 kb swings (1.5/1 pood)
10 box jumps (24''/20'')
Results: 6 rounds + 6 PP, Rx
The verdict -- SLOW. A better total for me would have been 8 or 9 at the Rx weight. I'm wondering if I should've scaled that down, seeing how low my score is compared to others...
I got sick over the weekend - some kind of gross sinus thing - and even though this morning it was better than it had been yesterday, I could still tell I wasn't 100%. I had no "oomph" on my dip-drive on the push presses, and failed on a couple attempts. Just didn't feel "on". Plus the PP's hit me right where I'm still fatigued from the gymnastics seminar this weekend. I definitely used every muscle in my arm and shoulder this past weekend! I'll be posting a recap of that this week sometime, or maybe this weekend.
Sep 9, 2011
DT
Have been wanting to do this one again (first time) for a while, I was bummed that it came up on a day where I had to play it safe and not get too sore. But I mentioned to another girl after class that we should get together and grind it out at Rx weight (115) so it may still be in my future. :)
"DT"
5 rounds
12 deadlift (155/115)
9 hang power clean (155/115)
6 jerk (155/115)
Results: 8:22, 65#
I put 75# on my bar, then changed my mind and took off 5's and added 10's to go to 85. Which I tried, and realized would mess me up. At which point I was pretty much out of time for messing with my weight, so I pulled off the 10's and went. Definitely too light, but it was still a good workout -- more like a barbell complex.
Jerks were messy. I power jerked (push jerk for you CrossFitters) and was pressing out on a bunch of them. I just get wonky when I don't split jerk. But that takes too long during a CF wod.
"DT"
5 rounds
12 deadlift (155/115)
9 hang power clean (155/115)
6 jerk (155/115)
Results: 8:22, 65#
I put 75# on my bar, then changed my mind and took off 5's and added 10's to go to 85. Which I tried, and realized would mess me up. At which point I was pretty much out of time for messing with my weight, so I pulled off the 10's and went. Definitely too light, but it was still a good workout -- more like a barbell complex.
Jerks were messy. I power jerked (push jerk for you CrossFitters) and was pressing out on a bunch of them. I just get wonky when I don't split jerk. But that takes too long during a CF wod.
Sep 7, 2011
Audie Murphy gym
They opened a new gym on base where we're at, and I wanted to share some pics with friends, and this seemed like as good a place to do that as any. :) Spare my Facebook friends more CrossFit overload. :-p
--
I really should've taken a picture right as I walked in the door, but I was immediately drawn to the right side of the gym to take a picture of the rowing machines. Sorinex pullup / rack rig and a couple lifting platforms in the background.
View of the same stuff from the opposite end of the room. You can see a tiny piece of a GHD on the right side. I think there are 3 or 4?
Sleds! Along the back wall. Crash mat for ropes in the background.
Badass ropes. I might actually jump from the top on purpose just to land on that awesome mat! Let's make rope climbs like deadlifts -- back to the ground under control strictly optional. :-p
Boxes along the left wall. Tons of other agility stuff too, and also a bunch of weighted vests. I need to check those out and see if you can unload them to something less than 20#.
Weightlifting area and power cages in adjacent room. Don't know if there's any free-standing squat racks, if not, I may not be able to do much front squat or overhead focus in this gym. There doesn't seem to be enough room to back out of the power cage without tripping over the platform.
However, there is something totally amazingly awesome about this weight room -- THERE ARE TONS OF 15kg BARS!!!!! I have died and gone to weightlifting heaven. Seriously, half the bar seems to be ladies bars. Hallelujah! My current CrossFit gym only has 45# and 15# bars, so I will definitely be doing some of my weightlifting practice at this gym. I can't hook on the 45's, and I can't stand NOT to hook now that I've been doing it for so long.
More rowers in another adjacent room. Holy shit! Too bad I won't be living here during the 100,000m Christmas challenge this year. (Just looked back through my archives, and I didn't post at all about doing the challenge last year. That's probably good because I wouldn't do it again with a written reminder of how much it sucked!! :-p)
--
I really should've taken a picture right as I walked in the door, but I was immediately drawn to the right side of the gym to take a picture of the rowing machines. Sorinex pullup / rack rig and a couple lifting platforms in the background.
View of the same stuff from the opposite end of the room. You can see a tiny piece of a GHD on the right side. I think there are 3 or 4?
Sleds! Along the back wall. Crash mat for ropes in the background.
Badass ropes. I might actually jump from the top on purpose just to land on that awesome mat! Let's make rope climbs like deadlifts -- back to the ground under control strictly optional. :-p
Boxes along the left wall. Tons of other agility stuff too, and also a bunch of weighted vests. I need to check those out and see if you can unload them to something less than 20#.
Weightlifting area and power cages in adjacent room. Don't know if there's any free-standing squat racks, if not, I may not be able to do much front squat or overhead focus in this gym. There doesn't seem to be enough room to back out of the power cage without tripping over the platform.
However, there is something totally amazingly awesome about this weight room -- THERE ARE TONS OF 15kg BARS!!!!! I have died and gone to weightlifting heaven. Seriously, half the bar seems to be ladies bars. Hallelujah! My current CrossFit gym only has 45# and 15# bars, so I will definitely be doing some of my weightlifting practice at this gym. I can't hook on the 45's, and I can't stand NOT to hook now that I've been doing it for so long.
More rowers in another adjacent room. Holy shit! Too bad I won't be living here during the 100,000m Christmas challenge this year. (Just looked back through my archives, and I didn't post at all about doing the challenge last year. That's probably good because I wouldn't do it again with a written reminder of how much it sucked!! :-p)
Nooner
Hit the noon WOD today for the first time. Nice crowd, but they headed out pretty fast after the WOD. I still like the 9:30am group the best cause they love to chat afterwards. :)
This workout was pullup and pushup heavy, but being mindful that I'm attending the gymnastics cert this weekend, I modified. No need to show up to that class with hands too tender to even hang from the bar or rings.
AMRAP in 20 min:
25pullups ring rows
50pushups AbMat situps
75 squats
Results: 3 rounds + 12 ring rows
Damn, ring rows are killer! I forgot how annoying and hard they are! If I could artificially attach my hands to the bar and remove the grip elements from pullups, ring rows would be WAAAY harder, since there's no way to use momentum to help yourself up.
I focused on pulling my shoulder blades back and opening my chest, but I still felt this more in my arms than my pecs. Booo. Still figuring out the best ways to try to get those muscles activating more.
This workout was pullup and pushup heavy, but being mindful that I'm attending the gymnastics cert this weekend, I modified. No need to show up to that class with hands too tender to even hang from the bar or rings.
AMRAP in 20 min:
25
50
75 squats
Results: 3 rounds + 12 ring rows
Damn, ring rows are killer! I forgot how annoying and hard they are! If I could artificially attach my hands to the bar and remove the grip elements from pullups, ring rows would be WAAAY harder, since there's no way to use momentum to help yourself up.
I focused on pulling my shoulder blades back and opening my chest, but I still felt this more in my arms than my pecs. Booo. Still figuring out the best ways to try to get those muscles activating more.
Hotel gym quickie
We went house hunting for our next move in November, and flying home we were delayed overnight due to the crazy storms and tornadoes in the south. Having planned on working out at home that night, we did a quick workout in the hotel gym.
They had dumbbells, so I decided to do a modified version of Angie's birthday WOD, since I still haven't done that one. After that, I don't know if I wanna do the real one! :)
3 rounds:
16 DB hang cleans
16 DB thrusters
16 pushups
Results: 16:46 -- I used 20# DBs
Even with just the 20#s, my arms were really getting tired! It is sooooo much easier on your shoulders to rack the barbell than dumbbells.
After I finished that, husband still wasn't done so I didn't want to just sit there, but I did not want to do another rounds of thrusters. :) So I did a couple easy rounds of:
15# DB bench press
20 bicycle cruches
Since starting yoga, I've become a believer in the bicycle crunch, those things are awesome!
They had dumbbells, so I decided to do a modified version of Angie's birthday WOD, since I still haven't done that one. After that, I don't know if I wanna do the real one! :)
3 rounds:
16 DB hang cleans
16 DB thrusters
16 pushups
Results: 16:46 -- I used 20# DBs
Even with just the 20#s, my arms were really getting tired! It is sooooo much easier on your shoulders to rack the barbell than dumbbells.
After I finished that, husband still wasn't done so I didn't want to just sit there, but I did not want to do another rounds of thrusters. :) So I did a couple easy rounds of:
15# DB bench press
20 bicycle cruches
Since starting yoga, I've become a believer in the bicycle crunch, those things are awesome!
Aug 29, 2011
Launch! 5th Element Fitness
Those of you who have been reading this blog for a while have probably noticed that sometimes I like to "wax poetic" and reflect on the inner journey that CrossFit / yoga / running have taken me on.
Well, today is the launch date of a new blog I'm co-authoring with a few friends -- 5th Element Fitness.
I'm excited (yet terrified!) of this new venture, because it's going to allow me to take those random asides from my workout log, and polish them into something with a true purpose.
If you check out the site, and like the concept, I would LOVE for you to link to us on your blog, or mention us in a blog post. You can also "like" our Facebook page.
We are also open to guest posts, so if you have something to say about the part of fitness that's "beyond the physical", please contact me!
I will update here when my first "solo" post goes up, which should be in the next 2 or 3 weeks. :)
Well, today is the launch date of a new blog I'm co-authoring with a few friends -- 5th Element Fitness.
I'm excited (yet terrified!) of this new venture, because it's going to allow me to take those random asides from my workout log, and polish them into something with a true purpose.
If you check out the site, and like the concept, I would LOVE for you to link to us on your blog, or mention us in a blog post. You can also "like" our Facebook page.
We are also open to guest posts, so if you have something to say about the part of fitness that's "beyond the physical", please contact me!
I will update here when my first "solo" post goes up, which should be in the next 2 or 3 weeks. :)
Labels:
5ef
Monday morning intensity
The WOD we did this AM is exactly the kind of stuff that I need. Manageable work periods with some short rests built in to keep intensity high while you're moving.
7 rounds, each for reps, of:
0:30 Deadlifts, 135/95 pounds
0:15 rest
0:30 Push ups
0:15 rest
0:30 KB Swings, 1.5/1 pood
Rest 1:00 between rounds. Post total reps per round to comments.
Results: 236 Rx
Having to use the fat men's bar really made it tough for me to rep out the deadlifts. Mentally I was comparing it to that CF Games Open Sectionals WOD that had ~100# deadlifts in it. There was no chance of using hook grip, and the bar was pretty much in my fingertips the last 5 reps of every round. Didn't even think about using a mixed grip until round 5 or 6 -- duh! Tried to stick with at least 12 reps on this movement.
Pushups... ugh! Managed to bang out 4 or 5 in a row to start, then some 2's in the early rounds, and only singles in the later rounds. Average number per round was around 8.
Love me some kb swings -- but they were tough being so out of breath. Tried to hold myself to a minimum of 10 each round, and managed to get closer to 15 a couple rounds.
Aug 28, 2011
C&J ladder, C&J PR, metcon
While I was determined not to feel bad or embarrassed about scaling my first WOD at the new gym yesterday, I can't say that I was sad when the first part of Saturday's WOD gave me the perfect chance to demonstrate my strengths. :)
Men and women went through a clean & jerk ladder. Bars were setup at 10 pound increments, starting at 65# for women, and 95# for men. Though if I remember correctly, there wasn't an 85# bar?
Results:
Metcon:
4 rounds:
100m shuttle sprint (25m segments)
10 renegade rows (1 pushup, 1 row L, 1 row R)
20 situps
Results: 13:20 w/ 25# DB round 1, 15# DB rounds 2-4
Men and women went through a clean & jerk ladder. Bars were setup at 10 pound increments, starting at 65# for women, and 95# for men. Though if I remember correctly, there wasn't an 85# bar?
Results:
- \65#-115# -- went up easily with good technique
- 125# -- somewhat crappy wide-stance catch power clean; should've squat cleaned, I was being lazy, plus I'm out of practice
- 135# -- another iffy landing on the clean; on this jerk my right elbow broke and I had to press it back to lockout; for this WOD it counted, wouldn't have in a competition
- 145# -- made two attempts at the clean, but just didn't have it; I think I may have been able to do 140#
Metcon:
4 rounds:
100m shuttle sprint (25m segments)
10 renegade rows (1 pushup, 1 row L, 1 row R)
20 situps
Results: 13:20 w/ 25# DB round 1, 15# DB rounds 2-4
Aug 26, 2011
Fresh start
Today was my first day at the CrossFit gym in my new city -- see linky love in the sidebar.
I scaled the WOD and I am totally OK with that.
I'm sure it's been apparent due to my lack of posting that my CrossFit workouts have been minimal to nonexistent the last few months. I really lost my fire and my purpose for doing CrossFit -- I didn't really know why I did it anymore. After I reached the point where I was Rx-ing 90% of movements in WODs, I didn't really progress much farther, and I also lost that excitement of doing new things that I didn't think I could do.
I recaptured that feeling with my marathon training, and with a totally new activity I had never done before -- yoga.
Today I decided that the next 3 months I'm living here, I'm just doing CrossFit because it's fun and I like it. I'm rebooting, restarting, resetting myself. There are a lot of stories that I have in my head about myself as a CrossFitter. I'm throwing those away. I will be whatever I want to be, and achieve whatever I want to. And if I don't *want* to do something, I don't have to beat myself up over not trying.
These next 3 months are my time to start fresh, and rebuild from the ground up. Time to get this foundation solid.
--
"Bradley"
10 rounds for time of:
Sprint 100 meters
10 Pull-ups
Sprint 100 meters
10 Burpees
Rest 30 seconds
Results: Scaled to 5 rounds, 20:40-ish (bad memory)
My blood blister / giant callous from Nicole on Monday ripped open in round 2, so the right grip went on. The left hand ripped open in round 5. I think this was caused by a combination of two things: I haven't shaved down my callouses in a week or so, and I should have after pullups on Monday. And the pullups bars are pretty rough -- good for hanging onto, bad for poor hand care.
I scaled the WOD and I am totally OK with that.
I'm sure it's been apparent due to my lack of posting that my CrossFit workouts have been minimal to nonexistent the last few months. I really lost my fire and my purpose for doing CrossFit -- I didn't really know why I did it anymore. After I reached the point where I was Rx-ing 90% of movements in WODs, I didn't really progress much farther, and I also lost that excitement of doing new things that I didn't think I could do.
I recaptured that feeling with my marathon training, and with a totally new activity I had never done before -- yoga.
Today I decided that the next 3 months I'm living here, I'm just doing CrossFit because it's fun and I like it. I'm rebooting, restarting, resetting myself. There are a lot of stories that I have in my head about myself as a CrossFitter. I'm throwing those away. I will be whatever I want to be, and achieve whatever I want to. And if I don't *want* to do something, I don't have to beat myself up over not trying.
These next 3 months are my time to start fresh, and rebuild from the ground up. Time to get this foundation solid.
--
"Bradley"
10 rounds for time of:
Sprint 100 meters
10 Pull-ups
Sprint 100 meters
10 Burpees
Rest 30 seconds
Results: Scaled to 5 rounds, 20:40-ish (bad memory)
My blood blister / giant callous from Nicole on Monday ripped open in round 2, so the right grip went on. The left hand ripped open in round 5. I think this was caused by a combination of two things: I haven't shaved down my callouses in a week or so, and I should have after pullups on Monday. And the pullups bars are pretty rough -- good for hanging onto, bad for poor hand care.
Aug 24, 2011
Weigh-Ins, for posterity
I got tired of these weigh-ins being listed on my side bar, but wanted to save them for posterity. So, a post. :)
This was my weight loss while following a relatively "clean" or Paleo diet, and CrossFitting on pretty regular schedule of 3 on, 1 off, 2 on, 1 off. And if you care about that kind of stuff, I'm 5'6''.
Unlike others, I didn't have 20 pounds fall off the moment I started eating Paleo. I lost a couple pounds a month, gradually. After reaching 143 in January, I actually started to gain weight back from putting on muscle. Which is just fine with me, I wasn't trying to achieve a certain number on the scale -- I just wanted to look and feel better than I did when I started. Goal achieved. :)
161.8 -- 08/05/2009
159.2 -- 08/12/2009
157.0 -- 08/19/2009
158.0 -- 08/26/2009
157.8 -- 09/09/2009
158.6 -- 09/16/2009
156.4 -- 10/07/2009
153.4 -- 10/27/2009 -8.4
154.0 -- 11/11/2009 -7.8
152.8 -- 12/11/2009 -9148.0 -- 01/10/2010 -13.8
146.8 -- 01/20/2010 -15
145.0 -- 01/27/2010 -16.8
143.2 -- 01/31/2010 -18.6
--
This isn't necessarily a case of a dramatic visual change. I went from looking pretty average to looking fit. And more importantly, I felt awesome, had tons of energy, and gained tons of confidence by physically achieving things I didn't think I could do. Go CrossFit. :)
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| July 2009 |
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| Spring 2010 |
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| Later w/ more muscle - October 2010 |
Aug 23, 2011
Nicole
Early Monday morning I made my second attempt at this benchmark. First attempt was a little over a year ago.
I am sad to say that today I feel like I got hit by a truck from the waist up. OMG. My abs are sore, my elbows have a bit of tendonitis going on and let's not even talk about my shoulders. It's so funny that no matter what else you do in your time off, when you stop doing CrossFit you get soooo sore from the most benign workouts!
Husband got 87 (7 runs), and his pullups were strict, no kipping. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. He is a freakin beast. Makes me so proud to be his wife. :)
"Nicole"
AMRAP in 20 minutes:I was pretty focused on making my runs fast and efficient, but I think with the pullups I wasn't exactly exerting my most "max" effort. Husband and I got up early to fit a workout in, and had a full day afterwards -- finishing cleaning our apartment, move out inspection, pick up car trailer, drive to our new place about 6 hours away, and start unpacking. That made it kinda hard to pour all my energy into my workout, because I knew I would need lots of energy all day.
Run 400m
Max pullups
Score is total number of pullups.
Results: 40 pullups (6 runs, 10-7-5-7-5-6)
I am sad to say that today I feel like I got hit by a truck from the waist up. OMG. My abs are sore, my elbows have a bit of tendonitis going on and let's not even talk about my shoulders. It's so funny that no matter what else you do in your time off, when you stop doing CrossFit you get soooo sore from the most benign workouts!
Husband got 87 (7 runs), and his pullups were strict, no kipping. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. He is a freakin beast. Makes me so proud to be his wife. :)
Aug 16, 2011
Marine Corps Marathon
So, if you've been reading my blog for a while, you've probably noticed my CrossFit workouts have been pretty light lately. No, I haven't given up working out. I'm just training for a marathon. :)
On October 30th I will be running the Marine Corps Marathon to raise money for the Semper Fi Fund.
To donate, visit my Active Giving page: Team Wissmann
To read more about my training, visit my blog: Team Wissmann
On October 30th I will be running the Marine Corps Marathon to raise money for the Semper Fi Fund.
The Semper Fi Fund is a nonprofit set up to provide immediate financial support for injured members of U.S. Armed Forces and their families. We direct urgently needed resources to Marines and Sailors, as well as members of the Army, Air Force or Coast Guard who serve in support of Marine forces. The basic ideal that drives our efforts is simple: as much as these American heroes have sacrificed, they deserve the best care and support available in their hour of need. Injuries are often severe, and the road to recovery or rehabilitation can be long and costly.My fundraising goal is $2,500, and to get there I'm looking for 125 people to donate $20 each. Please consider making a donation, any amount no matter how small will help make a difference in the life of an injured service member.
To donate, visit my Active Giving page: Team Wissmann
To read more about my training, visit my blog: Team Wissmann
Aug 14, 2011
Wilmot
Did this one in my garage on Saturday at 5pm, and it felt like it was 200 degrees in there! After round 3, I went inside and shut the door to do my squats so I could breathe.
My ring dips are back to being a bit crappy. Shouldn't have stopped practicing them!
"Wilmot"
6 rounds:
50 air squats
25 ring dips
Results: 33:33, two skinny bands to scale ring dips
My ring dips are back to being a bit crappy. Shouldn't have stopped practicing them!
"Wilmot"
6 rounds:
50 air squats
25 ring dips
Results: 33:33, two skinny bands to scale ring dips
Jul 7, 2011
Catch-up
Today
Short beach loop
Distance: 4.61 miles
Time: 53:17
Pace: 11:33/mile
I took 3 fairly long walk breaks. The sun was too hot -- I should've done this run about an hour earlier. Also, this was my first long-ish run in quite a while. Due to wildfires conditions have been really smokey here off and on for the last month. I've really lost a lot of what I built up, but hopefully I can get it back quickly with runs a few times a week.
Wednesday 7/6
Did a WOD I got from Angie.
50-40-30-20-10
kb swings (16kg)
AbMat situps (butterfly)
Results: 13:10
Would like to try this one with Russian swings and the 24kg kettlebell sometime.
Tuesday 7/5
"Fran"
21-15-9
thrusters (65#)
pullups
Results: 10:28
Not my fastest (9:10 @ Level I Cert), and not my slowest either, but only barely. The issue this time was just conditioning. My heartrate was off the charts, and that's what slowed me down the most -- catching my breath. I probably could've benefitted from someone getting in my face too. :)
Sunday 7/3
I ran for ~37 minutes and I don't the distance of my route. It felt good to be up early and outside.
Friday 7/1
Yoga, good times as always. I realized that doing the 11am class really makes a difference in how hot it feels in the room. I think it must be the sun coming in or hitting the building. I never start to feel like it's too hot to breathe in the 5pm or 6pm classes that I've taken.
Thursday 6/30
~30 minute run in the morning.
WOD @ 5:30 (only had 1 student in class, so we did the WOD together :))
4 rounds
800m run
50 air squats
then
50 hands-off pushups
Results: 30:09
Monday 6/27
Squat 12-12-12-12 @ 105
That really hurt.
Metcon:
10-1
Pullups
AbMat situps
14:56
Went mental on the pullups, eeek.
Hit yoga that night as well.
Short beach loop
Distance: 4.61 miles
Time: 53:17
Pace: 11:33/mile
I took 3 fairly long walk breaks. The sun was too hot -- I should've done this run about an hour earlier. Also, this was my first long-ish run in quite a while. Due to wildfires conditions have been really smokey here off and on for the last month. I've really lost a lot of what I built up, but hopefully I can get it back quickly with runs a few times a week.
Wednesday 7/6
Did a WOD I got from Angie.
50-40-30-20-10
kb swings (16kg)
AbMat situps (butterfly)
Results: 13:10
Would like to try this one with Russian swings and the 24kg kettlebell sometime.
Tuesday 7/5
"Fran"
21-15-9
thrusters (65#)
pullups
Results: 10:28
Not my fastest (9:10 @ Level I Cert), and not my slowest either, but only barely. The issue this time was just conditioning. My heartrate was off the charts, and that's what slowed me down the most -- catching my breath. I probably could've benefitted from someone getting in my face too. :)
Sunday 7/3
I ran for ~37 minutes and I don't the distance of my route. It felt good to be up early and outside.
Friday 7/1
Yoga, good times as always. I realized that doing the 11am class really makes a difference in how hot it feels in the room. I think it must be the sun coming in or hitting the building. I never start to feel like it's too hot to breathe in the 5pm or 6pm classes that I've taken.
Thursday 6/30
~30 minute run in the morning.
WOD @ 5:30 (only had 1 student in class, so we did the WOD together :))
4 rounds
800m run
50 air squats
then
50 hands-off pushups
Results: 30:09
Monday 6/27
Squat 12-12-12-12 @ 105
That really hurt.
Metcon:
10-1
Pullups
AbMat situps
14:56
Went mental on the pullups, eeek.
Hit yoga that night as well.
Jun 7, 2011
Clogged sinuses, BS & press, yoga, K2E
When I brought up my blog, I thought, "I must've done something between Murph and today??"
I looked back at the blog for our gym, and yes, I did. :)
--
Wednesday, June 1
First day of our strength cycle, which I'm co-programming with my boss. Has been interesting so far, we'll see what everybody thinks when we get to the end of 5 weeks. :)
Back squat
3-3-3-3-3, working up to 90% 1RM
125-135-145-145-150(f)
No reps on that last set, I just went down, stopped, and bailed the bar behind me. Ugh, my ability to back squat heavy weights SUCKS. I wish I was as good at that as I am at weightlifting movements. The slow lifts just don't seem to make as much sense to me, maybe I have too much time to overthink it?
Press
3-3-3-3-3, working up to 90% 1RM
65-75-80-80-82
Had to go for 82 just to have the highest female numbers on the board for that one. Come one, I need one thing I can brag about. :)
--
After that workout, I pretty much succumbed to a horrible sinus infection / cold. It's actually still hanging on, though I'm at the point where working out is something I need to do to drive the bad stuff out of my body.
--
Monday, June 6
Yesterday night I went to heated power yoga, and it was great, as usual. I'm going to miss this studio and the husband-wife team that owns it and teaches the classes I take. They are great. I almost talked myself out of going, and I'm glad I just did it. It was annoying to have my nose clogged up a lot of the time, but oh well. :)
I'd like to attend this Monday night class regularly, and also Friday afternoon. I think yoga twice a week would be a great addition to the work I'm doing with my chiropractor. Gotta get myself all fixed up before I have to move away from him, too.
--
Today's workout was pretty interesting. It was an AMRAP, and the time actually went by pretty quickly, which is always a good thing. I hate WODs where the time just seems to drag on and on.
WOD:
Wow, I was really running slow for this one. And I need to get faster at knees to elbows.
I kept having these little glimmers of insight into how to string them together, without an extra kipping swing in the middle, but then I would suddenly find myself wildly swinging on the pullup bar with no clue what I was doing. I'll have to search out some videos on that, though maybe I'm on the right track and just not executing properly. I'm trying to bring my knees down as I push forward to start a new swing, and then pop out of that swing into another K2E.
Any tips from anyone reading would be appreciated! :)
I looked back at the blog for our gym, and yes, I did. :)
--
Wednesday, June 1
First day of our strength cycle, which I'm co-programming with my boss. Has been interesting so far, we'll see what everybody thinks when we get to the end of 5 weeks. :)
Back squat
3-3-3-3-3, working up to 90% 1RM
125-135-145-145-150(f)
No reps on that last set, I just went down, stopped, and bailed the bar behind me. Ugh, my ability to back squat heavy weights SUCKS. I wish I was as good at that as I am at weightlifting movements. The slow lifts just don't seem to make as much sense to me, maybe I have too much time to overthink it?
Press
3-3-3-3-3, working up to 90% 1RM
65-75-80-80-82
Had to go for 82 just to have the highest female numbers on the board for that one. Come one, I need one thing I can brag about. :)
--
After that workout, I pretty much succumbed to a horrible sinus infection / cold. It's actually still hanging on, though I'm at the point where working out is something I need to do to drive the bad stuff out of my body.
--
Monday, June 6
Yesterday night I went to heated power yoga, and it was great, as usual. I'm going to miss this studio and the husband-wife team that owns it and teaches the classes I take. They are great. I almost talked myself out of going, and I'm glad I just did it. It was annoying to have my nose clogged up a lot of the time, but oh well. :)
I'd like to attend this Monday night class regularly, and also Friday afternoon. I think yoga twice a week would be a great addition to the work I'm doing with my chiropractor. Gotta get myself all fixed up before I have to move away from him, too.
--
Today's workout was pretty interesting. It was an AMRAP, and the time actually went by pretty quickly, which is always a good thing. I hate WODs where the time just seems to drag on and on.
WOD:
How high up the ladder can you climb in 20 mins:Results: 7 + 6 K2Es of my 8th round
200 m Run
1 Knees-to-elbows
200 m Run
2 Knees-to-elbows
200 m Run
3 Knees-to-elbows
...
Record highest set of knees to elbows completed.
Wow, I was really running slow for this one. And I need to get faster at knees to elbows.
I kept having these little glimmers of insight into how to string them together, without an extra kipping swing in the middle, but then I would suddenly find myself wildly swinging on the pullup bar with no clue what I was doing. I'll have to search out some videos on that, though maybe I'm on the right track and just not executing properly. I'm trying to bring my knees down as I push forward to start a new swing, and then pop out of that swing into another K2E.
Any tips from anyone reading would be appreciated! :)
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