Climbing

Very strong night of climbing! I can't remember what all I did, but I did a lot of it, and it felt good!

Starting Strength, WO #1 - with movies!

Scott kindly recorded me doing squats and deadlifts today, so I could take a look at my form. I'm posting the videos here, and I'd love feedback from you guys! (Sorry I can't figure out how to rotate the video so it's right-side-up...)

Warm-up: 2 rounds of CFWU:
Samson stretch
Squats (12, 12)
Un-anchored sit-ups (12, 12)
Back extensions (12, 12)
Pull-ups (12 @ -55#, 4 unassisted)
Dips (12 @ -55#, 3 unassisted)

Squat
45# x 10
75# x 5
115# x 3
145# x 2
185# x 5 x 3

Here's my second set of 185# squats.


Bench Press
45# x 5
55# x 5
65# x 2
80# x 3, 4, 2 (f on 3rd)
75# x 4

Deadlift
45# x 10
75# x 5
115# x 3
145# x 2
175# x 5 x 3

Here's my second set of 175# deadlifts.


Here's my third set of lifts.


Here I am all finished with deadlifts!


Notes
- Squats felt good! More weight next time.
- Bench felt stronger than last week, thank goodness. Keep working on 80#.
- Curious to see what people think of my deadlift form. My back was rounding quite a bit on the last few reps (not shown in the video), but they felt good overall.

Night Train practice

- Usual warm-up
- Hucking drill
- Scrimmages for the rest of the night!
- Usual cool-down

I got a massage last night. I asked the masseuse to focus on my shoulder blade area and to work on my hamstrings and calves if he had time. Turns out, there was a *lot* to work on in my legs, and he dug out a bunch of knots. I should go back to get the sides and tops of my legs worked on too... It felt great, but things felt almost too loose at practice tonight, like I was about to get hurt. Weird. But probably good.

Starting Strength, WO #2

Warm-up: 2 rounds of CFWU:
Samson stretch
Squats (12, 12)
Un-anchored sit-ups (12, 12)
Back extensions (12, 12)
Pull-ups (12 @ -55#, 3 unassisted)
Dips (12 @ -55#, 4 unassisted)

Squat
45# x 10
75# x 5
105# x 3
135# x 2
170# x 5, 5 (oops!)
185# x 5

Press
35# x 10
45# x 3
60# x 5, 5, 3+1

Power Clean
45# x 10
55# x 5
65# x 3
75# x 2
90# x 5 x 3

Notes
- Squats felt good! My feet were wider than usual, which I think was good. I miscalulated my weights and lifted 170# instead of 180#, but my last set at 185# was solid.
- Presses felt fine. Keep working on 60#.
- All of my power cleans felt less messy than last week. I think I can move up to 95# next time.

Owens Gorge climbing trip

For a flowery account of the trip (with pictures!), read this post.

The bare-bones account, for my records:

Saturday, 5/24
Central Gorge, Health Club wall
- Center Court - 5.8
- Sneakaroma - 5.9
- Flex Your Bazooka - 5.9 (A tall one! Fun!)
- Helga's Holiday - 5.7 (on the Atilla the Hun wall)

Sunday, 5/25
Upper Gorge, All You Can Eat Cliff
- Crotalulsley Challenged - 5.6
- Step Right Up - 5.8
- Alfred Hitchcrack - 5.8 (A nice fun crack)
- Cinderella - 5.9 (a fun corner)

Monday, 5/26
Bouldering at Happy Boulders
Not sure the names or ratings of anything we did, but I'm proud of myself for doing a tough underclingy problem.

2 things.

#1
I found this tidbit on Frostillicus's blog:

An article on an interesting concept. I remember my hurdle coach in High School yelling at us to sprint with a "soft face" over and over, really goes to show what kind of effect it can have. Also shows yet again how connected the muscles are to each other, tense facial muscles means tense neck muscles. Tense neck muscles means tense traps, which run down to the middle of the back, etc. Curious to see some further studies done on it, but good food for thought nonetheless. When you read about the increased rotational ability think about it in terms of your backhand huck.

I've always wondered why some exercises make my face twitch. Presses make my upper lip curl, and push-ups make me bite my lower lip. So this article makes so much sense to me! I'll have to practice relaxing my face when I'm running. I often smile ear-to-ear when I'm sprinting down the Frisbee field... do you think that has the same effect as having a relaxed face? It definitely feels good...

#2
I'm getting more and more interested in caloric restriction and intermittent fasting. This post caught my eye:

Recent studies demonstrated that eating fast releasing foods before or during exercise could be counter effective, to say the least. Investigators in the school of sport and exercise science, University of Birmingham, Edgbastion, England found that ingestion of carbs before exercise adversely elevated plasma cortisol levels. Interestingly enough, there was a significant reduction in post exercise cortisol when carbs were not ingested before exercise. Furthermore, there was a faster shift from carb to fat fueling during exercise, when a pre-exercise meal was not applied.
Source

And then I found this article about caloric restriction (via a post on The Great Fitness Experiment). The people described in it sound nutty. (Do they realize how tremendously difficult it is to actually determine the number of calories in any given food? The idea of eating exactly 639 calories for dinner every night is ridiculous.) But I like the idea of a longer, healthier life, and I'd like to lose body fat. I've done two 24-hour fasts in the fast month or two, but I'm not sure if they made any difference. This morning, I didn't eat breakfast until after my weight workout. I feel like I had a good workout, except for some weak bench presses. I'll keep researching...

Starting Strength, WO #1

Warm-up: 2 rounds of CFWU:
Samson stretch
Squats (12, 12)
Un-anchored sit-ups (12, 12)
Back extensions (12, 12)
Pull-ups (12 @ -55#, 3 unassisted)
Dips (12 @ -55#, 3 unassisted)

Squat
45# x 10
75# x 5
105# x 3
135# x 2
175# x 5 x 3

Bench Press
45# x 5
55# x 5
65# x 2
80# x 2
75# x 4, 4, 3+1

Deadlift
45# x 10
75# x 5
105# x 3
135# x 2
165# x 5 x 3

Notes
- Squats felt good.
- Bench felt very weak!
- I was really focusing on my form for deadlifts, and I think they were better than usual.

Track workout

1-mile warm-up jog (8 minutes)
Plyos
Stretching

Z drill (lots of small, sharp cuts) - 10 catches, 3 times through
20 push-ups
30 crunches

3 x 3 x 30m sprints
- 1 minute rest between each sprint (and 10 throws w/a partner)
- 3 minute rest between each set (30 throws)
20 push-ups
30 crunches

10 ground jumps (squat and touch the ground, then jump straight up)
10 tuck jumps
20 one-footed jumps (10 per leg)
10 sets of: 3 forward jumps + 1 vertical jump

No time for a cool down - off to a pre-trip meeting for the weekend's climbing trip!!

Notes: This workout was so much easier than the 200m sprints! The Z drill is tough, but the 30m's felt like a breeze!

Climbing

I started with some bouldering routes, and was happy to make some progress on a V2. I think I only climbed two runs before I had to go - a 10a and a 10b. Felt very strong on both.

Night Train practice

Jog
Active stretches/plyos
Static stretching

Box drill
10 pulls - offense gets 2 possessions, defense gets 1, then re-pull
Scrimmages - one game to 5, one game to 2

Cool-down lap
10 push-ups, 1-minute plank, 10 push-ups
Boat pose

IM frisbee

Fun game. We lost by a few points, but we played well, especially on a very windy night.

Climbing

Another good night climbing! I did some bouldering before Lisa arrived, and figured out how to complete a v1 that I couldn't get last week. I got good starts on two 5.10c's (but didn't finish them) and felt strong on the a's and b's. Very fun. I'm very excited for next weekend's climbing trip!

Starting Strength, WO #2

Warm-up: 2 rounds of CFWU:
Samson stretch
Squats (12, 12)
Un-anchored sit-ups (12, 12)
Back extensions (12, 12)
Dips (12 @ -55#, 3 unassisted)
Pull-ups (12 @ -55#, 3 unassisted)

Squat
45# x 10
75# x 5
105# x 3
135# x 2
175# x 4, 5, 5

Press
35# x 10
45# x 3
55# x 5 x 3

Power Clean
45# x 10
55# x 5
65# x 3
75# x 2
90# x 5 x 3

Notes
- Squats felt pretty good. I think I should try to get a little deeper.
- Presses felt very good. Move up to 60# next time.
- All of my power cleans felt messy. I should have broken it down and worked on each piece, but I was impatient. I ended up tweaking my back on the very last one. Shame on me for ignoring form.

Night Train practice

Jog
Active stretches/plyos
Static stretching

Cutting drill to work on split-stack cuts & defense
Cutting drill to work on deep cuts & reading the disc
Scrimmage to 5 (my team lost 5-3)

Cool-down lap
Side plank (1 minute per side)
Superman pose (1 minute)

100 Burpees

Time: 9:30

I was aiming for 9 minutes, by doing 11 burpees each minute (12 during the first minute) but I fell behind schedule towards the end. Next time I'll get it!

Climbing

Climbing felt really good tonight! I started with two 5.10a's, one of which has a nice big crack that's fun to use. I zipped up the only 10b on the wall, and got a good start on a 10c. I didn't finish it, so I'll have to start with it next week. Ended with two more 10a's and a 9. I felt strong and not too tired by the end! Definitely excited about my 3-day climbing trip coming up over Memorial Day weekend!!

Track workout - 200s

1-mile warm-up jog
Plyos
Stretching

16 rounds (2 miles!) of:
200 meter sprint
1-minute rest

Half-mile cool-down jog

Notes:
It was really hot out today - about 100. Happily, my breathing felt much better than it did last week - not nearly so wheezy. My legs felt anaerobic after about 7 rounds, but I was happy that I got through all 16 sprints at a fairly even pace - about 42 seconds. I focused on keeping my upper body relaxed and on staying on my toes. It helped my posture - I felt taller and that I was leaning forward more than I usually do. This was our last week of this kind of track workout, so I'm curious (and nervous) about what next week will bring.

Night Train practice

Jog
Active stretches/plyos
Static stretching

It was as windy as Monday, so the meat of the practice was quite similar - scrimmages working on zone offense and defense (Also like Monday, it wasn't too strenuous, which was nice given the high temperature.)
Box drill - a good challenge in the wind

Jog
10 push-ups, 60-second plank, 10 push-ups
Boat pose

Notes: I'm going to handling on a regular basis this season, and I have a lot to learn. My throws are decent, but my cuts and positioning in general is very clumsy.

Starting Strength, WO #1

Warm-up: 2 rounds of CFWU:
Samson stretch
Squats (12, 12)
Un-anchored sit-ups (12, 12)
Back extensions (12, 12)
Dips (12 @ -55#, 3 unassisted)
Pull-ups (12 @ -55#, 3 unassisted)

Squat
45# x 10
75# x 5
105# x 3
135# x 2
170# x 5 x 3

Bench Press
45# x 5
55# x 5
65# x 2
75# x 5, 5, 4+1

Deadlift
45# x 10
75# x 5
105# x 3
135# x 2
165# x 5 x 3

Notes
- Squats felt good. I was thinking about a cord pulling me straight up through the top of my head, and I think it helped with my form.
- Bench felt good too. Stick with 75# for at least one more workout though.
- Deadlifts felt better than they have in a long time - no hamstring pain! I need to remember to keep driving my heels into the ground. I had poor form on the last set of 5, so I'll stick with 165# the next time I do this workout.

Night Train practice

Jog
Active stretches/plyos
Static stretching

Scrimmages working on zone offense and defense (not too strenuous - lots of time spent talking)
"Z" drill - lots of short, quick cuts - a lung buster

Jog
Reverse (belly-up) plank with 20 leg raises
Boat pose

Notes: I was happy to have a not-so-hard practice today - my legs were worn out from the morning's workout, I think.

Starting Strength, WO #2

Warm-up: 2 rounds of CFWU:
Samson stretch
Squats (12, 12)
Un-anchored sit-ups (12, 12)
Back extensions (12, 12)
Dips (12 @ -55#, 3 unassisted)
Pull-ups (12 @ -55#, 3 unassisted)

Squat
45# x 10
75# x 5
105# x 3
135# x 2
165# x 5 x 3

Press
35# x 10
45# x 3
55# x 5, 5, 4+1

Power Clean
45# x 10
55# x 5
65# x 3
75# x 2
85# x 5, 5
90# x 4+1

Notes
- Squats felt pretty good - much better than last week. I'll move up to 170# next time.
- Presses felt good. Stick with 55# though.
- Power cleans felt better than usual. Keep working on 90#.

Arboretum run

Approximately 4.5 miles.
Only 4 minute-long sprinting intervals, separated by 8-minute steady running intervals.
Time: 37.5 minutes, not including the time waiting for the traffic light.

I feel very tired, but proud of my accomplishment.

Climbing

Really fun, relaxed night of climbing. My first time in a while, so I didn't have high expectations. They redid all the routes, so everything was new!

Bouldering: One V0 and a few V1's. Tried a V2.

Climbing: One 5.9, several 5.10a's. Got about halfway up a 10b but my hands aren't strong enough to hold onto the slopers these days.

I'm hoping to go climbing twice next week, to prepare for my 3-day climbing trip over Memorial Day weekend!

Track workout - 200s

1-mile warm-up jog
Plyos
Stretching

14 rounds of:
200 meter sprint
1-minute rest

Half-mile cool-down jog
Throwing

Notes: I ran these with Bethany, one of my captains, who is super fast. She completed all of hers in about 37 seconds. I kept up with her for the first few, but mostly came in at around 40 seconds, I think. My slowest was 43 s, but my last one was 41 s. Towards the end, Doug (the other captain) reminded me to relax my upper body and to stay on my toes - very helpful advice.

Night Train practice

I officially made the team! Turns out no one who tried out was cut, but still, I'm happy to be part of the club.

Jog
Active stretches/plyos
Static stretching

Gauntlet drill
Scrimmage
Hucking/Reading/Defending drill
Scrimmage

Cool-down jog
Core: 20 leg raises, and 1 minute of 20 push-ups + plank

IM frisbee

45-minute game, plenty of subs. Ran hard, felt like I was still recovering from Saturday's running.

Pickup

An hour and a half of good pickup, with hardly any subbing. I'm going to feel this tomorrow!

Starting Strength, WO #1

Warm-up: 2 rounds of CFWU:
Samson stretch
Squats (10, 10)
Un-anchored sit-ups (10, 10)
Back extensions (10, 10)
Dips (10 @ -55#, 3 unassisted)
Pull-ups (10 @ -55#, 3 unassisted)

Squat
45# x 10
75# x 5
105# x 3
135# x 2
165# x 2
160# x 5, 5
155# x 5

Bench Press
45# x 5
55# x 5
65# x 2
75# x 5, 5, 3+1

Deadlift
45# x 10
75# x 5
105# x 5
135# x 2
175# x 2
165# x 5
155# x 5, 5

Notes:
- Very tough workout overall. Not surprising, given my recent 2 week hiatus.
- My legs are still recovering from Saturday's sprint workout. Squats were tough.
- Keep working on 75# bench presses.
- Deadlifts felt better than they did last time, but I reduced weight to focus on good form.

Track workout - 200s

10-minute warm-up run to the track
Plyos

Eight rounds of:
200 meter sprint
1-minute rest

Walk home


Notes: I should have done 12 or 14 rounds, but I was really struggling and didn't want to overdo things on my first post-vacation workout. Plus, I was exhausted - I've had ridiculously little sleep and way too much traveling in the past few days.

Personal notes: Turkey was wonderful - interesting sites, beautiful sights, delicious food, warm & welcoming people. When I got home, Scott proposed to me! We're getting married!