This video makes me smile.

10.21.11 - 6 Minute AMRAP

3-3-3-3 Push Jerks

AMRAP - 6 Minutes
9-7-5
Back Squats (115#)
Burpees
Shoulder-to-Overhead (115#)

3RM: 105#*
Rounds: 3, Reps 63 (practically on the minute)
Comments: Figured I'd get 3 @ 75#. I was quickly, since it was such a quick WOD, fighting to finish round 3 before the buzzer. That last round of split push jerks for real broke my wrists. I was THRILLED to be able to string all my burpees together unbroken. It's been a while since I felt good dropping and hopping off the floor like that, especially when I was heaving and fatigued. My hamstrings from deadlifts yesterday (?) were kind of killing, so I was nervous about the squats. They were definitely challenging! I don't know if this is normal but the easiest part of this WOD were the shoulder to overhead, which I did as split jerks. Regardless at the end I felt lucky I was able to kick it up there!

And, then I broke my wrist. I missed the rack on the left and as the started to crash to the ground, I caught it. I forgot about this when it first started hurting. I hope it heals up quick. It hurts a lot.

*Didn't realize push jerk wasn't considered the same as split push jerk, in this specific 3-3-3. Basically I guess I cheated. But I did feel I could have gone heavier. Regardless, I was happy I hit 105, and since I felt I could have gone heavier, maybe I could have done it regular push jerking.

PS Margaritas and guacamole after provided a fantastic incentive. Patron's Hacienda was actually really good, and frankly I could have cared less I was sitting there in my Russel sweatshirt from, no joke, 1988. Patron's is my kind of place!

10.20.11 - Make Up Thursday (Tuesday L1)

25-20-15-10-5 Wall Balls
15-12-9-6-3 Deadlift

Time: 10:20
Comments: Warmed up with a row and some singles. My foot is bothering me but it's not awful (yet). All the L1 WODs this week looked good, and there was no way I was doing L2 Monday's although I did think about it (minus the running). So I went with one that had no foot impact. Used 12# wall ball. I think I've officially re-graduated to 12 from 10. For the dead lifts I used 105#. I probably could have gone heavier, but this was still challenging enough. It reminded me of when I first started CrossFit – we were in the temporary space above the "original" space, and 105 was my 1RM! That was 2 years ago next week. So it was sort of a sentimental weight and that felt good. I love doing deadlifts in WODs. They seem kind of quick and easy, but I don't think anything else makes my shins sweat so much. You know you're working. Todd even complimented me on my lifts. I couldn't believe it. Oh, and before I got started I practiced hopping up on the rings and was finally able to balance and hold myself there. Geez! It's amazing how much you lose and how fast? Good grief. I think this marks 8 trips to the gym in October so far? After next week I should be back on track – now I'm just ready to start getting my strength and endurance back a bit. Overall, this was a good little WOD.

10.19.11 - Fight Gone Bad on Steroids

Jump Rope

Ring Straight Arm Press Out

"Task Priority Fight Gone Bad"

3 Rounds:

25 Wall Balls (20/14#)

25 Sumo Deadlift High Pulls (75/55#)

25 Box Jumps (20/18")

25 Push Press (75/55#)

25 Calorie Row

Time: 28:10

Comments: Flipped some double unders. Todd said I was doing the ring exercise I could have cared less about too scaled and I should just stop and try to balance straight arm on rings. Stupid Todd. I used to be able to balance on the rings pretty good. I think I used to bend at the knee, and last night I was trying to do it straight leg? Who cares.

So anyway, this was SO MUCH WORSE then a regular Fight Gone Bad, it should not even bear the same name. It was a massive struggle for me just to GO to the gym last night, so I considered making it more palatable by scaling to 20s. Well, that decision became a reality after the first set of 25 wall balls, and I scaled it on all but the row. Thank. God.

I also scaled it by using a 12# ball, 45# for the lifts, and 12" box. I was so wiped out by the row on the first round I was seriously questioning weather I was going to be able to finish. By the third round I was probably only hitting about 7-8 ft on the wall balls. I was breaking every set down by 10s, fighting to do the 10 unbroken, and hunched over heaving breathing between everything. Second and third round rows I just stopped in the middle of it both times for a second, wanting to cry. It took major mental effort to keep myself moving. I can't count how many times I had to tell myself, "the sooner you pick that up" "the sooner you take that jump" "the sooner you throw that ball" the sooner this insane, awful, hellish misery is going to be over.

The bottom of my foot has officially started hurting again and I know it's the reintroduction of box jumping. Hate.

10.14.11 - Helen

Skill: Ring Dips

"Helen"
3x:
400m Run
21 Kettlebell Swings (55/35#)
12 Pull-ups

Time: 12:41
Comments: Never done this one before? I went 25# on KBs and tried the green band for pull-ups (grey band's gone missing). Had to switch after 3 pull-ups to body rows. Partially I think because my arms are just killing me right now, front and back, from earlier this week, but also because I just can't do that many green band pull-ups in a row yet. Whatev's! I made it in 3x again this week so I feel good about that.

In other news, Matt L. joined me for his first CrossFit experience. I think it was a rude awakening. He started out in front of me but on the second run I found him bent over in the alley. :) I think that might have been the longest 14 minutes of his life.

10.13.11 - Make-up Thursday (Tuesday)

Chipper:

30 Calorie Row
(forgot the 30 Burpees)
30 Sumo Deadlift High Pulls (55#)
30 Push Press (55#)
30 Sit-ups
30 Ring Dips
30 Dumbbell Hang Power Cleans (25#)
30 Box Jumps (20")
30 Kettlebell Swings

Time: 18:47
Comments: Row took 1:48. They forgot the burpees on the board so instead of doing 20s like I'd planned, I did 30s for everything. Rx'd the SDHPs and Push Press. Dips on boxes, 15# cleans, 16" box, 25# KB. Push press got tough but the one I hated the most was the box jumps. We used to do box jumps like, all the time back in the day. Now I feel like I barely do them. I still hate them. I thought about doing some burpees at the end. Then I thought better of that... and did 30 double unders instead. Sweet! Liked this WOD.

10.12.11 - Baseline WOD

3-3-3-3 Weighted Chest-to-Bar Pull-ups

Baseline Wod

500m Row
Then 2 Rounds of:
25 Air Squats
20 Sit-ups
15 Push-ups
10 Jumping Pull-ups
5 Burpees

3-3-3-3 Koji Front Squats

Pull-ups: 4 sets green band
Baseline: 8:21
Koji: 35# bar w/15# KBs x3; 25# KBs x1

Comments: Row time was 1:56. Girl push-ups. I got the same time I did last time I did a Baseline – February 2010? BUT, I totally mis-counted the second round by starting with 20 instead of 25. By the time I got to the push-ups I realized my mistake, but technically, I cheated. I was short at least 5 air squats and sit-ups. Isn't it weird I got the same time tho? I was dying. DYING. I tried to keep moving but it was gross. I'm so out of it. I had serious nerves starting the row, too. The koji squats were kind of fun/interesting. Did some double unders to kick things off. Got 21 in about 2 minutes.

10.06.11 - Make-up Thursdays

Monday's WOD:

8 minute AMRAP:
5 Back Squats
10 Pull-ups

Rounds: 6 + 5 Squats
Comments: Well, Thursdays are on the hour so I missed the majority of the warm-up. Then Todd said that I couldn't use the grey band – "they're useless". I disagree, but I body rowed instead anyway. By round 3/4 I wasn't able to do them unbroken anymore, and I know I'll be sore from that. Used 75# on the squats. Then I tried some double unders, but my foot started to feel tingle-y on the bottom so I stopped. This was after I missed hitting them like 5 times. I did get a little string going before I officially gave up.

Let's recap where I'm sore: Feet. I love trying to stretch out my feet. I must really grip with my toes or something. Calves/hamstrings. Just starting to feel tender. Ass. Definitely the sorest. Core, only in weird pin-pointed spots. Back of the neck, from the barbell. So, kind of all over, but happy to report not in a disabling way like 2 weeks ago.

Three days in a row/this week! Woot.

10.05.11 - Press It

Skill: Double Unders

3-3-3-3-3 Press

20 Back Extensions/Good Mornings

20 Hollow Rocks

DUs: In 4 minutes, I was able to do about 35 double unders. That is, single-doubl-single rhythm, stringing about 4-6 together at a time. I could have probably done this faster but I was W I N D E D so I took a lot of breaks. Worried about breaking my foot.

My 1RM for Press is 85#. I had a RUDE wake up call yesterday as to just how weak I've gotten. 55# was hard. I tried to bump it up to 60 and could only do 2 reps before I failed. Then I went to 57# and got it for 3. I went back during a rest and grabbed my folder. 3-3-3-1-1 ended with a 82# press. It had a February date on it, so it must have been Feb 2010. Man, have I lost some power here. I also think I was psyching myself out, tho.

Did 35# good mornings and attempted the hollow rocks ok. Took about 10 minutes.

10.04.11 - Run, Wall Balls, Burpees

Double Under Practice

20 Sets of Pistols/each leg

4 Rounds for Time:

400m Run

15 2-for-1 Wall Balls/Sub 30 WBs (20/14#)

15 Burpees

Time: 21:38

Comments: Double Under's weren't mentioned on the blog. DUs, like pistols and handstands, I don't give a rat's ass I can't do. I'm still nervous about crashing down on the ball of my foot after that pain I had back when. So I turned some easy singles, and was shocked when I was able to throw in some DUs, too. I haven't attempted one in a really long time. I can usually pull one off, but I can't string them together. I even did do a couple single-double-singles in a row tho. Terry made me move from a 24" box to a bench on the pistols. I was quite enjoying the 24" box however, because rather than crashing down to it I was actually controlling the movement, just kissing the box, and standing back up. But whatever. When I couldn't get up off the bench he had me add an ab mat. It was funny because I could sort of do the left leg, but I couldn't really rise back up off the right leg. Weak right side! I will be sore from trying this tho – I think it's just currently dormant.

On to the WOD. I knew this was going to be a bad one even before I saw Emily O. finishing hers when I arrived and saw how flushed and tired she looked. She never looks flushed and tired. When I saw her outside during the run and said, How ya doin?, she responded, I've been better. She never says stuff like that. Oh well, so then they said the scale was to do 30 WBs. All along I'd been figuring I'd just do 15 regulars. That's what I stuck with (@10#). I also went to 10 burpees instead of 15. It felt wimpy but here's what I learned: I'm not a wimp – and I'm pretty smart. Even with this scale, I was still the second to the last to finish while sticking more or less with the group. Fell way behind running but with my lower numbers could sort of catch back up during WBs/burpees. 22 minutes of torture. It's been a long time since I've had a wrap-around full-torso cramp. They hurt bad.

09.28.11 - AMRAP

Skill: Handstands

10 Minute AMRAP

Kettlebell Swings (W55#)

Thrusters (W65#)

Checkout: 3 x 15 Toes to Bar

Rounds: 8 + 9 KBs

Comments: We warmed up for what seemed like a long time, push-ups and air squats, L-rocking and Supermans. Handstands – Killed my wrists. I typically have no trouble going upside down. Don't mind handstands on the wall, tripod head stands, or even attempts at free-standing handstands, but yesterday I wasn't feeling it. Did a couple... then I was done with that. I used a 25# KB and a 55# bar. These felt appropriate for my level of strength right now. Wendt did it Rx, (30# over my KB!) and still got higher reps than me. Ha. It was almost 6:30 by the time we were done, and frankly, I never had much of an intention to do the toes to bar anyway, so I beat it after the AMRAP. We ran an 800m-ish before class too.

09.27.11 - Deadlifts and Wall Balls

3-3-3-3-3 Deadlifts

Checkout:
3 Rounds of 30 Unbroken Wall Balls (30/20#)

Deadlift: 105/125/145/155/165#
Comments: Started out with a kettlebell and jump rope TABATA warm-up. Then we did some good mornings. Paired up with Peggy. I definitely could have done heavier than 165#, but did not want to push it after last week. Today was the first day since last Monday that I'm not feeling the after-effects of Freddy in my arms. For wall balls I did 4 sets of 15 unbroken at 10# and the "boy" height. This felt pretty good, too. Oh, and I ran an 800m with Wendt before the class. Whoot.

09.21.11 - Back Squat Diane

5 x 3 Wall Climbers
Skill: Low-bar Back Squat Technique

Modified "Diane"
21-15-9
Back Squats
Handstand Push-ups

Time: 9:07
Comments: I didn't think I could make it today. I could not blow-dry my hair this morning. I woke up last night every time I moved in my sleep. Raising my hands, not just over head, but to my keyboard, hurt. Bad. But I thought it might help to warm up, move around. Did it? I'm not sure. Only slightly.

I ran 800m to start and then tried to row. I pussy-footed around the wall climbers. I stretched and pressure-cooked areas with a lacrosse ball. It was all killing. I used only 55# on the back squats and did girl, hand-release (snaked) push-ups instead of HSPU's. I can't even believe I was able to do that lame scale. Granted the back squats was pretty easy at that weight as my legs weren't killing me, but I didn't care about slacking, thanks to my fear of making my legs hurt as bad tomorrow as my arms do right now. It hurts to type. Literally. I knew after the time off I would suffer, but I can't believe how this feels. Sometimes when I am reaching for things, I use my other hand as support for the moving arm. I have had extreme pain in my elbow pits, and legs before, but nothing like this in the shoulder and triceps. I'll get back in the game, but I need to take it slow. Clearly.

09.19.11 - Freddy's Revenge

10 x 10 seconds "L" sits on the minute.

Freddy's Revenge:
5 Rounds
5 Bar Overhead (from rack, any way you can, locked out)
10 Burpees

Time: 10:28
Comments: Alternated bent-knee L-sit on boxes/hanging from bar. Fine. Last time I did Freddy's Revenge was in June 2010. It was at my peak of fitness at CrossFit. I was "taking it easy" and used 10# more than today, finishing 1:30 minutes faster. This was my second workout after a LONG break, and I was/am dying. I used a 65# bar and I swear by round 5 I didn't think I could lift it over my head anymore! The burpees. Well I don't think I've ever felt burpee exhaustion in the legs like this before. Everything was quivering and jerking under my skin, and I was breaking the sets of 10 down to 5s (and less) to catch my breath the last couple rounds. And I was thanking god I used 65 instead of 75#, and now sit here utterly dumbfounded that Jess did it Rx at 135#, and a number of girls were throwing up 110.

I felt just sick after. That was a brutal 10 1/2 minutes. I can barely lift my arms.

09.13.11 - Back in the...

3-3-3-3-3 RM Push Press

Pull-ups/Push-ups

AMRAP of each x3, resting 90 seconds in between each set.

3RM: 55/65/75/85/90#*

Pull-ups: 7/6/5

Push-ups: 15/12/10

Comments: And here we go, after another long hiatus. I really have a hard time committing myself to workouts when the summer panic sets in after the 4th of July, so yes, I did take some time off to enjoy myself in my favorite season. But it's time to get serious again. I'm taking a new approach to WHY I'm doing this, and mostly right now it's go give myself some energy. I feel lazy and lethargic a lot, and I know it's because I've been lazy and lethargic. And, I have enough trouble when the days get shorter and colder without being moody too. I really think being in a routine and getting moving will help my overall disposition. Right?

So, it was a good day back. I was shocked at my push press numbers. Tweaked my back during the last rep but only feel stiff – okay so far today. Used grey band pull-ups and girl push-ups. I probably could have done more of each. I was trying to get low on the push-ups/not cheat the movement, which may account for my low #s. The grey band started out launching me over the bar, but by the end of each I was having a hard time. So there's Day One. Also, rowed and ran for warm-up. Both felt decent. Then Terry had us to some KB swings and stretching that felt great.

Oh, heard the gym is moving. Again. This really ticks me off. A lot.

*This was only 5# under my 1RM!

07.26.11 - And... Back

5-5-5-5-5 1 Leg Cross-over Kettlebell Deadlift (both legs)

10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1
Deadlift
Ring Push-up

KB: 20/25/30/35/35#
Time: 7:50
Comments: Nice 4 weeks off with the back, 4th of July, pre-trip, trip, and post-trip weeks basically spent just running around, laying around and hanging with the family. Used only 105# on DLs and hand-release knee push-ups. Got a good sweat and I'm sure I'll be sore as hell tomorrow even with the super-scale. The gym looked nice. Locker room, too.