Snow and deadlifts!

Anyone else as excited for snow as I am?! LOVE it! The first snow fall is so pretty and relaxing! Just hope everyone is safe out there!


Strength: Deadlift 1-1-1-1-1
173-193-213-233PR-243PR (12#)

This week has been a bit of a roller coaster at the gym. I've been able to make small PR's, which is I guess is to be expected since I'm still at that year and a half mark. So I won't be making HUGE gains. I was a little nervous for setting a SRM today on the deadlift. Given that I've had a few back issues this year and haven't gone for a heavy single since January last year. But nonetheless, I was ready to tackle it but be cautious at the same time.

Mom and I shared a bar. I love watching mom lift, it's so great to see how far she's come in the gym and that she's not afraid to lift heavy weights. I believe she finished at 233# which was like a 30+ lb PR! So proud of her!

I warmed up with a few light sets just to get my back settled in and loose and ready to go. My first heavy single was at 173 and I slowly went up from there. 231 was my old SRM so I wanted to make sure that my fourth heavy single was over my old PR. 233 felt great going up, so I went up to 243. My lower back felt great through all the reps, which is where I've been having my problems. However, at 243, my upper back kind of rounded. It didn't feel terrible, but I know it wasn't the best. I decided to try and add 10 more pounds. I set up and went to pull, but could tell my upper back was going to start rounding again and decided not to follow through with the lift and just leave the bar happy with my 243 PR. I'm ready to tackle it again in the future. Maybe one day I'll make 300 :-P

WOD:
10:00 Amrap of:
10 Power cleans (115/75#)
20 wall ball sit ups (20/14#)
30 Double Unders
4 rounds +40 reps

I loved this wod! I was ready to get after this one since it was all movements I really like. My rounds of cleans were unbroken, unbroken, 9-1, 6-4, 6-4. These felt a lot better than the ones on Sunday during the hero wod. I think the additional 10# helped me keep better form. All wall ball sit ups were unbroken, and sheesh I forgot how much of a shoulder burner these are! My double unders went unbroken, 29-1 ugh!!, unbroken, 22-5-3, 10. I'm pretty sure that is the absolute most frustrating thing when you trip up on the last rep. ugh. I was shooting to beat 4 rounds and was ideally hoping I could stretch it to 5 full rounds, but fell just short of that. If I didn't trip up on the du's, I probably could've gotten all 5 rounds.

I finished off with 4 rounds of box dips to work on my triceps and keeping my arms close to my body, so I can get those ring dips. I did 4 rounds of 8 reps.

Overall, great day in the gym. Can't wait to get after the cleans tomorrow!

Some days...

Some days you have it....and some days you don't. This single rep max week has been a hard pill to swallow. While I've made a few gains, I'm still wishing for that extra bit. But there's not much I can do now, just have to push past this and train hard.

Since I didn't get the chance to go to the gym yesterday, due to taking a 3 hour standardized test, I went in today to take care of my Press and Back Squat SRM.

Back Squat 1-1-1-1-1

125-145-165-185 PR- 195 fail

We worked on srm back squat back in October before we started this Wendler cycle. At that time I was struggling with this lift by not keeping my chest up and raising my butt first. Just like my front squat on Monday, I got the 195 up 3/4+ of the way and couldn't get that last little bit. I do not understand how I can get it that far, but can't get it the rest of the way! I'm RIGHT THERE!!!! ugh, so frustrating. But I know I have it, I tried it 3 times and got closer every time, just not all the way. I've got it next time... Some positives to take away: I'm not dropping my chest like I used to. I've placed the bar a little lower on my back to prevent myself from "taco-ing", which allows my butt and chest to raise at the same time. I'm getting better at not bottoming out and finding that just below parallel spot.

So, I probably shouldn't have even attempted the Press srm after that since I was a little defeated. But I figured I would give it a shot....not a good idea. I'm going to have to redo this one.

Press 1-1-1-1-1

55-65-75-85-96 Fail

While I know this is going to be the hardest of the lifts to PR on, I still feel like I could've done better. 85 felt hard to get up. At that point I should've just called it quits and waited for another day. Instead I attempted to put up 96# three different times. Each time I barely got it to my nose. My old srm is 95#, so I wanted to just get it by at least a pound. But I don't even know if I could've put up 95 today. I'm definitely going to have to tackle this another day when my head is in the right spot...

A Small PR

Yesterday I decided to start the Leangains approach to eating to see if this has any success to my hopes of leaning out. Basically it's intermittent fasting. So I'll fast for 14-16 hours every day with the majority being at night and then have an 8-10 hour eating window. My first meal every day will be between 11 and noon and I will end my eating at 9. So yesterday I ate a small meal at 11 and 2:45 and my largest meal after my workout. The actual program says to eat an hour and a half to two hours before you workout, but with my commute to work, that's hard to do. I'm going to take this approach for a few week and see what kind of progress I make...

It's Single Rep Max Week! Cheers to getting over my plataues!

Strength: Front Squat 1-1-1-1-1
5 @ 65#
3 @ 83 #
1 @ 105#
1 @ 125#
1 @ 150# (unevenly loaded bar)PR
1@ 155# PR
1 @ 165# fail (about 6 attempts?)

I'm really excited to get after the lifts this week to see how much progress I've made. But I won't lie, I'm a little nervous too. My old SRM for my Front Squat was last May at 147#. I was really shooting to get 165, but just didn't have it in me last night. 155 went up pretty easily so I figured I'd jump up to 165 and give it a go. Each attemp I would get up to a point, probably 45 degrees and couldn't go any further. I couldn't get those last few inches. SO incredibly frustrating. By the end I just tired myself out. I KNOW I have 165, I'll have to attempt it again sometime soon...

WOD:
500m Row - 1:52
4 Rounds of:
5 Burpees
10 Jerks (115/75#)
20 Double Unders
8:31

I had a few goals for this:
-hard and fast row - pretty good, only a few seconds of my personal best 500m
-fast burpees - kind of slowed down on the third round
-unbroken Jerks - first round unbroke, last 3 were 5-5
-unbroken Double Unders - unbroken, 16-4, 13-7, unbroken

Overall this WOD went pretty well and fast. Took a few too many breaths to start the double unders each round which would've shortened my time. Jerks just got heavy. Again, need to get stronger upper body. Skill work hopefully will kick in soon with that!

Hero WOD

The weekend came and went all too fast. But overall it was a relaxing one indeed. Mom and I decided that this year we are going to take more time for ourselves and be a little selfish. Her and I are one in the same, in that we feel like we have a lot on our plate and stress a lot. Which is also why we feel like we are having a hard time losing more weight. So in order to help release some stress every month we are going to do something for ourselves. This past Saturday we decided to go get pedicures and went to dinner. It was exactly what I needed. I love spending quality time with mom and the last few months, that has been very hard to do. I look forward to being more selfish with her this year! J

I also for once had a weekend full of sleep. I decided to take a rest day Saturday morning and sleep in, probably got around 10 hours. Then Saturday, Jer went out with the boys, and I was in bed by 11 or so. Probably got around another 9+ hours of sleep. And Sunday I went to bed around 9:45. It was definitely necessary to get all this sleep this weekend. I felt a little more refreshed. And with school starting next Wednesday and my schedule being even more crazy than it already is, I’m going to try and get all the sleep I can now.

Sunday I went to the gym to partake in a Hero WOD with a bunch of friends from other CF boxes in the area. I love that we do this every 90 days or so, that way we can all keep in touch and see each other more.

Hero WOD “Wittman”
7 rounds of:
15 KB Swings (35#)
15 Power Cleans (65#)
15 Box Jumps (20”)
20:03

Going into this WOD, I wasn't planning on going all out. I wanted to really pace myself. My number one goal was to get all rounds of KB swings unbroken, which I accomplished. For the power cleans, I wanted to do these obviously in as few sets as possible. My rounds were something like this 10-5, 5-5-5, 3-2-3-2-3-2, 3-3-3-1-1-3, 3-3-3-3-3, etc. something like that. I felt my lower back start to tighten up around the fourth round, so I really tried to focus on form instead of speed. I took lots of breaths during those sets too, so my rest time added up quickly. My box jumps are another story. Currently I've had this fear of rebounding and box jumps, don't want an achilles injury. So I literally jump up, either stand it up or jump up and down to ensure my hips are open, then land, reset, then jump up again. If I went through all 7 rounds rebounding my jumps, that would've saved me a lot of time. My last round I did about 8 that I rebounded, then went back to restting. So, I obviously could've saved time on the box jumps and getting larger sets on the Power cleans. But I was ok with my time. I wasn't out to prove anything, just wanted to get a good workout in.

Sister of Fran

Friday was a somewhat long day at work. Again, for it being only a 4 day week, it seemed like a long one. But it was a better day than the one prior, so I can't complain. I was really looking forward to getting to the gym and spending the evening with great people.


Strength:
Cleans 5-5-5
53#(40%) - 65#(50%) - 83#(60% well more than that)


The cleans felt really light, as they should, but I really wanted to focus on my form for my back. So I went up a little bit on the last set. I wanted these to be mainly touch and go at a heavier load, but I think it ended up being 2-1-1-1. Chris said my 4th rep, my back gave a little, so I refocused on the last one and that felt the best!


WOD:
21-15-9
11 foot Wall Ball shots (20/14#)
Pull-ups


My version:
21-15-9 11' Wall Ball shots 14#
11-8-5 dead hang pull-ups with blue band
7:05

I've been doing a lot of thinking lately about my training and after talking to my brother about it, I decided to switch things up a little bit. Whenever we have pull-ups in a WOD, I'm going to try and scale back the reps and do dead hangs with the bands. I want to be able to get that unassisted dead hang, efficient chest-to-bar pull-ups, and be able to string together more kipping pull-ups. The only way this is going to happen is if I get stronger, and kipping pull-ups don't really build the strength in my shoulders that I need to get stronger. So I'm also going to work on these dead hangs as skill work other days during the week. This will go on for a few weeks and we will see how I progress, hopefully it helps!

Anyway, the 11' wall balls were actually pretty hard. They pretty much turned into jumping wall balls. The first set was horrendous, I dropped the ball about every 2 shots. Second round was a little better and the thrid was unbroken. Definitely something I think is good for training and strengthening the shoulders even more.

The dead hangs were also disappointingly hard. I got 6 unbroken the first round then it was 2's and 1's. It's amazing how much more difficult those are compared to kipping. The second round I did 2-1-1 sadly added the purple band then 2-2. Final set I believe was 2-1-1-1. It was definitely an eye opener to do my pull-ups this way. I knew I didn't have much OH strength, but sheesh those got hard fast. It is for sure something I want to continue doing and see what kind of progress I make.

Finished the evening with a rowing WOD, some dip practice, skin the cats, ab work and hanging out with friends at the gym!

Tell Me Your Goals

First mental/emotional breakdown of the year because of this job, check! Ugh. It’s hard for me to stomach the thought of being at this place for another year. I can only pray that something comes along before then, because I really don’t think it’s good for me. I’m trying so hard to remind myself that it’s only a year, but it seems like so far away. I know it’s only short term, but gosh this feeling sucks.

Deadlift 5-5-5 88(40% of TM)-109(50%)-130(60%) TM=217#

De-load week, taking it easy. Main focus was on form, keeping that back tight and butt down. This video by K-Star really helped me with my form today. Looking into getting a weightlifting belt. Anybody have any thoughts or suggestions?

WOD

3 Rounds:

10 Thrusters (105/70)

15 walking lunges

20 sit-ups

4:10

Goal with this WOD was just to keep moving and do everything unbroken. Thrusters felt alright today, still felt a little tightness in my shoulders and need to drive with the hips more. Pretty satisfied overall. Afterwards, I worked on my ring dip again, I get to the bottom and get stuck. One of these days I'll get them. I also attempted some rope climbs, gotta get the technique down and I think I'll be up that rope in no time. Skill practice every day and I'll make these goals.

Food Log:

Breakfast: 3 eggs with bacon bits, palm full of almonds and an apple. Water. Lunch: 3 oz chicken and some asparagus and 2 squares dark chocolate. Water. Snack: 2 squares dark chocolate. PWO: 6oz protein shake. Dinner: salad with bacon, tomato, and hard boiled egg. 2 squares dark chocolate. Arnold Palmer.

So I’m hoping to get a little more interaction with my blog this time around. I’m hoping to see more comments and discussions either on here or when I post it to FB. So today I’m going to start with goals, inside and outside the gym. Here’s a list of some of them, not really quantifiable and kind of broad, but it’s just giving you an idea:

1. Get a new job.

2. Become a better coach.

3. Be a supportive daughter, girlfriend, friend, coach.

4. Get into the low 150’s high 140’s and maintain it.

5. Work hard at school and get A’s in my classes.

So my questions to you guys are: How can you help me with these goals? Do you have any advice? But more importantly, what are YOUR goals and how can I help you achieve your goals? Whether I’m family, a friend, your coach, or a stranger, I’m here for you, tell me how I can support you!

Neglect

Blog. Only one word describes this blog and it's neglect. I haven't done a thing with it since October and before that I was barely posting. Life happened, I suppose. But at the same time I remember feeling better when I posted regularly. It's going to be hard to post on a daily basis once school starts, but hopefully I can manage a few times a week.

Work. One word...sucks. I had nearly two weeks off of work and it was the best two weeks I've had in a long time. I felt like a weight was lifted off my shoulders. I didn't have to go to bed every night, dreading waking up in the morning. I had nights where I got 12 hours of sleep, twelve! I was able to do things for me, spend more time with my family, spend more time with Jer, spend more time at the gym. I felt like me again. And now, now I'm back to feeling like crap. It's disgusting how quickly this job affects me. If it wasn't for the pay check, I wouldn't be there. I hope something comes up closer to home, sooner than later. If not, I have to stick this out until the end of the year. I just hope I can keep my sanity until then...

School. The end of last semester was stressful, but I finished with an A in Bio and a B in psychology. I shouldn't have taken a half semester for psychology and I probably would've gotten an A. This semester, one word...rough. I'm going to have class Monday, Wednesday and Friday nights and Saturday mornings. I'll be taking A&P and the CNA course. I'm not going to have a social life. It's going to be hard to balance work, school, the gym, family, and boyfriend. But it's only 16 weeks. 16 weeks compared to the rest of my life being miserable. In the long run, it's worth it.

Family. One word...love. I couldn't be happier. I constantly get asked, "how can you still be living at home with your parents?" Honestly, I love it. I love the relationship I have with my parents. They're some of the most important people in my life, and it's honestly going to be hard the day I move out. My brother and sister-in-law were home for a week and it was great. It's never long enough though. This year was the most I've seen of them, but I feel like that wasn't even a lot. But I've got a good feeling we will see more of each other (hopefully), since they gave us a great Christmas present! :)

Boyfriend. One word...fighter. Jer continues to amaze me on a daily basis. He's really taking his health in his own hands. He's not letting his dad control as much. He's been blessed with lots of people more than willing to help. He's made so much progress in the gym in the last two months. He's starting to eat better. He's making progress with Dr. Tony. He's determined the cancer will not come back. He's my biggest supporter. No matter how many stupid petty fights we get in, he still loves me. And I can't thank him enough. This cancer will not come back. He is moving forward with his health, school, a job and more. 2012 is his year!

Friends. One word...supportive. I was afraid when I moved back home from college that I wasn't going to make any friends, I was going to be lonely, it was going to be hard. But now, I have some of the most supportive and amazing friends I've ever had. They're constantly with me 100%. Not only do they want me to succeed at the gym, but in every aspect of my life. They have been some of the biggest supporters of my career change and going back to school. Without them, life would be pretty difficult. My other friends that I don't see nearly as often or don't communicate with as much as I wish, I miss you. It sucks how easily life catches up to us and before you know it months have passed before we've talked or seen each other. I hope I can do a better job at keeping in touch with you guys this year.

CrossFit. One word...rollercoaster. It's been a crazy ride the last 5 or so months. I made one of the hardest decisions, I've had to make in a long time. I risked hurting people's feelings and losing some relationships, but in the end, it was the right decision. It's hard to see so much petty stuff going on, instead of everyone being supportive. I pray that one day we can all be friends, but it's hard to see at this point. When it comes to training, there have been plenty of ups and downs. There's days where I crush it and then there's plenty of days where I don't know why I even stepped foot into the gym. But I can learn just as much if not more from those days, than from the good days. I've accomplished some of my goals and I feel like I'm getting stronger. But boy do I want to get stronger! I'm going to tweak my training some to see if it helps me get stronger, so I will be sure to keep you updated. The Open starts in 5 weeks and I wish I was more advanced than I am. It's my fault because of how busy my life is and I know this. I have a lot of progress to make, but I'm excited to see how I do in the Open. Hopefully I can help Prevail get a team to regionals!

Kirsten. One word...motivated. In the next year or so there's going to be a lot of changes. Mainly with school and work. I'm not sure how everything is going to play out, but all I know is I am beyond determined to get out of the position I'm in right now. There's no way I can live like this, it just isn't me! I'm determined to achieve a lot of goals in the gym. It's going to be hard the next few months with not being able to train as much, but maybe that will be good for my body...I'm determined to stay healthy, to eat better, to get more sleep, and to take care of myself. If I don't care for myself, I'm not going to provide for everyone else the way I should. I'm determined to make my relationship stronger. I'm determined to be supportive in every way I can. I'm determined to not stress as much. I'm determined to live life to the fullest.

2012. One word...epic. So I'm holding this year to high expectations. But for real, it's going to be a good year. Jer is going to be healthy, I'm going to be steps closer to starting a new career, I'm going to make progress in the gym, I'm going to strengthen my relationships with family and friends, and so much more. Epic.