Well, I set my alarm for 6:00 am so I could attend the "late" 6:45 class. This only gave me about 4-4.5 hours of sleep. The alarm went off, I woke up, turned it off, and just laid there for a while trying to figure out if going was such a good idea. I felt exhausted, and I ended up falling back asleep while I debated in my head. Well, fast forward to 11:00, and I wake up again. As I write this, I feel like I should've gone.
Although waking up early for me is extremely taxing, I do have to admit that I always feel like I get more done when I wake up early. Ah well, guess I'll just have to work out on my own until when I get back in town Monday. ...I'm really not happy about the idea of taking a week off of CFOT, but there's nothing I can do about it.
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Onion skin ( PR!) and yesterday's workout
Guess I'll start off with yesterday's workout:
three rounds for time of:
21 Knees to elbows
21 Kettlebell swing
21 Push-ups
21 Rope Pullups
21 Box jump
21 Good Mornings
150 ft Walking Lunge
My time was 52:02, not the quickest time by any means. I knew this was going to be a tough one because of the rope pull ups. They simply tore up my forearm muscles, the last set I was knocking them out only one at a time. Everything else seemed pretty easy meaning I didn't have to break up a set. Ever since we did Helen, I now know I can do 21 kb swings without stopping. Knowing that, I've been able to push through those times when I want to rest. As I'm finding out how strong I've become, I'm getting better and better at pushing myself even more (more on that later).
The Knees to elbows were fun the first two rounds, but I was really feeling it the last round, wanted to kip so bad! The box jumps were really, really short, so I only needed to use my calf muscles to launch myself up there, so I was pretty damn fast since I never had to step off; I would just jump off, land, and then jump back up. Push ups sucked as usual, and now that I think about it I had to break them up each set, SO ANNOYING! Ah well, with time it will come I suppose. The good mornings were a little tricky, I've felt a bit of a strain on my back last week, and I tried to pay close attention to my lower back so as to not aggrevate it again. This exercise really forces me to open up my hips, which I imagine is a good thing. The lunges were no biggie, but next time I'll try to do them faster.
Today we did "Onion Skin"
5 rounds
max reps strict press (Rx'd at 85)
max pullups
Last time I did this was August 18th, where I did 48 reps with 75 lbs and 54 chins. Today was somewhat better, here's how I performed:
Pull ups: 27, 13, 3, 16, 10 = 69
Strict @ 85: 12, 8, 8, 6, 4 = 38
For the strict press, my reps went down by ten, but the weight went up by ten. On the last one I also hit my head, and although it wasn't hard it did through off my focus.
For the pull ups, I went for a PR, and lo and behold I got it. I'm thinking I'm going to start trying to meet the crossfit standard and always go chest to bar. I mean, it is the standard, and it will get me stronger, right? I'm thinking about waiting until we move into the new place with fixed bars, but I might not wait. ...My bigest problem is getting a good grip on the bar. I think I don't place my hand high enough on the bar, because it really feels like there are eight pebbles being jammed into my hand, and the pain really is a distraction. For example, on the third round I did three, but just had to let go because of the pain in my hands. I don't have any torn calluses, it's simply... pain.
Moving on, I'd like to point out that every time I've attempted a PR this past week or so, I've hit it. It really helps to have a goal, and to know full well your prevous score. That is really starting to provide me with motivation. It's simply been very tough for me to remember my previous performances, but when I do, I notice I do that much better. Now that I'm noticing this and have found my motivation, I think I will really start seeing some results.
three rounds for time of:
21 Knees to elbows
21 Kettlebell swing
21 Push-ups
21 Rope Pullups
21 Box jump
21 Good Mornings
150 ft Walking Lunge
My time was 52:02, not the quickest time by any means. I knew this was going to be a tough one because of the rope pull ups. They simply tore up my forearm muscles, the last set I was knocking them out only one at a time. Everything else seemed pretty easy meaning I didn't have to break up a set. Ever since we did Helen, I now know I can do 21 kb swings without stopping. Knowing that, I've been able to push through those times when I want to rest. As I'm finding out how strong I've become, I'm getting better and better at pushing myself even more (more on that later).
The Knees to elbows were fun the first two rounds, but I was really feeling it the last round, wanted to kip so bad! The box jumps were really, really short, so I only needed to use my calf muscles to launch myself up there, so I was pretty damn fast since I never had to step off; I would just jump off, land, and then jump back up. Push ups sucked as usual, and now that I think about it I had to break them up each set, SO ANNOYING! Ah well, with time it will come I suppose. The good mornings were a little tricky, I've felt a bit of a strain on my back last week, and I tried to pay close attention to my lower back so as to not aggrevate it again. This exercise really forces me to open up my hips, which I imagine is a good thing. The lunges were no biggie, but next time I'll try to do them faster.
Today we did "Onion Skin"
5 rounds
max reps strict press (Rx'd at 85)
max pullups
Last time I did this was August 18th, where I did 48 reps with 75 lbs and 54 chins. Today was somewhat better, here's how I performed:
Pull ups: 27, 13, 3, 16, 10 = 69
Strict @ 85: 12, 8, 8, 6, 4 = 38
For the strict press, my reps went down by ten, but the weight went up by ten. On the last one I also hit my head, and although it wasn't hard it did through off my focus.
For the pull ups, I went for a PR, and lo and behold I got it. I'm thinking I'm going to start trying to meet the crossfit standard and always go chest to bar. I mean, it is the standard, and it will get me stronger, right? I'm thinking about waiting until we move into the new place with fixed bars, but I might not wait. ...My bigest problem is getting a good grip on the bar. I think I don't place my hand high enough on the bar, because it really feels like there are eight pebbles being jammed into my hand, and the pain really is a distraction. For example, on the third round I did three, but just had to let go because of the pain in my hands. I don't have any torn calluses, it's simply... pain.
Moving on, I'd like to point out that every time I've attempted a PR this past week or so, I've hit it. It really helps to have a goal, and to know full well your prevous score. That is really starting to provide me with motivation. It's simply been very tough for me to remember my previous performances, but when I do, I notice I do that much better. Now that I'm noticing this and have found my motivation, I think I will really start seeing some results.
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Zone food delivery service
So this past week I've been dealing with some knee pain. On Friday I saw the DO, and he noticed an issue with my ankle, hip, and knee. He put me back together, and I d feel a lot better, but he told me that I should hold off on exercise for that day. A little bummed, I showed up anyway to cheer on and help if I could. Since there's no class on Saturday, I didn't work out then either. Thanks to playing guitar hero would tour late into the night, I didn't wake up today until noonish. So that's three days without CFOT, and it makes me a little antsy, like I need my fix.
The knee still feels a little.... off. It feels like my quad is a little tight, pulling at my knee. I'm not sure if that's the case, but that's the best description of the discomfort I can come up with.
Earlier this week a crossfitter from San Francisco, his name currently escapes me, talked about how they had a chef would would prepare zone meals and sell them at the beginning of the week. That got me to start looking around for any type service here in the NOVA area.
I've checked out some websites that review zone delivery services, dietblog.com and freedieting.com, and it really doesn't seem like there's a fresh/local option. There are two that promise delivery to the DC area, Bon Appetit and intothezonedelivery, but I don't understand the delivery system, my main worry would be the food going bad. I mean, do I have to wait for the mailman everyday?
It's also an expensive option. As is I spend about $75 a week on groceries, and that's for a week's worth of food. That comes out to about $10.72 a day, $2.15 a meal/snack. These food delivery services tend to be around $35 a day, so it would put my budget into all kinds of whack. However, if the quality's good I would consider it. I think we need to recruit one of old town's chefs and convince him he needs to provide this service to us.
The knee still feels a little.... off. It feels like my quad is a little tight, pulling at my knee. I'm not sure if that's the case, but that's the best description of the discomfort I can come up with.
Earlier this week a crossfitter from San Francisco, his name currently escapes me, talked about how they had a chef would would prepare zone meals and sell them at the beginning of the week. That got me to start looking around for any type service here in the NOVA area.
I've checked out some websites that review zone delivery services, dietblog.com and freedieting.com, and it really doesn't seem like there's a fresh/local option. There are two that promise delivery to the DC area, Bon Appetit and intothezonedelivery, but I don't understand the delivery system, my main worry would be the food going bad. I mean, do I have to wait for the mailman everyday?
It's also an expensive option. As is I spend about $75 a week on groceries, and that's for a week's worth of food. That comes out to about $10.72 a day, $2.15 a meal/snack. These food delivery services tend to be around $35 a day, so it would put my budget into all kinds of whack. However, if the quality's good I would consider it. I think we need to recruit one of old town's chefs and convince him he needs to provide this service to us.
Friday, November 21, 2008
Pr's galore
Ok well Wed's workout was finding your max push jerk, so here goes:
135. 155, 155, 155, 155, 165, 175
I felt really strong starting out on this one, but that bar got heavy quick. I wasn't getting that speed, that violent action that I needed on those 155's. On my failed attempts, I'd get the bar up there, but I couldn't stick it. Jerry told me that I should be able to keep everything tight, that I should be able to look around the room with the bar overhead because everything is on such a tight lockdown. I turned that piece of advice into the mantra of "smile and wave". Obviously, I shouldn't try to wave since that would require use of my hand, but you get the point.
One the 165 I did press it a bit, but after I locked it out I was able to hold it there for quite a while, called out to Jerry to get his attention and show him I took his advice to heart. ...It really was easy to keep that weight up there once it was in the right place.
Same thing with the 175, except I definitely pressed it, I'm not even sure if that last rep counted as a push jerk, but I think if I were a little less fatigued I could do it. Again I looked around after getting the bar up. I got a little cocky and thought "I've got everything so locked down, I'll look up at the bar." That's when I discovered looking up really does change the alignment of your spine, and I quickly recovered/dropped the bar. Nothing was hurt, did feel a little sheepish though.
175 push jerk is a PR, a 25lb improvement from my 150 three rep max on 9/13. I think my max's are slowly going up, but more importantly I think my technique is getting much, much better. I've still got a long way to go, but I'd rather be able to push press 135 with perfect technique than a sloppy 175. I think my movements are making me less and less prone to injury. I've already torn a rotator cuff on push press, I'd rather not do that again.
Speaking of injuries, my knee pain is pretty constant now, which worries me. I'll be seeing my DO tomorrow, so he might be able to help. It's like it will hurt because my knee is supporting weight just standing. I'm looking forward to the thanksgiving holidays to take some time off for the knee, but until then I plan on continuing every day. I would also like to report that hip pain is a thing of the past, thanks to the DO. At some point during this week when I did squats, even air squats, I could feel soreness in my right hip flexors, probably because they weren't used to working in the correct manner. Regardless, I can tell that I'm getting stronger, not just in the meaty muscle way, but also in the core muscle way, and that is way more important.
On to Today's workout, Nicole. Because of the stairs and taking on/off shoes, we did our Nicole in 25 min, when the standard is 20
Nicole:
ARAP 25 min
400m sprint
max pullups
My results were 5.5 rounds, with my pull ups being 24, 14, 11, 9, 11. I accomplished my goals with this workout. My goals were 1) hit a pull up PR, and 2) beat everyone else in the first 400m sprint. I was pretty gassed with the run near the end. For the last two laps I ran backwards for part of the way just so I could use fresher muscles. I mean, there's no CF standard for running, is there?
Concerning Nicole, today was the first day I seriously considered not coming in. My knee was hurting, felt some strain in my lower back, I needed to get work done, etc. But I knew that I would regret not going, and I had a blast today. My reason for why I keep coming back really is the people of CFOT, it is one strong community.
Mental note, I have two blog post ideas, one is the crossfit effect, the other is on having your zone meals deliverd to you.
135. 155,
I felt really strong starting out on this one, but that bar got heavy quick. I wasn't getting that speed, that violent action that I needed on those 155's. On my failed attempts, I'd get the bar up there, but I couldn't stick it. Jerry told me that I should be able to keep everything tight, that I should be able to look around the room with the bar overhead because everything is on such a tight lockdown. I turned that piece of advice into the mantra of "smile and wave". Obviously, I shouldn't try to wave since that would require use of my hand, but you get the point.
One the 165 I did press it a bit, but after I locked it out I was able to hold it there for quite a while, called out to Jerry to get his attention and show him I took his advice to heart. ...It really was easy to keep that weight up there once it was in the right place.
Same thing with the 175, except I definitely pressed it, I'm not even sure if that last rep counted as a push jerk, but I think if I were a little less fatigued I could do it. Again I looked around after getting the bar up. I got a little cocky and thought "I've got everything so locked down, I'll look up at the bar." That's when I discovered looking up really does change the alignment of your spine, and I quickly recovered/dropped the bar. Nothing was hurt, did feel a little sheepish though.
175 push jerk is a PR, a 25lb improvement from my 150 three rep max on 9/13. I think my max's are slowly going up, but more importantly I think my technique is getting much, much better. I've still got a long way to go, but I'd rather be able to push press 135 with perfect technique than a sloppy 175. I think my movements are making me less and less prone to injury. I've already torn a rotator cuff on push press, I'd rather not do that again.
Speaking of injuries, my knee pain is pretty constant now, which worries me. I'll be seeing my DO tomorrow, so he might be able to help. It's like it will hurt because my knee is supporting weight just standing. I'm looking forward to the thanksgiving holidays to take some time off for the knee, but until then I plan on continuing every day. I would also like to report that hip pain is a thing of the past, thanks to the DO. At some point during this week when I did squats, even air squats, I could feel soreness in my right hip flexors, probably because they weren't used to working in the correct manner. Regardless, I can tell that I'm getting stronger, not just in the meaty muscle way, but also in the core muscle way, and that is way more important.
On to Today's workout, Nicole. Because of the stairs and taking on/off shoes, we did our Nicole in 25 min, when the standard is 20
Nicole:
ARAP 25 min
400m sprint
max pullups
My results were 5.5 rounds, with my pull ups being 24, 14, 11, 9, 11. I accomplished my goals with this workout. My goals were 1) hit a pull up PR, and 2) beat everyone else in the first 400m sprint. I was pretty gassed with the run near the end. For the last two laps I ran backwards for part of the way just so I could use fresher muscles. I mean, there's no CF standard for running, is there?
Concerning Nicole, today was the first day I seriously considered not coming in. My knee was hurting, felt some strain in my lower back, I needed to get work done, etc. But I knew that I would regret not going, and I had a blast today. My reason for why I keep coming back really is the people of CFOT, it is one strong community.
Mental note, I have two blog post ideas, one is the crossfit effect, the other is on having your zone meals deliverd to you.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
The face that launched a thousand ships...
Today was a fun day, mostly because I feel like I found the motivation to push myself. We had a really extensive warm up, working on push jerk, push press, etc. The most productive part for me was sitting in the bottom of a squat for 20 seconds 4 times. Lately I've started feeling some pain in my knee, and I think it comes from tracking problems. Danny helped me figure out that I tend to bend my knees every slightly inward, making them support weight. This is an exercise I definitely need to keep doing, because the last thing I need to do is hurt my knees.
...One thing I realized today is I easily get annoyed with myself. I expect to nail all the exercises, and when I don't nail it (and I can usually tell right away when I don't) I get a little frustrated with myself. Jerry noticed a problem with my push press and gave some great advice; I think my annoyance with myself might have come off like I was annoyed with his help, which is far from the case. So mental note Adam: whenever you mess up (and you will) just take it for what it is, learn from it, and move on.
Ok, now that I got that out of my system, today was the benchmark Helen:
3 rounds for time:
400m run
21 KB swings 52#
12 pull ups
I was glad we did had a long warmup, because it was FREEZING outside. I did all of the KB swings unbroken, my main motivation was Harold's post of how he didn't break up his sets. I figured, "if he could do it, so can I." However, I did break up the pull-ups into two sets, why I don't know because I should be strong enough to do it straight through. Finished in 14:43, just a hair before Justin finished. Trying to beat Justin became my second motivation of the workout, and it helped me bang out those last few pull ups. Now, Justin will tell you that HE finished first, but I didn't see it, and I never heard him yell "Time!", so I'm just going to go with the assumption that I won that race.
...One thing I realized today is I easily get annoyed with myself. I expect to nail all the exercises, and when I don't nail it (and I can usually tell right away when I don't) I get a little frustrated with myself. Jerry noticed a problem with my push press and gave some great advice; I think my annoyance with myself might have come off like I was annoyed with his help, which is far from the case. So mental note Adam: whenever you mess up (and you will) just take it for what it is, learn from it, and move on.
Ok, now that I got that out of my system, today was the benchmark Helen:
3 rounds for time:
400m run
21 KB swings 52#
12 pull ups
I was glad we did had a long warmup, because it was FREEZING outside. I did all of the KB swings unbroken, my main motivation was Harold's post of how he didn't break up his sets. I figured, "if he could do it, so can I." However, I did break up the pull-ups into two sets, why I don't know because I should be strong enough to do it straight through. Finished in 14:43, just a hair before Justin finished. Trying to beat Justin became my second motivation of the workout, and it helped me bang out those last few pull ups. Now, Justin will tell you that HE finished first, but I didn't see it, and I never heard him yell "Time!", so I'm just going to go with the assumption that I won that race.
Monday, November 17, 2008
max squat
Today's WOD didn't take much time, but I was really pleased with today's performance.
3 rounds
Heavy squat 5 reps
135, 155, 160#
Simple, so I really wanted to give it my all. This was a great workout with regards to pushing through. My leg muscles are definitely my most developed, so I have the most control over them. When I went down for my last rep at 160, I could feel my quads and hamstrings straining, contracting into a ball. I was breathing out the whole time, so my core was tight, and I just... I don't know how to say it, I had the ability, the connection, to my leg muscles that allowed me to say, "push harder." They responded accordingly. This is an improvement from my last max attempt, where I squatted 150 3 times on 9/13. I'm not sure if this is a big improvement for two months, but I'll take it.
All in all it was, as I felt it, a very tough effort. I later told Danny that I had to really push for it, and he responded with "Really? It didn't look like it." Of course, that makes me wonder how much I should go for next time.
the three sets took all of 12 minutes, so afterwords I started messing around with L pull ups. On my first attempt on the bar I got like 6, then I think 6, then 4. I then banged a few out on the rope. I saw Danny grip a 14 pound med ball with his ankles, get to the L, and then do a pull up. I tried it, and managed to get one on my first attempt, then two on the second. Danny and I then came up with a game of cath, where we would face each other, hang on the bars, and then toss the ball with our feet. It was pretty funny. ...So it seems that I've found another favorite exercise, L pull ups.
3 rounds
Heavy squat 5 reps
135, 155, 160#
Simple, so I really wanted to give it my all. This was a great workout with regards to pushing through. My leg muscles are definitely my most developed, so I have the most control over them. When I went down for my last rep at 160, I could feel my quads and hamstrings straining, contracting into a ball. I was breathing out the whole time, so my core was tight, and I just... I don't know how to say it, I had the ability, the connection, to my leg muscles that allowed me to say, "push harder." They responded accordingly. This is an improvement from my last max attempt, where I squatted 150 3 times on 9/13. I'm not sure if this is a big improvement for two months, but I'll take it.
All in all it was, as I felt it, a very tough effort. I later told Danny that I had to really push for it, and he responded with "Really? It didn't look like it." Of course, that makes me wonder how much I should go for next time.
the three sets took all of 12 minutes, so afterwords I started messing around with L pull ups. On my first attempt on the bar I got like 6, then I think 6, then 4. I then banged a few out on the rope. I saw Danny grip a 14 pound med ball with his ankles, get to the L, and then do a pull up. I tried it, and managed to get one on my first attempt, then two on the second. Danny and I then came up with a game of cath, where we would face each other, hang on the bars, and then toss the ball with our feet. It was pretty funny. ...So it seems that I've found another favorite exercise, L pull ups.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
high reps workout
This was a really difficult WOD today, completely wore me out. Here it is, although I might have mixed something up:
Wod
25 pull ups
50 hang clean jerk
50 burbees
50 wall ball sit ups
50 box jumps
50 push ups
25 pull ups
I did it in 45:01, one of the longest times of the day. At first I wasn't too happy with this, I feel like I should have somehow pushed myself harder. However, I have to remind myself of where i was four months ago. I remember when I couldn't string more than 15 push ups together, and here I basically did 100 today.
The pull ups weren't difficult, found a good grip early on so I did it in like two sets. The hang clean jerk really worked my core, I put it down a lot more than I'd like to admit, but after a first set of ten I broke it down to reps of 5. I think next time I really need to tell myself to just suck it up and do it. The burbees were awful as usual, my anterior deltoids were numb from use, but I'm starting to get the hang of getting my hips down to power my jump up. The wall balls weren't really hard on my abs, but trying to throw the ball against the wall after the burbees was really hard, felt like I would do the sit up, and then just try to flick the ball to the wall with my wrist. The box jumps took a while, I need to figure out a way to hurry up the dismount, feel like I spend too much time stepping down to the ground. By the time I got to push ups I had recovered some, so I got to bang out 15 at once, but the rest after that were pretty brutal. Got the pull ups in like three sets, I felt like I did a good job on pushing through on this one.
...My plan after the workout was to go home, shower, take a nap, then laundry, but I've come to learn that they've shut off the water main for repairs for the fourth time in the past six weeks. Looks like I'll just have to do laundry tomorrow or Tuesday, and hopefully I can find a place to shower soon.
Wod
25 pull ups
50 hang clean jerk
50 burbees
50 wall ball sit ups
50 box jumps
50 push ups
25 pull ups
I did it in 45:01, one of the longest times of the day. At first I wasn't too happy with this, I feel like I should have somehow pushed myself harder. However, I have to remind myself of where i was four months ago. I remember when I couldn't string more than 15 push ups together, and here I basically did 100 today.
The pull ups weren't difficult, found a good grip early on so I did it in like two sets. The hang clean jerk really worked my core, I put it down a lot more than I'd like to admit, but after a first set of ten I broke it down to reps of 5. I think next time I really need to tell myself to just suck it up and do it. The burbees were awful as usual, my anterior deltoids were numb from use, but I'm starting to get the hang of getting my hips down to power my jump up. The wall balls weren't really hard on my abs, but trying to throw the ball against the wall after the burbees was really hard, felt like I would do the sit up, and then just try to flick the ball to the wall with my wrist. The box jumps took a while, I need to figure out a way to hurry up the dismount, feel like I spend too much time stepping down to the ground. By the time I got to push ups I had recovered some, so I got to bang out 15 at once, but the rest after that were pretty brutal. Got the pull ups in like three sets, I felt like I did a good job on pushing through on this one.
...My plan after the workout was to go home, shower, take a nap, then laundry, but I've come to learn that they've shut off the water main for repairs for the fourth time in the past six weeks. Looks like I'll just have to do laundry tomorrow or Tuesday, and hopefully I can find a place to shower soon.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Awesome workout today
Today's workout played to my strengths, running and overhead snatch.
Five rounds for time of:
Hang Power Snatch, 15 reps (95#)
Run 400 meters
First round I did in a little over 4 minutes, but wasn't able to keep pace. The first round i did the snatch in 15 straight, the following rounds I broke it up 5-5-5. I think today I really did a good job of pushing myself, and got the wod done in under 30 min. Overhead snatch really is my best move. I can create such a violent pull on the bar that I really don't even have to lower my hips much in order to get under the bar. My traps are my strongest muscle, and I can explode off of the pull, make the bar fly up, and wham, the bar is above my head. I think I jinxed myself talking about no longer having a sore core, because I felt like I was going to puke from the overhead snatch. Jerry mentioned that the core muscles make a biological weight belt, that the muscles wraping around my stomach suppor the spine and if I keep them tight I can rely on them to push through the bottome part of a squat. Well, it feels like this biological belt was one notch too tight, lightly squeezing my stomach, ready to completely constrict at any moment.
Sometimes I look at my time and think I could have done better, but I am happy with this time, I really do think I pushed, although I'm sure I could've pushed harder :)
Five rounds for time of:
Hang Power Snatch, 15 reps (95#)
Run 400 meters
First round I did in a little over 4 minutes, but wasn't able to keep pace. The first round i did the snatch in 15 straight, the following rounds I broke it up 5-5-5. I think today I really did a good job of pushing myself, and got the wod done in under 30 min. Overhead snatch really is my best move. I can create such a violent pull on the bar that I really don't even have to lower my hips much in order to get under the bar. My traps are my strongest muscle, and I can explode off of the pull, make the bar fly up, and wham, the bar is above my head. I think I jinxed myself talking about no longer having a sore core, because I felt like I was going to puke from the overhead snatch. Jerry mentioned that the core muscles make a biological weight belt, that the muscles wraping around my stomach suppor the spine and if I keep them tight I can rely on them to push through the bottome part of a squat. Well, it feels like this biological belt was one notch too tight, lightly squeezing my stomach, ready to completely constrict at any moment.
Sometimes I look at my time and think I could have done better, but I am happy with this time, I really do think I pushed, although I'm sure I could've pushed harder :)
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Jason, without the argonauts
Today was a hero workout, and my first ever workout with muscle ups; Jason:
100 squats
5 Muscle Ups (MU's)
75 squats
10 MUs
50 squats
15 MUs
25 squats
20 MUs
My time was 33:46, scaling the workout replacing the MUs with jumping MUs. I think my first 10 or so were really jumping ring dips, but as I worked on the motion I started figuring out how to involve the other muscles. I'm having problems punching my head through, but I'm sure the more I do this the better I'll become. Danny was insane and did this workout in like 20 minutes, crazy.
One thing that bothers me is that I no longer feel like I'm going to puke during the workouts. That may seem strange, but the sensation of my core muscles twitching around my stomach was a sign I was using my core. Either my core is getting used to the abuse, or I've somehow figured out another way to rely on hip strength instead of core strength. I try focusing on my breathing when I remember, but right now it's far from second nature for me. Today's MU's required a lot of core strength, but I think I was too focused on my hands and upper body to really keep my core tight. I keep working on my posture all the time, but maintaining good posture/keeping the core tight is still foreign to me.
Upgrading from Mildly Insane to Full Out Psycho
Alright, I'm now learning what happens when you start attending crossfit classes 5 days in a row. After yesterday's workout, I wasn't really sure what to expect, but it sure as hell wasn't Fight Gone Bad. This was a tough one for me mentally. Here's my score:
Wall ball 26, 11, 8, 7, 10
High pull 20, 18, 10, 10, 8
Box Jump 18, 15, 23, 11, 14
Push press 10, 12, 8, 10, 10
500 m 8, 10, 10, 9, 15
5 round total: 311, 3 round total: 207. Can't say I'm too happy with this one, but that's how I fared. I don't want to start making excuses, but my shoulders were shot from the 100 hand stands yesterday, making the push press really tough. However, I noticed that 75#s felt really, really light. I just didn't have any shoulder strength today. More importantly though, I think I was defeated before I began. I was just feeling groggy/tired/just not with it. I wouldn't say I had a negative mindset, but it wasn't positive, just tired. There was only one point were I felt mentally "there" and it was the last half of the last round of box jumps. I think since this was five rounds I just wasn't pushing it in an effort to pace myself.
My whole upper body is sore, as well as my quads from all those burbees yesterday. Oh yeah that's another thing. Yesterday Jerry helped me out with my burpees. He showed me how to correctly go from the plank to what I'll call "frog stance". I was originally going to something like a pike when I jumped my feet up from the plank, bending at the hip and folding myself in half. In this stance I only use my back to extend up to the jump. Now I keep my hips low when I jump, enabling me to use my legs to power up for the jump. I get more hops now, but it works the quads a lot more. Thanks for the tips Jerry, I really am trying to dial in on technique for every exercise we do, from burpees to overhead snatch.
Alright, time for bed; gotta get ready for tomorrow's workout.
Wall ball 26, 11, 8, 7, 10
High pull 20, 18, 10, 10, 8
Box Jump 18, 15, 23, 11, 14
Push press 10, 12, 8, 10, 10
500 m 8, 10, 10, 9, 15
5 round total: 311, 3 round total: 207. Can't say I'm too happy with this one, but that's how I fared. I don't want to start making excuses, but my shoulders were shot from the 100 hand stands yesterday, making the push press really tough. However, I noticed that 75#s felt really, really light. I just didn't have any shoulder strength today. More importantly though, I think I was defeated before I began. I was just feeling groggy/tired/just not with it. I wouldn't say I had a negative mindset, but it wasn't positive, just tired. There was only one point were I felt mentally "there" and it was the last half of the last round of box jumps. I think since this was five rounds I just wasn't pushing it in an effort to pace myself.
My whole upper body is sore, as well as my quads from all those burbees yesterday. Oh yeah that's another thing. Yesterday Jerry helped me out with my burpees. He showed me how to correctly go from the plank to what I'll call "frog stance". I was originally going to something like a pike when I jumped my feet up from the plank, bending at the hip and folding myself in half. In this stance I only use my back to extend up to the jump. Now I keep my hips low when I jump, enabling me to use my legs to power up for the jump. I get more hops now, but it works the quads a lot more. Thanks for the tips Jerry, I really am trying to dial in on technique for every exercise we do, from burpees to overhead snatch.
Alright, time for bed; gotta get ready for tomorrow's workout.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Mildly insane today with a PR
Ok, we had two options, option A:
10 rounds for time
12 deck-squat slam balls
12 chins
12 burpees
And here is option B, the "psycho" version:
5 rounds for time
25 inverted burpees
25 pull ups
25 burpees
I really want to improve my handstand, so when I learned that an inverted burpee is a deck-squat to a handstand, I decided to do the psycho version. This was tough, as expected. I had trouble getting active shoulder when I try the hand stand. However, near the end I think I started to get it; I know I nailed it once because Jerry spotted me doing it correctly and gave some much inspiring applause. Here's a picture from crossfit.com to demonstrate an inverted burpee:
The high point, other than that moment, was during the first round I got 23 pull ups in a row, a new pr and a 7 rep increase from two months ago. During the third round my anterior deltoids started feeling numb with burpees, but this was to be expected since my shoulder strength needs a lot of improvement.
After the third round, my left knee really started to hurt from it not tracking correctly when performing the deck-squat. I couldn't figure out how to fix it, and knee pain scares me, so I just did 25 Hand stands instead. Without the squat part, this became pretty easy, and I think I started to really get it. Lanette advised that I try jumping into a handstand. Well, not jumping exactly, more like a mini-hop. I tried it once, but it was a little too foreign for me to try out in the middle of such a workout. For those of you like me interested in learning how to progress to the freestanding handstand pushup, here is a great website that teaches you how to get progress to ful freestanding handstand.
I ended up doing 4 rounds in 61:23, with the nerfing of the inverse burbee for the last round. I might have bitten off more than I can chew, but I'm glad that I tried, and I would've done a fifth round if the next class hadn't started.
10 rounds for time
12 deck-squat slam balls
12 chins
12 burpees
And here is option B, the "psycho" version:
5 rounds for time
25 inverted burpees
25 pull ups
25 burpees
I really want to improve my handstand, so when I learned that an inverted burpee is a deck-squat to a handstand, I decided to do the psycho version. This was tough, as expected. I had trouble getting active shoulder when I try the hand stand. However, near the end I think I started to get it; I know I nailed it once because Jerry spotted me doing it correctly and gave some much inspiring applause. Here's a picture from crossfit.com to demonstrate an inverted burpee:
The high point, other than that moment, was during the first round I got 23 pull ups in a row, a new pr and a 7 rep increase from two months ago. During the third round my anterior deltoids started feeling numb with burpees, but this was to be expected since my shoulder strength needs a lot of improvement.
After the third round, my left knee really started to hurt from it not tracking correctly when performing the deck-squat. I couldn't figure out how to fix it, and knee pain scares me, so I just did 25 Hand stands instead. Without the squat part, this became pretty easy, and I think I started to really get it. Lanette advised that I try jumping into a handstand. Well, not jumping exactly, more like a mini-hop. I tried it once, but it was a little too foreign for me to try out in the middle of such a workout. For those of you like me interested in learning how to progress to the freestanding handstand pushup, here is a great website that teaches you how to get progress to ful freestanding handstand.
I ended up doing 4 rounds in 61:23, with the nerfing of the inverse burbee for the last round. I might have bitten off more than I can chew, but I'm glad that I tried, and I would've done a fifth round if the next class hadn't started.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Max power clean
Well today was max power clean, we warmed up and then tried 1 rep 7 times. I got up to 185, but it wasn't pretty. Although I've never found my max before, the heaviest I've hang cleaned before today is 150 lbs three times about a month ago. Can't really compare the results, but I definitely think it's an improvement, and I know I can go heavier.
My technique wasn't perfect, I was having some difficulty with keeping my stance, not moving my feet. I also think I started too light today, but now that I have an idea of how strong I am I'll be better able to push myself.
We also had a gasser afterwards, it felt good:
10 minutes AMRAP
7 med ball squat cleans 20# ball
7 push ups
Think I got 13 rounds in, maybe 12. Jerry kept telling me to lower my hips, so I think I was trying to use my back on the light weight. I think after a while I got my hips down, and I really tried to emphasize the hip extension to shrug, resulting in a weightless med ball.
Today reminded me of how important it is to know my personal records, so I've decided to post them here now. Now I know that almost none of them are actual 1 rep max, but that's because I've yet to find out. If I've forgotten any exercise let me know.
front squat
150 (3 rep max) done on 9/13/2008
hang power clean
185 (1 rep max) done on 11/10/2008
squat clean
90 (30 times w/ Badger) done on 11/70/08
clean and jerk
165 (1 rep max) done on 10/30/2008
deadlift
265 lbs (strained my back on this one) done on 7/13/2008
overhead snatch
95 (5 rep max) done on 9/26/2008
ring dips
5 reps 9/17/2008
pull ups
16 reps 9/6/2008
Strict press
95 9/3/2008
Jerry also talked to me about one more thing that's affecting my technique: my confidence. To be honest, I'm simply not used to being this strong. It's a little tough wrapping my mind around the fact that what was once tough might be easy. I just need to get aggressive, to take that weight and make it mine, to own it.
My technique wasn't perfect, I was having some difficulty with keeping my stance, not moving my feet. I also think I started too light today, but now that I have an idea of how strong I am I'll be better able to push myself.
We also had a gasser afterwards, it felt good:
10 minutes AMRAP
7 med ball squat cleans 20# ball
7 push ups
Think I got 13 rounds in, maybe 12. Jerry kept telling me to lower my hips, so I think I was trying to use my back on the light weight. I think after a while I got my hips down, and I really tried to emphasize the hip extension to shrug, resulting in a weightless med ball.
Today reminded me of how important it is to know my personal records, so I've decided to post them here now. Now I know that almost none of them are actual 1 rep max, but that's because I've yet to find out. If I've forgotten any exercise let me know.
front squat
150 (3 rep max) done on 9/13/2008
hang power clean
185 (1 rep max) done on 11/10/2008
squat clean
90 (30 times w/ Badger) done on 11/70/08
clean and jerk
165 (1 rep max) done on 10/30/2008
deadlift
265 lbs (strained my back on this one) done on 7/13/2008
overhead snatch
95 (5 rep max) done on 9/26/2008
ring dips
5 reps 9/17/2008
pull ups
16 reps 9/6/2008
Strict press
95 9/3/2008
Jerry also talked to me about one more thing that's affecting my technique: my confidence. To be honest, I'm simply not used to being this strong. It's a little tough wrapping my mind around the fact that what was once tough might be easy. I just need to get aggressive, to take that weight and make it mine, to own it.
Sunday, November 9, 2008
missed it today...
Well, I just woke up, so I missed today's workout. Can't say I'm too happy right now; this is the first time I've missed a Sunday workout while I'm in town. I couldn't get to sleep until like 4 last night, so when the 7;30 alarm went off today I just hit the off button and rolled back to sleep, figuring I was too tired to really workout. Now that I am up, I feel like I just cheated myself. Oh well, nothing I can do about it now (except maybe go for a run).
...Speaking of running, I had perhaps my best 400m sprint ever on Tuesday. Justin and I sometimes find ourselves finishing workouts with similar times, and Tuesday was one of those days. His upper body strength is much better than mine, so he finished the second round of HSPU/ring dips/push ups before me. So when I started the 400m run, he had probably a 50m head start. I made it my goal to try to catch up to him, and as I left the building I stumbled I was so pumped in trying to sprint my ass off. And when Justin looked back to see who was running so hard, I yelled out "I'm coming for you!" He, in turn, kicked his run up a notch. Suddenly this run wasn't a suck run, it was like a game of tag, it was fun. We ran with such enthusiam that a couple we ran by wasn't sure if I was trying to mug Justin or not. We basically tied in reaching the door, but the outcome wasn't what was important to me, it was the fact that after already running 1800m I was able to sprint 400m and had fun doing it.
...Speaking of running, I had perhaps my best 400m sprint ever on Tuesday. Justin and I sometimes find ourselves finishing workouts with similar times, and Tuesday was one of those days. His upper body strength is much better than mine, so he finished the second round of HSPU/ring dips/push ups before me. So when I started the 400m run, he had probably a 50m head start. I made it my goal to try to catch up to him, and as I left the building I stumbled I was so pumped in trying to sprint my ass off. And when Justin looked back to see who was running so hard, I yelled out "I'm coming for you!" He, in turn, kicked his run up a notch. Suddenly this run wasn't a suck run, it was like a game of tag, it was fun. We ran with such enthusiam that a couple we ran by wasn't sure if I was trying to mug Justin or not. We basically tied in reaching the door, but the outcome wasn't what was important to me, it was the fact that after already running 1800m I was able to sprint 400m and had fun doing it.
Saturday, November 8, 2008
Thursday and Badger on Friday
Thursday was a tough workout. Appearently it was set up a little differently for the morning class, but I think everyone was ready to go home early so it was modified to be a little tougher, but not as prolonged. The WOD:
5 rounds
250m row
10 box jumps
10 barbell snatch (85#)
10 slam ball
10 burbees
20 abmat
I managed to do it in 25:31, but man this was tough. I think one of the benefits of working out every day is that my body is starting to really "get it" with regards to engaging my core muscles. On a related note I think one reason why I haven't progressed in strict chin strength like I expected is because I now use a kip that relies more on core strength than lat strength to get up to the bar.
But I digress, I really think these past five days of crossfit have already made a difference in my use of the core muscles. I've already noticed a difference in the appearance of my abs, which is freaking awesome. However, I'm finding that the down side of constantly engaging your core muscles when they aren't use to it is a sense of imminent puking while working out. I'm not complaining, rather, I think this is a good thing because it shows me that I'm using my core not like I have in the past, but like I should from now on.
However, the sensation is taking some getting used to. On Thursday I felt my core muscles twitching around my stomach, just waiting to completely crush my stomach, resulting in me up-chucking its contents. It was a horrible feeling that started after the second round. Not wanting to puke, I slowed down a little, but not too much. What I am happy about is that I continued to rely on my core strength during the workout and not on my hip flexor strength, despite the sensation.
Friday's workout.
Friday was my old friend Badger. I've attempted this workout twice before, once in June and again in August. Both times I did not do it Rx'd. Here is how I did:
June (first post injury workout)
Two rounds
30 squat clean (45#)
20 pull ups
800m run
32 minutes - 16 min per round
August (first week back from 2 week vacay)
Three rounds
30 squat cleans (75#)
30 pull ups (this is when I tore up my hands)
800m run
61:23 - 20:28 per round
Friday
Three rounds
30 squat cleans (90#)
30 pull ups
800m run
53:14 - 17:45 per round
So that's an improvement of 8:09 while increasing the weight of the squat clean by 15#s in two months. Another way to look at it is that my squat clean went up by 50 lbs, squat clean endurance went up 33%, and my pull-up endurance went up 44% in four months. All in all I'm happy with the improvement.
Now that I've finally done badger Rx'd, I'll get an even better comparison the next time I do it. Like Thursday's workout, the whole time I felt like I was going to puke; I've never had such a sensation before. It felt like there was a towel tied around my stomach, and every once in a while it would suddenly tighten, as if someone had jerked one of the ends of the knot of the towel. Guess this is what happens when you start using your core in every single exercise like you should.
5 rounds
250m row
10 box jumps
10 barbell snatch (85#)
10 slam ball
10 burbees
20 abmat
I managed to do it in 25:31, but man this was tough. I think one of the benefits of working out every day is that my body is starting to really "get it" with regards to engaging my core muscles. On a related note I think one reason why I haven't progressed in strict chin strength like I expected is because I now use a kip that relies more on core strength than lat strength to get up to the bar.
But I digress, I really think these past five days of crossfit have already made a difference in my use of the core muscles. I've already noticed a difference in the appearance of my abs, which is freaking awesome. However, I'm finding that the down side of constantly engaging your core muscles when they aren't use to it is a sense of imminent puking while working out. I'm not complaining, rather, I think this is a good thing because it shows me that I'm using my core not like I have in the past, but like I should from now on.
However, the sensation is taking some getting used to. On Thursday I felt my core muscles twitching around my stomach, just waiting to completely crush my stomach, resulting in me up-chucking its contents. It was a horrible feeling that started after the second round. Not wanting to puke, I slowed down a little, but not too much. What I am happy about is that I continued to rely on my core strength during the workout and not on my hip flexor strength, despite the sensation.
Friday's workout.
Friday was my old friend Badger. I've attempted this workout twice before, once in June and again in August. Both times I did not do it Rx'd. Here is how I did:
June (first post injury workout)
Two rounds
30 squat clean (45#)
20 pull ups
800m run
32 minutes - 16 min per round
August (first week back from 2 week vacay)
Three rounds
30 squat cleans (75#)
30 pull ups (this is when I tore up my hands)
800m run
61:23 - 20:28 per round
Friday
Three rounds
30 squat cleans (90#)
30 pull ups
800m run
53:14 - 17:45 per round
So that's an improvement of 8:09 while increasing the weight of the squat clean by 15#s in two months. Another way to look at it is that my squat clean went up by 50 lbs, squat clean endurance went up 33%, and my pull-up endurance went up 44% in four months. All in all I'm happy with the improvement.
Now that I've finally done badger Rx'd, I'll get an even better comparison the next time I do it. Like Thursday's workout, the whole time I felt like I was going to puke; I've never had such a sensation before. It felt like there was a towel tied around my stomach, and every once in a while it would suddenly tighten, as if someone had jerked one of the ends of the knot of the towel. Guess this is what happens when you start using your core in every single exercise like you should.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Max Effort, third day in a row of Crossfit
Thankfully, there was no press movement today:
5 rounds:
Weighted Chins
Max effort x 5
Front squat x Max reps
My best effort with the chin ups was 5 reps with a 20lb weight vest, and I got 55 reps of 115 lbs. I felt like I've gotten a lot weaker, but I think this is all me expecting more from myself. When I compare this to when we first did this workout about four months ago, I see that I've gotten stronger, albeit only slightly. Back then my best chin was 5 reps with 12lbs, and although I started banging out 10 reps of 135lbs, after the second round I had to drop to 95 lbs. So I have improved, but I am surprised at how little I've increased. But I also know that I've improved in technique as well as conditioning, and those needed more improvement then my outright strength.
Speaking of technique, Jerry made a great point about front squats and keeping one's core tight. The abs, when kept tight, work like a biological weight belt. When you hit the bottom of the squat, you should be able to use your core to start your drive back up. Near the end I just couldn't focus enough on finish out more reps. Again, it's that mental part that's giving me trouble. However, I'm sure with time and practice this stuff will become second nature, and then I can start focus on other things, like getting stronger.
5 rounds:
Weighted Chins
Max effort x 5
Front squat x Max reps
My best effort with the chin ups was 5 reps with a 20lb weight vest, and I got 55 reps of 115 lbs. I felt like I've gotten a lot weaker, but I think this is all me expecting more from myself. When I compare this to when we first did this workout about four months ago, I see that I've gotten stronger, albeit only slightly. Back then my best chin was 5 reps with 12lbs, and although I started banging out 10 reps of 135lbs, after the second round I had to drop to 95 lbs. So I have improved, but I am surprised at how little I've increased. But I also know that I've improved in technique as well as conditioning, and those needed more improvement then my outright strength.
Speaking of technique, Jerry made a great point about front squats and keeping one's core tight. The abs, when kept tight, work like a biological weight belt. When you hit the bottom of the squat, you should be able to use your core to start your drive back up. Near the end I just couldn't focus enough on finish out more reps. Again, it's that mental part that's giving me trouble. However, I'm sure with time and practice this stuff will become second nature, and then I can start focus on other things, like getting stronger.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
My 100th Post
Yesterday's WOD was a nightmare. I focused on my greatest weakness, upper body press.
1000m run
21 Hand stand pushups
21 ring dips
21 push ups
800m run
15 HSPU
15 ring dips
15 push ups
400m run
9 HSPU
9 Ring dips
9 push ups
I'd call this one Achilles because 1) it would take a Greek hero to do this with ease (or Stacey) and 2) it focuses on the Achilles heel of my fitness. This was as about as tough as I expected. The run was really nice, I finished the 1000m ahead of everyone else, which felt awesome. I still can't do a HSPU, the best I can do is like a half of one. However, I'm getting better and better at doing shrugs while freestanding, without help from a wall. I managed to get all 21 ring dips the first time, but I was so spent that I had to just get negatives for the last two rounds. Pushups, surprisingly, were the easiest of the three. I tried a slightly wider stance so I could use more pec and less tricep.
I'm extremely excited that I can now attend crossfit at 5pm for all five weekdays. I swear I can already see a difference. To see how much of a difference this will make, here's a comparison
Working out SMWF:
16 workouts a month (4 weeks/28 days)
12 restdays
$12.32 a class
Working out SMTWTF:
24 workouts a month
4 restdays
$8.21 a class
1. Will no longer have to take off my shoes, will lower my badger time
2. Will have fixed pull up bars, which should lead to a faster time on badger, fran, etc.
3. We will have back squat capability.
1000m run
21 Hand stand pushups
21 ring dips
21 push ups
800m run
15 HSPU
15 ring dips
15 push ups
400m run
9 HSPU
9 Ring dips
9 push ups
I'd call this one Achilles because 1) it would take a Greek hero to do this with ease (or Stacey) and 2) it focuses on the Achilles heel of my fitness. This was as about as tough as I expected. The run was really nice, I finished the 1000m ahead of everyone else, which felt awesome. I still can't do a HSPU, the best I can do is like a half of one. However, I'm getting better and better at doing shrugs while freestanding, without help from a wall. I managed to get all 21 ring dips the first time, but I was so spent that I had to just get negatives for the last two rounds. Pushups, surprisingly, were the easiest of the three. I tried a slightly wider stance so I could use more pec and less tricep.
I'm extremely excited that I can now attend crossfit at 5pm for all five weekdays. I swear I can already see a difference. To see how much of a difference this will make, here's a comparison
Working out SMWF:
16 workouts a month (4 weeks/28 days)
12 restdays
$12.32 a class
Working out SMTWTF:
24 workouts a month
4 restdays
$8.21 a class
This will increase the number of times I workout per four weeks by 33% and lower my class cost average by about the same amount. More importantly, I think this will make a huge difference in increasing my performance because outside of crossfit I do nothing. Meaning, I have a deskjob, I don't play a sport (for now) and I don't go to the pto gym because I don't know what will be coming up the next day. That reminds me, I should cancel my gym membership sometime soon.
This increase won't just make me stronger, but it will expose me to much more opportunities to work on my technique as well as measure my fitness. For example, last week and three weeks ago Jerry had us work on our max clean and jerk, but because it was done on a Thursday, the 5p class never had that experience.
The reasons for the combining of classes is related to Jerry getting his new gym, and it got me to thinking: what will it be like with no blue room? Here's some differences I've thought about:1. Will no longer have to take off my shoes, will lower my badger time
2. Will have fixed pull up bars, which should lead to a faster time on badger, fran, etc.
3. We will have back squat capability.
This also touches on something else I've been thinking about. Although I love crossfit, I feel like I should try something else out in addition to xfit. Crossfit is to get yourself into the best shape of your life, but a sport/activity lets you put your althetic-ness to work. I've thought about joining Jiu-jistsu, but I'm also interested in seeing how rusty my soccer skills are, or maybe try out something else. Whatever the case, I'm starting to look for ways to put my new strength to work.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Into to the sumo deadlift highpull
Well, it was good to be back. The WOD:
10 rounds or 30 min
100#s
5 squat thruster
7 hang power clean
9 sumo deadlift high pull
I did 7 or 8 rounds before time ran out. This wod made me feel really rusty, like nothing felt very natural. In addition, what slowed me down wasn't really me being weak, but having improper technique causing my lower back to start hurting.
Haven't done thrusters in a while, so it took a bit on an adjustment to go from the rack position to the overhead position. The hang power clean was definitely the easiest, but I couldn't really figure out how to engage my hips, at least it felt that way.
The
sumo dlhp was what got me. I mean, just look at this picture: I'm uneven, looks like I'm not keeping my core tight, I only have one of my scapula back, looks like I'm curling my feet inwards, and I'm pulling with my arms before my legs are straight and have engaged my hips. I just couldn't get it to feel like one of my favorite exercises, the kettlebell high pull. I kept front squatting it. I started to feel the strain on my back, which slowed me down a lot. That part was really frustrating, my first round time was like 1:50, but after like the second round my back started to tighten up, slowing me down a lot. I felt like I could do the rx'd weight without hurting my back, as long as I had proper form, so I didn't lighten the load. I also felt like I was capable of doing correct form, I just had to "get it".
Concerning form, with thrusters I really feel something going on with my right hip. It wasn't really pain, it felt more like now that my hips are balanced, some muscles aren't used to working correctly. When I was at the bottom of a squat, I took apicture in my mind of what my body looked like. What I saw was the slight weakness in my right hip causing me to have some bad posture, which engaged my lower right back, emphasizing the strain.
After reading crossfit virtuosity's entry about breathing, I really focused on keeping my core tight while exhaling during the workout. I think helped a lot when I got it right. It's hard to use your back if you're keeping your core tight :)
I think after doing some more sumo dlhps, I'll be ok.
10 rounds or 30 min
100#s
5 squat thruster
7 hang power clean
9 sumo deadlift high pull
I did 7 or 8 rounds before time ran out. This wod made me feel really rusty, like nothing felt very natural. In addition, what slowed me down wasn't really me being weak, but having improper technique causing my lower back to start hurting.
Haven't done thrusters in a while, so it took a bit on an adjustment to go from the rack position to the overhead position. The hang power clean was definitely the easiest, but I couldn't really figure out how to engage my hips, at least it felt that way.
The
sumo dlhp was what got me. I mean, just look at this picture: I'm uneven, looks like I'm not keeping my core tight, I only have one of my scapula back, looks like I'm curling my feet inwards, and I'm pulling with my arms before my legs are straight and have engaged my hips. I just couldn't get it to feel like one of my favorite exercises, the kettlebell high pull. I kept front squatting it. I started to feel the strain on my back, which slowed me down a lot. That part was really frustrating, my first round time was like 1:50, but after like the second round my back started to tighten up, slowing me down a lot. I felt like I could do the rx'd weight without hurting my back, as long as I had proper form, so I didn't lighten the load. I also felt like I was capable of doing correct form, I just had to "get it".Concerning form, with thrusters I really feel something going on with my right hip. It wasn't really pain, it felt more like now that my hips are balanced, some muscles aren't used to working correctly. When I was at the bottom of a squat, I took apicture in my mind of what my body looked like. What I saw was the slight weakness in my right hip causing me to have some bad posture, which engaged my lower right back, emphasizing the strain.
After reading crossfit virtuosity's entry about breathing, I really focused on keeping my core tight while exhaling during the workout. I think helped a lot when I got it right. It's hard to use your back if you're keeping your core tight :)
I think after doing some more sumo dlhps, I'll be ok.
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Halloween in Bloomington Indiana
So I decided to go as a Prom Date Ken doll for this Halloween. To keep this somewhat xfit relevant, I thankfully avoided most of the zone-unfriendly candy that was lying around at the various parties. ...I also really impressed some people at one party by doing like 10 chin ups. There was a chin up bar in one of the doorjambs, so I just grabbed a hold and started doing them. Now that I think about it, there really was like a cheering section. I don't know if they were making fun of me, but I was just too tipsy to really care.
I really do think about some day starting up a gym in Bloomington (or Madrid). I would worry about turnover rate running a gym in a college town, but I imagine there would be a lot of grad students out there who would love it (I assume undergrads are too young and caught up in the weight lifting mentality, perhaps incorrectly).
I also had a dream the other night about crossfit. Jerry was holding a special event/wod to rasie money for charity, and part of it involved running across town, like in a marathon. In my dreamI was running as hard as I could, and my form was real low and I felt like I was kicking the ground, as if I was pushing or pulling a heavy load.
Even though my trip back to Indiana only cost me two days in the blue room, I can't wait for tomorrow to get one step closer to getting into better shape.
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