I Sit on a Throne of Lies

Yup that’s right folks. I came at you with a fresh blog post in January saying I’m back, I’m here, I’m present… and then poof, I lost my blogging voice. I lost my mojo. While I can’t say with certainty that I’m BACK, I’m at least pressing on and trying to get back to sharing, motivating and whatever else someone may get from reading my ramblings.

While my Whole30 crashed and burned back in January, please know I have not given up completely. I am still eating clean, but I’m not at a good percentage. Maybe 60/40. I’m hitting up CrossFit at least 3 times a week for the most part but it’s varied depending on the schedule of the week. So it could be two days one week and then five the next week. With three teens, it can get hectic!

For those of you that don’t know me on the Facebook, I check-in religiously when I hit up CrossFit Boom. Yes, I’m aware that it can be super annoying. But hey, it’s only once a day. A while back, I had one friend notice I stopped my checking in so much – mostly because I thought it was too much, but she messaged me saying my posts kept her motivated. And I thought to myself, well that’s why I’ve been doing it. And if just that one person is motivated then the check-ins will resume. So even if I’m not perfect right now at least I’m motivating someone. I’m no model of stellar fitness but I’ve managed to motivate a coworker to clean up her eating habits and with her success, I’m re-motivated myself.

Which brings me back to my blog! Ah yes. Getting back to it all. I’m still trying to figure out my new voice in the chaos of my life. Looking back I realized I became stale and boring in my posts. It was in sync with me getting out of control with eating, booze and lack of commitment at the box. So it makes sense. I lost the passion.

I’m struggling to get it back, so bare with me. I’ve been successful at the box. I’m making gains. And it feels good. Now I just need to button up the eating by being prepared for all moments of the days, not just some… especially on baseball weekends with the kids.

4/20/15 Workout

Mobility (much needed): Hamstrings, Hips, Shoulders, Back

EMOM 6 Ring Dips (modified: push-ups) and 9 Power Cleans (115lbs/75lbs)

So in my fluffier state, push-ups aren’t my forte. Plus my shoulders are shot so knee “girl” push-ups it is for me. I did do 2 regular push-ups to start off with if that counts for anything! For me, a 75 lb clean is fairly easy. But when you pair it with push-ups and you only have ONE minute to get the 15 reps in before you have to start over, then it’s not so easy. I struggled with this workout. Maybe cause I was running on 4 hours of sleep. Or maybe I didn’t have enough food in me for the day. Regardless. I was ready to quit after the second minute. I held on a little longer and almost made to through 5 minutes but I only completed a full 4 rounds.

No picture of the board for the WOD. But I will get pack to picture taking and keeping track.

Thanks for stopping by if you’re new and thanks for sticking with me if you’re an old follower 🙂

Pretty Muddy Giveaway and other ramblings

Last week I introduced y’all to the PRETTY MUDDY event. And told you what they are all about. They host this muddy race in 4 cities in the US. And one of the 4 cities it’s going down in is … THE BIG D – Dallas, TX at Skyline Ranch on April 26th, 2014! Since I live in the metroplex and I am a Girls Gone Sporty Ambassador, the folks at Pretty Muddy are allowing me to host a giveaway so that you can attend for FREE!

This is geared to be a ladies event but they also have a family wave where all members of your family are welcome ツ

What is Pretty Muddy?
Pretty Muddy is a 5K adventurous obstacle course mud run for any woman who wants to get outside, spend time with friends, and have fun. And believe it or not it was dreamed up by a pair of husbands that were looking to do something for their wives. Friendship, Fun and Fitness! They wanted to provide a stress-free environment where you can just let loose. It’s a 5K that you can run or walk. It’s not timed. And the obstacles are legit. Nothing to worry about. Just have fun!

HOW TO ENTER idrankthecfkoolaid.com’s giveaway

It’s simple.

1. Email me at idrankthecfkoolaid@gmail.com and tell me who you are and if you want to be entered into the standard race entry or the family edition entry. There is an EMAIL ME link on the right hand bar. The email you send me will be my way of notifying you if you are a winner.

2. And then comment on this post that you emailed me! It’s that simple! I’ll be taking entries through end of day of 2/25 11:59 pm CST. I’ll pick a winner on 2/26. And should have entry codes for you by 2/28.

I will not use your email address for anything other than contacting you if you are a randomly chosen winner. I was provided my own personal race entry as incentive to host a giveaway but I would have hosted it none the less!

The PRIZES
4 total race entries to give away.

2 standard race entries (up to a $69.50 value) – offered to two separate winners

2 family edition entries (up to a $45 value) – offered to two separate winners

It doesn’t hurt to share on Facebook, Twitter or wherever.

In other news
I know I’ve been MIA for a couple of days but I’m here, just haven’t gotten around to posting my workouts. I have however been eating! Not so horribly bad but I still feel bad, does that make sense to anyone? I’m definitely not overeating, but I don’t always have the ideal meals or balanced for that matter. But I did let a little too much SUGAR re-enter my life. But I’m back to cutting that out. So we’ll see. It truly is a roller coaster to be 100% clean and perfect and then only letting some things slip in. But I’m not letting it all fall away. I’m sticking to clean eating in general. So yeehaw!

2/14/14
Test Day
Mobility: Hips!
Oh my burning HIPS. Mobility is never a bad thing in my book. I just don’t do enough.

Strength: Hang squat clean 2,2,2,2
These I could not do. So I did some chicken wing cleans. Didn’t work up too heavy but still put in work.

2/14/14 WOD

MetCon: Open WOD 11.3
Complete as many rounds and reps as possible in 5 minutes of:
Squat clean (110lb / 50kg)
Jerk (110lb / 50kg)
Coach T had me do Chicken Wing Cleans and STOH with the multi-grip bar. Since it’s silly do clean, drop bar, walk to rack. I did sets of 5 cleans, and 5 STOH. I think I did 85lbs, but can’t remember. I had one miss of the clean and that was pretty painful on a meaty part of my arm. But other than being SLOW, I was huffing and puffing. 5 minutes is not a lot of time to do work but then again it can KILL YOU! Total reps: 34

2/15/14
Community WOD
You just never know what Coach is going to throw at us for a Community WOD but most of the time it’s teamwork and this day was no different. It was forecasted to be an AWESOME day but it was still a little chill at 9am. But once you get sweating it was perfect. We went outside for some ROWING and some YOKE/SLED PUSHING.

Not sure at what point this pic was taken but I’m definitely spent.

Teams of 3. 20 minute AMRAP. Sprint Row 250m. Then push YOKE for 30 yds. That was the best/worst team WOD ever. I’m not a great rower but for 250m I’m ok for my height… at least I feel good. But pushing that damn YOKE was a different story. It’s not even a far distance but we are in a race and we gotta move! We weren’t even halfway through and wondering when time would be called but we just kept chugging. We were so close to finishing our 5th round as a team but fell short by a some meters and a yoke push. It was good work put in by everyone!

2/18/14
Skill: KB Snatches
Today I felt good doing these. It was a first! But it was also light weight. With my wrist still not 100% I didn’t want to push fatigue and then doing something stupid. So I just stayed with the 26lb KB.

2/18/14 WOD

MetCon: 1 minute of Push Ups, 2 minutes of Double Unders, 3 minutes Air Squats, 4 KB Snatches and 5 minutes of Pull Ups
This sounded much better on paper. I managed 32 Push Ups, then only 83 DUs. This was disappointing. I just couldn’t find a rhythm. So I felt I better get some Air Squats in but my hips were on fire. I did get 101 though. KB Snatches started off strong but dwindled fast. And Pull Ups were a sad affair. I don’t remember my exact counts but my Final was: 301 Reps

2/19/14
Strength: L sit hold 10 sets max hold
Yaaaa, still can’t hold my body weight fully so Coach T had me do my FAVORITE hollow rocks and sit ups. Boooo Hollow Rocks.

2/19/14 WOD

MetCon: 10 min AMRAP of 5 STOH 115lbs, 10 Power Cleans 115lbs and 15 Bar Burpees
I’ve become the substitute QUEEN. For me 5 STOH with multigrip bar, 10 Deadlifts at 115lbs and well I can’t get out of burpees, so 15 Bar Burpees. I was tired and the bar felt heavy. I didn’t get very far: 3 Rounds + 4 reps of STOH

That’s a WRAP!
A lot of work over the past few days. And some rest too. It’s been beautiful weather down here in TEXAS, so I’m hoping it’s here to stay! Please, Please, Please enter for the Pretty Muddy race GIVEAWAY. I want to be there but am making no promises. Two of my kids play tournament baseball and we could be on opposite ends of the earth when that weekend arrives. But I’d love for a few of my readers to get an opportunity to go and experience all the fun. And also remember if you’re not in DALLAS or don’t win an entry, you can still get $5 off your race entry. Just use the code: GIRLSGONESPORTY.

Alright y’all have a great HUMP DAY. Do something great today!!!

Me vs. Me

It’s really hard to find that extra BURST of energy at 5 a.m. during a WOD. My brain is still not fully functioning. My body is still super achy. My joints, tendons and ligaments are resisting any warm ups or mobility. It’s so much different than doing an evening WOD. So where in the heck do I find that EXTRA that I need to force myself through a workout. To go that extra rep? It’s a total mind game, I know. But it’s rare my mind comes to terms with my body or vice versa.

I know that everyone has their own mental battles. It could be the choice of the couch over a brisk walk. It could be that decision to get rid of all your junk food and only have healthy food in your home. It could be debating on if you make the vote for the WHOLE family to move over to eating clean or keep those treats for your kiddos. Those battles plague us all. Easy vs. Difficult. Quick vs. Effort.

I’ve already made the decision for health, now my decisions in my workouts are: HOW MUCH MORE CAN I GO? What kind of gains do I want? What kind of progress do I want? These battles are just as hard as making the initial decision to get fit and healthy. Even though I KNOW I can win the battle, I am struggling! But I do know I gotta keep at it.

So I hope to encourage, you, or whoever that you gotta just keeping at it. Even when you veer off, just veer back on. Persistence is key to success. Remember it’s not a sprint. It’s a process that is different for everyone. Last week I gave some quick baby steps to get closer to good health. Once you are comfortable with those, you need to find the motivation and drive to push even more. Just don’t quit!

Endurance: Row 4x500m (rest a couple of minutes between rows)
I keep hoping that I will get better at rowing and I’m feeling confident that I am slowly getting better. I’m still slow but now that I’m actually feeling more comfortable I know the speed will come later. At least I hope. My short, chunk legs may say otherwise. I’m 5’2. It is not easy to be GREAT at rowing. I averaged about a 2:10 500m. I think the quickest pace I hit for today was 2:05. In the past I’ve hit paces under 2min but this morning was a definite struggle. I did, however, stay consistent!

10/3/13 WOD

MetCon: 5 x 3 min AMRAPS of 3 Power Clean (135/95), 6 Pushups, 9 Squats. Rest 1 min between rounds.
I did not want to do this workout. The simpler movements are misleading to the EASE of the workout. The Power Cleans were few but a heavier weight. At this very moment I can’t remember my max but it’s probably 115 and maybe less. My first round was 30 seconds. And after that I fell apart fast. Coach T gave us a goal of trying to hit 3 rounds for every 3 minutes. That was a good goal but after the first 3 minutes, I wasn’t sure I could hit it everytime. I was just slow and tired. And that “fight” that I was looking for was still at home sleeping. I dragged ass and I’m disappointed in myself for doing so. Final: 14 rounds + 1 Power Clean.

Barbells For Boobs
I’m to the point of downright begging folks. And maybe BRIBING! Let me take stock of how many pairs of AWESOME socks I have left. I’ll get back to you tomorrow or first thing next week. But I’m thinking some form of donation to my fundraising page could get you some socks. I’ll have details later if it’s feasible.

I’m STILL only halfway to my $100 goal and BOOM for BOOBS is 9 days away. Just in case you are new to the blog, I will let you know I am fundraising for a group called Barbells for Boobs. My box, CrossFit Boom, is hosting an event to raise money and awareness for the B4B cause. We will be doing “GRACE” for the workout. That is 30 clean and jerks for time. We will be rocking out the PINK colors. And we will be having a great time. Any donation would be fantastic! $1, $5, $10… anything! Please click here: HELP SAVE BOOBIES!

Barbells for Boobs is a wonderful organization that helps to SAVE lives through the early detection of breast cancer, regardless of one’s age, gender or ability to pay. Barbells for Boobs is a non-profit organization that provides funding to pay for breast cancer detection services as a last resort for thousands of people who don’t qualify for assistance elsewhere. Our aim is to help anyone that needs it, anywhere, whether they are male or female, no matter what their age or situation in life.

The End
I hope everyone is getting along nicely this week. I hope you are doing something new or different to be a healthier, fitter you. Remember, we all have struggles. Don’t give in. And if you do, pick yourself up and get back to it. Hey, I promise it will make you more AWESOME!

Putting My Blinders On

Entering Day 3 of the Work Weight Loss Challenge and Nov. 14th seems so far away! I’ve steered clear of temptations, COOKIES, FAST FOOD and other worthless junk. But again, only 2 full days in. I have the opportunity to hit up 3 different Starbucks on my journey into work. Oh DOUBLE TALL CARAMEL MACCHIATO, I need you. But noooo. I can’t give in. I gotta be the rock…the good example for my coworkers. I’m trying to find balance in all my meals and snacks. So far so good, I just need to stay prepared and to stay ahead of the game. BLINDERS: ON!

Nevermind that my body is in full withdrawal mode. Crying out for sugar, wheat and everything processed. Everything hurts and my eyes are heavy even with proper amounts of sleep! I know this will pass, I just need it to pass sooner.

Just this morning, as Coach T threw in Burpee Broad Jumps into our warm up, I gave him the YOU MIGHT GET PUNCHED IN THE THROAT LOOK. Then I said I’m in withdrawals and may or may not have said that he was evil. Not sure if I kept those thoughts to myself or not, but I will tell you anything with Broad Jumps is just plain torture in my book.

9/18/13 WOD
Skill: Work getting into a handstand (Wall/Rings/Free standing)
Thankfully I can pop up into a handstand with wall assistance with NO PROBLEM. I can barely hold a freestanding one for a few seconds. But anything else and I’m out! I can’t even fathom doing a handstand on rings!

MetCon: 5 min AMRAP (13.5 style ladder) – 3 rounds of 15 Push Ups (HR), 15 Power Cleans 95/65. Go up the ladder until you can no longer complete the rounds under the cap. 5 min=3 rounds; 10 min=6 rounds; 15 min=9 rounds; 20 min=12 rounds

9/18/13 WOD

Woooo for movements I can physically do without question. Now would I make it past the first 5 minutes? My shoulders were feeling good so I got through the Push Ups just fine. Moved on to the Power Cleans and did those UNBROKEN as well. All in less than a minute! Then I got down to do more Push Ups and I did ONE! And I wanted to die. I was breathing so hard, I couldn’t catch my breath, so I lied there for what felt like FOREVER, but it was probably 30 seconds in reality. I couldn’t stop, that’s only ONE round with 2 to go. I mustered through the second and third rounds with maybe 20 seconds to spare in that first 5 minutes. I was really slacking in the Push Up dept. As with most WODS that I can most assuredly do the movements just fine, I tend to reflect and beat myself up for not doing better. Just making it to the next 5 minutes was relief at the time. So again, I just laid there after doing about 3 Push Ups into my 4th round. Knowing I couldn’t just quit I chugged along. 3-5 at a time for finishing the 4th round and moving into the 5th round. As for Power Cleans, I always tried to do at least 7, then 3, then 5. I tried to go UNBROKEN with 1 minute left in that 2nd 5 minute time frame. But I failed! Final: 4 Rounds + 15 Push Ups + 12 Power Cleans. So close to finishing 5 rounds…. so close!

Barbells for Boobs
Thanks to my lovely friend Vicki, I am halfway to my fundraising goal. But of course I am not limited to $100, I’d love to be able to help B4B with as much as possible. With that said, I’m not picky 😀 If you can donate $1, I would be thankful and appreciative of your support. If you can’t help out at this time but know friends or businesses that can support the cause then please share me with them. HELP SAVE BOOBIES!

In Vicki’s case, she is donating in memory of her Grandmother who fought the Breast Cancer Battle. I told her I would rock out her name in my attire when I do Boom For Boobs on Oct. 12. If you have someone you’d like to donate in memory of, then I will add their name as well.

What is Barbells for Boobs?
A wonderful organization that helps to SAVE lives through the early detection of breast cancer, regardless of one’s age, gender or ability to pay. Barbells for Boobs is a non-profit organization that provides funding to pay for breast cancer detection services as a last resort for thousands of people who don’t qualify for assistance elsewhere. Our aim is to help anyone that needs it, anywhere, whether they are male or female, no matter what their age or situation in life.

What is BOOM for BOOBS?
It’s CrossFit Boom supporting the cause and hosting an event! So come on out. Click HERE to join. Saturday, October 12, 2013. 9 a.m. 2401 Callendar Rd Suite 111, Mansfield, Texas 76063.

The End
That’s all I got for today. Well just one more thing – I ask that you join me for the next 57 days to find good health via clean(er) eating and being active. You can do it. I know you can! Get a group of friends, co-workers, family, etc and get your butts in gear. It’s always helpful when you have others holding you accountable. The weather is cooling down, so there’s no “IT’s TOO HOT” excuses. I promise you two things. 1. Your food does not have to suck just because it’s clean eating and 2. You don’t have to kill yourself in the activity department to be healthy. You know you want to ENJOY life! So step on up! It can only make your more AWESOME than you already are!

Focus

It’s time for me to put my game face on and focus on my eating habits. It’s time for me to put away the excuses and get back to clean eating. I’m considering competing in a competition in December. A LONG ways a way right now (even though I’ll blink and it will be here), but registration is in a month. So I need to get my shit together mentally and physically, NOW, so that I won’t feel all bleh and icky about actually signing up in October. From there I have 2 months to focus even more. So FOCUS is my primary thought in all things food. I know it will be a struggle because I’ve dug such a deep hole. And I know I won’t be perfect, but I gotta get pretty darn close!

9/2/13 HOTSHOTS 19 MEMORIAL WOD

Nineteen members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots firefighting team tragically lost their lives on June 30, 2013 while fighting a fire in Yarnell, AZ.

If you aren’t of the CrossFit world you wouldn’t know that there are HERO WODS. These workouts are designed to serve as an “in memory” of fallen heroes. They are tough, grueling and sometimes damn near impossible to complete. The Hero WODs from CrossFit are named after heroes who have given their lives in the line of duty. Their purpose is to remind us to think outside of ourselves.

The HOTSHOTS WOD was and is a fundraiser to help support the families of the Granite Mountain Hotshots crew. On Aug. 31, a huge event went down in Prescott, AZ. Many Elite Athletes showed up. The CrossFit Community in general showed up. It was an amazing thing to watch. If you are able to donate then you can do so here: https://hotshots19.crossfit.com/

We at CrossFit Boom along with many other Boxes nationwide went on to tackle the HOTSHOTS 19 MEMORIAL WOD for this past Labor Day.

Six rounds for time of:
30 Squats
135 pound Power clean, 19 reps
7 Strict Pull-ups
Run 400 meters

To be honest when I see HERO WODs I run for the hills. The workouts tend to be well over 30 minutes, often times up to an hour long. And even though I know the purpose to DO and REMEMBER, I just see PAIN. But I wasn’t going to run away from the workout! Plus it was a day off from work so I could roll in for the 9 a.m. class, which is quite nice. Way better than 5 a.m.

9/2/13 HOTSHOTS 19 MEMORIAL WOD

I opted for the 85lbs Power Cleans, which I knew would get heavy halfway through, but once I committed, I was committed. I started off great. All up until the RUN. And runs walks were slow. This is where most of my time was eaten up. Every round I moved fairly well from squats to power cleans to pull ups (banded). I did all 30 airsquats for the first two rounds, but broke them up into 10’s or 15’s for the last 4 rounds. I started off in small sets for the Power Cleans, but picked up the pace the further along I got. Not sure how that actually worked for me but it did. By the last rounds I was doing 8 and 9 Unbroken before opting for smaller sets. It was the 400’s that were at a snail pace! It was bad. We only had 45 minutes of class time to complete the workout. I knew that wasn’t going to happen. There wasn’t a class afterwards, so Coach let me finish my final round. Time: 56:06

Hopefully the FOCUS on eating better will allow me to lean out, which in turn will lighten me up, which will then lead to better run times. HOPEFULLY!

9/3/13
And it’s back to the “get up before the suns up” workouts. I’m still sticking with my theory that the bars are heavier in the MORNING!

Strength: Back Squats 5@60% 3@70% 2@80% 2@90% 1@95% 1@103%
Whoa nelly! 103% That is an auto PR if I hit it. I have never seen over 100% on the board. I know I’ve been feeling strong and I know that I’ve been wanting a new 1RM and today would be the day. It was only 5lbs but it was 5lbs more than I’ve ever done. NEW 1RM at 170lbs! So it was nice. But after that 1 REP, I lost the desire to really test my 1RM. It was HEAVY this morning!

9/3/13 WOD

MetCon: For Time 15 Wall Walks, 10 T2B, 5 MU, 10 T2B, 15 Wall Walks
Oh how my brain deceived me, I thought it said WALL BALLS. And if you KNOW me at all… I would never want to do wall balls. But I’d rather throw a damn med ball than do a freakin wall walk. They make me dizzy. They are dumb and well they are dumb.

I haven’t had to do wall walks in my fluffy state, so they were even more miserable than I remembered. UGH! Needless to say it took for ever to do the first 15 and it took even more forever to do the last 15. I did Knees to Elbows instead of Toes To Bar. And I did 15 Banded Pull Ups instead of the 5 MU. Time: HORRIBLE 14:42. My shoulders hate me.

That’s all I got for y’all for this HOT HOT TEXAS TUESDAY. If you are like me and need to get back on the clean eating train… then let’s do this! Start today, start tomorrow,…. just start this week. OK? GREAT! Make today AWESOME!

Bread does a Body Bad

It’s true even though I love the bread along with the rest of America. I always have been a bread and pastry junky. When I first went Paleo and was 100% committed I cut it all out. I lost weight, felt great and was doing just fine but those little mental temptations would get me and I’d struggle to get back on track. Needless to say if you know what’s going on with me you KNOW I’m not eating all the awesomely the past few months. I still manage to get good breakfasts and good lunches. It’s the dinners and weekends that sometimes are off … and sometimes WAY OFF.

Yesterday was one of those OFF days and this morning I could feel it in every joint. My wrists, my ankles, my shoulders. Those were the worst. I can honestly say when I go off the rails it physically pains me. And my brain is foggier than normal.

I’m not trying to sell you a book or make you dive into CrossFit. I’m telling you from real day to day experience that BREAD, WHEAT, GRAINS = HURT. Processed food generally = HURT and when I eat enough of it, I just deal with it and unfortunately you allow yourself to get used to feeling like crap. And I never realized they hurt me until I cut everything out and did a reboot. Clearly, the reboot was not a PERMANENT in my situation but I have had many phases of eating clean and cutting out the junk. And it never fails that the BREAD gets me. I’m not so bad with the dairy. I’m not so bad with some grains like RICE. It is clear without a doubt that anything with wheat will get me. It sucks. Sure I can splurge and love every bite, but I pay for it. Yes life is short and we all should enjoy it. But shouldn’t we also enjoy it pain free? I think so. Life can be enjoyable without BREADS. I promise it can. I just have to keep reminding myself that it’s true!

But enough of my BREAD is BAD for you. I know you just want to know my success and failures at the BOOM Box! Right?!? Hahah!

Community WOD 8/24/13
Ya, I’ve been hesitant lately because so many of the Community get togethers involve running! And teams! I don’t mind teams at all. But I do mind running and being on a team. I’m sure to let EVERYONE down. And it doesn’t motivate me to push harder in the running dept. The team just loses ground due to my loserness. But this past Saturday there was Deadlifts and Yoke Pushes. There was a little bit of UH OH in me because we had 30 minutes to get As HEAVY as POSSIBLE. Well I wasn’t mentally prepared to go HEAVY. Coach is talking 1RM PRs. I’m thinking 185lbs for 5 reps felt super heavy not too long ago. So we had 30 minutes to work. As long as we were doing more than 1 rep, we could continue moving up in weight. But once we got to singles we had to AS A TEAM push the YOKE a long ass way. I’m sure it was less than 100 yds but it was still far and we sprinted that thing across. I was smoked. But we still had more time to do Deadlifts. Due to some mental fatigue, I accidentally pulled 235lbs off the ground “thinking” I was only pulling 225lbs, which is my current 1RM. Well HOT DAMN, new PR! And I still had more in me, I think, after the YOKE, ugh I hope so. Guess what? I had another 10 lb PR. 245lbs! I did try at 250 but I was out of it mentally for sure by then. 250lbs could have been only 200 and I still probably wouldn’t have been able to pull it. I’m happy with a 20lb PR though! Woooo!

8/26/13 WOD
Strength: Back squats 5@60% 3@70% 2@80% 2@90% 1@95%
No I didn’t make it to the 5am class. Boooo! First day of school for my kiddos and well my BODY was not moving from the bed. It is what it is! I did manage to get myself to the 7pm though and I was feeling great with the squats. Really great!

8/26/13 WOD

MetCon: 3 rounds 1 min max reps Air-squats, Ring Dips, Strict Pull Ups, NO REST. Then 100 hollow rocks
Then we have the MetCon and all the greatness fades away into holy crap this is gonna suck. Thank the baby Jesus that Air Squats were in there or my total reps would probably be 10. Ok maybe 12. My only hope to get a decent number in the next 9 minutes was to absolutely KILL the air squats. Because my Ring Dips are puny and my STRICT PULL UPs are worse than ever! I think the most Pull Ups I completed (with bands) was like 4. Granted the Pull Ups were the 3rd minute, so I was smoked from Ring Dips but I didn’t manage to do hundreds of those. I probably hit 20, 15 and 12 .. and that’s guessing because 2 days later I really can’t remember. Total Reps: 172. Once we regained some composure, we had to do 100 Hollow Rocks. I typically don’t mind these but today they were no fun. At about 80, I was cramping on my side. It felt like I cracked a RIB and of course I had to act like I actually did crack a rib. It was painful. The next 20 were miserable. I was miserable. The End!

8/28/13 WOD
And I made the earlybird class. Go me!
Skill: Pistols/Handstand Push Ups 20 minutes
But it’s a no go on Pistols and HSPU. But I put in enough work to already be drenched in sweat. ONE DAY. A day where I’m a little less fluffy for the HSPU but ONE DAY soon!

MetCon: 10 rounds of 30 Double Unders and 8 Power Cleans 115/80 Time Cap: 20 minutes
You ever walk into a WOD knowing that this is your bag? You got this! Superpowers and Fave Barbell movement. I’m in. This is easy! Ya, not so EASY today for me. Maybe it was the pizza at lunch or maybe it was the Chic-fil-a for dinner. Ya I’m pretty sure it was both! And the 5 hours of sleep I had. Go ME!

8/28/13 WOD

I started off strong with DUs. Then moved to Cleans and I’m thinking I’ll go UNBROKEN as long as I can until I got to 4, then I dropped the bar, rested and finished the other 4. DUs still ok for round 2 and I chugged along the same on the Cleans. It all became foggy and breathless for me after that. Somewhere between round 2 and round 8, I started doing 10 Power Cleans! I only realize this cause Coach asked me where I was at while I was hunched over, hands on knees and dying. I said I have 6 reps completed for the Cleans and he says 2 to go? And I say no 4. And he says out of 8? And I GO OH SHIT I’ve been doing 10 reps. So I have no clue where I went astray but for round 8, 9, 10 I KNOW I only did the 8 reps. Also toward the end I found some consistency in my DUs, which I needed badly. Time: MUCH LONGER THAN I MENTALLY anticipated: 17:50 RX

Lesson of the Day: Don’t eat a spicy chicken sandwich with pepperjack cheese, large fries and large sweet tea 6 hours before you have to do a 10round WOD with Double Unders and Power Cleans!

This was my first 5am for this week. Monday was lazy andTues/Thurs don’t go LIVE for 5am till next week. It’s been a nice baby stepped process for me to get back to the grind. Hopefully next week, I’ll be able to feel comfortable at getting up so early regularly.

It’s HUMP Day and I think from here on till forever I will always have the Geico Camel Hump Day Commerical in my head. Have a super duper Wednesday and don’t forget to be AWESOME!

Being Consistent

Consistency does pay off. I know it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that but I think all of us will try to make excuses for everything if we let ourselves. Just because 2 weeks of trying to eat better and exercise isn’t showing any results doesn’t mean that the 3rd week, the week you may have quit, wasn’t going to be your “golden” week. It may even be the second month. But you will NEVER know if you QUIT!

I’m pretty sure most of us always want those INSTANT results. In a time of growing technology, the faster the better! Quick food, quick apps, quick everything. Quick weight loss and body results are just fantasy! The stuff we see in magazines. The mid day shows that promise and guarantee weight loss without putting in the WORK that it really takes to achieve those goals. We all want the easy route. Who doesn’t want that route? Only thing is, it’s not easy. EVEN if one of those gimmicky plans worked, it would only be for the short term. Why even bother? I want results and I want the results to stay. I was on track, being the most awesome I have ever been and then I derailed. Big time. Gained some LBs and woke up and said WHOA where did those come from? Well they came from stuffing my face and showing up to the Boom Box like once a week. My consistency went down the drain and I was a HOT MESS and it was ugly.

Now I’ve cleaned up MOST of my eating, not all but most. I promise, FOOD, it’s a bad addiction sometimes. But I’m cleaning it up and I’m CONSISTENTLY showing up to the BOOM Box and whaddyaknow…. my progress is showing up in WODs and in my strength. Again, this doesn’t take an expert to know that putting in work will make you better, stronger and faster (well faster is questionable in my case :D). But it’s something that I know we all just put to the side. We make excuses. We justify our poor eating habits and lack of exercise through busy lives and schedules.

With my dedicated 4-6 workouts a week and at least 80% clean eating, heavy weight is becoming easier light weight. PRs are here. And I’m feeling that confidence come back that comes with killing WODs. Although I’m still a MAJOR work in progress, it’s coming along. Much slower than I was planning but it’s coming along none the less!

8/6/13 WOD and my 2nd ever DNF (womp womp)
If you look closely at the pic next to my name there is NOTHING. No time recorded. It was a sad day for me mentally and physically. I had just flown through Power Cleans at 95lbs and was feeling great and was actually looking forward to the Kettle Bell Swings and Toes To Bar.

8/6/13 WOD

I’m not great at TTB but I’ve made some progress and I’m getting them knocked out even if it’s only 1 at a time. It wasn’t till my last round of TTB that I just lost all my energy, juice, mojo, etc. My toes weren’t touching that bar. I struggled a lot in the round of 15 but managed to finish. I thought 9 more wasn’t out of the question. But for this day, it was completely not going to happen. Not in the class time anyways. I probably had 50 ALMOST TTB but only managed about 5 for that last round. The next class was already starting and I wasn’t going to be able to knock out the last 4. I knew I didn’t have it in me. And I realized that it was going to be OKAY if I didn’t finish. I wasn’t going to get kicked out of the BOOM Box. No one was going to tell me I was a loser, except for me of course and the world was going to keep on spinning. It did take the wind out of my sails for a few hours but I realized I did 41 TTB in about 20 minutes which in the end was pretty GREAT for me who sucks at the TTB. I felt much better the next day and I know that I made progress.

8/7/13 WOD
I wasn’t sure how I would feel walking back into the BOOM Box after sucking so bad the day before but I was fine. The WOD wasn’t for time. There was just work to be done.

MetCon: 3 rounds of Row 250m and 8 Box Jumps 40in/30in THEN 3 x 8 @ 90% of 5RM Press and 1 x ME @ 70% 4 sec negatives

We worked on Box Jumps and well I’m scared of the box and I don’t know why but I am. I jumped a few times on the 20in, then a few on the 24in, then just stared at the 30in. Went back to 24in and put a 25lb plate on top. Made it. Put another 25lb plate on top. Made it. Ok I’m good right there.

8/7/13 WOD

That was till we rowed. It was only a 250m row As Fast As I Could Go. But it was enough to take some JUMP out of my legs. So I took one of the 25lb plates away and jumped on the one. That probably made it a 27in jump. I didn’t measure. But I finished!

We moved onto strict Press afterwards and 65lbs was my 5RM from the week before so I went off that. Each set started off great but it was always at the 6th rep where I felt it hit me. Still got through the last 2 reps but the weight felt so HEAVY. My shoulders were dying by the end and I wasn’t sure how long I’d last with those negatives. I started off feeling like this will be easy but I only managed about 12 reps. My triceps were on FIRE!

8/9/13 WOD
Strength: Front Squats 4 @75%, 3×4 @80%
That puts me at 110lbs and 115lbs. Surprisingly this was feeling pretty good. I didn’t struggle. Woohoo, getting stronger.

8/9/13 WOD

MetCon: 5 rounds of 9 Deadlift 85lbs, 6 Power Clean and 3 Power Snatches
I can DL 85lbs easy breezy. Power Clean 85lbs fairly well but it’s a NO WAY on the Power Snatch. Theoretically I should be able to do it. But that Brain of mine likes to get in the way. But I needed to settle on a weight I could do. So I warmed/worked my way up to 75lbs. My current best. And it felt good. So I stepped up to 80lbs. DONE! PR right there. I thought well hey I got this, so I added 5 more pounds and maybe just maybe I can do this RX. Got the weight to my eyeballs and failed. There was no dropping under that weight. Boldly I decided I would work with 80lbs. Good or bad idea. I wasn’t sure till the clock started. I failed on my first 2 attempts in the first round! I should drop weight is what I immediately told myself. But I gave it one more shot and although it was sloppy I got the weight up. Took some deep breaths and finished out the 3 reps. Still debated if I should drop in weight and talked myself into staying at the weight. It wasn’t a matter on if it was too heavy, it was just a matter of me doing it. Plus it was only 3 reps at a time. Again these weren’t the prettiest Snatches but I wasn’t HURTING or feeling like I was going to be hurt so I stuck with it. 5 rounds was not an easy task. That’s 45 Deadlifts, 30 Power Cleans and 15 Power Snatches, at a Personal BEST I might add! Time: 10:53

8/10/13 Community WOD
Finally a Community WOD that didn’t involve running! I was so excited! Of course until Coach explained what was going to go down. And then, and then and then. That’s all I heard. Teams of 4; 2 guys, 2 girls. 50 Thrusters each (my once favorite now least favorite movement). While the guys are going the girls will be holding Kettle Bells (35lb) overhead. Girls can’t drop the KB and if they do guys must stop doing Thrusters. Girls can transfer KB but only from overhead position. And no one can let the barbell touch the ground! DOH! That’s a lot of weight not being able to touch the ground. Who knows how long this will take. Our guys, Kyle and Micah, did great. Breaking up their sets nicely and not dropping the bar. Us ladies did fine managing how long we held onto the KB before switching. Once the guys were done we had to change the weight on the barbell before continuing. Almost moved too quickly removing weight but it all worked out fine. I went first on the Thrusters (55lbs). Annette and I decided to start of with sets of 10 and if we had to drop to sets of 5 then so be it. Just do the work. I was feeling great doing sets of 10 until I finished my 3rd set. I knew I wouldn’t survive that again. So I said I HAD to do sets of 5. This way I wouldn’t quit or be tempted to drop the bar. I moved as fast as I could. RUNNING wasn’t involved, I had no excuses! I think Annette and I had a good pace going and a good way of transferring the bar between us. I know our guys weredoing just fine holding the 53lb KB. Never let it down. Time: 12:05! FInally KILLED a Saturday WOD.

8/12/13 WOD SQUAT HEAVY DAY
Strength: Back Squats; 5 @70%, 5 @ 80%, 2 @85%, 3 @90% and 1 @100%
Everything was feeling AWESOME till I got to 2 @85%. IT felt so HEAVY. Manageable but HEAVY, so I wasn’t sure what 3 @90% would be. Guess what? It felt lighter than 85%. So weird but definitely good. So hitting the 1 rep at 165lbs was great! Really looking forward to a PR!

MetCon: 3 rounds of 400m run, 15 Ring Dips and 10 Burpee Handstand Get Ups
UGH! more running. If it weren’t for the running I would have beat this WOD up, no problem. But there was that run. Each round. And they were ugly slow runs. I went with the Green Band for the Ring Dips. My shoulders are sensitive creatures and I didn’t want to blow them out. My first round I did 10 and 5. My second round I did UNBROKEN! And my third round I went 8 and 7. As for Burpee Handstand Get Ups, they weren’t miserable but they weren’t fun. I’ve explained in the past I have a hard time breathing heavy and being UPSIDE DOWN. It’s just hard to breathe when you are out of breath. I knocked these out in sets of 5 each round. Just to regain some composure. I surely didn’t want to fall over out of dizziness or something worse. Time: 21:20. The runs did me in

8/12/13 WOD

How’s that a for a week of ups, downs and all arounds? I’m slowly getting back into everything and I’m struggling and succeeding. All part of it. Learning and growing. Being consistent! Hopefully I’ll get back to a more normal blogging schedule as well. This once a week posting is sad. So hopefully I’ll get back to more of daily thing. Who knows. Have a happy and joyful Tuesday. And until you see me again… next week?? hahah, Be AWESOME!

The Games aka the OLYMPICS for CrossFit

If watching the CrossFit Games over the weekend just doesn’t want to make you start training and becoming a MONSTER right now I don’t know what will. (I promise I won’t bore you with my recap of the games.) And if you haven’t watched them you can log onto ESPN3 and watch recaps. Do it! NOW! But to me the CrossFit Games are a lot like when the Olympics come around and everyone is rallying for USA, wishing they had grown up their whole lives being a gymnast or track star. It’s that motivating. It’s that inspirational. Yet super defeating all at the same time! It’s all dreams for me at least. The I wish, I want, and the I could have been had I started 10 years ago!

Lindsey Valenzuela (photo: CrossFit)

I’ll be honest, I don’t know everyone’s story. I’m sure there might be someone like me out there that made it to the games, but on average, these ELITE athletes are young, fit phenoms or they were college athletes or heck even former professional athletes. I however am none of the above. Just a dreamer. But it still puts that little bit of excitement for me to want to push a little harder than just trying to be fit. To get that next PR or better finish.

Team Hack’s Pack UTE (photo: CrossFit)

Then I wake up and realize everything hurts. The muscles, tendons and ligaments aren’t youthful and immortal. I realize that I can’t even do any of the movements that these top CrossFit athletes are executing. So I drudge on, just hoping to be able to do a fraction of what they do, sometime, in the future, a long long time from now. It’s fun and I feel great but I’m not a spring chicken. I’m not a professional athlete! I joke that in 4 years I’ll be eligible for the Masters age group and maybe just maybe by then I’ll have it all down.

Camille Leblanc-Bazinet (photo: CrossFit)

For now I’ll just stick with trying to be a stronger me, no matter how long it takes!

7/26/13
Strength: Front squats 3rm
PR in the house for 3RM! Woooo! So we warmed up for a few rounds then got to business. I was feeling pretty good the whole way and finally got to 135lbs. This is my 1RM. 3 reps and I would be happy, happy, happy! And BOOM I hit it. So why not jump to 145lbs? It would be icing on the cake. But then I got nervous! This shit is gonna be heavy. I got under the bar and went to work. One didn’t seem so bad. I got this! 2nd one felt a little heavy but manageable. Number 3 was a NO GO. I got stuck and had to bail on it. DANG IT! I was so close to 3RM at 145lbs! I am, however, happy that I hit a new PR of 145lbs. That’s at 2 reps too folks! I’m excited for a new 1RM!

7/26/13 WOD

MetCon: 3 rounds of 400m Run, 100ft Yoke push, 3 Power Cleans 225/135, Rest 90 seconds between rounds
The only thing I like about this MetCon is the Power Cleans and the RX weight is above and beyond my max so I’m not even happy about those now. RUNNING and YOKE PUSH… double ick! My runs were mostly a trot/walk. And I hadn’t even ever pushed the Yoke on my own for that kind of distance. I wasn’t even sure I’d be able to do the workout. But I had a strategy. There’s a slight incline in the parking lot so I figured I’d make sure I’d come around so I would have to push the YOKE downhill. Hoping it would be easier. And my first time around it worked out. And although it sucked donkey balls, I survived. Got through my cleans (105lbs) and went back out for my run. Turns out my plan was ruined. With everyone else out running me the YOKE wasn’t in position for me to push it downhill so I had to push it up the incline! That’s what I get for trying to manipulate the situation. Total FAIL! I still got the YOKE going but my calves were on FIRE. I had to stop several times and thought I might die. It was a fight to the end on the 2nd and 3rd Yoke pushes. But the 105lbs weren’t so bad. Maybe this extra layer of fluff I’m carrying is helping. Time: 23:06

7/27/13 Community WOD
I don’t know why I keep showing up for these things! I get all excited because I do have fun in the end but I feel bad for my teammates, seriously! This WOD was no exception. We got into groups of 3 before we knew what was in store. As soon as it was broken down I wanted to sneak out and go back home. I apologized immediately for my suckiness and I’m pretty sure no one would want to pair up with me anymore!

3 rounds of Running around the complex (distance unknown, maybe 1000m), 75 Wall Balls, 75 strict Pull Ups

We all had to do the run, then we could split up the Wall Balls and Pull Ups. If only we could have split up the run. My team probably had to wait a good 3-4 minutes on me to just finish the Run. We tried splitting everything else up evenly. The problem with our team is that no one has a strict Pull Up. And we couldn’t use bands. So guess what? We pretty much had to lift each other up to get the movement completed. That’s a lot of lifting for all of us! We were smoked and I was feeling like a complete loser due to my running. Time: 43:00 something.

Maybe this Saturday I won’t be dragging the team down

7/28/13
Strength: Squats 8@65% 6@75% 4@85% 4@90%
Mondays I typically feel a little weak and the weight always feels a LOT heavy. But today I felt good under the bar. Maybe all of this consistency is finally paying off. Don’t get me wrong I KNOW it is paying off but I can see it and feel it now. So hitting those percentages and weights weren’t so bad and dreadful. Definitely a confidence booster, especially after that brutal Saturday showing.

7/29/13 WOD

MetCon: 75 HSPU Every time you drop you must run 400 m 20 minute cap. (the mod is 125 push-ups)
Well, well, well… Coach must be crazy or something. Or he just saw too many HSPU in the games. Handstand Push Ups are a reachable goal but I seriously need to drop some LBS off this body o’ mine. Once upon a time I could do a couple of Kipping HSPUs but now it’s just a laughable goal. I went with Push Ups. But guess what? I’m only good at Hand Release Push Ups. Where my whole body touches the ground. And this WOD had us doing regular Push Ups. Where my legs can’t touch the ground at all. That’s a whole new story and although once upon a time I could do a handful of regular Push Ups, it appears that I’ve lost it. I didn’t even manage to get 6 push ups before I failed and had to run 400m. UGH! All my squat confidence is now wittled down to nothing. The only upside is that I finally ran a 400 without stopping. But only that first one. All the rest were trot/walks. I struggled so bad with getting those push ups in. We had a 20 minute time cap to complete 150 and well I only completed 33. FAIL. I gotta work on those short range push ups now!

That’s all my recap for now. Can you believe it’s almost August? Holy crap! Where did this year go? It’s definitely been an off year for me. I’m trying to tighten everything up so I can finish 2013 strong but it’s flying by and my tightening is moving slower than I had hoped! I just gotta keep pushing and not look back! I encourage you to do the same. Today is as good as any day to start something new. Challenge yourself! Make a plan to come out to the BOOM Box this Saturday. I promise my feelings won’t get hurt if you don’t want to be part of my team. Just show up and have some fun! Eat Clean, Do Work and Be Awesome!

Putting in the WORK

I know, I know. I had this super duper I HEART CrossFit moment then I’m not posting again for a whole week. I don’t know where time goes but I’m here, I’m still putting in the work. Still showing up at the BOOM Box. And I’m still crying like a little baby when RUNNING pops up on the whiteboard.

So have no fear. I haven’t fallen into a giant hole of depression. I’ve just been busy! And just like everyone else, I can make excuses or I can find solutions. I encourage you to find solutions. I encourage you to find good health. I encourage you to get active. When Biggest Loser was airing I would always get teary eyed and happy for the folks. Now I’m on the Extreme Weight Loss season kick and to me it’s more inspiring but maybe only because it’s focused on one person.

And you get to watch their individual success and struggles… each person is so GUNG HO the first 90 days. They are amped. Then like most folks, it gets old, it gets harder, it gets complicated. But they have to fight through and they still have to put in the work. Chris Powell, in my opinion, is a great motivator. He can’t go run the miles for them though. Sure he can send them on wonderful trips when they hit goals but he can’t put in the work. I wish I could be the person that could surprise you with cool gifts and prizes. But I can not. I can give you a virtual HIGH-FIVE and a lot of woohooos and way to go’s! And really that’s what most of us need. We need a support system, someone to hold us accountable. And you need to find a reward system that doesn’t involve “cheat meals” or food in general. So if no one is on board in your personal life to help you change then chat me up and I’ll cheer you on. Or find an online community for that extra inspiration or an online buddy with your same goals. You may even find someone in a bootcamp, fitness class or running club. But you have to put yourself out there. You have to make yourself vulnerable. In the end it will only make you stronger.

In my roller coaster world of fitness, I’ve had friends, co-workers, etc… to help kickstart goals and in the end a lot of them wandered off (me included). We’d all start of strong and just disappear into excuses. When I finally made that decision to start my journey and not look back, I realized it relied all on me. No one else but me. I told myself I wasn’t going to let some workout kick my ass then go eat like crap. I started bootcamp with NO ONE. I didn’t know anyone there. I didn’t have any friends that wanted to show up at 5 am to workout. It was just me. I made friends and we shared in the same soreness and same results. It became fun. I started a food plan and all of our fast food habits and busy schedule didn’t mesh with it. So guess what I carried a cooler bag with me EVERYWHERE! It’s all possible. I found a support system in that group of bootcampers. My family realized the work I was doing and they jumped on my support team. So go DO WORK people! It will all fall into line once you make that decision to become a healthier you!

And now for what you all have been waiting for…. my Boom recaps! Hahah, ok so maybe you don’t care so I’ll keep it short and sweet.

7/11/13
TABATA Push Ups / Sit Ups
TABATA anything sucks. 20 seconds on, 10 seconds rest for 4 minutes of any movement. For us it was Push Ups and Sit Ups. I started off way too strong on Push Ups with 15. And I dropped from there on out. I believe I finished with 7 Push Ups in the last 20 seconds. UGH. As for Sit Ups I didn’t go all out for the first round and I can’t remember how many I did do but I know I ended up with 9. But I stayed pretty consistent in the 9-11 range.

MetCon: 12 Min AMRAP (get as far as you can) 40 Thrusters (115, 85) 6 Rope Climbs 20 Thrusters 3 Rope Climbs 10 Thrusters 1 Rope Climbs
I was thinking I would not survive. I went with 75lbs on the Thrusters, not know really how long it would take me to get through 40 and if I recall correctly I did them all in just under 5 minutes. Not stellar but I really suck at Thrusters so I was happy with my time. No such happiness for Rope Climbs. There is something in my brain that says if you loosen your feet to regrip the rope then my hands are automatically going to let go too. I know in reality this won’t happen but my hands stay on the rope in a death grip. So much that my hands were sore for days. So I only got 40 Thrusters in.

7/11/13

7/12/13

Strength: Front Squats 5@60% 5@65% 2×5@70%
Finally being in attendance on several front squat days has made life easier on me. I think I’m actually getting better now. Duh I know I’m getting better. Just have to show up consistently!

You can barely see the 75 but that’s my 1RM for Snatch!

Skill: Power snatch positional breakdown Metcon Power snatch 1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1
Same with Snatch. I’ve been present on days where we work on this movement and I’m getting a little more comfortable. I’ve always had this fear of dropping under the bar. I know, I have a lot of fears! I’m a headcase. I was stuck at 65lbs FOREVER because I’m scared. Finally for the CrossFit Open I was able to manage a handful of 75lb reps. But that was the last time in a long time I worked on that number. Today I worked up to 75lbs and made it official that I have a 75lb 1RM. I can get the bar up no problem. But dropping under the bar a whole other story. I need clear the fear and start getting that weight up!

7/13/13 Community WOD

We rarely know what rabbit Coach is going to pull out of the hat on Community WOD days and this was no different. He had has get in groups of 3 and handed out a chipper! Woo fun! NOT! Between the 3 of us we had to do 210 Wall Balls, 150 Over the Box Jumps and each Row a 1K. So if you know me at all, I suck at Wall Balls. I say it’s a short person issue but it’s just really a “ME” issue. Then I’m literally frightened to jump completely over the box so stepping over was acceptable. Then it was time for the row. Can I blame being short keeps me from being awesome at rowing too? I opted to Row the whole 1K without switching it up with my team. It was miserable. But I’m determined to get better at it. I can’t despise running and rowing. So I choose rowing! I know we finished under 35 minutes. I just don’t know the exact time. 33:34 or 34:33. Something like that. It was a beating 🙂

7/15/13

Strength: Squats 8@65% 8@70% 6@80% 6@85%

For real, we’ve been doing a shit ton of SQUATS. It’s good for me I know and I’m making it through but the reps and the percentages add up. And I’m surviving! PR I can’t see you yet but I know you’re there!

7/15/13 WOD

MetCon: 3 Rounds 12 DL 135/95 9 Power Cleans, 6 STOH, 3 MU (Scale is x3 dips)

It was a tough decision on if I wanted to RX or not. I’m still not 100% in regards to killing it. My wrists were a little sensitive and well I’m a baby. I went for 85lbs instead of the 95lbs. I always check with Coach first though. He’s pretty good at making sure we’re going to get work in and gauging our performance. So 85lb Deadlifts were so “light” and I thought Power Cleans would be too, but they felt a little heavy this time around and for 9 reps it wasn’t like it was 21 reps. Shoulder to Overhead was where I wasn’t sure how I would hold up. I know I didn’t want to drop the bar but I know the longer I hold it in a front rack position the more likely I am to fail. So pacing myself had to be key. I probably took too much rest in the cleans by dropping the bar too often but I really didn’t want to fail at STOH. I did scaled dips with a band and no matter what , your shoulders will fatigue! Time 11:30

7/16/13

3 rounds 800M sprint 150ft OH Lunge W/bar Rest 5 min 2×500 m row (rest as needed) aka HELL ON EARTH. Or at least that was my take on it.

1. I don’t like running. 2 My dislike for running has made me get worse. 3. I don’t like running.

Good runners probably run a 3 minute 800? Great runners probably run it in 2ish minutes? I’m not sure but sucky runners do it in about 5-7 minutes and mostly cause I was walking ! It was horrible and I’m not just saying that to say it. I KNOW I am horrible at it. And I do zero things to make it better. So I knew I had to do better at the LUNGES. And these were not going to be easy. I started off with a 45lb barbell. I made it almost halfway without stopping. My shoulders were dying. I then made several stops to the end. For the second round of Lunges I dropped to the 35lb barbell. With this weight I made it halfway without stopping! Great success! I then made it to the end with only one other stop. And for the 3rd round I again made it halfway without stopping and then finished without stopping! I knew I was dragging ass for the runs and had to make up for it somehow. After resting it was time for those rows. And it was too late to try to find a happy place. My upper body was smoked, my lower body was smoked. I was content with a 3 minute 500. I’m just glad I finished! Time for runs/lunges: 34:30.

7/16/13 WOD

7/17/13

Warm-up: 50 n 50 GHD, Yoke Push 50ft x 2

Booooo GHD. And didn’t have time Yoke Push… HOORAY!

Strength: DL 5RM

I was excited for Deadlift day. Way better than HELL ON EARTH day. That was until I got warmed up and started putting weight on the bar. I could feel my hamstring on my right leg. It wasn’t a horrible pain but it was enough to tell me to not push myself into injury. So I worked up to a 185lb 5RM. I know I could do more but I didn’t want a bum hammy. So I laid off and took it for what it was.

7/17/13 WOD

Skill/Metcon: If you are able to do the following movements you will go ME for the minute. If not you will work the skill of the move for 4 minutes straight. EMOM 20 Odd-PU/MU Even-Pistols

Yup it was all skill work for me. I am no bueno on the Pull Ups or the Pistols. WompWomp!

And there ya have it faithful readers. That’s my week! Go forth, get moving, eat clean(er), and BE AWESOME.

Work, Rest, More Work, Breathe

Last week was hectic and as I told you all, I was worn out. I couldn’t manage to roll out of bed Friday morning so I skipped out on the Boom Box. I was feeling better by the middle of the day and decided I would hit up an evening class. So glad I did. I needed it. Working out is mostly a LOVE relationship, but sometimes it’s a Love/Hate kind of thing because when you are so worn out and you don’t show up then you feel like crap for not getting that work out in! It’s not very fun. But in the end you know you need the rest. After my workout on Saturday, I declared a do nothing kind of day. That is do nothing after the boys had baseball practice! They would be gone the rest of the day. Ernie would be gone the rest of the day. So I caught up on my DVR and slept… ALOT! It was good I needed it. On the downside, I let the cakeballs get the best of me! DAMN YOU CAKEBALLS! I made sure I cleared them out by inhaling them though. There are no more living in our house. All is back to normal. May the clean eating resume. The open is near, and although I won’t be even close to the top ladies in our region I don’t want to feel like POO when doing the open WODS. Cakeballs! Grrr 😀

2/15/13 WOD
Skill/Strength: Deadlift 3 x 3 @ 85%
I’ve never felt so good doing Deadlifts. So I’m happy to say that I feel progress in this movement. Besides my hands feeling like they are on fire, I’m not having many issues with getting the weight off the ground. Working up to 170lbs was good and doing my 3 sets of 3 were feeling really good. Hopefully a nice PR is coming up!

2/15/13 WOD

MetCon: 15, 12, 9 of Wall Balls and Chest To Bar
So I’m a little more flexible at the end of the day than I am at 5 am. So Wall Balls although brutal aren’t as bad on the hips in the P.M. My shoulders were not too happy with me in general but I got the job done better than I have been in the past. It’s the damn Pull Ups that still get me! Time 7:02

2/6/13 WOD
Oh holy crap, you want me to run when it’s in the 30s and you want me to run a mile coach! I really really didn’t want to show up to the BOOM Box on a Saturday morning to run but of course I couldn’t punk out. I’ve been progressing it is true in most things but running is not one of them. And everyone else’s progression is on FAST TRACK or something so I have to catch up with the group! I know, I know, it’s me vs. me but still. You see so many folks getting PRs and it’s great and awesome for them. But here I am not getting PRs or fast tracking it. So ya, I reluctantly showed up!

2/16/13 WOD

Skill/Strength: Front Squats EMOM for 7 minutes. 2 reps with a 3 second pause at the bottom @ 75% of our 1 RM
I haven’t tested for Front Squat in a very long time, so 75% for me was 100lbs. Coach was sure I could do more so we upped it a whopping 5lbs. By the end of the 7 minutes I could feel those 5lbs! It kind of feels good to hold the squat at the bottom for a couple of seconds. I’m not sure exactly what pauses do for you mechanically or in terms of getting stronger, but I trust they are good for you.

MetCon: Run 1 mile, 50 Power Cleans (75lbs), 30 HSPU
Running! Booooo! I started off on a slow but steady pace. My right shin is still pretty beat up so I felt that for a while with every step I took. but 2/3 of the way back my left calf and shin decided to speak up and well they were LOUD. My jog became a slow trot. It was horrible. Again another poor run performance. Something in the 11 minute mark. Everyone had been back and busting through those Cleans! I didn’t do the 75lbs, because I’m a wuss and thought I wouldn’t be able to do 50. Turns out I probably should have/could have. I caught up pretty quickly after being so behind on the run. I still don’t execute HSPU very well without being modified so I did them off the box. And that turned out to be surprisingly easy. I’m somewhere in the middle, I suppose. Which is great! HSPUs here I come! Time: 16:34

02/18/13 WOD
Whew, finally made it to this morning! It was a humid one for us, thankfully NO MetCon today! Wooooo! Eh, I do like MetCons but working on strength is fun too.

Skill/Strength: Overhead Mobility, Pull-Up Mechanics
We did some bar torture and some PVC work with Overhead Squat Mechanics. We then worked on kipping. I am tight. My upper back, shoulders and whatever else that can be tight is TIGHT! It is no fun. On the bright side of everything hurting I forget my hands hurt so I felt a little stronger when it comes to kipping. I feel a little more coordinated and hopefully I’ll get some form of a pull up SOON.

2/18/13 WOD

OHS 3, 3, 3, 3, 3
It’s been a long while since I’ve worked on my Overhead Squats. A long while. So I wasn’t sure what weight to start at and what weight I should end with. I decided to warm up to 65lbs. I was feeling good. I jumped from 65lbs to 75lbs because I was trying to get to 90lbs for my final set. 90lbs is my current 1RM. So I figured if I got that then I would be set for a nice PR in the future. 75lbs is where it got heavy though! Not really heavy but painful on the wrists. EVEN with my strength wraps But I still went on and knocked out 80 and 85lbs. Instead of going for 90lbs, I went for 95lbs. Got the Bar overhead and panicked. I hesitated just thinking about squatting and it was an immediate MENTAL fail! Ah well. Maybe next time!

As far as food goes, it hasn’t been AWESOME but I’ve had some good moments. Like I said earlier, the CrossFit Games Open is coming up fast and I need to dial it back in with my eating. I don’t want to suck at everything more so than I already do because my eating is out of whack. So I’m reeling all the slip ups in and putting my Whole30 discipline back into action. Crossing my fingers I stick with it 😀

Leave me a comment if you are interested in the Whole30 or have questions. Nutrition is key when trying to find good health and fitness. Not only does eating clean make you feel better in general it completely makes working out that much easier. As I routinely say, you NEED to make a CHANGE. Whether it’s jumping in the deep end of the pool or taking BABY steps like cutting out crazy beverages and just taking in Water. Make a CHANGE in your life. Without it you will always be stuck in your rut.

Other than that, let’s hope this Monday doesn’t end up crazy. Have a great day and of course MAKE IT AWESOME!

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