Deadlifts today--boy was I ready for this. I had supermoto after watching CFOT videos from yesterday's WOD. Plus, my last DL attempts were absolutely pitiful as memoralized in this blog. My last 1X Max was on October 19th with a PR of 227#.
Today my sets looked like this
135(3)
165 (3)
185 (3)
205 (2)
225 (1)
235 (1)
240 (1) NEW PR!
The best part is that this was easy. I barely got dizzy at the end and didn't even have the arm shake going on. I think I've totally got my 250# in the bag next time. I love deadlifts.
Finisher was:
3 Rounds
20 KB swings unbroken (35#)
15 pushups
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
New PR Split Jerks
WOD #1
Burpees - One minute, as many reps as possible, rest 3 minutes. Repeat 5 times.
Results: 20, 16, 17, 16, 17 Total-86
WOD #2
A. Work to a heavy one rep split jerk
Results: 55, 65, 75, 85, 95, 105,110
B. Hang power clean x 5 push jerk. 5 rounds with 3 min rest between rounds.
Used 70#
At 4:30 I did the burpee WOD in my backyard. Oh, burpees. At least I'm getting good at them for doing lots of them! I kept trying to hit 20, but couldn't get it going fast enough.
Then off to the gym at 5:30. I haven't done split jerks in forever! I wasn't sure I even knew what I was doing...but, it was kinda like riding a bike. It came right back. Jason said that my attempt at 85# looked easy, so I went for 95#. I hit that solidly and went for 10# more. My last attempt at 110# was close, but I my arms were fried! New PR of 105#! Then on to the clean/push jerk part---I almost wussed and went for 65#, but after rethinking went for 70#. Why not, right? 70# was the perfect weight. It was heavy each round and by round 4 and 5 I had to press out the last rep or so. Regardless, this WOD rocked! I loved it. And I rocked it!!
Burpees - One minute, as many reps as possible, rest 3 minutes. Repeat 5 times.
Results: 20, 16, 17, 16, 17 Total-86
WOD #2
A. Work to a heavy one rep split jerk
Results: 55, 65, 75, 85, 95, 105,
B. Hang power clean x 5 push jerk. 5 rounds with 3 min rest between rounds.
Used 70#
At 4:30 I did the burpee WOD in my backyard. Oh, burpees. At least I'm getting good at them for doing lots of them! I kept trying to hit 20, but couldn't get it going fast enough.
Then off to the gym at 5:30. I haven't done split jerks in forever! I wasn't sure I even knew what I was doing...but, it was kinda like riding a bike. It came right back. Jason said that my attempt at 85# looked easy, so I went for 95#. I hit that solidly and went for 10# more. My last attempt at 110# was close, but I my arms were fried! New PR of 105#! Then on to the clean/push jerk part---I almost wussed and went for 65#, but after rethinking went for 70#. Why not, right? 70# was the perfect weight. It was heavy each round and by round 4 and 5 I had to press out the last rep or so. Regardless, this WOD rocked! I loved it. And I rocked it!!
Monday, April 26, 2010
DIPS!
WOD:
AMRAP
9 ring dips (Scaled to 6 static dips)
9 push press (75#) (Scaled to 65#)
9 burpees
Rounds: 6
Finisher: 40 GHD's
Ok, so the WOD is as RX'd from the CFOT site. I scaled the ring dips to dips on parallel bars and did them UNASSISTED! First WOD with unassisted dips! I scaled to 6 reps and while they weren't on rings, this was still huge for me.
I scaled push press to 65#. I would have loved to go for 75#, but I was really tight in the overhead position--those muscles under your armpit were are dorked up. Then on round 5 I had to scale back again to 55# because of my stupid wrist. I started feeling the nerves twinge again with sharp pain--at this point I always scale back so not to injure myself permanently. I just wish I knew what I was doing wrong. Overall I was psyced about the results. I was right up there with all the CFOT ladies too! WOOT!
AMRAP
9 ring dips (Scaled to 6 static dips)
9 push press (75#) (Scaled to 65#)
9 burpees
Rounds: 6
Finisher: 40 GHD's
Ok, so the WOD is as RX'd from the CFOT site. I scaled the ring dips to dips on parallel bars and did them UNASSISTED! First WOD with unassisted dips! I scaled to 6 reps and while they weren't on rings, this was still huge for me.
I scaled push press to 65#. I would have loved to go for 75#, but I was really tight in the overhead position--those muscles under your armpit were are dorked up. Then on round 5 I had to scale back again to 55# because of my stupid wrist. I started feeling the nerves twinge again with sharp pain--at this point I always scale back so not to injure myself permanently. I just wish I knew what I was doing wrong. Overall I was psyced about the results. I was right up there with all the CFOT ladies too! WOOT!
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Squat Cleans
WOD #1:
1k Row
4:10
New benchmarks today. I don't know if I've done a 1k row for time, but all I do know is that this was SLOW. My legs were on fire by 500m...not sure why. Either way, it was great to just benchmark the effort.
**just looked this up, last 1k row was 4:20. Not bad!
WOD #2:
3X5 Squat Cleans
55, 65, 75, 80, 80
Another new benchmark today. I can't find record of a max squat clean...go figure! Squat cleans started out terribly awkwards on the whole jump to land thing and getting the bar racked properly. Went back to the basics. Lined my feet up on the lines on the floor and just did reps until my form came back. Then I went to work! The heavier I went, the better the form. The last round at 80 was a little slow and I got stuck at the bottom, but hey, I completed it. I think I could have done a little more.
Is it weird that my max snatch is 75# and max power clean is #105? I think I should be cleaning a lot more!! Things to work on this summer for sure.
1k Row
4:10
New benchmarks today. I don't know if I've done a 1k row for time, but all I do know is that this was SLOW. My legs were on fire by 500m...not sure why. Either way, it was great to just benchmark the effort.
**just looked this up, last 1k row was 4:20. Not bad!
WOD #2:
3X5 Squat Cleans
55, 65, 75, 80, 80
Another new benchmark today. I can't find record of a max squat clean...go figure! Squat cleans started out terribly awkwards on the whole jump to land thing and getting the bar racked properly. Went back to the basics. Lined my feet up on the lines on the floor and just did reps until my form came back. Then I went to work! The heavier I went, the better the form. The last round at 80 was a little slow and I got stuck at the bottom, but hey, I completed it. I think I could have done a little more.
Is it weird that my max snatch is 75# and max power clean is #105? I think I should be cleaning a lot more!! Things to work on this summer for sure.
Beyond the Body
Beyond the Body
(Click for article)
Free CF Journal article. I agree that crossfitting women are hot, not because of their bodies, but because of what they bring to the box. I miss all the ladies of CFOT, that is for sure!
For me, CrossFit allowed me to find "me" again. I found that little girl who swam against the grain and mold of the times and ignored the comments of my teammates fathers who did not think it was appropriate for an 8 year old girl to play on the local All-Star soccer team, who was tough enough to hang with the boys and prove to them, my coaches, and their parents that girls can be just as good as the boys at a sport. I found the girl who had the courage to approach the School Board and lobby for a high school women's soccer team and with the support of fellow female teammates, coaches, and parents, won. Confidence, Strength, Determination.
Somewhere on the jouney of life, my "Girl Box" was built. I had to look, act, and think a certain way. I started to care what other people thought. After several major injuries/illnesses, my fearlessness was crippled (My body was not invincible! Darn!) But really, I wasn't sure what happened to the Erin who was strong and invincible in mind and body, willing to try anything, and believed she could do everything. I missed her.
Crossfit is helping me find her again.
(Click for article)
Free CF Journal article. I agree that crossfitting women are hot, not because of their bodies, but because of what they bring to the box. I miss all the ladies of CFOT, that is for sure!
For me, CrossFit allowed me to find "me" again. I found that little girl who swam against the grain and mold of the times and ignored the comments of my teammates fathers who did not think it was appropriate for an 8 year old girl to play on the local All-Star soccer team, who was tough enough to hang with the boys and prove to them, my coaches, and their parents that girls can be just as good as the boys at a sport. I found the girl who had the courage to approach the School Board and lobby for a high school women's soccer team and with the support of fellow female teammates, coaches, and parents, won. Confidence, Strength, Determination.
Somewhere on the jouney of life, my "Girl Box" was built. I had to look, act, and think a certain way. I started to care what other people thought. After several major injuries/illnesses, my fearlessness was crippled (My body was not invincible! Darn!) But really, I wasn't sure what happened to the Erin who was strong and invincible in mind and body, willing to try anything, and believed she could do everything. I missed her.
Crossfit is helping me find her again.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Intensity
Warmup:
Today's warmup included 10 pushups, 10 pullups, 10 dips. I wandered over to the pullup/dip station having no real intention of actually doing 10 unassisted dips. Hell, I've only gotten "close" to an unassisted dip, stationary or on rings. I hopped up there and felt strong holding myself at the top. Down....1, down...2, down...3?!?! I look to Jason and Logan. J goes, "how many of those can you usually do in a row?". I reply, "um...I've never really done one before." His jaw drops. Logan give me a high five. Just two months ago I remember her and I attempting dips on the same station and getting no where...here's to PRing in a WARMUP! I did 7 more (3, 3, 1) and did them perfectly. whew!
WOD #1: 3x 800 sprints
Had all good intentions to do this outside with a weight vest, but time and weather kept us indoors. On the treadmill I went for: 3:40, 3:25, 3:15. I had no clue where I would be on these, just happy every round the efforts improved.
WOD#2: Snatch (55#), 30 burpees, 20 Snatch (50#), 20 burpees, 30 Snatch (45#), 10 burpees.
Time: 11:56
This was just awful. I had thought about it all day and what weight I would use...I wish they would have been heavier, but honestly 30 snatches at about 60% of my one rep max was about right for this WOD. This was seriously the hardest WOD and the hardest I've worked at a WOD since moving to Germany. I had to go to that dark place where you don't think, you can't breathe, you can't feel your legs or your arms, but somehow you keep moving. It felt awesome. The hardest part was truely the 30 snatches...just brutal! Burpees are getting easier and no longer is a number like 50 burpees daunting. I never thought I would utter those words.
I'm ready to move on from snatches...the OPT Regional training WODs have been snatch heavy of late. I need serious work on my cleans, jerks, and squats again. I guess for all those who've made it to regionals everything else should be easy right? Regardless, its been really fun to push myself with these insane WODs and train along side Jason. His intensity and drive is contagious.
A few photos to document the day....
Today's warmup included 10 pushups, 10 pullups, 10 dips. I wandered over to the pullup/dip station having no real intention of actually doing 10 unassisted dips. Hell, I've only gotten "close" to an unassisted dip, stationary or on rings. I hopped up there and felt strong holding myself at the top. Down....1, down...2, down...3?!?! I look to Jason and Logan. J goes, "how many of those can you usually do in a row?". I reply, "um...I've never really done one before." His jaw drops. Logan give me a high five. Just two months ago I remember her and I attempting dips on the same station and getting no where...here's to PRing in a WARMUP! I did 7 more (3, 3, 1) and did them perfectly. whew!
WOD #1: 3x 800 sprints
Had all good intentions to do this outside with a weight vest, but time and weather kept us indoors. On the treadmill I went for: 3:40, 3:25, 3:15. I had no clue where I would be on these, just happy every round the efforts improved.
WOD#2: Snatch (55#), 30 burpees, 20 Snatch (50#), 20 burpees, 30 Snatch (45#), 10 burpees.
Time: 11:56
This was just awful. I had thought about it all day and what weight I would use...I wish they would have been heavier, but honestly 30 snatches at about 60% of my one rep max was about right for this WOD. This was seriously the hardest WOD and the hardest I've worked at a WOD since moving to Germany. I had to go to that dark place where you don't think, you can't breathe, you can't feel your legs or your arms, but somehow you keep moving. It felt awesome. The hardest part was truely the 30 snatches...just brutal! Burpees are getting easier and no longer is a number like 50 burpees daunting. I never thought I would utter those words.
I'm ready to move on from snatches...the OPT Regional training WODs have been snatch heavy of late. I need serious work on my cleans, jerks, and squats again. I guess for all those who've made it to regionals everything else should be easy right? Regardless, its been really fun to push myself with these insane WODs and train along side Jason. His intensity and drive is contagious.
A few photos to document the day....
Monday, April 19, 2010
Power Cleans
WOD:
Power Cleans 2, 2, 2, 1, 1, 1, 1
Results: 55, 65, 75, 85, 95 (2), 105 (2), 105,110
Per usual, cleans are a suckfest for me. My form is sloppy, my elbows are slow, my hips don't always pop. 85# and 95# felt really strong today. I really thought I could go for 110#, but I got greedy after nailing 105 and hit it too soon afterwards and I had a bunch of onlookers and I think I just freaked...
Logan, however, mastered the clean today and PR'd at 80#!! She nailed it. She's so strong and doesn't even know it!
Little finisher:
Walking lunges (2 lenghts of basketball court)
50 air squats
25 back extensions
Then I coached/cheered Jason on through his "Fran on Crack" WOD
3RFT
21 Thrusters
7 muscle ups
What a beast....
(What's up with the photos you ask? I'm taking a photography class...this week's lesson is "sport mode". Photo something in motion. Unfortunately, lighting and composition are a bit off. One viewer has kindly noted that "composition would improve if subject would remove his shirt! seriously erin. do humanity a favor and get shots sans shirts. please?" Tehehe! J's too modest, I think, to "pull a Harold"!!)
Then, QUICK STIR FRY DINNER!
1pgk pre-cut stir fry meat
1/2 onion
1 small zucchini
1 bag of frozen stir fry peppers
2 teaspoons toasted flax seed
lite soy sauce to taste
broccoli
1 tablespoon of baking powder and H20 to thicken sauce
Brown meat-add onion, zuch, and bag o' peppers. Boiled broccoli separately then added at the end so it didn't get mushy. Protien and veggies. I could have used a few more carbs and probably a fat to round it out but dessert will be strawberries and a piece of chocolate!
Power Cleans 2, 2, 2, 1, 1, 1, 1
Results: 55, 65, 75, 85, 95 (2), 105 (2), 105,
Per usual, cleans are a suckfest for me. My form is sloppy, my elbows are slow, my hips don't always pop. 85# and 95# felt really strong today. I really thought I could go for 110#, but I got greedy after nailing 105 and hit it too soon afterwards and I had a bunch of onlookers and I think I just freaked...
Logan, however, mastered the clean today and PR'd at 80#!! She nailed it. She's so strong and doesn't even know it!
Little finisher:
Walking lunges (2 lenghts of basketball court)
50 air squats
25 back extensions
Then I coached/cheered Jason on through his "Fran on Crack" WOD
3RFT
21 Thrusters
7 muscle ups
What a beast....
(What's up with the photos you ask? I'm taking a photography class...this week's lesson is "sport mode". Photo something in motion. Unfortunately, lighting and composition are a bit off. One viewer has kindly noted that "composition would improve if subject would remove his shirt! seriously erin. do humanity a favor and get shots sans shirts. please?" Tehehe! J's too modest, I think, to "pull a Harold"!!)
Then, QUICK STIR FRY DINNER!
1pgk pre-cut stir fry meat
1/2 onion
1 small zucchini
1 bag of frozen stir fry peppers
2 teaspoons toasted flax seed
lite soy sauce to taste
broccoli
1 tablespoon of baking powder and H20 to thicken sauce
Brown meat-add onion, zuch, and bag o' peppers. Boiled broccoli separately then added at the end so it didn't get mushy. Protien and veggies. I could have used a few more carbs and probably a fat to round it out but dessert will be strawberries and a piece of chocolate!
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Crossfit Ansbach
The adventure for the weekend was a trip to Crossfit Ansbach. I've know for awhile that this was the nearest box, but it took an invite from Jason to finally get the gusto to make the hour plus trip down there. So it was up and at 'em on Saturday morning to get down there by 0930. I met Rob Powell, the owner, and he showed us around and said to join in the 10am class. He was going to do a creative version of the Filthy Fifty, but not before Jason took the 15 of us through a LONG warmup of stretches, lunges, hip openers and a mini-met-con of box jumps, slamballs, and double unders. The slamballs were just that---slam the ball, not jumping...Jason hasn't been introduced to those yet! haha.
WOD
For two rounds: 30 sec. of work @ each Exercise. 20 sec. pause between Exercises.
Box Jumps
Jump 2 Bar Pull ups
KBS
Walking Lunges
K2E
Push Press
Sit-Ups
Wall Balls
Burpees
DU's
The WOD was a burner--you were supposed to count the total number of reps for each round, but I missed that in the German instructions. Oh well...I still worked hard! It had been a long time since I've seen a box jump and those took a little getting used to, then the "jump to pullup" and K2E were ridiculously hard since I could not keep my grip on the super slippery bars. The double unders are coming back--thank goodness!
I'm sure you're wondering what it was like to workout at a German box. Well, I have to say it wasn't much different than being at a box at home. Crossfit really is a universal language and community. As the athletes filed in, there were lots of "Gruss Gotts" "Servous" (hi-hey what's up), handshakes, hugs, double cheek kisses. Everyone came over and immediately introduced themselves and welcomed me to the box, which made me feel immediately comfortable. As Rob went over the WOD, there was the usual pre-WOD nervous energy and excitment. During stretches and warmups there was lots of laughing and making fun of one another (only I didn't get the jokes). :) We started on a 3, 2, 1, go...count and then hit it hard. Lots of encouragement throughout and collapsing bodies at the end! :)
The crew from CF Ramstein is apparently coming down next weekend and we'll probably join in again. Saturday's in Schweinfurt are less than exciting...
WOD
For two rounds: 30 sec. of work @ each Exercise. 20 sec. pause between Exercises.
Box Jumps
Jump 2 Bar Pull ups
KBS
Walking Lunges
K2E
Push Press
Sit-Ups
Wall Balls
Burpees
DU's
The WOD was a burner--you were supposed to count the total number of reps for each round, but I missed that in the German instructions. Oh well...I still worked hard! It had been a long time since I've seen a box jump and those took a little getting used to, then the "jump to pullup" and K2E were ridiculously hard since I could not keep my grip on the super slippery bars. The double unders are coming back--thank goodness!
I'm sure you're wondering what it was like to workout at a German box. Well, I have to say it wasn't much different than being at a box at home. Crossfit really is a universal language and community. As the athletes filed in, there were lots of "Gruss Gotts" "Servous" (hi-hey what's up), handshakes, hugs, double cheek kisses. Everyone came over and immediately introduced themselves and welcomed me to the box, which made me feel immediately comfortable. As Rob went over the WOD, there was the usual pre-WOD nervous energy and excitment. During stretches and warmups there was lots of laughing and making fun of one another (only I didn't get the jokes). :) We started on a 3, 2, 1, go...count and then hit it hard. Lots of encouragement throughout and collapsing bodies at the end! :)
The crew from CF Ramstein is apparently coming down next weekend and we'll probably join in again. Saturday's in Schweinfurt are less than exciting...
Friday, April 16, 2010
even more snatch
Another Snatch WOD for Thursday. This time, it looked like this:
Power Snatch - 2-3 x 7; rest 2min between sets
45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70, 70
So the actually purpose of these workouts is to take a fairly heavy load and try to do 2-3 reps for 7 rounds. And, if you get the 3 reps, add more weight. Since I've had some trouble with snatch of late, I started light. But, after a few rounds and a few added pounds I was in the groove. Working the squat snatch on Saturday totally prepped me for this. The body finally remembers what it is supposed to be doing! And, I'm sticking the landings like crazy--jump to land, and stick! It feels awesome when you get it right. Jason took some video but he didn't have a memory card! crap! either way, I got to review a a set and it looked pretty darn solid.
The even more exciting news is that I THOUGHT my 1RM was 85#, um no, it was 75#. Now I just nailed two sets of 70# at 3 reps...I think a new 1RM might be 80 or 85...we shall see!
Tomorrow morning I am heading to Crossfit Ansbach to hit a WOD with Jason and his peeps there. Then we'll spend a few hours exploring a new town! Stay tuned for another adventure...
Power Snatch - 2-3 x 7; rest 2min between sets
45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70, 70
So the actually purpose of these workouts is to take a fairly heavy load and try to do 2-3 reps for 7 rounds. And, if you get the 3 reps, add more weight. Since I've had some trouble with snatch of late, I started light. But, after a few rounds and a few added pounds I was in the groove. Working the squat snatch on Saturday totally prepped me for this. The body finally remembers what it is supposed to be doing! And, I'm sticking the landings like crazy--jump to land, and stick! It feels awesome when you get it right. Jason took some video but he didn't have a memory card! crap! either way, I got to review a a set and it looked pretty darn solid.
The even more exciting news is that I THOUGHT my 1RM was 85#, um no, it was 75#. Now I just nailed two sets of 70# at 3 reps...I think a new 1RM might be 80 or 85...we shall see!
Tomorrow morning I am heading to Crossfit Ansbach to hit a WOD with Jason and his peeps there. Then we'll spend a few hours exploring a new town! Stay tuned for another adventure...
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Confidence
Four months after moving to Germany, I'm finally feeling like myself again in the gym. A new CF buddy, some changes in the gym, and killer WOD's, my confidence is back!
Tuesday WOD:
WOD #1
5RFT
5 DL (135#)
5 pushup
5 pushpress (45#)
Sub 5:00
WOD #2
5 rounds
10 knees to elbow
10 burpess
The prescribed WOD was seven rounds, two minutes for each round 155# DL, 5 muscle ups. I cheered Jason through his 14 min RX'd WOD that he smoked, then it was my turn. Given I can't do a muscle up and we don't have PU bars I subbed the pushups and push press. My scaled WOD could have been harder, but I wanted the DL's done touch and go and I still suck at lowering the bar. Either way it was a good sweat. Toes to bar were supposed to be done as many as possible with burpees as punishment, but I couldn't hang onto the bar so I just did 10/10. Anyway you slice it, I was smoked at the end.
Wednesday WOD:
PART I:
Six rounds
OHS 4-6 reps, each rep is 4 count down, hold 2 count, up for 1 (42x1)
rest 2 min
AMRAP Pullups (I did negatives, 5 each round)
rest 2 min
The OHS work was HUGE confidence boost. About a month ago I could barely lift the bar. Why? Confidence, and lack of place to drop the bar...I had the space today and won back the confidence. My rounds looked like this:
55, 55, 55, 60, 65, 70
I got at least 5 reps each round and was able to do the 42X1 count without any trouble. I can't wait to test out a 3x or 1x max!
PART 2:
10 min handstand work. Bottom line---they are getting stronger! HSPU here I come!
PART 3:
35 sec hill sprint, 2 min rest
Done on a treadmill- incline 13, speed 7.2. killer.
Tuesday WOD:
WOD #1
5RFT
5 DL (135#)
5 pushup
5 pushpress (45#)
Sub 5:00
WOD #2
5 rounds
10 knees to elbow
10 burpess
The prescribed WOD was seven rounds, two minutes for each round 155# DL, 5 muscle ups. I cheered Jason through his 14 min RX'd WOD that he smoked, then it was my turn. Given I can't do a muscle up and we don't have PU bars I subbed the pushups and push press. My scaled WOD could have been harder, but I wanted the DL's done touch and go and I still suck at lowering the bar. Either way it was a good sweat. Toes to bar were supposed to be done as many as possible with burpees as punishment, but I couldn't hang onto the bar so I just did 10/10. Anyway you slice it, I was smoked at the end.
Wednesday WOD:
PART I:
Six rounds
OHS 4-6 reps, each rep is 4 count down, hold 2 count, up for 1 (42x1)
rest 2 min
AMRAP Pullups (I did negatives, 5 each round)
rest 2 min
The OHS work was HUGE confidence boost. About a month ago I could barely lift the bar. Why? Confidence, and lack of place to drop the bar...I had the space today and won back the confidence. My rounds looked like this:
55, 55, 55, 60, 65, 70
I got at least 5 reps each round and was able to do the 42X1 count without any trouble. I can't wait to test out a 3x or 1x max!
PART 2:
10 min handstand work. Bottom line---they are getting stronger! HSPU here I come!
PART 3:
35 sec hill sprint, 2 min rest
Done on a treadmill- incline 13, speed 7.2. killer.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Miracles
A hard week mentally, emotionally, and physically comes to peaceful end.
On Wednesday night, Mindi, Jason, and I were approached at the gym in the new "crossfit" area by one of the MRW staff. After 20 minutes of frustrating "why crossfit" and how can we do this here banter, we got a meeting the next day with the big MRW boss. Jason (3rd place finisher at the Milan Sections and all around super guy) and I pitched our Crossfit plan--all went well and by Friday we had the go ahead to start putting a plan together and we should have box jumps by this week! Miracle #1.
Schweinfurter Citylauf „Rund um die Stadtgalerie - Friday April 7th
Mindi invited me earlier in the week to run this race in downtown Schweinfurt. She was invited by German Tri Club friends. I thought, heck, why not, it will be a great baseline run for the season. More than a 5k, but doable without any training. It was 7.5k (4.7) miles. We invited Jason too--I convinced him it was important for his Crossfit regionals training (constantly varied, baby!). The three Americans braved the tall and FAST German teams. Everyone runs for a team here...they have all these sport clubs...I don't quite get it yet. Regardless, the race was six laps around the "Stadtgalerie"--fast and flat.
I was just runnin' to run and felt sluggish and slow but was somehow keeping pace of 6ish minutes per lap. Hmm...at least I'm consistent here...that's a first! Final time: 36.44 For those of you doing the math that is a sub-40min 5 miler. Average pace 7:40 a mile. I've done 2 runs longer than 3 miles since December...how is the possible? I guess the hill sprints and short trail runs are paying off. Boy was this a huge confidence boost!! Miracle #2
Saturday WOD
1-10 hang squat snatch unbroken ladder for time [135#/95#]
rest 20 min
80 burpees for time
{these must be done in sets of 10 unbroken, any pausing at top with double hop or pause at bottom at push up level or at any point in the movement requires you to start at that set of 10 again;
Does this look intense? Different from my normal? You bet! I trained with Jason and he is using OPT's site to train for regionals...intense. If you're a regular reader you'll know I've failed at snatch attempts since moving here...just flat out failed. We did a primo warmup that totally got us ready for this. I did not do RX'd....more like 45#!! I'm so weak, but so what. I nailed this WOD and more importantly nailed my form back down. Snatch is an odd move, but boy could both of us stick a squat snatch after this! I did most of the ladder unbroken and could have if I had chalk. Could I go heavier next time? You bet, but you got to have the form and the speed before you add load!
I cheered on Jason and coached him through the last few sets before finishing my own, but we finished somewhere between 20-25 minutes.
Next up-80 burpees for time? What to say....JUST...DON'T...STOP (thanks, soni) ... Time:8:00
This workout was an answered prayer. A new CF buddy, regained confidence, and piles of moto for the week ahead. Miracle #3.
On Wednesday night, Mindi, Jason, and I were approached at the gym in the new "crossfit" area by one of the MRW staff. After 20 minutes of frustrating "why crossfit" and how can we do this here banter, we got a meeting the next day with the big MRW boss. Jason (3rd place finisher at the Milan Sections and all around super guy) and I pitched our Crossfit plan--all went well and by Friday we had the go ahead to start putting a plan together and we should have box jumps by this week! Miracle #1.
Schweinfurter Citylauf „Rund um die Stadtgalerie - Friday April 7th
Mindi invited me earlier in the week to run this race in downtown Schweinfurt. She was invited by German Tri Club friends. I thought, heck, why not, it will be a great baseline run for the season. More than a 5k, but doable without any training. It was 7.5k (4.7) miles. We invited Jason too--I convinced him it was important for his Crossfit regionals training (constantly varied, baby!). The three Americans braved the tall and FAST German teams. Everyone runs for a team here...they have all these sport clubs...I don't quite get it yet. Regardless, the race was six laps around the "Stadtgalerie"--fast and flat.I was just runnin' to run and felt sluggish and slow but was somehow keeping pace of 6ish minutes per lap. Hmm...at least I'm consistent here...that's a first! Final time: 36.44 For those of you doing the math that is a sub-40min 5 miler. Average pace 7:40 a mile. I've done 2 runs longer than 3 miles since December...how is the possible? I guess the hill sprints and short trail runs are paying off. Boy was this a huge confidence boost!! Miracle #2
Saturday WOD
1-10 hang squat snatch unbroken ladder for time [135#/95#]
rest 20 min
80 burpees for time
{these must be done in sets of 10 unbroken, any pausing at top with double hop or pause at bottom at push up level or at any point in the movement requires you to start at that set of 10 again;
Does this look intense? Different from my normal? You bet! I trained with Jason and he is using OPT's site to train for regionals...intense. If you're a regular reader you'll know I've failed at snatch attempts since moving here...just flat out failed. We did a primo warmup that totally got us ready for this. I did not do RX'd....more like 45#!! I'm so weak, but so what. I nailed this WOD and more importantly nailed my form back down. Snatch is an odd move, but boy could both of us stick a squat snatch after this! I did most of the ladder unbroken and could have if I had chalk. Could I go heavier next time? You bet, but you got to have the form and the speed before you add load!
I cheered on Jason and coached him through the last few sets before finishing my own, but we finished somewhere between 20-25 minutes.
Next up-80 burpees for time? What to say....JUST...DON'T...STOP (thanks, soni) ... Time:8:00
This workout was an answered prayer. A new CF buddy, regained confidence, and piles of moto for the week ahead. Miracle #3.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Tabata, Goats, and Swimming
Monday WOD:
Complete 32 intervals of 20 seconds of work followed by ten seconds of rest where the first 8 intervals are pull-ups, the second 8 are push-ups, the third 8 intervals are sit-ups, and finally, the last 8 intervals are squats. There is no rest between exercises.
I introduced my awesome new friend Mindi to crossfit with this workout. She did awesome!
My intervals looked something like this:
Pullups: 6, 6, 5, 5, 4, 4, 4, 4
Pushups: 8, 8, 7, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6
Situps: Hit at least 12 each round
Squats: minimum of 15 in the last round.
Tuesday Work:
Goats
Watched the muscle up progression video posted to the Journal this morning and got excited about working some weaknesses on the rings. I wasn't motivated for an all out WOD today so I just went outside and decided to work on some stuff. Did some muscle up work, burgner warmups, a few sets of cleans, snatch, and OHS with my handy broomstick. Then I worked on some double unders. I think they are coming back...i just had to shorten the rope and get more spring from my toes. I got 7 in a row a few times.
Swimming
Hit the pool tonight while Chip was doing some PT with Mindi in the shallow end. Workout looked like this.
Warmup: 100m x freestyle, 100m x breast stroke
WOD: 100m, 200m, 300m, 200m, 100m, 100m (1000m total)
Cooldown: 50m x freestyle, 50m x breast stroke
I tried to link each of the sets with as little rest between the 25/50's. They weren't quite as touch and go as I would have liked but not bad considering I don't swim much! But, I guess it's time to think about triathlons---even if its not until early September.
Complete 32 intervals of 20 seconds of work followed by ten seconds of rest where the first 8 intervals are pull-ups, the second 8 are push-ups, the third 8 intervals are sit-ups, and finally, the last 8 intervals are squats. There is no rest between exercises.
I introduced my awesome new friend Mindi to crossfit with this workout. She did awesome!
My intervals looked something like this:
Pullups: 6, 6, 5, 5, 4, 4, 4, 4
Pushups: 8, 8, 7, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6
Situps: Hit at least 12 each round
Squats: minimum of 15 in the last round.
Tuesday Work:
Goats
Watched the muscle up progression video posted to the Journal this morning and got excited about working some weaknesses on the rings. I wasn't motivated for an all out WOD today so I just went outside and decided to work on some stuff. Did some muscle up work, burgner warmups, a few sets of cleans, snatch, and OHS with my handy broomstick. Then I worked on some double unders. I think they are coming back...i just had to shorten the rope and get more spring from my toes. I got 7 in a row a few times.
Swimming
Hit the pool tonight while Chip was doing some PT with Mindi in the shallow end. Workout looked like this.
Warmup: 100m x freestyle, 100m x breast stroke
WOD: 100m, 200m, 300m, 200m, 100m, 100m (1000m total)
Cooldown: 50m x freestyle, 50m x breast stroke
I tried to link each of the sets with as little rest between the 25/50's. They weren't quite as touch and go as I would have liked but not bad considering I don't swim much! But, I guess it's time to think about triathlons---even if its not until early September.
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Schweinfurt to Wurzburg Ride
Are we there yet?
As with all of Erin's Adventures the plans are always simple, for example, "Let's bike from Schweinfurt to Wurzburg." I'm in Germany, right? The land of law and order, well marked roads, punctuality, etc...of course the bike routes will be well marked...I have this huge map of all the bike trails in bavaria...we shouldn't get lost....
3+ hours on the bike and 40 some miles over German farm terrain covered we fell just 7k short of our destination. We lost the trail and ended up biking on the side of a state road. After nearly being killed by a beautiful porsche convertable going at least 100kph, lots of honks later, we called it quits before we got splattered on the side of the road. Mindi's friend graciously rescued us just before it started to downpour!
The ride started ok, finding our way, twisting through the countryside, cute little towns, but the farther from Schweinfurt we got, the sketchier the trails got. We stopped and asked directions at least 5 times...even the Germans thought we were nuts...
All in all, it felt good to be back in the saddle, especially with a new friend and training partner, Mindi. The stats on this ride weren't stellar, but we had a vicious headwind directly out of the south (our direction) and some challenging inclines to say the least. Several times my legs hurt so bad I wasn't sure how I was going to finish and not knowing where we were had me digging even deeper for that last drop of adreneline. Next ride will be for distance, not a destination!
A few more photos of the terrain and Mindi!
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