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Renaissance Periodization, First Few Weeks

Many athletes at our box have been on Renaissance Periodization (RP) and have had excellent results. I started it February 5th. I had purchased the templates late in 2017. I finished up what I was doing, The BodyBiz, in January and then wanted to do something different. Below are some tips that I found useful:

First, read the FAQ’s and the materials provided several times through. Don’t just skip and read the bolded fonts. Read everything. I did not, and was eating 9oz of cooked protein four times a day for the first week. Whoops. Read the FAQ’s and watch the video.

I strongly suggest you scrap the MyFitnessPal membership and tracking. I found that to complicate things. The templates are all you need, paired with the digital scale of wonder and amazement! This thing is awesome. Pick one and stick with it, meaning weighing your food cooked, or raw. I weight it cooked, going by the grams of carbs, proteins, and fats, and put my meals together for the week on Sunday. Makes it much easier. Also, stick with basic meals the first few weeks until you get comfortable and confident with the templates. There are a lot of options for meals and some people are truly gifted at culinary genius based on the posts I see in the RP pages in Facebook. Try not to follow suit right away.

The scale is mean and it has no heart. Do not trust it. Meaning, do not rely on this as your single point of validation if RP is successful for you. I had been eating whole foods, following a similar program when I started RP and did not see much success in my two week base period. I actually gained a few pounds. However, clothes that had been snug before, were no longer snug. Trust the way the your clothes fit, and take the before and after pictures for comparison.

Don’t let one bad meal turn into a bad day, or worse yet, a string of bad days. It happens. Let’s face it. Our body composition did not happen overnight, not does changing our composition happen quickly. It takes time and more importantly, consistency. Cheat meals will happen for just about everyone. Do your best to enjoy that infrequent meal and then put it behind you and focus on staying on track with the templates. Go for a run, or a long walk, or do yard work, or something outside if you feel bad about the meal or a day, or in my case one hell of a fun weekend, and then follow the templates.

Feel free to post any questions and have a great day. Go PR something. Fact: Deadlifts are better than running any day.

 

 

 

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First Thirty Days of Focused…ish…. Nutrition Plan

It is amazing how time flies. It is hard for me to believe we are already through the first week of August. Summer is just about over. Believe me, I am not wishing it away. Autumn is my favorite time of year. Fires, Cocktails, Football,  and hooded sweatshirts. Summer is my second favorite time. We have not gotten to the beach once and we do need to fix that, quickly. We have been on the water a few times in the kayaks and Berger took her maiden voyage. She did well. She was very focused on a paddle boarder behind her and Kylie…not sure why.

It has been seven months since I last posted. Way too long. Things have been going well this year, however I have not been focused on hitting my goals. Life gets in the way. Things happen. We all make choices and push what needs to be done at that time to the top. Sadly I think many of us put ourselves last. Then we find ourselves kind of pissed that we are not achieving the things that six months ago were important to us. And of course, there is also the reality of New Years’ resolutions…..that are the same year after year.

For those of you who know me, you know that I lost my Dad the end of April. Losing a parent seems to change the view of one’s own mortality. It is an assault on it actually. When I was little I thought he was the strongest guy in the world, able to do anything. I watched him age and his physical capabilities diminish. He was hard on his body and in the end his body just gave up. It was done.

So, in part because of that, and because it just beyond time, I spoke with a fellow CultFitter and he recommended a nutritionist he had worked with previously. So I contacted her and we were off. I had to get a Resting Metabolic Rate test and a VO2 max test. The first was not hard, just took twice as much time as it was supposed to. Based on those readings I burn about 2500 calories a day just living. The VO2 max test was a giant PITA. It was on a treadmill and everyone who reads this blog knows how much I looooooove running. So imagine me on a treadmill with basically a fighter pilot mask on, a heart rate monitor around my chest, and a clippy thing on my finger. Quite the sight. I hoped that i did not trip and take out the whole thing.

The numbers came back no differently than I expected. Average/Slightly above average for a person of my age and dimensions. I met with the nutritionist via phone and went over all pertinent information. She put together a meal plan and sent it to me. Using MyFitnessPal is a huge win. It was as one would expect. Reduced calorie, high protein, moderate fat, and low carb. I am at 130 grams per day, which is not bad. Just have to make each one count.

I have enjoyed it and as the title indicates, have been committed…mostly. There was one night that was just silly. I am down 21 pounds in a little over a month. It is a steady clip of 3-5 pounds per week. CrossFit five times per week, 2 runs a week, and yoga once. I do not always get both runs, in however I’ll make it longer if I only get one run in.  The big difference on this one is that I followed exactly what I told, and it is paying off much better. Funny how that works, huh? Kind of like that thing, when you finally do what your Coach told you to do, and shocker, it works.

The eating has been easy to follow. 5-6 meals per day. I like having a plan for the week as it makes it easier to prepare and not worry about it during the day. Sunday is meal prep day. I won’t bore you all with a picture of a counter covered with food and individual prepped meals. Do I miss eating pizza? Do I miss desert? Do I miss cocktailing? Absofreakinloutely! She suggested two drinks on Saturday night. I really don’t have that switch, so i cut it out for a few weeks. The stories aren’t quite as funny, however the mornings are much more fun.

It has been a very good experience thus far and am looking forward to it continuing. Drink a few for me folks. Have a great week. Lift something heavy even if it is not in the WOD.

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2017 Goals

goal-setting

First week of 2017 is done. Ate well with the exception of Friday night. No cocktailing either. Don’t worry, nobody kidnapped Rob, everything is fine.

Goals for 2017:

I set goals each year for personal, professional, physical, and financial. Below are the physical goals for 2017. I hit most of them in 2016 and plan on the same for 2017.

Lift/Movement Current Goal
Back Squat 455 500
Dead Lift 465 500
Strict Press 205 225
Push Press 235 265
Clean 210 235
Front Squat 325 350
Thruster 235 255
500 Meter Row 1:42 1:30
Pull Ups 0 10
Double Unders 0 10

So, how am I going to hit these goals? Darn good question. I’ll have to figure that one out

12-labours

  1. Following the 12 Labours Nutrition Plan courtesy of Emily and Erin. Great time logging everything in MyFitnessPal. Emily and Erin provide everything you need in terms of setting yourself up for success. It is worth the investment, so please take advantage of the service if you have not done so already.
  2. Keeping cocktailing to a minimum. Sadly and frustratingly i have tried for the past so many years to do both and I have come to the realization it just does not work. Either you want to cocktail and not do well in the gym, or you want to do well in the gym. So we will give it an honest shot.
  3. Focus on recovery. We spend a lot of time beating the hell out of ourselves and more than likely not enough time putting ourselves back together. Water, Sleep, good nutrition, supplements, deep tissues massage and yoga. I have been getting a deep tissues once a month for the past few months and the difference has been remarkable.

crossfit-moreland_3

  1. Stretching. By hitting the six am class most folks have to roll out quickly to get ready for work, kids to school, etc. I am focusing on taking five or ten minutes afterwards and rolling out and stretching to reduce soreness/stiffness etc.
  2. Rest. Getting up early means early to bed. I tend to do a lot better if I get 7 or 8 hours of sleep. Go a few days with six or few hours and see how you feel. Probably like junk. I know i do.
  3. Strength program. I finished the 12 Labours Barbell Strength Program last year and definitely noticed a difference. I added weight to squat and deadlift and wound up PR’ng CrossFit Total by about 100 pounds.

 

change

  1. Make opportunities for PR’s. Some boxes do the same WOD’s over and over again which enables members to set PR’s. Ours is a bit different where the WOD’s vary considerably. Two days a week I give myself opportunities to set PR’s. Whether it be a lift, like deadlift or squat, or a 500 meter row. Give yourself the opportunity to put a PR on the board and in Wodify!
  2. Fully warm up. I am sure if any of the coaches are reading this, the thought “he never does the warm up, like never.” is going through their mind. Sadly that is true. I do not do the warm up. In my mind, the first round is the warmup and that is not right and dangerous.
  3. More than just scheduled classes. This goes with number 7. Sticking around after class, taking advantage of open gym, and running/swimming etc. go a long way in helping accomplish your goals.
  4. Yoga. Once a week, every Sunday. Looking to get back into that cycle. Definitely noticed a difference when I was regularly attending.

Those should get me where I want to be.

images

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Goodbye 2016….

I find it hard to believe that 2016 is already coming to a close. However it really does not matter….because like it or not today is the last day of 2016. This year really flew by. Come February we will have lived in Annapolis for two years, which is harder to believe. Lots of quality time at 12 Labours Annapolis…and The Point.

It seems like once Thanksgiving hits, the year is over in a blink. Finish the turkey leftovers and the next thing you know….putting away the Christmas lights and decorations for another 11 months. Everyone seems to be a little nicer and have a little more patience and compassion around the Holidays. I am hopeful year after year those will carry over to the New Year. I’ll keep hoping.

2016 brought some great things like the births of three new nieces and a nephew (Some family, some close enough to be family) and some bad things like deaths of family members and friends. We celebrated a lot of birthdays as well! Got some house projects done and  had a great vacation at the beach with really great friends. That one will certainly be repeated in 2017.

I hit most of the goals I had laid out for 2016. Some personal, some professional, and of course some CrossFit goals. That’s what this blog is about, right? CrossFit…and sarcasm. I finished up last year with 13 PR’s and this year I hit 30. I hit my strength goals, with the exception of one. Missed the dead lift however I’ll get that shortly. The silly ones like double unders and pull ups will moved from 2016 to 2017.

Below is the list of PR’s:

Performance Result Date Component Name Result Rep Scheme Performance Result Comment Class Name Personal Record Text
12/28/16 Power Clean + Hang Squat Clean + Front Squat 1 x 1 @ 195 lbs E2M for 20 Minutes failed on 205 four times 6:00 AM PR by 20 lbs vs. 175 on 09/29/2014
12/12/16 Back Squat 1 x 1 @ 455 lbs E2M – Double Unders + 1 back squat little high….just a little 6:00 AM PR by 20 lbs vs. 435 on 11/08/2016
12/5/16 Front Squat 1 x 1 @ 325 lbs Every 2 Minutes – Double Unders + Front Squat felt good. sleeves and reebok lifters 6:00 AM PR by 10 lbs vs. 315 on 08/01/2016
12/3/16 Back Squat 1 x 3 @ 385 lbs PR by 10 lbs vs. 375 on 11/14/2016
11/24/16 Front Squat 1 x 3 @ 285 lbs sets of 3 Felt pretty good. PR by 5 lbs vs. 280 on 07/11/2016
11/16/16 Squat Clean 1 x 3 @ 185 lbs E2M for 20: 3 Squat Cleans felt good… 6:00 AM PR by 50 lbs vs. 135 on 07/18/2013
11/14/16 Back Squat 1 x 3 @ 375 lbs 8 Sets Every 2 Minutes – 3 Reps Back Squat 6:00 AM PR by 10 lbs vs. 365 on 07/18/2016
11/8/16 Back Squat 1 x 1 @ 435 lbs 1 PR by 0 lbs vs. 435 on 11/08/2016
11/8/16 Deadlift 1 x 1 @ 465 lbs 1 PR by 0 lbs vs. 465 on 11/08/2016
11/8/16 The CrossFit Total 1095 Total lbs 1095 PR by 155 lbs vs. 940 on 08/23/2013
11/8/16 The CrossFit Total 1 x 1 @ 465 lbs 485 is close
10/31/16 Deadlift 1 x 5 @ 420 lbs Heavy 5 6:00 AM
10/12/16 Thruster 1 x 1 @ 235 lbs Heavy 1 rep yahtzee!!!!! 6:00 AM PR by 40 lbs vs. 195 on 09/11/2015
8/8/16 Back Squat 1 x 1 @ 407.5 lbs E2M – Building each set 6:00 AM PR by 2.5 lbs vs. 405 on 04/09/2015
8/1/16 Front Squat 1 x 1 @ 315 lbs E2M – working to max 6:00 AM PR by 10 lbs vs. 305 on 02/08/2016
7/11/16 Front Squat 1 x 3 @ 280 lbs 3-3-3-3 felt great. went to 310 to beat 1 rep and failed. 6:00 AM PR by 5 lbs vs. 275 on 01/04/2016
6/28/16 Back Squat 1 x 5 @ 350 lbs 5-5-5-5 didn’t feel good. Had higher goals this morning 6:00 AM PR by 5 lbs vs. 345 on 06/13/2016
6/17/16 Clean 1 x 1 @ 210 lbs PR by 5 lbs vs. 205 on 02/12/2016
6/13/16 Back Squat 1 x 5 @ 345 lbs 5-5-5 6:00 AM PR by 30 lbs vs. 315 on 06/20/2014
4/19/16 Back Squat 1 x 10 @ 325 lbs 10-10-10 6:00 AM
4/18/16 Front Squat 1 x 8 @ 265 lbs It was an attempt for ten, and i got eight. So this is my PR for 8 reps. PR by 60 lbs vs. 205 on 05/05/2015
4/4/16 Back Squat 1 x 10 @ 315 lbs 10-10-10 6:00 AM
3/17/16 Push Press 1 x 1 @ 235 lbs PR by 5 lbs vs. 230 on 03/11/2016
3/11/16 Push Press 1 x 1 @ 230 lbs 1 Hit 230 and it felt light. stopped there. save another PR for anothe day PR by 5 lbs vs. 225 on 10/15/2013
2/15/16 500m Row 1:42 broke the first rower…..boom 6:00 AM PR by 0:07 vs. 1:49 on 08/24/2015
2/12/16 Clean 1 x 1 @ 205 lbs PR by 5 lbs vs. 200 on 08/21/2015
2/12/16 Power Clean 1 x 1 @ 205 lbs PR by 30 lbs vs. 175 on 03/14/2013
2/8/16 Front Squat 1 x 1 @ 305 lbs 1RM 6:00 AM PR by 5 lbs vs. 300 on 12/19/2014
1/27/16 Lactic Acid Threshold Test 85 Total Calories 6:00 AM PR by 2 calories vs. 83 on 12/19/2014
1/4/16 Front Squat 1 x 3 @ 275 lbs 3-3-3-3 6:00 AM PR by 10 lbs vs. 265 on 02/09/2015

2017 is the year for pull ups, double unders, and toes to bar. I would also like to get back into competing. How quickly 2016 passed us by is proof of there being no time like the present to do the things we want to do.

I hope everyone has a safe and Happy New Year’s Eve and has an incredible 2017.

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Getting Ready for the Open!!! Stupid Cardio…..

One of the great things about 12 Labours is the planning that goes into the programming. It is split up quarterly and unfortunately we are now coming into the quarter where we get ready for the Open. Not my favorite quarter.

Monday——

“Open is 90 Days Away”

20 Minute AMRAP

15 Toes to Bar f(20 abmat situps)

Double Unders s(50) f(25)

10 Squat Cleans s(135/95) f(95/65)

***add weight every round***

***score is weight***

I mixed in hanging knee raises and abmat situps. Squat cleans were all legit, which is a big jump for me as they used to be reverse curls, followed by a front squat. Weight scheme was 95#, 115#, 135#, and 155#. I finished four full rounds, for a total weight of 5,050#.

Tuesday was five three minute AMRAPS. I opted instead for the following:

WOD 1 Movement Weight (Pounds) Distance Reps Rounds Total Reps
Row 250 Meters 1 6 6
Shrug Bar Deadlift 225 5 6 30
Wall balls 30 7 6 42
Ab Mat Sit Ups 10 6 60
Strict Push Ups 5 6 30
Total 168
Time 18:36

I did this one last week as well. I completed six rounds in 18:36, which is a 1:20 improvement over last week, or a little over 6% improvement. I’ll take it!

Wednesday was another WOD that just did not work for me. 30 Minute Partner AMRAP with one doing 6 TGU’s, and the other maxing out cals on the Assault Bike. I opted for trying to PR my clean. I have been tapped out at 210 for quite some time and it is quite frustrating. It is time to invest in a few one on one sessions for Olympic lifting. There is something small that I am not doing, I just do not know what it is!

Thursday was a rest day. ROMWOD, extra water, less carbs, more stretching….fun right? Almost went for a run….almost. Decided instead to get another hour of sleep, which was needed. Several long days strung together for work and a bit stressful, so why not catch up on some sleep.

Friday:

“12 Labours Test #4”

For Time:

Row 2000m

100 Wall Balls s(30/20) f(20/14)

50 G2OH s(95/65) f(75/55)

***30 min cap***

This was challenging. The rowers were all taken so I opted for the Ski Erg. Great way to get ready for wall balls, right? Shoulders, triceps were smoked from the rower, and the legs were not much better. I did the 20lb. wall ball and 95lbs. for G2OH. 27:20. A few cocktails were imbibed Thursday evening and it was not the best night’s sleep. It is safe to say those impacted by performance. I will put this one back up in two weeks.

Saturday was a partner WOD which included burpees and running……so I took advantage of open gym and PR’d with 3 reps at 385 for back squat. Felt much better Saturday morning. Ten hours of sleep will do that.

Off to fire up the chainsaw and cut some wood and then split. Installed a new fire pit yesterday…

 

 

 

 

 

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Week Ending 11.26.16

Sunday was a rest day. Did a ROMWOD and that was about it. Ate well. Too cold to run outside…yeah, we will stick with that.

Monday:

I was still pretty beat up from the pain cave on Friday, and the WOD’s on Friday and Saturday, so I opted for 1RM on my clean. I have been at 210lbs for about five months and determined Monday was a good day to go after 215. I failed at 215 8 – 10 times. I pulled it plenty high, however I was not pulling myself under the bar, and therefore was unable to get my elbows through in time. Definitely have it high enough. Next week.

Tuesday:

“Shinguards”

20 Minute Ascending Ladder

20/15 Row Cals

5 Burpee Box Jump Overs s(30/24) (24/20)

***burpee box jump overs go up by 2 reps every round***

This one look like junk. Not looking forward to it in the least. So I didn’t do it. Instead I did a modified version of Linda.

 

WOD 3 Bench Press 165 55
Linda Clean 135 55
Dead Lift 225 55 17:21

I was pretty crushed afterwards, however it felt good and I was able to get through most of it unbroken, which means I need to add some weight. True numbers would be as follows. Yeah, that ain’t gonna happen soon.

True Linda
10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 reps of the triplet (for time):
Deadlift: 1 1/2 body weight 435
Bench press: body weight 290
Clean: 3/4 body weight 217.5

Wednesday was Supposed to be Quadzilla:

Every 3 Minutes for 8 sets –

20/15 Cal Assault Bike

3 Front Squats from rack

***add weight every set***

***score is weight***

I wound up sleeping in, so I’ll do this Thursday morning. Earn the turkey,….and the stuffing. It was challenging, however I did PR with a front squat for 3 reps at 285lbs.

Friday:

Annual day after Thanksgiving Kalsu. Good times! I did the Fitness version at 3 burpees OTM and with 95lbs. Two years ago I hit 70 reps in 20 minutes. This year I finished at 20:36. Felt good. Legs did not feel good the next day!

 

 

 

 

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Worst Time of Year…..

winter-600am

Winter and 600AM’s…

Yes, 6:00am class goers are usually a breed totally apart from the normal population. Up early, all cheery and whatnot. However, we are a little less cheery this time of year. It is really dark out, thanks to Daylight Savings, and it is dang cold. It sucks the life out of you, going outside at 515/530,…almost. Almost. No quitting. Gotta Make it happen.

six-am-alarm

Sure, it would be easier to turn off the alarm and roll over and go back to sleep, or get up and eat pancakes. Where is the fun in that? Running 400’s…that’s where the fun is. I can see it on their faces as I am pedalling on the Assault Bike. Yeah, I don’t like running.

Sure, it sucks to be up that early when it is still dark outside however by 715am you are done for the day. No worries about trying to fit the class in your schedule during the day or after work. Because let’s face it, for most of us six am’ers, it’s either get it done in the morning or it is not getting done.

Time to go for a run and sweat out yesterday’s festivities. I hate running however it has it’s merits. Definitely helps with slimming down and builds up the cardiovascular capacity. It still sucks.

Get out and do something today! Yoga, ROMWOD, Run/Jog, take the furkid for a long walk, etc. Use your fitness.

Photo of young woman on the sidewalk, courtesy of.

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Week Ending 11.19.16—-First Good Clean Week in a Looooong Time

 

It has been quite a while since I posted an entry, a little over a year actually. It was a good week. Ate clean, no cocktails. Set a PR. Good times all around.

Monday:

Part 1 ———— 8 Sets Every 2 Minutes – 3 Reps Back Squat

***add weight every set***

My best lift for 3 was 365. I felt pretty good this morning, due to a lazy Sunday and nine hours of solid sleep. Truthfully, i could have continued sleeping without much trouble. I think I will be in bed early tonight as well. Things lined up pretty well and the warm-up sets went smoothly, so 375 became the target number.

185, 225, 275, 295, 315, 335,3 55, 375

I could have gone heavier. 395 or 405 will be the goal if this one comes around again.

Part 2 ————— “Baseline x 2”

2 Rounds for time:

Row 500m

40 Air Squats

30 Abmat Situps

20 Pushups

10 Pullups—-Ring Rows

I did 13:10, first round was 6:10, which was 15 seconds or so longer than my best score. I was pretty smoked after the first round. Rowing was lengthy on the second round. All in all a good day.

Tuesday:

“The Roaring Twenties”

20 Minute AMRAP

20/15 Cals AB

20 Shoulder to OH s(115/75) f(75/55)

20 Toes to Bar f(abmat situp)

I opted for “SPITNESS”, a combination of Sport and Fitness. I chose the 115lb weight and ab mat situps. I am built to be on the ground. I don’t do T2B, pull ups, etc.,…yet.

Score was four rounds and 8 calories. I was smoked afterwards.

Wednesday:

Every 2 Minutes for 20 Minutes:

Double Unders s(30) f(15)

3 Squat Cleans s(155/105) f(115/75)

***add weight each set***

****score is highest weight of completed triple for squat clean***

I did 30 singles at the beginning of each set and decided to add weight every other set. My goal was to focus on the actual form of the lift. Catching the bar low, hitting full depth, knees out, and elbows up. My PR for clean is either 205 or 210…not sure.

I did 95, 115, 135, 155, and 185. The 185 was challenging. They were not touch and go. All in all the form felt good and the coach watched several times and said it was good, nothing more to really offer. I’ll take that as a major win as I am the king of reverse curling and calling it a clean.

Three days in with clean eating and no cocktailing.

Thursday:

Rest Day. ROMWOD and lots of water. Also slept for 9.5 hours. That felt damn good. I didn’t stick with the 12 Labours eating plan today. Thanksgiving dinner at work, so stuffing and sweet potatoes with brown sugar. Also, wifey wanted Italian for dinner so it was penne pasta with in house made crumbled sausage and roasted tomatoes. Needless to say, I was slightly over on carbs. 🙂 No cocktails.

Friday:

Friday’s WOD was “Kelly”, which for those of you who do not know the hell that Kelly is….5 rounds, 400 meter run, 30 box jumps, 30 walls balls. Hell to the No,…squared. It would take me 45 minutes to finish that thing and I would feel like absolute crap for at least two days. Instead I went with one of my own:

WOD 1 Movement Weight (Pounds) Distance Reps Rounds Total Reps
Row 250 Meters 1 6 6
Shrug Bar Deadlift 225 5 6 30
Wall balls 30 7 6 42
Ab Mat Sit Ups 10 6 60
Strict Push Ups 5 6 30
Total 168

I like AMRAP’S with shorter “series” of reps. I think these enable the athlete to focus on the form of each movement and rep and not instead focus on how many reps are left and just getting through it. This may not look like much, however it was harder than I anticipated and I was washed out afterwards. Took about a minute afterwards to get right.

This is very scalable, either be increasing distance, weight, or reps. My plan is to increase the reps of the movements and then compare the total number of reps over time, while keeping weights the same.

I have an appointment in the pain cave today. Definitely need one as things are not feeling as good as they should. That means therapeutic/deep tissue massage. I usually come close to throwing up and or crying. I go with an empty stomach…

Saturday:

Had a late night call last night so sleep was interrupted, however no big deal. Susan broke me yesterday. Have not looked yet, however there should be lots of bruising.

“Pinky and The Brain”

20 Minute Partner AMRAP
10 Deadlifts s(275/185) f(185/125)
20 C2B Pullups s(10 Muscle Ups)
30/20 Cal AB
***split it up however you want***

Saturday has become the day of partner WOD’s. This one does not look at that bad. Basically split everything in half. 5 reps on deadlifts, 5 ring rows, and then 15 calories…and repeat. Right? Can’t be that bad. We shall see. I am usually wrong with these things.

As it turns out, I was not that wrong. It was challenging, however quite doable. I ran an 800 as my own warm up and that helped workout the kinks.

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Well those were fun!


I had commented last week about how August had not been as warm as we are used too. The weather gods heard my snide remark and provided a retort. Their retort was a giant middle finger of humidity. Walking out the front door at 5:15am into an atmosphere of swamp air. Good times.

Heat

MON-FITNESS

10 Rounds

9 Wall Balls s(30/20) f (20/14)

6 Burpees to 6″ Target

3 Clean and Jerks s(185/125) f(135/95)

***25 minute cap***

Summary: Doesn’t look bad, right? Wrong. I switched out med balls because the first one got so covered in sweat I couldn’t catch it. Literally slipped through my hands. Ever have to switch spots on the floor for burpees because it was so slippery? I did. Looked like someone sprayed the floor with a hose. It’s not right. I should be studied. It’s improbably for so much sweat to be generated.  Finished it in 24 and change. The burpees truly were the hardest part. Did 135 weight for C&J’s. Probably could have done 155 instead. 185 would have been too much. It’s not the jerk, which for me is a strict press because I refuse to listen to coaches, it’s the clean, or in my case, the reverse curl, because again, I refuse…you know how that ends.

balls

TUES-FITNESS

“HELEN”
3 Rounds for time:
Run 400m
21 KB Swings (1.5/1pd)
12 Pullups

Summary: Any of our fellow cultfit followers immediately grimaced when they saw the name. She’s a bitch. I felt like I was running through pancake batter. I’m not built for speed. It was more trudging than sprinting. Did ring rows instead of pull ups. KB swings and RR were all unbroken. They aren’t the hard part. It’s the stupid running. Why run when you can deadlift? That’s my motto. Checked the lovely performance history tab in Wodify, and the worst time. Ever. Still a hell of a workout. Also did early birds which is a WOD before the WOD, and Gabe was coaching so the warm up was aggressive. There we go. All rationalized out.

helen

 

WED-FITNESS
Close Grip Bench Press
3-3-3-3-3
+
7 Min AMRAP
10 Pushups s(ring pushups)
20 Air Squats

Summary:

Bench press?!?!? Yes. Almost as good as deadlift day. Almost. Also did early birds this morning which was dips and push ups, I think. Felt pretty good. Jumped from 225 to 255 which was probably to aggressive. Got two and the third required some curling from the spotter. It happens. All in all I was happy with it.  The burner afterwards was fun. Again with the sweating. Did I mention it was hot this week?

FRI-FITNESS

Every 2 minutes for 20 minutes complete:

25 Double Unders/75 Singles

1 clean

***add weight every 2 sets starting at 60% of 1RM. Find a new 1RM***

Summary:

Cleans and I have had an unfriendly relationship for the past couple of years. Logically I should be able to clean 275 without much issue. Front squat is 300, deadlift is 455. Really shouldn’t be a problem here. Instead i have been stuck at 195 for two years or so. Finally got 200 Friday morning which felt pretty good. Attempted and failed 205 several times. I should have recorded the lifts. I was pulling it plenty high. Probably snatch height for most people, who you know….drop under the bar instead of what I do, which is reverse curl it to my neck. Also learned that I really like RX jump ropes. All of my singles were unbroken. The rope was very smooth. Definitely purchasing one.

It Never Happens LIke This!

 It Never Happens LIke This!

Three shirts bit the dust this week. You know it’s time to chuck it when you offend yourself. I apologize to those at City Dock Coffee Friday morning. Yeah, my bad. There isn’t enough Febreze to fix that one. Had to go. Just shy of a decade. Again, I am sorry. Smelled like Victory! And remember, we ….

wod-for-beer

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The Open is Closed.

15.5
 15.5 We all saw it coming. We knew it would be thrusters, and a lot of them, and guess what. Thrusters. Thruck Fusters.  It could be worse. No burpees!!! I  was prepared as I could possibly be. Bullet Proof coffee in the morning.  Followed by a little BSN NO-Xplode…happy hour!  Last night’s IPA’s will have absolutely no effect whatsoever.

15.5 thruster

Going in I was thinking it wouldn’t be bad. I could break up the thrusters in halves since it’s 95lbs,  not super heavy, just a lot of legs. Rowing isn’t bad, just hard pulls to get a calorie a stroke. No worries! Then I watched the 900am class suffer through. I couldn’t leave. People had already seen me. A quick chat with someone who had completed it, and was finally fully functioning, resulted a in a rethink. Cut the thrusters in thirds.

27 cals went quicker than I thought it would. Set of 9. rest. Set of 9. rest. Set of 9. Back on the rower. 21 cals. Set of 7. Set of 7. Set of…whumph. What just happened! I can’t breathe and my legs don’t want to push back up. Finished the last set and then started 15 and that’s when the fun began. Coach Christa the Fembot in my ear, “you won’t catch your breath, just GO!”. “Back on the bar”. I calculated it would take me between 12 and 15 minutes to finish and it turned out to be 14:43. It’s not a matter of strength, it was a matter of wind. I was chasing something I couldn’t catch. My breath. Need to fix that.

Kicked

Two Natty Boh’s, and a Progenex shake and I was back to normal. I usually opt to go in the second round because, well nobody wants to go first, and I want to get it over with and it provides the opportunity to cheer on those who are still going through it. That’s they key with CrossFit. Something the other gyms won’t get. It’s the community. It’s the support and friendships. After that WOD, there was a potluck happy hour. As you can imagine, carb city. Krispy Kreme, pasta salads, chips,..you name it.

This year’s Open was by far my favorite. The scaled WOD’s were challenging however very doable. 15.4 was my favorite. Hit 100 reps. I happen to like push press and that helped significantly. 15.5 was the most difficult, however I liked it and hope it finds it’s way into the 12Labours rotation. You know it’s a good when you are washing down two Aleve with a a Manhattan a few hours after the WOD. Of course, looking forward to the 12Labours Team heading to Regionals, and then back to the Games. We expect great things!

12Labours

3, 2, 1….