Hey there everyone! So time for another update on my workouts. As you know, Wednesday was a pretty tough day for me and I definitely didn't feel fully recovered yesterday. So I ended up taking the day off with the exception of my Body Rock class. It was well worth it. Here's what went on today:
I felt awesome during this workout. I never thought there'd be a point where I wouldn't have to modify this workout and that day has come. I had to touch and go with the deadlifts because 225lbs is still kind of heavy for me. Handstand pushups were still short pulses considering I can only do a couple of full range ones. But I felt good about the time and my body felt good as well.
Gymnastics WOD:
Practice pistol squats 10 minutes
Strength WOD:
3x5 Cleans
Overalll, great finish to the week and can't wait for the next one!
Ugh......today's workout.....sucked. I was dripping with sweat and couldn't wait until it was over to lie down and passout.(Luckily I didn't.) Take a look at what happened:
I scaled the weight down to 110lbs and just used the handles on 2 dumbbells for the handstand push ups. The handstand push ups are harder when you don't have the full support of your palms being flat on the ground. But what I had to chip away at were the squat cleans. They took a lot out of me and were the reason I was sweating so much. I thought my time was pretty slow, but looking at the comments on CrossFit's website a lot of people scaled and everyone's time was at least 20 minutes or above. So I don't feel to bad about my time, but of course I'm always wanting it to be better.
So I got to thinking that it's time for another change of tactic to my program. Next week I'm going to ATTEMPT to do my skill workouts in the first part of the day, then proceed to do my harder workouts in the evening. Sometimes I may even do a couple of harder workouts at both times of the day. Don't get me wrong, I'm seeing great results, but if I want to shoot for that podium next summer then I have to step my game up and not get too comfortable in one routine of working out.
Not much to say about today's workouts. Had some issues with my overhead squat, but with a little help from Matt Sillanpaa I may be able to slowly start working it out. Definitely some difficult stuff, but not impossible!
Today was a pretty great workout day. I didn't necessarily excell at rep counts or anything, but I progessed on exercises which made me very excited!
Strength WOD
3x5 of Max Pull Ups
Gymnastics WOD
For QUALITY
10-to-1:
Strict Handstand Push Ups
Toes-to-bar from L-Hang
I wasn't really able to do the L-Hang so I just did toes to bar. But I found out today that I was able to finally do full range handstand push ups!
Mainsite WOD
Eight rounds for max reps of:
Muscle-ups, 20 seconds
Rest 10 seconds
135 pound Clean and jerk, 20 seconds
Rest 10 seconds
Results - 1 rep of each per round
Video Demo
Each of these exercises took a lot out of me. Muscle Ups being....well muscle ups. And clean and jerk being 20lbs from my max. So my recovery ended up taking more time. But my muscle ups were on a bar today and they have really been improving. I feel so much control over my body and am able to move it better through certain exercises.
Great training day today and I can't wait for tomorrow!
I won't talk too much about my experience with the workouts since I did a cruddy job keeping up with posting this week. So here were my workouts the last 2 days:
Thursday
Strength WOD:
Snatch 65lbs 3x5(3 sets of 5 reps)
Mainsite WOD
For time:
Run 400 meters
95 pound Thruster, 21 reps
21 Pull-ups
Run 300 meters
95 pound Thruster, 15 reps
15 Pull-ups
Run 200 meters
95 pound Thruster, 9 reps
9 Pull-ups
Time - 14:38
Video Demo
Friday
Strength WOD
Clean and Jerk 105lbs 3x5
Mainsite WOD
Complete as many rounds as possible in 12 minutes of:
15 foot Rope climb, 1 ascent
15 Push-ups
So I'm sorry that I've been absent from posting the past couple of days. I promise you I have NOT skipped any workouts and I've been working hard. Just haven't had the time or energy to blog and finally getting around to it. I won't try to catch you up on every little detail so here are some highlights.
- Handstand push ups getting better
- Pistol(1-legged) squats progressing as well
- Increased max deadlift to 255lbs with the possibility of going to 265, just didn't want to push it too much
-Strength workouts and gymnastics workouts are benefitting me greatly
-30'' box that injured me last month is now conquered!
I'll just go ahead and give you the mainsite workout that I did today:
For Time:
10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 reps of:
Chest to Bar Pull Ups
30'' Box Jump
GHD Sit Ups
Time - 12:19
Video Demo
I had to modify the GHD sit up because there isn't such an apparatus where I was working out. So I just laid flat on the floor with legs straight out and touching the floor behind my head with straight arms. I really didn't mind what the time was, although I was trying to move fast when I could, but I'm just glad that I no longer have to worry about the 30'' box giving me trouble.
I'm back on track with posting and I'll see you all tomorrow!
So you can see this is a bit of a complicated movement. My overhead position really sucks and I can't quite reach a full squat position yet. My max is the same as last time but at least I got some practice in.
Gymnastics WOD
Dirty 30
30 Box Jumps on 24 inch box
30 Jumping Bar Pull Ups
30 Kettlebell Swings
30 steps Walking Lunges
30 Knees to Elbows
30 Push Presses
30 Back Extensions
30 Wall Ball Shots
30 Burpees
30 Jump Rope Double Unders
Video Demo -
So I wasn't able to do it for time but I did it anyway. I couldn't hoard all the equipment at the gym and get it all in one area either so I just kind of went from station to station as needed. Still got a great workout in, just not as much as I was able to under normal circumstances.
Well that's it for this week! Have a great weekend everyone and I'll be back Monday!
Five rounds for time of:
Handstand walk 25 yards
50 Squats
Time - 20:11
Video Demo:
To start, I really am not that great at handstand walks. But after today I'm getting better. I was able to go a few feet before falling. Honestly I'm just glad that I was able to actually do it and not substitute. And 250 squats?!?! Come on....haha.
Strength WOD
Deadlift 135 3x5
I started to incorporate a strength portion of my day to accelerate the process rather than just rely on Mainsite or Gymnastics, although both do a great job already. So I'll be practicing some olympic lifts each day now.
Gymnastics WOD
For QUALITY
3 ROUNDS:
10 Standing Dumbbell Inverted Cross
10 Handstand Push Ups on rings
So like it said this was for quality and not time so I was focusing on form. The first exercise I couldn't find a demo for so to explain it's just an underhand grip on two dumbells and I bring them out to the sides with straight arms going all the way up and over my head. And since I didn't have rings to practice on I just practiced normal handstand push ups. BRUTAL shoulder workout.
Just when I thought I was done with bar work and ripping up my hands....this workout happens:
Mainsite WOD:
For time:
Run 800 meters
10 rounds of the couplet:
Pull-up, 10 reps
Ring dip, 10 reps
Run 800 meters
Time - 23:06
So the 800 meter run was fine, but when it came time for the pull ups I realized there was no way I was cranking out 10. So I chipped away at what I could and substituted with jumping ring dips as well. I did have to stop once again because the bandage wrap I put on myself wasn't holding up and I had to get the gymnast paws. But I finished it, therefore I'm better than when I started.
Gymnastics WOD
PRACTICE for 10 minutes:
Back Extension Roll
So what this workout involved was rolling onto your back and from that position push up into a handstand and letting your feet fall behind you. Now since I have yet to build up the strength to push myself from the ground up in a handstand postition, I figured I'd substitute the workout with just practicing handstand push ups for 10 minutes. This went okay, not great by any means. Certain bodyweight exercises I can't do yet like the ring dips, and handstand push ups I tend to get a little impatient with. I think its the frustration that I'm not in control of my own body in certain aspects yet. But I've progressed a lot in 1 month and I know the skill will come with more practice and more patience.
Today's Mainsite workout was pretty brutal. In addition with some gymnastics work I'd say my butt is officially kicked.
Mainsite WOD
"Pheezy"
Three rounds for time of:
165 pound Front squat, 5 reps - Substituted for 105lbs
18 Pull-ups
225 pound Deadlift, 5 reps
18 Toes-to-bar
165 pound Push jerk, 5 reps - Substituted for 105lbs
18 Hand-release push-ups
Time - 23:26
This was just all heavy for me. The front squats weren't bad, but the pull ups took a lot out of me. Months ago my max deadlift was 225lbs, so I figured I was stronger now to crank out 5 reps. I ended up having to do 1 deadlift and letting the bar drop because there was no way I could have controlled it back down. Toes-to-bar were tiring. At least this time I was able to use the kip I've been practicing. Although it was at this point that I noticed some callus coming off of my hand so I had to go grab some wrap and some gloves. Don't worry, no blood came from it, all dead skin. So after my little pause there I went to the push-jerk. This is why I needed to substitute the weight for the bar on both this exercise and the front squat. If you recall from yesterday, my max is 155lbs so I had to aim for the substitution. It wasn't terrible really, but still exhausting. Hand-release push ups sucked. Your momentum stops after you release and it's tough to get it back going again. But after 3 long rounds of this workout, it was finished and that's really all that matters to me right now.
Gymnastics WOD
For QUALITY
5 ROUNDS:
Hold L Hang for 30 seconds
Superman Rock for 30 seconds
So the phrase "For Quality" just means that intead of trying to race back and forth between exercises, I just did 5 rounds of practicing the movements and making them "quality" movements. The L-Hang is like it sounds, you hang from a pull up bar and raise your legs to form and "L" shape. This I actually substituted for a hanging knee raise-hold since it was difficult to extend my legs all the way out. The superman rocks were fine though. Simple enough.
Another day in the books and I'm humbled once more. You can only progress with each day!
So if you couldn't tell it was a strength day working up to my max clean and jerk. My old max was 135lbs, so I added 20lbs in the last month!!!
Gymnastics WOD
For Time -100 Burpees
Time - 7:33
This made me feel even more awesome. Especially since the first open workout of this year was 7 minutes of how ever many burpees you could do. Most did somewhere in the ballpark of 100 whether it was over or under slightly, so I was excited when I was only 33 seconds away from the cut-off time.
Make-Up Workout
Run 5k
Time - 23:45
This is the first 5k I've ran in a while. I had to make up a workout that I missed on Sunday so I figured I'd get it in earlier today while it was still warm outside. Everytime I run I try to implement and practice my POSE running technique, but it was tough tonight with the wind blowing harder than usual.
All in all I loved today's workouts and the results I saw from them. Tomorrow I'm just as excited and I plan on going just as hard.
So here we are! 1 Month together on this journey of training for the games. In one month there has been SO MUCH improvement with all aspects of fitness. Along with my diet I feel better both during workouts and my during my recovery days. So let's round this out with my last workout for this week.
So the actualy mainsite wod was a rest day, but rest days are good to practice some skills and get accustomed to them. I start with kipping pull ups since I've never practiced them before. I should note that before kipping pull ups my max number of pull ups was 5. After learning and practicing the kip, I did a set of 7, a set of 10, 11, and finally 12! I'm sure I could have done more, but I figured I wouldn't spoil the victory. Just knowing that I could was enough for me. As for pistols I was able to get the full range of motion by standing onto a 12'' box so my foot wouldn't drag. After a few sets of 10 I was able to complete 4 full-range pistols! I'm getting better everyone!
Gymnastics WOD
FLEXIBILITY:
Hold Middle Split for 2 minutes
Hold Side Split on Right Leg for 2 minutes
Hold Side Split on Left Leg for 2 minutes
Hold Bridge Up for 2 minutes
Since it was a rest/skill day on mainsite, gymnastics wod had a stretch and recovery day as well. Splits I've never really practiced before so you could probably imagine how that went. The bridge up however was brutal! After so much abdominal work the previous day I can see the need to stretch it out, but WOW was it tough. In addition with stretching the abdominals it also stretched my hips and shoulder complex as well.
So month 1 is in the books and we are moving on to month 2. Just 11 more months until it's time for the 2013 open! I may even sneak in a little workout in at work! HA! I'm officially hooked.
I believe I finally found a perfect balance to help me succeed. In addition with CrossFit's Mainsite WOD, I'll also be doing Carl Paoli's Gymnastics WOD. The gymnastics will help translate proper movement as well as build strength, stabilty, and flexiblity. So here's how today went down:
Mainsite WOD
For time:
Run 800 meters
10 rounds of the couplet:
Knees to elbows 10 reps
Hug-a-twinky 10 reps
Run 800 meters
Time - 18:26
So to clarify, hug-a-twinky is where you lie face down on an apparatus and raise your legs up to a parallel position. The run took a lot out of me but once I got into the mode of the indoor portion I was fairly comfortable. I would love to start learning how to kip with knees to elbows. And then of course I gave it my all on the final run. All in all, great workout.
Gymnastics WOD
For TIME
10 ROUNDS of "Cindy":
5 Bar Pull Ups
10 Push Ups
15 Air Squats
Finish with 100 Hollow Rocks
Time - 7:32
Now to clarify what hollow rocks are, it's where you lie on your back with hands outstretched behind you and legs together straight out in front of you. Pressing your lower back into the ground, rock back and forth in a "hollow" position. So the "for time" workout wasn't bad, but the hollow rocks have exposed my core weakness. But these workouts today paid off huge and I'm sure tomorrow will be no different.
See you back here tomorrow for the completion of Month 1!
Getting this out of the way now because I won't have time later on in the evening to post. Also I hate posting a day after I've done the workout because I'm not in the same mindset as I was after I worked out.
Anyway, it's day 3 at CrossFit 515 and it was a heavy workout today:
For Time:
30 Squat Clean & Jerk @ 105lbs
Time - 6:40
The original prescribed weight for men was 155lbs, but my max clean and/or press is 135lbs so I decided to do what I knew I could. My strategy was just to go for as long as my body would let me before I had to take a break and then slowly start chipping away at it. I got 11 reps in and then started going about 2-3 reps at a time. When I got to about 18 reps I was going one rep at a time because that was all I could handle. Finally I completed it at 6:40 and that was the end.
These workouts have been great, but I've been saving my energy for the workouts themselves so I haven't been working out necessarily 2-3 times a day this week. But I figured I'll take whatever the workout of the day was and focus on an element that wasn't in the workout. So since today was primarily a weightlifting exercise, I'm going to row a nice easy 5k to get some light cardio in and stretch. We'll see how I feel tomorrow and I can't wait to get back to it.
Sorry for the late post, but at least I'm still keeping up with it right? So it was Day 2 at CrossFit 515. They follow the mainsite WOD so here's what we ended up doing:
5 Rounds for Time of:
50ft Walking Lunges w/ 45lb bar overhead
21 Burpees
Time - 13:47
So after yesterday's workout of 21-15-9 of burpees with wall balls, I wasn't exactly thrilled that they came up again today. More people encouraged me as I chipped away at my burpees and it was a great feeling knowing that eyes were on me. If you were to go back to one of my first week workouts(maybe 2nd week) I did 5 rounds of 25 burpees. Even though that wasn't the same workout, burpees were the slow-down factor and it was again with this workout. Only difference is that workout took a little over 25 minutes and this one didn't even take 15 minutes! So I'm excited with progress.
In addition with the mainsite workout they suggest practicing a skill every week and this week it happened to be pistol squats. So here and there each day I take time to practice and even get some mobility work done.
So as I said before, this week I was going to change it up a little bit and see what would be more effective. I decided what better way to mix it up than to actually check out a CrossFit gym? I gave CrossFit 515 a call and they got me set up as soon as I arrived. It was exciting actully stepping foot into a CrossFit gym, seeing ropes, bars for kipping, rings, etc. After getting warmed up they set me up with a simple(kind of) workout:
WOD:
21-15-9 Reps of:
20lb Wall Ball
Burpees
Now I didn't get a good look at my time, it ended up being between 6 and 7 minutes, but I will tell you about the experience. I had never used a 20lb medicine ball before, so that was a completely different feel in itself. But one of the instructors, Bobby Noyce, was there every step of the way telling me to take breathers, keep track of reps, and motivate me all the way through. On my last set of burpees he kept counting down making sure I didn't stop. Once that final rep was finished he congratulated me and immediately went over to the wall where a giant whiteboard was waiting. This probably made smile the most; my name was written up on the board before the workout had begun and next to it my time was posted. It felt awesome being in that atomosphere. I'll tell you now that if anyone really wants to push themselves, group training is where it's at. I'll be back at the gym tomorrow as well as CrossFit.
