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Saturday

6.2 mile run.  1 hour. Training run for a half marathon in 5 weeks....i know, I should have started sooner, right?


Monday

WoD 1:

Back Squat 5 Rep Max

Use 5 Sets to establish your 5RM

145#.  Not a pr kind of day, about 10lbs off, but that's ok.  Hit this weight 2x, then dropped to 125# for a set of 10.

WoD 2:

50 Burpees for time

3:58.  Actually felt pretty good! Could I go faster? Always, but there was very little slacking here today.

Tuesday

Jack

Complete as many rounds as possible in 20 minutes of:
10 Push press 85/115(65#)
10 KB Swings 35/53
10 Box jumps 24″ (23")
8 rounds+16 reps

As I've written, I have injured my shoulder a while ago, but we are on the mend! This was the second WOD I've done lately going overhead with moderate weight.  This time though, 80 reps of PP w/o pain is serious improvement. Huge.  KB swings and box jumps felt awesome.  I was pretty impressed that I was able to keep my cycle rate pretty consistent for the whole 20 minutes.  I had a few stumbles on the box jumps, but collected myself and got back up there. They are certainly coming along! 

More fun tomorrow!

Strict Press

It has been a LONG time since I've hit a strict press WOD.  I went into today feeling pretty worried about how my shoulder would hold up.  I was worried about pain, but mostly the pain to my ego if I could barely lifts anything. 

That wasn't the case. I hit a huge PR!
The ramp up looked like this:
55, 65, 75, 80, 85 (90 failed)

From December this was a 7lb PR...I hit 80 sometime when I was in Germany, but can't find record of it. Soooo....woot! PR!

WOD 2:
12minute AMRAP
5 push press (65#)
25 airsquats
Total: 8 rounds 27 reps  just 2 squats shy of a full 9 rounds.  Intensity felt good and so did the shoulder!

Strict Monday

WOD 1:
Strict Press x1
Top load: 77#

Attempted 80# twice and failed! I had 80# back in Germany, but I guess some time off from this definitely hurt the overall strength.  2011 goal is 85#.

WOD: 2
16min AMRAP
8 pushup (ring if possible)
8 push press (65#)
8 24" box jump

Survived a solid 6 rounds. Pushups were pretty tough, i just did regular ones to work on form since I'm pretty weak.  Box jumps went surprisingly well. :)

Paleo update: Was not very strict last week at all. Fell off the wagon, but I still think it was small. I major cheat meal per week and a few slips here and there. I missed the sugar the most last week, that's for sure.  Had a burger and fries on Saturday night and a few beers. Paid for it dearly the next day.  Discovered that taking magnesium helps the stomach issues. We will have to see how the week goes.

Overall update:  Have had some issues getting to the box more than 3 days a week, which is pretty terrible for me.  We've had some rough weather, prohibiting me from getting out of the driveway and lots of housework/repairs.  I swear we're never going to get this place to a respectable living state. Its exhausting!

More breathing squats tomorrow!

First Friday December and SNATCH

Friday
First Friday's at CFOT mean that you get to pick a Hero/Girl workout and crush it. Your choice.  I hate FF's because Hero and Girls are chalk full of lots of pullups. UGH. My hands were still shredded, so lots of pullups were not a smart option.  Nor was a long brutal metcon---the endurance isn't yet there.

I picked Jackie: 1000m row, 50 35# thursters, 30 pullups. Easy right? Ummm, no. The row was solid, just over 4minutes, thrusters were evil.  I was still so sore from Tuesday. TUESDAY PEOPLE!! Jeeez. Then pullups...I'd given up on time at this point. I was past 10 minutes and the body was shutting down.  I didn't quit, but some minutes later I finally finished. I shut off the clock mentally and just finished the pullups 2 at a time.

Monday
Wod 1: 12 min high hang squat snatch x 1
The point was to work the movement and mobility of the squat snatch.  My squat was miserable for the first few attempts with the bar, and I ditched the bar for the training bar. Blurg...the training bar.  I just had to dial in the form and soon enough I was up to 55#.  I nailed 60# a few times and then the squat got sloppy.  New PR on the squat snatch-60#!

Wod 2: 12, 9, 6, 3  Snatch and Push Press
Left the bar loaded at 55# and hit some snatches as a warmup and then a few push press.  Jerry wanted to bump me up to 65#, but I declined....we'll get there. Trying not to throw out my back as I'm still working the core strength. Snatch felt strong and all the push presses were unbroken.  I breezed through the WOD in 7:40.  

New 1RM Push Press

WOD 1: 15 min to establish 1RM PP. 
Top load: 105# New PR
Will shoot for 115ish next time! The pounding on the arms this week have left my arms very very tired.

2min rest

WOD 2: 15 AMRAP of 200m sprint, 20 push ups, 20 GHD or 30 ABMATS.   A very weak attempt and finished at 3 2/3 rounds.  Arms are smoked.  Push ups are again my nemesis.

It feels good to be home

I've been home exactly a month now and things are starting to click.  I started back at work and the box last week and got of to a great start.  Routines feel so good.  Waking up a 0440 is not so hard when you have somewhere to be with people you like!

I have a lot of thoughts, reflections, and feelings that I would love to write about but I'm terribly short on time.  I'm going to just be posting my stats here for a bit--we started a six week strength cycle last week and it has been great to get some baselines on my oly lifts and other skills.  Here is the log of my last week which includes, Crossfit, yoga, and a Trail Race!   Now to get the eating back on track and my size 10 pants should fit again in no time.  I had to go buy new pants for work since all of my pants are too uncomfortable right now.  I won't say they don't fit, but they certainly don't feel right or look very good. That's a whole other depressing story, but I'm going to be weighing my diet options--strict paleo for 30 days? Strict Zone? Weight watchers? God only knows that left to my own devices I will not be successful. Either way, a food journal starts today to start counting calories, protein, and carb intake. 

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Tuesday, November 16th
3RM Back Squat with Chains

My effort: 105#.  The chains are a whole new animal.  The chains themselves weigh about 80 extra pounds, but on the downward motion they are weightless then coming out of the bottom of the squat you have to explode to get the pile of metal off the floor.  The real key though is your breath and keeping your abs tighter than you ever thought.  I felt this was a pretty solid effort.

Then, WOD 2.) once through: 30 GHD Situp, 60 Jumping Lunge , 90 Double under, 60 Air Sq, 30 Swings .   Subbed abmats, single jumps at 180 reps, and 45# KBS. 


Monday, November 15th
 WOD 1). 20min: 3 position Clean&Jerk. This is basically a 3RM Clean&Jerk but each clean is from a different position. You can dump and reset each rep. High hang Clean&Jerk, above knee Clean&Jerk, Floor Clean&Jerk. 
My effort: 95#.  Failed at the above the knee, but from the floor was solid.  90# for the full 3  For some reason this is the only record of a clean AND jerk WOD i have...i guess I avoidd C&J days.
 

*Rest 3 min*

WOD2).  10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1 Dips, and (24) Box Jump

 My time: 9:57   Used a red band and 24' box jumps
Sunday, November 14th
Backyard Burn 5 mile Trail Run
My foray back into racing.  Was with my girls again, Tamara, Kayla, Michelle, Nikki, and new addition Jill, plus Chip and Stuart cheering us on!  I'll do a separate post on this later
Time: 52:43 for 5.5miles  19/76 for age group of 30-40

Saturday, November 13
Stretch and Conditioning Yoga with Chip and Nikki.  75 minutes of nice long stretches and yoga poses.  Was theraputic for us all!

Friday, November 12th 

WOD 1). Overhead SQ x 3 (18minutes) 

*rest 3 min*

WOD 2). “Big Bad Wolf”

12 MIN CUT-OFF 3 rounds: 10 OHS(75w-115m), 10 Burpee, 10 Pullup

Time: 9:57

I used just 45# on the bar for the 3 rounds, but did each set unbroken. The point was speed.  Did all 30 pullups without much belly aching.  It felt amazing...and I tore a callous and bled. I felt tough again!

Wednesday, November 9th
Push Pressx3=85
WOD 2). 3min max Ring Dips, 3min max Double-under,  3min max GHD Situp, 3min max Calories row. 1 min rest between each.  I forget my total, but a week later my abs still ache from the 50 GHD's I did...so sad.

Still Alive

So my last post was over a week ago--I promise I've not been a total slacker.  A total eater, I will admit to being!

On the day of my last post, I actually helped my friend Jason coach a fundamentals class at the Schweinfurt gym.  He had a group of 4 women, most of them with little prior athletic experience, and we worked on deadlift and push presses.  We had to work with a few pretty hard on the form, but we got everyone to an acceptable level before pressing on to the WOD.  10-9-8-7....med ball DL, push presses. It was fun to help push them through those middle rounds when everything hurt and form was miserable.  Pressed hard on slowing down and doing each move properly.  Then I did the WOD myself....

100# DL
15lb DB push press
Time was about 6 minutes.  DL's felt strong.

The next several days were spent with my best friend Nikki and Chip.  We went to Oktoberfest then spent the last few days hiking in the Alps.  Photos to come!
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A week after my last WOD, countless liters of beer later, bread, spatzel, bread, schnitzel, etc I hit the WOD "Jack" at CF Ramstein.  


"Jack"
Complete as many rounds as possible in 20 minutes of:
115 pound Push press, 10 reps
10 KB Swings, 1.5 pood
10 Box jumps, 24 inch box
 Total Rounds--9

I used just a 45# bar, 1 pood, and a 20" boxjump.  I should have done more on the PP,  but I did all 9 rounds unbroken. KB's were also done unbroken.  The box jumps sucked---it has been a LONG time since i've done real box jumps.  They used to be in my "wheelhouse", but that is no longer.....but I powered through!   48 hours later however, I'm still super sore in my right shoulder/neck and its on fire. Also, I felt extremely sluggish, fat, bloated during this WOD.  Carbs MUST come to an end very soon.

Today I hit a 1000m swim at the pool with Chip.  The shoulder was tight and sore and sticky when rotating but I otherwise felt strong.  Some MWOD and stretching are in order for tonight!

The BEAR

Is a bear! Did the bear complex this morning and boy was it harder than it looked. Maybe not, maybe it is just because I haven't picked up a barbell in over four weeks.  4 weeks! Can you believe it? I felt so weak as I did a few warmup up rounds with the bar. It felt heavy. Uh oh!

Since it felt heavy early and I realized I hadn't lifted in weeks I decided not to push it too hard and do something stupid and hurt myself.  My attempts looked like this:

5 Rounds, One round=7 sets of clean, front squat, push press, back squat, push press

Round 1: 45#
Round 2: 55#
Round 3: 60#
Round 4: 60#
Round 5: 60#

Wimpy? Yes. Hard? yep. I'll take it. I wanted to drop down in my last round, but I powered though.  I had no adreniline or competition or anything pushing me so it was done with a bit of rest too.  I would love to do with a partner or something and in top shape. 

All the fries and beer and desserts of late are wreaking their havoc, but after the 4th of July, hopefully life will return to normal and I can get on a schedule.  July and August will include lots of swimming and biking.  My triathlon is 10 weeks away!!! The Army 10 miler is just 4 months away---time to get SERIOUS again!

Just Business

Nothing fun or notable to post this week, but here are my Monday and Tuesday WODs

Monday
Warmup: dislocates, hip swings, air squats, caterpillar thingys.   4 rounds OHS at 45# just to work the move and form cuz CFOT article said they were good for me.

WOD: 
5RFT
250m row
15 DB Push Press (40#)
15 box jumps
Time: 15:35

Mindi joined me for some funishment and finished at 15:50. I can't wait until she's done with tri-training and will hopefully join me more often! I promised to join her next monday with a German running group for an interval night.

Tuesday
Warmup: stretching, then: 2 rounds 10 pushups, 10 dips, 15 air squats
WOD: Strict Press 5 X 3
Totals: 55, 60, 65, 70, 75
I think I can totally hit 80 next time.

Finisher: 3 Rounds, 15 GHD, 15 Hip extensions

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!

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.

***100***

Thursday WOD:

snatch grip strict press: 1,1,1
top load: 65#
snatch grip push press: 1,1,1,1,1
top load: 100#

100 pounds. 100 pounds overhead. This morning was HUGE for me. I've been chasing 100 pounds in any lift for months now. 90lbs here, 95lbs there, failed 100 here and there....frustrating! It was something I wanted to accomplish before I left CFOT---now I will chase that 100lb clean.

Today was my day. We warmed up with strict press from behind the neck---got to 65 which felt great and attempted 70 but couldn't hit it with that grip. On to the push...

Since this was a new move, we worked up slowly. Christine, Megan, Shanyn, and I worked in a good rotation and were only within 5-10bls of each other. Great energy with a great group of women. The rounds looked something like this: 70,75,85,90,100. We may have done one more set. We worked up slooowly. To slow, but a safe slow for for first attempts. I put 100 up strong and it felt awesome. I had a perfect dip in the hips, flew up, and viola`. I seriously could have put up more but I was smoked by this point. Jerry said we'd see this again soon....I can't wait! :)

On the upswing...

WOD:
5 rounds
9 toes to bar
12 push press
15 pushups
300m run
Time:26:27

I was so not ready for this when I woke up, but I knew I needed to move. Sometimes the cure for soreness is a good workout! I was leery about the toes to bar move...I've attempted this before without much success...but today the toes were closer to the bar on every rep, and definitely over that 90 degree mark!

I did the push press at 55lbs instead of 65. I had one fleeting thought of the soreness after Fran on Friday and decided I wanted to feel my arms later today. I did rounds 1, 4 and 5 unbroken (no drops). Jerry gave me some pointers on my form--I'm too far forward on my toes--so I will work this next time!

Mr. Pushup and I had words and made a bit of forward progress in our relationship. I did the first 2 rounds on my toes, then did the rest on my knees. This I just need to keep working.

I did not even attempt to this workout for time, but I ended up finishing right with the pack this morning. Clearly trying for time wasn't going to make a difference....Heck, even Sean didn't finish his usual 10 minutes before me. To his credit though, his l-sit pullups were picture perfect on Tuesday!

Tomorrow is Kaitlyn and Thomas's last day at CF for the summer. Looking forward to forcing them into some sibling competition! :)