Assassin's Day

Complete as many rounds as possible in 20 minutes of:

30 second Handstand hold

30 second Squat hold

30 second L-sit hold

30 second Chin over bar hold

I'm really sore this morning after. The chin over the bar was the worst of it. Being upside down for the handstand wasn't so bad. My back is achey, though, because of it. 

My one year anniversary blog post was featured on the PCF website yesterday. I was humbled and pleased when Zeb asked if he could use it as a guest post. I want everyone to know how much Crossfit has changed my life. Sharing is caring.  Assassin's Day

Bad Ass

Interesting

Hang power snatch 1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1 reps

I don't think I've ever worked on hang power snatch. I actually beat my squat snatch PR of 50#s. Crazy. This movement is very challenging. You loose the deadlift for momentum in shrugging the bar, and you take away the squat which allows you more time to get under the bar. So I'm pleased as punch that I got 55# above my head :)

And is that wasn't enough, I went for a Back Squat PR.

Back Squat 1-1-1-1-1-1 reps

AND I GOT IT!

At my attempt of 125#, Rico pointed out that I wasn't set up correctly and I wasn't "tight" all the way around from my shoulders to my mid-line. I wasn't aggressive enough with the bar. When I took off 5#s and attempted 120#, I made sure I racked the bar in a comfortable place on my back and really locked everything tight in my body. Every muscle was tense. I went into my squat and came right up and it felt manageable. Which makes me believe I so have 125#s in my sights :)

Paper Gangsta

3 Rounds, not for time of:
Strict Muscle-up, hold support for 3 seconds with rings turned out
L-sit, hold for 5 seconds
Skin the Cat, hold bottom position for 3 seconds
Inverted to lower, hold inverted position for 3 seconds


5 Rounds of:

15sec Back Lever
15sec Handstand/Headstand Hold (preferably no wall)
15sec Front Lever

2 Rounds of:

10 Wall Extensions (video and explanation)

Today was a fun, experimental day. I am now able to do a CONTROLLED headstand without flopping over on my back- woohoo!

So 365 days ago, I walked into Paradiso Crossfit with no idea what was in store for me. It was about a week prior that I had flaked on my complimentary one-on-one with David. Having not heard back from him after numerous attempts to reach out to him, I impulsively paid the fees for the 4 week On-ramp course to SHOW HIM that I wasn't flakey. Lol. It's weird how Diso not chasing after my business actually made me want to prove that I would be a good client.

On-ramp class began at 7:30pm. I remember walking in and Diso pointing over at Sam and Zu, saying they had just completed the on-ramp and they loved it. I must have looked scared; maybe Diso thought I was going to bolt. I didn't know it at the time, but one of my future BFFs was trying to blend into the wall. That day our introductory WOD was run 200m, 15-12-9 Squats/Push Ups/Ring Rows, run 200m. Diso jokes that after my first 200m run, I came back and my lips were white... I don't think I finished the WOD, if I remember correctly. Not sure where I stopped during the WOD, but I know it was shortened for me.

It makes me smile thinking about all the different things that were going on in the rest of my life that brought to Crossfit. Everything is so different. Even how I look at things in life. My paradigm has shifted and changed (I hate to admit it, but all those LAS sales meetings really resonated with me).

There are 2 things for which I am truly grateful for that Crossfit has brought me. One, are all the wonderful, amazing friends I have made in our box and community. I can say that there are definitely people that I have met this year that I know will be my friends for life. The pool of just plain good hearted people that have collected within those 4 walls is hard to believe... it's like the coolest people in LA all happen to work out at my gym; but then I meet people from other boxes who are just as cool and down to earth and completely defy that statement. Maybe the correct fact is that the coolest people on earth Crossfit :)

The second thing I am grateful for is my health. 2010 is the first year that I was not admitted to the hospital for any my preexisting conditions. I've gone to the ER and/or been admitted to the hospital every year since 1998. I've broken a 11 year streak. Crazy. I don't think it's coincidence. I am healthy. I am closer to WELLNESS than I have ever been in my life. Wellness didn't happen overnight, and it took a commitment on my part to be an active participant in the choices I made. I got rid of all my prescriptions(the only thing that gets prescribed to me are the WODs). No more visits to the specialists. No more fear of not being able to travel, just in case I was too far from a hospital. No more surprise visits from the first responders/firemen in the neighborhood.

Thinking back, I just can't believe I lived that way for sooooo long. I didn't know that my quality of life was so low. Now I know what it's like to be well, feel well... And you want to share that with the rest of the world. You wish they could get a glimpse of it, so they know why they need to do the hard work.

Happy 1st Anniversary, the Paper Anniversary!

Mind fuck

5 Rounds for time of:

400 meter run

95/65 lb Overhead Squat, 15 reps

Austin Malleolo 10:16,  Karianne Dickson 11:50 (65lbs)

Scale Version A:  Lower weight

Scale Version B: 3 rounds

This work out got inside me and bullied me. My head arriving in the box was distant and tired. I woke up early to receive delivery of my dining table but they ended up pushing back the delivery to 2PM, making me the opportunity to have a full 8 hours of sleep. 

Just 3 days ago I set a new OHS PR of 60#s. I decided I wanted to go heavy (@ 3 rounds), which meant for me 90% of my PR weight. For warm up Zeb said it would be good idea to load up heavier than your WOD weight for a couple of attempts so that when the WOD started your bar would feel light. 

I decided to attempt 65#s for a new PR. Well I did it! I'm overhead squatting 65% of my body weight. Woo hoo!

3-2-1 Go! we start on the run, which was fine. All 3-400 meters were fine. I was slow, but I wanted to conserve energy for my squats. 

All 3 rounds of OHSs were very challenging for me. Round 1 I broke them up in sets of 5. Round 2 I dump the bar a couple of times, barely able to hit sets of 5, just knockin' out what I could. Round 3, I knew I was gassed. My first attempt had me submitting to the bar's weight and I was laying on my back. It really psyched me out. I C&J the bar and locked out my arms. My mid-line felt really wobbly. It took me almost 30 seconds to get my feet planted. I took a deep breath, and started my slow descend into a squat- I did 5, then 3. On my 4th attempt,  I could feel my arms want to give out, I started to waiver, my bar coming out of the frontal plane; I tried to pull my arms back but it was too much, I dumped the bar and fell on my ass again. At this point my frustration came to head and I felt tears coming down my face. I was sooo tired, unsure if I had it in me. I only had 7 more to do. Setting up in front of the bar was the most intimidating thing I've felt in a really long time. 

I knew it was all in my fuckin' head. Zeb was right there talking me through it. He knew where my head was at. He reassured me that my body is completely able to lift and squat that weight, that I should not doubt it. I don't know how, but I got through my last 7 reps. I felt really alone those last moments. 

The mind is so strong. I'm relieved I got through it. I wanted it bad though. I was pissed that I retreated to fear. But not for a second did I think that I was going to give up. Look at my time, almost 25 mins... mostly of me fighting off the "I can't's" in my head...

I think it's good to have WOD experiences like this one every now and again. It's humbling and terrifying all at the same. It reminds me why I keep coming back and wanting to do more, faster and better. 

OHS you will be my bitch one day. 

Not looking back

Max rounds and reps in eight minutes of:

4 Handstand push-ups

2 pood Kettlebell swing, 8 reps

12 GHD situps

My score: 5 rounds + 4 Tripod PUs. 

(I was so excited to go to dinner and catch up with Thomas I forgot to take a snapshot of the whiteboard)

I really liked this WOD. Except one thing: I almost tossed my Korean lunch. The first round of GHD Sit ups I went so fast that I definitely stirred up shit in my upper GI that I started to feel burpy and woozy by round 3. No bueno! This Tripod Push up is way more difficult than the variation on the box. It's definitely the next progression. I had muscle failure with this movement. That really hasn't happened when I'm on the box to do my HSPUs sub. 

My KB swings felt strong. Yup. Felt good. 

Tomorrow's WOD looks awesome. I hope they deliver my couch before 11:30am so I can make noon class. Cross your fingers :)

Update 111210:

Squat-errific !

Overhead Squat 1-1-1-1-1 reps

Front Squat 1-1-1-1-1 reps

Back Squat 1-1-1-1-1 reps

Try to increase load on each of the 15 sets

OHS 45-50-55-60PR!!-60PR!!

FS 85-95-105(F)-105(F)-105PR!!!

BS 85-95-105-115PR!!!!

I have so much to say, but don't have the discipline to sit and type it all out. I really think I could  have done more weight and set a higher PR on my Overhead squat. Time was a concern so I only did the RX'd 5 attempts. My front squat was a bit disheartening at first, but Hopper kinda got in my face and told me to get angry and give it another go. 3 attempt @ 105# I got it and it felt good. I could feel my legs getting really tired at this point, so I started light with my back squats. My former PR was 110, so I thought, "Fuck it, let's skip 110 and go straight to 115#." I went racked the bar on my back and it felt really heavy. 

I was unsure if I could do it. I had CR spotting me and she told me to take a deep breath. I got to the bottom of my squat and got scared a little bit. I think I made a whimpering noise. But I fired my legs and pushed my hips back first, and managed to stand up. It was crazy. 

I think if I hadn't done all the OHS and FS work first I could have totally done some crazy new PR on my BS. I theorize that I could potentially be in the 120s, or even 130. I think my next "rest" day I will work on my BS. 

Woo hoo! I heart all squats. 

Crazy stuff:

I'm loosing weight. Unintentionally. I'm not really 100% paleo and nor am I zoning. I do eat whole foods, but by no means am I eating like a saint. I weighed in at 100.9lbs. I can really feel it in my clothes.  My spandex/lycra shorts are "baggy" like I have room in them and the shorts themselves don't fit me snug anymore. I also fee like my butt is firmer, but flatter *sad face*. I'm trying to devise a plan to keep fat on my ass but while still trying to achieve muscle definition everywhere else. Is it even possible? I don't want to loose my badonka-donks. 

Oh vanity. 

I'm in love with being aware

Three rounds for time of:

30 Kettlebell swings, 1.5 pood

25 Wall ball shots, 20 pound ball

20 Pull-ups (I did 12)

Super happy. This kicked my ass. Did the first 30 KBs unbroken. This WOD laide me out. Really happy. 

I'm buzzed and it's 2:30 in the morning. Must sleep. Can't wait for the WOD tomorrow. Ass heavy. Ha!

SOLID

Snatch one rep every minute on the minute for 15 minutes.


My low/high score:

How my 15 minutes progressed: 

So I just looked up my snatch history and my PR is 50#s, I thought it was 55#s. Oops. Well, I'm glad this WOD came up cause it really gave me the opportunity to work on my technique. I was telling Zeb it feels almost effortless when you do the movements perfectly and you stick the lift, like it's not difficult at all because you are using the powerful drive from the hips to get the bar weightless, then quickly get under the bar at the precise moment of being at the bottom of the squat and your arms are locked out... so nothing hurts or is strained or tweaky cause you did everything right. This effortlessness happened minute 6, 8, 9, 11, 12 and 14. I was really happy about it. 

Then in my last attempt I couldn't stick my landing. I felt the bar was too forward, which probably means when I shrugged I didn't keep the bar in my frontal plane, or I didn't get aggressive enough and lock out my arms at the bottom of my squat, so I ended up dumping the bar in front of me. 

Either way, I'm determined to get a new PR in the very near future. Depending on the workout this weekend, I'm definitely going to try to work on Snatch on my own. 

After 3 days of eating clean, I've already dropped all that crazy water weight that I pack on so quickly when I eat all the yummy rice and potatoes that I (heart) so much. Lol!

I did it!

Death by Press (95/65) - with a continuously running clock do 1 press the first min, 2 the second, 3 the third, until you can not reach that rep range within the minute-choose a weight that you can get at least 8 rounds with if you are scaling

Rest 1 min

Run 800 meters

Rest 1 min

Death by Toes to bar - do 2 toes to bar the first min, 4 the second, 6 the third, 8 the fourth, and so on until you can't reach that rep range within the minute

Rest 1 min

Run 800 meters

I'm just happy I complete the WOD. The shoulder press ladder really took me by surprise. I thought I went light at 35#s. My PR is 42.5#s. But during the 7th minute I went muscle failure. I really wanted to push press it!!! I just couldn't get the bar above my nose :(

I set off for my first 800m run with Laura at minute 8. And surprisingly I kept a good pace. I didn't stop once. I was jogging slow but I felt good, had energy... Didn't get all wrapped up in negative thoughts. Got back to the box and started my K2E. I think I could have done more than 4 rounds but my hands were really in pain. In the 4th minute it took me 40 seconds to do the 8 K2E, so I only had 2 seconds to rest until I had to attempt 10 K2E. I only got to 7. I had to readjust my hands every 2 reps, they felt raw and were in pain. If my hands weren't so tender, I may have survived a couple more rounds (maybe!)

As I started my second 800m, my head was not in a good place. The words, "I don't want to run" kept playing on a loop in my head. I recognized immediately my pace was slower than my first time around. When I got onto Ida street, I started to be keenly aware of how my legs were aching under each stride I took. I could feel all the negative thoughts starting to take over. I was desperate to not let them take over. I kept slow and sad pace. When I got to the turning point I took a break and walked 5 paces. I took another break about 2 blocks away. Then I tried to pick up my pace on the last 150m. In the end I only added 40 seconds to my first 800m run, which in my opinion is great considering my rocky running history. 

I felt heady and work out drunk for quite awhile after this WOD. It was great. Thanks, G!

PS- I got back in fish oil 3 days ago :) Still doing Daily Balance Shake for breakfast + fruit. Got back on Paleo 2 days ago. I hope I can be disciplined.

Babaloo!

"Barbara"

Five rounds, each for time of:

20 Pull-ups

30 Push-ups

40 Sit-ups

50 Squats

Scaling Option B:

"Barbie"

5 Rounds, each for time of:

5 Pull ups

10 Push ups

20 Sit ups

30 Squats

Rest 3 Minutes

I opted for scale B because I really wanted to keep the intensity up and make sure I kept proper form all 5 rounds. That means chin above bar on every pull up, chest to the ground and arms locked out at the top for every push up, sitting all the way up so chest touches thighs for every sit up, and getting below parallel and standing fully erect for every squat. 

I did a scaled version of Barbara in May. I remember it really kicking my ass. This time around I felt really good and strong. My kipping pull ups were perfect. My push ups were "model" push ups. My sit ups were not lazy. And my squats were in good form. 

Doing the math for each round...

R1-2:11

R2-2:34

R3- 2:33

R4-2:35

R5-2:50

I kept each round under 3 minutes, which isn't too shabby for me. Kenny Kane had very similar times as me but he was doing Barbara as RX'd. What a crazy monster!!! 

I feel good. My abs still have residual soreness from The GHD workout from FRiday. 

Tomorrow is a total beach day. Can't wait!