Overhead Squat
53x2, 73x2, 93x2, 108x2, 113x2

And my shoulder felt strong the whole time.  Progress, progress!

WOD
AMRAP in 7 minutes
Thruster 1, 2, 3, 4...
Box Jump 1, 2, 3, 4...

Rounds-7 plus 8 thrusters

I decided to take it easy on the thrusters since I still really don't want to tweak my shoulder any more.  After probably a year of having it get tweaked on snatches, thrusters, and kipping pull ups, I am determined to work carefully.  So I went with 53#, admittedly nice and light, and everything felt great.  I do notice that my right shoulder, the one that I have always had trouble with, starts to fatigue much earlier than the left and I start to feel lop-sided.  There you go, more than you ever wanted to know about my shoulder!

I went with the 20" box since it was a low number of box jumps each round.  No misses.  That is notable for me.

Then after class I decided to be brave and work a tiny little bit on my kipping swing again.  The last time I tried this was about 2 months ago and my shoulders HURT immediately.  So in the meantime, I've been doing more mobility work, getting some work done on my shoulders by Marcus, and icing every once in a while.  No pain this time.

Love lifting heavy

I am going to give this another try...

Today-
Deadlift
213x5x2

These weren't as tough as I thought they would be. I must stay focused long enough to complete my second rep with the same form as the first. Good idea, right? It is easier on the back when I do that too.

WOD
800 m run
then 4 rounds:
8 hang snatches
8 burpees
finish with:
400 m run

Time-15:38

So the good things in a wod like this-
The 400 m turn around gives you some downhill running.
The final run was 400 not 800.
I kept the snatches light, super light and my shoulder doesn't bother me at all.
I finished.

I probably don't even need to mention the bad things in a wod like this.

Yesterday I did some squats.
Back Squat
213#x7x3

Then 5 rounds-
Butcher sprints 50#
rest 1 min

I love back squats.

Squat Cleans and Burpees

Monday, 8/1
Snatch
53x5
73x4

Still working on my 2nd pull and the starting position and tonight it really started to come together a bit more.

WOD
5-4-3-2-1 Squat Clean 103#
5-4-3-2-1 Burpees
Time-4:22

This was a wonderfully short wod, but each of those last squat cleans was a fight. When you make the mistake of catching one in the power clean position and then have to squat with it, the motivation to catch each and every clean in the squat position sky rockets!

I finished this wod thinking that I had done an awful lot of clean variations in the last few days, but then it just wouldn't be CFWest without those cleans!

Have I Been Doing Anything?

Quick recap-
Friday, July 29
Class with Ian
Lots of time working on the Snatch-starting position, 2nd pull, and some great coaching and feedback.

WOD
200 m run
15 power cleans 93#
15 wall balls 12#
200 m run
12 power cleans
12 wall balls
200 m run
9 power cleans
9 wall balls
Time-12 something,

I am really trying to stay committed to using the Rx'd weights more times than not, even if it means that it will take me a bit longer. I am strong, I have no doubt about that. Can I move weight quickly or for an extended period of time? That I do not do so well, so that I must work on.

Saturday, July 30
Back Squat 3RM
235x5
Whoot! It was even pretty fast and easy.

WOD
5-4-3-2-1 rope climbs (subbed 3 DH pull ups with GB for each)
5-4-3-2-1 Clean and Jerk 103#
Time-11:15

Super happy that I can't really do rope climbs when a wod like this shows up!!

Sunday, July 31
Weighted good mornings 113x7x3
Wt'd box jumps 30# DB, 16 " box

Practially Paleo Chocolate Cake

Tuesday's Workout, July 26
Deadlift 5x3
I was having a hard time settling on a working set...
203x3, 173x3, 183x3x3

WOD
400 m run
then 5 rounds of-
10 hang power cleans 63#
20 walls balls 12#
finish with 400 m run
Time: ??? too long

This wod beat me down and that was particularly frustrating after finishing the class the day before feeling pretty great about everything. I was basically *this* close to sitting down on the floor during those wall balls and just stopping. I didn't sit down, but I sure walked around a lot. It was one of those "just try to think about this and get the work done" wods.

Wednesday I was just sore everywhere and had desire at all to go to the gym. I also had a lot of work to get done, and a paleo chocolate cake to bake. Sometimes you just have to do what needs to be done!
Morgan and I got together and adapted this cake from Elena's pantry. And yes, we used honey, a sweetener, and chocolate chips. Sometimes, like for a birthday party, you just do what you need to do to still have fun and enjoy your food. :)

Practically Paleo Chocolate Cake
¾ cup coconut flour, sifted
¼ cup cacao powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
10 eggs
1 cup coconut oil
1 ½ cups honey
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon orange zest
2 tbsp orange juice

In a small bowl combine flour, cacao, salt and baking soda
In a large bowl using an electric hand mixer, blend eggs, oil, honey, vanilla and orange zest and juice.
Add dry ingredients into large bowl and continue to blend
Oil (2) 9 inch round cake pans and dust with coconut flour
Pour batter into pans and bake at 325° for 35-40 minutes
Remove from oven, allow to cool completely then remove from pans
Frost and serve

Frosting
1 ½ cup dark chocolate chips
½ cup coconut oil
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
pinch salt
In a small saucepan over very low heat, melt chocolate and oil
Stir in vanilla and salt
Place frosting in freezer for 15 minutes to cool
Remove from freezer and whip frosting with a hand blender until it is thick and fluffy
Frost over cake

An 800 m run?

Overhead Squats
53x2, 73x2, 93x2, 103x2, 108x2

WOD, partnered with Alvin
800 m run
Split-
50 front squats 103#
60 pull ups (scaled down from 12 rope climbs)
Time: 10:21

Sometimes it is hard for me to believe that Cliff actually likes me when I see a wod like this. In fact sometimes I feel like he just comes up with these things to torture and test ME. And then I have to admit that I am ashamed that I can be that narcissistic. The wod is not about me, I just feel like it is because I choose to exercise very little mental fortitude at that moment.

And I know that's a problem. I need to work on the way I allow myself to think about things that are hard. Honestly, sometimes that is one of the most challenging parts of CrossFit: the realization that I slip quite easily into fear and anxiety, or I begin to waver in my commitment to do what I know I should.

I could come up with a bunch of reasons for why I didn't want to run 800 m, especially with a partner, but none of them were good reasons. They were things like-it is hard, I have never run 800m in a wod before, I hate running, I will be embarrassed, I will hold someone back...

But none of those reasons are valid reasons to not do the run. I go to CF to do hard things. I go to do things I have never done before. I need to stop hating running because there is absolutely no reason for my disdain of it. Why would I be embarrassed now? Everyone there knows I am a slow runner. The people who started CF yesterday might now know yet, but I am pretty sure everyone else knows. It is common in a partner wod for each person to work differently, and that is one of the benefits of that type of wod. It happens, we all know it.

So even though I had that horrible pre-wod feeling in my gut, once I left the door, I determined to run the 800 m without walking and keeping a good pace (for me), so I knew I was going to have to relax, stop being irritated, and just put a smile on my face and keep my head up.

And as much as this post is about me, I also have to say that my partner was great!

And under Sam's advice and his faithful reminders, which I need since I quickly "run out of time" to complete mobility work-
Good Mornings 108#x7x3
Lots of shoulder mobility

A week of not much work

Yesterday was open gym and I thought about skipping it since I was still nice and tired from not sleeping much at all for the 5 nights before, but I do love open gym and I wanted to make up my back squat 1RM.

Back Squat 275x1


And then last Tuesday's Wod-
July 19
Push Jerks 5x2x93#

WOD 3 rounds
9 DL
6 hang power cleans
3 jerks
400 m run
Time-felt like an eternity, but was something closer to 11 something.

Several people were talking about subs with Chris before this wod, so I tried to just slip in my own sub note-"Oh, yeah, I am going to row too, ok?"

It didn't work...I ran.