Basement: 2km Row

Tonight's workout was a half-hearted attempt to mitigate several Pilsner at last night's Rider game, followed by nachos and Slurpee from 7-Eleven (eaten solo due to Wife's inability to stay up for me).  Then there was brunch this morning and a barbecue this evening. 

Warm-Up
20 toes to bar.  Did them slowly, no kipping, with sets of 5 or less.  I experimented with a chin-up grip for some of them.   


Work-out
2000m row. 

It wasn't at breakneck speed, but it wasn't too far off what I'd normally do.  I kept the pace under 2:00 per 500m throughout and finished at 7:40 flat. 

T2B Cindy; Turning the corner on muscle-ups

I arrived at CrossFit Regina way early for the 7pm WOD last night, so I spent some time doing muscle-ups.  Five, to be precise, which brings my lifetime total to 14. I'm averaging 2 MUs per year, for each year I've been doing CrossFit. Yay, Tyler!  

The muscle-ups in question were ugly as hell.  I'm barely getting the bottom of the ring armpit height, so there's always a brief, mini-struggle to bring my right elbow closer to my body so I can lock it out.  Shae gave me some advice on gripping the ring that I'm going to try out.

Still, I think I've almost reached the point where I can go up to a set of rings and be totally confident that I could do a muscle-up.  Almost.

WOD of the day

"T2B Cindy":
-5 toes-to-bar
-10 push-ups
-15 squats

I did 16 rounds plus 5 T2B.



Beforehand, I was a little unsure about this because the last time I did Cindy, I developed that hamstring injury that still lingers to this day.  I'm not sure if the injury was a result of Cindy or the sprints I had done two days earlier in Edmonton, but I sure as hell didn't want it to flare up again.  I was also unsure how good the T2B would be for my shoulder.

14.4 was announced yesterday right before I got to the gym.  I thought maybe I'd to that instead.  Then I found out it was a chipper with 50 consecutive T2B, which sounded like a recipe for hand tearing or shoulder fuckage.  Screw that, I thought.  T2B Cindy it is.

Sure I ended up doing more T2B with the Cindy WOD, but they're done in smaller sets, and separated by however long it takes to do the push-ups and squats.

Now that I've had some time to think about it, I may end up doing 14.4 at some point.  There's a fine line between injury avoidance and just being a pussy.    

Front Squat Fives / T2B & KB PP AMRAP

A. Front Squats 5-5-5-5

135-165-195-205

205 seemed plenty heavy too me. I wasn't going to push my back too much, and I always think that I'm capable of front squatting more than I actually am. 

I'm in no way sure about anything I did other than the 205

B. AMRAP - 10 minutes

As many rounds as possible of:

10 kettlebell push-press (left arm) - 35lb
10 kettlebell push press (right arm) - 35lb
10 toes-to-bar

I did seven rounds and one push press

At the start, using the kipping technique Aimee showed me, I was finally able to string together 10 T2B for a couple of rounds, and groups of 4-5 in subsequent rounds.  It made a real difference in time.  However, it hurts the hell out of my hands and I eventually had to go back to my one-at-a-time method. 


Hey, speaking of Aimee, she had a hand in decorating the washrooms at CFR, which have been spruced up a bit with some new paint and a couple of new decor touches.  It's very nice.

One of the decor items is a large sign with a series of tips that seem to be telling couples how they can be in a loving and fullfilling relationship.  

But I noticed something kind of funny about it.  See if you can spot it. 

Scroll down if you want to see what I noticed. 



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"Stay in bed all day."  Hey, I like the sound of that!  What comes next?

"Create memories you will tell your grandchildren about."  Whaaa....?

Partner WODS

Saturday at CrossFit Regina featured three separate Partner WODs.

I got Steve as my partner, so we could be Steve 'n' Tyler aka "WOD Looks Like A Lady."

A.  100 Wall balls for time. 

Steve and I did these in sets of 10 each.  After one partner threw his 10th WB, the other caught it so there were no pauses in the action. 

It took us 3:12.

 

B. 10-min AMRAP

Alternating rounds with a partner (each partner does all 20 movements and then switches)

5 burpee pull-ups
5 jumping squats
5 clapping push-ups
5 toes-to-bar

Then, some idiot* suggested that to make this more interesting, the partner not doing the work had to be in a handstand hold. 

(*It was me.  Obviously.)

That made things interesting alright, if you define "interesting" as "exponentially more fucking terrible the longer this goes."

We did 7 rounds plus 4 burpulls. 

 

C. Partner Rhiannon, switching every time someone stops doing double unders.

This was a good WOD to have Steve as a partner.  He did 84 double unders off the hop... which was probably unwise when you consider that 10 min is a long time and I'm not nearly as good as double unders as he is. 

He did the lion's share.  We ended up with 738 and I think I maybe did 200 of them... if that. 

Overhead Squats / “May Flowers?” Pyramid

A. Overhead Squats 3-3-3-3-3

95-125-145-165-185(FAIL)-175(FAIL)

Not much to say about this.  On the two fails, I spent too much time trying to stabilize the weight after jerking it above my head.  (Note to self: get under it more on the jerk overhead next time) By the time I got down into the squat, I couldn't hold it anymore.

My shoulders were a bit of an issue, too, but I think the main problem was that I went for a 20lb jump from a weight (165) that was already a challenge.  Then I psyched myself out. 

B. “May Flowers?” Pyramid

2-4-6-8-10-8-6-4-2

Bell swings (55lbs)
Toes-to-Bar

5:37

I did all the bell swings unbroken.  Not so much with the toes-to-bar

By the time I reached the second set of eight, my grip felt like it was fried. 

13.4 - Must be the shoes

Seven-minute AMRAP of
3 clean and jerk (135lbs)
3 toes to bar
6 C&J
6 T2B
9 C&J
9 T2B
(etc...)

I hadn't been to CrossFit since Tuesday, and spent a quick overnight trip to Saskatoon drinking, staying up late, and gorging myself on Fuddruckers and dim sum.  

But, while in Saskatoon, I did manage to vist Brainsport and buy a new pair of minimalist Innov-8 shoes.  

This seemed like the perfect WOD to start them out with.  The flatness is good for Oly lifting and their light weight is ideal for T2B.  I'm not sure how much of a difference it really makes, but it can't hurt.  So far, I really like them, but I might change my mind when having to run 400m in an alley. 

I didn't warm up very much when I got to CFR, but I did a few C&Js just to make sure I remembered what 135lbs felt like. 

My goal was to break 60, which would mean completing the round of 12s. 

After the 3,2,1 GO I wasn't going super fast, but I did keep up a pretty good pace, without stopping too much for air.  In spite of my plan to drop the bar after each C&J to preserve energy, I held onto the bar for the first set of 3. 

While other people can string together T2B, I haven't mastered that yet.  I can do them without dropping off the bar, but there is a lot of excess flailing and swinging involved, so I typically touch my feet to the ground between each rep to reset my position.  It's slower, but the advantage is it hurts my hands less and is not as taxing on my forearms.  In a WOD like this, which is really taxing on your grip and forearms, it's an advantage. 

I apparently dismounted the bar with some flair a couple of times during the transition from T2B to C&Js.  It wasn't intentional, but if it entertained the crowd awaiting the Lance vs. Matt main event, that's cool. 

So I kept a steady pace and had lots of time left as I entered the round of 12s.  I knew at that point I was going to break 60.  I finished the 12 T2B with around a minute left and managed to squeeze in another 10 C&J before time ran out.

Final score: 70. 

No Foolin'

For time:

21-15-9 of:

Snatch (75lb)

Pull-ups

Then 21-15-9 of:

Power cleans (75lbs)

Fucking toes-to-bar

THEN 21-15-9 of:

Push press (75lbs)

Box jumps (24")

This was going alright... then the first segment was done and my forearms caught on to the fact that I was in the process of doing something really terrible to them.  They started actively resisting on the T2B and even on the power cleans.  At that point, it was just a matter of chipping away at the middle segment like Tim Robbins digging an escape tunnel out of RapenSuck Penitentiary in The Shawshank Redemption. 

On the final segment, I went through the push press pretty fast but the box jumps were about as inspiring as you'd expect. (i.e. not very)

Final time: 21:15

Overheard at the Gym

"I'm doing that Whole Life Challenge."

"How is it?"

"It sucks."

"For something called 'Whole Life Challenge,' it sure seems like you're missing out on a lot of things."

"Pheezy" ain't easy

“Pheezy”

Three rounds for time of:
5 Front squats – 165/115lb
18 Pull-ups
5 Deadlifts – 225/155lb
18 Toes-to-bar
5 Push jerks – 165/115lb
18 Hand-release push-ups

19:24 rx'd.

Have I mentioned lately how much I love toes-to-bar? I haven't?

There's a reason.

Hearing D3 pound out the deadlifts like they were nothing was somewhat demoralizing. He's more animal than man!




Overheard at the Gym

Christian: "Are you updating the Nobody-Gives-a-Shit Blog?" .

My muscle-Up inferiority complex plus a 12.3 sampler

A. 12 minutes of Muscle-up practice (transitions and/or negatives)

Three-plus years of CrossFit and I'm still miles from being able to do a muscle-up. It's not a lack of strength, I just don't have the technique down, yet have not worked seriously on correcting this obvious deficit in my CrossFit abilities. Why? There is only one conceivable answer. I suck. I abso-fucking-lutely suck.


B. Short breathing ladder 1->10->1 kettlebell swings 55/35lb overhead

5:55. Nolan wrote down 5:56, but it was 5:55, dammit. 5:55!


Part C was supposed to be a 1K row but the Games competitors (which I am not one) were told to do three rounds of the 12.3 WOD.


C. 3 rounds of 12.3 for time
(The full 12.3 is an 18-minute AMRAP)

15 Box Jumps – 24/20″
12 Push Press – 115/75lb
9 Toes to Bar

Shit... forgot the time. I think it was 6:29. I did it alongside Thomas, who is much better at box jumps than me.

Lunchtime rush: OHS + Metcon

A. Overhead Squats 80% x3x3

I miscalculated what I should be lifting and did 155 (thinking my 80% was 152) instead of 144.

B. Metcon = AMRAP/10 min:
3 Power Cleans – 135/95lb
6 Toes 2 Bar
9 Speed Burpees

7 rounds plus 3 cleans and 4 T2B.

Front Squats and "Deuces"

A. Strength
Front Squat (start at 70% of 1 Rep Max)
5-5-5

I started at 175, which is slightly more than 70% of my one-rep max of 245.

Set 1: 175lb
Set 2: 205(old PR, according to my shoddy recordkeeping anyway)
Set 3: 225 (new PR)

I was actually a bit nervous on the 225, which is my PR for 3's, and almost psyched myself out. But it went up.


B. Metcon
“Deuces” - For Time
- 2 minutes of Lunges
- 2 minutes of Toes 2 Bar
- 2 minutes of Situps
- 2 minutes of Burpees
- 2 minutes of Squats
Coaches Note: Continuous clock with no clock stoppage between exercise transitions. Add up all reps from each exercise for total score.


I scored 257.

I think I got:
78 lunges,
29 T2B
63 sit-ups
27 burpees
60 squats

Those numbers might not be my exact scores, but it does add up to 257.

Squat Snatch and Dot Com WOD

A. Squat Snatch 3-2-1-1-1


"Keep your friends close and your barbells closer."
-Sage advice for Olympic lifting and life in general.

95-115-135(F)-135-145
The weight went up fine on the failed rep, but I threw it too far back and lost my balance.

On the last two successful reps, it wasn't a true squat snatch, as I didn't catch the weights in a squat, but I did go down into a squat and stand up with them.

B. Today’s Dot Com
AMRAP in 15 minutes of:
10 Wall Ball – 20/14lb
10 Toes to Bar (sub straight leg raises)
10 Box Jumps – 24/20″

8 rounds, even. It wasn't until I was into my second round that I realized it was a 15 minute AMRAP. I had thought it was 10. Not that it made a difference to my game-planning or anything.

Oh, and I've realized that I hate Toes to Bar a bit less than I hate Knees to Elbows. But only slightly.

Overhead Squats and DL/T2B: That'll teach me to open my big mouth

Yesterday, I ranted a bit about cherrypicking WODs, and not skipping the gym if you see one you don't like.

It's like the CrossFit gods (or Robin and Aaron) read what I wrote and wanted to test my resolve by including a WOD that is tailor-made for me to ditch.

Hey, what if it included both deadlifts for time AND toes to bar?


A. Overhead Squats 3-3-3

135-155-175(PR)

Barely got the third rep on the 175 and strained my right shoulder a bit in trying to hang on. Nothing serious.

B. Dot Com 2
5 rounds for time:
15 Deadlifts – 185/135lb
15 Toes to Bar

19:58 Just barely got in sub-20. That's about three minutes slower than I would have liked.

I took WAY too many breaks on this, but I found it really tough. Fortunately, I did not tear my sissy hands, though there might be a couple of new blisters in development. Whatever, callouses are manly and sexy.


C. SASKATOON COMPETITORS' BONUS - A 400m run with a medicine ball. Not timed.
I did it, but it was mostly a walk with a few half-hearted jogging spurts. The rain, my sweat and the leftover chalk got things nice and pasty, and the ball was hard to carry.


In a vaguely related matter, the squiggly veins on either side of my forehead are especially pronounced these days after a workout. I realize it's probably nothing, but part of me wonders if I should be concerned. If it gets any more noticeable, I'll be looking like the dude from the Green Lantern movie.

OPT Chipper

For time:

30 wall ball
80 double unders
30 toes to bar
20 bell swings (70 lb)
50 walking lunges
50 pull-ups
20 burpees

Took me 15:32. I`ve listed the order that I did the exercises. The real order for this WOD has the T2B and bell swings reversed, but there are only two 70 kettlebells at CFR. Blake and Steve got to them before me. I`m not sure if doing it exactly as set out would have made a difference in my time. I suspect it would have slowed me down a bit, if anything.

Toes to Bar / Back Squats

Stopped into CrossFit Calgary for the WOD:

For time:

30 toes to bar
20 back squats (205 lbs)
20 toes to bar
15 back squats
10 toes to bar
10 back squats

Took me 13:30. The worst part was trying to convince myself to grab the bar for more T2B after my sissy hands started hurting.

"Lift Off"

For time:
20 Snatch (squat or power) 95 lbs
Then 10 rounds of
10 Thrusters 45lb
10 Toes to Bar (sub = straight leg raises)
200M Run

The rx'd weight for the snatch on this is 135 lbs, but the competitors in this weekend's "Spring Fling" were told to do it with 95 lbs. I was going to go ahead and do 135 lbs anyway, because I am so fucking badass.

Then I looked on the whiteboard and saw a bunch of times that were all north of 30 minutes, and many that were 40-plus. So much for being so fucking badass.

Even scaled down, it took me 32:54.

The good: Did all the thrusters without dropping the bar. (Pretty lame, I know.) I was also able to string together a number of T2B before dropping off the bar in each round.

The not-so-good: Toes to Bar just absolutely suck. We were told not to tear our hands, and I didn't, but my Sissy Hands were hurting pretty bad pretty early into this. I do have a nice big blister on my right hand ring finger, so we'll see if that hampers me on Saturday.

European Regional WOD (Partnered) / 1km Run

With a partner (mine was Harlan), taking turns, do 20 reps each of:

Pull-ups (managed to do 20 straight)
Box Jumps – 24″
Situps (I did toes-to-bar because that's how the 9AMers did it.
6×10m overhead carry together – 135/95lb (The height difference between Harlan and I was good for a few laughs on this one)
Situps (no toes to bar this time)
Box Jumps
Pull-ups (No 20 straight this time; probably 10-5-5)

Took us 13:33


Then the group did a 1km run. Took me 4:17.