Quick WOD in the cold

Alright, 36 degrees out yesterday when I decided to fit in a quick home-WOD. I did invisible Fran which is 21-15-9 of: air squats and pushups. I took that short travel WOD, and added a mile run to it for some additional work on my running. I finished with an overall time of 9:34. When I finished the invisible Fran, I glanced at my watch as I started the run and it was 1:52 so I finished the run in 7:42. That run time is terrible. I feel like I need to do better and I can. My lungs are my limiting factor, I have the legs to run faster and longer but certainly not the lungs.

I'm going to do some research later about training in cold weather. I thought that it would help me, like training in elevation. However, as I've been continually sick this winter - I'm starting to wonder.

Randy Simmons

Did a hero WOD on 30 December 2010 to close out the year. Did it in the backyard. Focused more on form than time, because snatch is a goat of mine. I can get weight off the ground and above my head, but doing it the correct way is the hard way for me. So my time could have been better, but that will come with correct form. No worries there.
Thank you to Randy Simmons for being an example to us all, and for the motivation to keep pushing in life.

WOD- "Randy"
75 Power Snatches @ 75lbs
I used just 45lbs, again my goal was to practice the form over the load. My total time was 5:18. Side note - that 45lbs sure feels closer to 90lbs halfway through this WOD.

Alpacas; more than just bystanders, they're also moral supporters

(THAT'S the face of moral support right there!)

Last week, I spent some time with family at an Alpaca farm. While there, my brother and I managed to program and complete a WOD.

WOD:

for time-

20 HSPU (feet placed on steps for assistance)

run to the lake with a log

20 OHS with  log

run back to house without log

20 box jumps (used steps in place of boxes)

run back to lake

20 log swings (like kettlebell or dumbell swings)

run back to house with log

20 burpees



My time for this was 14:04 and my brother finished just behind me. It was a tough one on the legs, the run from the lake to the house was uphill. Each leg of the run was just over a quarter-mile. It was a lot of fun, a couple cousins, and my sister-in-law joined us. The cold air was a bitch to deal with when running, but thats why we train - to be better equipped for anything thrown our way.

January already

Again, just haven't posted lately for various reasons. Here's the WOD from Christmas Eve, and it was a doozie...
WOD: "CLE's 12 Gifts of Christmas"

1 Squat Clean (95/65)
2 Thruster (95/65)
3 Front squat (95/65)
4 Power Clean (95/65)
5 Lateral Burpees
6 Box Jumps (24/18)
7 Air Squats
8 Wall ball (20/14)
9 Pull-ups
10 Kettlebell Swings (55/35)
11 Hand Release Push-ups
12 Squat Snatch (95/65) (I OHS the 12 reps @ 95lbs)

This was inspired by the Christmas song and many other Crossfit affiliates ... "On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me ..."
Start with 1 squat clean. Then proceed with 2 thrusters, 1 squat clean. Then do 3 front squats, 2 thrusters, 1 squat clean. Continue with this pattern through all exercises --  ending with 12 squat snatches, 11 hand release push-ups, 10 kettlebell swings, 9 pull-ups, 8 freakin' wall balls, 7 "who knew air squats could be this hard?", 6 box jumps, 5 "are you kidding me?!" lateral burpees, 4  power cleans, 3 "is this over yet?!" front squats, 2 thrusters, and 1 FINAL, PERFECTLY EXECUTED SQUAT CLEAN!

I had to overhead squat instead of the squat snatches, at this point in the workout I was in bad shape and was striving to finish without puking. My final time was 34:17. This WOD was the first time I'd used a 2-pood kettle bell. Both my snatch, and my kb swings will benefit from me practicing on opening up my hips to full extension.
After this WOD, I stopped at Chipotle on my way home and had a DELICIOUS burrito bowl.
(Rice, black beans, steak and chicken-double meat, not half and half, then corn salsa, cheese and lettuce with watered down lemonade to drink)

No excuse for the lapse

I have been busy lately, which in part is why I haven't updated this site... but who isn't busy?

I did meet some adversity over a week ago, outside the box, however this made me realize that adversity is what we train for; the unknowable. When adversity arises, we accomidate and we overcome. Thats what life is, thats how you win.

Here's a quick run-down of what I've done over the last week to two weeks for workouts:

WOD

10 Rnds for time of:

10 Box Jumps (24in)

10 Pullups

(I'm having a hard time remembering for sure, I want to say my time was under 15 mins.)

WOD

21-18-15-12-9 reps of:
Power snatch (75lbs)
Wall ball (20lbs)
Knees-to-elbows
(Time was just under 20 minutes, 19:40 I think)

WOD

Three rounds for time of:
Run 400 meters
10 Pull-ups
50 Air Squats
10 Pull-ups

(My brother's time for this WOD was quicker than mine was. There were environmental factors involved in this - his weather was warmer and he wasn't doing pullups on a swingset, or running through snow. His time; 14:22 - Mine; 15:32)

I have a growing group of friends and family around me that have been flirting with CrossFit. Some of the individuals have even begun a more committed courtship. Both of my brothers and their wives, my cousin, and friends from both past and present.

I want to take a moment here and give some recognition to my oldest brother. He was just CF Level One Certified over the past weekend (Dec 18th). I believe that he will be a trainer after the new year, down at his box, CF Hilton Head. To be added as a trainer there speaks to his exhaustive understanding of CrossFit, his ability to lead and his trustworthy nature. The existing trainers there are fantastic guys and even better coaches, to be a part of that squad means that you are no slouch. Congratulations brother! (Hopefully this isn't all going to your head.)

Weekend off

I took this weekend off from working out. I am being conscious of my food intake, but not being restrictive. If I have options, I am tending to take the healthier one. My brother does CrossFit down in South Carolina and this past week we influenced our cousin to give it a try. On thursday the second of December he did a basline WOD:
For time:
500m Row
40 squats
30 sit-ups
20 push-ups
10 pull-ups

Our cousin finished strong, like a man; and then he met Pukie.  So here's to you pal, for taking on CrossFit, meeting Pukie and anxiously returning to conquer another WOD the very next day! You're an inspiration.

Burpees, KB, Box Jumps

Friday 03 December

WOD
6 rounds for time:
7 burpees
14 kettlebell swings (55/35)
21 box jumps (24/18)

I did the KB swings with a 35lb KB, and I used a tire for the box jumps - it was estimated at 22in.
This WOD broke me off. I got through the second round, when I began to really suck wind and then it hit me; I still have four more rounds to go. How is that possible? How has anyone completed this WOD? What will happen if I can't get my wind back? All these questions are sprinting through my mind, I snap back into the workout and tell myself that there's only one way to find out - I have to keep pushing. Keep pushing through the pain, keep pushing through not being able to breath. This is for time, after all. My time of completion was 14:48... I made it.
After the WOD, I had to walk outside (it's snowing and in the low 30's) but it was suddenly too damn hot inside the box, had to find fresh air. I collected myself and came back in to talk about the misery. I was talking to another guy who just completed the WOD, and he told me a little piece of strategy.
When he does a WOD like this (with rounds) in his mind, he immediately reduces the amount of rounds by one. (For this WOD of 6 rounds, he tells himself he only has 5 rounds to complete) Then when he finishes the 5 rounds he tells himself he has to do, he simply treats the 6th (or final) round as a sprint. You muscle through the first 5 rounds and sprint through the last one. Mentally though, this potentially can make the whole WOD easier for some. "I don't count the last round" he said, "because you can always do ONE more".
I have something new to try next workout, I'm looking forward to it.

Day one update

Today was a great first day. The strength WOD was back squat 1-1-1-1-1-1-1 - I did 205-225-245-265-275-280-285lbs.
 My previous PR for the back squat was 255, so I'm happy with that increase.

The secondary WOD was 3 rnds for time of:
15 wall ball shots (20lbs)
15 toes to bar
15 hand release push-ups
This WOD was tough, my time was 7:47 and I'm happy with that too. I didn't go in with lofty expectations today. I was excited to be there.

Frist official step towards greatness

Today's December first and it's snowing outside. Seems like a great day to start my CrossFit box membership. I'll be honest, I woke up excited today. I checked the website for CLE to see what the WOD would be - Back Squats. I'll let you know how I fair.


Side note: I forgot to mention last week that on November 24th (the day before Thanksgiving) I did a WOD here at home - I did 100 push-ups for time. The catch was that every time I rested, on my knees, stomach, whatever, I had to get up and run 40ft, then continue pushing. So there's no actual rest, just pushing and running. It took me a little over seven minutes to complete and it wasn't enjoyable. It got to the point where I was knocking out two pushups, then running, then two pushups and running again. It was a good home-WOD.

Are you a Warrior?

This has been a busy week in hindsight. I ran the Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving Day, I registered for the 2011 Ohio Warrior Dash, and yesterday (black friday) I was finally able to purchase a membership at Crossfit CLE courtesy of their awesome sale! 90% off the first month of a six month contract. (This brings the average cost down 15% each month.... that's right in my scope of affordability)

I have been without an actual membership for my entire courtship with CrossFit. Now it's official, and this is a new level of excitement! It feels like I've been waiting for this opportunity for a long time. As a college student, who's not working and on a limited income, I know how it is not having the disposable income I'd like to have. I will say this about a CrossFit membership though, it's a gym membership and a personal trainer in one price. In addition to that, it allows you access to an elite breed of human beings - those that enjoy the suffering like you do. I am looking forward to kicking this off officially now and I will keep you updated. Side note - I have stopped drinking alcohol and I anticipate an improvement in performance as well as consistency now without it present.

Day of Thanks

Thanksgiving Day! Where do I begin? It’s the greatest fall holiday, and in the running for the best holiday of the year. From the minute you wake up until the minute you fall back to sleep for the night – it’s all about family and food. Everyone has their own traditions for each holiday. Today’s holiday is chock full of individual traditions, collectively though by dinner time everyone’s together and smiling. (Ideally)

This morning, I started my day by running the Turkey Trot in downtown Cleveland. Last year I only ran the one mile, this year I ran the five mile race. Surprisingly, the race wasn’t as painful as I anticipated. On my way downtown, the weather was bleak; low-40s and raining. Great running weather though. 

 My time for the race was 44 minutes flat, which is acceptable. This is currently the heaviest I've ever been and I've never run a 5 mile race "competitively" before so I was satisfied with having run the whole time and finishing under 50 minutes. It's only going to improve from here.

PRE-race preparation

Thanksgiving Day is a 5-mile run called The Turkey Trot. I'll be running it, may run it with some extra weight in a backpack, still undecided. Either way, I haven't done much to specifically prepare for it, other than what I've posted over the past couple of weeks. This past Saturday, I ran around 2.5 miles, which is probably the furthest I'll run in preparation for the race. It's a good time though, and I'll be running it with some friends. Certainly not the same attitude Pre had when he was at his peak.

Don't wish it was easier, wish you were better

My WOD for 09 Nov 2010:
3 RNDs for time:
- 800m
- 50 pushups
- 50 situps
My time was horrible. Going into this WOD, I didn't plan to time myself, it was a last minute decision to go through with it. Let me just say that I finished under 30 minutes... Plenty of room for improvement.

November rain

04 Nov 2010 -
Made some time today to get back to the gym. I have a flag football game this weekend, and a 5-mile run on Thanksgiving day that I should be getting ready for. So my focus today was on endurance, as opposed to a standard WOD that I favor. With some input from my brother, I decided to row.
Here's what I did:
S(strength)WOD: Clean & Jerk. 5 sets of 3. 115-135-145-155-160.
WOD: Row intervals (90sec rest between) 800m-500m-500m-500m-500m - avg. 500m time was 1:57.8

The first three intervals of rowing were miserable. My shins, elbows, upper back and lungs were burning during each interval. For the last two intervals, I either went numb or grew accustomed to the burn and I finished strong.
I have a flag football game Saturday morning; the weather is supposed to be in the 40's with possible snow showers... Should be fun. Side note for North-east Ohio, Christmas Ale came back out this week. Enjoy (responsibly)

Globo-hell

PART ONE-
28 Oct 2010
I recently started a part-time job, which is right on campus where I go to school. So I'm working 3 days a week and going to school 3 days a week. Since most of my time is absorbed on campus, I decided if I'm gonna get any kind of workout in anymore, it has to be in the new University Fitness Center. Sounds glamorous right? (That's strike one) So I head up to the free-weight floor and find a place in a corner where I can hopefully do a workout uniterrupted. All  I need for my workout is an Olympic bar with weights, and a pullup bar. I get everything ready to do this WOD (3 RNDS of 10x: 75lb thrusters / situps / burpees / 75lb hang cleans / pullups) and 4 seconds into the first exercise a man walks right up to me and asks me a question. (Strike two) Imagine this, I'm mid-thruster with headphones in and this guy meanders over to ask some fucking question about what the acronym on my shirt means. As if his forward momentum in life had abruptly been halted the instant he saw my shirt... (You have got to be kidding, there's a camera somewhere right? This is candid-camera material.) Either way, answer the question and continue the WOD. I finished the above wod in 12:41. Ehhh, I'm further out of shape than I was a week ago, damn.


PART TWO-
27 Oct 2010
I began the day with a set up pullups and 4 sets of deadlift for form.
Today's WOD is 21-15-9 of:
95 lb hang cleans / front squat / push press

As I finish this WOD, and feel like I just worked out inside a furnace, I cool down with some water and walking around. I look around at the members of this place as I walk to the water fountain and I realize the occupants are 80% dumbasses. See photo for a no-bullshit example. (Strike three)

These are all real stories from just two days of working out at this flashy new fitness center... I'm torn, and my reflex is to shy away from this place all together. However, the membership is free, it's on campus and as of right now, with my schedule and limited income - it's what I have to do to get my WOD in. I'm gonna keep on going until my circumstances change. In the mean time I'm gonna look at using this gym like one massive and on-going WOD. The key to succeed, is to endure.

Gasping, dry heaving, burning feeling. AKA: post WOD

I just did a WOD on my own here at home today, and as I write this, I'm sitting in front of a fan drinking a vitamin water and trying to get some air back into my lungs.
On Thursday the 14th, I ran two miles for my workout, nothing additional.
Today though, I had a half hour and didn't want to run again, so I devised a quick WOD with what I had on hand:
3 RNDS of:
- 20 75lb OHS
- 15 75lb Hang cleans
- 10 burpees
Now I didn't time myself, but I was hustling. This particular WOD just underscores for me, that the more simple a WOD appears, the more it will crush you. (example: Fran)
Immediately after completion of this WOD, I began coughing and then dry heaving... classic. Nothing came up though.
So this afternoon, we're having a clam-bake for the Ohio State game, the weather here is beautiful for our event and I hope everyone gets out and has some fun this weekend.

White Chocolate
Above is a humorous video that I was reminded of today when I couldn't breath, Phillip Seymour Hoffman in "Along Came Polly". Watch the whole video, you'll see what I mean.

Get up and get out

Still no sign of the money from the government, it's an "unknown turn-around time". Hmm.
Today, one of my morning classes was cancelled, which meant I had ample time to workout on my own. I went home, threw together a quick WOD and knocked it out. Here's what I did:
 - 2mile run
   then 15, 12, 9 of:
 - squats/burpees/situps

I didn't do it for time, but it took roughly 21:30. Today was about just getting back into it.

Below is a picture of what I had for lunch after my WOD. There's no real dietary motives with this meal other than portion control. The meal was - wheat-pasta salad, whole grain rice, and one boneless/skinless grilled chicken breast (its red because I put hot sauce on it). Typically, I would have had a half plate of rice, and another chicken breast with this meal but I was a little pressed for time, and decided to hold back. I'm sure this is too many carbs (rice, pasta), but this meal was good.

The check's in the mail

Today's the fifth of October already. I'm not working now, just attending school full time. I am collecting income, which comes from the government so it comes when it comes. I am waiting on that income right now, which will allow me to sign up for my first month as an official CrossFit affiliate member. I have been looking forward to this, and I'm anxious to be able to get in there again, consistently to work on my form. As I wait for my money to come, I am just working on school, and random pet-projects. As far as fitness, there's not much that I've been doing, which isn't the best way to get prepared but I've just shifted my focus a little lately. Since I need a little motivation lately, I'll share some with you: below is a video that I've watched many times, it's done well and it's motivational. Enjoy.

NC/SC CrossFit Sectionals

Warrior Dash pics

This obstacle was three chest high walls that had to be bounded over.

Ahh yes, the fire jump. Photo was taken as I'm landing.

The medal is given to everyone that finishes the race honorably.

That's me (on the right) recycling my muddy shoes from the race.

Tuesday's gone...

Alright, it's been almost a week since I last posted anything, I finished my 3rd foundations class last wednesday and was sore for roughly 5 days after. Apparently, I had no idea how to deadlift prior to that class, which makes me curious to know - how I pulled the PR that I did in the past. It also makes me anxious to try again, properly this time, to see what I'm actually capable of. I have been looking into more information on Zone and Paleo, I have even made some recipies following the Zone model. I'm not at a point where I want to commit to either of these, and because of that, I know that I wouldn't last if I went into it half-assed. So for now, I will continue to learn about those disciplines, but I'm not sure that I will adopt them.

Side note, I have been throwing the idea around of moving this blog to a different domain, and may still do so. I was spending some time working on that, which in part, shorted me some time I would have spent posting over the past week. Moving could open up the door for options down the road.

All it takes is 2 minutes

Alright, for today I cleaned up the diet a little - nothing exciting there. I didn't do any physical activity today, tomorrow morning is my final foundations class (three of three) and I'm looking forward to the class itself, not being done with the classes. I've enjoyed, for the most part, learning the fundamentals of this language all over again, and learning them correctly this time.
I will continue to draw parallels between learning CrossFit and learning a language so if I refer to it as a language going forward, now you're aware of what I mean.
I did do the Kelly Starrett "sticky rib" 2-minute drill, and that's about it. I'll let you know how the class goes tomorrow.