5/8 WOD

"Grace"

135 pound Clean and Jerk, 30 reps

Such a beautiful name... such an ugly short workout. I scaled to 110# and got through it in 6:30. Could probably gone up in weight a little bit, but with the target being around 8 minutes, not much. Probably more push press then jerk, but I got the weight from the ground to overhead. I'll take it.

5/7 WOD

Rest day for me - yay! But the two newbs were back for some more fun. Did a scaled version of J.T. for them:

21-15-9

Push Press (15#/8# db's)
Box Dips (24"/18")
Push ups (knees/hip bent)

Close race to the finish with Unelastigirl edging out TWay 12:05 to 12:28.

Some more good work. Soreness should be pretty strong tomorrow (day two after the first workout is always the worst and then pile on some serious arm work). Now two days off for recovery and we'll start the 5 day on/2 day off cycle. Groovy!

5/6 WOD

Man, still feel the after effects of yesterday's WOD. A push WOD was much appreciated, although my shoulders/upper back are pretty tired. But a weak spot for me so I like this stuff (kinda).

Push Jerk 1-1-1-1-1-1-1 reps

Not sure my technique is great, but I did spend a fair amount of time practicing it in my warmup. Still weird that whole jump and push down thing.

109-129-134-139-144-155(fail)-155(success!)

Tonight too started two total newbs in the fitness world. Amazing how a little competition at work can motivate some people. But whatever it takes. I'm happy they're in here and they worked hard tonight (after the initial whining).

I like starting with Fight Gone Bad, since it is super scaleable and good for multiple people. I thought it was going to be a long night during the warmups but once the action started it was good. Great effort, some people are going to be so sore tomorrow that they're going to not want to workout. But we will. We're shooting for the 5 on, 2 off schedule (Sun-Thu). I hope I can keep them motivated. I think the results they will see should be a good motivator. But as I told them, I can help with the output, you will have to work on the input (food). Keeping my fingers crossed.

Wall Ball (8' - basketball)
Sumo Dead Hang Pull (9# KB)
Box Jump (12" step)
Push Press (15#)
Row (strokes)

TWay - 258
Unelastigirl - 280

Excellent effort after not working out in ages. A great start - we'll keep building on it.

5/5 WOD

Great so happy Cinco de Mayo now here is your WOD get ready to suffer...

Ten rounds for time of:
3 Weighted Pull-ups, 45 pounds
5 Strict Pull-ups
7 Kipping Pull-up

In the immortal words of Austin Powers when he gets hit in the head by the lethal shoe:



It sure did. I didn't do the set count thing as it would have been a data tracking nightmare (I did do the first round through unbroken). Just 10 rounds total time. I thought I was going to make it full RX'd, but at round 8 just couldn't must the 45# so scaled to 35#. 9 and 10 went to 25#. Still don't know how to kip, so I did some lame a$$ swing full body dry heave type pullup to substitute for the kip. Not efficient whatsoever. I didn't feel like this was a metcon type effort - lots of breaks simply due to necessity.

Total time - 40:26

And then of course leave it to me the dumba$$ to try kipping practice after this. Duh. That makes perfect sense. Wasted hands, arms, and upper back and I'm trying to practice. Clearly not thinking straight after that effort.

5/4 WOD

Front squat 3-3-3-3-3 reps

Well, still learning this move - so used to doing back squats. Rough on the wrists, I'm identifying a number of areas where I have pretty pathetic flexibility (wrists, shoulders). So this is good, identifying weak areas and attacking them. I spent a good 30 minutes doing some shoulder flexibility work, and plan on doing that several times a week to get these things some range.

So back to the front squats - weird to try to find the sweet spot to rest the bar on your shoulders - my clavicles get in the way or my neck gets pinched a bit. Also working on the full depth squat (hips below knees). That is new to me too but I like it. I setup my sawhorses to act as a safety just in case I needed to bail.

Did actually 7 sets of 3 since I wasn't sure about weight.

93-103-123-143-163-173-183

Pretty darn happy with that last number. I might be able to hit the 200 mark right now, but the wrists/bar position are more of the limiting factor at this point. More good stuff though!

5/3 WOD

"Hansen"

Five rounds for time of:
2 pood (70#) Kettlebell swing, 30 reps
30 Burpees
30 Glute-ham sit-ups

Marine Staff Sgt Daniel Hansen died February 14th in Farah Providence, Afghanistan when an IED he was working on detonated. Daniel is survived by his mother Sheryll, his father Delbert, his younger sister Katie, and his twin brother Matthew (also a Marine).

Well, read how tough this was and was ready to just skip this and move onto the next one. But after reading about this guy, I felt compelled to do it. Big deal - so I suffer in a workout. Nothing like what he and his family and friends went/are going through. So I hit it.

Had to scale the KB swings to 53# since that's the largest I've got. And anchored Abmat situps since my glute-ham setup isn't great plus those are too aggressive for me right now. I actually felt pretty good despite being sore from What's Tabata You yesterday, did the first round all the way through no stoppie. But then reality set in and I slowed big time. Still not sure what is the best strategy - hit it all out and crawl to the finish or pace yourself. I always seem to choose the former. Just about through the burpees in round 3 when I feel the right rotator cuff tweak. I finish those and the situps and decide I better call it a night. Playing baseball most of my life I know the rotator cuff all too well and well, I don't need to eff that up. So disappointing that I stopped after 3 rounds (I think this is the first WOD I haven't gotten through all the way since I started CF - not all at the RX'd btw). Still an excellent workout and I will get through the entire thing next time to honor the memory of Marine Staff Sgt Daniel Hansen.

23:22

5/2 WOD

"Tabata Something Else"

Complete 32 intervals of 20 seconds of work followed by ten seconds of rest where the first 8 intervals are pull-ups, the second 8 are push-ups, the third 8 intervals are sit-ups, and finally, the last 8 intervals are squats. There is no rest between exercises. Record total reps.

Nice beat down here. Even 20 minutes or so afterwards, my daughter asked my what was wrong? She-ite. 10 secs of rest is just like a little tease. Enough to catch a couple of extra breaths but then "ding" and you're off and running again.

Total score 318

47 pullups
77 pushups
85 situps
109 squats

I think I killed my score going out too hot on the first set of pullups (17) and pushups (22). My reps tapered off rapidly after those. But is it right to pace yourself to get a better score or go full tilt like a true interval?

5/1 WOD

Well, that was a pipe dream to do Elizabeth and Tabata Something Else. Once again, more time on the floor afterwards then during the workout. Squat cleans suck, and I'm sure my move is not very good (or efficient). But I hit Elizabeth as hard as I could.

"Elizabeth"

21-15-9 reps of:
Clean 135 pounds
Ring dips

Scaled the squat cleans to 93# (I know, oddball numbers with kg's mixed with pounds). Did full ROM for the ring dips (oddly those almost were like a break in the workout).

11:29

Okay, so I'll try Tabata Something Else tomorrow earlier in the day and then the normal WOD for the day in the evening. Makes way more sense. Just can't be a slacker next time.

Was just walking along and...

Looky what my friend snapped a photo of while he was taking his kids for a walk:

What are the odds? Pretty cool. Thanks Keith!

4/30 Slacker Day

Well, too tired to workout today, so I will likely pay for it and try a double tomorrow, the 4/30 WOD and 5/1 WOD.

"Elizabeth"

21-15-9 reps of:
Clean 135 pounds
Ring dips

And then:

"Tabata Something Else"

Complete 32 intervals of 20 seconds of work followed by ten seconds of rest where the first 8 intervals are pull-ups, the second 8 are push-ups, the third 8 intervals are sit-ups, and finally, the last 8 intervals are squats. There is no rest between exercises. Record total reps.

That should hurt sufficiently. That's what I get for slacking. I will give myself a little break between the two. Or maybe Tabata Something Else on Saturday depending on what the WOD is. We'll see...

4/29 Rest Day

Yay! Love these rest days. Needed after this cycle and taking the two previous cycles off. Feeling sore but good. Will hopefully get some sleep.

Also managed to order some olympic weightlifting shoes. Custom stuff for not much more than off the shelf ones. Colors aren't for everyone - but I dig them. Couldn't fit the "moderation is for the weak" slogan on there so will save that for the t-shirts.


Should have them in 2-3 weeks. More toys... And yes, just another sign that I've totally lost it... :)

4/28 WOD

Shoulder Press 1-1-1-1-1-1-1 reps

Suck, sucky, more suck. Couldn't hit my lowly P.R. (120) tonight. Tired. 3rd workout after a week off and not enough sleep. Next time a P.R.

85-95-105-115-120(fail)-120(fail)-115 and one last bonus round failure at 120. She-ite.

Timely rest day tomorrow.

4/27 WOD

Five rounds for time of:
95 pound Sumo-deadlift high-pull, 21 reps
21 Ring dips

24:45

Not much more to say. Hard.

Back at it...

Well, couldn't wait the full week. Was itching to get back at it. Started back with the regular WOD:

Three rounds, 21-15- and 9 reps, for time of:
95 pound Squat snatch
Chest to bar Pull-ups

Decided it would be smart to scale the squat snatch but probably went too light at 65#. Still not easy and actually likely was the smart thing to do.

16:48

Got my new bumpers and sweet bar on Friday too! Like Christmas in April. Love those things.

And we need to get the momentum back with the trainees - lots of excuses today to avoid the workout... :(

Rest Week

At least for me. I know my trainees though will be doing their own thing this week and will be ready to rock it when I return.

4/19 - Great day in the gym!!!

Wow, great day today! (Well, Angie scheduled for tonight so may have to amend this post). Did the 4/18 WOD this afternoon after traveling and missing it yesterday. 100 inverted burpees. For what I did, check out this link: Inverted Burpee demo. Well, I didn't do it like the first guy (and I'm sorry, but what are those shoes?). More of a situp to a standing position, with a little dynamic movement but nothing like the kip the first guy does.

16:53

Then it was time for the ladies to duke it out again on Fight Gone Bad. This will likely be our regular Sunday routine since it allows for up to 5 people at time and work time is equal. The combatants today were JDub, The Dark McKnight, and Mon Cheri. Here's the scoreboard:

JDub - 338
The Dark McKnight - 323
Mon Cheri - 198

Excellent work by everyone! Great output tonight! JDub's number is slightly lower than last time, but this time she killed the Wall Ball with full range squats and 9' target. The Dark McKnight increased her number from 300 and even did full on box jumps for the first round! And Mon Cheri avenged her experience from the night before and put in a solid, controlled effort. Oh and we upped the ante for the push presses with the 25# barbell vs. the 15# med ball last time. Way to go everyone!!!

Raw Data

JDub
Wall Ball - 28, 18, 21 (full depth squats and 9' target - great work!)
SDHP - 24, 19, 23 (26# KB)
Box Jump - 27, 27, 25 (step ups, 18")
Push Press - 29, 20, 20 (25# barbell)
Row - 20, 20, 17

The Dark McKnight
Wall Ball - 30, 24, 21
SDHP - 27, 24, 23 (26# KB)
Box Jump - 25, 26, 26 (12" jump up and down 1st rd, 18" step ups)
Push Press - 19, 18, 15 (25# barbell)
Row - 15, 15, 14

Mon Cheri
Wall Ball - 20, 18, 14
SDHP - 18, 19, 20 (18# KB)
Box Jump - 13, 12, 17 (18" step ups)
Push Press - 13, 10, 15 (25# barbell)
Row - 2, 3, 4

edit: Well, I beat my previous best Angie time by 5 minutes!!! 5:01 to be exact. 22:47. Just over one month ago. I still don't know how to kip, but I did semi-kip on the pullups - helped on the way up but forget the push down thing. Still learning. Splits:

9:48 pullups
5:47 pushups
4:38 situps
2:34 squats

4/16 WOD and Special Guest...

Okay, got another person to do a CF workout. Mon Cheri was the special guest of the evening. Didn't have to push her too hard to get in here, but did have to remind her... :)

So we started off with Barbara "Puppy" scaled:

5 pullups (assisted)
10 pushups (knees)
15 situps (Abmat)
20 squats

She rocked three rounds:

3:17
2:51
3:10

Great effort for her first workout in quite a long time. She also became the first one to join the "special" club. I've been close many, many times, but have been able to keep that "special" visitor away. The first time, but perhaps not the last... how's that for something to look forward to? :)


Tonight for me was the "Danny" WOD. Sad stuff. Worked hard in his/their honor.

Complete as many rounds in 20 minutes as you can of:
24 inch Box Jump, 30 reps
115 pound Push Press, 20 reps
30 Pull-ups

Oakland SWAT Sergeant Daniel Sakai, age 35, was killed on March 21, 2009 in the line of duty along with fellow officers Sergeant Ervin Romans, Sergeant Mark Dunakin, and Officer John Hege. Daniel is survived by wife Jenni and daughter Jojiye.

I got in 3 full rounds (okay, technically I took 20:02 but I'm counting it). Had to scale the push press to 95# after doing a couple at 115# and blasting my chin with the bar. Memo to self: Do not smash bar into chin while pushing it up in the air. Holy crap that hurt. That weight change and shock of the chin trauma easily cost me more than 2 seconds.

4/15 WOD

"Helen"

Three rounds for time:
Run 400 meters
1 1/2 pood Kettlebell X 21 swings (or 55 pound dumbbell swing)
12 Pull-ups

Sweet fancy Moses, this one hurt me good. I picked up a 1.5 pood KB today to do this as recommended. That is 53 lbs. A big jump up from my 35 lbs. one. I was able to get through pretty much everything straight through, but had to take breaks in between to catch my breath. Pukie definitely was close.

14:04

I think I spent more time on the ground afterwards...

4/13 WOD

"DT"

Five rounds for time of:
155 pound Deadlift, 12 reps
155 pound Hang power clean, 9 reps
155 pound Push jerk, 6 reps

In honor of USAF SSgt Timothy P. Davis, 28, who was killed on Feburary, 20 2009 supporting operations in OEF when his vehicle was struck by an IED. Timothy is survived by his wife Megan and one-year old son T.J.

My deadlifts are pretty strong right now, so those felt pretty darn easy. But the other two items I really need to work on. Thought I could do 135 for the Hang power clean, but did two and just about died. So 125 and struggled to do two more. Settled on 115 for both. Still hurt, still suck at them.

25:58

Feeling pretty tired today (4/14) so taking the day off.

Trying to coordinate schedules to get more folks into the gym but things are getting a bit hectic right now. Hopefully we'll keep the momentum going.

4/12 WOD

Well, my nephew was in town and said to me, "I want to do the 300 workout." I said, "Are you sure?" He said he was so off to the garage we went.

He said he could do about 15 pullups, so I figured he was in pretty decent shape. He was training for track too so he had a little cardio base. We scaled it down pretty significantly, but he worked hard... so hard that he had to sit down because he was getting dizzy. Good stuff!

So a nice effort. Not sure if he will be a convert, but you never know... :)

I was restless and decided to do some bench press work.

edit: Turns out he did it again on his own the next day... sweet! He said it was easier but of course I told him he didn't work hard enough... :)

4/11 CFT

Okay, my schedule is all out of whack. Did CFT. Shoulders were still a little tired but figured what the hey. Improved some so that is exciting. Those guys in the 1,000 lbs. club are ridonkulous.

245 back squat (this time a correct squat to a bucket)
120 shoulder press
320 deadlift (yay, 2x BW)
685 total

Probably could have gone a little higher on the squat, but without the safety of a cage/spotters decided not to go too crazy. Shoulder presses are still weak.

Next stop 700... :)

Also, JDub did the 21 workout on 4/9 with the walking lunges, pullups, situps counting down thingy. She lost count in places but put in some good work. The pullups made her dizzy! 100lbs. and 115lbs. assist. Knees did not kiss the floor during the lunges. We shall start focusing more on form soon.

4/8 WOD

Am behind on the WODs due to being on vacation but really wanted to do this one as my shoulder presses need lots of work. And as evidenced by my numbers, still do. Not sure if I did the push-jerks correctly since this was my first attempt at them. I will continue to work on them.

1-1-1-1-1 shoulder press
3-3-3-3-3 push press
5-5-5-5-5 push jerk

Did CFWU x3. Did some warmup shoulder presses at 45 and 65lbs.

95, 105, 115, 115, 125 (fail) - I actually did 115 once to start the shoulder press thought I better warmup though.

125, 130, 135, 140, 140 (push press)

115, 125, 130, 135, 135 (4) (push jerks)

Jdub swam laps instead of working out in the gym.

4/7 WOD

Nancy for JDub today - rest day for me today. JDub did the official CFWU too with 100# weight assist for pullups and dips.

The Nancy workout was perfect for JDub as she was scheduled to do 400s as part of her running training. 15# for the overhead squats since it was her first experience with those. Can move up a little next time.

17:55. Good work!

Same transition from weight room up stairs to treadmill - a bit slow. At some point we will try this at the track so no delays in transition so even more painful. :)

4/6 WOD

Wasn't sure I was going to attempt this, but in the end decided to go for it:

Walking lunge 100 ft.
21 Pull-ups
21 Sit-ups
Walking lunge 100 ft.
18 Pull-ups
18 Sit-ups
Walking lunge 100 ft.
15 Pull-ups
15 Sit-ups
Walking lunge 100 ft.
12 Pull-ups
12 Sit-ups
Walking lunge 100 ft.
9 Pull-ups
9 Sit-ups
Walking Lunge 100 ft.
6 Pull-ups
6 Sit-ups

Actually did fine on the pullups after a good CFWU x3 again. Wasn't able to complete them all the way through but didn't feel the rib pain. Still have to be careful as it isn't 100%, but close.

16:10. Anchored but decline situps.

I'm tired. I think I'm going to take tomorrow off. Resting HR is a bit high right now. JDub is going to take on Nancy tomorrow so hopefully I can get myself out of bed to help her with it...

Oh and some punk was giving me a, "you're a wuss" look as I was doing my CFWU - the overhead squat part. I wanted to challenge him to the WOD but decided to focus on myself vs. him. But he was so manly doing those curls with the 25# bar... :)

4/5 WOD

Okay, tested out the gym here with Nancy. 5 rounds of overhead squats with 95lbs. and 400m runs. No problem - had the equipment necessary and the weights were just a flight of stairs away from the treadmills. Even did 3 rounds of the CFWU - pullups almost did not bother me but I did partial jumping pullups just to make sure.

Had to scale the weight to 65lbs. for the overhead squats. I have a way to go before doing that many reps with 95lbs. The last 5 squats were a little sketchy.

Went at a slow time so no crazy looks and plenty of equipment available.

16:15.

4/4 WOD

A bit unconventional on a travel day... 2.5 mile run/walk, the last 0.75 mile carrying a 28 pack of water, 12 pack of Diet Coke, and a small bag of groceries. Total weight I am guesstimating 30+ lbs. Dayamn shuttle driver said he waited 10 minutes for me but that was a lie, as he hardly waited for me - confirmed by the security guard at the grocery store.

Excellent grip, core, arms, and shoulder workout. The only positive about the whole deal...

Meeting up with Nancy tomorrow at the pretty nice gym... :)

No WOD but HSPU's!!!

Okay super busy but managed to do 3, 4, and 5 handstand pushups (against wall). Getting strength back. Could not even do one not that long ago. Nice.

Gonna be at an out of town facility with a gym for a few days - will be interesting to see if I can integrate CF into what they have available. JDub will be around too to do the CF workouts... right? :)

4/2 WOD

"Jerry Hill's Dirty 30 CrossFit Workout"

Jerry Hill's site is one of the first CF sites I stumbled upon when I first started doing CF related stuff. He's got some crazy chit going on there. This Dirty 30, the infamous Beowulf, and some other fun stuff. Good tutorial videos too.

Anyhow, so this wasn't the original plan for tonight, however, JDub thought the workout I had planned wasn't a big enough circuit. Okay then, ask and you shall receive. Silly girl. Introducing the Dirty 30:

*30 reps each once through for time*
Kettlebell swing (35#Women - 55#Men)
Wallball (12W - 15#M)
Box Jump (26"W - 32"M)
Hang Clean to a Push Press (55W - 75M)
Pushup
Jumping Pullup
Kettlebell High Pull (52W - 70M)
Jumping Slamball (12W - 15M)
Dumbbell Situp and Press (15W - 25M)
Burpees!

Do I even have to say that a CF workout is painful? It's a bit redundant, eh?

So JDub and the Dark McKnight were here and pushed it hard again. Lots of moaning and groaning... yeah baby! Well, they were working their a$$es off getting through the program. What were you thinking? This is a PG site... ;)

The Dark McKnight - 17:27
JDub - 19:10

Great work! Still need to work on form but the effort/output is definitely there although I'm curious how JDub recovers so quickly... hmm...). They scaled the workout - 18# KB swing, 10# Wallball, 18" step up, 25# hang clean push press, knee pushups, jumping slam ball 10#, KB high pull 26#, dumbbell situp 10#. I think we can step things up a bit as they're getting through all reps without any hint of needing a break.

I on the other hand needed several stops in my workout. I did everything as recommended except the KB swing as I don't have anything larger than a 35#. I'll pick one up soon however. Oh and I substituted a 70# barbell for the KB high pull. Who came up with the idea of a 32" box jump? 30 times?!!! Fok, I was afraid I was going to do a faceplant. Managed to survive it okay, but dayamn, that is getting up there.

My time: 24:15. Ribs felt okay on the jumping pullups, but then again, that is a lot less stress on them than a standard pullup. Will still take it easy for another week or so. But then the climbing rope gets installed and we'll test things out.

A good night at the Gin Gym... :)

4/1 WOD

Doing a little catch up on some missed WODs. I have never done front squats before, so did the 3-3-3-3-3 deal.

125-135-140-145-150

Didn't realize how much core stabilization is needed for this. Plus the wrists didn't like this move a whole lot.

Did some HSPU's and some band assisted pullups (rib strain is keeping me from doing full body weight pullups). I'm not liking the fact that I can't do the pulling based WODs but I have to be smart and let this thing heal.

3/31/09 WOD

Five rounds for time of:
30 Glute-ham sit-ups
25 Back extensions

Not sure if I got the full recommended range for each, but wasn't easy...

17:17