Tag: Thruster

Shoulder the Load

Sunday is always interesting. Started out with Crossover Symmetry Activation.

Strength

Shoulder Press

  • 5×45#
  • 5×95#
  • 3×115#
  • 3×135#
  • 10x3x147.5#

That finished my second Smolov Jr. cycle. I was hoping to get up to 150, but 147.5 was still a new 3RM PR and an increase of 2.5 pounds over the last session of the first cycle. Can’t argue with improvement. I thought about going right into another cycle, but I’m not sure now. Might try dialing back a little to two shoulder press days a week, especially with the thruster work we’ve started and I need to put some time into working on my jerk. I can still pull numbers and sets from a Smolov Jr. but spread out a lot more than over 3 weeks.

Weightlifting

Snatch

  • EMOM 3:00 – 5×95#
  • 1:00 Rest
  • EMOM 3:00 – 4×115#
  • 1:00 Rest
  • EMOM 3:00 – 3×135#
  • 1:00 Rest
  • E30S 10:00 – 1×155#

All touch and go power snatches. Wasn’t as bad as I was expecting. Worked up a great sweat.

Gymnastics

E30S 10:00

  • 4 C2B Pull-ups

Tried all butterfly. Lost the rhythm in some sets after 2 or 3. Never had to drop from the bar though and when I did lose my cycling I reset right back into the next rep.

Conditioning

  • 16 Rounds (Tabata)
    • 20s Thrusters (25#)
    • 10s Rest
  • 4:00 Rest
  • 16 Rounds (Tabata)
    • 20s Thrusters (25#)
    • 10s Rest

People think we’re crazy. I guess maybe we are. I was doing 8 reps throughout again, then did 10 in the last two rounds. So it ended up being 260 thrusters again. The 10# increase made quite a difference in how this felt. Towards the end of the first 8 minutes I wasn’t sure I’d be able to make it all the way, but the rest was nice.

Had thought about doing a little metcon with burpee pull-overs. Did a few to try out the movement, but decided we’d done enough for one day.

Shoulders are beat!

Had a bright idea at night to do some push-ups and was going to shoot for a PR at 100 hand release push-ups. Was using the clock to pace myself with 5 reps at a time, but I could tell it was going to be bad, so I stopped at 50 in 2:27. I was already having to break up into smaller sets than 5s and I’d only have a few seconds to spare if I could miraculously keep that same pace for the next 50. Not a good day for more shoulder work. 🙂

Part Two

Back at it after a rest day yesterday. I’ve been “sleeping in” a few times this week. Not sure what’s up with my internal clock. Still made it to the 9am though.

Warm-up

  • 3 Rounds
    • 12 Reverse Hyper (190#)
    • 2 Inch Worms
  • Jump Rope
  • 3 Deadlifts (135#)
  • 3 Deadlifts (225#)
  • 3 Deadlifts (315#)

XWOD

8 Rounds

  • 3 Deadlifts (345#)
  • 4 C2B Pull-ups

Slowly increasing the load for deadlifts so I don’t tweak my back again. Worked on my butterfly chest-to-bar again. Getting more comfortable with it.

Conditioning

EMOM 4:00

  • 5 Thrusters (125#)

EMOM 4:00

  • 5 Thrusters (135#)

It was a continuous 8 minutes, but 125# was feeling a little too easy, so I added weight. Should have done 135# the whole way. This is part 2 of the thruster attack that started Sunday.

Strength

3 Rounds NFT

  • 8 Reverse Hypers (260#)
  • 8 GHD MB Toss (25#)

Jumped on the Ski Erg in the afternoon.

4 Rounds

  • 1,000m Ski Erg
  • 4:00 Rest

My goal was to keep a 2:00-2:05/500m pace. Had only done 1k for warm-ups so wasn’t sure what I’d be able to maintain. My times were 4:02.5, 3:59.7, 3:46.5 (pushed that one), and 3:59.9. Walked a half mile after.

Tabata Thrusters

Really needed the rest day yesterday. Was up early do go play in a golf scramble. Kind of a shitty day since we had to use all of our rain gear. I was exhausted when I got home.

Got up early this morning, put on the weight vest and headed out for a brisk walk before eating or drinking anything. It was 3.06 miles in 44:05 with the additional 20# strapped to me.

Over to CFi at 12:30 to train with Kevin. Got started with Crossover Symmetry Activation and then did some warm-up sets of shoulder press with 5×45#, 5×95#, and 5×115#. Did a few single muscle-ups and some swinging on the rings too.

XWOD

  • 6-6-6-6-6-6 Shoulder Press (127.5#)
  • 2-1-2-1-2-1 Muscle-ups
    • 2s: Kipping Muscle-ups
    • 1s: Weighted Kipping Muscle-up

First time trying a weighted muscle-up. Failed with 20#, then failed with 10#, and made it with 10# on the last one. Shoulder press was the biggest struggle I’ve had out of any day in the 2 cycles. I may have to reevaluate my plan for these last 3 days. I should have been fresh after the rest day yesterday, but even the muscle-ups felt sluggish in my shoulders.

Gymnastics

E30S 11:00

  • 3 C2B Pull-ups

Was planning to go for 4 every 30 seconds for 8:00 as a step up from 60 total reps doing 6 EMOM 10:00 last week, but after the XWOD I decided to adjust. Went the extra minute to get more volume in. Started doing butterfly chest-to-bar for the first time. Had a kipping one mixed in here and there, but was over 90% butterfly. I’ve never been able to string them together before today. Making GAINZ in many areas lately.

Experimenting

16:00 Tabata (32 Rounds)

  • 20s Thrusters (15#)
  • 10s Rest

Trying out something new. This was all about building an aerobic base for thrusters, which will continue to be built on. The goal is not to go balls to the wall, but slow, controlled, and consistent. I got 8 reps every round and went for it, getting 12 on the final round, which comes to a total of 260 thrusters! Not hard or terrible, but pretty boring. I’m a little worried how bad the DOMS is going to be.

Conditioning

  • Buy-in: 500m Row
  • 3 Rounds
    • 5 Snatches (95#)
    • 10 T2B
    • 15 Ring Push-ups

Pulled around 1:45-1:48 on the row. Did all TnG snatches, 5-5, 5-5, and 5-3-2 on T2B, 5-5-5, 6-5-4, and 6-5-4 on the ring push-ups. Finished in 7:13.

Midline

3 Sets

  • 20 GHD Sit-ups

All under 2 hours.

Running Bear

Not feeling it when I woke up this morning. Thought about staying home and hitting up a class later, but got my ass moving and made it to the 9am class.

Warm-up

  • Crossover Symmetry Activation
  • 4 Rounds
    • 30s Squat Hold
    • 30s Ring Hang
  • 10 Air Squats

Strength

  • 10×45# Back Squats
  • 5×135# Back Squats
  • 4×225# Back Squats
  • 4×245# Back Squats
  • 4×265# Back Squats
  • MU + 5 Ring Dips
  • 4×270# Back Squats
  • MU + 5 Ring Dips
  • 4×275# Back Squats
  • MU + 5 Ring Dips
  • 4×280# Back Squats
  • MU + 5 Ring Dips
  • 4×275# Back Squats
  • MU + 5 Ring Dips
  • 4×275# Back Squats
  • MU + 5 Ring Dips

The last rep with 280# didn’t feel so good on my low mid back, so I dropped 5# and did the last two sets instead of continuing to increase. Really focused on staying tight with my chest up on the last 2 sets. Decided to do my ring dips up in support after a muscle-up for an extra challenge.

Conditioning

15:00 AMRAP

  • 5 Bear Complexes (115#)
    • Squat Clean Thruster
    • Back Thruster
  • 10 Burpees
  • 300m Run

I did 4 complete rounds plus 3 bear complexes. Dropped the bar on every rep during the 4 rounds and then did the final 3 unbroken as the clock was running out. Weight was perfect for this. Runs sucked! Walked about 200m after the workout.

Glad I made it in and got the workout done. Took an afternoon break out to the garage and started with Crossover Symmetry Activation to get the shoulders ready. Also did some shoulder press sets to get warm with 5×45#, 5×75#, and 5×105#.

XWOD

  • 5-5-5-5-5-5-5 Shoulder Press (120#)
  • Push-ups 2-1-2-1-2-1-2
    • 2s: 20# Weight Vest
    • 1s: Clapping w/ vest

Shoulder presses felt better than the first day back on a Smolov Jr. cycle. The push-ups weren’t that bad. Maybe not the greatest choice for the XWOD.

SkiErg

  • 500m
  • Rest 2:1
  • 5-8 Rounds *If you begin falling off pace dramatically then stop, minimum of 5 efforts*
    • 250m @ 85-95% of 500m pace (~2:02)
    • Rest 1:1
  • 500m

I set a PR on the first 500m with a 1:49.6 and really fell off pace in the last 200m. Would do better not going out so fast, but I was trying the technique improvements (see video below) and didn’t have any idea what I’d be able to do. My splits on the 250s were consistent, actually getting faster as I got more comfortable with the technique.

  • 1:02.4
  • 1:02.5
  • 1:02.0
  • 1:01.9
  • 1:01.0
  • 1:01.3
  • 1:01.3
  • 1:01.1

Then the last 500m my goal was to be able to hold the pace I’d been using for the 250m intervals since it was on the short rest coming off the last one. Did a 2:01.2, so goal accomplished.

Walked 0.44 miles around the block to cool down and catch my breath. Then did Crossover Symmetry Plyometrics.

10 Too Much?

Wasn’t very sore yesterday, so I guess on Tuesday my legs were still feeling the thruster work from Saturday. Walked 18 holes of golf yesterday. Didn’t get my usual fill of sleep last night due to watching the OHS event of the CrossFit Games. Still in for the 9am at CFi though.

Warm-up

  • Crossover Symmetry Activation
  • Box Shoulder Stretches
  • 15# Good Mornings
  • Bottom Squat Hold
  • Arm Circles

Strength & Skill

  • 5×155# Deadlift
  • 3×245# Deadlift
  • 3×315# Deadlift
  • 3×365# Deadlift
  • 3 MU
  • 3×385# Deadlift
  • 3 MU
  • 3×395# Deadlift
  • 3 MU
  • 3×395# Deadlift
  • 3 MU
  • 3×395# Deadlift
  • 3 MU
  • 3×395# Deadlift
  • 3 MU
  • 2×405# Deadlift
  • 3 MU
  • 3×365# Deadlift
  • 3 MU

Ugh, I had to try and go for 405# on the last two sets. Felt it in my back after the 2nd rep. Dropped weight and did 3 slow singles trying to keep a perfect back on the end. It was only an extra 10#, but maybe the same thing would have happened if I had stayed at 395# for that set. Who knows. Can’t change it now.

New PR for muscle-ups in one day with 8 sets of 3! Getting more and more comfortable with them every time I do them. This combination was pretty brutal though. I was sweating my ass off and completely out of breath.

Conditioning

10-8-6-4-2

  • T2B
  • Burpee over the Box Jumps (30″)

Damn near biffed it on the first jump to the box. Did all of the toes to bar unbroken and finished in 4:57. My burpees were slow.

Midline

100 Russian Twists

Grabbed the 35# KB with the goal of getting some big sets. Did it in 60-40.

Guess what, another afternoon break session in the garage! Did Crossover Symmetry Activation to get my shoulders ready.

Bear Complexes

If you don’t know what a bear complex is…

  • Clean
  • Front Squat
  • SH to OH
  • Back Squat
  • SH to OH

Usually condensed down into…

  • Squat Clean Thruster
  • Back Squat Thruster

I warmed up with some “bears”:

  • 5×45#
  • 2×95#
  • 2×115#
  • 2×135#

E45S for 8 Rounds

  • 2 Bear Complex 155#

My original (ambitious) plan was 16 rounds. Haha!! I wanted to quit after 4! Pushed through to 8. Dropping to my back was starting to get sketchy and I could barely get the bar locked out overhead. Good time to take a breather. I think I made it through the first 2 (maybe 3) rounds without dropping the bar in between each complex.

Rested about 5:00.

E45S for 8 Rounds

  • 2 Bear Complex 115#

Never had to drop the bar in any round. Too easy.

SkiErg

  • 10:00 @ 2:30-2:40/500m

Nice cool down and recovery pace. Made it 1,909 meters.

Finished up with CS Iron Scap.

Survive

2014-07-19-weight-chartWhen I woke up yesterday I was glad it was a rest day from training. Walked 18 holes of golf. Shoulders are feeling a little sore in the front. Hit a class at Survival Fitness for the first time in over 3 weeks. Saturday at 10am is always good for a partner WOD. My weight continues to drop (check the chart) with clean eating and cooking all of my meals. I’m feeling great too! Today will be a cheat/refeed day though because I’m going to the Survival Fitness Luau to drink some beer and eat all kinds of food. Should be a fun day, but that means DO WORK first!

Warm-up

  • 10->1 Russian KBS (53#)
  • 1->10 Burpees

Strength

1RM Thruster

  • 2×95#
  • 1×135#
  • 1×165#
  • 1×185#
  • 1×205#
  • 1×225#
  • 1×240# (PR)

I could have sworn I did 235# before but it was 225#, which I found out when I got home and looked at my logs. 15# PR! Pretty soon my thruster will be the same as my C&J, which is pathetic.

Conditioning

14:00 Partner AMRAP

  • 3-6-9… Thrusters (95#)
  • 3-6-9… C2B Pull-ups

* One partner does both movements and then rests while the other person goes.

I paired up with Joe, who did every round of C2B unbroken! Fucker didn’t barely give me any rest. I started us off and got through 18 thrusters and 14 of the 18 C2B pull-ups. Rounds of 3-6-9 thrusters were unbroken, then 7-5, 6-5-4, and 7-6-5. Pretty much kept C2B in sets of 3 with the exception of the round of 6 and did 5 to start my last round. Need to figure out why I lose my kip on C2B but not on other pull-ups.

Sat around at home and then at noon it was back out in the garage.

  • 10×45# Back Squats
  • 5×45# Shoulder Presses
  • 5×135# Back Squats
  • 5×95# Shoulder Presses
  • 3×205# Back Squats
  • 3×115# Shoulder Presses
  • 10:00 EMOM
    • Odds: 5×255# Back Squats
    • Evens: 5×130# Shoulder Presses

IMG_4771

I’d already have squats and presses planned, but was second guessing it after the SF class workout with the thrusters. Decided to dial back the squats a bit from the 275# I had planned and go for it. Sucked, but made it through all of the reps.

Loaded up the sled (25#) with 75# of bumpers and took off around the neighborhood. Went 1.04 miles in 22:22. I fucking hate the pavement on these streets. Makes it feel twice as heavy as it is.

Punch to the Gut

As expected I can feel the 150 sit-ups from “Annie” yesterday. She always gives me DOMS in the abs. In to CFi for the 9am class. Got Crossover Symmetry Activation done before class started.

Warm-up

3 Rounds

  • 300m Row
  • 1:00+ Bottom Squat Hold (while someone else rows)

Skill

4 Rounds NFT

  • 3 Wall Walks + 10s Handstand Hold w/ each
  • 5 Push-ups

OMG, I worked up a sweat like it was a metcon. Wall walks are so deceiving.

Conditioning

  • 1:00 Box Jumps (31″)
  • 1:00 Rest
  • 1:00 Thrusters (75#)
  • 1:00 Rest
  • 1:00 Burpee Over the Box Jumps (31″)
  • 1:00 Rest
  • 1:00 Thrusters (75#)
  • 1:00 Rest
  • 1:00 Air Squats

I did 21 box jumps, 20 thrusters, 10 burpee box jumps, 15 thrusters (horrible), and 43 air squats. Never put the bar down during the thrusters. In the first round of them I held in the rack position for a couple of breaks and in the second one I even put it on my back a couple of times. Those air squats were a hell of a burn in the last 20 seconds.

Midline

3 Rounds

  • 20 Russian Twists (53# KB)
  • 45s Plank

Pushing myself with the 53# KB is making them a lot easier. I used to always go for something in the 30-40# range.

Knocked out Crossover Symmetry Plyometrics before leaving the box.

Took an afternoon break around 4pm for a garage workout. Warmed up with 3 minutes of jumping rope.

Cleans

Every 90 seconds a new set started:

  • 3×95#
  • 3×115#
  • 2×135#
  • 2×155#
  • 2×185#
  • 1×205#
  • 1×225#
  • 1×235#
  • 4x1x245#

12 sets total. I really like using the clock for pacing rest time when weightlifting, otherwise it can drag on for longer than it needs to. Made every lift. Those singles at 245# are over 94% of my 1RM. Getting more confident up in that range with the 235# singles EMOM on Saturday and this work today. I hope to continue it. Obviously I’m well below my potential max since I don’t really ever miss below 95%. Fucking mental game!

Just look how high I’m under the bar with those weights at the end. Well above parallel. I’m excited to keep working it and see the XWODs pay off too.

Conditioning

3 Rounds

  • 3:00 Air Dyne (AD2)
  • 2:00 Rest

Went out way too hard in the first round and fell off before a minute was up. Had much better pacing in the 2nd and 3rd intervals. Racked up 123, 113, and 116 calories.

Hot & Sweaty GLBRT

Today was the 6th Great Lakes Bay Regional Throwdown, with it being hosted at Mission 1 – CrossFit Caro this time. I’ve competed in the last 3 and we won the belt for Survival Fitness at each one. The first two we competed in were one team takes the belt back to their gym and with the last one the format was switched up to make it more of a gym working together, where the top 2 scores from each gym count for each WOD.

Event 1

12:00 AMRAP

  • 200m Run
  • 21 American KB Swings 53/35#
  • 12 Pull-ups

2 teammates work at a time (1M/1F) to complete a round. When the first 2 teammates finish a round the second 2 teammates will begin a round. This pattern continues for 12 minutes. Score is total reps completed.

Both Partners run the 200m. The KB Swings may not start until both teammates have returned from the run to their area. Whoever chooses to start a set of KB Swings or Pullups must perform all the reps in that set, for that round. During the KB Swings the other partner must be hanging from a bar for the KB Swings to count. While the Pullups are being performed the other partner must hold the KB off the ground for the pullups to count. The 2 teammates that are not working must be touching the rig before they can be released for the run. They will be released after the working partners 12th pullup is completed.

Bre and I paired up with her doing all of the KBS and me doing all of the pull-ups. Brent and Laura started the workout and finished our 7th team round just before the time ran out. Wasn’t really that tough of a workout for me since it was just 3 runs and 36 pull-ups. I never dropped from the bar and went unbroken with kipping pull-ups on each set.

Event 2

There will be 8 stations for men and 8 stations for women.

  • Men’s weights = 75-95-105-115-135-155-165-185
  • Women’s weights = 55-65-75-85-95-105-115-125

Each athlete will have 20 seconds to work at each station and 10 seconds to transition to the next station to perform as many reps as desired. At least 1 rep must be completed at each station before moving to the next station. Score will be total pounds lifted per team.

Everyone knows the thruster. All bars will start on the floor. The athlete may complete the first rep as a full clean, receiving the bar in the squat position. The hips must clearly pass below the knee in the squat portion of the movement and the bar must end in a fully locked out overhead position with full extension of the knee, hip, shoulder, and elbow. There may not be a pause between the front squat portion of the movement and the overhead portion. It must be a thruster and not a clean and jerk. If an athlete fails to complete a good rep at a station then they will leave the field at the next transition time.

When we did a run through I only did 3 reps at each weight. Today I went 7-7-5-5-5-3-3-3. Should have gone harder in the early and middle sets. Happy I was still able to get 3 at 185. I did 2, had to drop it, took a breath, and then got in another rep. Tweaked my back a little bit though. 😦

Event 3

Chipper!

  • 50 Wall Ball (20#/14#, 10’/9′)
  • 40 KB Snatches 44/26
  • 30 T2B
  • 20 Burpees
  • 30 Clean & Jerk 135/95
  • 40 Box Jump 24/20
  • 50 Deadlift 185/135

2 men start the chipper. After they complete the 50 Wall Ball and move to the 40 KB Snatches, the 2 women may start their Wall Balls. This pattern will continue through the entire chipper. There will be 2 scores. First score is men’s time and second score is total time. Work can be divided between partners however they choose. For example, if one woman cannot perform a 35# KB Snatch but her teammate can, then she may perform all 40 of them.

Each lane will have 1 barbell for cleans with 2 45# plates, 2 25# plates, 1 45# barbell, and 2 spring collars. It is the responsibility of the team to load their barbell with the appropriate weight. When the men complete their clean & jerk they may load the bar for the women, however, if they choose to do this then the box jumps may not start until both men move off from the Clean station and on to the box jump station.

Each lane will also have 1 barbell for deadlifts with 2 45# plates, 2 25# plates, 1 45# barbell, and 2 spring collars. It is the responsibility of the team to load their barbell with the appropriate weight. When the men complete their deadlifts they must leave the field and cannot change the bar for the women. The first score is recorded upon completion of the men’s 50th deadlift. The second score is recorded after the women complete their 50th deadlift.

Brent and I beat our practice time by over 30 seconds and the girls beat their time by about 1:30! I couldn’t believe it when we were doing our C&J and they were waiting on us to finish. In the practice run, we got done way ahead of them and even changed the weight on the bar for them. They crushed it!

Great day and a fun team to compete with. The weather was brutally hot and it was even worse inside the gym. Spent a lot of time outside in the sun.  After today and walking 27 holes of golf yesterday in the hot sun and humidity I’m exhausted!

glbrt6-sf

Blistered Feet

Barefoot on pavement is one of the dumbest things I’ve ever decided to do and it was only about 6 minutes. I hope these blisters heal fast.
blisteres-feet

At Survival Fitness for the 9am class, with a bunch of gauze taped to my feet in case the blisters pop.

Warm-up

  • Arm Circles
  • Shoulder Stretching
  • Shoulder Press
    • 10×45#
    • 5×95#
    • 3×115#

12:00 EMOM

  • Odds: 3 Shoulder Press (130#)
  • Evens: 20s Dead Hang + 5 Pull-ups

Felt pretty good on the shoulder presses. Concentrated on active shoulders and a good hollow body position during the dead hangs. Didn’t drop from the bar after the hangs so went right into the pull-ups and did them all kipping.

10:00 EMOM

  • 3 Strict HSPU + 5 Box Jumps (30″)

I had to add an AbMat for the last 5 rounds. First time doing HSPU since coming back to shoulder work though and didn’t have any pain. Plenty of pain on the bottom of my feet during box jumps though.

5:00 EMOM

  • 5 Thrusters (95#)

Rest – 2:00 + whatever is left after reps.

5:00 EMOM

  • 5 Thrusters (115#)

Rest – 2:00 + whatever is left after reps.

5:00 EMOM

  • 5 Thrusters (125# – 145# for final minute)

I pussed out on the 135# Rx for the last round, so bumped it up on my final round. Wrists are pretty sore after all of this.

Team Practice

In to the 10am class. Last time at the gym for over a week since I’m heading to Barcelona tomorrow. 🙂

Back Squats

It was choose your own strength day, but is there really a choice? You fucking squat! Or at least I do.

2014-06-07-back-squat

  • 5×45#
  • 5×135#
  • 5×225#
  • 3×255#
  • 2×285#
  • 1×315#
  • 1×335#
  • 1×345#
  • 1×355# (PR)
  • 1×360# (PR)

That’s a 10# PR. I’ll take it.

Then we practiced some workouts that are part of an upcoming team competition where team scores count towards a gym score to determine top gym in the area. We’ve won the last 3. 🙂

12:00 AMRAP (Partners)

  • 240m Run
  • 21 American KBS (53# KB) while other partner hangs from bar
  • 12 Pull-ups while other partner holds the KB

I paired up with Luke. We finished 4 rounds plus a run and 11 KBS I think. I thought that hanging from the bar would be taxing for the pull-ups so we broke the KBS down to 12-9 for a quick drop from the bar each round. Could have gone unbroken because the grip didn’t really become an issue. Did pull-ups unbroken. Holding the KB was no big deal.

Tabata Thruster Ladder

  • 20s AMRAP Thrusters
  • 10s move to next bar and rest

The weights were 75#, 95#, 105#, 115#, 135#, 155#, 165#, and 185#. I went conservative and did just 3 reps at each station, but made it the whole way. I had to rest a second or two in the rack position between each rep at 185# but the rest were all one rep right into the next. Could push it a little more at the beginning weights.

Got home and did Crossover Symmetry Recovery.