lazy winter afternoon

worst workout ever.

cleans: 160 x2; 150 x3, x1, x1.
deadlift: 275 x4. I thought I was going to pass out on these. Cluster format.
press: 105 x2, x2, x2, x0.
chins: 35 x3, x2, x1, x1, x0.

did sets every 75s. I might have to go back to 3 minutes. It was miserable.

finally the press advances

squats: 185 x5, x5, x5. goal met, increase to 195. (my pb is 225 but I've been off for a while)
presses: 100 x5, x5, x5. goal met, increase to 105.

later that same day . . .
dips: 10, 9, 5, 5, 5. add weight.
chins: 35 x3, x2, x2, x2, x2.

Just Finished

10 k run.

A PB 50:35 in -1C, damp, icy, puddly wetness along the canal. What a slog, f*ck!

And after a stretch and a drive home, 45 lb finisher press, 3 sets 0f 27, 17, 12. I will not be able to shrug tomorrow therefore I hope no one will ask me what I want to do when I don't know.

dressing

power cleans: 160 x2; 155 x2; 150 x3, x1, x2.
deadlifts: 275 x3. These were clusters. Do one rep, rest for ten seconds. Not as good as I had hoped, though that is the most I have lifted . . .
dips: 6, 6, 5, 5, 5.
chins: 35 x2, x2, x2.

Except for the deadlifts, these were all done at the three minute mark (as has been the case for the last couple of weeks). That means it doesn't matter how long the set takes, the next set starts in 3 minutes (so the usually I have 2:35 between sets . . . ).

forearms:
3 rounds of
-5 wrist rolls @ 20
-captain of crush trainer gripper 10 reps a side
-15 lateral hammers a side.

Cross fit home

Yesterday, beside the kitchen counter while Ms. Hedda washed dishes:

3 rounds of 50 squats, max reps push ups.

Completed the squats (BW) and 40, 20, 20 push ups in about 12 minutes or under.

Today, did Saturday's Cross fit: 4 x 800 m run each for time. Ran at 1%
1. 2:54
2. 3:00
3. 3:11
4. 3:12
I could have done the first one a little faster. This is pretty hard. I think with a really hard running warm up then a good rest this would be a little easier. Ran 4 Miles in 32 minutes. Well, walked and ran.

Added 2 x 15 knees to chin in the roman chair and 5,4,4,2 pull ups with 25 lbs.

no squats today

I stubbed my toe so friggin hard on the weekend, I thought I broke it. Very sore. Walking is not fun so squats, which I loathe anyway, were out. I would like to get back to my PB though -- 225.

Had planned on doing dips. But someone was there with 90 lbs on the belt doing them and I thought I would wait.

chins: 25 x5, x5, x4. almost
presses: 100 x5, x3, x3. one rep less than last time in the second set.
db bench: 60 x3, x0; 55 x5.

I was going to do finishers but I had nothing. Maybe I'm getting sick?

<some time later>

forearms:
3 rounds of 5 wrist rolls @ 20, captain of crush trainer gripper 15 reps a side (it actually closed once), and 15 lateral hammers a side with my little homemade half a dumbbell thing (5lbs, I think).

After those three rounds I did plate pinches with two 10 lbs plates. Longest was 47s on the left side (34s on the right). So I gave the right a couple of extra reps.

Sq-whats?

Wanted to work the legs hard.

5x5x5x5x5 squats, 225, 235, 245, 255, 265. Yay! Finishers, 175lbs x 20

Had some left for presses. 1x1x1x1x1x1x1 reps.

95, 105, 110, 105, 105, 105, 105. Happy with these.

Thankfully there was now snow to shovel upon arriving home.

vert push and pull

Cleans got bumped up ahead of deadlifts so that my lower back wasn't tired for the technique-centric explosive lifts.

cleans: 150x3, x3, x3, x3, x3. bump weight.
deadlifts: 250 x5. bump weight.
presses: 100 x5, x4, x3.
chins: 25 x5, x4, x2.

finishers: 3 rounds of 3 exercises - front squats @ 90, alt db press @ 30, lat pulldown @80.
10, 12 (total of both sides), 20
6, 8, 10
4, 6, 8

The front squats and db presses were a little heavier than I wanted for this but now I know.

addendum: my arms are killing me. Working out while frustrated with life mumbo jumbo is good for the overall poundages. Bad for the muscles soreness.

ho push and pull

I should probably say something clever about the title, but I have nothing.

dips: 4, 4, 4.
db rows: 70 x5, x5, x5.
db bench: 55 x5, x5, x5.

finisher: alternating between seated rows @ 80 and push-ups.
22,15
11, 10
10, 7

Party Pants

My LuLu Lemming shorts feel great when I work out. Its like I am floating IN MY SHORTS! How is that possible? I bet you the Natural Law Party of Canada wears LuLu Lemming.

CrossFit WOD today: As many rounds in 20:00 of 400m run, 15 pull ups (L-seat pull ups -not) and 15 Hip extensions (almost the same as a back extension only more rigid-y).

I completed 3 rounds in 18:10 and 4 rounds in 24:30. If I could just do 15 kipping pull ups in a row every round this would be easily 20 minutes. I don't kip, but I do cook.

The breakdown: run speeds at 1% grade of 10.2, 10.2, 9.2, 9.2. Pull ups: 13+2, 8+3+2+2, 5+5+3+2, 3+3+2+2...gave up at 10. Straight 15's on the extensions.

This was a pretty good work out. I had modest help from Modest Mouse.

Over the fence...

for the never plan ahead types!

Friday: 3 rounds for time of 50 squats (BW), 10 hang cleans (95lbs for this lightweight) and 7 muscle ups (subbed 7dips, 7 pull ups). Time was 12:20.

Sunday: A homemade, at home, outdoor workout. 3 rounds for time of 10 x 205 lbs deadlifts, 10 pull ups, 400+m run. Ouch! Time was 20: 20, which included footwear and clothing changes for the outdoor, in the freezing rain running part :-)

Today: 5 rounds for time of 10 burpees, 30x3 skips (both feet, left then right), 145 Bench press, max reps. Time was 21:30. Reps on BBQ Press: 10, 7,6,5,5.

squats

squats: 185 x5, x5. And the last rep was awful and I'm not sure if I wrenched my back (find out tomorrow morning). It was just terrible form, not because the weight was too heavy.
press: 95 x5, x5, x5. Move up to 100.
chins: 10 x7, x5, x4.

finishers: alternating sets of press @ 45, lat pulldown @ 80.
20, 20
12, 12
8, 8
4, 4.

frat curls in the squat rack

just kidding.

deadlifts: 250 x4, x3. At 5 reps in one set I'm upping the weight.
cleans: 150 x2. fizzle. Don't know what's up.
press: 95 x5, 100 x3. Therefore, next time out I'll try 3 sets of 5 @ 95. Was just trying to find my max here so I could start doing these on a regular basis again.
chins: 10 x6, x5, x3.

I think I pulled something in my left delt last week.

Used 3 minutes rest instead of 4. Only relevant to the deadlifts (which should have only been one set) and the chins because the cleans blew.

Keeping up

With the Cross-fit WOD, yesterday saw:

Monday's crossfit of 1x1x1x1x1x1x1 reps of Clean and Jerk (I did clean and press as one of the GL fellas looked at me funny when I was warming up...) 85, 85, 90, 95, 100, 95, 95.

and

Tuesday's crossfit of 50, 40, 30, 20, 10 of alternating Double Unders and sit ups. I cannot do double unders for more than 1 in a row, so I subbed the required reps with both legs, left leg, right leg. I did the the sit ups on a ball. Time was ~11:20 (I'll have to check that again).

Sore abs today, boyo.

Late lunch

Cross fit workout-of-the-day:

As many rounds in 20 min of 15 pull ups, 15 push ups, 15 back extensions, 15 front extensions.

I subbed 10 pull ups and 20 push ups.

4 rounds. Exhausting.

Also ran a 7:30 mile to warm up, with a fast 400m (1:27).

more push jerk pracky

this is a frustrating thing. I can't get good at the push jerk. I would like to be able to combine my cleans and my overhead pressing (by clean and jerking) but there is a huge disparity in weight right now (150 vs. somewhat passable technique at 75). Though finishing up on the 75 is where I had an epiphany. Watch the bar and jump under it as it goes past your face on the first push. That's the coaching point that works for me right now anyway.

I saw one video on the press, push press, and push jerk. The statement was made that if you are proficient at all three, expect the push press to be 30% greater than the press, and the push jerk to be 30% greater than the push press. So, for example, if your press is 100 lbs, you could expect your push press to be 130 and your push jerk to be 170. My max press is 105 (which is not stellar, btw) . . . The lessen here is I am not proficient at the push press or push jerk. But I will be.

push jerks: bunch of practice, went as high as 105 but this was pretty horrid form.
chins: 12, 8, 7. Goal met (1 set of 12); increase weight.
db bench: 50 x5, 55 x2, 50 x5. I wasn't trying a pyramid, it just happened that way.

Cross Fit Thursday

Ya think the Goodlife people would be upset if they new Cross fit was going on in their facility? I don't know...


Warm up: 1 mile run (7:30 with a 1:29 400m in there), 15 back extensions, 15 front extensions.

5 rounds for time of: 45 lb overhead walking lunges x 20, 50 lb DB Swings x 15. Time was 18:20. Sweat factor = 4, grunt factor = 3.

Good to know: if you put your Ipod up loud enough, you don't notice the grunts.

Catch up post

Did the crossfit Mall work out on Saturday: 2 rounds of St. Laurent for time.

Monday: An adaptation of Cross fit WOD from last week.
Five rounds for time of 400m run, 15 x 185 lb deadlifts, 20 front extensions. I was supposed to do 225 lb deadlifts but c'mon. I mean really, c'mon. Time was 43 minutes. I had to suck up only 10 DL's on the last round because c'mon. I mean really, c'mon.

Today: 5k run and 100 push ups. Run time was 21:21 (woo hoo- 7:09, 7:02 and 7:10 miles) at 1%. A hundred push ups was just a hundred push ups. I do them in sets of ten and it took about 8 minutes or so today.

judo

I went to judo today for my first time. Though I did learn how to break a fall in kindergarten.

push jerk

Tweaked my right quad doing cleans on Friday so the lower body is taking a day off. Since I was going to start doing clean and jerks, I decided to start working on my push jerk. This was a little more difficult than I thought it would be.

push jerk: 1/2 hour-ish of practice.
chins: 10, 8, 5. Decrease.
cable press: 100 x3, x0, -. Decrease.

split

the other half of yesterday's work out.

db press: 45x2, x2, x1.
sandbag rows: 13, 9, 7. I decreased the rest time to 3 minutes here.

I'm going to do some forearm work today too in the hopes that's my weakest link on deads and chins. :-)

oh, and maybe a 6k row just so I can say I did it.

On Wednesday...

...the only other day I hit the gym this week (I could have hit other things, say, my co-workers but...) I did the cross fit 5 rounds of max reps body weight bench press and pull ups.

I used 135 lbs for the bench press as I don't do them much and don't have a spotter.

BP: 10, 9, 7, 6, 5
PU: 14, 7, 5, 5, 5

money

deadlifts: 250 x3, x2. Same as last time. I had hoped that my "forearm" work would have improved my grip here. Maybe it will take a while to improve.
power cleans: 150 x3, x3, x2, x2, x0.
chins: 10, 8, 4.
cable press: 100 x5, x1; 90 x5. Decrease in performance here -- I think 'cause I busted my hump on the chins.

off strength day

resting until Friday when I hit the "money" lifts again.

alternating through all three exercises with no rest . . .
facepulls: 100 x25, x10, x10.
lateral raise: 20 x12 right, x12 left; x10, x10; x8, x8.
tricep pressdown: 70 x25, x20, x15.

later that same day -
rowing:
2000m, 8:39.8, 156bpm

X-tarded

Crossfit WOD for yesterday was:
3 rounds for time of 21 Knees to elbows, 21 DB swings (50lb), 21 push-ups, 3-15 foot rope climbs (rope, at Goodlife? Hah. I did 1 min hard rowing), 21-20 inch box jumps, 21 Back extensions, 150 ft of walking lunges (translates to 48).

That's 7 elements. At lunch hour. As fast as one can. Stupid, but then again, we are gleeful. Time was 37:00. I gave up on the Knees to elbows after the first set (of 15) as the 'bar' at goodlife is an ergonomic dream, a veritable puff pastry of tubes at various angles all aimed at dissuading the would be knee-to-elbower by skewering the forearm on the down swing. I substituted with front extensions. Alas 37:00 was a terrible time by crossfit standards (there were 27's and 28's and some 33's in there) but not entirely horrible. AND, I didn't puke.

I did look X-tarded doing knees to elbows at the goodlife though.

Today I only worked, toad like in my office puff pastry chair.

lower body is back

I'm trying out some lower body exercises, the first time in earnest since, well, my cankles got sore.

deadlifts: 250 x3, x2. Had hoped for one set of 5.
power cleans: 145 x3, x3, x3, x3, x3. Goal met; increase weight.
chins: 8, 7, 5. Took a hit of a couple of reps per set, probably because of the cleans tuckering me out. Once I manage 12 reps in any set, I'm going to add weight.
cable press: 100 x5, x5, x3. Almost met my goal. But I'll tell you, going to 110 is going to be hard. It's actually a 20 pound increase as it 110 a side.

more later? depends how irritated I am that overunder is lulling me to sleep whilst stockpiling workouts.

there *is* more later . . .
db press: 40 x5, x5, x5. Goal met; increase weight.
sandbag rows: 10, 12, 10. Did better once I took the gloves off. But still.
neck: 35 x8, x8, x5.

Poke poke.

Hello Glee Club. I'm taking a little break from hiatus to drop in to say two things:

1. Post your workouts! How am I supposed to live vicariously through you all if I don't know what you've been doing?! Ken's been coming home with wonderful reports of all the crossfit workouts he's been doing, but it's not the same as being able to review these things in black and white.

2. Try kettlebell swings, if you haven't already. We tried them for the first time this week (using dumbbells, but same thing), and they're pretty awesome. Along the lines of turkish get-ups, thrusters, or cleans in a full-body-need-to-keep-everything-stabilized and really-get-your-heart-rate-up kind of way. Watch this video and tell me you don't want to grab a big db and swing it around. ;-) (If you watch to the end, you get to see the size of the pipes on this chick.)

That is all.

Busy Week

Aren't they all.

Saturday: 5 k run (23:40) + 5 rounds of 5 Pull ups, 10 Push ups.

Monday: 5x5x5x5x5 back squats, 205, 225, 235, 245, 255

Tuesday: x-fit Helen: 3 rounds for time of 400 m run, 25 DB swings (50lbs), 12 pull ups. I mistakenly used the 'trainer' section of the gym where they have real kettlebells. I was ushered out after the first round of KB swings. Go figure, kettlebells are the exclusive right of GL trainers. Total time 16 minutes, give or take a bit (Ipod malfunction). That shit was hard.

Wednesday: 1x1x1x1x1x1x1 jerk press. Out in the back yard with daddy-o's Olympic and -2C air I used 115 lbs. These power exercises require some practice.

Friday: 5k run (PB 21:48 at 1% on the tread mill) and 100 push ups. I recommend trying this.

badness

okay, I haven't posted in a while. But it's not my fault. I've done stuff. I'll post today's workout and then go and back fill. Glad to see the Glee Club grew by a member. Looks like she'll definitely be pushing my rowing.

morning
chins: 10, 8, 6
db bench press: 50x5, x5, x0. (I tried on that last set but there was nothing doing)

afternoon
facepulls: 90x40

evening
db press: 40x3, x5, x3. Okay, I'm a little shocked at the middle set of 5.
sandbag rows: 12, 12, 12, 10
neck: 30x12, x12, x12, x9, x7. I think it's time to up the weight on this.

Sauna

Today, outside, a 5k run (22:00) followed by 3 sets of 30 walking lunges. Then a nice stretch and a 5 minute dry sauna to warm up! That was relaxing.

X-fit

where x = excruciating.

Last night (not a good time of day, really) I tried this circuit: (for time)
800m run
10 85lb thrusters
10 pull ups
40 ball sit ups

I did 2/3rds of it and bailed after 15 minutes or so. Puke factor 5 in a busy gym. It was the first run that set the tone (3 minutes).

Today was better. I did a variation of the crossfit WOD "fight gone bad". Three 5 minute rounds of each of the following per minute, with a 1 minute (hah!) break in between rounds:
Floor slam w/ 6kg ball (no wall ball area) (30/26/27)
70lb Sumo high pull DL (20/18/15)
20" box jumps (25/23/23)
70lb press (13/10/7 )
Row for calories (19/17/17)
I pretty much stuck to the timer, but maybe had a few seconds rest between each circuit. This is a good circuit.
Each rep or calorie is a point. Total = 290

Been a long time...

With many good reasons, mostly related to my Rim job. So, as a new era of workouts dawns (because dam-ned frisbee is out of the way), a recap of the last few weeks (since Oct 1 apparently):

Well, I can't remember it all but...

there was a 5 k and an upper body workout. Then there was a Frisbee practice and two Frisbee games. (Those practices -lots of sprinting. Its so good.)

Then there was regionals in Boston on the 10th/11th. Not a lot of PT, but I did score this totally cool come-in-cold-off-the-sideline-run-like-a-mf-and-chase-down-a-huck point in the game to go that cleared the bench and is therefore pasted in my mind as my best point ever, even though it did not include shutting down my opponent with a brilliant but caustic retort after a horrible foul call (which always seem to come easily to me two days later). OK, that last sentence was a bit of a workout itself.

After much Turkey, there was a leg workout I remember clearly enough:
Back ext: 2 x 15
Front ext: 2 x 15
Squats: 235lb x8, x8, x7 with Bicep culrs: 30lb x8, x7, x6 each arm
Deadlifts: 235 x 7
Finisher squats: 155 x 18

There was 5K 2 days after (that is not enough recovery time to run it fast, even though its just as hard) 22:58

While away in Nova Scotia I found a steep hill, about 4 m high, and made a 25 m sprint course with it at the end and I did this awesome workout:

5 rounds of 5 sprints up the hill, 20 push ups, 10 no arm two foot jumps (max power).
Then 48 left and right leg hops up stairs followed by 2 k run home. Then a corn maze!

Another Frisbee practice. Cold weather sprints. Ouch.

Frisbee game, frisbee game.

There was an upper body workout:
Press: 80lbs x 8, x7, x5 (brutal)
Upright rows: 80lbs x10 ,x8, x6
BBQ press: 135 x10, x7, x6

There was a session of sprints with a couple of brave frisbee guys (in the cold-wet)
we did a good solid warm up then 3 sets of 6 40m sprints of various types (look back 4 times, stop-start, shuffle-pop etc). Good times.

Another frisbee game.

Sarasota FLA and the UPA's. All I can say is I want to do that again. We should have come 5th.

Then a meager post FLA work out:
Pull ups: 14, 7, 5
Dips: 15, 10, 5,
front ext. 2 x 30
back ext. 2 x 30
Mile jog, 8:35

I sorta hurt my knee and was stoopid busy at work, so there is nothing else to mention. Thank christ.

Be seeing ya!

beautiful fall hangover day

db press: 35x5, x5, x5
sandbag rows: 12, 12, 12.
neck: 30x10, x7, x5
alternating db curls: 35x16, x16, x14. I wasn't going to admit to these.

pre - 'fit test' row

Found out yesterday that I have to row a 6000m fit test on monday, to prove that I am 'up to snuff' in order to join the developed rowers in the tank this winter.

6000m
29:23:02 average 27 spm

I have no idea what our targets are for a race (since I've never actually rowed in a race) but that was about a 2:24 500m which I don't think is too shabby. Plus, I was able to bring my average stroke up to 31 for the last 500m. I'll nail that test alright!

Oh, and no power song. I forgot my ipod. Instead 'Degrassi' and 'So you think you can dance', apparently no good music in the gym at work. I voted for sportsnet and lost. All men in the gym. Go figure.

Thursday was my day of rest. Lunchtime yoga has finally flowed into an advance level. Wednesday's twisting postures and arm dominated vinyasa was tough after the similar focus of Tuesday's run. Brushing my teeth and sipping coffee were both dreadful activities yesterday.

strength

chins: 9, 6, 5.
cable press: 100x3, x3, x3. Aiming for 5 . . .

finisher: alternating lat pulldown @ 100 with push-ups.
18 lat, 20 pushup, 7, 9, 3, 6.

garage workout

db press: 30x5, x5, x5, x5, x5.
sandbag rows: 11, 9, 9.
neck: 30x7, x7, x4.
alternating db curls: 30x20, x20, x14.

easing back in

Back from Florida and some frisbee. Achilles are aching so I walk funny. Especially in the morning. I'm going to layoff the lower body work until I get some recovery there.

chins: 8, 7, 6.
cable press: 90x5, x5, x5.

popping my blogging cherry

Inspired by the likes of my fellow bloggers (thanks for having me and sharing your motivation :), I was jazzed to try my first crossfit routine. Referring to the website, I was not surprised to see Tuesday listed as a rest day. So a peak back to Monday, listed "run 800m, 50 back extensions, 50 sit-ups 3x for time". Ick - back extensions require going to the gym (no?) which is exactly what I was trying to avoid, having ducked out early on a 20C sunny November afternoon. So I made up my own...

Run for 15-20 minutes *
50 sit-ups, 25 push-ups (girly)
repeat four times

totals
1:21:11, 12kms, 200 sit-ups, 100 push-ups

And my running intervals felt surprisingly good after each brief 'rest' period.

*loosely timed depending on when I could find dryish terrain in the don valley.

Power Song - New Goodbye by Hey Rosetta!
came blasting through the earphones just as I was climbing my way out of the valley for home. awesome.

by the way, congratulations h&k!

strength - back

rows: 45x40reps.

<1/2 hour later>
rows: 45x30reps.
facepulls: 80x40reps.

<later at home>
sandbag rows: 11, 6, 6.
short-handed frisbee game.

strength

deadlift: 245x1
I don't know why this was so bad. Maybe the rowing?

cleans: 145x2, x -. ditto

cable press: 90x5, x5, x2.

row 5000m

5000m - 22:53.9 - 140bpm

strength

back squat: 205x5, x5, x2
chins: 7, 7, 5
cable press: 80x5, x5, x5

row 5000m

5000m - 23:56.8 - 136bpm

I had some issues at the start with figuring out the correct volume for the tv and shedding some clothes.

back in the saddle again

quick workout before the lunch rush. I'll get back down for more this aft.

back squats: 95x5, x5; 135x5; 165x5; 185x5; 205x5
reasonably pleased with this. I'll do 205x5, x5, x5 next time and then start upping the weight.

press: 45x5; 65x5; 85x5
I'll do 85x5, x5, x5 next time.

Guy beside was outfitted with weightlifting shoes and gloves. When I left he had done partial chins, alt db curls, bar curls, machine curls. There, that's enough of the judging judger.

<later>

deadlift: 95x5; 185x5; 235x5

cleans: 95x3; 115x3; 135x3, x3, x3, x3, x3
happy with this. This is the first time that I read Rippetoe's prescription for cleans properly. I'd been doing sets of 5 before.

chins: 7, 5, 4.

<later at home>

alt db curls:30x15x3
forearm work: wrist rolls, plate pinch, wrist curls, grippers, finger ext.

Works in progress

Scaling back, and the new blog... (Still taking suggestions for blog title!)

Recent workouts are now posted.

Still recovering

Tuesday, first day at the new gym, a little over-eager:

treadmill - 10 minute mile (ranging from walking to 8 mph)
squats - 45 x 12; 65 x 10; 85 x 10, 8, 8
calf press - 300 x 7; 260 x 8, 8
cleans - 65 x 10, 8, 8
press - 45 x 7, 5, 3 + 3 push press (with super-slow eccentrics)
RDLs - 75 x 10, 10, 10
bench dips - 10, 10, 10
v-sit crunches - 20, 15, 15
lat pull - 70 x 7; pull-up grip - 85 x 4; chin-up grip - 100 x 4

For tracking purposes, because this will begin to change weekly:
Weight - 132 lbs (noon, post-workout)

I felt great for about 6 hours, then crashed into fatigue for about 24 hours. Lesson learned. Shorter workouts. My consulting midwife also says "please used the machines while you're pregnant. Please." I'm seriously considering.

Note: To avoid further hijacking of the Glee Club space for pregnancy-related workout discussion, I'll be branching to the sister-blog soon. I promise. Title suggestions for new blog still being accepted.

More of the Same

On Monday I did the circuit I made up a few weeks ago. I like it.

3 rounds of: 800 m run, 10 thrusters @ 85 lbs, 10 pull ups, 40 ball sit ups.

Time was 29:00 minutes, which included a few equipment set ups and wait times. Not bad.

Tuesday Night: Many points of Frisbee in a row. I am going to guess that it was about 60 to 70 sprints of various distances. Man that feels good.

row 2000m

2000m - 8:54.9 - 139bpm

row 5x500m/1:30rest

5x500m/1:30 rest

total: 9:32.6 - 1:54.5/500m avg - 175bpm avg

Week 13 round-up

Just barely made my quota of three workouts this week:

Sunday: frisbee x 2
Wednesday: frisbee
Thursday: frisbee.

Not particularly creative...

This week

Monday: 5 k run- 22:06 (PB) 40 back extensions, 40 front extensions
Tuesday: Countless points of frisbee in a row
Wednesday: Countless points of frisbee, the odd break.

Lame, lame, lame. Lame.

I finally got off my butt today and headed out to sign up for a membership at a new gym. Alas, I find myself, at the end of the day, still gymless. I'd been procrastinating on this task for a couple of reasons: a) I've been trying to decide between two local gyms - Nautilus (7 min walk), and Goodlife Women's Only (25 min walk); and b) the weather is nice enough that I can still get some good workouts by combining running and weights (thanks to the barbell that is still living at our house).

Without having actually checked out either gym, I decided to go to the Goodlife. The women's only aspect is appealing for when I'm awkwardly trying to hoist weights around a 7 month belly... And eventually, I'll have to lighten up the workout, at which point the classes become appealing.

Well. I can hardly contain my disappointment and, frankly, scorn.

I asked questions and filled out the forms before getting the actual tour of the place. I specifically asked "do you have a full complement of free weight equipment? Do you have a squat rack?" Yes, and yes, I was assured. I asked for a quick tour, so I'd know where to go when I came in for my first workout.

I didn't see a squat rack anywhere. Or a chest press bench. No benches at all, actually. A substantial row of dumbells, some mats, balls, and a sort-of roman chair comprised the free- weight area. So I asked "where's the squat rack?"

Turns out, chickie DID NOT KNOW WHAT A SQUAT RACK IS.

Er, do you have Olympic barbells? Oh yes! The barbells are right over here...

Hardly Olympics... They only had like three pansy-assed barbells on which you could add plastic plates that looked like they could barely add up to 50 pounds.

Ok, thanks.

Luckily, I hadn't brought my bank info, so I haven't paid yet. I don't think I will.

I know I'm going to have to scale back on workouts now that I'm pregnant, and 100 pound squats are probably going to be out of my range in a few weeks (if they're not already - I haven't done them for awhile). But the fact that they DON'T KNOW WHAT A SQUAT RACK IS tells me they are unaware that a woman is capable of, or might want to do 100 pound squats, or 50 lb shoulder presses, and probably don't even know what a deadlift is, let alone a power clean... And those are not the people I want to be giving me fitness advice through my pregnancy.

I can just hear it "I'd stick to the 10 lb biceps curls for now. Don't let your heart rate go over 140! And one, and two..." Blah blah blah.

I do need advice, but realistic advice, from people who know what weight-lifting is. AND, I'm only going to be pregnant for 6 months, but the Goodlife contract is for a year... Come June, I'm pretty sure I'm going to want to get back to chin-ups again. Did I mention there was no sign of a chin-up bar? Oh yeah, another thing that chicks don't do.

Looks like I'm going to have to take my big ole belly into the trenches of the local Nautilus. We only see meatheads going in and out of there. But that hasn't intimidated me too much before (more often, a source of amusement!), so I suppose I shouldn't let it now. But I sure hope someone over there speaks English.

Workout-wise, I did get in an hour-long walk, heading there and back.

row 2000m

I got my erg.

Two 2000m sessions.
2000m - 10:13.4 - 125bpm (heart rate)

2000m - 9:39.3

Rounding out the week

6 km run > 36 minutes.

Pretty moderate pace. I'm careful to take a walk/water/breath-catching break every 10 minutes. Also, I felt a bit tight in the lower belly for the first half of the run - like there were muscles straining... Maybe I'm starting a growth spurt? Eep.

According to James F. Clapp, I need to exercise 3 times a week for 30-40 minutes at a "moderate to hard" level of perceived exertion in order to experience the benefits of exercising through my pregnancy. I'm thinking of recording a weekly round-up, to make sure I'm on track.

This week:

Sunday: frisbee
Monday: 6.6 km run
Tuesday: circuit
Wednesday: frisbee
Friday: 6 km run.

Good so far!

F! Me

PB on the 5k today- 22:27. A 7:30 mile and a 6:30 mile in there.

Got back to the gym where a crack fitness instructor mentioned he did a 5 k last week in 15:30.

He can't possibly be good at math.

Debt to pay

Circuit yesterday:

3 rounds of 800 m run, 85 lb thrusters (10), 10 pull ups, 40 sit-ups.

800m @ 10mph, 9, then 8. Thrusters are taxing. Pull ups were 10 in a row each time. Sit ups were on a ball.

Time was 30:20 (which included, thankfully, some waits for space / pull up station and set up). Fuck was this brutal. I sat on the bench in the change room afterward rubbing my forehead with my thumb. I guess I do this when I am going to puke.

Today- 5k.

The Quick and Dirty

It was so warm and cozy inside the house; so cold and uninviting outside. But I lugged the barbell out to the porch... And it got warm real quick.

Warm-up 400 m.

Five rounds of:
10 jump squats (45 lb)
10 hang clean & press (45 lb)
400 m run
= 23 min

(No rest between sets except pause for set-up; however, I rested a full minute between rounds. Because I'm resting for two now.)

Cool-down 400 m.

After stretching, 2 chin-ups, just to stay in the game. :-)

Last five presses of the 5th set were push presses. Ran the 400 m in 1:50 consistently, except for the last set, during which I knocked 5 seconds off. (To make up for the push presses?)

This circuit got hard. Grunting and grimacing hard. Particularly the presses.

Another Gay Post Title

At the gym;
40 back extensions,
40 wiener lovin' front extensions,
Power cleans; 115 x 10, 8, 7,
BBQ press; 125 x 10, 8, 6.

Mile run @ 1%: 7:35. Fairly easy. Wished I had pushed it harder. Sort of.


I am going to say it again: Wiener lovin'.

12 weeks today

Moderate pace run: 6.5 km (@ 6 min/km; probably a little faster). Somehow managed to accidentally hit the "stop" button on my watch when I tucked it into my pouch, so it only timed the first four seconds of the run.

I ran home from the lab, where McPie dropped me off for my prenatal blood tests.

Chin-ups: 2.

Then there was dizziness, so I didn't attempt another "set". Maybe later today.

3 mile run

And none of this "fast mile" stuff. Last night after getting home from cancelled frisbee.

3 miles/28:50/6.2mph/163bpm
splits:
1.5 miles/15:10/5.9mph/154bpm
1.5 miles/13:40/6.6mph/173bpm

Watchless

And running. What's the point, really.
Nothing to report, MAYBE a 21:45 5K, but probably a 23:10 or something. A good hard run, anyway.

15 x 8 x 4 x 2 x 1 Pull ups
15 x 8 x 7 Dips

40 v-sit 4kg ball tosses (Ms Hedda does 634 or something)
30 back extensions.

Still got it, for now

Fear of failure can sometimes help. I'm struggling to come to terms with a decreasing, um, work capacity. That is, my perceived exertion is the same, but performance - time, reps, weight, distance, etc - is reduced. I assume that if I keep up my PE, I'll continue to have the same physical benefit from a workout, but I'm a competitor and I like to see my numbers improve. My first response -- at least mentally -- is avoidance of things I might not be so good at any more, because I hate to fail. (Have you seen reports of chin-ups lately? Nope...)

So, I planned my workout today through a haze of mental negotiations. Eventually, and luckily, I ended up taking the bull by the horns. I mapped a mile within a 5K loop, and decided to run it for time. Full disclosure: I made sure the route for the mile was primarily (er, totally) downhill. In all fairness, this did bite me in the ass when I had to eventually ascend the fairly substantial hill for the last 500m of the run. (And the whole 2nd half was slightly uphill.)

Because of/thanks to my hill-cheating, I was premature in my conclusion that my sub-7 days were behind me, for the time being:

Mile: 6:45
5K total: 24:45

Perspective: If I'd run that in the National Capital 5K race, I'd have come in about 7th of 390 in my category (women 30-34), 123/3819 women, and 515/6367 total. Not SO bad.

stymied - like for real?

So I'm just loading up the bar to start the deadlifts and cleans that got shut down yesterday and the security guard rolls in to "check on things". And he yells that the weight I'm lifting is too heavy. ha ha -- good one, I laugh and ignore him. I forgot that respect is often a sore point with security guards. But I actually thought he was kidding. Especially since I was putting the first plate on the bar and was a couple of hundred pounds from being heavy. Anyway, he decided that it was gym policy that you couldn't lift heavy when you were by yourself. As the conversation "progressed" his policy morphed so that I was only allowed to use machines and not even 10 lbs dumbbells. I thought he wouldn't just be making this up so I adhered to the policy.

[the research on Monday has shown that somebody (not naming names) was on a power trip and while we can all appreciate that heavy benchpresses with a bar by yourself is a little foolhardy, the gym is use at your own risk. So I'll probably get strip searched the next time I come in on the weekend.]

chins: 9, 8, 6
cable press: 80 x5, x5, x5
cable row: 145 x5, x5, x5

lower back extension machine thing: 200 x50. This was the max weight and I actually got bored at 50 rather than failed at 50. Kinda weird.

finisher:
facepulls - no rest between sets - 130 x10, 120 x4, 110 x3, 100 x5, 90 x12, 80 x5, 70 x14, 60 x20

stymied

so I wait until 6pm on a Friday to hit the gym because then everybody will be gone. Except the hardcore, except the one guy who does Oly lifts with chalk. Luckily I got my squats in before we had to start sharing.
squats: 200x5, x5, x5
dips: 4, 3, 3
some ab work but my enthusiasm waned quickly. I was already a couple of hours late for post-work bevvies.

Today's menu...

Workout and steak.

At the gym;

2 x 18 back extensions
2 x 15 front extensions (When I do these I am conscientious that my 'unit' is 'profiled' through my shorts. Not much I can do about it, save for bondage. Anyway, why the hell did I call it a 'unit'? Well, this summer at Gender Blender, on the drunken carnival that is Friday night, at 2 or 3 am, a fella I know named Jake was playing Family Feud. I $hit you not. It was at a camp site, with a full set with scoreboard, theme music, MC and everything, and his family's question was "another word for penis" Well, with dick and balls out of the way , Jake's turn came and he, ever the comedian, drawled into the microphone , "Uhhhhhh, I'm going to have to go with UNIT," which made me HOWL. "Survey says! Mehhhhhhhhhhhh." No dice! I was watching from the vantage point of semi stupor, which is among the best vantage points from which to view such scenes.)

Anyway...

Squats; 235 lbs x 7, 6, 5, (I am going to call it a PB as I went to parallel every time I think)
Finisher squats; 145 x 17 (ATG)
Bicep curlys; Standing, 30 lbs DBs x 8l8r, 7l7r-6l6r
Deadlifts; 8 x 235 (PB- failed grip and sweaty palms did not allow for more sets).
Farmer's walk; 45 lb plates in each hand, 48 steps x 2, 96 steps x 2, 144 steps x 2. Hard on the shoulders. I could NOT imagine having to carry a young Holstein or somethin'...

Tonight (1 hour ago); One huge Bavette de Boeuf on the BBQ, green beans sauteed in sesame oil, soy and orange, St. Agur (blue) cheese, a 2003 Riocha (gift from lovely). Side of bliss.

Water would have been nice

It was about 340° out yesterday. Or so.

I tried Power Clans for the first time. What a great exercise. Started with too low a weight, but I am conservative in my willingness to inflict pain upon myself; otherwise known as timid, ok, f*ck!

95 lbs, 10 reps (easy)
115 lbs 10 reps (moin easy, with grip failing)
125 lbs 8 reps, harder, grip limiting.

Then, out in the HEAT:

1k run to park-with-long-steep-hill (no time)
3 sets of 5 sprints (maybe 20-24 strides) up the hill (6 min total time)
20 2-step basketball jumps (max power)
800 m run (3:05)

The outside part was fairly challenging after the power cleans...

Homestyle, take 2

Added a 35 lb plate to the gymless workout today.

Hang clean and press: 45 x 12, 12, 8, 7, 7
Single-leg calf press: 165* x 8, 9, 9 (each leg)
Walking lunges: 50, 30, 30
Bent-over barbell rows: 45 x 10, 10, 10

* 35 lb plate plus my bodyweight. I think this exercise doubles as a variation of the farmer's walk, because it was so darn hard to hold the plate (tucked under my arm, schoolbook style).

I considered holding the plate on my head for the walking lungs, but the hole in the middle was uncomfortable on my tender pate.

For the rows, I bent over the railing of the porch and rested my chest (well, just below my chest) on the rail for support. I am so creative.

Interesting aside: Weighed in a the doctor's office yesterday, and it turns out I've lost a few pounds since I was there in mid-July. This is unexpected (though it could have just been the day.) Theories: the bulk of winter/spring weight training finally worked off through ultimate (3 tournies including nationals, plus an extra practice a week since then); or, my complete avoidance of alcoholic beverages since July 6. (My diet has been relatively stable, though I've possibly been eating a little more this last month).

A simple run.

I'm not even sure exactly how far it was.

Moderate pace for 44 minutes - I'm guessing about 7.5 km.

Nice route on the Gatineau and Lac des Fées parkways/paths. Luckily I was done by 10 am, before the real heat struck.

Homestyle circuit

No gym at the moment; all I have to work with is a 45 lb barbell. So I improvised today with:

Five rounds of

400m run (mapped my block - it's almost exactly this distance)
20 squats (45 lbs)
20 push-ups

Time = 26 minutes

I averaged a few seconds under 2 min for the runs. Not particularly fast, but I wasn't pushing it that hard. Squats were the easiest part. Push-ups were killer for some reason today, and I did most as a half-and-half split between regular push-ups and knees-down, except the first set, which I managed 16/4. Still, 56/44 in 26 minute is ok with me. :-)

When I got out of the shower after this workout, I noticed that veins were still bulging on my temples. Ick.

Quickly, amongst the brutes...

The end of the work day is NOT the ime to go to the gym. Apparently there are men's clubs that gather there, or something.

Very quick work out:

Press: 85 lbs, 8, 6, 4
Back extensions: 30
Pull ups: 14, 7, 4, 3, 1

Home to family.

Everybody's workin' for the weekend...

Great day for a run. Legs have healed, though still pretty tired feeling.

5K = 23:05 with a 6:35 mile in there. All in all it felt like a really good run biomechanically. The only thing stopping those times from going down is my own psychology.

Gym-

Tried Daddyo's push up rows, but the DB's are round and it felt a little too tricky for me today, alas;

Bent over rows: 50lbs x 10,10,8
Upright rows: 70lbs x 10,8, 8
Push ups: 20 x 3 sets.

Planning for power cleans on the weekend, maybe another run.

Last day

My boss let me hang onto my security pass for one more day so I could take one last trip to the gym.

*Bonus* Rob and Jaime were in the gym and knew it was my last day. Perfect time to test my bench press max, they decided. So:

BBQ press:
65 x 12 (warm-up)
95 x 4 (with two fingers of help)
115 x 1 (with two hands of help :-)

Cleans: 70 x 8, 8, 8
Calf presses: 320 x 8, 8, 8
Push press (with slow eccentrics): 60 x 4, 2, 2, 2
Single-leg ball crunches: 20, 20
Box jumps (15"): 12, 12, 12, 20
Tuck jumps (hands on head): 10 + calf cramp
Back extensions:12
Twists on the ball (12 lb db): 20

Easy jog home: 6 km/34 minutes.

Starting to like it again

On some pretty stiff and sore legs, back to the gym at lunch today.

2x15 Back extensions, 2x15 Front extensions

Deadlifts; 5,5,5, @ 225 lbs (easy)
mixed with
DB Curls; 8,5,5 @ 30lbs each arm
Deadlift finishers; 135 lbs x 15

Weighted Dips; 10, 6, 5 @ 25 lbs
Dip finishers: 10 (no weight)

BBQ press; 5,5,5, @ 135 (I almost grew a beard doing these...so manly)
BBQ Finishers; 10 @ 95

Stretch and then swagger back to change room.

Murph for girls

Looks like I'm kissing my sub-7 mile good-bye for now. See you next summer!

Today, a scaled down Murph. My Rx:

Mile
"50 pullups" (ie: as many assisted pull/chin ups as I can manage)
100 pushups
150 squats (12 lb body bar)
Mile

I partitioned the reps into 5 rounds of 10 pull-ups/20 push-ups/30 squats. Because I'm realistic, pull-ups were actually as many assisted (legs on bar) as I could do in each set. I planned a fast first mile and "easy" last mile (both on 1% grade).

Result:

Mile - 7:10 (would have been 6:59 if the treadmill could magically start up at 8 mph.)
Pull-ups - 8 pu, 6 pu, 6 chins, 6 pu , 7 chins (33)
Push-ups (regular/knees down) - 20, 12/8, 10/10, 10/10, 10/10 (62/38)
Squats - 30 x 5 (150 - easy!)
Mile - 8:10

Total time: 45 minutes.

I didn't really push to do it "for time" - I took the breaks I needed between each exercise because my heart rate was ridiculous (especially after the first mile!) Also intended to run the 2nd mile at 7 mph the whole way, but geez it was taking a long time, so I upped the speed eventually to 8.5 mph.

Then I ate a giant date square. (With my bunless burger, of course! I'm all about balance.)

Uhg

What a slog of a day.

The gym: 2 x 15 Back / front extensions
6,5,4 @ 90lbs shoulder press
8,4,4 @ 25 lbs weighted pull ups
5,5,5 @ 225 back squat

Finishers:
Squat, 135lbs x 20 ATG
Press, 45lbs x 20
Pull ups, 10

Light headed feeling, back to grind.

reintroducing: the lower body

establishing my strength on three lifts:
squats: 205x3
deadlift: 255x2
cleans:145x2

I think that for the next workout I'll drop each back 5 pounds and do the following:
squats 5x3
press 5x3
deadlift 5x1
cleans 3x5

I also did the following:
bench dips followed by alternating dumbbell curls (25lbs).
15 bd, 15 curls, rest
15 bd, 15 curls, rest
15 bd, 15 curls, rest
15 bd, 10 curls, rest

finishers.
facepulls and farmer's walk (70 lbs db's).
90x20, fw, 90x6, fw, 80x6 (attempted fw but went nowhere, grip was gone)

training age == 1 year

I started going to the gym one year ago and I've made some progress. I spent some time at the beginning dicking around with some exercises that weren't as useful (you know the stuff, 3 sets of 10 on isolation exercises) so I like to think my progress would have been greater. But some others have been doing the same routine for years so I won't complain.

Here is a snapshot.

• weight - 2007/157lbs; 2008/170lbs (even a few days after nats, I expected this to have dropped a few pounds)
• squat - 135x6; 225x5 (I haven't done these in 3 months because my legs have been beat up from frisbee)
• deadlift - 165x6; 285x1 (April -the grip is the gating factor here, the weight feels light everywhere else)
• power clean - 95x5 (January); 135x4 (May)
• press - 90 (January); 100x3
• chins - 1; 12 & 30lbsx3 (I'm not at 12 right now, I only hit 9 a couple of weeks ago)
• push ups - 15; 30 (November - I haven't done them since?)
• inverted rows - 11 (January); ______
• 100 burpees - 16:06 (May)/13:25 (July)
• vertical jump - 18"/_____

Clearly my baselines were not set up in an ideal way. But I was figuring out a lot of stuff as I went. And I suppose I still am.

I should do a broad jump.

Things I'd like to accomplish in the next year:

1. 1 muscle up (they say you can probably do this if you can do 15 chin ups and 15 dips)
2. 1 handstand push up
3. 130 press
4. 375 deadlift
5. 300 squat
6. 200 power clean
7. 30 chin ups (with a kip)
8. sub 6 minutes for 1 mile
   
9. sub 8 minutes for 100 burpees

I don't have any stats on my sprinting times so I won't include that -- I am assuming that they will improve with the increased strength and general physical preparedness (gpp or metcon).

World's is in Prague in 2010. I'm just saying.

I think I might compile a list of sports that I don't think should be in the Olympics.

With a little more gusto

Tempo run (0% grade):
3 min @ 6 mph
1 min @ 6.5
... increments increasing .5 mph each minute to
1 min @ 9 mph
1 min @ 8.5
... increments decreasing .5 mph each minute to
2 min @ 6 mph
1 minute walking cool down. 1.9 miles in 17 minutes (including walking)

I didn't break a sweat until 8 mph on the way back down.

Press: 45 x 7, 7, 6
Farmers walk: 50 lb db x 3 circuits (about 45 steps)
Glute/ham extensions: 15 x 2
Bench dips: 10 x 3 **I've never been able to do ten reps three times before. Yay me.
V-sit ball toss (4 kg): 30 x 2

During my alternating sets of bench dips and ball toss, I caught the Olympic women's 5K race on TV.

WOW. The winner (Ethiopian) finished in 16:41. The loser (a Canadian, natch), finished about a minute later. It was amazing to see these ladies run. Imagine striking to the end zone on a field that's 5 km long. That's how they ran.

Back Atter

And sucking.

Nats + 4 days. So, even though I didn't play nearly as much as I wanted, and was willing and able to at CUC 2008 in Calgary, home of HEAT, I am a bio mechanical mess.

5k run with a fast mile. 6:35 on the mile, 23:20 on the 5k. A minuteish rest after the mile. Its an ok set of times, and an improvement on the 5k, but wow did it hurt. Left hamstring, Right knee, right hip flexor / groin. I felt like a bucket of rocks out there. Not my usual svelte, lithe and ancient self.

Back at the gym: 15 x 2 back extensions, 15 x 2 front extensions, 10R, 10L pistol squats w/ 30lbs, stretch, see ya!

Still sore. Very tired.
I
feel
old.

5 days post-nats

Second verse, same as the first. Minus the energy.

chins: 3, 3, 2 + 2 assisted (one toe on the bar)
squats: 100 x 7, 7, 7 + 25 finishers (45 lb) Why are these getting harder?
calf presses (seated): 320 x 8, 8, 9
cleans: 65 x 10, 8, 8
bench press: 70 x 8, 9, 6 + 25 finishers (45 lb)
random uninspired variations on seated row: 50 x @5, 5, 5
one-legged crunches on the ball: 20, 20
back extensions: 10, 7

No running whatsoever.

nats in 4 days

press: 95 x3 +2 push presses, x3 +2 jerks, 1 +2 push +2 jerks.
cable press: 80 x4, x4, x3.
bar row: 120 x5, x5; 125 x5, x5.
finishers:
facepulls 100 x 20, farmer's walk cct. w/ 70 lbs dumbbells
facepulls 100 x 4, farmer's walk cct. w/ 70 lbs dumbbells
facepulls 80 x 11, farmer's walk cct. w/ 70 lbs dumbbells

nats in 5 days

squat: 100 x8, x8, x8; 65 x20
calf press: 320 x8, x8, x8
clean: 75 x3; 70 x(17 sets of 1 rep); 70 x6, x6, x6
press/push press: 55 x3+4 pp, x3 pp; 50 x2+3 pp, x2+3 pp
back extension: 10
single-leg ball crunch: 24
v-sit ball toss: 40
side planks: 40 sec/side
facepulls: 70 x7, x6, x6

"Easy" intervals: 3 x 400 m @ 9 mph/0% grade (total 1.5 miles including warm-up, cool-down)

nats in 6 days

press: 95 x5, x5, x2 + 2 push presses + 1 jerk. yay
chins: 9, 6, 3. boo
bar rows: 115 x5, x5, x5.
facepulls: 70 x30.
<some time later>
bar curls at the Elmdale

Gotcha

Presses: 115 x 10, 8, 5
Weighted Pulls: 25lbs x 16, 10, 8, 3,
1 rep max back squat: 295
1 rep max deadlift: 315



KIDDING-its a test too.

hiatus over

press: 95 x2 + 3 push presses, x5 push, x1 push + 2 jerks
chins: 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 4, 3. 47 in 10 sets
cable chest press: 70 x5, x5, x5

Practice - the first ten

I wouldn't normally count this as "workout", because frisbee is a matter of course (and practice is generally less intense than an actual game), but after drills and scrimmaging last night, we did a half hour of targeted fitness with Stella, and it was most excellent.

We rotated through:

5 tuck jumps
sprint (20-30? yards - footrace against a de/offender)
10 slalom jumps
sprint

About 10 times.

Then ten minutes of core, during which we flipped over and back, alternating between the posterior and anterior chain (v-sits, side and front plank, push-ups, sit-ups, one-legged bridge, etc.)

During the sprints, I tried to focus on form to make every rep count: driving really hard into the ground, leaning forward especially at the start, staying on my toes, etc. Occasionally, I let my opponent have a little head start to see if I could catch up. My 5th gear kicked ass. ;-)

Cleaning up, at last

[warm-up skipping: 911]

Chin-ups: 5, 2, 2, 1
Pushups: 20
Crunches (single-leg on the ball): 24, 20
Face-pulls: 70 x 10, 8, 7
Cleans: 65 x 5, 5, 6, 5 (1st three reps of 2nd set included push presses)
Run home: 6 km
Mow lawn

The cleans were fun! J-Boss was there to confirm that my form was fine. Grip was the gating factor; I'll be able to up the weight easily next time, as long as I remember to not do chin-ups first!

At risk of overdoing it

But, meh!

Gym today, frisbee tonight.

Back and front extensions, 15 x 2 each.

Back squats, 225 lbs; 5, 5, 5
with
DB curls (30 lbs) 18, 14, 12

Finisher squats, 155 lbs; 19

Dips; 20, 10, 6

A bit of everything

And the day after, I'm very sore.

Deadlifts: 95 lb x 10, 10, 10

Calf press (seated, straight leg): 320 lb x 9, 8, 8

Press: 55 lb x 2 (+ 3 push press)
50 lb x 3 + 2 pp, 3 + 2 pp
PB! Finally upped from 45...

DB rows: 30 lb x 9/9, 7/7

DB rows in plank: 15 lb x 12, 20 lb x 6 (total, alternating arms)

Hip extensions: 18

Dips (the real kind): 3, 2

Dreadmill intervals: alternated 45 seconds on 8% incline, 45 flat (excluding 15 second grade transition) -- 2 @ 6 mph, 2 @ 6.5 mph

Plyo-squats

No frisbee this week because I'm resting a sore hip flexor... So I have a bit of leeway to do some legwork (of the variety that is gentle on the hips. I hope.)

Plyo-squat: Back squat in which you push up from the bottom of the squat forcefully enough that your feet leave the ground at the top (like, an inch). Reset feet carefully for the next rep. This may be a real exercise or not; at any rate, that's what I did. Maybe it could also be called a power squat?

Alternating sets: plyo-squats (45 lb)/push-ups

20/19, 20/15, 15/13

Finisher: 100 walking lunges (in groups: 30, 30, 40 with 30 regular steps between sets. After which my thighs were numb and I walked like a gangsta. Appropriate, as I did this on my street which is slightly ghetto-like.)

Alternating sets: chin-ups/jumping pull-ups

5/5, 3/4, 2/4, 1/1

Getting stronger... I think

But I don't know how our why, because I've only been doing a few quick upper body workouts about once a week.

Chin-ups: 5, 4, 1, 1
Press: 45 x 12, 7, 6

PB in both, in terms of consecutive reps in a single set. I guess I need to work on my total reps for chins... But sometime you just gotta stop and go have lunch.

Last night at practice, collective punishment for incomplete passes*:
Push-ups: Lost track after 70 (in sets of 20 and 10)...
Sit-ups: Lost track after 40

*Very few of which were mine, I'll have you know.

Cue the Rocky theme song...

6:01 mile.

Five km with a fast mile in it at lunch. That's right, 6:01 on the mile! GAH! So close! Took a 50-60 sec stop after the mile and went on to finish the 5k in 23:00. All in all, pretty exhausting, I have to say.

Finished at the gym with some leg stretching (tweaked hammy survived a hardy scrimmage last night but it is still there, tweaking) and 2 x 15reps back extensions, 2 x 15 reps front extensions (just flipped over on the back extension bench -duh!? Never thought of that before). Pull ups; 30 (12, 8, 4, 2, 2, 2).

Back to work :-(

push-ups

100 push-ups for time. This did not go as well as I thought it would.
100 in 10:13.

Not floating belly up in a lake somewhere...

Just extremely, annoyingly, preoccupied with work and its myriad details.

Recap of recent fitnessy things:

Really enjoyed the 8k runs at the cottage with Ms Hedda. Very satisfying.

Do frisbee games, esp. bad ones, count as a fitnessy thing?? Played a couple of those this week. Also, hit my vO2 max moving a dresser...

Wednesday night: Grace a notre bon ami Daddy-o, used the Olympic bar and 35 lb plates to throw down (up?) two-and-a-half push presses. A straight shoulder press was out of the question. Then 20 45lb finishers (presses).

Thursday: Pick up lunchtime frisbee which ended up being throwing for 1.25 hours. Like *I* need to throw more ;-) Anyway, its a geek sausage fest out in Kanata; and its near impossible to round up 10 dudes for some ultimate at lunch? Whatever.

Friday: Modified Cindy (from crossfit) after work (5 pulls ups, 10 push ups, 15 45 lb squats; as many rounds in 20 mins). A shitty 9 rounds in 19:50. I could feel the lack of pushing myself. Some days you can, some days...Coached Ben on filling water balloons during the last 4-5 minutes. Don't really know what I told him. It didn't work whatever it was. Later, we did fill some. We hurled them at one another from 10 feet. They bounced off us and broke on the grass. We were puzzled.

Saturday: 5k run. Mapped out in the "quartier". Its pretty good one, with only a few traffic crossing issues and a long, slow uphill for the last 2k. Managed 22:45 on some pretty...what's the word for "did 135 45 lb squats the day before? Oh yeah, "apparently not there" legs. I could feel the "pushing myself" this time.

Big frisbee game coming up and an even more enormous tournament. Pretty nervous about performing adequately.

more reps of chins

Last night I started making sandbags. 25 lbs of sand in each contractor bag. They will then be lumped in to a canvass sack for cleaning, shouldering, and general abuse.

today -
(laying off the lower body work as my right achilles has been pretty angry since Jazzfest)
press: 95 x2, x2, x1. gah
chins: 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 2, 2. (44 reps in 10 sets)
facepulls: 110 x10, x8, x6.
Alternated the press with the chins and then the facepulls with the chins.

Molly Maid

Happy circumstances have led to me have (temporary) possession of a barbell. I took advantage of said circumstances last night to try out the legendary "clean".

45 lb is pretty light (and the alternative of 115 lb beyond the pale of reason) so I was able to do a fair number, and also added the press at the top (making it a "clean and press" I suppose). On average, my presses were somewhere between strict presses and push presses.

I did 4 sets: 20, 12, 12, 10

The number of reps were constrained by my ability to keep up the presses. Also, because there were no plates and I was too lazy to hunt down something to prop the bar on, I had to hold the barbell in a "hover" at the bottom of the movement, which wasn't too difficult at first, but became a bit hard on the back eventually.

With the light weight, it was difficult to judge whether I was doing the cleans correctly. Felt ok, but a heavier weight would be less forgiving. Will try 65 lbs next time. I can see getting totally addicted to this exercise.

Also, I practiced burpee form. I didn't do actual burpees - just practiced going back and forth from the squat to the push-up position. My lack of flexibility makes it necessary to actually "jump" (ie: plyos for the arms), so it only took a few before my forearm completely cramped.

Later, McPie demonstrated the burpee for me and I felt lame in comparison. But fully enjoyed the shirtless show. More backyard workouts, please!

Run for cancer

I'd been enjoying the 8K runs we were doing at the cottage. So I headed out for a run around noon. Partway in, on a path along the Gatineau Parkway, I heard on the weather report (of course I needed the company of CBC on my run) that the UV index today was an "10" (on a scale of 11)... Normally, a high UV rating is 6-8. A rating of 10 is considered unusual and extreme.

Up next, the top news story was about the high UV in Ottawa today, and how people should be coping. Apparently, sunscreen isn't even good enough.

Here I am, midday, scantily clad, sunscreenless (because frankly, I have a hunch that we'll find out eventually that sunscreen causes cancer as much as UV rays), and the Park is offering much less shade than I'd anticipated (ie: none whatsoever).

So I cut the run a bit short, and only did about 5 km.

Additionally (in shady areas):

5x steep hill sprints

Pull-up training: jumping pull-ups, negatives (about 5 of each)
Chin-ups: 3, 2, 2, 1
Push-ups: 2x 20

Cottage week roundup

On vacation at the cottage, we managed to squeeze a few workouts in between the dock-sitting, barbecuing, and cocktailing.

Sunday:

8 km run (43 min)
Push-ups: McPie - 40, 20, 12; Hedda - 24, 10, 12

Tuesday:

8 km run (42 min)
box jumps: 10 x 3
step-down jumps: @ 15
turkish get-ups: McPie (16 lb) - 10, 6, 6; Hedda (8 lb) - 12 x 3 (switching arms halfway through)
glute/ham extensions: 15
back extensions: McP - 15, H - 18

Friday:

Cottage Road Mile: McPie - 6:09; H - 6:32 PB for both of us!

Rumour has it that McPie also did a bunch of squats with a child on his back, on maybe Thursday, but the details are hazy.

Note: The family gathered and watched in fascination (or bemusement?) for some of our workouts. Some even participated. Young Constance can do chin-ups and pistol squats (!) like nobody's business. (But her push-ups need some work, so she doesn't totally show us up.)

100 burpees

13:25. Previous best (also the first time I tried them) was 16:05.

upper

press 95 x4, x2
dips 3, 3, 3, 3, 3 = 15 reps in 5 sets. My first dips (I had to find an alternative way to do them because a dipping area would interfere with the square footage required for the adduction and abduction leg machine and and and the dip *machine*).
chins 5, 5, 5, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 1 = 31 in 9 sets.
barbell row 130 x3, x3, x3
facepulls 100 x10, x10, x10

Shakey

Pre-lunch workout.

5 min run at 2.5% (managed 3/4 mile)

Pistol squats: 10/10, 7/7, 5/5 with a 35lb DB
coupled with
Press: 7, 5,4 @ 85lbs

Deadlifts: 7,6,5 @225 lbs
Pull ups, no kip: 10, 10, 5

'Finisher' squats, 155 lbs, 10 and then a near death experience. Well, ok, I felt woozy.

Friday fightclub

Good thing there was nobody else in the gym today, or they'd have been sprayed by my sweat.

"Fight Gone Bad"

Crossfit Rx:
Three rounds of:
Wall-ball, 20 pound ball, 10 ft target (Reps)
Sumo deadlift high-pull, 75 pounds (Reps)
Box Jump, 20" box (Reps)
Push-press, 75 pounds (Reps)
Row (Calories)

Move from each of the five stations after a minute.The clock does not reset or stop between exercises. This is a five-minute round from which a one-minute break is allowed before repeating. On call of "rotate", the athletes must move to next station immediately for best score. One point is given for each rep, except on the rower where each calorie is one point."

What *I* did:

Wall-ball, 8.8 lb ball (it's the heaviest we have)
Sumo deadlift high-pull, 35 lb
Box jump, 13" (the highest I dared stack the stepbench)
Push-press, 45/35/35 lb
Row (tension set to 8)

Each station = 1 min. I did reset the clock for each one set, but only rested (for 1 min) between full rounds. Results:

WB: 40, 32, 31
DL: 21, 20, 19
BJ: 29, 31, 32 (wtf?)
PP: 15, 16, 15
Row: 10, 10, 12 cal

Just to be sure I could, I did some chin-ups: 4 consecutive (I think that's the most I've done in a row without a spot!) Just one set - I had to get home before I starved to death.

Run home: 6 km (35 min)

Mowed lawn. (Noted that this activity is the opposite movement to rowing...)

Three more chin-ups. Just to be really, really sure.

Then, sweet sweet lunch. I may never be sated...

Weekend Workout

Seven games of Ultimate frisbee and an excellent lung workout screaming "FUCK OFF, GLEN. FUCK!" at the top of my lungs while sprinting.

4 reps of anger management and deep breathing.

2 reps water bottle throw down.

One elbow to forehead.

A stolen lunch...

...hour.

At the gym:

2 x 50 reps sit ups on the ball
3 x 10 extensions w/ 25lb plate
Press: 85 lbs x 8 x 6 x 3
BBQ Press: 135 lbs x 7 x 6 x 4 (I need a spot! I had one more in me each set.)
Finisher presses: 45lbs x 18.

Hammy stretch. Ouch.

Press(ed) for time

Almost crushed by work, I managed to pry myself from underneath to score a 30-minute workout. Here's what I squeezed in:

skipping: Back in Black

chin-ups: 3, 3, 2, 2, 1

sit-ups (feet braced): 30

presses: 45 x 10, 7, 5 (time to up the weight, whoop!)

sit-ups (feet free): 20

back extensions: 15

burpees: 10 (OMG. These are hard. I seem to have to do them in slo-mo. How the heck do you get from the bottom of the squat to the plank in one mov't??? I'm apparently not nearly coordinated/flexible/strong enough to do so with any hint at grace...)

turkish get-ups: 10 lb x 20 (continuous, but alternating arms 5/5/5/5)

Quick stretch on vital bits (hams, hip flexors, pecs) and back in the cube in 50 min. Including shower.

30 by 5

warm uppish movement practice - vertical jumps: 10 sets of 1 rep.

30 burpees
30 thrusters
30 turkish get-ups
30 pushup position rows (what are these called again?)
30 v-sit rotations

Thrusters, TGU's, and the rows were with 25 lbs dumbbells. Except that I never would have finished the TGU's if I hadn't downgraded to 15 lbs after the first 8.

So, total time: 19:34. I was at 7:40 after the thrusters and 16:20 after the TGU's.

I guess I'll keep trying to do more reps with the 25 on the TGU's until I can do all 30 with 25. Or maybe not. I'm also considering increasing the weight or the reps on the rows.

Taking a break from all your worries

The 5k with a fast mile sure has that effect. Whatever was on your mind sure leaps off it once the engines of tenacity fire up.

Yesterday I ran at lunch (the brutality of work has abated slightly) in pretty nice weather; 6:14 on the mile and 23:30 on the 5k. (I took a full minute to gasp for air behind the mile-marking and handily sheltering from public eyes cedar before running again, and then fought a late eaten, pita and hummus induced cramp the rest of the way.) I am happy with the mile part, a little disappointed with the 5k overall.

Finished at the gym with:
50 crunches + 10L and 10R one legged crunches
2 x 15 back extensions
8x5x3x1 weighted pull ups at 25lbs
3 x15 dips.

Feels good to feel sore again:-)

forearm-itis

deadlift: 265 x1, x1, x1, x1, x1 (5 total)
clean & jerk: 95 x5, x5, x5, x5
chins: 5, 5, 5, 3, 1 (19)

The chins suffered from forearm-itis. They've been sore since I got back on the deads. And, of course, are the gating factor in the deads. So, hopefully they'll bounce back and I can start making improvements in both the chins and the deadlift. I'm also considering moving chins to the start of the workout for a while.

Bitch and moan

The duration of my workout today was punctuated by an ongoing inner monologue of bitching, moaning, and excuse-making. Call it "The Housewife, Take III".

In the end (now that the entire thing is safely tucked away into the past), it doesn't seem so bad.

Mile*: 6:54. Same as last time (different route). Hmmph. Excuse: the first 4/5ths were uphill.
Next 2.4 km: Cramp just south of my left ribs. Excuse: My part in the two empty white wine bottles left on the counter this morning.
Next 1 km: Kicked myself in the pants and tried to take it up just a little bit, at least a smidgeon beyond a feeble jog. (That is was hot is no excuse after last weekend at GB.)

Total: 5K = 25 min 40 sec

Push-ups: 20 x 3 (alternating with weeding the garden)

Unlike McPie, who generally runs the "5K + Fast Mile" to get a respectable time in both but not necessarily top time for the mile, I was aiming for a pb mile and "whatever" for the rest. So, it's not so bad, for that. Except for the part where I'm stuck in a rut 6 seconds short of my current mile pb. (Varying routes with less-than-precise mapping tools may play a role.) Not unlike my chin-up rut.

* The fast mile remains the toughest workout ever. It hurts. Every time, I end up running a portion of it with my eyes closed, torn between hoping to survive and hoping for a quick death to escape the misery. But I'm still going to get 6:30 before the end of the summer. Dammit.

dead and dread

deadlift:265 x1, x1
clean & jerk: 105 x5, x2, x1 -> finish the set with 5 cleans, then did another set of cleans.
barbell row: 120 x5 x5
cable press: 70 x5, x5, x5

alternating facepulls with farmer's walk:
70 x41
one trip with two 50 pound dumbbells (it's a small trip around the gym)
70 x9
one trip . . .
70 x7
one trip . . .

farmer's walk: description and a demo

2 miles on the dreadmill. slow. on purpose.

press:
45 x20

While the lower half recovers

A couple of days after that whole eight games of frisbee in four days thing, and my hip flexor is still preventing me from taking a full stride. So.

[skipping: I Predict a Riot. This is a long song! More than four minutes...]

Alternating sets of jumping pull-ups and dips (yes, actual dips):

JPU: 5, 2, 2
Dips: 2, 2, 2

Chin-ups from a dead hang*: 2

* Ok, I was standing on the bench I used for the jumping pull-ups, but my arms were fully extended. The point was to do them without starting from the top.

Push press: 60 lb x 5, 3, 3 (previous heaviest was 55)
Press: 35 lb x 7 (this was supposed to be a finisher. Is it a finisher if you can only do seven? I eked out another 3 after that to make sure I really was finished.)
Rotator flies (don't ask): 8 lb dbs x 8, 8, 8

Alternating triceps rope pulls and face pulls:

Tris: 50 lb x 10, 9, 7
Face: 70 lb x 8, 8, 8

Misc: 15 back extensions, 20 single-leg ball crunches, 50 v-sit ball tosses (4 kg)

I'm dying to try a mile tomorrow, but my friend HF may not be ready...

ring the bells . . .

that still can be rung

deadlift: 255x3, x1, x1
clean & jerk: 100x5, x5, x5
chins: x5, x5, x5, x5, x3, x2, x2, x1 (28 total)

<some time later>

"fast" mile: 6:55. hmmph. anterior calves were very sore which I did not know about until this run started. Must be from the tournament on the weekend.

Junior practice tonight. I'll do the runs with the kids if I can't think of a *reason* not to.

Also, I weighed in this morning at my heaviest ever. 171. A little too much neck pain induced lay-off means it's not all on my shoulders . . . I'll have to try to move it. Last August I was 157.

Extended Cindy

I've been trying to do one crossfit workout a week. This week, the one that suited me best was:

"Complete as many rounds in 20 minutes as you can of:
15 Pull-ups
30 Push-ups
45 Squats"

Which is essentially an amplified Cindy. And also CRAZY.

More realistically (er, idealistically?) I tried for:

10 pull-up-type-movements (that fell apart quickly)
20 push-ups
30 squats (with 12 lb body-bar)

In twenty minutes.

Short story = 4 rounds

Long story...

Assisted pull-ups (feet lifted onto a bar on the squat rack*):
10
8+1
4 (this is approximate; I wrote it down but left the paper at work)
2 chins-ups + 1 negative pull-up

+ 6 x 80 lb shoulder-width-grip lat pulls. (I had a minute left after the 4th round.)

* I experimented with different levels, from way below my hips to a happy medium. It was all hard. I'm not sure this is a good way of training pull-ups- I think it contorts the movement. But still, hard! Next time, I will try jumping pull-ups.

Push-ups (regular/girlie):

18/2
10/10
10/5+5
5/10+5

Squats:

30 reps with a bit of weight gets hard real fast! I was able to do them continuously, and with my heels slightly propped, I can get my hams to my calves. (The main obstacle between me and ATG is my ankle flexibility. I think. Probably a varietly of inflexibilities, but the ankle thing I can fudge.)

Finished with some back extensions and ball crunches (one-legged of course - if you guys aren't doing 'em like this, you are seriously missing out.)

I'd have tried a mile if I'd had time, just to try to improve my time. I can't let Uncle G get too far ahead of me!

Update

Work keeps on winning. Gah!

last Friday was a late afternoon workout:
225 lb back squats, low, like parallel: 8/7/6 reps
bicep curls :-) 30 lb DB's x 18/14/10 reps
Deadlifts: 225 lbs x7/6/2 (felt my knee tweak uncomfortably...ick)
calf press (seated -its horrible) 250lbs x 10, 10, 9

run -5 min at 7.5, then 45 seconds at 10, 45 seconds walking rest x 4 reps. Total 1.5 miles in 13:00 or so.

Monday was circuit: only 3 rounds of 400m run, shoulder press (80lbs x 8, 7, 6- inspired by Rippetoe) Pull ups (10). Time was 17:45 I think. Quite taxing actually. Then 40 ball sit-ups, 30 back extensions, back to work.

Now its just work work work work work work work.

A plan to avoid frustration and despair

There is something in here for everyone, on pull-ups.

I have personally taken special note of training tips A, G, H, J, N and, of course, Z.

c&j

inspired by a conversation I had a couple of weeks ago, clean & jerks have been added in.
clean & jerk: 95 lbs x 5 reps x 3 sets. Given that I clean 135 and press (strict, not like the thrust with the jerk) 100 lbs, I expected to do more than this. But I was pretty tapped by the end. It is a long way to move a bar. I hope that improvements will come quickly though.
chins: BodyWeight x 5 reps x 4 sets, 3 reps x 2 sets, 1 rep x 1 set. (27 total) Meh.
cable press: 60x5x3

<some time later>

fast mile: 6:34. This was really 800m at 10mph, 600m at 8mph, 200m at 10mph. 1% grade. I think I shaved 25 seconds off my last attempt on the dreadmill. I wonder what I'm really running outside?

hangover day

100 burpees for time: 16:06

45 in 5:23.
75 in 10:57.

<some time later>
3.75 miles.

Warm-up mile and then did the fast mile in 7:29 (8.0mph). The 3rd quarter of this was pretty slow. 2:24. Weird (hopefully it was a gps gack).

The rest of the run was at 6.2 mph and felt pretty good.

finished with 5 times up the Strathcona steps.

Tonight: circuits of steak, salad, wine.

A lovely day to kick some ass

McPie, you are so buying me dinner.

I attempted the May 27 WOD. I planned chin-ups for pullups, and intended to not time that part.

Mile: 6:54

2 min each:

Rowing: never done this before - set the erg to 10 and, uh, tried hard. Don't worry, I pulled right to my chest. Way harder on the shoulders than I expected. Couldn't find the calorie meter. Rowed @ 500 m. Assume that is lame.)

Thrusters: 10 lb dbs. I didn't count, but estimate 35 (15 to start, then mini-sets of 5)

Med ball cleans: 4 kg (That's the heaviest we have. Focused on form. My quads nearly died.)

Skipping: not double-unders. I skipped as fast as I could. Attempts at DU's resulted in getting my ass whipped by the rope.

Total time @ 30 min, including run. (Took 5 min to get back to the gym from the run, and I did rest a minute between exercises.) Slow, I know, but finishing is good.

Pullups: Assisted (feet up) - 7, full - 1+1+1+1 = 4

Yes, you are reading that right. PULLUPS. Kind of accidental, in fact.

Rather than chin-ups, I decided to try quasi-pullups: assisted with my feet up on the barbell, then a set of negatives. But when I lowered myself for the first negative... Allee-oop! Up I went. (Shocked, quite frankly.) I lowered and dropped, then had to try another to see if it was a fluke. Nope.

After a few fist-pumps, I had to try another, to really be sure. Yah pullup! Just when I thought I was done, I had to throw down one more, cherry-on-top style. Frankly, I didn't get my chest to the bar or anything, but my chin was over every time. In fact, as least once I believe I was hanging by my chin.

I'm not displeased that the ensuing 6 km run took 36 whole minutes. It was not part of the workout; it was the only way I could get home.

Then I mowed the lawn.

I won't lie to you, I'm writing this lying down. With a beer.

This week...

Sunday was a day of (wine club) recovery. At about 5pm guilt or something got the better of me. I threw down a Cindy (20 minutes of reps of 5 pull ups, 10 push ups, 15 squats).

I managed 11 rounds, one better than the last time. Whoop! I'll admit that I sipped a rum and coke while doing it...but that's not the best part! When I was finished Ms Hedda had prepared a delish steak dinner with steamed chard and grilled mushrooms. H-E-A-V-E-N.

Monday and Tuesday were Frisbee games. Wind sprints really. I like.

Today was the 5k with a fast mile at lunch-ish time. Best time ?ever? Well, 3:50 on the first km, 6:13 on the mile (yay!) and then - Geezus didn't I neglect to hit the lap time button on the watch. I have no clue how long it took -the watch still said 10:03 at the end. F! me! It felt good though, fast, and I didn't stop after the mile, just slowed down, a lot, for a bit, then kept on truckin'. I am going to guess I did it in 22:10. It felt faster than 22:30, but really, who am I kidding. I'll never know.

Before showering afterward, a little lifting: shoulder press: 80lbs x 8, 6, 5 and Pull ups 3x 10reps.