Surviving the Week

It’s Friday! Woooo! Only one bad meal this week so far. And it was only bad due to the beverages I consumed. But other than that this week has gone along quite nicely. I’m struggling a bit with the workouts but I am getting them done!

Considering this isn’t my first rodeo, I thought I would be feeling more food withdrawals. But this time around, I’m only feeling a little sluggish. But not much more than that. I’m not even a full week in though, so there’s still time for a little bit of misery. Not that I’m hoping for it, but I don’t want to relax and then it hit me like a ton of bricks. That would be a good time to fail

It helps to try and have a positive attitude though, which can be hard. Along with most of the overweight world, I wish there was an easy fix. But there is not. I wish that my couple of days of hard work translated to 20lbs weight loss. But it hasn’t. I wish that as long as I’m working hard in my workouts than the food I eat doesn’t work against me. But it does. All of those things could bring me down, but then I’d be back in the same rut. Miserable. There’s no time for loser talk though. Chin Up. Move forward. Think happy thoughts!

But it does take time and it’s not instant. It’s not the Biggest Loser Ranch over here, where they workout for hours and hours each day. It’s life and it’s busy. But feeling better is half the battle and that my friends is my instant gratification. I don’t feel as bloated and my mind is much clearer. I feel better. I just have to wait a little bit to feel super awesome, when the fluff melts away. And the fluff will melt away!

4/16/14 WOD

Warm Up Game: coaches choice (have fun)
I don’t know that our “games” were fun. We held Planks in the Push Up Position and passed a Medball around like hot potato. But after you got the ball and passed it you had to do a push up. When one person fell, the circle got smaller. The was a burner on the triceps. I was out after a couple of minutes. The second game was a 200m run with a cone. Kind of like carrying an egg on a spoon run. I gave up after 100m.

4/16/14 WOD

MetCon TEAM WOD – at least 3 person teams. 1 person working you must tag in from the starting line (mats)

5 min cap
40 Pull Ups
50 Russian KB swings 1.5 Pood for everyone

rest 2 min

8 min cap
100 Sit Ups
70 Back Squats 75# for everyone

rest 2 min

3 min cap
15 Burpees
10 ft ring for the guys
8 ft for the ladies

For our first round, only one of us has Pull Ups. But coach allowed us to do Ring Rows instead of Pull Ups but we couldn’t do more than half of the reps. So Tory, did 10 Pull Ups, Karen and I did 10 Ring Rows each and Tory finished with 10 more Pull Ups. Then we moved onto the Russian KB Swings. I put in 25 reps and Karen tagged in and picked up the other 25. Thankful that Tory could do Pull Ups, she got a break! Time: 3:51

For the second round we were pretty confident going in. Tory started us off with 30 Sit Ups. She felt she was slowing down, so she tagged Karen in. Well Karen went all out and busted 50 reps in, leaving me with only 20 to do. Back Squats were light but for some reason I wasn’t feeling it. Tory started us off with 15, Karen and I both did sets of 10 and then I don’t remember the rest. But we got our 70 reps in. Time: 6:45

And finally the third round. Burpees then jump and touch 8ft target. Before class even started I was practicing to reach the target and I was missing it by half an inch. Tory then pointed out I might be better off if I was directly under the target instead of Jumping at it from an angle. Well that worked! So I was ready. Time started and Tory did 15 of the reps right off the bat. Easy! So Karen and I split up the 5. My first attempt at hitting the target was a fail but I finally got it and didn’t have a problem after that. We didn’t get our time written on the board but it was some were around 1:33.

Overall that was a good Team WOD … no running involved!

4/17/14
Midline: accumulate 5 min of low plank
I know all this midline work is good for me but it’s really a pain in my arse. I held on for 1 1/2 minutes before I dropped. Then finished in 20 – 45 sec increments. Took me right at 8 minutes to accumulate 5 minutes worth of plank.

MetCon: 4 rounds of 200 m run, 10 DL 225/155 and 10 T2B followed by TABATA dips
I warmed up to 135lbs on my Deadlift and it felt heavy, maybe cause I’m tired. Who knows. But I thought 20 more lbs. I just need to throw it on there. I did a couple and was like I’ll be slow but it’s doable. I forgot however that Toes To Bar followed! Doh. We just killed our core doing plank. Now I have Deadlifts and T2B after a run. I just wasn’t sure I’d survive.

4/17/14 WOD

And we’re off. My shins hate me, but I ran most of the first 200m, just walked in the last 10m or so. Then I got 5 DLs in before dropping the bar, then did the other 5. Got to the T2B and slowly did one at a time. I can’t string them together and it takes a lot of effort to do just one, but I am getting better. I didn’t even look at the clock when I finished round one cause I knew it would be sad. The “running” part of my runs got shorter and shorter each time but I at least trotted or jogged 3/4 of the run. I got a little better at the Deadlifts and stayed about the same with T2B. Time: 21:10 RX.

I was still dying when I was reminded we had TABATA dips to still complete. TABATA is doing a movement for 20 seconds, then resting for 10 seconds for 8 rounds. It doesn’t seem like it would be hard but it’s not easy. This is a workout where you want to get as many reps as possible in the 20 seconds. Then the goal is to meet that same rep count each round. Your lowest score is your score. I did modified dips and started off with 6 then dropped to 5, then 4, then held out at 3. My triceps died. Score: 3

That’s A Wrap!
My biggest battles are the weekends. On the go = opportunity to eat really really bad. Hopefully I can conquer this weekend and be successful! I hope you all will too. It’s Resurrection Weekend aka Easter to most folks. A weekend that has the potential to be full of lots of yummy foods and candies. Show some restraint if you can because this weekend isn’t supposed to be based on celebrating food. Unfortunately, as a society, myself included that’s what we are drawn to – FOOD (savory meals, big desserts, easter candy). Sure there’s fellowship and church and family but a lot of times FOOD is the center piece to all of the above. I’m not opposed to indulging every now and then but if you’re on a mission, whether your months in or days in. Just remember you have work to do and you don’t have to go nutso on the eating. And if you by chance do lose it, it’s going to be ok. Monday is a whole new day. Have a beautiful weekend!

Miss me?

Eh, probably breathing a sigh of relief I’m not complaining every dog gone day. It’s true, I’ve been a slacker when it comes to getting out of bed or finding the motivation to show up at the Boom Box. That’s bad on me, cause I was doing so well.

Just so y’all know, as much as I like to whine and cry about each and every WOD, I am no cherry picker. I finally show up at the box knowing full well what’s in store and even though, 99.5% of me says stay home. That sick twisted .5% says stop mopin’ around and go. And what awaited me last night?

3/11/14 WOD
Gymnastics WOD: for quality 3 rounds 10 strict Toes to Bar or Jack Knife Sit Ups and 10 strict Ring Dips or Push Ups
I laugh at strict T2B. I barely have kipping ones! But I can do me some Jack Knife Sit Ups. Something about hanging from a bar that messes up my world. As far as Push Ups, I get so used to doing hand release that I forget what STANDARD Push Ups are. I can do a handful at a time, but it puts a strain on the shoulders.

3/11/14 WOD

MetCon: 5 rounds Run 800 meters 15 Clean and Jerks 135/95
Oh ya. You know I’m crying on the inside. But first off, I had to test that Clean and Jerk. So the bar was good. I could feel the tightness in the wrist but I could do the movement. I didn’t want to get too excited or push too fast, so I loaded 10’s on the bar and BAM I could do that weight too. But I could feel the tightness. So I stayed there. No need to aggravate the healing process. Plus I need to regain that flexibility. My elbows were a little low but I could do the work comfortably. Yay for Clean and Jerks! Booo for running! My first run was slow but steady. I didn’t walk or anything! Woo, me. But the rest were slow and half walk, half trot, a little jog, etc. For me the Clean and Jerks were light but again, no need to push the wrist too much. And by the 4th and 5th round after all the running, I was losing steam fast. This workout was a doozy. Time: 40:21, womp, womp.

3/12/14
30 Heavy Russian swings
Only did 1.5 pood. Cause I’m lazy and didn’t want to pick up the 2 POOD.

Midline: Max plank hold
I’ve never been great at this, mostly cause I think too much on how I don’t like holding planks. Time: 1:33

Strength: Max weight Yoke carry 50 ft
It was cold and windy this morning. I was not wanting to do this carry. We loaded up 2 – 25lb plates, not too bad. But I can not hold the Yoke like I’m supposed to. It hurted the shoulders way too bad. So I carry it awkwardly. Add 2 – 15lb plates. Same awkward carry. Then we add another set of 15lb plates. I can carry it but they way my arms are, SUCKS, so the Yoke slides off my back a little over halfway. I was over it.

3/12/14 WOD

TABATA: Row (cal) and Burpees, post lowest reps
Well I started with the row and managed 4 calories for 6 of the 8 rounds, then on my 7th round let it drop to 3. Booo. Score: 3

My hips were smoked for Burpees and I had sweatpants on that were irritating me so I wasted my time taking off my sweatpants. Boo. Score: 2

That’s a Wrap!
So I’m glad I had back to back workouts. I needed to feel good about working out again. It’s funny how my most dreaded workouts (running involved) still make me feel awesome. I just get mental and lazy, I’m human. You are too. So don’t get all debbie downer when things don’t go right. Just get your focus back and get back to work. A friend of mine tagged me in the pic below and it’s so on point!

It has begun – Whole30

Happy Monday folks. If you’ve been following along most of you know, I put off my New Year’s resolution till today. This has worked out just fine. I had plenty of time to prepare mentally and get my ducks in order food wise. So this past weekend, consisted of eating mucho food and then shopping to get my health back to goodness. I know, I could have just made any day D-Day, but today seemed logical. I’m ready to do this. And I really don’t want to be back to this OOMPA LOOMPA state again, EVER. I already thought I was past this and would never return, especially to the extreme I’m at now. Sadly I did return and now it’s time to ANNIHILATE this chunky monkey.

The day before Day ONE – PREP and COOK
I mentioned last week that I purchased Weeknight Paleo, by Amber Beam over at www.paleosavvy.com. The decision to buy this cookbook was spurred by the fact that it had some interesting recipes that were a little bit outside my comfort zone but not completely way out there. I tend to get stuck in “food” ruts, which leads to boredom, which leads to laziness, which leads to me swimming in the abyss of junk food. The book lays out shopping lists, when to cook/prep things and how long I have to use the foods.

So off we went to Whole Foods. I told Ernie to be patient with me as I was buying specific items and not our “normal” veggie and protein stash. We had our shopping trip down to a science. A very boring science. So now I’m shopping for Jicama, specific fruits, and stuff off my normal radar. I’m also shopping for cuts of meat I’m not accustomed to asking for at the meat counter. To be safe, I still got some of our go to staples. This made my overall total bill a lot more than I’m used to but the meats are easily frozen to be used for another day.

Some of the foods already packed up and ready to go!

My first step in prepping was to get my PORK SHOULDER ROAST going. Then I was on to chopping up veggies for salads during the week. I also roasted a chicken and split it up into portions for post workout meals. Pureed some sweet potato to go with my PWO meal. Roasted sweet potato for meal 1 of the Weeknight Paleo. And I also boiled some eggs for quick breakfast when I don’t have time for much else. This took me a couple of hours but I think it’s well worth it to be prepared.

Day ONE
Well it’s only the beginning of Day ONE but my PWO meal went down easily. My breakfast on the other hand was much more of a chore. I just am not a big eater in the morning. Like I told Ernie, had I been sipping on a nice coffee drink and a sweet pastry, it would have been gone in 3 seconds. But 3 EGGS with veggies, however tasty they were was just a beating to get it down. I had to keep telling myself that I was resetting my gut, rewiring my brain, etc. Mostly rewiring my brain. I’m such a baby. But I ate it all and I survived. And I’m pretty satiated at the moment. My lunch is packed to the specifications of the Whole30 guidelines and dinner is pretty much ready to go. Just gotta heat it up. Woohooo. Day ONE should be successful… let’s just hope Day TWO and beyond reach the same success.

BOOM BOX recap
1/3/14
MetCon: (running clock) 3 minutes Elbow Plank, rest 2 min, 5 minutes max Wall Balls, rest 5 min, 5 min AMRAP of 20 Double Unders and 10 snatches 75/45. Score Wall Balls + reps from AMRAP

How’s that for a Friday workout. Doesn’t seem to daunting right? First off the Elbow Plank. Ya I suck at this. Barely made it a minute in without having to drop. Then was barely getting 15 seconds at a time after that. The rest following the plank was much needed. Because Wall Balls were about to destroy me. It’s been at least 3 or 4 months since I’ve done a Wall Ball. Doesn’t help I’ve been injured. I started slow with a 10lb ball and seemed ok, then moved to the 14lb ball. HOW IS THIS SO MUCH HEAVIER?!?!? I could get it up there but I was scared as I fatigued that catching it would put too much stress on the wrist. So Coach ALLOWED me to let it just drop and catch on the rebound! WHAT? I loved this idea! Cause I’m a bum. But that fun left pretty quickly. I only managed 50 Wall Balls in 5 minutes.

1/3/14 WOD

Then it was time for the 5 minute AMRAP of DUs and Snatches. How does 5 minutes in Wall Balls last forever and 5 minutes of this AMRAP finish in a minute. Oh my rebellious brain. Before we started I wanted to test out my Snatch. So I got the 15lb techniqe bar and threw it up and NO PAIN. So I moved to the 25lb bar and NO PAIN. I was scared moving up to the 35lb bar but I picked it up and BAM, NO PAIN. Coach had me stay at 35lbs which was fine by me. And it was so much more fine once the AMRAP started and my shoulders were DYING! I got through 3 full rounds, 20 DUs and 4 Snatches. Final: 164 reps.

1/4/13 Track WOD
Oh why oh why did I show up for this misery. Because I need to get back to it and start being a mini beast. That’s why. But it sure does suck at this moment. I also got my kids up for this crap. Good thing for them is they are good at running!

Warm up: Leg swings, 400m jog, dynamic movements
Let’s just say the 400m JOG was practically a crawl. More sucking at life.

Conditioning
A: 50 yrd sprint x 6 (walk back for rest)
Uh, ya, no fun. And I typically like sprinting. This was hurting my shins and my right hip, lower back.

B: Team WOD 400 m run, 100 yd Buddy Carry, 400m run
I was done as far as running was concerned. TOO. MUCH. PAIN! So I teamed up with my kiddos. Only one person working at a time but since I was barely hanging in there Coach let me walk one 400m while the other two ran. I barely finished the walk to keep up with them. Then it was my job to buddy carry them. So I carried one kid halfway, then swapped out for the way back. At the end of that I was DUNZO, so they ran the 400m and I cheered them on! So proud of those boys! They worked hard.

C: 50 yd Lunge, 50 yd sprint for time
And here I thought we were done after those 400’s. NOPE. I had a 50 yd lunge and then a 50 yd hobble. At least I showed up!

1/6/13
HOLY SCHMOLY, it’s cold outside. I’m talking in the teens here. We haven’t seen sub 20° in a long time! And I almost snoozed right through the 5am class!

Midline: 30 hollow rocks
Getting slightly better at this misery. But still struggling.

Strength: Front Squats @ temp 102X1 (10 sec neg, 2 sec hold, fast up, 1 sec at top) 3×5 then 20 reps AFAP (w/ doable weight)
Uh yaaa. I should have slept in! Taking 10 seconds to hit bottom is HARD. By the 3rd round, at a measley 60lbs, I finally had it figured out but I could only do 3 consecutive. My hip/lower back was dying. Like a permanent cramp. I still did the work, but I was not liking it at all. Then it came time to do 20 reps As Fast As Possible. I did 12. Then racked it. Hip/lower back was on fire. Plus, I’m Frankensteining it and that sucks even more. Finished my 8 reps then laid on a foam roller for a long time.

1/6/14 WOD

MetCon: 3 Rounds For time of 20 Sit Ups, 10 Push Ups, 10 T2B, 5 HSPU
Today was all about the core. I probably won’t be able to roll out of bed tomorrow. Sit Ups and Push Ups, I got. T2B and HSPU, not so much. So it was Knees to Elbows and Overhead presses with the Multi-Grip Bar which I was kind of excited about. I need to work on that overhead strength. I felt I did well with everything but KTE. So frustrating. Hanging onto the bar hurts SO bad! Time: 8:26

That’s A Wrap!
I worked out 6 days! Wooooo! It’s been a while since that has happened. With school and baseball picking back up I fear that it won’t be a common occurrence but I’m shooting for 5 days. I’m all prepped for the week to SUCCEED at the Whole30. And I sadly took “before” pics of myself. It’s funny how one (me) can live in denial about where one is at until one sees pictures of oneself. That’s a slap in the face. Big time. Bleh. I’m definintely determined for those “before” pictures to NEVER BE AGAIN! I’m up MANY pounds over where I’d ideally like to be. And when I say many, I’m mean 40-50lbs over. That’s the icing on the cake for me. So no more icing and no more cake. Gotta shed this weight and get back to the leaner version of me.

I hope you all have a fabulous day and if you’re rebooting, starting something new or making a change today then BE STRONG! BE A ROCKSTAR! I’m here to cheer you on and send you virtual high fives! Whole30 on!

My tshirt that I ordered from Savage Life Apparel! So cute!

Slow rollin’

Still in depression mode. Eating better but not 100% yet. I can feel it holding me down. I’m getting there but it’s a SLOW process right now.

I made some sweet potato noodles last night and low and behold they were different types of sweet potatoes! Made for a nice plate (of which I didn’t not take a picture of) but I recommend mixing it if even by accident. The different textures of a white fleshed sweet potato and a regular ol’ orangey one made the slightest difference and it was all for the good. Pretty – Check; Interesting – Check; Tasty – Check! As far as food and cooking go I’m back on track. It’s the snacking on stuff like chips (leftover from vacation) that is ruining me. Plus the fact that I’m still recovering from food overload last week. It takes a while to clean your system and if you’re not completely eating clean it’s not going to happen any faster I’m trying. It’s hard. I just want to sleep and eat junk.

This vicious cycle is ruining my WODs at the BOOM BOX or at least that’s what I’m telling myself!!!! I mean I did PR twice last week but that was before it all the badness could build up and shut me down.

7/26/12 WOD

Skill/Strength: BAR WORK! ARGH! DOUBLE ARGH! I chose to work on Toes To Bar because I can do them but I need to do them better. I think I got absolutely NOWHERE in the whole doing them better department.

MetCon: 4 rounds – Complete at least 10 Thrusters in 30 seconds AS HEAVY AS POSSIBLE, 1 minute Plank, 1 minute REST (add weight time). So the goal was to start off at a lighter weight and work your way up to as heavy as possible with the Thrusters. I know I can do 65lb Thrusters but can I do 10 in 30 seconds?

Annie Sakamoto showing how Thrusters get done!

I struggle with this movement and to think once upon a time in a land far far away I thought Thrusters were my favorite movement. In reality THEY SUCK! But in my opinion they are probably the best OVERALL barbell movement for your body, bang for your buck movement. They STILL SUCK. I started with 55lbs and I struggled. I did 5 real quick then slowed waaayyyy down for the other 5. My knee, my shoulder, everything – ALL HURT, ACHED, ETC. Went to plank position when the 30 seconds was up and felt okay. Quads started burning halfway through plank but I was fine for the most part.

Good solid PLANK! NOTE: back is straight. Some people hinge at hips and their butt is way up in air and some people let their hips sag – Both will help you get nowhere!

So I moved up to 60lbs during our REST period and was ready to go kinda sorta. Got the 10 knocked out with 2 seconds to spare – whew that was too close! The next plank was horrible. I couldn’t control my breathing, I was hurting and my shoulders were spent. 1 minute turned into FOREVER! On the 3rd round I decided to stay with 60lbs. I don’t think Coach was over the moon with that decision but I was feeling WEAK! I still got my 10 reps and I was a little better with the PLANK. On the 4th round I stepped it up to 65lbs. Just like the first round I did 5 reps with the quickness and then BAM slowed down, I finished right on the button. The 4th plank was the worst. I dropped to a knee for about 5 seconds I think and was trying to go from elbow to elbow to relieve my shoulders. It was horrible. Our score was our heaviest round completed. I know I won’t be sitting at the top of the board today but I am learning to deal with my weaknesses and not let them get to my head. One day they will be my strengths! That’s what I keep telling myself at least! Hahaha.

I’m super sleepy and it’s all because the past two evenings I can’t get to sleep. I typically don’t have a problem with sleep. My head hits the pillow and I’m OUT but the past two nights I’ve been tired but my brain won’t shut off. Again I’m attributing this to poor eating. Hopefully that’s all it is and hopefully I’ll get back to good sleep. One more official workout for the week. If I’m feeling spunky I may try to do something over the weekend but right now lazy lazy lazy is all that is in my brain.

I’m trying to be awesome but having a hard time. So please be EXTRA AWESOME to make up for what I am lacking! Have a better than mediocre Thursday!!!

idrankthecfkoolaid

and it's good

Plank

Surviving the Week

Miss me?

It has begun – Whole30

Slow rollin’

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