I will climb the rope...

all the way to the top.

Front Squats 4x3
I made it to 133 and just used that for three sets.

I was far more consumed with the rope climbs we were to complete in between our front squats...As someone who can't complete even ONE gymnastic move without assistance, the propensity of trainers to super-set pull ups, dips, rope climbs, HSPU, (cartwheels or some other totally crazy movement that they don't actually make us try, but I need some more stuff here to make it sound worse than it really is) is not fully appreciated by me. Sometimes I just ignore the instructions and sometimes I try.

There was no escaping the rope climbing attempts this week. I could not hide, and really while part of me wanted to hide, part of me didn't want to. I want to climb that rope! Why do I want to climb it? Because it is there, and because I go to a CrossFit gym to be pushed and encouraged out of my comfort zone into trying and accomplishing things that I couldn't do before. This is why I need all of my CF trainers, someone has to hold me accountable sometimes and not let me give up.

Attempt 1-clamp on and try to move, no movement
Attempt 2-clamp on and try to move, maybe 2 inches of movement
Attempt 3-clamp on and try to move, and I moved! This time when I willed my legs to move up the rope, they did it! So I made it half way up the rope. And then I kind got pretty worried about how I was going to get down, so I decided to stop there.

But I climbed the rope, even if it wasn't all the way to the top. I'll save that for next time. :)

It is amazing just how dramatic I can make a partial rope climb, isn't it?!?

WOD
3 rounds
6 power cleans 83# (subbed these for the power snatches)
12 push ups
24 box jumps 16"
Time: 8:11

What could have made this wod better? Probably some 400 m runs and burpees, and then this would have been all kinds of awesome wodness. But fortunately for me, the runs and burpees were left off, and probably only Golden would ever be mean enough to put all of these things into one wod that I had to do.

I was too lazy to post last week.

But even if I had, it just would have been stuff like-
Wow! Clearly the squat clean thruster is the coolest move, because we did a lot of them last week. Who likes those things? The truth is this-thrusters are not good, no one likes them. Squat clean thrusters are even more not good, everyone hates them.

And all of my workouts last week were really taxing after being sick, and I felt like a weakling, and I went home totally spent after each class. It was hard.

I have determined that this week will be different.

I am going to be mentally prepared to work hard.
I am going to eat enough food.
I am going to get some more sleep.

Monday, Day 1 of my week of fabulous training
100 m row sprints x4
Totally forgot to note my time on the first two...
sprint 3= :21
sprint 4= :20.5
Almost makes me want to try an all out, record-board sprint

Front Squat
125x2
145x2
165x2
180x2
195 fail

WOD
100 KBS 35#
3 burpees for every rest
Time-5:41

I will admit that this one really surprised me. I was pretty sure that I was going to KILL the 35# kettlebell swings.

I wanted to be done, like really, really done around 60. The only way to finish this one strongly was for me to just stop thinking and swing at an even controlled pace. Not thinking about how many I had done versus how many were left, or how tired I was getting, or how much harder this was than I had expected. I just.had.to.do.it

I was going to try for 50/50. I knew that was a lofty goal, but I usually aim for the opposite, like telling myself to just do sets of 10. So I managed to keep to 37/37/26, but my burpees were kind of leisurely, to say the least.

Then I ran
400m, rest
200m, rest
100m, rest
100m, rest

GHD
3x10
Side Bends
2x10 44#

And then I had a frozen yogurt...
It was delicious and the company was pretty great too.

Great to be Outside

OHS
Didn't do this in an effort to speed up my shoulder recovery. It really is feeling much, much better, but I was aiming for no pain on Tuesday.
Front Squat
113x3
133 x 3
153 x 3
163 x 3 x 3

WOD
10 rounds
5 KBS 53#
1 sprint
With an unknown, yet practically perfect amount of rest between each round

It was super hot, so going out to the parking lot for this wod was perfect.

Then we finished with some CF yoga, which was mainly quiet and relaxing with some typical jokes and laughs punctuating our peace.

I finished with some side bends.
53# kb 12x3

It's Getting Kind of Hot in SC...

Sunday

I love open gym-
some light olympic lifting

Good Mornings
7x3 at 93#

Weighted Box Jumps
5x2 16" box 25# DB

100m runs x6
1 min rest between

Monday
Front Squat
sets of 2: 83, 113, 143, 163, 178, 183
(oops! It looks like I only got in 6 sets, not 7. As we all know, the magic of lifting only happens at certain numbers-singles, doubles, triples, or sets of 5 or 7.)

WOD
On the minute for 15 minutes:
2 power cleans-108x10, 103x5
5 push ups
1 sprint

This was hard, but working with this weight on the clean was definitely keeping me focused on a strong pull. This was rather taxing, and I sure wanted to give up on the last couple of rounds, but what do you know? I made it through, yet again!

**Edit-I realized that I should note here that it was actually so taxing that I just stayed down on the floor after one set of very slow push-ups, skipping the sprint. I was all out of steam, and I exercised my right to be defiant and stubborn and just take those few extra seconds on rest...

Two New PR's

Front Squat-
new 1 rep max
208
213-missed

Yeah! Happy to feel like I have really made progress on this lift and super happy to break 200.

Snatch, max
93#

Clean and Jerk, max
went from 103 to 123
failed at 123 about 5 times
dropped down to 113, got it
then 118, got it
tried 123 again, failing 3 times. Each miss had the bar at my neck, but I wasn't getting under it fast enough, and then...
Finally! 123# for a new PR

Then I tried 128 about 500 times and missed it, still pulling it pretty high, and getting close to being under it, but just missing it, again and again and again. :)

Rest, what rest!?!

Front Squat
133x3x3
143x3x2

WOD
3 rounds
1 min ball slams 25# 30/28/27
30 sec. rest

1 min burpees 12/11/10

30 sec. rest
1 min cal. row 12/13/14
1 min rest

This was a lot of work. The 30 sec of rest was just enough to catch your breath a teeny-tiny bit while you got ready for the next exercise.

A Ridiculous Amount of Catching Up

November 27, 2010
SNPP 73x3x5

WOD
5 Rounds
6 snatch balance 43#
16 lateral hurdles 12"
10 KBS 35#
Time: 8:02

Loved the snatch balances in this one, and I didn't love the hurdles, but I was able to do them even though I was sure I wouldn't be able to.

November 28, 2010
Muscle Snatch 48x3x3

Front Squat
83x3
113x1
143x1
163x1
183x1
195x1 (PR!!) Yeah, super happy to get this one!

Butcher Sprints
2 rounds with 35# plates

Side Bends
1x10 35#
2x10 45#

November 29, 2010
Power Snatch
53x2
63x2
68.5x1x5

WOD
40 Squats
15 push ups
8 hang power cleans 73#
Time: 6:27

Hmmm, I failed to write down the number of rounds. I must have been still a little fuzzy brained.

GHD sit-ups
3x15

November 30, 2010
Front Squat
153x2x4

WOD
5 rounds
1 min max burpees
1 min rest

14/14/14/13/14=69

Certainly a wod that plays to my strengths. Burpees are fabulous, and this was just one great fabulous fest.
My two goals for this wod:
1. make every burpee an honest burpee with jumps down into the push up/flop on the floor and jumps back up from the floor. I wanted to have no burpees that included using my knees to ease my way down and up. Goal met. I was incredibly tempted to muddle some of those burpees, but I really wanted to cement the new pattern in my brain.
2. I wanted to never drop below 14 in a minute. Goal not met. And I tried really, really hard to get 15 on the last round and just.could.not.do.it!

December 2, 2010
Front Squat
worked up to-
163x1
173x1

The 173 was of questionable depth. Time for some super honest blog confession. Green tea right before the class+a lifting belt+front squats=a recipe for possible bladder control problems. It is true. This is my super honest confession of the year. I didn't really feel like dealing with it, so I just didn't go quite below parallel.

Thanksgiving Chief, year 2

Thanksgiving Day, November 25, 2010

Front Squat + Jerk

63x2+1

83x2+1

93x2+1

103x1+1

113x1+1

WOD

partner Chief with Sam Y

3 Rounds

AMRAP in 5 min

3 Power Cleans 83#

6 push ups

9 squats

1 min rest between rounds

Partners alternate the Chief sequence and while one is working, the other holds the plank position

7+7 squats/7+5 squats/7 +2 squats

Try as I might, I could never get that last round finished! I loved, loved, loved this partner Chief. I almost didn't come to the Thanksgiving class when the memories of last year's Chief WOD came flooding back. But of course, I am very glad I made it in. I told my sister on the way in that if we had to do the running partner Chief, we'd have to be together and she would get to run 600m rounds while I ran 200. Then when I got home, I went back and read my entry from that wod.

Way back then I was still slightly overwhelmed by the shear eliteness of Cliff and Golden, so there was a lot of pressure from being the way, way, way slowest person in that wod. Ah the memories... And a year later, I still whine about running, and I am still often the slowest person in the wod. Now being slow doesn't bother me as much, and I am ever so slightly better at running, slightly being the operative word.

And then I went home and finished all of the preparations for our Thanksgiving feast. I am often asked if I cheat, so here is some photographic evidence of my cheat day-

The paleo foods-

Turkey, one smoked and one roasted

Sweet Potatoes

Paleo Stuffing

Brussel Sprouts

Green Beans with Bacon

pumpkin bars

Apps: vegetables, fruit, mini sausages

The non-paleo foods-

Cranberry sauce

gravy (thickened with potato starch and no one noticed the difference)

Cauliflower squash with asiago cheese

real, traditional mashed white potatoes

gluten free biscuit

whipped cream on my paleo bars

Apps-jalapenos stuffed with cream cheese and wrapped with bacon, artichoke jalapeno dip, m&ms

And wine and gluten-free beer

Dip, Drive

Front Squats
150x3x5

Chipping away at the front squat goal with a defined progression...little by little, week by week. My front squat is disproportionately low in comparison to my back squat, so I this is clearly a weakness that I need to chip away at.

WOD
3 rounds
200 m run
10 cleans 83#
10 front squats
10 shoulder to overhead

Time-18:14

Yep, that one took me 18 minutes and it felt like it was a really, really long 18 minutes. Jason graciously allowed me to scale the runs down from the 400 meters. That would have killed me or I would have had to scale the weight way down. So I was very, very happy with this compromise and really feel like it worked well for me.

The shoulder to overheads were not fun. I was just feeling super off and my regular jerks were very uncomfortable. I think that was because my timing was off. If you don't actually do it right, the dip of your legs provides no help and then the only way to get the bar up is to press it. That gets old really quickly! So I had to just stick with split jerks which are slower.

Last Week

Tuesday 11/9/2010

Snatch Balance
Max for the Day-93#

WOD
Time: 7:14

Thursday 11/11/2010
Front Squat
143x3x5
(skipped the box jumps so I could move faster and be able to do the wod with the class :)

WOD
45 sec on/15 sec transition
sled pull and back pedal (120 yds)
KBS 45#
Sandbag cleans 25#
Sandbag lunges
Push Press 63#
K2E

Finish with 30 yd with the Butcher

Now I have a new FS goal

Front Squat
Heavy single
83
123
153
163
173
195-not quite deep enough

I am now going to be aiming for the 200# front squat. It is so close I can taste it.

WOD
compare to 4/24/2010
4 rounds
1 min max Box Jumps 20"
30 sec cross chops 35# (alternate sides each round)
30 sec push ups
*45 sec rest

I didn't write my numbers down during the wod, so these are kind of rough, but I know that I did at least these numbers each round
Box Jumps 22/20/22/20
Cross Chops 20/20/20/20
Push Ups 13/10/10/10

Yep, a push up wimp. But I did use the 20 in box this time instead of the 16 I used in April!

Slow Death by Burpees

Front Squat
133x3x5
super set 3 box jumps

The front squats were no problemo, but this notion that I am supposed to jump up onto the box, like the 2nd pull of a clean is so far alluding me...This is one of the great things about all of this-I get to the point that I can jump on a box (yeah me!) and then I get to learn a new way to jump onto the box.

Golden decided to work in with my bar, and then he decided to ramp up my training a bit-jumping all over the place, making a lot of noise all in an effort to teach me focus and concentration. It is fabulous to have so many people looking out for me. It is this going the extra mile to help another person that makes me really appreciate CFWSC so very, very much.

WOD
teams of 3 (with Joanna and Julie)
Each member completes-
500 m row sprint
10 burpees
then each completes-
300 m row sprint
20 burpees
then-
100 m row sprint
30 burpees

I kept my first split time under 2:00, my second under 1:56, and my third under 1:52. I went into the wod knowing that I really, really needed to work hard to keep the rows sprints, not slowing down in an effort to "prepare" for the burpees. I have come to realize that there is no preparing for the burpees. They are just nasty at any time.

In fact I am quite sore today and I attribute that solidly to the burpees. There is no question in my mind that it was the many burpees on Sat followed by the many burpees on Tuesday that led to this discomfort. There is no way that the halting sndl, front squats, bear complex, or cleans have anything to do with my tight knees. It is all burpees.

Maybe those mobility wods are working

Sunday
9/12/10

Hang Power Clean+Power Clean
63x2
73x2
83x2
93x2 (missed the first hpc, so started over)
103xa gazillion (or more accurately at least 6 power cleans)

And then, and then, get this...I also had to fix and hold the receiving position on all those 103s until Joc had approved it and felt that I had held it long enough. One could argue that I would have saved myself a lot of work if I had just received it with my elbows and hips in the right place, but that would be a boring argument.

SLDL
123x5x3

Evidently my grip is somewhat lacking. I got to that last set and realized that I had to fly through those deadlifts before my grip just gave out.

GHD sit ups 3x15

Monday
9/13/10
Front Squat 2RM
143x2
163x2
173x1
173x2

But there is no way that is my 2 RM. I was running out of time, and I was just not prepared-like I forgot to use my belt until the last set...I think that I was probably off because I got into so much trouble during the warm up. That will throw anyone off.

WOD
4 rounds
200 m sandbag run
15 ring pull ups
Time: 11:20

So, that sandbag. I started with the 25#, cuz I was going to be hardcore. Then I decided that I was far from hardcore, especially when I can't use my arms to run and I don't want to stand up straight. Rounds 2-4 were sans sandbag.

And this time is not good, not good at all compared to the last time I did this wod. I did do it with rowing last time, which I tend to do better with, and I did blue band pull ups (which I noted at the time were very easy.)

Then we got to do the evil hip/wall mobility thing for 2 minutes each leg. It was painful and awful, but it was markedly less painful and awful that last week.

Front Squat
113x5
128x5
138x5
145x5

WOD
AMRAP in 12 Minutes
7 Kettlebell Swings 53#
10 Ball Slams 25#
12 Lateral Jumps
Rounds-8 +7 KBS

What can I say? This was a great wod, with a chance to work on the heavier KBS and time to do my fave-lateral jumps. I was in that wonderful place of feeling like I should move faster, but my legs were just too sore and slow...

I obviously didn't do well with my rest day yesterday, cuz I am way too sore today. Even as I write this, hours later, I am still sore. I don't want to admit to not foam-rolling, or taking enough fish oil, or drinking enough water, or getting enough sleep. All of those reasons place way too much responsibility in my lap.

So I'll blame it on something totally random. It was probably the stress of actually being at the speedway, getting all that mud flung on me, sitting on muddy metal bleachers, and the said bleachers being cold enough to just about literally freeze my bum off. It was fun, but it was like being in another world! And it just really, really seemed like the "right" thing to do was to drink a beer while there. But I can't. I can't ever go to a ball game, or eat Mexican food, or as in last night, watch old beat up 4 cylinder cars race around a little track and drink a beer (gluten-free beer is not very good...) So I ate peanut M&M's. Yep, I did.

They were good. Just so you know.

Power Clean
83x3
90x3
96x3
103x1x2

Front Squat
138x5
146x5x1
146x4x1 (failed on the last rep)
146x5x1

I let the bar slide right off on the last rep when I dropped my chest. I just didn't fight hard enough to keep the correct position. Even though he didn't see it, Kyle seemed sure that I should have been able to finish the set, so he made me do it again, all 5 reps. I couldn't really argue since I really did give up, I knew he wasn't looking, and I just kind of figured that instead of really fighting to keep that bar in position, I'd just let it roll forward. That obviously didn't really work out very well for me.

WOD
3 rounds
15 ball slams 25#
15 burpees
15 K2B

Time: 10:08
Exhausting to say the least. Getting through the burpees on round three was just a matter of making my self keep going, fighting the urge to just stand there and stare at the floor.

Tabata Front Squats

Tabata Front Squats
75# rx'd
total score: 57
Vero, you are amazing. That is all there is to it.

Then-
Chest 2 Bar pull ups (GB) 8-6-4-2
KBS 53# 16-12-8-4
Push ups 32-15-12-8
Time: 8:04

The push ups were KILLING me, so Sam adjusted the middle rounds a bit. Otherwise I would have been working right until the next class...4 hours later. And I was worried about the 53# KBS!

Finally, a FS PR!!

Skill
Front Squat 3, 3, 3, 3, 3
135x3
155x3
165x3
175x3
185x3 (PR)

The last time I failed at 180. I shared a rack with Cliff and that made me super nervous. I mean, come on, lifting with a certified level 1 trainer right next to you the whole time?!? And then to have not just Kyle, but also Cliff there to mock my horrible front squat bar position?!? It doesn't get much better than that people. :)

WOD
AMRAP in 12 min.
6 split squats 25# DB (6 each leg)
8 T2B (which as we all know weren't T2B for me, but I really surprised myself with how much closer I was to K2B...)
Rounds-8
Special thanks goes to Desmond for finding the missing 25# DB. I was so, so dejected when I could only find one and thought I would have to use the 20 pounders. I really appreciate that he took the time out of his super fast, no rest workout routine to find that thing.

Then multiple attempts at a kipping pull up. Not yet.
But get this-I found out that I actually have to PULL to make this work. I think that is my problem

Evil Complex

Skill
Power Clean
83x1x3
88x1x3
93x1x3

WOD
3 rounds
5 power snatch 53#
5 snatch pp
5 OHS
10 push ups
15 box jumps
Time: 8:14

I don't think there are many things more frustrating in CF than having a wod that you really think you should be able to get done faster and you don't. You just don't seem able to push yourself enough to get it done. This was one of those wods for me.

There is no way around it-53# is not a debilitating weight for me. I knew in my mind that I should have been faster, but I wasn't. I wanted to quit. Nothing felt very stable. It makes no sense to me. This shouldn't have been that hard, and knowing that I wasn't moving as fast as I wanted to made it all even worse. Blah, blah, blah.

I was glad I finished.

And then I still had to get my front squats in-
Front Squat
Heavy 8x2
So I chose 163# and got them all. I wasn't really sure what weight to use, so I just went with this, figuring it felt heavy, but it also felt like something I could finish.

Saturday

Skill
2 sets
2 FS plus 2 Jerks 103#
2 sets
2 FS plus 1 Jerk 113#
2 Sets
FS 143#x3

WOD
3 rounds with partner (Eric)
70 total
wall balls 14#
KBS 45#
then 2 resisted runs
90 sec rest
Times: 2:52/3:15/3:20

I was able to get just about 35 reps in each round, so Cliff did a great job of calling for the switch whenever I was totally running out of steam and of keeping track of our combined reps. It's that MIT mind. If he had left me on wall balls for too long, I would have died. It is kind of a secret, but Cliff can be nice that way. The entire wod was really hard and totally wore me out, so he really wasn't that nice.

In between our warm ups, reps and while recovering we enjoyed the live streaming of the regionals. Go Joc and CFWSC!

A Random Collection...

Skill
Front Squat
153x3
163x1x3

Jerk
93x1
98x1
103x1
113x1
then repeat

The 93 and 98 flew up. The 113 not so much. For the first one, Lutsky just laughed and did a very fitting impersonation of my totally lopsided press. Then after the other one Emmet reminded me that it was pretty important to make sure I wasn't showing up drunk for CF.

500 m row for time
Me: 1:52.5
PR! (Previous time: 1:55.5)

Tabata Deadlifts
153#
Score: 37
Not a PR, previous score was 45. Ugh, I pretty much don't enjoy deadlifts right now...

I could have just moved faster each round, and I would have gotten a higher score.