2/15 - Friday Night Training

Showed up for sports class on Friday night (not the WOD).  It was a nice break to run home and hang with Cam for a bit before heading back together to Southern for a few hours of action.

It was a good one this night.

Strength

Snatch

2  @ 60% 1RM

2  @ 70% 1RM

(2  @ 80% 1RM) – 3 sets

25/30/35kg

Clean and Jerk

2 clean + 1 jerk @ 60% 1RM

2 clean + 1 jerk @ 70% 1RM

(2 clean + 1 jerk @ 80% 1RM) – 3 sets

40/45/50kg

Snatch Pull

3 @ 80% 1RM (of snatch) – 4 sets

35kg

Tara and I partnered up for this so I got a bit extra coaching from her which was AMAZING.  I am still jumping back a bit and need to get vertical instead and also slow down the initial phase of my pull until I get through the full hip extension.  Was a lot of fun though to have the time to dedicate to the movements.

The clean and jerk was a bit of a struggle – at least the jerk part was.  I was quite tired from the one arm dumbbell shoulder to overhead on Thursday so I lacked the confidence in the jerk which is normally the better part of this movement for me.  There were some good ones in there but I still need to have a quick dip/drive on the jerk rather than getting stuck in a slight pause at the bottom of the dip. 

The snatch pulls were just fun and not that heavy which was nice.

WOD

Tabata

HSPU

Box Jumps (24/30”)

Alternating movements for 16 rounds (20 seconds on/ 10 seconds rest)

This went way faster than I had thought.  I started on the box jumps with Tara on the HSPU’s and you barely had time to move over to the other movement and it seemed like Coach Jono was already saying 3-2-1-GO!  I managed to keep consistent on 10 box jumps each round and started out with 6 HSPU’s (scaled down to an ab-mat) then held on to 5 for all but one of the later rounds where I dropped to 4 because I couldn’t stay up on the wall.

Another fun Friday and a day I definitely like training on.  Cam and I stopped for a chicken feast at Nando’s on the way home as it was already almost 9pm and we were both ravenous.  Good times.

2/14 – Valentine’s Day and Dumbbells

The best thing about today was when Angie asked me what was on the cards for Valentine’s Evening and I outlined the WOD for her.  Exciting I know.  Bit of a disappointing night overall but at least the WOD (and Crossfit) was solid.

Warm-up

90 seconds skipping (singles)

Sit-ups, back extensions, push-ups

90 seconds skipping (singles with varying jump patterns) – 3 burpee penalty every time you tripped up

Dumbbell progression

30 seconds of DU’s (for scaling)

Fun warm up.  Really full class so there were skipping ropes flying everywhere.  I liked the 90 seconds of skipping where you had to do 3 burpees every time you stuffed up.  I guess it’s because I (thankfully) only had to do 3 in total.  Nice.

I also really enjoy the scaling for DU’s.  Basically everyone does max DU’s in 30 seconds and then based on the number you get your reps for the WOD are set – for example:

20+ reps – Rx

11-20 reps – 40/20/10 (or something to that effect)

1-10 - 25/12/6

None – double single skips

It allows those just learning DU’s or getting there the chance to do them in the WOD but also get the rest of the work in.  Nice format.

WOD

80-40-20

Du’s

Single Arm Shoulder to Overhead (15/20kg)

Sit-ups

14:53 Rx

Can I first off just say how happy I was to Rx this entire WOD.  I wasn’t sure I’d even be able to press 15kg with one arm let alone 140 reps in total.  I grabbed a 12.5kg dumbbell and had it beside me just in case but it didn’t even cross my mind to go there.  And while the shoulder to overhead took the longest and was quite hard the sit-ups were actually the worst part of the WOD.

The DU’s were solid.  I think I tripped up once or twice on the 80 and then did the 40 and 20 unbroken.  The shoulder to overhead I tried to break up into matching reps on each side, started at about 10 but then for the rest was somewhere between 6 and 8 each side which worked well.  My left arm is definitely more awkward than my right but still got through it.  It was a huge mix of pushpress and pushjerk and whatnot but mostly felt solid.  What I didn’t realize (especially on the set of 80) was just how much use my core was getting.  I didn’t feel it until…

The sit-ups.  Ouch!  The first 80 were a killer.  My core was definitely unhappy but I kept a steady pace and worked through them.  For the rounds of 40 and 20 I was at least aware of the pain I’d feel but that didn’t help much.  Still just kept at them though.  Definitely a good indication of how solid your core is (and needs to be) for lifting.  And boy, do my abs hurt today.  Ack!  Getting worse as the day goes on.

I was happy with my time – looking at this beforehand I was thinking somewhere between 15-20 minutes so when I started the last 20 push-ups with just under 14:30 I figured I could make it under 15. 

Mobility

Rolling out calves with ball

Calve stretch

Rolling out triceps

Rolling out back

I didn’t feel it much on the DU’s but my calves are still very crunchy – I think from SUPing the other night (good that I’m using my legs a lot, bad that they are now so tight).  Rolling out with the ball was very painful but so necessary.  I need to do more though still as there are some solid knots.

It was funny when Coach Scotty told us to roll out our triceps as I know for myself they didn’t feel very sore/ tired until I started.  Wow.  Definitely some neglected muscles there.  It felt goo though to get in there.

Back at it tonight probably for just some sports class – the WOD is a lot of pull-ups which I’m not sure my hands will handle at this point.  We’ll see how the day progresses.

2/13 – “Randy”

Saw the WOD for today and was excited all day.  As I mentioned the other day – I’ve done ‘Randy’ twice but never at the same weight.  Well, looking at those times and realizing it was (another) scorching hot day I was hoping to come in somewhere between the two, aiming for 6 minutes.

It was a good set-up for the WOD – we partnered up and one person went while the other counted/ cheered then we switched.  Lucky for me I had Cam as my partner – he has a good way of pushing me and keeping me motivated.  I was excited and going first.  I sneakily managed to load up the 15kg bar with two 2.5kg plates (the full size plates that have been cut-out so I could still tap and go effectively) and then two small 1.25kg silver plates. 

WOD “Randy”

75 Power Snatches (22.5/35kg)

6:11 Rx

Was fairly happy with my time knowing how I felt when it was all over.  Initially my plan was to do a set of 10 then a quick rest but I felt good and went to 15.  I then solely did sets of 5 from there on out.  My grip started to go early on and I was happy to be on the 15kg bar.  I hook gripped.  For anyone who knows me I never usually use a hook grip mostly because we always had bars that were too big for my hands.  I know an extra 3mm in diameter isn’t a lot but it makes a difference to me.  I pretty much used a hook grip after the first set of 15. 

Cam was really good.  He kept telling me my numbers in sets of 5 and told me I had a good pace going when I finished the first 30 at 2 minutes (on pace at that point for a 5 minute time but couldn’t sustain it).  With about 20 reps left I tore my hands – pretty much both of them went around there – my entire pinky finger on my right hand, including the spot where my finger bends into my hand and that same spot on my left hand.  Ouch.  I managed to finish strong though and was happy to be done.  It was so hot and sweaty.

Not my best time but given the temps and how I’ve been feeling lately (sluggish) I’ll take it.

It was also nice to be on the other end supporting Cam as he pushed through.  Lots of guts and determination to get it done before the cut-off.  

For/ from Angie

Valentines Funnies - Rated M Edition

 

2/12 - Hot SUP in the Summertime…

So last night due to extremely high temperatures (and my crazy work colleague having her heater on all day – what?) – I was hating on the heat and not looking forward to the extra super sweatiness of the box (though the workout of just jerks looked quite fun) so I had a midday (brilliant) idea and (almost) instantly got Cam to agree to my plan.  SUPing it was.

Raced home after work and changed into paddling clothes – aka standard attire of lulu speed shorts, lulu cool racerback tank and bikini top (not lulu).  Threw the boards onto the car – well, placed them gently at least – strapped them down and headed on over to Bicton Baths.  I’m sure it’s time to change the location up but out of fear of being eaten by a shark and setting sun I figured playing it safe was a better option.

We had a fun paddle into the wind heading over to East Fremantle then had some nice little runners to take us back and some really fun boat wake to surf (well, for me at least).  I’m not sure where it came from as I didn’t see a boat but there was a nice set of waves that came by and I caught one and just rode it without paddling for a while, such a blast though unfortunately I then had to turn off of it and try not to fall in as I was getting near the jetty.  Still, awesome.

It was a good choice for the night.  We didn’t go too far but it was nice to be on the water, calming and a good workout for an ‘easy’ day.  Worked up quite the appetite too which was awesome as we (Cam) bbq-ed for dinner.  Yum!

Back to the box tonight and I’m quite looking forward to it… we’re doing Randy again.  Let’s see if I can beat my last time of  6:35 (at 25kg).  Also did it  before in 5:36 (at 20.5kg) so we’ll see how tonight compares at 22.5kg. 

Valentines Funnies

 

2/10 & 2/11 - SUP and Crossfit

Sunday SUP

Caught up with Stimo for a paddle on Sunday afternoon before the big demo day.  We spent a leisurely hour and a bit paddling from Matilda Bay around the river, stopping a few times to get wet/ change boards.  It was a lot of fun and I’m glad Cam was able to get a bit more coaching from a different perspective (I’m sure he’s sick of listening to just me). 

Got some good rides too on some wash and loved playing on ‘Gonzo’.  Stimo quite loved her too but she’s all mine.  Ha.

Monday Crossfit

Back at the box last night after an extended break last week… was really feeling out of sorts last week which resulted in only two days of training…  As Cam  noted, the rest was probably better for me and it’s true I’m feeling more on my game this week and ready for it.

Warm-up

200m run

Bear complex

Mobility

Car park run

Strength

3 x 5 clean pulls (50-50-55)

These were good.  I liked having Coach Tara timing us to ensure we had sufficient rest between sets.  They also felt good and I started thinking what weight I was going to choose for the WOD. 

WOD

9-15-21

Power cleans (50/70kg)

Box jumps (24/30”)

6:56 (40kg/Rx)

Really enjoyed this one at least once it was over.  I love the high box jumps and can rebound on them which definitely helps speed things up.  The power cleans are also a fave of mine and while I considered going with 45kg (Grace Rx weight) which I know I can do I backed off a bit mostly because it was super hot – like ‘40 degree day inside a sweaty box’ hot.  I knew I’d feel the heat more than I thought which was the reason to back off. 

I did the set of 9 cleans unbroken feeling pretty good and same for the box jumps although I almost stacked it on the 3 rep when only one of my feet made it onto the box but bounced back after that (literally… haha!).  I still need to feel comfortable jumping onto the ‘triangle’ based boxes rather than the solid plywood ones I was used to.  No biggie in terms of difference but a little bit of a mental barrier.

The round of 15 cleans was by far the hardest.  I figured the set of 21 would be but that wasn’t the case.  21-15-9 is a hard enough rep scheme but to reverse it is even worse.  In my mind I am sure I was afraid of the set of 21 which inevitably made the 15’s harder.  I had planned to do 3 sets of 5 but got 3 reps in and dropped the bar so I did 5 sets of 3 with as little rest as I could manage.  The box jumps were just a mental battle, getting more than half done (8), quick breath and keep moving.  It helps that I like box jumps.

As I mentioned, the round of 21 was actually easier than the round of 15 on the cleans.  In my head I knew 7 sets of 3 would be long and drawn out and painful.  When I managed 6 in the first bunch I was hoping for a 6-5-5-5.  It was almost the case though on the last 5 I put the bar down after 3 (was starting to feel my forearms going) and quickly picked it up knowing I only had 2 left and got it done.

The final round of box jumps felt good.  I figured at this point that I’d be feeling the fatigue in my legs but they seemed fairly fresh and I just ripped out big chunks of reps knowing I was almost at the end.  I was quite happy with my time.  I probably could have gone a bit heavier but didn’t want to kill myself and was definitely hurting when it was over.

Mobility

Glute stretch

Forearm mashing

Calf roll out with ball

Paleo

Had a few indulgences over the weekend which I’m not too upset about.  Once again there is something about cold beer and SUPing that is just a requirement.  Also, a cold beer after a really hot day.  We’ve been having several lately so I had a beer on Saturday night with my Mexican fajitas (included a bit of sour cream and a few bites of rice as well) and another beer and a half on Sunday afternoon at the SUP demo day.  Totally worth it and the cravings/ detoxing seem to be waning which is nice.  Also, the abs… starting to show again.  Love it.

Valentines Funnies - The 'Otter' Edition

Friday Funnies - The 'Food' Edition

 

2/6 - Paleo Struggles and Future WOD

So a bit of a fail this week. I was planning on going to the box on Tuesday night especially after I’d seen the WOD but I went to the dentist at noon and my mouth was still frozen 4 hours later – given that I hadn’t eaten in 5 hours (a few grapes don’t really count) and on my one attempt to drink water I spit it all back out over my desk so I figured WODing wasn’t the best idea.  I was hungry and grumpy and my sinuses were frozen so I went home to bed.  That being said I am keeping note of the Tuesday WOD to do it maybe this weekend.

Tuesday’s WOD (for future reference)

50 DU’s

10 burpees

40 DU’s

10 burpees

30 DU’s

10 burpees

20 DU’s

10 burpees

10 DU’s

10 burpees

After a good night sleep and making up for all the food I didn’t consume Tuesday afternoon I was back at the box on Wednesday (last night).

Warm-up

200m run

Tabata

One arm dumbbell strict press

Sit-ups/ rolling sit-ups

Front squats (with dowel)

200m run

Mobility (calves/ triceps)

After a quick 200m run the class was split into three groups, one on each movement for the tabata stuff and we rotated through each movement after 20 seconds.  The 10 seconds rest was our transition time.  We did 4 rounds of this with the sit-ups turning into rolling sit-ups for the second two rounds and the one arm dumbbell strict press alternating arms each time around.  It was a cool format to warm-up and incorporated all the movements that we’d be seeing in the WOD.

WOD

5 rounds

100m run

10 thrusters (30/42.5kg)

10 box jumps (18/24”)

10 pull-ups

100m run

18:28 (25kg thrusters/ Rx/ Rx)

This was a tough WOD – 5 rounds is a lot but glad I pushed through it.  I didn’t feel so well at the beginning of the session and so I knew the WOD was going to really hurt.  It’s the first week of me going strict paleo (more below) and my energy levels are low (hello detoxing).  I tried a few 30kg thrusters in the warm-up and while I know I can do them they felt really tiring so I backed off a bit.  This was definitely a good idea.

The runs were okay, I actually looked forward to them as a bit of ‘rest’ from everything else.  Even though we had 200m to run between rounds we had to run the 100m loop twice which is always a challenge when you get back to the start and have to go back out again.  Oh well.  It wasn’t far at least – much better than doing two 400m laps like last week.

The thrusters were the worst part for me.  I haven’t done thrusters in ages and I definitely felt them.  I focused on good form though – knees out on the squat which helped.  I think the first round I went unbroken and then from there I went either 5-5 or 6-4 for the rest. 

The box jumps were okay even though at this point I was still quite winded.  I did them all unbroken and just focused on getting through them as 10 wasn’t a huge number.  The transition I took to the pull-ups though was slow(ish).  I was gasping for air at this point.

I was quite happy with the pull-ups though, even being tired I still managed to do the first 5 of all rounds unbroken then 3-2 to finish off.  When we started I actually hung up a band not knowing if I’d be able to do them all Rx-ed but I did and that was good.

Mobility

I had good intentions of rolling out my pecs especially however that didn’t happen.  I laid flat on my back trying not to vomit and then when this wasn’t fully working rolled over into child’s pose until I could stand up and make it home in one piece.  Definitely not good. 

Paleo

Well, first off I’ll fully admit that I had horribly processed nothing like real food from a can soup on Tuesday night.  After over 7 hours of not eating (completely not like me at all) I just wanted something and for some reason soup appealed to me.  Once I could feel my face again I started with some scrambled eggs and fried up  ham but still really wanted soup so I let myself have it.  I needed the calories anyway – so vegetable beef soup it was.  I remember how I used to eat this all the time in the cold winter months but it didn’t really taste good to me anymore, it was nice and warm and easy to consume but really the only thing it had going for it was exactly that – it was convenient.  I am not going to regret it though or feel guilty for it on only the second day of going strict as my body needed it – I wasn’t feeling well from the dentist and needed to get something into my body.

Well, three days in and definitely feeling the lack of sugar but I know this is a good thing and that once I get through this phase I’ll feel good again.  I remember this feeling the first time and it helped talking it through with Pete and realizing that it was merely my body purging through the crap that it was filled with.  It makes me realize too how far I had strayed with what I was consuming too and that there was probably more sugar and crap in my diet that I had noticed.  I spent most of the day craving a flat white, sugar and bread which was in some ways quite funny as I rarely ever ate bread anyway.  It’s good to have Cam on my team here as well as he’s supportive and also good at slapping my hand from anything non-paleo (relatively speaking at least).

Had a solid day though and managed to avoid any temptations even while feeling nauseous before/ after crossfit.  Made a good, reliable dinner that I always enjoy (red thai curry) and that helped.