12/18 - Butterfly pull-ups!!!

Let me get right to the best part of last night (if the title of the post didn't already give it away)…

BUTTERFLY KIPPING PULL-UPS

Yes, all caps AND bold required there. 

I had mentioned to Tim on Monday night that this was next on my list of goals as the muscle up is being slowed by my shoulder issues.  I figured it would take a bit of time and more than anything switching up the mental rhythm of the movement (similar to going from alternating double/single skips to full on double unders).  It was much easier than that.  The trick – well, just watch the video below (thanks Tim for recommending it!).  That’s all that it took for me to get it on my first attempt.

I managed at least three every time I tried.  Definitely requires more thinking (for now) but I love having the skill whether or not I actually use it anytime soon.

On to the class…

We did a fun partner workout.  Jaimie and I partnered up – he said it was because he could justify going with a super light (KB) weight being paired with a chick (his words, paraphrased).   He made me laugh my ass off so it was totally worth it.

Warm-up

(pairs)

300m run (together)

30 (each) KB SDHP

30 (each) KB Swings

30 (each) KB Upright Row

30 (each) HR push-ups

30 (each) partner sit-ups

I talked a lot of crap on the run which was fun and enjoyable (at least for me) and we worked well through the SDHP’s.  Then on the swings – which by the way were ridiculously light (for me) and I almost threw the first rep – Jaimie decided that doing sets of 10 was a better option even though Coach Match had explicitly stated that we were to only do sets of 5 each.  Silly boys, unable to listen to directions (no surprise).  Ha!  Apparently I was sounding like a nagging wife because of this.  Oh well…. Live and learn and definitely laugh.  I found it all amusing.  It was a fun start to the class.

Strength

5-5-5

Bench Press

30-35-35(PR)

I managed a PR on this one basically because I’d never done a set of 5.  I also realized just how bad this movement is for my shoulder.  I was definitely not going heavier than 35kg and I wasn’t doing a third set at 35kg either.  It was too much already and I definitely felt my shoulder rebelling.  Hmmm, not sure what to do about it other than just not do it?  I asked Jaimie to spot me for the last set as it was tough and I knew I’d need him to keep me on it – he has a good way of pushing me in both a hard-ass and also supportive way.  It’s a skill.  He’s also probably the only person that can call me dwarf and I’m okay with it.  He’s a good one (but no Jaimie, I’m still not going to set you up with my single girl friends).

WOD

12-6-12-6-12-6

SDHP (30/45kg)

Burpee bar hops

Jump squats

7:47 Rx.5

The 12-6-12-6-12-6 combo is starting to become as dreaded as anything 21-15-9.  Both are deceivingly hard. 

I did the first set of 12 SDHP’s unbroken then was down to sets of 6 for the rest of the WOD – though I didn’t take much time in between, just enough to question myself as to why I was stopping because it wasn’t that hard (except for my racing heart but still).  The burpee bar hops (almost) made me happy.  I didn’t mind them but again, Jaimie made a comment that they’re not that hard when I’m already so close to the ground.  Fair but also awesome.  I was steady through all of them – the first 6 would always be pretty quick then I’d slow down a bit on the second 6 (in the rounds of 12) but only a little.  By this point my heart was racing and my legs were aching.  The jumps squats were just an evil addition.  My quads were burning (need to work on my squat form obviously) but I managed to get through them.  It was quite similar to a WOD that Cam gave me when I was up at site that had both burpees and jump squats in them.  I felt like I smashed through this WOD but there are still a few girls I have to (try and) chase down – Tash, Chriselle, Kirst…  thanks for continually pushing me (indirectly).

7/3 - More Pistols...

Another day for pistols...

WOD
70 Double Unders
60 Sit-ups
50 Cockroaches
40 Pistols
30 Burpees
20 Push-ups
10 Get-ups
12:27 Rx

Was pretty excited with this one right from the start as I managed the 70 DU's ubroken - new PR! I started by telling myself that I'd aim for 50 (which is coming easier these days) but then I got that far and decided to do a more as I was feeling strong and then once I hit sixty I wanted to go unbroken. The last rep was a little awkward but I pulled it out and was quite happy.  I did a little dance then moved on to the sit-ups keeping a solid pace throughout. 

The cockroaches were the first sign of me slowing down.  They were killer right after the ab mat sit-ups.  Ouch.  Lots of tight and cramping abs going on but managed to push through breaking them into a few sets.

The pistols got me.  Tash and Kirst both powered through them on either side of me while I just tried to keep a steady pace and get solid reps on each one rather than a bunch of half reps with wasted energy like yesterday's WOD.  The burpees hurt, they were exhausting but as with any set of burpees it's just about keeping a steady pace and never stopping.  The push-ups I broke into 4 sets of 5 and they were very hard on the arms but I made sure to do them from my toes - I wasn't going to fight through all those pistols Rx only to drop to my knees for 20 push-ups.  It was definitely a mental battle.  The get-ups were easy and went quickly - they're so much better when you don't have to jump up to touch a bar on top of it all. 

It was a good steady WOD today and I quite enjoyed it but after taking it easy last week (a bit of rest after the comp) I'm starting to yearn to lift heavy stuff again.  It's a good feeling...

6/7 - Comp training day 3...

Tonights comp training WOD was a combination of the 'Crossfit for Hope' WOD and 'Fight Gone Bad'...

I've never done FGB so this was a new format for me - though I do remember 'Fun Gone Bad' which was the very first fundamentals WOD which was the same format as FGB though two rounds of 5 movements (air squats, sit-ups, push-ups, etc) and to this day I still think it's the hardest WOD I have ever done because it was the first time I realized how hard you could go in just a 10 minute workout.  Anyway...

Tonight we partnered up with one person judging and one working for the 3 rounds and then switched.  I was with Kayla and thankfully she went first - she started on the snatch and progressed through the 5 movements and then the whole ground had a minute rest at the same time (and then started again - because of our size we all started on different movements).  I also started on the snatch which went okay, moreso I was happy to start with something I was strong at and end with what I hated most (the row).

It's hard to see from the photo above but the standards for Intermediate Women were:
Snatch (25.5 kg)
Box Jumps (24")
Wall Balls (7kg ball to 10' target)
Pull-ups (head over bar)
Row (for calories)

My scores through the three rounds were fairly consistent...

Got a few more reps on the first go round of the snatch but then followed up the next two rounds with the same numbers.  The box jumps were good - I'm happy I've been practicing on the 24" box because it's making it easier to bounce right back up - when I'm tired I get a quick extra breath at the top before rebounding.  I was working beside Tash who was stepping down and jumping up and I managed to keep pace with her while still getting that extra second to breath.

I suck at wallballs.  Let's repeat that - I suck at wallballs... More specifically - I will learn to love wall balls over the next two weeks as I know they will be in the comp.  I picked up my new 7kg medball today so I have no reason not to practice (practice, practice, practice).  The extra foot made such a huge difference and these were definitely a downfall for me as you can see by my scores - 7-5-6 which included two deflating no-reps on the second round for not getting it high enough on the wall.  I tried to make up for this shortfall on both the box jumps and the pull-ups getting mostly sets of 2 and sometimes (with a big push from Kayla) 3's.  Definitely tough though but happy that I got them all and was able to maintain the same score without ripping my hands (there was a close call on round two).
 
The row sucked but thankfully didn't last too long - it was at most 45 seconds of work once you got there and got set to get going.  I need to figure out how my typical speed relates to calories as just watching the calories click by is no indication for me on whether I should be going harder or not (with my 500m splits I know what I can maintain but with calories I don't and that was the only number I was focused on).  I am really glad that I was on the rower last as my legs really tightened up during this minute and I needed the rest afterward if only to get loose again.