Month: January 2016

Four & A Quarter

Went to the 5:30 class.

Warm-up

  • 20 PVC Good Mornings
  • 20 Walking Lunges
  • Bear Crawl
  • Jump Rope
  • 2×10 GHD Heel Drives

Strength – Deadlift

  • 5×45#
  • 5×155
  • 5×245
  • 5×295
  • 5×335
  • 5×365
  • 5×395
  • 5×425

Hit my goal for the day. That is the highest I have recorded for a set of 5 since using Beyond the Whiteboard. I found a 5×435 in my logs that I did over 2 years ago. It was shortly after I pulled my lifetime max of 515.

Conditioning

5 Rounds

  • 8 Power Cleans (155#)
  • 30 Double Unders
  • 30s Plank

I did two sets of 4 touch-n-go every round on my cleans. Tripped on dubs once in the 3rd round after 18. Did planks on my hands. Finished in 7:40. Felt really good.

Tabatas

  • 8 rounds of Wall Balls (20#)
  • 1:00 Rest
  • 8 Rounds of Ball Slams (30#)

I got 10 wall balls every round. Slacked off on the ball slams because my shoulders were smoked! Did 7 sets of 7 and finished with an 8.

Big Triple

Planned to get in the HSPU workout in the garage in the middle of the day, but that didn’t happen, so I did it at the gym. Going to be my last Skill WOD workout so I can rest this shoulder from muscle-ups and pull-ups.

Warm-up: 3 Rounds

  • 10 Pass-thrus (over & under grips)
  • 10 Straddle V-ups
  • 10 Back Extensions
  • 10 Heel Drives
  • 10s Handstand Hold

Mobility: 5 Sets

  • 10s GHD Hanging Stretch

Test Your Max

Kipping Deficit Handstand Push-ups

  • 2 @ 0.5″
  • 2 @ 4.5
  • 2 @ 7
  • 4×6 @ 9 (70% of max)
  • Max reps at same deficit

Rest was 2:00 between those last 5 working sets. I made it through all the sets of 6 again and got an extra one to make a final set of 6 on the max set. Wore the new Reebok CrossFit Speed TR that were delivered today. The HSPU strip on the heel is really cool.

speed-tr.jpeg
Much brighter than I expected from the pictures.

Strength Accessory: 3 Sets

  • 8 Seated DB Press (53# KB)
  • 20 Barbell Hollow Rocks

Not really cool with the KB, but the 40# DBs we have at the gym aren’t heavy enough. Hard to get the KB up to your shoulders from the floor in a seated position. Cut it back to 3 rounds instead of 5 so I could join Bryan in some stuff.

Skill

Warmed up snatches with touch-n-go power triples of 45-95-125-135-155 pounds. Felt great!

12:00 EMOM (alt)

  • 3 Power Snatch
  • 10 Pistols

Used 165# for the first 4 sets and it felt really good so I went 175 and then 185! All still touch-n-go too. I’d never even tried 175 before today. Pistols went well and were solid in these new shoes.

Conditioning

6:00 AMRAP

  • 4 Thrusters (115#)
  • 4 Burpee Box Jump Overs

Nasty combo. Quads had a nice burn by the end. Did 7 rounds plus the thrusters and 1 final burpee box over. Rested too much before picking up the bar each round, as usual with me.

Really happy about the new shoes. They are on par with the Nano 5. Looking forward to ordering a pair of the Nike Metcon 2 at the end of the month when they are released.

Safety Ski

Out in the garage after lunch.

Warm-up

  • Crossover Symmetry Activation
  • 3×15 GHD Heel Drives

Strength – Safety Bar Squats

  • 6×65#
  • 6×135
  • 6×205
  • 3×255
  • 3×285
  • 3×305
  • 3×325

That’s the heaviest I’ve had the safety bar.

Conditioning

10 Rounds

  • 0:30 Ski Erg
  • 1:30 Rest

Nothing crazy. Started out relaxed but still a good pace and aimed to increase each round. Meters were 141-144-146-147-147-148-150-152-156-158.

Finished up with the Recovery protocol with Crossover Symmetry.

Too Much Brown Bottle

Didn’t make it to the gym today. Too many beers at the Brew-Ha-Ha last night. 🙂 Hashtag lightweight! Out to the garage to get in work before the start of the Broncos game. Warmed up with Crossover Symmetry Activation.

Strength – Shoulder Press

  • 5×45#
  • 5×95
  • 5×115
  • 5×125
  • 5×135
  • 5×145
  • 5×150 (PR)
  • 3×155 (PR)
  • 3×160 (PR)
  • 3×162.5 (PR)
  • 17×95

Haven’t shoulder pressed in almost 2 months so it sounded good to get in some volume.  Best 5 had been 145 and best triple was 152.5. PR city! Went for max reps on the drop set.

Conditioning

6 Rounds

  • 15 Push-ups
  • 10 Box Jumps (33″)

Initially I planned a 10 minute AMRAP with low reps including strict chin-ups, but I got on the bar for the first rep and my shoulder would not cooperate. So I came up with this and it worked well. Did the push-ups 9-6 for the first 5 rounds and then pulled out the final set unbroken with a slow last 5 reps. Had a step down box next to the jumper and just kept at them. Finished in 8:19.

  • 2:00 DU

Might start doing this once or twice a week to improve endurance with them. Did 4 reps better today with 187.

Midline

  • 4 Tabata Hollow Rocks
  • 4 Tabata Superman Hold

Did 16-15-16-16 on the rocks and held the arches for the entire time each round.

Powerin’

Felt like staying in home after being up late playing video games online with my brother. In at 10am though. The plan for today was to do all power lifts to switch things up.

Snatch

Muscle Snatch

  • 2x5x20kg
  • 2x3x40
  • 3×50

Power Snatch

  • 3x60kg
  • 3×65
  • 3×70
  • 2×75
  • 2×80
  • 85
  • Miss 90 (“Clarked” it)

Was not feeling the greatest on these lifts even when it was light.

Power Clean & Push Jerk

  • 3x60kg
  • 3×70
  • 3×80
  • 3×90
  • 2×100
  • 2×105
  • 110
  • 115
  • 120 (power clean, miss jerk)

I didn’t plan to do a clean-jerk style with no resetting in between, but after I got the double at 100 I wanted to see how far I could go. Was thinking about it too much with 115 so my balance got out of whack. The jerk felt super easy though after the reset. The clean with 120 was ugly. Didn’t get video because I wasn’t going to attempt the transition between the two parts of the lift. Should have though because it would have been a push jerk PR had I made it. That 120 power clean may have not been the best idea for my back.

Back Squats

With short pause in the hole

  • 5×45#
  • 5×135
  • 5×205
  • 3×255
  • 3×285

No pause

  • 3×305#
  • 3×325
  • 3x3x285

Was feeling heavy so backed off for a few sets of volume.

Weird Feelings

In at 3:30.

Skill WOD “Be the Master of Your Volume” Week 3 Day 3

Warm-up: 3 Rounds

  • 10 Pass-thrus (over & under grips)
  • 10 Straddle V-ups
  • 10 Back Extensions
  • 10s Handstand Hold
  • 5/5 Bar Taps (tight/dynamic)

Test Your Max

  • 1 Set of MAX C2B Pull-ups
  • 4 sets at 60%
  • 2:00 Rests between all sets

Didn’t have it today. Got 18, which is 5 fewer than last week so 60% (rounded up) was sets of 11. I got the first 3 sets unbroken and then went for a max of 13 on the last set.

In the 2nd drop set I started to lose some of my peripheral vision and was seeing sort of 2 squiggly rainbow lines on the right some of my vision. It was weird. Lasted through the accessory work and then my peripheral was still messed up for a little while after that.

Strength Accessory: 3 Sets

  • 10 Leg Lifts (AbMat on box on jerk blocks)
  • 20 GHD Heel Drives

Cut from 5 to 3 sets again since I didn’t want to fatigue my back too much before squats.

Strength – Front Squat

  • 5×45#
  • 5×135
  • 5×205
  • 5×235
  • 5×265
  • 5×275
  • 5×285 (PR)

Wasn’t sure what to expect after the vision weirdness. Pretty solid lifting though and beats the set of 5 I did about a year ago.

Conditioning

Mini “Diane”
12-9-6

  • Deadlift (225#)
  • HSPU

I had looked back earlier when planning my week and saw a time of 5:18 from over 3 years ago for this so I was pretty happy with the 3:58 I did today. Until I got home at least. I had failed to see I later did a 15-12-9 in 4:10 over 2 years ago. Today I went unbroken on all of the deadlifts and 7-5, 5-4, and 4-1-1 on the handstand push-ups.

My neck and head weren’t feeling the greatest after this and then some of my fingers actually started going numb as I recovered. What the fuck is wrong with me today?

Skill

  • 2:00 DU

Missed more than I should have, but did a decent set of about 80 unbroken in the middle. Managed 183 reps, which is still ranked high on Beyond The Whiteboard so I shouldn’t complain too much, but I expect better.

Really not sure what was going on with me today. I’ve never had some of those issues in a training session. I did take a bunch of extra carbs in both of my workout drinks, but not sure that would have had anything to do with it. I think it’s a sign to take a full rest day tomorrow instead of active recovery.

Wall, Meet Face

Had my monthly Chiro appointment and then went to the gym. Warmed up with Crossover Symmetry Activation.

Weightlifting

Snatch Balance + OHS

  • 2x2x45#
  • 2×75
  • 2×95
  • 115
  • 135
  • 155
  • 175
  • 185
  • 195

Figured maybe these will help me get the bar back into the slot. I suck at them though and get scared when they get heavy. 185 went ok, but 195 was pretty much a push press, stop, and then squat it. Maybe I should just get to 175-185 and stay there until they get more and more comfortable.

Sprint

  • 500m Row

Been over 6 months since I did one for time and my rowing and leg strength have improved a lot since then. Was holding a 1:20/500m pace for 250+ meters, then ran straight into a wall with under 150 meters left. The hot start allowed me to hold on for a 1.3 second PR with a time of 1:23.5.

2016-01-13-500m.jpg

Rested 10-15 minutes.

Conditioning

10 Rounds

  • 2 Squat Cleans (185#)
  • 6 GHD Sit-ups

Alex started out with me and we just swapped movements, which meant a few seconds of rest waiting for the GHD. His back was bothering him so he stopped in the 3rd round and I was able to move between the movements without resting. Did all of the cleans touch-n-go. Didn’t run a clock so no idea how long it took.

You’re Kidding Me

Feeling great other than this damn shoulder, so skipping the muscle-ups again this week.

Skill WOD “Be the Master of your Volume” Week 3 Day 2

Warm-up: 3 Rounds

  • 10 Pass-thrus (over & under grips)
  • 10 Straddle V-ups
  • 10 Back Extensions
  • 10 OHS (45#, jerk grip)
  • 10 Bridge Rocks

Adjusted the warm-up again for my shoulder.

Mobility: 5 Sets

  • 10s GHD Hanging Stretch/Bridge

Test Your Max

Dusty (program creator) finally got back to us on if we should scale or not. Said to go with the prescribed 70% deficit even if we have to break up sets a lot. So I went for it today.

  • 2 @ 1.5″
  • 2 @ 3.5
  • 2 @ 6.5
  • 4×6 @ 9
  • Max @ 9 (5 reps)

Took exactly 2:00 rest between working sets today. Didn’t have high expectations when I couldn’t even get 2 sets of 6 at 7.5″ in the first week. Blew my mind when I got the first set at 9 inches and then got the next 3 too. Almost had a 6th rep in the final (max) set. Still can’t believe it. These really make you focus on your kip, which has probably improved a lot in the previous weeks.

9-inch-deficit.jpg
Intimidating!

Strength Accessory: 5 Sets

  • 8 Seated DB Press (50#)
  • 20 Barbell Hollow Rocks (45#)

Maxed out my adjustable dumbbells today and finally had to struggle a little bit on these seated presses. Took me just under an hour from start to finish with the warm-up taking a solid 15 minutes or more.

Went to the 4:30 class.

Warm-up

  • Jumping Jacks
  • Mountain Climbers
  • Push-ups
  • Air Squats

Strength – Push Press

  • 6×45#
  • 6×95
  • 6×125
  • 6×155
  • 6×180
  • 6×195
  • 6×205 (PR)

That beats the 5×198 from about a month ago. Touch-n-go reps until the last 2 sets.

Conditioning

10 Rounds

  • 10 Wall Balls (30#, 10′)
  • 5 Burpees

Yuck! 50% heavier is a big difference. I wouldn’t want to many more than 10 in a row. Finished in 9:48 with all rounds of wall balls unbroken.

5 Rounds

  • 6 Plate Snatches (45#)
  • 6 OH Lunges (alt, 45#)

Went unbroken and never put the plate down. Finished in 2:35.

That’s enough shoulders for one day!

Something New

Felt a little sick shoveling snow this morning but I think it was the extra caffeine I had in the Protein Energy mix this morning.

Warm-up

  • PVC Pass-thrus
  • Band Pulls

Strength – Bench Press

  • 8×45#
  • 8×95
  • 4×135
  • 4×165
  • 4×195
  • 4×215
  • 4×230
  • 4×245 (PR)

Felt heavy and the lift-off bugged me. Maybe due to my shoulder? Wanted to get 245-250 after getting 5×240 a couple weeks ago so I’ll take it.

Conditioning

Open Workout 11.6 / 12.5
7:00 AMRAP
3-6-9-12…

  • Thruster (100/65)
  • C2B Pull-up

My previous best was finishing the round of 12 and getting 6 more thrusters. Today I finished the 15s and a thruster. PR by 25 reps!

The pull-ups did not feel good on my shoulder in the first 3 sets. Maybe it just went numb after that. I did 3 & 6 unbroken then when I had to do 3-3-singles I was worried. I think maybe it was just the quick turnaround from the set of 6, because I did the rounds of 12 and 15 with sets of 3s no problem. Thrusters were unbroken through 9, then 7-5 and 6-5-4. If I had to do it again soon I’d try the 12 unbroken, do the 15 in 2 sets and try to do chest to bar in all sets of 3 except for the 6.

Midline / Skill

  • 4 Sets
    • 20s L-sit (rings)
    • 10s Rest
  • 30s Rest
  • 4 Sets
    • 20s Handstand Hold
    • 10s Rest
  • 30s Rest
  • 4 Sets
    • 20s Double Unders
    • 10s Rest

The L-sits seemed a lot harder than usual after that workout. This was a tough little combination on the shoulders. I went 35-36-35-25 on double unders. Missed up twice back-to-back on the last set and didn’t have time to start back up.

Skill

  • 30 Inverted Burpees

I’ve wanted to do try these but always forget. Was reminded of them a CrossFit HQ video this week. Pretty fun. I did sets of 5 and started getting the hand of going from candlestick right into the kick up. For the second half I started kicking up with two feet at once which was something new for me as well. I felt like it worked the shoulders and strength more than a lunge into one leg up at a time.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BAXfnJUnqDe/