After a 2 Month Hiatus

My legs are sore from the 2 days in a row of front squats and my low back is real spicy from a combination of things yesterday. Brent convinced me to do the 10am class today with him. I haven’t been to a class at Survival Fitness in 2 months!

Warm-up

10 Rounds of Tabata Choice

Partner WOD

1 person working at a time

  • 100 C&J (115#)
  • 100 DU
  • 100 Back Squats (115#)
  • 100 Burpees
  • 100 Hang Power Cleans (115#)
  • 200 Bulgarian Split Squats (100 each leg)

Record time, rest 5:00, and continue to bonus rounds.

  • 1:00 MAX HSPU
  • 1:00 MAX Deadlifts (115#)

Rest 1:00

  • 1:00 MAX C2B Pull-ups
  • 1:00 MAX Bench Dips

For each rep completed in the bonus rounds, subtract a second from the recorded time.

We finished the 100s in 33:18. I did 18 HSPU, Brent did 46 deadlifts, I did 19 C2B, and Brent did 51 dips, so our score time would be 31:04. I like these partner workouts with the rest because it turns them into intervals and you push hard for each other. My wind held up pretty good, so my training must be working at keeping my conditioning at an acceptable level.

When the Air Dyne is Considered Rest…

The 10am show again, with Kevin today. Knee is improving. Going up the stairs without a problem, but still favoring it on the way down. Day by day.

Warm-up

3:00 Air Dyne

Strength

Bench Press

Used the slingshot for all sets after 95#, since it worked really well the last time. Chest is pretty sore from the DB bench the other day and 250 push-ups over the last 3 days.

  • 10 x 45#
  • 5 x 95#
  • 5 x 135#
  • 5 x 155#
  • 5 x 165#
  • 5 x 175#
  • 5 x 180#
  • 5 x 185#
  • 5 x 190#
  • 5 x 195#
  • 5 x 200#
  • 5 x 205#
  • 5 x 210#
  • 5 x 215#
  • 5 x 220#

Tried to keep rest periods short, around 60s most of the time. That’s 20# more for 5 reps than just a few weeks ago, although last time I did do a whole bunch of sets of 8 up to 175#. But, shit, my 1RM unassisted is only 240#. Finally making bench progress!

Seated Sumo Deadlifts

Based on this video from Louie Simmons.

  • 2 Seated Pulls
  • 1 Seated Pull with a 2s pause and then explosively stand up

I did 95#, 135#, 2 sets with 185#, and 2 sets with 215#. Pretty weird movement.

Knocked out 3 sets of 10 back squats with the empty 45# bar. Felt pretty good.

WOD

3 Rounds

  • 20 Air Dyne calories
  • 15 C2B Pull-ups
  • 30 Sit-ups

The AD was the easiest part! Finished in 10:47. C2B were 5-4-3-3 in the first round and then 5×3 the last 2 rounds. Need to figure out butterfly C2B before the 2014 Open.

3 AMRAP Suckfest

Went to the 6pm class.

Warm-up

  • 30 Air Squats
  • 20 PVC Pass-thrus
  • 30 PVC OHS
  • 20 Zombie Kicks

Strength

Front Squats

  • 5 @ 45#
  • 5 @ 135#
  • 3 @ 185#
  • 3 @ 225#
  • 3 @ 245#
  • 3 @ 275#

Felt solid.

3 Sets

  • 12 Front Rack Lunges (135#)
  • 12 Good Mornings (Black band)
  • 60s Rest

Wow, those GMs lit up the low back!

WOD

5:00 AMRAP

  • 10 Hang power cleans (135#)
  • 10 Burpees

Rest 3:00

5:00 AMRAP

  • 10 Push Presses (115#)
  • 10 T2B

Rest 3:00

5:00 AMRAP

  • 10 Thrusters (95#)
  • 10 C2B Pull-ups

We paired up and just switched back and forth between movements, so maybe got a little extra rest here or there depending on the movements. I was paired up with Matt, so didn’t really get extra rest except for waiting on him on the first set or two of burpees. I did 3+12, 3+6, and 2+11. That sucked!

Finisher

Stayed after and pulled the sled with 115# total for 1/2 mile in 9:46.

Double Day

Feeling good this morning. Hamstrings a little tight from squats on Tuesday, but body feels good. In at 10am.

Warm-up

1/2 Mile Sled Drag (115#)

Olympic Lifting

Every 1:30 to 2:00

  • Snatch
  • Hang Snatch
  • High Hang Snatch

I did it with 95#, 105#, 115#, 125#, 135#, and 125#. No misses on any of the lifts. I think 135# in a new high for the high hang, by 10#. Getting better!

Strength

5/3/1 Deadlifts – Cycle 2 Week 3

  • 5 @ 165# (40% of Training Max – warm)
  • 5 @ 210# (50%)
  • 3 @ 250# (60%)
  • 5 @ 315# (75%)
  • 3 @ 355# (85%)
  • 1+ @ 400# (95%)

Pulled 8 reps @ 400# for an estimated max of 505.5#. Booyah! Looking forward to testing 1RM next week. It won’t be close to 500# but I should see a nice improvement over 455#.

WOD

5 Rounds

  • 10 OH Lunges (45# empty bar)
  • 10 Goblet Squats (53#)
  • 5 C2B Pull-ups

I used a clean grip on the OH Lunges. First time doing those with a barbell. Did everything unbroken and finished in 5:56. Not a killer WOD, but did make my legs shaky when I was done.

Core

  • 100 Sit-ups

Was hoping for a sub three and was on pace, but died a bit in the 3rd minute to finish at 3:06, 4 seconds off my best. I need to figure out how to stop moving backwards because I have to adjust the AbMat every 10-15 reps.

3 Rounds NFT

  • 10 T2B
  • 5/5 Side Bends (80# KB)

Grip may have been the toughest here after deadlifts and C2B pull-ups.

Went back at 8pm. Warmed up with 3:00 on the Air Dyne.

Conditioning

6 Rounds

  • 40 yard Prowler Sprint (High, 210# total)
  • 60s Rest
  • 40 yard Prowler Sprint (Low, 210# total)
  • 60s Rest

We took this from a challenge posted by Jim Wendler, but 3 rounds (6 sprints) was too easy so we doubled it. Ended up being pretty perfect.

I also did 3 sets of 10 wall squats to work on my vertical torso.

“Hope”-ing for a Speedy Recovery

Whatever this MudCrud virus is I got from Tough Mudder has ruined an entire week. I did a little work on Monday morning, but none the rest of the week. Headed over to the new Survival Fitness Bay City at 10am today.

Warm-up

  • 500m Row

We were on our own for warm-up and I didn’t want to wear myself out because I know I’d be pacing the WOD really slow anyway.

WOD

“Hope”
3 rounds

  • Burpees
  • Power snatch (75#)
  • Box jump (24″) *Rebounding off the top is allowed
  • Thruster (75#)
  • Chest to bar Pull-ups

“Hope” has the same format as Fight Gone Bad. In this workout you move from each of five stations after a minute. This is a five-minute round from which a one-minute break is allowed before repeating. The clock does not reset or stop between exercises. On call of “rotate,” the athlete/s must move to next station immediately for good score. One point is given for each rep.

Last year I was left with tunnel vision for over an hour after this WOD. I had managed a total of 235 reps with rounds of 82, 74, and 78. No way I was coming close to that with my body beat down. I really paced things and probably rested more than I repped. Did 54-54-53 reps for a 161 total. Was great to sweat it out, but damn I felt like a rookie.

2013-hope

Epic Session

My hamstrings are pretty sore from doing the RDLs yesterday. Need to do those more often and pay more attention to the hamstrings. Went it an 10:30 this morning and we had a big group. Best session we’ve ever had.

Warm-up

  • 300m Run
  • 2:00 Jump Rope
  • Stretching

XWOD / OLY

7:00 EMOM

  • 3 Explosive Squat Snatches (95#)

Felt great and really tried to drop under the bar fast.

Strength

OHS

  • 3 @ 135#
  • 3 @ 145#
  • 3 @ 155#
  • 3 @ 165#
  • 3 @ 180# (PR)
  • 3 @ 190# (PR)

Booyah! I just had set a 3RM with 175# about a week and half ago.

Close Grip Bench Press

  • 5 @ 135#
  • 3 @ 165#
  • 3 @ 175#
  • 3 @ 195#
  • 3 @ 205#
  • 3 @ 215#

Still fighting that right arm flaring out, but when I keep it in, it’s money. Matches my 3RM for regular grip bench press, so maybe I’m back on the upward swing.

WOD

Wanted to try the 100s workout from Regionals, but not quite for that long, so we dropped the reps to 50s. Still brutal.

  • 50 Wall Balls (20# MB, 10′ target)
  • 50 C2B Pull-ups
  • 50 Pistols
  • 50 Alternating One-Arm DB Snatches (60# DB)

Did the wall balls as 25-25 without a problem and then did 5 C2B at a time through 20, with one 4 and the rest 3s. Tried to get 6-10 pistols at a time and started doing the foot hold to keep myself from tapping the foot on the ground. Worked well for the first time trying that. Then survived through the snatches. They used 70# at Regionals. My time was 16:28 and I feel pretty good about it, but Froning did 100 reps of each with a heavier dumbbell in just over 19 minutes. Think about how sick that it!

Off to get a massage!

PR Week

It’s been awhile since I tested most of my lifts, so might as well test as many as possible in one week right? In at 10am this morning.

Warm-up

  • 3:00 Air Dyne
  • PVC Pass-thrus

I need to start switch up my warm-ups a bit. It’s been cardio and pass-thrus most days.

Strength

Front Squats

Coming in, I was feeling good about setting a big PR.

  • 5 @ 45#
  • 5 @ 135#
  • 3 @ 185#
  • 2 @ 225#
  • 1 @ 255#
  • 1 @ 270# (PR)
  • 1 @ 285# (PR)
  • 1 @ 295# (PR)

BOOM! 35# PR. Felt really good too.

Overhead Squats

Was looking forward to a big jump here too. Was warmed up from the front squats so went right into singles. I did 135#, 155#, 175# (PR), 185# (PR), and 200# (PR). Another 35# PR! Hell yeah!

WOD

5 Rounds of 2:30

  • 250m Row
  • 10 Thrusters (95#)
  • 10 C2B Pull-ups
  • Rest with whatever time is left

I did it Rx the first round, but had to drop to 5 C2B for the last 4 rounds so that I could get about 20 seconds of rest. Pretty tough one. The thrusters really sucked after I had done so much heavy squatting.

Finisher

Accumulate 2:00 of Ring L-sits. Each break, do 5 burpees. I held my knees up l-sits for 40-30-20-17-13 seconds each so did 20 burpees. I think it took me 5:38 to get this done.

This happened to be my 500th post on this training blog, so I had to make it an epic day right?

Last Week of the Squat Program

Had a couple of rest days, so feeling good. Went in at 10:30 and trained with Kevin and Monica. Matt did his own thing.

Warm-up

  • 500m Row
  • 3/3 Turkish Get-ups (35# KB)
  • 2/2 World’s Greatest Stretch

Strength

Back Squats

Last week of the 6 week volume squat program and it’s a challenging one. Warmed up with 5 @ 45# and 5 @ 135#.

  • 6 @ 235#
  • 6 @ 250#
  • 4 @ 265#
  • 3 @ 280#
  • 2 @ 300#
  • 6 @ 235#

Just like last week, those first sets were harder than the end. After the 3 with 280# I didn’t think there was a chance I’d hit both with 300#, especially since I’ve only ever done it once and 315# once. I even asked Matt and Kevin to spot me on the ends of the bar, but I got both reps no problem. This program is working!!

Push Jerks

Worked up to a heavy triple. I went 135#, 145#, 165#, 175#, and 195#. Knocked out each triple fast except for the last one where I reset on each rep instead of going right into the dip.

WOD #1

8:00 AMRAP

  • 5 C2B Pull-ups
  • 10 HR Push-ups
  • 15 Wall Balls (20# MB, 10′ Target)

Push-ups held me back, but I did all C2B and WB unbroken. Finished with 5+15.

WOD #2

5 Rounds

  • 20 Unbroken DU
  • 20 Wall Ball Sit-ups

Messed up on my first round of DU, but then was solid. Those wall ball sit-ups added up fast after a couple of rounds. Finished in 7:27.

Some solid strength work and a couple of short WODs, which were a nice change of pace after doing a bunch of longer metcons last week.

Masters Sunday

Feeling a little tired today after a short night of sleep. Went to the 11am.

Warm-up

Teams of 3 with cardio setting the pace. Do a round at each cardio piece.

  • 250m Row / 20 cal Air Dyne / 200m Run
  • KB Rack Hold
  • Air Squats

WOD

20:00 Partner AMRAP

  • Pace: 450m Run
  • AMRAP:
    • 7 C2B Pull-ups
    • 14 Wall Balls (20#, 10′)
    • 21 One-arm KB C&J (53# KB)

I paired up with Kevin and we finished 6 rounds plus 7 (actually Kevin miscounted at the end and got us to 9 C2B). The C&J were by far the worst part of this. My running shape is terrible.

Finisher

Big class, so we all lined up and did 25m prowler sprints. Then as class ended, a few people stayed to do extra credit down and back (25m each way) prowler sprints. I stayed even later and kept adding weight to the prowler for more down and backs. Got in about an hour and 15 minutes of work today.

Time to enjoy the Masters!

Training for the 2013 CrossFit Games Open

Worked out at 10:30 this morning with Cora, Matt, and Kevin. First day of training for the 2014 CrossFit Games Open. 🙂 I’ll have a post up in the next couple of days detailing how I did in the 2013 Open and what I learned about myself.

I warmed up with 20 cal on the Air Dyne and then worked up with some lighter weights on the back squat and shoulder press.

I’m starting a 6 week squat program where I’ll be doing back squats once a week and front squats once a week. It’s a volume program I got off of Burgener’s site. They all did 5×5 Back Squats at 80%, but I had 3 sets of 10, so my timing wasn’t exactly every minute on the minute since I had the 2nd and 4th round of back squats off, but my rounds were longer too because of higher reps.

Strength

10:00 EMOTM

  • Back Squats: 10 @ 60% (185#), 10 @ 65% (205#), 10 @ 70% (220#)
  • 5×5 Shoulder Press @ 80% of 1RM (125#)

Really tough work with those reps at the percentages. I was out of breath after 10 reps of 220# and 125# was perfect for the shoulder presses.

WOD #1

5:00 Partner AMRAP

  • 21 cal Air Dyne
  • Wall Balls (20# MB, 10′ target) until partner is done

I worked with Matt. We got 95 calories and 114 wall balls.

WOD #2

5:00 AMRAP

  • Box Jumps (24″) with 5 unbroken C2B EMOTM starting at 1:00 (so 4 sets of them)

I didn’t rebound my box jumps until the last 20 seconds or so because I figured I’d be smoked after the previous work and with a long 5 minutes. I think I went 20-13-14-14-19 during each minute for a total of 80. I should have rebounded from the beginning.

Core

10:00 EMOTM

  • 20s MAX OHS (95#)
  • 20s Ring L-sit

I got 8-9-8-9-9 on my OHS. Lost balance with 4 or 5 seconds left in that third round and had to bump the bar, so missed out on another rep or two there. The OHS felt really good today though.