Hotel Gym: Rhiannon - new PR

420, despite a stomach full of Chik-Fil-A and a Krispy Kreme donut.

Vacation House WOD #2: Seven minutes of burpees

This was hard for me.  I think I got 85.

Vacation house WOD #1: Push-ups, Sit-ups and Squats

We spent the last two weeks in Florida for a family vacation, so that disrupted my exercise regime quite a bit.  I didn't even make an effort to find a CrossFit near where I was, beyond a half-hearted GPS search.

There was a shitload of walking (carrying a heavy backpack) in the visits to Disney World, but it was offset by a vacation diet consisting of a lot of pizza and hot dogs, not to mention the alcohol consumption necessary to get through it all.  

Still, I managed to get a couple of WODs in.  I'm not sure what days, so this date is an approximation. 

10 rounds, not for time: 

5 push-ups

10 sit-ups

15 squats 

VolkeFit: Cleans and Bike/Slam/Bike/K2E

Note: I'm writing this almost a month after the fact, so  details will be lacking.



A. Cleans 

1.1.1.   Power Clean, Hang Power Clean, Squat Clean.

Five sets, resting 60 seconds. Steve thinks I topped out at 165.


B. Metcon

10 rounds:

10 ball slams
200m Assault Air Bike
3 knees to elbows
100m Assault Air Bike

VolkeFit: Cleans and Slams/Bike/K2Es/Bike

A. Cleans

Five sets of 1-1-1:
-Hang power clean
-Power clean
-Squat clean

I ended up at 165. 



B. Slams/Bike/K2Es/Bike

Six sets:
10 ball slams
200m AirBike
3 knees to elbows, as strict as possible
300m AirBike

I did this in 10:22

Basement: 10 minutes of Rowing

2561m

One of these days, I'm going to row for 20 minutes straight. 

Or maybe not. 

Basement: 10 minutes of AirDyne - Moderate pace

145 calories.

VolkeFit: Wallballs/PLUs/Burpees and Situps

A. 10 sets: 10 wallball, 5 pull-ups and 10 burpees

(Rest one minute between each set)

1:15
1:13
1:09
1:07
1:10
1:10
1:10
1:16
1:18
1:20


B. Sit-ups every minute on the minute

First minute: 5
Second minute: 10
Third minute: 15 etc.

I got through all the sit-ups in every minute through the fifth (25 sit-ups completed) plus another 15 sit-ups in the sixth.  So that's a total of 90 sit-ups, I think.    

Basement: Ropeless rope climbs, Rowing

Three rounds for time

2 ropeless rope climbs (2x 5 pull-ups and 5 ring dips)
500m row.

Doing the pull-ups as deadhangs went out the window by round 2.  Turns out rowing and pull-ups don't mix all that well. 

11:21

Basement: 10 minutes of AirDyne

171 calories.

B-Squad: Frog in a Blender

250m row
100 DU
75 Air Squats
50 Push Press (95lb)
25 Pull-ups
50 Push-ups
75 Lunges
100 Sit-ups
250m row

I was cruising right along... and then the push-ups happened.  Everything sucked hard after that. 

26:47

VolkeFit: Squats, More Squats, and Wall Balls/Bell Swings

A. Single Squat Max

I got up to 305lbs.


B. AMRAP of 80% Max

I used 245, and did 7 reps. 


C. For time:
20 bell swings (70lbs, overhead)
10 wall balls
10 bell swings
20 wall balls

2:34

CFR: "Jorge"

Jorge
30-24-18-12-6 sit-ups*
15-12-9-6-3 squat cleans (155 lb)

*According to CFHQ, this is rx'd if you do GHD sit-ups.  CrossFit Regina gives you a star if you do regular sit-ups and calls it ubered if you do GHDs.  I did regular sit-ups so I could compare my time today with my previous time.   Plus there are only 2 GHDs and there were 3 people already using them.  But mostly, I just figured I'd mess up my back. 

During the warm-up, 155 lb squat cleans seemed heavier than I remembered.  Maybe it's the shiny new Rogue bar, I thought.  I actually checked to make sure the bar was only 45 lb.   It was.  I'm just weak. 

I tried to limit my breaks on the squat cleans this time around.   I had a steady, unspectacular pace and finished at 13:17, which is more than a minute and a half quicker than the previous time doing this one. 

VolkeFit: Squat, Clean, Dip, Bike

A. Back Squats

Using 185lbs, do two squats every 30 seconds until you've done 20. 

Done.


B. Power Cleans and Ring Dips

Using 135lbs, four rounds of:
5 power cleans
5 ring dips,

Rest around 90 sec between .

Done


C. Bike

Max effort on the AirAssault bike for 75 seconds.

75 seconds is a lot longer than you'd think. 33 calories.

B-Squad: Barbara Lite

Four rounds:
10 pull-ups
20 push-ups
30 sit-ups
40 squats

Rest three minutes between.


2:09
2:16
2:47
3:02

VolkeFit: A Double Shot of Steve

My wife said she was too tired to go to Steve's again, so asked me to take her spot.  She ended up staying home and dealing with our children, so I'm not sure it actually worked out for her.   Worked out great for me, though.


A. Every 2 Minutes for 30 minutes

Using 135lb barbell, every 2 minutes:
3 deadlift
3 power cleans
3 push press

The complex took between 23 and 30 seconds most of the way, so it allowed me to rest for the rest of each 2-minute round.



B. Don't Stop Skipping


300 DU
Everytime you stop, do 3 burpees and 1 handstand push-up.

Not for time, so I made sure to catch my breath in between rounds.

Here's how this went:

98 DUs (PR!)
3+1
55 DUs
3+1
6 DUs (DAMMIT)
3+1
60 DUs
3+1
81 DUs.

VolkeFit: "Not in the Mood"

After subsisting mainly on Halloween candy all weekend and then staying up way late Sunday night to catch up on PVR'd episodes of "The Walking Dead," I was dog-tired at work all day Monday.  Still, I managed to avoid eating any candy all day.  (A Diet Coke and a half coffee/hot chocolate doesn't count, right?)

Tracey was tired, too, so much so that she asked me to trade our respective nights with Steve so she could stay home and rest.   Since I didn't get in my planned Basement WOD on Sunday, I was happy to do it, even though I did contemplate just sleeping in my car in the driveway.  


Workout

5km on Air Assault bike

2 rounds of Cindy (5 pull-ups, 10 push-ups, 15 squats)

30 DB clean and jerks (using 2x25lb)

2 rounds of Cindy

5km on the bike.

The first 5km took me 8:00 exactly.  The last one 8:20.   Maybe another 5-6 minutes of stuff in the middle.

B-Squad: Another MU, plus Press, Rowing and Skipping

Warm-Up

Standard warm-up, but I tried to do a muscle-up first.  Major fail.  

After some squats, push-ups and sit-ups, I tried again.  Nope. 

Strength

Work to a max single strict shoulder press. 

I got up to 140.  Yeesh, I gotta lift weights more often.    

After hitting 140, I went over to the rings to attempt another muscle-up.  This time I got it, although there was a fair amount of struggle.  

Workout

10 minutes of rowing (moderate pace)

-5 minute rest

5 minutes of single skips

-5 minute rest

10 minutes of rowing  (easy pace) 

Results: 

2578m

437 skips

2561m  

VolkeFit: Power Cleans and Burpees

My life is an endless parade of pre-Halloween candy.  Like Miley Cyrus, I can't stop.  I won't stop.

Warm-up

4 sets of 4 deadhang pull-ups

3 sets of 10 70lb bell swings (shoulder height)


Workout

15-12-9 of
Power cleans
Burpees (strict)

Rest 10 minutes.

15-12-9 of
Power cleans
Burpees (strict)


First round was 4:57.    At the start, I planned to divide the sets of cleans into thirds (5-5-5, 4-4-4, 3-3-3-3)  but hubris took over and I did a set of 8 at the start, which was too much and then made it harder than it should have been.

Second round was 4:55   I did a better job of keeping the power cleans limited to small, reasonable mini-sets.  Mostly because I was tired.

Basement: Rowenbike Rowenbike Rowenbike

Row 500m
Bike 1km
Row 500m
Bike 1km
Row 500m
Bike 1km

The rows were all sub 2:00, but over 1:50, which is not great.
Bike rides were around 3:00.  The first two were a little more than that, the third one was sub-3.

Basement: 5-10-15-20

Five rounds of:
5 deadhang pull-ups
10 push-ups
15 weighted sit-ups (20lb)
20 side-to-sides with slam ball

Basement: Playing with my Ball

Thought I would do something with my underused slam ball.

Three rounds of:
500m AirDyne
10 ball slams
15 weighted sit-ups
20 side-to-sides

9:12.

VolkeFit: Clean and Twist and Jump and Bike and Pull

Five rounds, starting on a different station each time:

5 power cleans (115lb)
20 side to sides (45lb)
12 box jumps (20")
10 calories on Air Assault bike
8 pull-ups

Times were:
2:19
2:26
2:31
2:59
2:59

CFR: Hero WOD "Paul" - Revised and modified

The WOD on the CFR website looked like this:

Five rounds:
50 double unders
35 knees to elbows
20m walk with 185lbs overhead. 
That last one was changed to:
100m farmer's walk, carrying two 70lb KB.  

I think I would have preferred the 20m walk.

That is a shitload of knees to elbows.  It's pretty much guaranteed to hurt you somehow.  With me, it was a toss-up as to whether my hands would tear to shit, or my shoulder would be fucked up. 

I tried doing K2E on the rings, instead of the bar, thinking it would prevent my hands from ripping. I think it helped, but it was ultimately futile.  My shoulders were not down with that many fucking K2E.  I switched to knee raises on the pull-up rig for rounds 3-5.   Even doing that, I could barely grab the bar by the end

The farmer's walks were a special kind of hell, too.  I had to put down the KB at least twice in the 100m. 

I hated this WOD.

39:29.

Basement: Ten minutes of AirDyne

I had a brief time window Saturday morning before I had to go coach the Boy's indoor soccer team in their first game.  (He scored the first goal, but the team lost). 

Prior to that, I snuck in 10 minutes of rowing. No warm-up foreplay; I just hopped on and started going hard. 

I was trying to beat my record of 181 cal, but fell short.  I think I ended up with 176. 

Basement: A bit of rowing, a bit of biking

The only exercise I did since Tuesday with Steve was stress-eating as much crap as I could find. 

I headed down to my basement to atone for my sins. 

I started with 30 ball slams. 

Then I did a 1000m row, which took just under 4:00. 

I finished with a 10-minute bike ride, fast enough to get sweaty, but not balls to the wall.   Around 145 calories. 

VolkeFit: Travolting

A. In six attempts, go to a max single-rep ground to overhead. 

I used a power clean and jerk.  Obvs. 

After warm ups at 135 and 155, it went a little something like this: 

1. 175

2. 185

3. 195

4. 200

5. 205

6. 210.  Almost didn't get the jerk on this one.  But I did get it and managed not to fuck up Steve's wall when I dropped the bar so... YAY! 

The headline "Travolting" refers to the fact that my legs shoot out sideways like something out of "Saturday Night Fever" when my power cleans start getting difficult.   Also, it rhymes with "revolting" so it's doubly appropriate. 

B. 12 minute AMRAP

First minute: Burpees

Second minute: KB swings to shoulder height

Third minute: Air Assault bike for calories. 

1. 17 burpees

2.36 swings 

3. 9 cal (re adjusting the seat ate up some time here)

4. 16 burpees

5. 37 swings

6. 13 cal

7. 14 burpees

8. 30 swings

9. 12 cal

10. 14 burpees

11. 26 swings  (I took a bigger rest here)

12. 17 cal

Basement: 3km by Land, 3km by Sea

I was planning on hitting B-Squad but got home late from work so couldn't make it on time. 

I improvised with this basement WOD.   When I started, I was planning on doing two of each, but decided to push myself a little farther. 

1km row
1km AirDyne
1km row
1km AirDyne
1km Row
1km AirDyne

See, the smart thing to do here would have been to run a stopwatch and time how long it took me to do the whole thing.

"I'm not a smart man, Jenny, but I know what love is."
-Forrest Gump.

Instead, I timed each segment individually. I didn't really rest in between rowing and biking and rowing and biking, but I did pause for some water. 

Each row took me around 3:50, and each bike ride took me around 3:00. 

VolkeFit: Squats/DUs and Snatch/AirDyne

A. Squats/Double Unders

Three sets:

10 back squats (155lb)
50 double unders
(rest 3 minutes between sets).

I did all the back squats without putting down the bar.  I broke them up in the second set because I was talking.

I did the first two sets of DUs unbroken.  During the third set, I tripped up on rep #29.   I was probably trying to go too fast.


B. Snatch/AirDyne

Three rounds of:
10 power snatch (95lb)
30 cal on the AirDyne

Do this in three-minute increments, i.e. if done the work in 2:00, rest until 3:00.

I did this in 1:58, 1:58 and 1:55.    For the first two rounds, I didn't let go on the snatch.  I took a quick break in the third round, so that cost me a few seconds on that segment, but I made up for it on the bike (knowing I didn't have to work anymore afterward).

CFR: Hero WOD "Nutts"

10 handstand push-ups
15 250lb deadlifts
25 30-inch box jumps
50 pull-ups
100 wall balls
200 double unders
400m "run" carrying a 45lb plate.

Finished this in 27:34. 

The wall balls slowed me down.  I did them in sets of 10, but probably took too long of breaks in between.  I also put the "run" in quotation marks because I didn't run.  I mean, I was carrying a 45lb plate with my little T. rex arms.

B-Squad: Tabata Mash-up, Row/Jump/Burpees

A. Tabata Mash-up: Sit-ups and push-ups: 

15 sit-ups
22 push-ups
14 sit-ups
15 push-ups
14 sit-ups
12push-ups
13 sit-ups
9 push-ups
9 sit-ups
10 push-ups
12 sit-ups
8 push-ups
12 sit-ups
8 push-ups
12 sit-ups
8 push-ups

Because I am an idiot, I thought we were done after four minutes, or eight total rounds.  I have no idea why I thought that.   It felt terrible when I realized that the work was only half done.


B. 12 Unpleasant Minutes

Perhaps I shouldn't describe this as "unpleasant."  I mean, AngDesj was there, and she's always fun. And she didn't even sing.

12 min row
At the start of every even minute, do six jumps over the ERG.
At the start of every odd minute, do three burpees.

Score is total calories rowed.

I did 152 cal.

B-Squad: Karen, fragmented

Warm-Up

1000m row

One round of the (REDACTED)Fit warm-up.  Shoulders did NOT feel like doing any pull-ups after doing 100 on Sunday.

3 rounds of:
30 seconds plank
30 seconds rest
12 sit-ups
30+ seconds rest


WOD: 

Three sets of 50 wall ball, resting between twice as long as the previous set took.

My times were 1:57, 2:07 and -- holy shit -- 2:48.  Way to fall off a cliff, fucko.

Basement: 15 easy minutes of AirDyne

Just wanted to loosen up my legs a bit a day after doing the Hero WOD.

185 calories, which is slightly higher than what I would do in 10 minutes of really trying.

CFR: Hero WOD "Holbrook"

10 rounds for time:
5 thrusters (115/85)
10 pull ups
100m sprint
1 minute rest. 


I benefited from grabbing the lifting platform and the 7-foot high section of the pull-up rig that closest to the alley. I didn't have a lot of wasted time moving from station to station.  

My first three or four rounds were sub-1:00 of work, but that pace didn't last.  

My final time ended up at 19:18.  That was better than I was expecting.  Most people on the whiteboard had times in the low to mid 20's.   

VolkeFit: Cleans/PUs, DUs/Burpees, 1km bike sprints

A. Every minute on the minute, alternate
4 power cleans (135lb)
10 push-ups


B. Every minute on the minute, alternate:
40 double unders
10 burpees

Out of the six rounds, I only failed on the DUs twice.  First it was on the 39th rep, which sucks.  The other was on the 22nd


C. On the Air Assault bike 1km sprint x 3 (resting four minutes between)

1:28
1:28
1:25

Basement: 10 minutes of AirDyne

178 calories

VolkeFit: Cleans/Front squats, DHPLU, Box Jump Horror Show

A. Squat clean plus two front squats - six sets, increasing weight each time. 

So basically this was like doing three front squats, after catching the weight in a squat.

I went from 135-185 in 10lb intervals.

It was during this that there was a major power out so I was lifting by the light of my iPhone.


B. Max Deadhang Pull-ups x 2 

14, 8


C. Max 24" box jumps in 10 minutes

Unless I counted wrong, I got 190.

CFR: Row/Swing/Wall Ball

Warm-up

Doing a burpee every time the singer says "Pump" in "Pump Up the Jam"

Three rounds of:
Turkish get-ups x 3 on each side (35lb)
Rest 60 seconds
25 Russian bell swings (55lb)
Rest 60 seconds



WOD 

For time:

500m row
15 bell swings (55lb)
15 wall ball
400m row
25 swings
25 WB
300m row
35 swings
35 WB

Time 14:45

Basment WOD: BikeRowSlam

Three rounds:

1km AirDyne
500m row
25 ball slams

(Didn't time it)

This in no way mitigated the massive amounts of chili I had at Harlan's house on Saturday afternoon or the huge meal I had at I Love Sushi on Sunday.

VolkeFit: What's gonna work? Teamwork!

I teamed up with Jarvis to do this:

A. Team splits up the work:

30 power snatch (95lb)
60 burpees
100 double unders
20 snatch
40 burpees
100 DUs
10 snatch
20 burpees
100 DUs

We did the snatches in alternating sets of five, the burpees in alternating sets of 10 and 50 DUs each.


B. Air bike for 10km, switching off every 1km.

B-Squad: Press and Nautical Helen

A. Press 3-3-3-AMRAP

I worked up to 125 and did that three times. Then I tried 135 and only got it up for a single.  WEAKSAUCE!!


B. Nautical Helen

Three rounds of:
500m row
21 bell swings (55lb)
12 pull-ups

11:22.

CFR: Team WOD

4 person team, for time, partition work as needed, one person working at a time:
200x Wall ball (20/14)
80 Burpees
200x double unders
80 Pull-ups
200x KB swings (55/35)
80 Box jumps (24 inch)
Row 80 cals

My team was the STALKers (Sarah, Tyler, Amy, Lorraine and Kim).  Because we had an extra member, two of them went at the same time. 

Here's the work I did:
50 wall balls (in sets of 10)
30 burpees (two sets of 15)
70 double unders (one set)
30 pull-ups (two sets of 15)
50 bell swings (five sets of 10)
20 box jumps (two sets of 10)
20 calories rowed (one set)

VolkeFit: Come and Knock on our Door

Five sets, changing the order each time:

400m-ish run
15 wallballs
15 hand-release push-ups
20 box jumps (step down)
50 double unders

Rest three minutes between. 

Round 1: 5:30
Round 2: 4:50
Round 3: 4:50
Round 4: 4:57
Round 5: 5:25

B. 21-15-9
Plate touches
Bell swings (shoulder height

Took me 2:14, which was pretty slow.  I didn't figure out a fast technique for the plate touches until deep into the 21 set. 

Basement: 20 Minute of AirDyne

6.1 km
365 calories

B-Squad: Front squats and Metcon

A. Front Squats

Pick a heavy weight.  Do reps of 5,  5 and max.
I used 185. Did 5, 5, and 9. I thought I did 10 but Christian marked 9.


B. Metcon

Four rounds of:

500m row
10 pull-ups
10 thrusters (95lb)
10 burpees.

I think my time was 19:04. That seems like a long time.

Basement: 25 minutes of AirDyne

I'm getting fat again due to a weeklong AMRAP of stuffing my fucking face.  In fact, I'm eating trail mix as I type this, after having just eaten some sausage.

So I decided to hop on my AirDyne for 25 minutes.  

If I had a twin, here's what it would have looked like:

That's me on the left.

 

For the 25 min, I kept a good pace, but not balls to the wall.  The watts were generally in the 160-200 range.

338 cal
7.4 km  (approx)

CrossFit Regina: Hope

A Fight Gone Bad-style WOD, with three five-minute rounds and a one-minute break between rounds.

-Burpees
-Power snatch (75lb)
-Box jumps (24")
-Thrusters
-Chest-to-bar pull-ups


Round 1:
18 burpees
16 snatch
16 box jumps
16 thrusters
11 C2B

Round 2:
16 burpees
16 snatch
15 box jumps
14 thrusters
12 C2B


Round 3:
14 burpees
12 snatch
12 box jumps
13 thrusters
11 C2B

Total score: 211

It's funny, I was sore from the previous day's workout, so I did this with the idea that I wouldn't go too hard. But I've done this WOD in 2012 and 2013 and I beat both those scores.

B-Squad: Rows/OHS and DUs/Burpees

I hadn't worked out in a week.  Dumb.  

A. Rowing / Overhead Squats

21-18-15-12-9-6-3 of 

-Row for calories

-Overhead squats (95lb)

9:56

Rest for five minutes, then...

B. Double Unders / Burpees

50 double unders

10 burpees

40 double unders

10 burpees

30 double unders 

10 burpees

20 double unders

10 burpees

10 double unders

10 burpees

9:06  

On the plus side: I did every set of DUs unbroken.  But holy shit, I was so slow on the burpees.  

VolkeFit: Two girls, one Ty

A. Thrusters

10 x 75lb
8 x 95lb
6 x 115lb

That was what was called for.  I felt like doing some more:

6 x 125
4 x 135
4 x 145


B. Threesome

For 30 minutes, rotating through three stations.  Switching when one person is done the run.
1.AirDyne!
2. Running about 1km.
3. AMRAP:
    -5 ball slams
    -10 sit-ups
    -5 KB snatches (each arm)

Basement: Drowning in Burpees

500m row
50 burpees
250m row
25 burpees
100m row
10 burpees

9:46.

Basement: AirDyne, Ball Slams, Ring Dips

For time, five rounds of:
500m AirDyne
15 ball slams
5 ring dips

Approximately 12:35.  I say approximately because I took a phone call right after the AirDyne in the last round.  I think the call lasted around a minute.

B-Squad: Rowing and Stuff

Three rounds:

250m row
30 seconds of single skips
30 seconds of box jumps
30 seconds of single skips
30 seconds of thrusters (95lbs)
30 seconds of single skips
250m row

Resting two minutes betwee

That's what I did.  Because I become a bit of an idiot as soon as I start sweating, I completely missed that we were supposed to do 30 seconds of push-press before the final 250m row.

So I did three sets of push press, resting a minute between.


Bonus work:

The Boy accompanied me to B-Squad, so I made him do a race to 20 burpees against me.  He won.

VolkeFit: Bringing the Sexy

A. Power Cleans and Front Squats

Power clean x1 and front squats x3.   I think I did up to 185. 


B. Deadhangs and Bent-Overs

Five rounds:
5 deadhang pull-ups
rest 30 sec
5 bent over rows (95lb)

Done.

C. Metcon
(One person working at a time)

Five rounds:
25 calories on the AirDyne
15 wall balls
20 bell swings (shoulder height) 55lbs
50 double unders. 

CFR: "A Thousand Islands"

A.  CrossFit Warmup
Extended Warmup: 2 10m length jogs, 1 10m length butt kickers, 1 10m length high knees, 1 10m length walking lunge with rotation (towards lead leg), 10 air squats @ 2010, 10 jumping squats, 10 inch worms, 10 side to side

Pre-Mobility: banded ankle distraction

B. Weighted Sit-Ups
3 sets of 10 weighted situps using increasing weight

I did 35, 45, and 55.  The first two sets I did without an abmat.  The third set I used an abmat and it was easier that way.   

I think there was room for more.  

C. “A Thousand Islands”
For time:
10 burpees
1000m Row
10 burpess
1000m Run
10 burpees
1000 single skips
10 burpees

27:16.   I'm still terrible at this.  In the class I was in, I was second back from the run, but took so long on the skipping, (doing the 1000 in sets of 50) that just about everyone else passed me.  

Ah, well, it's good to be humbled by a workout regularly.  And at least I'm not quite as terrible as I used to be.  

CFR: "Skip Up"

Warm-Up: Burpees

I arrived late for the "Thunderstruck" warm-up, so I just did the 36 burpees.


Skill: Handstands

We were supposed to do 3 x 1 minute hand stands.  I did two full minutes and a half minute.  My right wrist started bothering me.


WOD: "Skip Up" 

25 Double Unders
10 pull-ups
25 Double Unders
9 pull-ups
25 DUs
8 PLUs
25 DUs
7 PLUs
25 DUs
6 PLUs
25 DUs
5 PLUs
25 DUs
4 PLUs
25 DUs
3 PLUs
25 DUs
2 PLUs
25 DUs
1 PLU


Finished in 7:26.   That was a pretty good time.  All but one or two sets of the DUs were unbroken.  I think I started breaking up the pull-ups in the round of nine.  And I actually did 10 on that one because I'm stupid.

CrossFit Brio: OHS, T2B and Burpee AMRAP

While on a little weekend getaway to Saskatoon, I went to CrossFit Brio for a workout.

Five rounds of a three-minute AMRAP:
•6 overhead squats (95 lb)
•8 toes-to-bar
•10 burpees

There's a 90 second break between rounds and we pick up where we left off at the end of the last round.

I ended up with 9 rounds plus 6 OHS and 1 T2B. 

VolkeFit: Schweaty Schaturday

A. Power Clean/Front Squat

Power clean x1, then front squat x3

I got up to 195.



B. DHPLUs/Bent Over Rows

5 deadhang pull-ups
Rest 30 seconds
5 bent-over rows (95lbs)

Five rounds. (alternating with a partner.)


C. Metcon
Five rounds, resting approx. four minutes between.

25 calories on the AirDyne
15 wall balls
20 bell swings (shoulder height) 55lbs
50 double unders

I did this.  I took breaks during the wall balls on the later rounds.  I managed to do the DUs unbroken, except for the round I whipped my fingers on the seventh rep and another round I tripped up with 3 left.

Basement: 2 km Row

7:28. I can't find a record of me doing it faster.

CFR: Back Squats and 14.1

A. Back Squats x 2 at 70%, 80%, 85% and 90%

Using 275 as my 100% number (it felt pretty goddamn heavy in Steve's garage on Saturday) and then rounding up (except for the last one),  I used the numbers:

195 lb
225
235
245

Done



B. Back Squats x 3 EMOM for 12 minutes 

I used 195.  Done. 



C. 14.1

10 min AMRAP of

30 DUs
15 snatch (75lbs)

During the Open, I did this WOD with clean and jerks, which didn't meet the standard.  I did it RX'd and did not do well.

4 rounds, plus 30 DU and 6 snatch.

B-Squad: Front Squats, Barbell Metcon and Borrowed Pants

I got to B-Squad and discovered that I neglected to bring shorts to change into. Luckily, Christian is a generous man and offered me the sweatpants right off his ass.  Now THAT is service, folks.  Does the owner of your gym do that?  (I almost titled this blog entry "Tyler gets in Christian's pants.")

A. Front squats 1-1-1

215-235-245(fail)


B. Barbell Metcon
Using a 95 lb barbell, do five rounds of the following for time:
6 power cleans
6 front squats
6 push press
6 lunges

I started my sixth round before being alerted to the fact that I was done.  We estimated my finish time at 7:54.  

VolkeFit: Squats and other stuff

Today's outing in Steve's garage was a good mix of stuff.  It's nice to be doing squats with some regularity again.  

A. Back Squats 3-2-1-1-1

225x3, 245x2, 255x1, 275x1   That was enough for me.  I did a fair number of squats in the warm-up phase.


B. Push it real good

Not for time: 

• 20 Handstand Push-ups
• 50 Hand-release push-ups

C. You ain't done yet, homeboy!

• 20 squats (205 lb) 
• 40 knee raises
• 60 bell swings (55 lb)

I did the squats in sets of 12 and 8, which was better than I thought.   

Knee raises were in sets of 30 and 10.  

Bell swings were in three sets of 20.  

CFR: Push Press / Metcon: Row, S2OH, Pull-ups,

A. Push Press
3-3-3-3 60%, 70%, 75%, 80%

Kyle and I used 135, 155, 165, 175. 


B. Metcon

1000m row, then five rounds of:
5 shoulder to overhead (135lb)
10 pull-ups

Took me 9:47, which was a pretty respectable time, judging by the others on the whiteboard. 

Spring Fling V: The Official Pics

Shayn at Edgematic Images has released a ton of pictures from Spring Fling V.  Naturally, there are a few examples of the ridiculous faces I make mid-workout.

"Do these shorts make my ass look big?"    

The look I've got here pretty much captures how much I was hating life at the time. 

I'm preparing to snatch a whopping 95lbs, so obviously I had to break out the epic face.  

If you want to give Shayn some business -- or just see some pictures of people who manage to not look like a total freakshow while competing --  check him out on Facebook.

B-Squad: Front Squats, Hang Cleans and Metcon

A. Front Squats 3-3-AMRAP.

I used 205.  On the AMRAP, I got up to 7.



B. Hang Squat Clean - work up to a tough double

I got up to 185.

Christian gave me some solid advice here to help me keep my form in check.   I've only worked out at B-Squad twice, but there seems to be a real focus on watching athletes closely and correcting their form on the lifts. That is a good thing.  



C. Metcon

Four rounds of the following:

• 250m row
• 3 burpees
• 6 push-ups
• 12 mountain climbers (L+R=1) 
• Rest two minutes

My times were:
1:22
1:21
1:21
1:25

Even a small amount of mountain climbers can get old quick.  This was a cleverly designed metcon in that it was short enough (and incorporated enough rest) to hit hard and not stop during the working portion, but it was still challenging.



Overheard at the Gym

"Why is my dad the only one signed up to work out?  Is it because nobody else likes this gym?"
-My son (age 7)

Christian laughed hard at that one, but I still made the kid do 10 burpees and gave him a gentle talking-to at home.  

Living Room TV watching WOD: Squats, Push-ups and Sit-ups

I was going to go to the gym.  Honest, I was.  I even booked a time.  Then my daughter's late afternoon nap went long and messed up those plans.

So, while watching wrestling, I did 15 leisurely rounds of the following, not for time:

10 air squats
10 push-ups
10 sit-ups

I could have probably done more, but my butt was about to start blistering from the sit-ups.

Basement: 10 min of AirDyne

151 calories.

B-Squad: Front squats, metcon, row sprints

My fitness promiscuity continues, as I've started seeing B-Squad on the side. 

Actually, it's long overdue.  Nolan, Mandy, AngDesj and Christian are some of my favourite people I've met since through CrossFit, so I'm glad to support their venture by purchasing a punch card.   While my current real-life circumstances don't permit me to commit to a full-time gym membership anywhere, I feel I will be well-served by regular visits to CrossFit Regina, Steve Volke's garage, and now B-Squad, supplemented by workouts in my basement.  

My first visit to the B-Squad gym, located in the basement of the YWCA where the pool used to be,  was very comfortable.  Nolan was coaching, and there were a few other people I knew.  It's not an official CrossFit affiliate, but any CrossFitter would feel right at home there, as it had all the equipment you would expect at a good CrossFit box.   They've got plenty of space, and good natural light. 

A. Front Squat 5-5-5

We were supposed to find a good working weight that would challenge us to do five reps. 
after the BFFF (big fat fucking fail) on front squat singles at CFR recently, I was looking to get my shit straight. 

I settled at 205.  I did it.  For fives, that was all I was going to be able to do, and that was more than a little challenging. 


B. Metcon

Four rounds of:

8 pendelay rows
8 burpees over bar
8 kettlebell cleans (right hand)
8 kettlebell cleans (left)

This was a quick and nasty.  It took me 6:09.


C. Rowing Sprints

3 x 150m, resting 30 sec between.

27.5
28.0
28.5

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. 

VolkeFit: Cleaning House

A. Squat Cleans (not for time)

12x115lb
10x135lb
8x155lb

Done.


B. Every Minute on the Minute

For 8 minutes:
5 x 115lb

Done.


C. Metcon

Five rounds (alternating with Sarah)
5 burpees (strict)
5 bell swings (55lbs) shoulder height
15 calories on the AirDyne

Done.


D. Cool down

2.5km run.  Not for time.

Done.   

CFR: Front Squats BFFF, Push Press & Hang Power Clean /200m Run

A. Front Squat 1-1-1

225-245(fail)-235(fail)

My one-rep PR is 255.  This stung a little, but I haven't squatted very much in the past few months, so what could I really expect?

B. Push Press 1-1-1

165-175-185


C. Metcon

For time, five rounds of:
5 hang power clean and jerks 135lb
200m run

Took me 10:21.  I did all the cleans without dropping the bar.

CFR: Sled Drags

Sled drags 100m @ 95/65 – every 2min x 10 rounds

It took me about 35-45 seconds each. 

CFR: "The Ghost"

Six rounds of the following:

One minute of rowing (for calories)
One minute of burpees
One minute of double unders
One minute of rest

My total score was 541.

VolkeFit: Kick you in the mush

Three rounds of:

15 bell swings (60lb)
Rest 15 seconds
10 handstand push-ups
Rest 15 seconds
5 squat cleans (155lb)
Rest 15 seconds
10 burpee pull-ups.
Rest 3 minutes
100 double unders
Running around the park (about 800m)
Rest 5 minutes

I didn't time myself to the second. Each took me between 12 and 13 minutes, including the three-minute rest period.

CFR: "Blackjack"

Warm-up
"Roxanne":
Play the song "Roxanne." Jog in place, and do a burpee every time you say the word "Roxanne."


WOD
"Blackjack"
First WOD since Spring Fling.  I wasn't back to 100%, and this isn't a WOD suitable for blasting through, anyway, so I just resolved to get through it. 

21 pull-ups
200m run
21 push-ups
200m run
21 squat clean and jerks
200m run
21 burpee pull-ups to 8'
200m run
21 calorie row
100m run

The clean and jerks took a little longer than I would have liked. 

18:22 rx'd

CFR Spring Fling V

TART (Tyler And Rankin's Team) finished in 5th  place out of 21 teams after four WODs.  We're happy with that.

WOD 1: Fatbar Squat Clean and Two Presses

After learning that we could alternate lifts, this altered our strategy a bit.  We had thought that I had to be done before Rankin could start.

I started with 160 on the bar, for a safe lift.

I put 180 on the bar, and did it.  Rankin lifted it too.

I completed 190, as did Rankin.

I put 200 on the bar.  I squat cleaned it, but couldn't get a press and had to drop it.

Rankin completed the complex and added 10 lbs.

He managed to clean it, but couldn't get a press before time ran out.

Our score was 390.2, which was good for 7th place in that event.


WOD 2: Two Five-Minute AMRAPs

AMRAP 1:
200m row
10 burpees over ERG

I don't want to be a complainer, but the judge on this messed me up by counting my burpees BEFORE I completed them. So a couple of times I stopped on the 9, only to be told that I had one more to do.  That confusion cost us a few seconds.

Really, though, it's on me.  I should have counted for myself from the start, which I did on the third round.



AMRAP 2:
20 double unders
10 bell swings (55lbs)

Rankin had to work harder with less rest on the first part, so I took the first three shifts on this one (DUs, one set of swings, and back to the DUs).  After that, we split the work with me doing the skipping and him on the swings.

Due to that, I failed after eight DUs when I got back to the skipping.

It was smooth sailing after that, with no more failures.  After a few more rounds, I took one more shift of the bell swings to give Rankin another quick breather.  I felt good about how we did on the second AMRAP. There was almost no wasted time.

Our score was 1243, good for 8th place.  The team ahead of us got 1244 and the fourth place team got 1266, so the the extra seconds on the row would have definitely upped our results a bit.  (Every metre counted as one point, so this competition rewarded rowing disproportionately... although if you were slow on the burpees, there was less time to row.)

Even though we finished in 8th in this event, we managed to move up to 6th place in the overall standings.


WOD 3: Pull-ups, Snatches, and Weighted Lunges


Five rounds of
12 cleans (95lbs)
12 pull-ups
4x40' 45lb walking lunges (alternating between partners)

(12 min time cap)

The competition was held at the Highland Curling Club.  One of my concerns was the fact that there were no mats on the lanes where we were expected to do the walking lunges on the bare concrete.  The movement standard said our knees had to make contact with the ground.

My lunging style is not all that controlled, so I was faced with either slamming my kneecaps on the concrete or going slow and tentative.

I chose Option 3.  During the break between WODs 2 and 3, I had to run an errand.  On the way back, I stopped into WalMart and bought a $10 pair of volleyball kneepads.   I would have bought a pair for Rankin, but there was only one pair left.

When I busted them out in the athlete's warm-up area, reactions ranged from a joking "That's isn't legal" (actually, it was; I checked) to "Fuck, that's smart" (correct) to "Pussy" (I imagine; no one actually said this to me, but I'm sure they were thinking it.)

During the event, the kneepads really made a difference.  Rankin and I hit this WOD hard.  We had noticed that some of the other teams in the previous heat had little urgency when tagging out, and we resolved to be quick.

We divided the pull-ups and snatches.  I did the pull-ups, and managed to do each set of 12 unbroken.

Rankin was an absolute beast on the snatches.  He did them all, other than asking me to do four in the third round.

I went as fast as I could on the walking lunges, but I have Marvin the Martian legs.  Rankin needed about four lunges to make each 20' length.

We ended up only 60' of walking lunges short of completing the WOD, which put us in 4th place in the event and 4th place overall.


WOD 4: Conga Line from Hell

The top 8 teams qualified for the bonus WOD, which was announced just before we did it.  They probably did it that way because no one would have tried to finish top 8 if they knew what what they were going to have to do.

This one sucked.  I hated it when I was doing it, I hated it when I was done it and I hate it as I'm writing this. In five years, I could re-read this blog post and I know I will think to myself, "I still hate that fucking WOD."  

30-20-10
Toes to Bar
Jumping squats onto a plate
155lb deadlifts

(15 minute time cap)

We each had to do these. Partner 1 has to complete his station before Partner 2 could start.  Partner 2 couldn't pass Partner 1

I went first, because Rankin said he was awful at T2B.

Well, T2B were terrible for me for me, too, although I managed to avoid tearing my sissy hands to shreds.

We DNF'd this one, and it was my fault.  I took WAY long on the T2B in both the sets of 30 and 20.  I was stepping up to the bar, which ate up too much time.  Jumping up to the bar sucked, too.  There were times I could only do one rep before dropping off.   I'm sure at least a couple of the teams must have lapped me.

We finished 7th out of the 8 teams in this WOD.

We finished in 5th place, and agreed that we were very satisfied with that result.

I was lucky to have Rankin as a partner.  He really carried this team, and I can't imagine too many other guys would have kept going after ripping up his hands like this.

I sure wouldn't have.

He and I approached the competition the same way.  We didn't go in expecting win the whole thing, but we knew we had a chance to do well and we came up with a plan to maximize our individual strengths.

I usually enjoy CrossFit competitions (by the end of them; I can be a sucky baby at times during), and doing the team version was even more fun.  There was less pressure and strategy was a factor, rather than just sheer athleticism  Also, I finished better than bottom three, which is nice.  I think this is how I will participate in CrossFit competitions going forward whenever possible.

.

CFR: More Spring Fling prep

Rankin and I met to discuss strategy and work on fatbar cleans

Unfortunately, I can't disclose more than that.

Basement: AirDyne sprint intervals

It was one of those times where I didn't have a solid plan of what I wanted to do.  Then plans changed after I got on the bike.  

First, I thought I would try to do five minutes at 300+ watts.  After a minute, I realized that was not going to happen, so I stopped for 30 seconds.  I did another minute, then rested.  After that, it was 30 second intervals until the end of the arbitrary 10 minutes I decided I was going to bike.   

Here's what it looked like: 

60 secs bike higher than 300 watts

30 secs rest

60 secs bike higher than 300 watts

30 secs rest

30 secs bike

30 secs rest

30 secs bike

30 secs rest

30 secs bike

30 secs rest

30 secs bike

30 secs rest

30 secs bike

30 secs rest

30 secs bike

30 secs rest

60 secs bike.  

CFR: Spring Fling Prep

CrossFit Regina released the WODs for Spring Fling V.

Rankin and I met to test the waters on a couple of the workouts.

WOD 1: 5 min to find a max axle bar squat clean and push press x2

The tricky part about this one is that the teams only have a total of 5 minutes, and that the weight on the bar can never be reduced.  So the first guy has to end at a number that the second guy starts with.

Rankin is stronger than me, so this should work out okay.  The number that I can confidently hit is a good starting point for him.



WOD 2: Five-minute AMRAPs

Five-minute AMRAP of:

• 200m row
• 10 burpees over ERG

One minute rest.

Five-minute AMRAP of:

• 20 double-unders
• 10 bell swings (55lbs) 

Basically, we just have to hit this one hard and fast. Rankin rowed. The burpees over the ERG were surprisingly quick for me (assuming I was counting correctly).   Transition time is going to be key in this one.

In the second part, the DUs were easier for me than the swings were for Rankin, so we switched up.  During the actual competition, we may switch back.



After the WODs, I did a single muscle-up.


Here's WOD 3, which we'll play around with on Thursday:

Five rounds for time (12min time cap)

12 power snatch (95lbs)
12 pull-ups
8 20-foot lengths of a sandbag lunge (each partner does four each)

Athletes may divide reps on the snatch and pull-ups as much as we want.

5 rounds for time (12min time cap)

12 power Snatch (95/65)

12 Pull ups

8 lengths (20′ lengths) of a sand bag lunge (45/20) – 4 each

 

In teams, you will complete 5 rounds of the above. Athletes may split reps and exercises (only snatch and  pull ups as they wish with only one athlete working at a time) each athlete must do lunges. 

VolkeFit: Bringing Sexy Back (Squats)

Warm-up

2km on the AirDyne


Workout

A.  Work up to a heavy (not max) triple

God, it's been so long since I squatted.  I started at 185 and went up in 10 lb increments. 

I went to 245x3 and decided to stop there. 


B. AMRAP of 75% of A. 

I used 185lbs.  I did 17 reps, which was more than I was expecting.  There were periodic rests (with the barbell still across my shoulders.) 


C.  Double unders and burpees

50 DUs
10 burpees
40 DUs
10 burpees
30 DUs
10 burpees
20 DUs
10 burpees
10 DUs
10 burpees

My legs were pretty tired after A and B,  so this was a bit of a debacle.

In the first set of DUs, I failed after every ten reps.  It didn't get much better in subsequent sets,

In the end, I finished in 8:38, which is way slower than I would expect of myself. 

Basement: 10 minutes of AirDyne

I've got a head cold and had just eaten some popcorn chicken from KFC.  No records tonight.

165 calories.

Basement: Rowing sprints

500m x 5, resting about three minutes between.

1:41
1:41
1:48
1:49
1:47

VolkeFit: This is why I don't have abs like a Spartan

Warm-up

30-20-10

• AirDyne calories
• Burpees (strict)

Workout

"300" 

Pullups - 25 reps 
Deadlifts with 135lbs - 50 reps 
Pushups - 50 reps 
24-inch Box jumps - 50 reps 
Floor wipers (135lbs) - 50 reps 
1-arm 35lb Kettlebell Clean n Press - 50 reps 
Pullups - 25 reps

I started strong but started sucking pretty hard by the time I got to the push-ups.  

There was some confusion on the floor wipers (L+R=2, not 1) which became a huge relief when I found out what it really was. 

18:20.  In Spartan days, a time like that would have got me kicked into a pit.  

CFR: Rockin' Robin

Warm-up 

30-20-10 of:
Bell swings
Sit-ups

Not for time.  I did each set unbroken.



WOD

"Rockin' Robin"

Three rounds for time of:
1 rope climb from seated
10 clean and jerks (135lbs)
100 double unders

I finished in 15:40

Judging from the other times on the board from today, I'm happy with this.     Most times were 20-plus minutes,  I wonder if that was due to some congestion at the climbing ropes? Or maybe they did a different WOD.

I didn't feel like I was going that fast.  Actually, I deliberately didn't blast through my clean and jerks on the first round, not wanting to burn myself out for the DUs and the rope climbs.

I finished the first round in about 4:00.

The second round was tougher.  I almost failed on the rope climb.  The clean and jerks felt like they took forever, and I think I had a couple of premature fuck-ups on the double unders. It took me more than 6:00 to complete the round.

I took a good 30-plus second rest before attempting the third rope climb.  I didn't want to climb halfway up and then fail, wasting energy and time.

The third rope climb went easier than the second.  The clean and jerks seemed to go faster, after Leya told me to not bother with the split jerk and just do a push jerk instead.  She also gave me a good tip about my breathing.  Basically, I was treating the 135lbs like it was 175lbs and it was slowing me down.

The double unders were okay.  I think I did them in sets of 36-34-30.

Basement: 10 minutes of AirDyne

Ummm... That's it.

181 calories.  A new PR.

Garage WOD: 400m runs, pull-ups, and box jumps

I needed to work out tonight. I also had a lawn that needed weeding, so hitting the gym was out. My garage is right there and I used a WOD adapted from a recent one on the CFR website.  I switched out the burpees for box jumps because my garage floor is gross.

Four rounds:

400m run (approximately;  I ran around my block)
15 pull-ups.
15 box jumps 24".

Rest three min between rounds.

My times were:
3:22
3:24
3:34
3:33

I did kipping pull-ups, focusing on form with the intent of not bothering my shoulder, so minimizing the swinging on the horizontal plane.

VolkeFit: Just Sweat

Attempted to do 100 unbroken DUs in the warm-up.  Tripped on 20 in the first attempt and gassed out at 67 on the second.


A. Do 30-25-20-15-10 of

• Calories on the AirDyne
• Strict burpees. 

I think this took me 13:30 something.

Rest 10 min.

B. Three rounds of "J/S"

• 1km AirDyne
• 15 cals (those things that are like a cross between a burpee and a ball slam)
• 18 box jump up-and-overs
• 24 wall balls

 Rest 3-5 min between rounds.

I didn't time myself, but I was probably between 5 and 6 minutes per round.

Round 1 - I was really inefficient on the box jumps.  Couldn't figure out how to get a flow going. On the wallballs, I did 14 and 10.

Round 2 - A little slower on the bike, but much better on the box jumps and maybe a little better on the cals.  Did the WB in 16 and 8.  

Round 3 - Box jumps fell off a bit but I managed to do the WB unbroken.

CFR: Not-Quite-As-Filthy Fifty

I did a single, fugly muscle-up during the warm-up.


Today's WOD was an old classic.
Filthy Fifty: 50 Jumping Pull-ups
50 Box jump, 24″
50 Bell Swings, 35/25lb
50 Lunges
50 Push Press, 45/35lb
50 Back Extensions (sub=Good Mornings 45/35lb)
50 Wall Balls, 20/14lb
50 Burpees
50 Double-unders
I finished in 20:04.  
My previous best for Filthy Fifty was 31:something, but that was the version that plunked 50 knees to elbows after the lunges.  Today's version did not. It looks like Brennan forgot to include the K2E when writing the WOD out on the whiteboard.  'm not complaining.   50 K2Es is a shitty thing to do.  

CFR: How much ya bench? / Kettlebells and Double Unders

Bench Press – 6 reps @ 55%, 60%, 65%, 70-75%

I didn't have a recorded one-rep max bench.  I've done 165x3, so presumed a 175lb one-rep. 

 

I was also too lazy to use a calculator, so did the following:

105x6

115x6

125x6

135x6 (75% of 175 is 131.something)

 

Then, just to be sure, I did 175x1.  It was a fight, but I got it up. 

 

 

B. In 75s complete

5 KB snatch each

8-10 KBS to chest height 

Double unders for the remainder of 75 seconds (sub in single skips) 

Every 4 min for 5 rounds

 

We record the number of DUs. Here's what I got:

 

56

55

58

58 (I wanted 60 SO BAD on this but tripped up)

39 

VolkeFit: Get after it

A. Three rounds for time:

15 hang power cleans (115 lbs)
10 strict burpees

I think I finished this in under 6 minutes. 


B1.
1km run
15 power snatch (95 lbs)
50 cal on the AirDyne

9:41

rest 10 min

B2.
Repeat B1. 

9:25

I was about 20 seconds slower on the run the second time around (mostly due to mid-run daydreaming, not fatigue), but made up a lot of time on the snatches and maybe a few seconds on the ride. 

CFR: 400m's / AMRAP

400m run with a sandbag: 2:10ish.

400m run: 1:35ish


Three-minute AMRAP:
10 box jumps (24")
15 bell swings (55lb)
30 double unders

Do this for three minutes.  Rest a minute.  Pick up where you left off.  Do it for five rounds total. Score is total rounds/reps completed.

I did 7 rounds plus 25 (10 box jumps and 15 swings. I really wanted to get a few double unders in. Twasn't to be.

.

CFR: Snatch / Clean and Jerk / Petranek

Snatch single: I got up to 155lbs

Clean and Jerk single:  205lbs


Petranek: 4:13. A PR by 3 seconds despite the spazziest kipping pull-ups ever seen by human eyes.

Basement: Two-Thirds of a 10-Minute Row

For 10 minutes:

-Row for 40 seconds 

-Rest for 20 seconds. 

Total distance rowed: 1991m 

Basement: Quick bike and row

A huge Mother's Day brunch was sitting in my stomach. I needed to do something about that.

I slipped downstairs.

Rode 2km    - 641
 Rowed 500m : 149

Then I did a bunch of tows to bar on my pull-up bar.                                                                                                                                                                    

VolkeFit: Something about Bret Michaels

I can't remember the name of the workout that Steve put on the chalkboard.  It had something to do with Bret Michaels.  It wasn't a tribute.

Here's what he had me do:

100 double unders
25 burpees (originally it was 50 wall balls, but I told him about my lingering, Manion-related leg issues)
35 bell swings
25 push-ups
2km AirDyne
1km run.

Rest 8-10 minutes.

Repeat.

I did the first round in 16:22.

The second round took me 18:11


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Note to self: Avoid or modify Hero WOD "Manion"

It's sort of hard to find time to get to CrossFit consistently these days, so when I have a chance, I take it.

Sunday, the WOD was "Manion."

7 rounds of:
-400m run
-29 back squats (135lb)

What was I thinking when I saw that?

I didn't just flirt with the idea of modifying this WOD. No, I went further than that. I sent it drinks, I slipped it my hotel room key and texted it pictures of my junk.  What I'm trying to say is, I really did not want to do this one rx'd.

But then I convinced myself that I had to do it as is. I mean, after all, I used to do Hero WODs regularly. I'm still awesome, right?  And, heck, this one just had a bit of running and some squats that aren't too heavy.  I'm good at those things!

The problem, as it often is with CrossFit, is the math.  203 of those goddamn squats, to be exact. Hell, even if they were air squats, I would have thought this was a tough friggin' WOD.

And it was terrible.  I was hating life midway through the third round.

I finished it in 45:20, which I'm happy about.

Honestly, though, this is a WOD I will never do rx'd again.  I'm actually writing this on Wednesday, and my legs are still messed up.  Like, I wake up in pain, and descending the stairs is terrible.  I'm standing at my desk at work and the act of sitting down on the toilet was painful.  There's a difference between sore and injured.  At this point, I don't consider myself injured, just sore. Really, really fucking sore.  (But when I had the muscle strain on my hamstring, it took me a while to realize that was an injury, too.)  

While I made a couple of jokey "Thanks a lot Kim Fly" posts on Facebook, I should be clear that I'm not really blaming her or CrossFit Regina for this.  This is on me.

It was stupid of me to do this workout as rx'd, especially after a week of inactivity.  It was even more stupid of me to not foam-roll the fuck out of my legs afterward.  I did some rolling, but mostly on my back, which was immediately sore.  But that's pretty stupid, because I've been doing this long enough to know that it takes a while for the legs to really feel a shitty WOD.  

I've been CrossFitting for 6 years now.  At this point, I should have a pretty good idea of what I can do and what I shouldn't do, even if I can.

Lesson learned.  

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VolkeFit: Cleans and Burpees

I took a week off.  I didn't plan to.  I didn't need to.  It sort of just happened. 

Back at Steve's garage, I had a nice little surprise, as my new jump rope from Rogue has arrived.  It's got a silver rope and orange handles the colour of traffic cones.  It's pretty badass. 

As part of my warm-up, I did a set of double unders.   As a matter of fact, I set a new PR with 90 consecutive.  Considering this comes one week (and only one workout) after setting a new PR of 80, and not that long after a new best of 70.  I'm pretty pleased about that. 

Today, for the workout I did:

15 power cleans (115lbs)
15 burpees
12 power cleans (115lbs)
12 burpees
9 power cleans (115lbs)
9 burpees

It took me 5:03. 

I rested for 6 minutes, then did:

12 power cleans (135lbs)
12 burpees
9 power cleans
9 burpees
6 power cleans
6 burpees

It took me 5:23.


Afterward, I did 100 burpees, not for time.  I was trying to do them in as few sets as possible.
First set: 69
Second set: 31


Then I did 2km on the AirDyne.  It took 3:00 exactly. 

Then the Wife and I went and completely undid any good we just did by stuffing our faces at I Love Sushi.

Take on Team Titan, New DU PR

For the record, I like Shae very much.  Though you wouldn't know it from what I put him through on Saturday. 

The competition team from CrossFit Regina is doing some fundraising for their trip to regionals, and held a "Take on Team Titan" fundraiser this weekend. 

For a small donation, you and a partner could challenge one of the team members in a short workout.  The team member would have to do all the work, while you and your partner (aka the "non-elites") could share. 

Warm up:
-one muscle-up

-Three minutes of Double Unders.
I had some counting issues, but think I ended up with 190. Or maybe it was 180. Off the start, I did 80 consecutive, which is a new PR for me.  Of course, when I started up again, I couldn't do more than 4 in a row until I got my groove back. 



Challenge 1:
Crystal G. and me vs. Shae.

2x200m run.  Shae jumped the countdown and took off before the "Go" but I was able to pass him.  Of course, he had to run twice as far and I didn't have to worry about pacing myself so I could sprint as fast as I could. 
20 burpee jumps over box
20 toes to bar. 

I don't know what the time was, but we beat Shae.  That's all that matters. 

It was close though.  I thought he was going to catch us on the T2B.


Diversion

Kids Burpee Race vs. Shae.  I was counting for my kids.

Because Shae tried to get the jump on me earlier, I was less strict about what constituted a "proper" burpee during this competition.


Challenge 2

Keenan and I vs. Shae

40 burpees onto 45lb plate
30 bell swings
20 wall ball
10 handstand push-ups

Keenan and I split all the work evenly, except I did all of the handstand push-ups.

For the burpees, we did them in sets of five, so we could maintain a fast pace.  The bell swings went 8-8-7-7.  Wall balls were in sets of 10. 

We won. 

As Shae lay on the floor, recovering from this workout, he was challenged by another team to do 2 minutes of thrusters. 

I, uh, may have given them that idea.  It's a good thing no one reads this blog, because I'd hate for Shae to find out.