Conditioning

I haven't used a picture of a male athlete for nearly a month.
Oh, well...

For time:
50 skips (x 2)
50 burpees
50 thrusters @ 20s
50 sit-ups
50 push presses @ 20s
50 leg raises/hip raises
50 traveling lunges (50 steps)
50 dumbbell swings @ 30
50 dumbbell snatches @ 25
50 jump squats

Time = 32:41

Real life got in the way of my planned pushing workout today and I didn't have time to go to ABsolute Fitness this morning. It wasn't until 6:00pm that I was able to take a break from work, but I was only able to get to the Stonecroft gym. I spent a good 15 minutes stretching and warming up, especially as my right calf is still hurting from my cramp spasm after Saturday's PT session.

I adapted today's main site WOD by substituting some movements for the RXed ones; for example, thrusters with dumbbells instead of wall balls, and leg/hip raises instead of knees to elbows. Some of the changes were due to the equipment that was available, and some were because I don't have the skills (100 single skips instead of 50 double-unders).

Perhaps because it was later in the day, but I felt pretty lethargic at the start of this routine. However, I gradually felt mentally more energized as I progressed, although I was obviously becoming more fatigued. I was alone in the gym until the dumbbell swings, and I think I scared the crap out of the geezer who came in to use the machines. I was grunting and sweating my ass off, then I managed to gasp "Enjoy your evening" when I left. I'm probably the first person at Stonecroft who's done metcon training!

Legs

Today's session was a bit later than I usually train, due to work commitments. I had a big lunch at a restaurant in New Hamburg - bacon cheese burger without the bun, but I treated myself to fries for a change. I probably eat one burger a week - always good quality meat - but it must be four months since I've eaten fries. The restaurant we went to is excellent, and we eat there all the time, so I know the food is good. However, after eating the fries I felt sluggish for hours; not a bloated belly like when I have wheat, but just...uncomfortable. Weird how food I used to eat all the time now makes me feel like crap. It's as if my body is rejecting unhealthy food, even if I eat it very rarely. Anyway, I don't think either the later workout nor the meal I ate four hours earlier affected my performance.

Back squats
10 x 105lb
Then 3 x 10 at 140lb

This was based on one of Paul's recent workouts, but scaled to roughly 75% of the weight he used (I rounded up to the nearest 5lb). I also went a2g.

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10 minute time cap:
1 deadlift @ 225lb, 1 jump squat
2 deadlifts, 2 jump squats, 3/3, etc. until time expires
Score = 8 rounds + 1 deadlift

This was loosely based on a routine I stumbled across on a CrossFit gym's website (although I've lost the address). Their WOD was deadlifts and burpees, but I wanted this to be pure leg work.There wasn't an RXed weight for the lifts, just a helpful "Go heavy". Before I started, I thought 225lb might be too light and considered 255lb, but in the end I think I got it right. The deadlifts were unbroken up to and including the fifth round; the sixth was three reps and singles; round seven and eight were all singles. Damn, these made my head spin!

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A quick finisher.

Leg extensions @ 110lb - max reps
8, 9, 9

Full body: Heavy weight and conditioning

I decided to revisit a whole workout from about a year ago. This was originally done as a personal training session on November 26, 2011. Yeah, I know yesterday would have been more symmetrical, but I didn't think of doing this until this morning.

Clean and push press (t&g; 2 second lockout)
95 x 3
105 x 3 (only did 2 last time)
110 x 2
115 x 1
120 x 1 (but not a full 2 second lockout)

I only just checked out the video from last time and realized I did squat cleans back then. However, today I only did power cleans. A year ago I failed the press at 115lb several times, but I managed a single at both 115lb and 120lb today. The heavier lift stayed up for about a second before I had to drop the bar. Coincidentally and bizarrely, looking back on that video I noticed I wore exactly the same shorts and shirt today!

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Cindy on Steroids: Amrap 20
5 wide grip pull-ups
10 clapping push-ups
15 jump squats
Score = 10 + 1 pull-up

That's significantly better than last year, when my score was 9 rounds and 5 pull-ups. I can't remember if I used any type of strategy back then, but today I did a kind of "death by" technique. I would complete a round - which always took over a minute - then rest for the remainder of the two minutes. I would only get into position for the pull-ups when my watch approached the end of the second minute. This seemed to work quite well, hence the improvement. All of the pull-ups were unbroken, except for the 10th round, which was 3 and 2. The first round of all three moves was completed without any breaks.

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Each for time: 15 sit-ups (strict) and 30 bicycle crunches per side
59, 1:15

These were tougher crunches than a year ago, but I still beat both times, which were 1:05 and 1:25.

Overall, a decent workout today.

Full body

A bit more elegant than me

Personal training with Paul

Alternating sets
Bench press
95 x 5, 115 x 5, 125 x 5, 135 x 2, 135 x 3 (fourth rep was assisted)

Dumbbell rows
70 x 5, 75 x 5, 75 x 5, 80 x 5, 80 x 5

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For time:
50 hang power cleans and push presses @ 75lb
Every break (bar on the ground) do 10 pushups and 15 jump squats
Time = 10:57

I think I took breaks after the following reps: 14, 10, 8, 5, 5, 8. Edit: 14-10-10-8-8.

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50 strict sit-ups
40 straight leg raises
30 leg raises/hip raises
20 decline sit-ups
10 toes to bars

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At the end of today's workout I weighed myself on the gym's scale. According to that, I'm now 148lb, which is 6lb more than the last time I weighed on my home scale. There may or may not be a discrepancy between the two scales, but I think Paul might be exaggerating when he said I'm getting fat! The evidence in my favour...

Flexin' time

Looking back at all these photos, I can't see too much difference between them, although I do look a bit lighter in the early ones. Other than that, everything looks pretty consistent.

Full body

Lots of supersets today.

Front squats - 135 x 5, 145 x 5, 150 x 5, 5
Jump squats - 4 x 15

The first two sets of jump squats were unbroken, but my quads burned like feck!

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Incline dumbbell bench press - 40s x 6, 45s x 6, 47s x 6, 50s x 5
Dips - 4 x 8

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Pull-downs - 100 x 8, 8, 8, 8
Wide pull-ups - 4 x 5

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And to finish...

50 sit-ups
Time = 2:26

Full body: Heavy weight and Conditioning

Personal training with Paul



Clean and Jerk:
95 x 3
105 x 2
110 x 2
115 x 0
115 x 0 (couldn't quite hold the bar up long enough)
115 x 0
115 x 0

I felt close to completing the movement successfully at 115lb, but I couldn't lock out my arms for more than a split second. The video above shows my second and third attempts. My shoulders still feel fatigued from Thursday' upper body workout, which didn't help. The next routine punished them even more.

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Cindy on Steroids: Amrap 20
5 wide grip pull-ups
10 clapping push-ups
15 jump squats

Score = 9 rounds + 5 pull-ups

Bloody hell, this got my heart pumping! It was good to do a seriously punishing conditioning routine again because I've been concentrating on lifting heavy the past few weeks. This is the first time I've done Cindy on Steroids; I usually do the plain vanilla Cindy. It felt great to be able to do jump squats again, this being the first time in months due to my dodgy left hip.

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Each for time: 15 sit-ups, 30 bicycle crunches per side
1:05, 1:25

Full body

Personal training with Paul

Front squats (for time):
95 x 10 - 18 seconds
115 x 10 - 1:35
115 x 10 - 24 seconds (switched grip)
135 x 10 - 2:39
145 x 10 - 4:56

The correct grip for front squats is still causing me problems when I start to use heavier weight. The first round at 115 was so much slower than the second because my left wrist started to hurt (it's always the left). Perhaps it's not a bad idea to switch grips, as I did today, while I try to build up my wrist flexibility. I'll try the two-fingered style for light weights, then switch to my old cross-over style as I get heavier.

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5 rft:
5 deadlifts @ 225
10 burpees
Time = 10:02




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Amrap 10:
5 wide grip pull-ups
10 clapping push-ups
15 jump squats
Score = 4 + 10 clapping push-ups

I actually thought its was only 3 completed rounds, not 4, but I was so out of breath and sweating like a pig that I lost count. If Paul's correct - bearing in mind he's getting forgetful in his old age - that would mean I was close to completing a round every 2 minutes, which seems pretty quick.

Don't know what I looked like coming out of the changing room afterward, but Eric took one look at me, said "Holy shit!", and burst out laughing. That can't be good.

I was feeling pretty drained when I started this morning, so I'm pleased with how today went, particularly the deadlifts/burpees routine, whatever the score was. I definitely need to start paying attention to how my body feels during the week, otherwise I'll end up overtraining again. 

I'll be switching back to my previous style of training for the next couple of weeks so that my legs will be fresh for the two cancer benefit runs I'll be doing on 2 Sundays (September 18 and October 2). They're only 3k and 5k respectively, but they're both on what would normally be rest days. Besides, doing just leg training on Tuesdays will mean I'm not sore on Sundays.

Full body: Light weight

CrossFit hand-release push-up

An adapted version of one of Paul's routines. I can't do handstand push-ups, so I subbed push-presses. Also, I felt like I've been a bit light on leg work and horizontal pulling this week, so I added jump squats and inverted rows.

8 minutes of each exercise with 1 minute's rest in between:
Push-press @ 75 = 71
Jump lunges = 184 (92 per leg)
CrossFit push-ups = 110
Jump squats = 131
Overhand inverted rows = 98  

I struggled in vain to get to 100 rows! I'm used to leaving a little sweat behind when I train, but when I got up after the last inverted row there was literally a small puddle from the back of my head.

That was a pretty cool workout. I did a total of 502 reps in 40 minutes (if you count both sides of the jump lunges as a single rep). With all 5 exercises I was surprised how quickly the 8 minutes passed.

Pretty pleased overall with this week's training.

Full body

Mikko Salo during the chipper event that made
him CrossFit Games Champion 2009

21-18-15-12-9-6-3 RFT:
Pullups
Crossfit pushups
Time = 15:50

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6RFT:
8 burpees
8 box jumps @ 24"
Time = 10:43

For some reason, I lost confidence with the box jumps and I stood staring at the steps for what seems like ages before attempting the first rep of each round. Once I got going I was ok, but those first jumps cost me a lot of time. And this was only 24"!

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Overhead travelling lunges with black medicine ball
10 jump squats each time I put down the ball (except at the end)
Time = 21:26

This was done in the parking lot, going from one end to the other - from where Saturday's fitness challenge started to the lot entrance/exit near the building site - and back again. That's approximately 200 yards. I had to put down the ball and do 11 sets of jump squats (i.e. 110 jump squats). 21:26 seems like a long time to me, but this was tough and I think I gave it everything, especially in the hot, morning sun.

Legs

Personal training with Paul

Box front squats 5, 5, 5, 5, 5 (small bench, wooden step)
115, 125, 135, 145 (4), 145 (5)

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Bulgarian split squats 5, 5, 5, 5, 5
95, 115, 125, 135, 140

A bit wobbly due to balance, but still quite a comfortable PR.

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Amrap 20:
5 jump squats @ 95
10 back squats @ 95
15 squats

Score = 7 + 5 jump squats

Annoyingly, my back felt pretty stiff and painful during many of the weighted movements. It wasn't my typical spasm pain, more like an "old man" stiffness! Consequently, many of my weighted squats - jump and back - weren't full rom. Also, I felt like I took more rests than I would have if my back wasn't hurting; not many breaks were because my legs needed a rest.

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Leg extensions - max reps @ 95:
16, 14, 16

Legs

Took me a little while to get warmed up today, but not a bad workout overall.

Back squats to 4 risers 3, 3, 3, 3, 3
145, 160, 175, 185, 190 (2)

Quite wobbly legs getting back up for both reps at 190, but it still counts! This matches my PR weight.

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Bulgarian split squats 5, 5, 5, 5, 5 per leg
95, 115, 125, 130, 135 (3)

A new PR.

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For time:
40 front squats to 4 risers @ 125
10 jump squats during breaks (not at the end)
Time = 12:22 / 7 breaks

I've done this before - although not timed - but only needed 6 breaks back then. Still, this was towards the end of my workout, not at the beginning like last time. Because of my unorthodox (i.e. incorrect) grip, it feels like I'm building up calluses/thick skin between my thumbs where I let the bar rest during front squats. Hopefully, that will start to make it more comfortable!

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Single leg extensions 3x10 @ 65

Legs

Crossfit Kids

Partial squats 3, 3, 3, 3, 3
200, 220, 245, 270, 285 (2)

A new PR, but a bit wobbly on the way up for the second rep at 285.

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3 rounds:
10 reverse lunges @ 115 (5 per leg)
10 back squats @ 115 (full rom; no risers)

All rounds unbroken, which is an improvement on last time.

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For time:
20 back squats @ 145 (to 4 risers)
20 jump squats @ 95
Time = 6:06

My PR was 7:53, so this is a big improvement. I planned on doing this a few week ago, but for some reason did body-weight jump squats instead of with a 95lb barbell. I remembered this time!

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Leg extensions drop sets 110-65
15-9, 13-7, 15-7

A bit better than last time (14-8, 12-7, 15-7), but bloody hell this hurt. I often let out loud grunts through sheer effort; today I did it because the leg extensions were painful. When I'd finished I went to get some spray to clean off my sweat from the seat. I was walking so slowly by the time I got back someone was already using the machine!

Legs

Heather Bergeron

Personal training with Paul

40 front squats @ 125
Every break do 10 jump squats - not at the end
(6 breaks)

I only managed 5 reps in the first round, but that's because I tried to use a grip with my thumbs on top and the bar started to slip. I switched to my usual - albeit "incorrect" - grip with thumbs under the bar and felt more in control.

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3 rounds:
10 reverse lunges @ 115 (5 per leg)
10 back squats @ 115
(Only set 3 broken)

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For time:
20 bs @ 135
30 bs @ 115
40 air squats
20 traveling lunges @ 50s (total)
30 traveling lunges @ 35s (total)
40 traveling lunges (total)

Time = 15:12

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The back squats throughout today's session were quite painful when I was in the lower part of the movement. This felt more like stiffness and doms, rather than a typical injury pain. This might be left over from Wednesday's deadlifts. It felt fine immediately afterward, so I'm not too worried about it. However, it might be an indication that I need to do more stretching and warming up.

Legs

Partial squats 3, 3, 3, 3, 3
195, 215, 235, 260, 280

First time hitting all 3 reps at 280.

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Front squats 5 x max reps @ 115 to 4 risers
11, 9, 8, 7, 6 = 41 (PR total = 39)

I really need to sort out my front squat grip. My right thumb hurt like hell while I was doing these.

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For time:
30 Bulgarian splits @ 95 (30 per leg)
Time = 5:50

With 3 reps to go of the whole routine I clipped one of the cage's uprights and that threw me off balance. I nearly toppled over but - with a very loud "Oh, shit!" - just managed to stand upright and continue. That cost me a few seconds, but I still PRed. I used the taller bench to rest my back foot on; not sure if that makes a difference.

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For time:
20 x back squats @ 145
20 x jump squats
Time = 4:36

I was really pleased with this time - my PR is 7:53 - until I noticed I was supposed to do the jump squats with 95lb. I only did bodyweight jumps. Twit!

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Leg extensions - 50 reps @ 95

Conditioning

Lance Armstrong

Holy shit. Longest. Workout. Ever.

10 rounds for time:
10 x Burpees
10 x Box jumps @ 26"
10 x DB Thrusters @ 30s
10 x Bench-supported lateral hops @ 26"
10 x DB Swings @ 30
10 x Push-ups
10 x Jump Squats

Time = 1:14:48

I planned this at the last minute this morning and figured it would take me about 40 minutes, leaving some time to do another workout. Looking at that statement now, an average of 4 minutes per round is ambitious and optimistic. At one point - when I realised this was going to take longer than expected - I considered changing this workout to an amrap 45. However, this felt like quitting and I know I would have regretted it. I remember seeing a sign at Crossfit Waterloo with a quote from Lance Armstrong: "Pain is temporary. Quitting is forever." Sounds corny, but thinking about that kept me going.

Almost lost in all this is the fact I did box jumps and lateral hops at 26", the highest I've ever attempted. It shows how far I've come with my training that the height didn't intimidate me. It's only 2" taller than my usual box height, so progress in increments feels achievable.

Legs

Partial squats 3, 3, 3, 3, 3
195, 215, 235, 255, 270

Very pleased with this - a new PR, and it felt quite comfortable. In the final round I thought I'd only be able to manage 1 rep, but I got through all 3 without any problems. I'm closing in on my goal of partial squats @ double my body weight (i.e. 280). Looking back at my old training journal, the first time I did this exercise in September 2010 I got up to 225.

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Front squats to 4 risers:
105 (10), 135 (4, 4, 4), 105 (8)

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Back squats to 4 risers:
105 (14), 135 (8, 8, 8), 105 (12)

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Amrap 20:
24 air squats
24 lunges (12 per leg)
24 jump squats max air
24 jump lunges (12 per leg)

Score = 4 rounds + 24 air squats, 9 lunges per leg

The last time I did this was back in October when I managed 3 rounds plus 24 air squats and 12 lunges. However, my previous best was in August 2010 when I got 4 rounds and 6 air squats.

Overall, a pretty good session.

Legs

I was planning on doing heavy partial squats today, but the cage was being used and I didn't want to try these without the benefit of safeties. I went for lighter back squats to just below parallel instead.

Back squats to 4 risers: 3, 3, 3, 3, 3
135, 155, 175, 185 (2), 185 (2)

Looking back at my training logs, the last time I did this type of back squat was in September 2010 (before I started blogging) and got up to 170lb for 3 reps. That was without risers as a guide, so probably not as low as 4 like today. Because I wasn't planning on doing these today I didn't make a note of my PR beforehand, which I sometimes like to use as a motivation tool (it gives me something to aim for). An increase of 15lb is progress, but that was 6 months ago; more would have been better. If I'd known my old PR I might have pushed myself a bit more, but it's difficult to know for sure now.

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For time:
50 traveling lunges per leg @ 55s
Every time I drop the dumbbells do 15 air squats and 10 max air jump squats

Time = 20:22

The last time I did this routine with traveling lunges was back in December. (And this was the time before that, with Paul.) My time then was 9:56 using 52.5s, not 55s. Because of the huge time difference, I'm assuming I only did a total of 50 lunges, rather than 50 per leg, which is what I did today. At least I bloody hope so!

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Leg extensions 95 x max reps
14, 12, 13

Plenty of stretching afterwards, so hopefully I'll be able to do lots of leg-based conditioning later this week.

Conditioning (plus some diet notes)

My glutes are still incredibly sore from Tuesday's leg session, so today's conditioning workouts were really just about grinding out the reps. Everything today felt like it was in slow motion, but I'm just pleased I got through it. I started with 10 minutes of leg stretches to loosen up my quads and glutes.

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For time:
30 box jumps @ 24'
30 burpees
30 dumbbell swings (two-handed grip)
30 jump squats
30 push-ups
30 sit-ups
30 bench-supported lateral hops @ 24" (per side)

Time = 15:28

The first 2 moves felt slow, but the box jumps were unbroken and I only took two short breaks during the burpees. Surprisingly, the sit-ups were the hardest because it hurt my butt so much to sit down. When I lowered down flat on my back it hurt my glutes even more. I had to struggle not to shout out my favourite swear word with every rep.

This was loosely based on one of Paul's routines, but without the rowing. Also, I added the lateral hops at the end.

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Cindy:
5 pull-ups
10 push-ups
15 squats

Score = 13 in 20:03

Not my best score by any means, but as I said earlier, I just wanted to push out the reps today. The last time I did Cindy was back in January 2011 for a score of 13 plus 5 pull-ups (my PR), so not too bad by comparison. I was sharing the pull-up station with another client, but it didn't really affect my score. He was doing pull-ups while I was doing push-ups and squats.

Overall today's conditioning wasn't to the same intensity of recent weeks and the scores aren't great if you look at them out of context. However, I'm just pleased that I managed to push through the pain for these two routines. A pain in the ass is not to underestimated!

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I commented yesterday that I seem to be hungry all the time. The answer to this is blindingly obvious: Eat more! Looking back at what I've been consuming over the past couple of days, I don't think I've had enough (healthy) fat. 

My pre-training breakfasts always consists of 3/4 cup of oats, 200ml 1% milk, 1 tablespoon of Sun Maid raisins (the only brand that isn't baked in oil), and 2 tablespoons of apple sauce. That's only 1% fat from the milk, so it's no wonder I'm hungry within an hour. 

I'm not consciously reducing my fat intake; that's just how it's worked out from what I've been eating recently. Plus my conditioning workouts have been more intense over the past few weeks - perhaps not including today's - so my metabolism has probably increased, too. No need for panic, but I just need to be more aware of what I'm eating every day.

Legs (a.k.a. FUCK!!!)

Personal training with Paul

Bulgarian split squats 5, 5, 5, 5
50s, 85, 105, 115

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Front squat 5 x max reps @ 115
9, 8, 8, 6, 6

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For time:
30 x Bulgarian splits @ 95 (30 per leg)
Time = 6:02

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For time:
20 x back squats @ 145
20 x jump squats @ 95
Time = 7:53

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Leg extensions - 50 reps x 95lb

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Holy shit, I thought I was going to pass out today. There were times when I thought I'd lose my breakfast, my vision was blurred, and/or I lost all feeling in my quads. In fact, this is an accurate description of how I felt during today's workout. I think this is the toughest workout I've ever done, judging by how I felt while doing it and how committed I was to pushing myself not to quit.

Remind me why I put myself through this?

Conditioning

Today I did a slightly modified version of the Filthy 50-style workout from a few weeks ago.

For time:
50 x kipping pull-ups
50 x box jumps @ 24"
Cycle half a mile
50 x burpees
25 x traveling lunges per leg
25 x dumbbell snatches per arm @ 35lb
50 x sit-ups
50 x jump squats
50 x push press @ 45lb
50 x bench-supported lateral hops @ 24" (25 per side)

Time = 36:35

This is a much quicker time than when I did Paul's version. I switched cycling for rowing (this took about 1:45) and dumbbell snatches instead of kettlebell swings. I don't know if that would have account for the big difference, although I remember in February I had to take several fairly long breaks during the 45lb push press round, whereas today I was able to knock out at least 9 in a row (mostly got up to sets of 10). Also, the kb swings were a killer back then. Today the burpees were the toughest; traveling lunges felt pretty easy.

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1 mile(?) run

Time =  7:55

To finish off this week's training I decided to test my ankle with a short run. It's been a while since I did the one and a half mile run - which is one long loop and one short loop - but I opted for just the long loop, which I think is about a mile. I started with a bit of a jog to see how my ankle felt and gradually picked up the pace the further I went as there wasn't any pain. In the end my ankle held out, but my lungs were burning! I completed the run in 7:55, which isn't that impressive on its own, but (a) I deliberately started running slowly, and (b) I'd completed a tough conditioning workout less than five minutes before I started running.