Some Days Are Better Than Others

I've been having a great week! I've hit several PR's (Personal Records)  this week... But today I had a crappy work out. The WOD (workout of the day) was:
15 minute AMRAP (as many rounds as possible)
15 pull ups and 30 second ring sits

My goal was to try to hit at least the first round all 15 pull ups consecutive.. As it turned out when I got on the bar I was apparently a lot heavier than I remembered and I was only able to do about 5 pull ups at a time and before the end of the first set of 15 I was only getting one pull up at a time. It took me almost 3 minutes to do 15 pull ups! I don't know why my performance felt so crummy today. I just didn't have the strength and energy level I needed. So for a minute I felt bummed about my performance, only getting 4 rounds in 15 minutes.. But at the end of the day the bottom line is that I still got in 15 minutes of hard work and I am healthier and stronger than I was 15 minutes ago and that's all that really matters :)

"Look good doing it"

The workout of the day was "Griff": Run 800 Meters, Run 400 Meters backwards and repeat... 

Wait -- Run 400 meters BACKWARDS?! Twice...?!

I live in a rural area and my neighbors were already outside bucking hay and working the horses.. I felt ridiculous. I said to my husband "We're going to look RIDICULOUS!" to which he replied "At least we'll look good doing it" and took off running.... He had a good point.

Above photo from another odd looking workout which included the "farmer carry" (balancing 2 bar bells) and hurrying around cones for several laps. Impressive and fun incorporation of balance, coordination, and micro-muscle usage when adding different/unusual movements to your workout (like the farmer carry or backwards running)

I don't really like to work out

I don't really like to work out. I don't. It's miserable for me most of the time. Sometimes I will do most anything to avoid working out until I have no excuses left... But what I appreciate more than avoiding the fleeting physical discomfort is the good health, appreciation of my well being, and sense of accomplishment and pride that I got off my a$$ and did something good for myself. A little bit most every day. And if you didn't do it today, well tomorrow is a new day. So stop making excuses ... and just do it. You will be glad you did. I always am.

sticktoitiveness

W.O.D.
100 Wall Walks


For some reason I didn't think it would be so difficult. Half way through the first one I was just sure I could not complete the whole 100 reps. No way no how. Not happening. Your entire body weight on your hands is way heavier than I imagined.. So I just took it one at a time. One... Two... Three... How far can I go... I decided to do 25 wall walks and call it a day. As I got to 25, I figured "Ok, do 50 and be happy to have done half the workout. I'm already halfway there." At 50 reps I was delighted to be half way done and ended up doing the entire 100 reps as called for. All it really took was some serious sticktoitiveness.

sticktoitiveness: noun;

dogged perseverance; resolute tenacity

WALL WALKS:

Begin in an elevated Push Up position with feet against wall

Walk feet up wall simultaneously walking hands to wall

Until you are in a vertical handstand position

Walk feet and hands back to starting position.
That is one repetition.

Never Get Bored

Today I did a WOD (Workout Of the Day) that consisted entirely of monostructural modalities (i.e., "aerobic / cardio"):
Run 1 mile
Row 2 kilometers
Run 1 mile

This was the mainsite (www.crossfit.com) WOD from 2 days ago... I fell behind on my schedule and wanted to catch up. In particular I made myself make-up that WOD because I hate to run.. if that makes sense (?!)


At the same time my husband who is a stickler for regimen and rarely falls behind on the mainsite schedule did today's prescribed WOD:
10 sets of 2 bench presses for a total of 20 heavy bench presses.


Simultaneously my step son (who is the furthest thing from a stickler for regimen) was making up the WOD that I did yesterday, which he missed:
50 weighted backsquats + 5 fifteen foot rope climbs
40 weighted backsquats + 4 fifteen foot rope climbs
30 weighted backsquats + 3 fifteen foot rope climbs
20 weighted backsquats + 2 fifteen foot rope climbs
10 weighted backsquats + 1 fifteen foot rope climbs
adding 10 - 20 pounds of weight to the barbell each round so that as the number of reps goes down, the weight on your back gets heavier

                                                                                                         [PHOTO: David just finishing his bench presses (20 x 215 lbs) and Cody on his 14th rope climb]

As I coached and cheered my stepson on to his own personal finish line I marveled at the constant variety that CrossFit offers, and how, after over a solid year of CrossFit WODs, I never get bored.  

Evidence Based Fitness

"CrossFit believes that meaningful statements about 

safety, efficacy, and efficiency, the three most important 

and interdependent facets of any fitness program, can be 

supported only by measurable, observable, repeatable 

facts, i.e., data. We call this approach evidence-based 

fitness”. 

- CrossFit Training Guide, page 2

Today I experienced, once again, CrossFit's empirical methodology. 

The WOD (Workout Of the Day):

Run 1 mile

Row 2 K

Run 1 mile

I started off at an easy pace. I did the run through my neighborhood, which is rural. Very rural. About 1/4 mile out my dog got attacked by a pack of dogs. I had to detour and chase the wild dogs off before continuing on my run. Then I got onto the row. It was my first time on my new rower. It took a moment to figure out the control panel. After the row I had to search around the garage to find the mace I often carry when running. Then I hit the road again. And by "road" I mean rocky dirt and gravel with hills. 

By the time I finished the WOD and hit the stop watch I had completely resolved that I would just have a poor time/score for my records and be happy with the fact that at least I got in a workout today. Last time I did this same workout I ran a loop around a quiet neighborhood that was mostly flat, paved, and with little to no traffic & the rower was one I used often and was very comfortable with. 

I wrote down my sorry time/score for today, then looked up the last time I had done the same workout 5 months ago with premium conditions and had given it my all..  and guess what -- I actually bettered my time/score by almost 2 minutes without even trying and including all those distractions. What a great feeling! 


If that's not empirical evidence of improvement in fitness then I don't know what is.

PULL UPS

Today's workout called for 20 consecutive pull ups.   {CrossFit pull ups means full extension ~arms all the way strait at the bottom~ and chin over the bar at the top.}   No problem. But not always the case... 

I used not to be able to do pull ups. Not one.. single.. pull.. up.. no.. way.. 

So if you think that you can't do pull ups, well, I am here to tell tell you that you can. My belief is that there is only one way to really train to do pull ups - it's by doing pull ups. I used resistance bands to develop the skill. I started with a heavy band that took 85/50 pounds off my body weight, then switched to a lighter band that took 35/50 pounds off, then switched between the light band and jumping pull ups until I learned kipping pull ups. I can do a few strict/dead hang pull ups now but I do kipping pull ups most of the time.

The photo above shows 2 people using the green heavier bands taking off 50-85 pounds of their body weight and 2 people using the purple bands taking off 35-50 pounds off f their body weight. 

This particular workout included 150 pull ups.

Today's WOD (Workout Of the Day) 9/22/10 

For time:
25 Walking lunge steps
20 Pull-ups
50 Box jumps, 20 inch box
20 Double-unders
25 Ring dips
20 Knees to elbows
30 Kettlebell swings, 2 pood
30 Sit-ups
20 Hang squat cleans, 35 pound dumbells
25 Back extensions
30 Wall ball shots, 20 pound ball
3 Rope climb ascents

www.crossfit.com

****Pull up bands come in many different sizes, the lightest take 5/25 pounds off your body weight and the heaviest take 80/200 pounds of your weight off. If you are heavier and need more assistance, bands can be doubled up to multiply their weight assistance value. 

 

Weighted Pull Ups

Yesterday's workout called for weighted pull ups... because regular pull ups aren't difficult enough?! 


Less than a year ago I could not do one single pull up, let alone adding weight. Today I did it.. with weight. It took some figuring out. I tried to do the W.O.D. (workout of the day) as recommended, with a dumbbell between my crossed feet but that didn't work out because I have to do what's called "kipping" in order to get myself up over that bar. Kipping is basically swinging my body forward before arching back then up over the bar. It is a bit more dynamic and gymnastic looking than what we're used to seeing in a strict or dead hang pull up. At first I kept dropping the dumbbell from my ankles so I ended up putting it in a backpack. I've come a long way baby.. 

             

Today's W.O.D. (workout of the day) from www.CrossFit.com was: 
15 thrusters 15 weighted pull ups 
12 thrusters 12 weighted pull ups 
9 thrusters 9 weighted pull ups