Designed for Me

Yesterday morning I walked 18 holes of golf but took a rest day from CrossFit. I really needed it after the hill sprints on Sunday. Went to the 9am class today.

Warm-up

  • 1m DUs
  • 20 1-arm Russian KBS (10 each arm)
  • 1m DUs
  • 20 Russian KBS
  • 1m DUs
  • 20 Goblet Squats
  • 1m DUs
  • 20 KBS

Right out of the gate I nearly set a PR for unbroken DUs. I get 43, just one shy of tying my PR. I think I get in my head and sabotage myself each time that happens. I had some pretty decent streaks throughout, but got worse as I got more tired. I used a 53# KB for everything.

Strength

Matt is starting to put more focus on strength work and shorter WODs finally. That is one of the things I loved about the box out in Phoenix. I was making big improvements each month in my squats and deadlifts. I haven’t even done a 1 rep max back squat since I came back to Michigan!

I grouped up with Brian and Rick for this.

3 sets

  • Max Reps Right Arm KB Shoulder Press
  • Max Reps Left Arm KB Shoulder Press
  • 2-3m Rest

Started out with a 35# KB and did 19 and 21 reps. Moved up to a 44# and did 11 reps on each side. For the last set I used a 49# and did 8 reps each.

WOD

  • 50 Box Jumps
  • 250m Run
  • 40 Box Jumps
  • 150m Run
  • 30 Box Jumps
  • 100m Run
  • 20 Box Jumps
  • 100m Run
  • 10 Box Jumps
  • 150m Run

If I didn’t know any better I’d say this WOD was designed for me to crush. We were allowed to rebound off the box and off the ground to work on the skills there. I used a 24″ box and finished in 8:54. I did some double rebounding to speed things up, but it really wears you out so I stuck with rebounding off the box most of the time.

Finisher

  • 100 HR Push-ups

I finished in 6:21, beating my 7:48 time from just 3 weeks ago!

Sandbagging

I got home from San Francisco around 10:30pm last night after a my last flight was delayed about 40 minutes. Went in to the chiropractor this morning to see if he can’t get my back fixed up. I have to go back on Thursday to go over the x-rays he took. Went in to Survival Fitness tonight for the 7pm class. It’s good to be back after a few days of hotel WODs.

Warm-up

  • 150m Run
  • 150m Power Skip
  • 50m Zombie Kicks
  • 50m Butt Kicks
  • 150m Power Skip
  • 150m Run

I could tell I wasn’t feeling it during the warm-up. Pretty tired and slow.

WOD

  • 500m Sandbag Run
  • 50 Sandbag Cleans over the Shoulder
  • 500m Sandbag Run
  • 50 Sandbag Get-ups
  • 500m Sandbag Run

Just what I needed after seeing the chiropractor this morning. I flew threw the sandbag cleans unbroken. My runs were pretty slow, but the get-ups were the toughest. They really wear on your tailbone. I finished in 20:59.

Finisher

  • 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 V-ups
  • 20-18-16-14-12-10-8-6-4-2 DUs

I forgot to look at the clock when I started, but I know this definitely took me less than 6 minutes.

Small WODs Add Up to a Big WOD

Yesterday I got out for a 2 mile trip on the kayak and then walked 9 holes of golf with Dad. I’m sore, but not feeling fatigued.

Warm-up

  • 10 Turkish Get-ups (45# DB)
  • 3 rounds
    • 1m Plank
    • 1m DUs
    • 1m Side Planks (30s each side)
    • 1m Rest

The 45# seems to be about my limit for Turkish Get-ups. I can get through them, but it takes every bit of concentration to keep the weight steady over me. My DUs sucked again today.

WOD

7:00 AMRAP

  • Man Makers (45# DBs)

Rest for 2 minutes.

5:00 AMRAP

  • 10 Pistols
  • 10 Chair Dips

Rest for 2 minutes.

5:00 AMRAP

  • 5 Floor Wipers (45# DBs)
  • 5 Burpees

I was able to do 19 man makers, 4 rounds plus 10 pistols and 8 chair dips, and 4 rounds plus 5 floor wipers and 2 burpees in the AMRAPs. Before starting I figured 25 make makers and 5 rounds in each of the 5 minute AMRAPs would be good numbers to shoot for. Great work on a lot of areas.

Finisher

Every other minute for 10 minutes

  • 4 HSPUs

I did these all strict without any additional head support (usually AbMats if needed). Doing 5 reps would have been a challenge, so I’ll have to give that a try if I ever do this again.

Sprints

Thought about making today a rest day, but I’ll make that tomorrow instead. My shoulder area is pretty sore today and I have a decent bruise on my left bicep from the ring strap when I failed on a muscle-up yesterday.

Warm-up

  • 5:00 easy run
  • Tabata Sprints
  • 7:30 easy run

I really like doing the Tabata sprints and they are great work. I should get back to doing them once a week.

WOD #1

10 rounds

  • 10 HR Push-ups
  • 40 yard Sprint
  • Walk back

Due to the walking, I didn’t think it made sense to time this. All of the push-ups were done unbroken and I ran all out on the sprints. The area where I did my sprints was a slight incline in the yard, so uneven terrain, which was a nice change from running on pavement.

WOD #2

“Annie”
50-40-30-20-10

  • DUs
  • Sit-ups

My time was 9:37, far from my 8:26 best. My DUs were not the greatest and I was really feeling the sit-ups. Didn’t take any breaks, so the time was really disappointing.

Sunday is Not a Day of Rest

I went to bed later than normal, so didn’t wake up quite as early as I have been. Still had time to get in my first WOD of the day before my brother and Mom woke up though. I can feel the effects of the weighted step-ups from last night already, so as the day goes on and in to tomorrow it should be interesting.

Warm-up

5 rounds

  • 1m Plank
  • 1m Bottom Squat Hold

WOD

50 reps of each

  • DUs
  • Plank Push-ups
  • Star Jumps
  • T2B (on rings)
  • SDLHP (50# KB)
  • Walking Lunges
  • V-ups
  • Push Presses (35# DBs)
  • KBS (50# KB)
  • HR Push-ups
  • DUs

I set a new PR by doing the first 15 T2B unbroken with kipping. The rings on the tree worked out really well. After the first 15 I did them 5 at a time. Push Presses were done in 5 sets of 10, KBS in sets of 20, 15, and 15, and I tried to stick to sets of 10 for the HR Push-ups, but that broke down a bit after 30 reps. My total time was 30:31, but it would have been under 30 had I not turned a single knot into a double when I picked up the rope and tried to fix it. I wasted over 30 seconds getting those out. Ugh!

I’ve been doing a lot of WODs in the 10 minute range, so it was good to get in a long chipper like this. After I get a late breakfast I’ll probably head out for a trip on the kayak and then I plan to do the Hero WOD “Brenton” later today.

Karen Plus Helen

Today was another scorcher and I had gone out walking 18 holes of golf this morning, so I went to the 8pm class hoping it would cool off some. I just got home (9:15 pm as I write this) and it’s still 86 degrees out.

Warm-up

  • 50-40-30-20-10 DUs
  • 25-20-15-10-5 Burpees

I finished in 7:59 and had good rhythm with the DUs through each set.

WOD

Split up Karen 6 ways and mix the pieces with Helen. What do you get? Haren? Kelen? How about a suck fest?

  • 25 Wall Balls (20# MB)
  • 400m Run
  • 21 KBS (55#)
  • 25 Wall Balls
  • 12 Pull-ups
  • 400m Run
  • 25 Wall Balls
  • 21 KBS
  • 12 Pull-ups
  • 25 Wall Balls
  • 400m Run
  • 21 KBS
  • 25 Wall Balls
  • 12 Pull-ups
  • 25 Wall Balls

I knocked out the best time of the day at 20:59 with one of the owners, Cora, right behind me setting the 2nd best time of the day at 21:06. After we were both done we were talking about how we would not have pushed as hard if the other hadn’t been there, which is so true. Out of the corner of your eye you might see someone close to your level catching up to you or taking a break. That small glimpse makes you push to extend your lead or catch up. In the end, we all make each other better.

Working Off That Pizza

As promised, I ordered pizza today. I also ordered a Cinnapie, which I don’t think was my best idea.

Pizza, Cinnapie, and Mountain Dew

Today’s benchmark WOD for the Paleo Challenge was a good test, but I didn’t feel overworked due to all of the rest time. Since I took a rest day yesterday and will be out-of-town all weekend, I went back to the gym at 8pm for some extra work.

I warmed up with an easy 500m run and some shoulder stretching with the bands. Then I did 3 Cleans + Push Presses on the minute, every minute, for 10 minutes with 135#. I worked on DUs here and there a bit, getting one streak of 37 in a row. I did 3 sets of 15 KBS with the 62# KB. The first two sets were on the top of consecutive minutes and the 3rd set was after taking an extra minute off. I jumped on the bar and attempted some MUs, sort of getting up there once, but with a bit of help from my leg on the support 4×4. Doesn’t count.

It’s time to finish the last 3 pieces of pizza and the last 3rd of the Mountain Dew. The Cinnapie was gone hours ago. 🙂

2 Hours of CrossFit

Was up early this morning to play a practice round in preparation for the Saginaw District Golf Tournament Qualifier, which is this Sunday. Yes, I knocked out the Armstrong push-ups bright and early to start my day.

My pair of Reebok CrossFit Nano 2.0 arrived today in time to use them for my workout. I’m very pleased with them as a CrossFit shoe.

I attended the 4:15 class and planned on staying after for open gym to work on a bunch of stuff and beat up my body.

Warm-up

  • 100-75-50-25 Squats
  • 50-40-30-20 HR Push-ups

I’m not sure you can really call this a warm-up, because it took longer than the WOD. I finished in 17:22.

WOD

21-15-9

  • Goblet Squats (88# KB)
  • Burpees
  • Pull-ups
  • Sit-ups

I went as heavy as I could for the goblet squats by using the largest KB in the gym and for each round I broke them up into 2 sets. They completely wiped me out for burpees, which I did extremely slow compared to my normal pace. My time was 12:45.

Finisher

Death by Box Jumps

  • 1st minute: 2 box jumps
  • 2nd minute: 4 box jumps
  • … increas by 2 each minute

Go big or go home right? I used the 32″ box for the first time, which wasn’t too bad. I just had to take my time a little more and make sure I got a good jump in. I made it up to the round of 14, which I finished a few seconds before the minute was over. I knew I wouldn’t be able to make 16 with such a short rest, so I shut it down there. Using the bigger boxes more often will make the 24″ box seem so easy.

After class I rested for a bit as some people started showing up for open gym.

WOD #2

Mini “Diane”
12-9-6

  • Deadlifts (225#)
  • HSPUs

I did strict HSPUs as long as I could, then added a kip, then added an AbMat, then added a kip with the AbMat. My time was 4:49. When I think how fast the elite men and women are doing a “Diane” compared to my mini, it’s sick. They’re in a different solar system.

Strength

Back Squats

  • 3x 175#
  • 3x 195#
  • 3x 195#
  • 3x 195#

I was feeling pretty beat after 250 air squats and the goblet squats, but it was nice to get in some moderate weight squatting for the week.

After that I decided to knock out my Armstrong Pull-ups for the day. It was 3 sets with a normal grip, 3 sets with a close (hands 0-4 inches apart) chin-up grip, and 3 sets with a wide grip. Each set was 3 reps with 60 seconds of rest in between sets. The pull-ups felt really good today.

Then I pulled out the jump rope and did some DUs. With the new rope it was nothing to knock out 10+ in a row on each attempt. It spins so effortlessly. Somehow somebody brought up muscle ups, so I tried a few on the bar. I almost had it a couple of times and I’m confident I can get it next time when I haven’t worked out for 2 hours already. 🙂

I’m fucking beat, but it was all worth it. Time to relax for the night. Tomorrow is CrossFit for Hope, which looks like a killer WOD. I’m looking forward to the snatches, which I haven’t done in quite some time.

Steppin’ up to 45s

I didn’t think yesterday’s WOD was that hard, but I was definitely feeling it today in my legs. My shins were a bit sore for the first time I can remember. I’m guessing that’s from 169 box jumps!

Woke up and did my 3 sets of max rep push-ups, which are increasing daily.

Warm-up

10:00 AMRAP

  • 250m Run
  • 20 Burpees

I finished 4 rounds with 30 seconds left, so there was no point in heading out for another run.

WOD

50 Man Makers (45# DBs)

What a dandy! I need to get stronger so I went for it with the 45s. Took me 27:30 to finish. I was sweating so much it was hard to hold on to the DBs. When combined with chalk it was almost like a paste on the handles. Not that my time would have improved much. Just saying it sucked. In these workouts I try not to pay attention to the clock because I know I’m pushing myself for weight and getting stronger is my goal. My endurance and cardio are pretty good and they get worked enough in all of the metcon WODs.

Finisher

7 rounds

  • 10s Suicides
  • 10s Rest

At the end of class a few people were talking about jump ropes, so I grabbed my brand new Again Faster Revolution Rope from the vehicle to try it for the first time. Let me tell you… it’s as good as advertised. My DUs seemed effortless in a couple of quick attempts I made. The rope spins so much nicer than the cheaper speed ropes.

When I got home, I rested for a bit and then did day 2 of the Armstrong Pull-up Program, which is now my 2nd week.

Fifties on Sunday

Yesterday while watching golf, I downloaded a bunch of Survival Fitness videos from Facebook and compiled them into a movie.

My body is pretty freaking sore all over. I haven’t felt like this in a couple of months, so I can tell the WODs have been great and the extra work I’m putting in is paying off . Yesterday I mentioned my tailbone was really sore. Well, it’s more than that. I have two quarter-sized floor burn marks on the sides of my tailbone. No wonder in hurts to sit down! Sorry, no pictures. 😉

Do you ever get bruises in CrossFit and have no idea where they came from? I have one under my right arm and a matching one under my armpit almost all the way to my back. Weird.

I did the push-ups of Armstrong Pull-up Program when I got out of bed this morning. It’s a nice way to start the day. I went in to the noon class today and it was packed with 20 people. Since class was so big we had to skip around during the movements, but it all worked out.

Warm-up

5 rounds

  • 1m Deep Squat Hold
  • 1m Mountain Climbers

I was stiffer than usual from the squat holds and 1 minute is a long time to do mountain climbers in a row, so I had to take 2-3 short breaks for them each round.

WOD

50 of each

  • DUs
  • Burpees
  • MB Snatches (20#)
  • Push Presses (30# DBs)
  • Wall Balls (20#)
  • K2E
  • Walking Lunges
  • KBS (53#)
  • Jumping Pull-ups
  • Box Jumps (24″)

It was ordered different on the board, but this is the order I ended up doing. I finished in 32:01. Most people did tuck jumps, but I was able to string together a few DUs before we started, so I went with DUs and completed them in 4 sets. I think I need to start practicing them again.

Later tonight I’ll do the nightly pull-ups and then it’s 2 days off from Armstrong Pull-ups. Tomorrow will also be a day off from CrossFit, which I’m really looking forward to. I will get out and walk 18 holes of golf.

Update: I just couldn’t stand sitting around later in the evening even though I went out and walked 9 holes of golf after lunch. I had to lace up the shoes and go out for a run, so I did a 5 minute warm-up, Tabata sprints, and a 5 minute cool down. In 14:14 I covered a total of 1.73 miles.