Month: February 2012

For about the last week I’ve figured out…

For about the last week I’ve figured out a sleep schedule and have been sticking to it. I’m getting over 8 hours of sleep almost every night and it feels great. Sleep is the one thing I’ve never had on any type of schedule. I’ve always stayed up until whenever and got up when I needed to, but now I’m making myself get to bed around 11pm and I usually roll out of bed around 8am since I go to the 9am CrossFit class 4-5 days a week.

Since I started CrossFit over 3 months ago, I’ve lost 11 pounds and my body fat % has dropped 5 points. I’m now consistently weighing in just under 180 pounds with around 16.5% body fat. When I started a goal was to get to 175 pounds and I’ve had a goal for the last few years to see my abs. Those are still goals and I’m chipping away at them.

This morning my legs felt a little tired from the hike and walking 18 holes of golf. They quickly warmed up though. I should know better than to call a WOD “simple” as I did last night when I looked ahead.

Warm-up

  • 5:00 DU Practice
  • Should band stretches
  • 2x
    • 7 Burpees
    • 7 Pull-ups

I was hoping to get in some DU practice today so I was happy to see it in the warm-up. I had one decent streak of 12 or 13 in a row, but other than that it was a struggle to get 2 or 3 in a row. I think I need to go back to single-single-double for awhile because I had less than 60 DUs during the 5 minutes which is pathetic. I did strict pull-ups (not all 7 unbroken), except for the final one which needed a kip.

WOD
4 rounds

  • 400m Run
  • 10 Dips
  • 20 HR Push-ups

This doesn’t look bad when you see it on the board, but it was brutal on the arms. I started off trying ring dips for the first time ever. Those are tough! Having to keep your body steady adds a whole new element to a dip. In the first round I did all 10 dips on the rings. I can’t remember if I did all 10 in the 2nd round as well or if I split it up with doing dips on the rack. In the 3rd round I know I split with 5 dips on rings and 5 on the rack. Then in the 4th round I tried to do a ring dip and it wasn’t happening so I did all 10 on the rack.

This was the first time doing dips on a rack in CrossFit for me as well. I’ve done them that way years ago, but never in a WOD. After doing dips, my arms were shot and the hand release push-ups were a killer. I’d start off going 2 or 3 in a row but quickly had to do one at a time and I had to cheat a lot to even get pushed up.

The running didn’t bother me at all. I always seem to start out pretty fast in a first round run, but when we get inside and start on other things, I start falling behind people. I finished the WOD in 20:31. It was definitely a good way to start a Sunday. Now I’m off to play some golf before the Super Bowl starts.

I really needed the rest day yesterday My…

I really needed the rest day yesterday. My thighs were sore from the back squats we did on Thursday and my abs were still a little tight. I walked 18 holes of golf this morning and just got back from hiking Piestewa Peak. I did the 2 mile hike in 56:41, which is 3:37 faster than last time. I think taking a rest day had something to do with that, but it also speaks volumes of the CrossFit training. It’s a good day when I’ve taken 20,000 steps (according to my Fitbit) by 6pm.

I’m looking forward to getting back to the box tomorrow for a WOD. Looks like a “simple” metcon is scheduled so I’m probably not going to try out the new shoes because there are 4 rounds and a 400m run is part of each round. I’d rather break-in the shoes a bit first before running that much total distance in them. I’ll try them on Monday instead when we should have some type of lifting work to do.

I Registered for the CrossFit Games

I registered for the CrossFit Games. It’s only $20 to compete in the Open and I like a good challenge. My goal is to finish ahead of 10% of the athletes in the South West region. Since I’m only 3 months into CrossFit and I can’t do some of the weights (yet) from the 2011 Open workouts I think that’s a pretty good goal. There are a few weeks to build up more strength and technique. Are you going to compete?

Solid sleep last night Upper back shoulders and…

Solid sleep last night. Upper back, shoulders, and surprisingly abs were a little sore this morning. I don’t think the abs could be sore from the 20 GHD sit-ups so I’m thinking it was from the power snatches.

Warm-up

  • 3:00 Jump Rope
  • 3×3 Turkish Get-ups (each side)

I tried to work on my DUs because I knew they were coming up in the WOD. Since Mexico when I was starting to get decent at them, I’ve really sucked. I used a 35# KB for the TGs. Those really sneak up on you by the end. Great full body exercise.

Strength
5 Sets

  • 2-4 Back Squats, 3-0-X-1 tempo
  • 60s Rest
  • MAX Strict Pull-ups
  • 2m Rest

For the back squats I warmed up with a set of 135# and then got into it. We were supposed to jump up after the first two sets and then stick to a heavy wight for the last 3 sets. Started off with 155#, went to 175#, and finished with 185# the last 3 sets. I got 4 reps in each set except the 2nd set of 185# where I had to dump the bar at the bottom of the 4th squat. I was able to set a new PR for pull-ups with 5 in a row in the first set. Then I had 4, 4, 3, and 4 in the rest of the sets. If I can gain one pull-up each month for the year I can hit my goal of 15 in a row.

WOD
4 Rounds

  • 40 DUs
  • 30 Box Jumps
  • 20 KBS

Since my DUs suck, I maxed out my attempt at 60 seconds and moved on to box jumps. I didn’t get above 15 DUs in any round, so it would have taken me forever to complete the WOD without the scaling. I’m even worse with them when I get a little tired. My mind can’t figure out I need to jump higher AND move the rope faster. Maybe I’ll find some time this weekend to practice. I was jumping onto a big tire and used a 44# KB for the swings. Finished with a time of 14:38.

Was awake an hour earlier than usual and…

Was awake an hour earlier than usual and couldn’t fall back asleep. So much for getting 8+ hours like I had been. Feeling good though after yesterday’s deadlifting.

Warm-up

  • 25 MB Squat Cleans
  • 2x Burgener Snatch Warm-up
  • 2 rounds
    • 10 GHD Sit-ups
    • 10 Hip Extensions

I used a 20# MB for the squats cleans and used a 45# bar for the Burgener warm-up

Strength
5 Sets of 1 Heaving Snatch Balance followed immediately by 3 OHS

The Olympic class on Sunday helped a little bit with doing these and ended up helping a lot in the WOD. I started off with the 45# bar, and then did weights of 65#, 85#, 95#, and 105#. I really have to struggle to keep my balance with OHS and I was trying to remember to push my knees out while squatting.

WOD
12-9-6

  • Power Snatch
  • Burpees
  • 600m Run (only 1 each round)

I used 95# for the power snatches, but probably should have used 105# to push my limits. With the snatch being so new I didn’t want to go too heavy and risk hurting myself because of bad technique. I finished the WOD in 15:05.