Monday, February 27, 2012

Open WOD 12.1

It's Open season and I couldn't be more excited. Everyone is chatting about it, strategizing, comparing scores, cheering each other on and so much more. It's just such a great thing to be involved in!

I did a little trial run with 12.1 on Thursday, my goal was 12 reps a round and rest the remaining part of the minute. I finished with 88 reps. So I made my goal for Sunday 100.

Open Wod 12.1
7:00 AMRAP of Burpees
*must touch object with both hands that is 6" above reach
*chest and hips much touch floor

Total reps = 100!

I decided to go in Heat 4 as all but the first one was filled up. And I sure didn't want to go in the first heat! I video taped the first round, counted for Jon in the second and cheered/warmed up in the third. Then it was my turn. My goal was 14 burpees a minute. My rounds looked like this: 16-14-14-14-13-14-15. I have to say I'm pretty happy with that. Minus the fact that I had a near Janet Jackson moment and my left boob was slowly popping out of my shirt and I had to readjust during the first minute or two. I still managed to stay on track. I think I could've broken 100 though if it wasn't for that incident. However, I'm glad to say I kept a steady pace throughout the entire 7:00. Obviously the 5th minute was the most difficult as I dipped under my goal, one short of 14. The last two minutes it was go big or go home. I just went for it. A steady pace and kept telling myself it's almost over, just keep throwing yourself on the ground! I somehow found a second gear in that last minute and managed to pull out 15 burpees.

This one was definitely a mental challenge, but I feel like I beat it. I made my goal. Kept a steady pace and came out on top. The most physically tired part of my body were my quads. they were definitely on fire when this was over!

One down, four more to go. Bring on 12.2!!

Thursday, February 16, 2012

Date with Cindy

For a special treat we did things a little different at Prevail. We threw 5 named WODS into a hat and the last person to show up to class was the bearer of bad news. They got to draw the named WOD that class would do. The 5 names were "Chelsea", "Kelly" with rowing instead of running, "Jackie", "Cindy", and "Barbara". Luckily no one picked Kelly, and lucky for me because there's no way my lungs would've handled that. Two classes enjoyed Jackie, two more enjoyed Barbara, and my class got to tackle Cindy.

Cindy was definitely the one I was rooting for, since I figured it would be the least difficult for me with still being sick. So here's how it went:

CINDY
20:00 AMRAP
5 Pull-ups
10 Push-ups
15 Air Squats
15 rounds!!!!

I vividly remember the last time I did this at Fire. Tommy Mo came in to 'observe' during the class I was in and I remember him yelling at me for my push-ups and that I was snaking too much and weren't legit. I got 11 rounds + 28 reps with those bad push-ups.

This time I was determined to focus on my push-ups and make every rep count! Even though Tommy wasn't physically present....he was still there. haha.

I got through the first 3 rounds and felt great. My pull-ups were all unbroken, so at that point I made it a goal that no matter how many rounds I completed, I was going to do ALL my pull-ups unbroken. And I did just that!! This is a HUGE accomplisment for me. I think I've finally pushed through the mental block that I can only do 2-4 at a time when I get back to that bar. Chris said the height on them were great too and the best pull-ups he's seen me do in well...a year and a half! :)

First 2 rounds of push-ups were unbroken and felt great, but could tell those were going to disappear quickly. Every rounds the push-ups got more and more difficult. I would try and get at least 3-5 the first set every round, then it was 1's, 2's or 3's the rest of the sets. BUT, I made sure to keep my body rigid, not let me thighs touch the ground, and not snake it up. Tommy Mo, you would be proud of those push-ups! :)

Squats were the easy part of the wod, actually the pull-ups may have been equally as easy this time around. Because by the time I got to my squats, my quads were so tired from staying so tight and rigid on the push-ups. Pretty sure that's what gives out before my arms. ha. But all rounds of squats were smooth sailing, a nice steady pace and all unbroken.

Needless to say, I PR'd by just over 3 rounds since September. And this is while I'm sick and haven't woded in a week! So if I'm healthy I think I could get close to 17. Definitely the type of day I needed to lift my spirits!

Out of Commission

So last week I was out of commission. I came down with a terrible cold. Started feeling it the morning of super bowl Sunday and it progressively got worse as the week went on. I'm just now starting to feel almost 100%. I had the terrible congestion, sinus headache, sore throat, man voice, you name it. My voice is just starting to sound normal again and I'm coughing up less and less crap. So all is starting to look well...

I'm glad it was last week that I got sick and not next week or during the next 6 weeks. With the Open coming up, I need to be healthy and get some extra sleep. I really need to find some extra time to sleep... This week has been hard getting back into working out after taking a week off. I did nothing but strength two days last week and boy did I feel lost.

This last Monday I did a WOD that was a total breather without being sick, so that was definitely hard for me to complete. And I fell to the floor gasping for air at the end of it. I felt like I was breathing through one of those tiny straws you stir your coffee with!

Anyway, I'm glad I'm starting to get better so this next week I can build up some endurance again for the Open. The next 5 weeks are going to be exhilarating and I can't wait to see what they throw at us!

On a side note, before I got sick, I totally forgot to mention/got super busy and never blogged about it. BUT I got a 115# SNATCH PR!!! Woot! It felt amazing! I got 110 not that long ago and I was eager so I took a huge jump. I knew my technique was there, just needed to lock it out, stabilize and stand it up. I had two attempts before I nailed it where I just collapsed and lost all midline stabilization. So on my third and final attempt, I made sure to keep everything tight, lock it out and stand it up! What a rush that was! I was on a high for a couple days after that! LOVE that feeling! :)

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Stupid Jerk

Pretty exhausted today. Definitely lacking sleep and need to fix that...

Strength: Jerk
53 (3) - 73 (2) - 98(1)-108(1)-118 quit

All I have to say is AHHHHHHH!!!! So damn frustrating! I was looking forward to tackling the jerk 1RM and hoping to get around 145 today. But that hand apparently wasn't dealt to me. I took some time before the wod to do a little extra stretching and mobility with my shoulders, thinking I should warm them up for some heavy lifts overhead. That was apparently the worst thing I could've done to my shoulders. I think I really jinxed myself last week by saying I was finally starting to enjoy the Jerk and felt comfortable with them...fuck. My warm up set at 53 I started to feel pinching in BOTH my shoulders, normally it's the right one, so this was really upsetting. Did a couple at 73, still there. Did my first rep at 98, yep still there. Grabbed the ball and started rolling on it hoping that would help. Did 108....still there. Racked 118, dip slight drive and just dropped it. Felt the pinching and decided it wasn't worth it. I have absolutely no idea where this came from. I haven't had this shoulder issue for MONTHS!!!! The only thing we could think of is that extra stretching and mobility I did beforehand. The last few times where we've done Jerk as the strength at heavy weights, I felt great, no pinching, nothing. Sunday I did a wod with 15 jerks at 95 and did extras after and they felt fine. So I'm convincing myself that I over stretched my shoulders and that I've just been used to them being tighter when I lift, and that's why the pinching started. Fingers crossed, that's all it was...since the Open starts in 23 days, that's definitely not what I need...

WOD:
4 Rounds:
20 jumping lunges
10 Pull-ups
4:28

My quads were still rocked from yesterday so the jumping lunges were rough, especially the third round. Pull-ups felt great, which is awesome considering my shoulder. But if I remember correctly, it's only the Jerk that hurts my shoulder when this happens...Chris said my pull-ups looked great and were the best he's seen me do, so I guess the dead hangs are helping! Overall, good wod, hoping to get more pull-ups strung together again.

Oh Hey Cleans!

I've been distracted from blogging lately. Needless to say, I've been extremely busy. This weekend, inclduing Friday, since I took a sick day, I was home for a total of about 2.5 hours. And during that time included an hour and a half nap on Saturday and showers. So I'm pretty tired these days. School is a lot of time and work, and I need to catch up already. eek. Anyway, I trained Thursday, Friday and Sunday mornings. All felt great, I feel like all the lifts I'm really get the technique down, just need to up the weights!

Monday Strength:
Clean 1(70% of 1RM)-1(77%)-1(85%)-1(93%)-1(100+%)
100-110-122-133-145PR!

I was super excited to get after the cleans today. I feel like the movement is very fluid and I'm dropping under the bar really well. All the sets felt great and then I got to my last rep and was debating how high to go. My previous 1RM from about 2 weeks ago was 143. I was struggling to stand 145 up that night, mainly due to exhaustion. So I decided to get after the 145 and not increase by too much. A PR is a PR! My first two attempts I failed, both of them I was out front and my elbows weren't coming through fast enough. I decided to give it one more go and everything was great. I dropped under the bar quick, my elbows came through and my squat even felt a little stronger. I think I have a little more in me, but I really want to start training my squat because right now I think that's really going to be my limiting factor. Hey DB, let's start that squat therapy! :)

WOD:
Tabata Row for Calories - 58 calories
Tabata Thrusters (45/33) - 87
Total 145

I was pretty excited about the clean PR, so I didn't go too hard on the row. I was trying to keep a hard pull, but somewhat quick pace. I was shooting for around 60 cal, so I'm pretty pleased with that. Thrusters I was trying to keep 12 reps a round, but that lasted the first 3 rounds then it was 10 and 11 for the following rounds. My hip flexors/psoas have been pretty tight the last few weeks with all the squatting, so I really need to add in some more mobility for those!

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Catch up

Little behind on the blog. Been crazy busy with school work, work, and the gym. So catching up on Monday and Tuesday’s work at the gym.

Monday Strength
Push Press 3(63% of 1RM)-3(70%)-3(77%)-3(85%)-3(93%) *Current 1RM = 121#
76-85-93-103-113

Haven’t worked on push press as a strength in a long time, so the heavier weights were a little difficult. Up until the fourth set everything felt good. Kept the core and butt tight and everything engaged, small dip and drive. The last two sets were pretty hard. Mainly the last one, definitely had to take a couple breaths in between reps and get situated. Failed on the 3rd and final rep in the last set, so only ended up with 2. I used CT’s wrist straps and they really helped with the heavier sets. I think I’m going to have to invest in a pair of those.

Monday WOD:
21-15-9
Box Jumps (24”/20”) *I used 24”
Pull-ups *I cut the reps in half to 11-7-5 and did dead hangs on the blue band
9:09

Pretty embarrassing. I’m trying to use the 24” box in most WODs, since that’s what HQ has been leading towards for the females in competitions. Pull-ups are a completely different story. Like I said in a post previously, during pull-up wods I’m trying to cut the reps in half and do dead hangs. Trying to work on gaining some more strength in my shoulders, but geez is this pathetic and embarrassing. I think I got 4 on the first set then it was maybe 2 then it was 1’s and I called myself on plenty of no reps, and probably should’ve called myself on even a few more. So I did quite a few of extra pulls in all the sets. I definitely wish I would’ve started this sooner, or have been dedicating the time I need to, and done them before or after class. Regardless, I’m glad I’m doing it, my height on my kipping pull-ups is better and I’m stringing along more, so I’m getting there.

Tuesday Strength
Snatch 3(63% of 1RM)-3(70%)-3(77%)-3(85%)-3(93%) *Current 1RM = 110#
69-77-85-94-102

I have to say, I’m really happy with how my technique has improved over the months on this lift. I feel like I’ve got a pretty solid form down and now just have to get some more weight overhead. Going to have to really train my squat. First 4 sets were great. Tight bar path, everything was coming up together – not my butt first, high pull, and dropping under the bar really quick. The last set my first two attempts I failed. The first one I was forward and caught it on my toes. The second I caught it really far back and fell backwards. Then finally the next 3 were right in between those and perfect lifts. A couple of them I felt a little wobbly at the bottom, so I made sure to steady myself, then stand it. Excited to get after a new PR with this one!

Tuesday’s WOD
500m row then,
3 rounds:
5 ring dips *purple band
10 Toes to Bar
15 Wall Ball Shots (20/14)
Then, 500m row
9:53

My strength took a little while, so I was in the last heat for this one. My main goal was just to get after it. I knew my T2B were going to slow me down, so I had to make sure my dips and wall balls were unbroken, which they were. Toes to bar definitely slowed me down, but I was able to get more of a kip going today than usual. So that was a good thing. The last row Brandon was on my tail and caught up to me even though he started 30 seconds behind me. So I went after the first 300m hard with a 1:50 pace and crashed the last 200m with a 2:05 pace. Ugly. Oh well, I felt pretty good with the time. Just need to get that kip down and one of these days get my unassisted ring dips!

Thursday, January 19, 2012

Pitiful Dead lifts...

Woke up pretty tired today, but sure glad it was Thursday because that's one more day closer to Friday! :)

I went in to the gym a little early to get my back squat strength in from Monday.
Back Squat:
5 @ 102
5 @ 117
5 @ 130
5 @ 142
5 @ 157

My hips and PSOAS were super tight today, so squatting felt kind of off today... Tried stretching it out and rolling on the ball, but I think it's going to take a lot of mobility to loosen them up. The other part that sucks about sitting at a desk all day! Aside from the tightness, the weight felt good. 5th rep on the last set was a bit of a struggle, but overall great.

Strength: Jerk
5 @ 77
5 @ 88
5 @ 98
5 @ 108
5 @ 119

We haven't worked on the Jerk in a long time. In the past this has been my least favorite lift, but today I felt pretty good with it. I felt like I was dropping under the bar really well and I didn't feel the pinching in my right shoulder like I tend to with the jerk. The last two sets were definitely heavy. I failed the 5th rep in the last set, my wrists just gave out. But aside from that rep, they all felt really good.

WOD:
7 rounds of:
7 Deadlifts (225/155)
7 Lateral Bar hops
5:46??

Disappointed is all I can say about this one...My DL's were awful. The first two rounds were touch and go and my back was set and felt great. Third round, I did three and had to drop the bar because I felt my back tense up and I started to get cautious. So I started doing single reps on out. I just felt my back getting tighter and tighter. It wasn't a pain or a pinch, it was just tight. For some reason every time there are heavier deads in a wod, this always happens. I worked with Chris after the wod to figure out what to do, so I'm going to have to practice with my form a little more. My butt tends to come up first, so I'm going to have to work on bringing my knees back. ugh. Super frustrating. Once I got frazzled, I lost track of what round I was on. So I'm not sure if I did 6 or 7 or 8 rounds. I did an extra round after my 5:46 time, focusing on my back. So who knows. Definitely not my best performance and my deads definitely need work!