Friday 01/09/2009

WOD
I can't post this workout because it's Jenn's Secret (and diabolical) Surprise for next Saturday's Charge workout! Jenn, MG, Sandy and I tested it out today. All I can say is that it contained an exercise that I loathe greatly. But I actually surprised myself by knocking them out at a relatively consistent pace. Oh, and that my ass will be sore tomorrow.

Time: 32:13

WOD
NavySEALs.com CF WOD

"Run with Josh"

800m Run
21 Overhead Squats (95#)
42 Pull ups
400m Run
15 Overhead Squats
30 Pull ups
400m Run
9 Overhead Squats
18 Pull ups
800m Run

We subbed 4-minute biking for the 800 m run and 2 minutes for the 400 m run. It was snowing heavily while we were doing this workout, which made it impractical to run. Can't wait till the ergs get in!

Time: 24:30

***
A little snippet from an article on T-Nation that I found quite interesting:

Tricks of the Trade: Get Strong Fast!

Tactic #4: Small Loading

The idea of small loading was brought to my attention by Dr. Mel Siff, and it's another fine psychological mind game. It consists of loading the bar with small plates, and the more confusing the loading is the better.

Normally, if you wanted to load the bar to 225 pounds, most people would put two 45-pounders on each side. With this method, you might put two 25-pound plates, two 10-pound plates, and three 5-pound plates per side, and not necessarily in that order (or even in the same order on both sides).

And it works even better if you have a training partner loading the bar for you since it's harder to mentally calculate the weight.

This method removes the psychological intimidation factor that some people have. With "wheel increments," there's a psychological block that comes from the multiple 45's per side. For some reason, loading the bar with smaller plates is less intimidating and will put you in a more confident mindset.

Do you think this method might work for you? I've seen it work for others (for instance when Sharon F. deadlifted what she thought was 170#, until it turned out to be 185# -- somehow or other there was 5 pounds more on one side too, but that's another story). I've also knowingly loaded more weight on bars sometime for others to lift (without their knowledge, of course), and consequently witnessed them succeeding at weights they hadn't previously thought they could handle. Personally, when I'm working towards one-rep maxes, I also prefer not knowing exactly what's loaded on the bar, and just stepping up and attempting to lift it. That way I don't psych myself out with thoughts of the weight before even performing the lift!

***

Thursday 01/08/2009

Track Workout
W/U: 1 mile easy
Work Sets: 3 x 1,000 m @ LT pace (2:00/400 m)
Times: 4:53/4:56/4:54

Swim Workout
W/U: 500 m easy; 150 m @ 70%
Work Sets: 3 x 300 m
C/D: 500 m (alternating between 100 m with pull buoy/100 m stroke)

WOD
NavySEALs.com CF WOD:

5 Rounds for Time:
30 Box Jumps (24")
20 Thrusters (65#)
10 Deadlifts (185#)

Time: 27:23

***
Need to pop a quick protein snack on the go? Don't reach for protein bars -- while they may be decent on the protein front, they're frequently loaded with sugar and chemicals you can't pronounce. Try jerky instead. Mark's Daily Apple has a nifty recipe for making your own jerky! It'll definitely take a little more time, but you can make a big batch and freeze that. And you'll save some money too!

Wednesday 01/07/2009

WOD: Charge
10-9-8...3-2-1-1-2-3...8-9-10
KB Swings (24 kg)
Situps
Air Squats
Ring Rows

WOD: Kettlebell
8 x 8:
KB 3-Level Swing
KB Burpee (tricep pushup + high pull)
KB Goblet Squat
KB Chest Press

WOD: NavySEALs.com CF WOD
"Rord" on a running clock, do:

100 Bodyweight Back Squats (I used 135#)

Every minute do:

5 Pull ups
10 Push ups

Note: Set countdown timer or use timing partner. Start the clock and start cranking out your back squats. At the minute set the bar down, and get on the pull-up bar then push-ups. As soon as you are done with the push-ups, get back to the squats. Do not re-set the clock, just get as many back squats in as you can in the remaining minute. This workout gets old very fast...that minute seems like 20 seconds. Scale weight if necessary. You can thank Rob for this one - his version had 10 pull-ups, so modify if you want.

Total minutes needed: 17

***
A CrossFit vacation? Who would've thought? And no, I'm not talking about my roadtripping endeavors where I hit up affiliate after affiliate...

If you're really into CrossFit and would love nothing better than to spend a week in the company of Robb Wolf, Mark Rippetoe, and Jeff Tucker, check out this dream vacation.

While I suppose it's a reasonable and perhaps ingenious proposition, the announcement of this certification vacation, coming in the wake of the recent increase in affiliation fees (USD 2k/year, up from USD 1k and previously USD 500), and the already costly price of certifications, seems to point towards an increased interest in profit and money-making on the part of CrossFit. What do you think?

Tuesday 01/06/2009

WOD
25 Wall Balls (14#)
25 Situps
10 Ring Dips (assisted with red band)
20 Knees to Elbows
30 Box Jumps
40 KB Swings (16 kg)
50 Wall Ball Situps (14#)
40 KB Swings
30 Box Jumps
20 Knees to Elbows
10 Ring Dips
25 Situps
25 Wall Balls

WOD: NavySEALs.com CF WOD
“Linda”

For time:
10.9.8.7.6.5.4.3.2.1
Deadlift 1.5x bodyweight -- used 135#
Bench 1x bodyweight -- subbed Push Press (105#)
Clean .75x bodyweight -- used 105#

Note: The clean is from the floor each time. In case there is any confusion, you must complete 10 deadlifts, 10 bench press, 10 cleans then move on to 9,9,9, and down the ladder.

Time: 25:28

***
Random Fact of the Day:
Over the course of American history, more of the consumed saturated fat has been from peanuts than any other source.

Monday 01/05/2009

WOD: Charge
30-20-15-9-5
Back Squats (115#)
Pullups (10 per round)
DB Push Press (30#)
Weighted Stepups (20-inch box/20# DBs)

And then did another variant of the above workout later on in the day:

WOD
30-20-15-9-5
Front Squats (115#)
Pullups (10 per round)
DB Push Press (30#)
Weighted Stepups (10-inch box/30# DBs)

***
Random Read of the Day:
Fresh Start for a New Year? Let’s Begin in the Kitchen

Sunday 01/04/2009

WOD
3 Rounds of:
21 Back Squats (135#)
21 Box Jumps (24")
21 DB Hang Power Snatches- R (30#)
21 DB Hang Power Snatches- L (30#)

Time: 20:55

WOD: Revolution
Spin 20 minutes, followed by -
21-15-9 reps of:
SDLHP (65#)
American KB Swings (20 kg)
KB Goblet Squats (20 kg)

***
Random Fact of the Day:
More than 90% of plane crashes have survivors.

Saturday 01/03/2009

WOD: Charge
10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 reps of:
Burpee Box Jump (20")
Push Jerk (95#)
Wall Ball Situp (14#)

Time: 15:55

WOD: Navy SEALs CF WOD

With a 95# bar, perform as many rounds as possible in 20 min of:
5 Thrusters
7 Hang Power Cleans
10 Sumo Deadlift High Pulls

Total No. of Rounds: 6

***
Random Fact of the Day:
The average person spends about 2 years on the phone in a lifetime.

Friday 01/02/2009

WOD: Navy SEALs CF WOD
"Badger"

50 Back Squat (body weight)
2x sandbag carry up and down 3 flights of stairs and 100m walk
40 Dead lift (body weight)
2x rope climb "hands only"
30 Bench press (body weight)
2x 400m sprint
20 Cleans from the floor (body weight)
1x 3 min wall sit
10 Push Jerk (body weight)

Notes: This workout is Alex's New Years Day workout at USCrossFit. He credits the workout to Marcus " Badger" Dedina of CrossFit Oahu who made him do it on his last day at CFO before joining USCrossFit as head coach. Scale weight and modify as necessary if equipment limited. If no sand-bag or stairs, you can hold two 30 pound dumbbells at chest height and step up onto a 10" object 40x and walk 40 paces. This will equal 1x. If you don't have a rope to climb then do 20 dead hang pull ups.

Weight used: 115# for all exercises; 65# for shoulder press (sub for bench press, since we don't yet have benches).

Time: 37:09

WOD
21-15-9 reps of:
Clean and Jerk (95#)
Barbell Rollout
Pullup

***
Random Fact of the Day:
According to suicide statistics, Monday is the favored day for self-destruction.

Thursday 01/01/2009

WOD:"Death by Thruster"
Inspired by CrossFit's "Death by Pullups"
With a continuously running clock do one thruster the first minute, two thrusters the second minute, three thrusters the third minute... continuing as long as you are able.
Use as many sets each minute as needed.

Total rounds completed: 16

I took 1 min's rest after completing 16 thrusters in the 16th minute, and then went back down the ladder, every minute on the minute.

WOD: "CrossFit Baseball"
Inspired by CrossFit Firebase's Christmas Eve Workout
How many runs can you get in 20 minutes?

1st Base: 10 Jumping Squats

2nd Base: 10 Push Ups

3rd Base: 10 V-Ups

Home Plate: Pick a mystery exercise from the Hopper, and perform 10 reps of that exercise!

Mystery Exercises: DB Hang Squat Clean/ DB Thruster/ DB Push Press/ DB 1-Arm Hang Squat Snatch/ DB 1-Arm Overhead Walking Lunge/ DB Renegade Row + Pushup/ Medicine Ball Clean/ Wall Ball Situp/ American KB Swing/ Pullup/ K2E/ 4-Count Mountain Climbers

***
Random Thing I Did Today:
Watch 5 Back-to-Back Episodes of "Iron Chef America". Allez Cuisine!

So, it's 2009...

... and my theme song for the year is "Make it Mine" by Jason Mraz.

2008 was way more shitty than I'd have liked it to be. I lost faith in a lot of people and things. That being said, I've also discovered who my true friends are, and I'm very grateful for them. I'm glad to leave all the fucked-up messes behind. It's time to claim 2009 as my own, and make it all I want it to be.

Happy New Year, everyone!

***
Wake up, everyone
How can you sleep at a time like this
Unless the dreamer is the real you
Listen to your voice
The one that tells you to taste past the tip of your tongue
Leap and the net will appear

I don't wanna wake before
The dream is over
I'm gonna make it mine
Yes, I... I know it
I'm gonna make it mine
Yes, I'll make it all mine

I keep my life on a heavy rotation
Requesting that it's lifting you up
Up up and away
And over to a table at the Gratitude Cafe

And I am finally there
And all the angels they'll be singing
Ah la la la ah la la ah la la la la la love this

Well, I don't wanna break before
The tour is over
I'm gonna make it mine
That's right, I... I will own it
I'm gonna make it mine
Yes I'll make it all mine

Yes, I will make it all mine
And timing's everything
And this time there's plenty
I am balancing
Careful and steady
And reveling in energy that everyone's emitting

Well, I don't wanna wait no more
No, I wanna celebrate the whole world
I'm gonna make it mine
Because I'm following your joy
I'm gonna make it mine
Because I... I am open
I'm gonna make it mine
That's why... I wanna show it
I'm gonna make it, it mine
Gotta make gotta make gotta make gotta make it make it mine
Oh mine
Yes, I will make it all mine
***

Monday 12/22/2008

WOD
CrossFit Firebase, Orlando, FL
AMRAP in 24 min:
20 Air Squats
10 Tuck Jumps
20 KB Swings
10R/10L KB Snatches

No. of Rounds Completed: 9



WOD
CrossFit Evolution, Longwood, FL
"Fran"
21-15-9 reps of:
Thrusters (65#)
Pullups

Time: 4:25

In the Sunshine State

I'm vacationing in Florida right now, which explains the dearth of posts. So far, I've visited Harbor City CrossFit, CrossFit Palm Beach, CrossFit Delray Beach, CrossFit Broward, CrossFit Affliction, and CrossFit Hardcore -- all in 3 days. Looking forward to hitting up the affiliates in Orlando over the next few days. Will update soon!

Friday 12/05/2008

WOD
From CrossFit Main Site (Thursday 081204):

Five rounds for time of:
50 pound dumbbell, walking lunge, 10 alternating steps
50 pound dumbbell, swing, 15 reps

The instructions for this workout were pretty ambiguous, so I performed the lunges with two 50# DBs (yes, in case you were wondering, they were pretty f%&*ing heavy) at the low carry position. Swings were performed with one 50# DB to full overhead lockout. Perhaps I hadn't noticed the need for torso stabilization as much with lighter weights, but I definitely felt it today. I think weighted lunges are a great exercise for developing core stability! Oh, and heavy weighted lunges beat weighted stepups any day in terms of Ass-Kicking Potential (AKP)*.

*A term created by Keith Wittenstein of CrossFit Virtuosity, and frequently used in the CrossFit circle to objectively quantify the Suck Factor of a particular movement.

Time: 10:42

WOD
From NavySEALS.com:

"Ladder of Death"

Thrusters (Rx'd: 65#)
Pull-ups

Ladder is for thrusters only. Starting with 25, then 20, then 15, 10, 5, then 10, 15, 20 and ending at 25. Do 10 pull-ups between each set of thrusters. Try to do unbroken sets of both thrusters and pull-ups. That is very challenging though, so if you can't then do as many as you can in the first set, then finish them off. Get into the habit of only resting for 3 breath cycles between broken sets.

Time: 17:20

This workout wasn't as daunting as I originally imagined it to be. It's kind of like a Mega-Fran, which was, well, a real treat since I'd done Fran only two days ago. I must say, 65# thrusters definitely feel really light, after using 95# for all my workouts. I was glad that the prescribed weight (for males) on the Navy SEALs site was 65# for this workout, since it allowed me to gauge the progress I'd made via consistent overloading.

Breakdown of Thrusters/Pullups:
25T/10P
10T/10T/10P
8T/7T/6P/4P
10T/8P/2P
5T/10P
10T/6P/4P
8T/7T/8P/2P
10T/10T/9P/1P
10T/8T/7T

If this workout ever reappears in the cycle, I'll try to minimize the number of breaks within sets of thrusters and pullups. I realized that I didn't exactly follow the instructions of performing as many reps as possible in the first set. My strategy instead was to break the entire set down into more manageable sets, which explains sets like 10T/8T/7T. It's probably wholly psychological, but it makes it seem far more doable.

***
"It is difficult to produce a television documentary that is both incisive and probing when every twelve minutes one is interrupted by twelve dancing rabbits singing about toilet paper."
- R. Serling

Thursday 12/04/2008

WOD
10 Pullups
20 Overhead Barbell Walking Lunges
30 Barbell Back Squats
40 Pushups
50 Barbell Push Presses
40 Pushups
30 Barbell Back Squats
20 Overhead Barbell Walking Lunges
10 Pullups

Time: 12:01

WOD
Mod "Linda" @ BW 125#
10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 reps of the triplet:
Shoulder Press (65#)
Power Clean (95#)
Deadlift (185#)

Time: 24:03

***
"You can see a lot by just looking."
- Yogi Berra

Wednesday 12/03/2008

WOD
Every minute on the minute for 20 minutes:
4 Barbell "Burpees" (135#)
4 V-Ups

Kicked it up to 5/5 for the last 5 sets.

True to my word, I had to do "Man-Fran" today... And I was pleased as hell with my time, since my initial goal was to finish under 10 minutes!

WOD
From CrossFit Main Site:
"Fran"
21-15-9 reps of:
Thrusters (95#)
Pullups

Time: 8:40

WOD: Starting Strength
Week 1, Day 2 (Workout B)
Squat
1 x 5 @ 45#
1 x 5 @ 65#
1 x 5 @ 95#
1 x 5 @ 105#
3 x 5 @ 125#

Press
2 x 5 @ 45#
1 x 5 @ 50#
3 x 5 @ 55#

Power Clean
2 x 5 @ 45#
5 x 3 @ 65#

Pullups; 3 sets to failure
1: 10
2: 9
3: 8

***
"Human beings, who are almost unique in having the ability to learn from the experience of others, are also remarkable for their apparent disinclination to do so."
- Douglas Adams

Tuesday 12/02/2008

WOD
With a pair of 30# DBs, perform
10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 reps of:
DB Burpee
DB Push Press
DB Front Squat

WOD: Charge
30-20-10 reps of:
Power Clean (95#)
Thruster (95#)

Time: 19:02

I made a commitment to step it up a notch on workouts that call for the typical Rx'd women's weight (65#), by using 95# for these workouts. Now there's no turning back! While not unmanageable by any means, consistently adding 30# of weight to the bar definitely makes a considerable difference, both in terms of length of time required to complete the workout (duh) as well as recovery. I've noticed a little more soreness in the days following such workouts. It's good, I suppose, since I rarely am afflicted by DOMS from CrossFit alone (distance running and gymnastics are separate issues here). So it's good to know that I'm challenging my muscles in a different way and forcing them to adapt to using a heavier load as a baseline.

***
"Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending."
- Author Unknown

Monday 12/01/2008

WOD: Charge
5 rounds of 25 reps each:
KB Goblet Squat (16 kg)
KB American Swing (16 kg)
DB Weighted Step-ups (25# DBs; 20" box)
Elevated Pushups (20" box)

WOD: Starting Strength
Week 1, Day 1 (Workout A)
Squat
1 x 5 @ 45#
1 x 5 @ 65#
1 x 5 @ 95#
3 x 5 @ 115#

Press
2 x 5 @ 45#
1 x 5 @ 50#
3 x 5 @ 55#

Deadlift
1 x 5 @ 45#
1 x 5 @ 95#
1 x 5 @ 105#
1 x 5 @ 115#
1 x 5 @ 135#

Chinups; 3 sets to failure
1: 10
2: 7
3: 7

First actual session of Starting Strength -- dialed the weights way back as per Rippetoe's recommendations, so it was a very easy day. Though I don't think I'll be saying the same thing a few weeks from now! ;)

***
"I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community and as long as I live, it is my privilege to do for it whatever I can. I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work the more I live."
- George Bernard Shaw

Sunday 11/30/2008

WOD: Revolution
25-minute Spin, followed by -
21-15-9 reps of:
Deadlifts (185#)
Wall Ball Shots (14#)
Medicine Ball Situps (14#)

***
"A man is called selfish not for pursuing his own good, but for neglecting his neighbor's."
- Richard Whately

Saturday 11/29/2008

WOD: Charge
"Fran + Elizabeth"
21-15-9 reps of:
Full Squat Clean (95#)
Ring Dips
Thruster (95#)
Pullups

***
"Success without honor is an unseasoned dish; it will satisfy your hunger, but it won't taste good."
- Joe Paterno

Black Friday 11/28/2008

WOD
Ladders with a Partner
1-10
Box Jumps (24")
KB Double Push Jerks (30#)
Box Dips
KB Double Cleans (16 kg)
Weighted Situps (30#)
KB Snatch - R (16 kg)
KB Snatch - L (16 kg)

***
"Middle age is when you choose your cereal for the fiber, not the toy."
- Author Unknown