Monday 02/09/2009

I honestly don't just do one workout a week -- I've just been too lazy to post. Note to self: Get back on it!

WOD: Charge
2-4-6-8-10-8-6-4-2-4-6-8-10 reps of:
Burpee Box Jump
Goblet Squat (40 kg)

WOD: NavySEALs.com CF WOD
Phase I: Preparation
Run 1 mile. O/H Squat skill development w/ PVC pipe or light bar

Phase II: Max ROM & Stabilization

"Overhead - Down low"
5 rounds for time of:

9 one-arm dumbell snatch each arm (35lb) -- subbed 30#
15 Overhead Squat 95lb
21 Burpees

Phase III: Core:
max sit-ups 2 minutes

WOD
(at Ceren's cool garage gym)
Tabata :20/:10
Squats
Pushups
Situps
KB Swings (16 kg)

***

Tuesday 11/25/2008

To Dennis: Happy 16th Birthday, brother!!!!!

WOD
Tabata 00:20 on, 00:10 off
Row
Ball Slam (20#)
Thrusters (65#)
GHD Back Extension
Box Jumps (24")
Elevated Pushups

WOD: Charge
21-18-15-12-9-6-3 reps of:
SDLHP (65#)
Burpees

Time: 10:42

***
"A brother shares childhood memories and grown-up dreams."
- Author Unknown

Saturday 11/22/2008

Keep the Sharons and I accountable on our quest for Healthy Eating here!

WOD
Tabata 00:45 on, 00:15 off
4 rounds of:
Ring Pushups
Power Wheel Rollouts
KB Russian Swing
KB Goblet Squat
KB Snatch (R)
KB Snatch (L)

WOD: Charge
In honor of John F. Kennedy, 35th President of the United States of America, who was assassinated this day in 1963.

Using a 95# barbell, perform 35 reps of each exercise:
Deadlift
Power Clean
Push Press
Overhead Squat
Back Squat

Finish each exercise before moving on to the next.

Time: 22:16

***
Day 5 of the 100 Pushups for 50 Days Challenge!

"Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished."
- Lao Tzu

Wednesday 11/19/2008

I'm entering into my second week of the no refined sugars/no processed carbs challenge. Energy levels have definitely shot up, though they've probably been tempered a little by the late nights over the last few days. That said, going to bed early is probably another resolution I ought to make (though at the rate that work is piling up, it might be a difficult one to stick to).

I've also started another blog for the purposes of tracking my diet/nutrition, recounting the challenges I face when it comes to making (and sticking to) proper dietary choices, and discussing issues related to the realm of food and nutrition. It's aptly titled "Getting off the Crack", which is definitely something that I hope to achieve.

WOD
Tabata: 00:20 on, 00:10 off
DB Full Squat Clean
DB Push Press
DB Front Squat
DB Burpee
DB Renegade Row

Finish 8 rounds of each exercise before moving on to the next.

WOD
30 Muscle-Ups (start in kneeling position)

Still struggling with the transition on the muscle-up. It frustrates me as I definitely have more than adequate strength to perform more than the recommended number of full ROM ring dips and ring pullups, but somehow the combination of the false grip and the dive-through during the transition muddles me up terribly. I learnt an awesome MU progression at the gymnastics cert with Coach Tucker last month, and am working it as hard as I can.

WOD
From CrossFit.com:
"Nicole"
400 m Run*
Max reps Pullups
AMRAP in 20 minutes

*Substituted the run with a 500 m row or 400 jump rope turns.

***
Day 2 of the 100 Pushups for 50 Days Challenge!

"The best day of your life is the one on which you decide your life is your own. No apologies or excuses. No one to lean on, rely on, or blame. The gift is yours - it is an amazing journey - and you alone are responsible for the quality of it. This is the day your life really begins."
- Bob Moawad

Sunday 09/07/2008

WOD
Tabata: 8 Rounds of 00:20 on, 00:10 off.
Complete all sets of an exercise before moving to the next exercise.

KB Russian Swing
BB Thruster (55#)
Box Jump
Ring Row
Row

***
"Difficult things take a long time, impossible things a little longer."
- Author Unknown

Wednesday 06/25/2008

WOD
Tabata this: (00:20 on, 00:10 off)
American KB Swing
Burpee
V-Up
KB Figure 8 Upper Cut
Jump Rope

WOD
4 Rounds of:
5 DB Man Makers (2 x 12.5 kg)
10 Dead Hang Pullups (Reverse Grip)
15 Pushups
20 DB Overhead Swings (17.5 kg)
25 GHD Back Extensions

Another super busy day ahead. Nothing beats a 5:00 am workout, excepting a 4:30 am workout (which I admit is not the most enjoyable of experiences). I need to be in camp by 7:00 am for Commanders' Parade, and will later have to travel to the extreme west of Singapore sometime this evening (my camp is somewhere in the eastern part of SG) for an evening dialogue session. Blah.

***
"Men in general judge more from appearances than from reality. All men have eyes, but few have the gift of penetration."
- Niccolo Machiavelli

Friday 05/30/2009

WOD
Tabata:
Inverted Row
Barbell Squat Jump
Weighted Situp (25#)
Bench Jump
Pushup
Jump Rope

Repeat cycle 8 times, 00:20 on, 00:10 off per exercise.

***
"Punish the body to purify the soul."
-Mark Twight

Monday 05/19/2008

WOD
Tabata:
Jumping Squat with Barbell
Pushup
Jumping Lunge
Shoulder Press with Barbell
Donkey Kick
Overhead DB Swing (40#)

8 Rounds of 00:20 on, 00:10 off.

***
"It is absurd to divide people into good and bad. People are either charming or tedious."
- Oscar Wilde

Tuesday 05/07/2008

WOD
Tabata:
Prisoner Squat
Burpee
Pushup
Donkey Kick
Walking Lunge

8 Rounds of 00:20 on, 00:10 off.

WOD
10 rounds of 5 reps each:
Hang Power Clean (95#)
Dead Hang Pullup
Plyo Pushup
DB Overhead Swing (50#)

Rest 45 sec between rounds.

***
"Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished."
- Lao Tzu

Sunday 03/30/2008

WOD
Tabata:
DB Overhead Swing
Jumping Lunge
Mountain Climber
Jumping Squat
Pushup
Double Under/ Jump Rope

8 Rounds of 00:20 on, 00:10 off.

***
"The easiest way to find something lost around the house is to buy a replacement."
- Author Unknown

Wednesday 03/19/2008

WOD
Tabata: 8 Rounds (00:20 on, 00:10 off)
Jumping Squat
Decline Pushup (feet on bench)
Jumping Lunge
Mountain Climber
Jump Rope/Double Unders
Bench Dip

Note: Perform exercises in a circuit fashion.

***

Tabata Timer - A Godsend?

People on the CrossFit online community have been raving about this new program created by Hans-Christian Sperker - which provides us hardcore workout junkies with one more tool to add to our workout arsenal. Sperker created a nifty Tabata Timer application with a user-friendly, foolproof interface, which could be downloaded to just about any computer (both PCs and Macs) with Java 6. Work/rest intervals can be altered as desired, the timer emits a ringing shriek that's guaranteed to wake the dead when it's time to haul ass, and it even keeps track of the rounds you've done. There's even a version on Sperker's site that can be downloaded to PDAs/mobile devices, just so you won't be able to use the excuse that you don't want to/can't lug your computer around when you go for a workout.

A little more information on the Tabata training methodology for the uninitiated:

***
The Tabata workout is a high-intensity training regimen that produces remarkable results. A Tabata workout is an interval training cycle of 20 seconds of maximum intensity exercise, followed by 10 seconds of rest, repeated without pause 8 times for a total of four minutes.

Credit for this simple but powerful training method belongs to its namesake, Dr. Izumi Tabata and a team of researchers from the National Institute of Fitness and Sports in Tokyo, Japan. Their groundbreaking 1996 study, published in the journal Medicine and Science in Sports & Exercise, provided documented evidence concerning the dramatic physiological benefits of high-intensity intermittent training. After just 6 weeks of testing, Dr. Tabata noted a 28% increase in anaerobic capacity in his subjects, along with a 14% increase in V02Max. (Maximum oxygen consumption). These results were witnessed in already physically fit athletes. The conclusion was that just four minutes of Tabata interval training could do more to boost aerobic and anaerobic capacity than an hour of endurance exercise.

Although Dr. Tabata used a mechanically braked cycle ergometer, you can apply this protocol to almost any exercise. For example, a basic Tabata workout can be performed with sit-ups. The more muscles used the better, so use full knees-bent sit-ups. Sit-up non-stop for 20-second intervals, followed by 10 seconds of rest. Repeat for a total of 8 cycles.

You might ask, "How effective can just 4 minutes of exercise be?" The answer is… extremely effective! You will be amazed at how intense the four minutes of exercise will feel. The intervals tax both your aerobic and anaerobic energy systems. To be clear, this isn't "eight sets of eight," although the goal of doing eight reps in each of the 20-second clusters is about right. Instead it's "as many reps as I can get in" during the twenty seconds, followed by ten seconds rest.

Courtesy of: Tabata Anything - Four Minutes of Pain to Gain
***

Typically, the Tabata workouts in CrossFit are 20-24 minutes long. (Then again, there's nothing typical about CrossFit - I wouldn't be surprised if a 60-minute Tabata workout appeared as a Painstorm in the future...) So that means 5-6 exercises with 4 minutes of work each. The possibilities for exercises in Tabata workouts are limitless - you could do just about anything. Relatively milder options include situps, KB swings - while those who are up for a challenge (or like to gleefully revel in the misery of others) could incorporate burpees, weighted thrusters, weighted jumping squats, or any other total-body movement with a high suck factor, particularly when performed in large amounts with insignificant rest periods. I suggest incorporating Tabata workouts into your training schedule to inject even more variation into your workouts. The Tabata methodology can be used to great benefit in athletic conditioning for just about any sport - for instance, Matt Fitzgerald talked about how triathletes could reap the benefits of short, intense training sessions, by using the Tabata method. Read his article here: Go for Broke with Tabata Intervals.