Fun & Sun, here I come!

21-15-9 rep rounds for time of:

Box jumps (24″ box)
Kettlebell swings (Men 55 lbs, Women 35 lbs)
Sumo Deadlift High Pull (Men 95 lbs, Women 65 lbs)

My time: 9:54
(Rx Weights, 20" box)

A fun, short workout. Could have been shorter if I could speed up my box jumps. I fell once this time and it scared the heck out of me, but I just kept going. I was pushing hard to get under 10 minutes, and I succeeded! And then look at everyone getting these 5 & 6 minute times. Man, I'm slow... but I'm trying like crazy! I'm giving 100%.

Run warm-up (rest 1 min btwn runs)

400m 1:54
200m 0:48
400m 1:52
200m 0:51
400m 1:55

Total time: 11:20
Total run time: 7:20 - PR by 2 sec!

And now, I'm off to Texhoma for some fun in the sun. Gonna have some bad carbs and some good beer with some great friends!

For time:

1000 Meter row
30 Overhead squats (Men 135 lbs, Women 85 lbs)
1200 Meter run

My time: 19:48 Rx

I like this workout! I had figured on it taking me around 25 minutes, though in hindsight that was a bit long. If I could have kept from breaking up the OHS so much, my time would've been much better. Broke them up 10-5-5-5-5. On the first half of the run, my legs felt like lead. But on the second half I felt great. Running actually felt so good this morning, I contemplated running some more when I got home, but decided I'd better get ready for work, since I need my job. I'll do some running next week when I'm on vacation.

Strength component this morning OHS we were supposed to find our 15 rep max. I failed at 9 reps. I should have dropped weight and tried 15, but oh well.


5 @ 55
3 @ 65
2 @ 75
9 @ 85

The Dress

Thanks to CrossFit and Primal Blueprint, today I am wearing "The Dress".

"The Dress" is a classic little black dress I bought 9 years ago to wear to my 20th HS class reunion. A former male co-worker dubbed it "The Dress", and told me I wasn't allowed in his office on the days I was wearing "The Dress" because he might get in trouble for sexual harassment. Not to worry, however, because over the years it got pushed to the back of my closet. In all honestly it was because I got too big/fat for it, even though I was "going to the gym" five days a week.

Now, after a couple years of CrossFit, and 3 months of eating Primal, I'm once again wearing "The Dress" and it feels great!!

Thank you CrossFit!

****

WOD:

As many rounds as possible in 15 minutes of:

5 Burpees
10 Toes to bar
15 Wall ball shots (Men 20 lbs, Women 14 lbs)

My score: 4 rounds + 9 wall ball shots

DB Shoulder Press:
5 @ 15
3 @ 20
2 @ 25
3 x 5 @ 30

Also worked on ring dips, false grip pull ups and muscle up progressions.

Power Cleans & HSPU

3 Rounds for time of:

15 Handstand push-ups
15 Power cleans (Men 155 lbs, Women 95 lbs)

My time: 14:07
Rx weight, Mod HSPU - head to 2 abmats

This was a quick/fun workout. My form could use some improvement on the power cleans - mainly releasing the hook grip at the right time. When I get it right, it feels good, but when I don't release early enough, I know it. My collarbones have permanent bruises. But I'm getting there.

HSPU, I'm still not there yet, but it's feeling better, touching my head to the abmat most of the time. Had a couple where my arms failed and I was in a head-stand position, and kipped out of it into a handstand, but I couldn't remain upright. Need to work on that, I guess one leg or arm was doing more work and made me go sideways? Hmm...

"The Airforce WOD"

20 Thrusters (Men 95 lbs, Women 65 lbs)
20 Sumo Deadlift High Pull (Men 95 lbs, Women 65 lbs)
20 Push Jerks (Men 95 lbs, Women 65 lbs)
20 Overhead Squats (Men 95 lbs, Women 65 lbs)
20 Front Squats (Men 95 lbs, Women 65 lbs)

With 4 Burpees on the minute every minute.

My Time: 14:55 Rx (PR by 3:52)
Compare to Feb 25, 2010

OK...wow! So I got in my car this morning and looked at my phone as I got to the main road. There was a text from B saying this is the one WOD she will never do again and she'd see me tomorrow. I knew instantly what the WOD was. Stricken with fear and dread, I kept driving. I kept thinking of reasons to turn around and go home: I left my gloves, I left my towel, I hate burpees, this WOD will kill me. (Dramatic much?) My stomach knotted up and I wanted to go back home, but I knew I would be kicking myself later if I did. So, I decided to just suck it up and go do the workout. It didn't kill me last time, it wont' kill me this time. (Note: Just for the record, it almost killed me last time!)

We worked on back squats for our strength component today, and I was able to focus on that (I love back squats!) and keep my mind off the impending WOD. I got pretty nervous when it was time to start, though. Not a big fan of the huge adrenaline rush I get sometimes. Anyway, I was able to just jump right into the workout and give it my all. And, surprisingly, I managed to:

(1) not die,
(2) not cry (though I was tempted)
(3) finish, and
(4) beat my previous time.

So, I'll call this one a success. And, I'm not quite so afraid of this one anymore. And I set a new PR.

Credit where credit is due, the coaching I receive at CFJ has made a world of difference in my strength, both mentally and physically. Granted, I am still light years away from being as fast or strong as most people at this gym, but I have improved so much in the last 7 1/2 months, and it never would have happened if it weren't for Breck. Best coach ever!!!

Back Squats
5 @ 85
3 @ 115
2 @ 135
5 @ 155
5 @ 160
ran out of time and didn't do last set of 5 (wanted to go for 170)...next time!!

Fun times ahead!

I'm so ready for a weekend; so ready to not wake up at 4:30 am!

Tomorrow I will sleep in just a tiny bit, and then it's up and at 'em to do a few things in the kitchen in preparation for a "girls day" at the pool. Four of the girls from my original CrossFit group are coming over to swim, eat and catch up on what's happening in our lives. We all started CF in 2008 together at a "bootcamp", and three of us are still regularly doing CrossFit.

I've managed to keep my food contributions for tomorrow as primal as possible. I've made some miniature lemon tarts (all primal ingredients), and will put some blueberries with them. I'll also have some caprese salad skewers - miniature fresh mozzarella, with basil & cherry tomatoes from my garden.



******

Oh, yeah! Almost forgot this is my CrossFit blog...not a food blog. So, without further ado, here is the WOD:

Run 400 meters
50 Squats
50 Sit-ups
Run 400 meters
40 Squats
40 Sit-ups
Run 400 meters
30 Squats
30 Sit-ups
Run 400 meters
20 Squats
20 Sit-ups
Run 400 meters
10 Squats
10 Sit-ups

My time: 22:46

My running was a bit sluggish, but other than that, I felt great and pushed hard. I loved this workout.

Strength component today was squat snatch:
5 @ 55
3 @ 65
2 @ 70
1 @ 75
1 @ 80
1 @ 85

TGIF!!

Burpee Box Jumps?

Burpee Box Jumps...what kind of evil hybrid nonsense is this to be throwing at a person at 5 am? Take my two least favorite elements of CrossFit and combine them, and there you have it. The only thing that could make this worse would be if they were wallball-burpee-box jumps. (Which I sincerely hope is logistically impossible.) Actually the burpee box jumps were not that bad...they just sound bad.

WOD:

As many rounds as possible in 12 minutes of:

3 Power cleans (Men 185 lbs, Women 115 lbs)
6 Burpee box jumps (Men 24 ” box, Women 20″ box)
12 Kettlebell swings (Men 70 lb kettlebell, Women 45 lb kettlebell)

My rounds: 4 + 3 power cleans
(scaled to 105 on power cleans)

OK, I hate it that I scaled down on this. It was just a 10 lb difference. But when we went to try one rep just before the WOD started, I failed on the rep. And as Breck pointed out...if it's hard now, it's gonna be harder in a few minutes. So, I scaled down. I did get in a great workout, and pushed as hard and fast as I could go. So, mission accomplished. Next time, I do Rx weight. No scaling back!!!!

Strength component today was Power Cleans and (yay) I hit a new 1 rep PR! (And a good reason why I shouldn't have scaled. Ah, live & learn.)

5@ 75
3 @ 85
2 @ 105
1 @ 115
1 @ 120
1 @ 125 (PR!)

Ouch - Dumbbell Thrusters!

4 rounds for time of:
400 meter run
15 dumbbell thrusters (Men 1/2 body weight, Women 1/3 body weight)

My time: 17:02 Rx
Used 25 lb dumbbells (Body weight = 146)

This wasn't a bad workout, but once again I came in dead last. I was pushing myself the entire time. I expected I could do the thrusters unbroken, but surprisingly I couldn't! I was thinking about Nancy - it's 5 rounds and has heavier weights and I can do it unbroken. But Nancy uses an OHS, which to me is easier than DB thrusters, so my thinking was flawed there. Oh well, I have something to shoot for next time this WOD comes around - faster and perhaps unbroken.

During the warmup this morning we worked on muscle up progressions. For me, what that really means is trying to get a decent ring dip, and doing a muscle up progression from my knees. I did several of each, though my ring dips are not deep enough. We also did ring pull ups as part of the progression. I've got a bet with myself that I can get a muscle up within one year. A lofty goal, perhaps...but a girl has to have some goals, eh?

"Amanda"

3 rounds for time, 9-7-5 reps:

Muscle up
Squat Snatch (men 135 lbs, women 95 lbs)

My time: 23:13
scaled to 65 # on snatch
did 27-21-15 pull ups and dips to sub for muscle ups

*****

It was great to see Breck back from the games!! If I were him I'm sure I'd be in pieces....picture a teddy bear with an eye hanging by a thread and stuffing coming out...that's what I'd be like if I went through even half the workouts he did. But he didn't seem any worse for the wear! What an amazing athlete. I have a whole new respect for him, and feel fortunate to have him coaching me.

Today I was borderline on whether or not I should have even gone to the gym. Saturday night I started getting a migraine. Sunday I thought maybe it was going to ease up, but in the middle of the night it escalated to full blown misery, and when the migraine meds failed to work at all, I started on the narcotics, which I totally hate doing. But better than a handgun, eh? Yesterday I made it 3 hours at work and headed home with another prescription. Several doses of that and a good night of rest seem to have done the trick. It's down to maybe a 2 on a scale of 1-10.

See, the trouble with taking all those pills is, they stay in your system for a while. I feel sluggish, light-headed and dull. This morning at the gym I was dizzy every time I did a lift. I went light on the weights, and I was obviously slow. Thankfully the headache didn't return. I fail to see how people get addicted to pain meds. I cannot imagine feeling like that all the time. Yuck!!!

Anyway, I'm looking forward to tomorrow; I should be 100% again.

Wow!

I was glued to either my iphone or a computer most of the weekend, keeping tabs on The Games. The excitement was nothing short of incredible!!

We had people over for a pool party on Saturday and it was interesting to me that most of them would stop, look at the games, and just not really "get it". And it confused me. I mean, here are some of the most fit people on earth competing in extremely demanding events and people just looked at it and shrugged.

Then it occurred to me, they were not into it simply because they didn't know anything about the CF workouts; no idea what goes into it or the amazing feeling of finishing a WOD, or how totally fit those competitors are.

The more I watched, the more awed I became, knowing that I share the competitors' obsession for the sport of CrossFit. Although the Games competitors are far above the level of fitness that I am, it made me extremely proud to be part of the HUGE sisterhood/brotherhood that is CrossFit.

And geeky as it might sound, I got teary-eyed more than once watching people struggle to get one more rep, or victoriously finish a WOD and collapse to the ground or high-five someone next to them. Every competitor in the games is a hero and an inspiration to me!

So Excited!!

I'll be glued to my computer all weekend - I intend to keep the live feed of The Games up and running so I can keep an eye on all the action. Breck Berry, the owner and coach of CrossFit Jenks, is competing in the games for his fourth time. He is one of just a small group of people to have competed in every CF Games. I know he'll do well, and can't wait to see how it all turns out! Though I will never be the elite athlete that the Games competitors are, I am certainly addicted to all that is CrossFit, and inspired by every second of the competition. Let the games begin!!!


In Breck's absence, some of the classes were canceled, one of them being the 5 am. Ginny King, Certified CrossFit Badass and trainer at CF Jenks, is leading several classes. But the class schedule didn't fit my schedule, so I suggested running at 5 am. (I don't blame you for not getting up that early Ginny!!) Several of the 5am regulars showed up to run this morning. We intended to do a 5k, and did just a tiny bit more. Oh, and I'm using the term "run" loosely. This was really more of a leisurely "jog". Here are the stats and a map:

Started: Jul 16, 2010 5:05:26 AM
Run Time: 45:06
Stopped Time: 1:01
Distance: 3.89 miles
Average: 11:35 /mile
Fastest Pace: 9:36 /mile
Climb: 79 feet
Calories: 539
Official Route: No

That's a really crappy picture, now that I look at it.  But, you get the gist of it.

Oh, I love CrossFit so much...

...just some days I wonder why.

Today, for example. Really I am horrible at Burpees, and seems like I never get any faster. I try. I push. But...they just slow me down, therefore I have developed a particular loathing for them. Not a big fan of Wallball however, I've made my peace with it, just like with box jumps.

So even though today was a nightmare workout for me, there is always something to love about CrossFit, every single day. Today during the warm up we worked on kipping toes-to-bar. I sort of got it, but need more practice. It's always fun to learn something new or make an advancement on a skill. But the very best part of today was the last Burpee! There is nothing better than being finished with Burpees!

See, there is always something to love!

WOD:

5 Rounds for time of:

30 Wall ball shots (Men 20 lb ball, Women 14 lb ball)
15 Burpees

My time: 27:17 Rx

Happy Hump Day!

As many rounds as possible in 20 minutes of:

10 Push-ups
15 Box jumps (Men 24″ box, Women 20″ box)
20 Sit-ups

My rounds: 8 + 3 box jumps

The humidity is really awesome bad this week, but I figure it just makes me sweat more, and that can't be bad, really, now can it? As long as I'm re-hydrating.

Yesterday evening, in my quest to finish these seemingly eternal projects my husband engineers, I was helping him shovel dirt and spread it out. I was literally drenched from head to to in less than 5 minutes.

So, why were we shoveling and spreading dirt?

Because tonight, we get to lay sod. If I had a nickel for every roll of sod I've laid on this same piece of land...well, I wouldn't be rich, but I'd have a shitload of nickels. :)

Anyway, I feel like I've been doing two-a-day's for a while now, with all the landscape work we've been doing. I told him last night "No more projects". Like I really have any say in it. Ha ha!

Actually I'm thankful my husband has such a good eye for landscaping and knows what to do. I'm just an extra set of muscles to help move things around. He's seeing a return on our investment in CrossFit, and taking full advantage of it. Can't blame him, eh? After all, he has to listen to me obsessively talk about CF all the time, he might as well get some good out of it!

Compare to?

For time:

1000 Meter row
20 Handstand Push-ups
15 Deadlifts (Men 315 lbs, Women 205 lbs)
10 Muscle-ups

My time: 17:18
modified HSPU (head to 2 abmats)
subbed 30 pull ups and 30 dips for muscle ups
Rx weight on Deadlifts :)

Compare to 1/29/10: Looks like I slept in that day. So, I'm calling today a PR! *snicker*

I liked this workout a lot. It felt good to do some heavy deadlifts and feel good about my form, etc. My HSPU are feeling a lot better. Need a while longer at this level, before dropping to 1 abmat, but I am feeling stronger with them, and getting closer to a "real" one. One of these days!!

Hard Work!

Saturday my husband and I finished the sidewalk project we've been working on. The cement truck showed up at 6 am. Of course, these things never go smoothly; the cart they use to shuttle loads of cement got bogged down in the yard, tore up the grass, etc., so that slowed us down a bit. Thankfully it was a foggy morning and we were protected from the brutal sun for while.

Six hours later, we finished the job! Sore, sweaty, worn out and officially retired from cement work, we rewarded ourselves with some cold beers and a nice Ron's cheeseburger.

Here is the finished product. We did a salt finish on it to match the pool deck.


























Sunday I rested by floating around the pool for several hours. And today...back at CrossFit for some more fun and games!!

Today's WOD:

5 Rounds for time of:
10 Dumbbell squat cleans (dumbbells must touch the floor each rep)
10 Dumbbell overhead walking lunges
10 Dumbbell thrusters

My time: 15:02, using 15 lb dumbbells

I really enjoyed this workout. I probably could have gone a tiny bit heavier, but those overhead walking lunges were a killer. I wouldn't mind doing this one again; it was really pretty fun.

Strength component today was Overhead Squats:
5 @ 65
3 @ 75
2 @ 85
3 sets of 5 @ 95

Rows and rows...

...of big dark clouds. I'm tired of this rain and the dreary dark skies! However, I didn't mind the rowing workout today. I didn't set any PR's, but my times were fairly consistent, and I pushed myself on every round. Looking at the "compare" to times, I'm not horribly off track.

WOD:
5 Rounds, each for time of:

500 Meter row
Rest 5 minutes between each round.

My times today:
2:11.2
2:07.8
2:03.1
2:07.0
2:11.7

Compare to 4/6/10

1:56.5 (PR)

1:59.8

2:05.4

2:07.7

2:07.1

It's been a good week. Although, I'm really glad I missed Monday's workout. I've been helping with a sidewalk we're putting in: Digging out clay/dirt. Shoveling gravel. All that, combined with this week at CF have me sore all over! I'm ready for a day of rest, which I'll get on Sunday. Tomorrow we will finish that sidewalk...at 6 am. Ugh!

***Oh I forgot! I hit 14 consecutive pullups today in the warm-up. Yay! ****

TGIF!!

What's a little rain, eh?

This morning at 4:30 am it was pouring down rain, and I really wrestled with the thought of sleeping in or going to the gym. I was so tempted to stay home. See:

Devil yawning on my left shoulder: "Driving a tiny sports car in the rain is dangerous, yo! You'd be a fool to get up out of this nice, soft bed!"
Angel wide awake on my right shoulder: "Get your butt out of bed and go to CrossFit...NOW!"

Uh...yeah, so the Angel wins again. I got up and went in for a big dose of misery...eh, I mean a dose of the wonderful goodness that sustains me and makes me stronger mentally and physically. Yeah... that's really what I mean.

Today's WOD:

5 Rounds for time of:
15 Sumo Deadlift High Pulls (Men 95 lbs, Women 65 lbs)
15 Thrusters (Men 95 lbs, Women 65 lbs)

My time: 17:21 Rx
(Compare to 4/14/10 - 15:46)

Looking at that "compare to" time, perhaps I should have listened to my little left-shoulder devil. *snicker* This is a tough, tough workout! I went back and read over my comments on 4/14 and laughed when I read the "I think I can get faster" part. Honestly, though, I think I CAN get faster. Today was not the day for that to happen, obviously. Next time, perhaps.

Anyway, I'm glad I got up and went to CF, despite the rain and the temptation to sleep in. I am always glad I went! Many days, it's the best part of my day.

******

And now a quote from the CrossFit Facebook page today, which I just loved (it would make a great T-Shirt slogan):

"I work. I learn. I sweat. I love. I hurt. Yeah, this is CrossFit." -- Jason Khalipa, CrossFit Games Champion 2008 and CrossFit affiliate owner

“J.T.”

21-15-9 reps for time of:
Handstand push-ups
Ring dips
Push-ups

My time: 16:44
Modified HSPU: head to 2 ab mats
Subbed bar dips for ring dips

This one just gets harder and harder. I was able to touch my head to the abmat about 50% of the time. This is actually progress. So, there's that. Then, on the dips, last time we did this (April 16) I was using a 1" band, which I'm no longer using. So more progress, even though my time was 3+ minutes longer, I know I'm doing more work.

I really thought I was going to beat B this morning. And on the last round she jumped down there and whipped out those last 9 push ups and beat me by 2 seconds!! Ha ha! Good job B!

We worked on Deadlifts this morning. The past 3 weeks my low back has been really hurting, so I took it "easy". Rather than going for a 1 rep max on the 5-3-2-1-1-1 scheme, I did several sets of 5 at a lighter weight.

10 @ 125 (warm up)
5 @ 155
5 x 4 @ 175

Oh, the humidity!

It was so humid this morning I thought I was going to drown in my sweat! Yuck!

WOD:

As many rounds as possible in 12 minutes of:

5 Burpees
10 Dumbbell split cleans (Men 45 lb, Women 25 lb ) (alternating leg each rep)
20 Sit-ups (hands interlaced behind the head and feet can be anchored with dumbbells)

My rounds: 4 as Rx'd

This was a tough workout, and it didn't help that I smacked myself in the ear with a dumbbell toward the end of the 4th round. Ouch! No damage though....I'm pretty hard-headed.

I didn't eat hardly any carbs yesterday (maybe 55-60 g) trying to compensate for the horrible carb overload from Friday, Saturday & Sunday (which was totally delicious, by the way). In hindsight, I should have had about double that yesterday, as I was weak and light headed through most of the warm up, skills and workout. Live & learn!

Fun Friday

In this workout you will have 4 five minute rounds with a 1 minute break between rounds. Each round consists of a 400 meter run at the start of each round. After you complete the 400 meter run you will have the remaining 5 minutes to complete 1 of the following 4 exercises for max reps in each round. You choose the order of the exercises for each round.

Wall ball shots (Men 20 lb ball, Women 14 lb ball)

Rowing (Calories)

Burpees

Pull-ups

My Total: 110

Burpees: 26
Pull ups: 21
Wall ball: 34
Row: 29

Insert Catchy Title Here

Meh...can't think of a title. Go figure.

WOD:
Complete as many rounds as you can in 20 minutes of:

7 Deadlifts (Men 1.5 x bodyweight, Women 1 x bodyweight)
7 Handstand push-ups (substitute 21 push-ups if you can’t do a handstand push-up)
Post rounds and deadlift load to responses.

My total: 12 rounds + 12 deadlifts,
I used 150 lbs (BW 146 at last weigh)
HSPU MOD: touched head to ab mat on 10 lb plate


The WOD today was tougher than I thought it would be. For some reason 150lbs felt horribly heavy on the first lift. However, once I got a couple rounds in, it didn't seem too bad at all.

I am excited by my progress on HSPU!! I am touching my head to the abmat and able to push back up with no problem and believe I can go to a lower target, although, not to the floor just yet. Still this is major progress for me!

I think this is one of the things that keeps me motivated in CrossFit. Little areas of progress make me want to do more and more. Logically, as I get older, I think I will have to back off in some areas, but right now I'm feeling stronger, so I'm not going to allow age to be a factor until...well, until it becomes a factor. Sounds like a plan to me. ;)

In the warm up today, we repeated the running warm up we did last week, and I improved my time by 15 seconds overall. See!? Progress!

Warm Up:
400m run: 1:49
200m run: 0:49
400m run: 1:54
200m run: 0:51
400m run: 1:59

Total run time 7:22