Climbing

Had a terrific night on the wall. Climbed quite a few runs and didn't feel too burnt out by the end. And I started the night by doing 2 pull-ups (in a row!) on the pull-up rack (a piece of equipment that only lets you grip with your fingertips). I felt strong tonight.

Starting Strength WO #2... and more

Warm-up: 2 rounds of:
Samson stretch
10 squats
10 sit-ups
10 push-ups

Squat
45# x 5 x 2
75# x 5
95# x 3
125# x 2
145# x 4, 4, 2
135# x 5

Press
40# x 5
45# x 3
55# x 2
65# x 4
60# x 3, 3, 1
55# x 3

Power Clean
45# x 5 x 2
55# x 5
65# x 3
75# x 2
85# x 5 x 2
75# x 5

CF WOD 080228
Scaled back to 4 1/2 rounds of:
10 Sumo-deadlift high-pull (70#, 50#, 60#, 60#, 50#)
10 dips (40# assist on the machine)

Time: 10:09


Notes
- Squats felt pretty good - keep working on 145#.
- Presses felt pretty good - happy that I got 65#!
- Cleans felt very messy. I'm not good at catching the bar.
- The CF WOD was annoying - the gym was starting to get busy, so there was competition for equipment. I worked hard on the dips though! Now that I can do a pull-up, I should work on being able to do a dip.

Yoga, climbing

Yoga felt great - my leg muscles definitely needed stretching.

I took it easy at the climbing wall - only did 4 runs, 3 of which were pretty easy. Made good progress on a hard one, but I didn't get to the top. Next time!

400s, squats

CFWU x 10 x 2
(Except mine consisted of stretch, squat, sit-up, good mornings, lat pull-downs & push-ups.)

CF WOD 080221:
Four rounds for time of:
Run 400 meters
50 Squats

Time: 15:14

As usual, the sprints were on a treadmill. But I ran them at 11 mph today, instead of my usual 10. They were hard, but I'm glad I stuck with it for all 4!

Yoga tonight!

Starting Strength WO #1

Warm-up: 500m row, 2 minutes
(Hmm. I was trying to use the good technique that I learned on Saturday, but I ended up rowing quite a bit slower than usual. I guess I'll have to keep practicing.)

Squat
45 x 5 x 2
65 x 5
85 x 5
115 x 2
135 x 5 x 3

Deadlift
65 x 5 x 2
95 x 5
115 x 3
135 x 2
155 x 5 x 3

Bench Press
45 x 5 x 2
55 x 5
65 x 2
75 x 5, 4, 5
(I got a spotter on my last set.)


And, on the training front, I met with my trainer today and am very excited that he is a recent convert to the Pose Method of running. He's even going to loan me the book and DVD! Looking forward to training with him.

Also, I'm still excited that I can do a pull-up.

I can do a pullup!

Today I discovered that I can do a pull-up! An honest to goodness, from-a-dead-hang pull-up! This has been a goal of mine for a while now, so I feel pretty darn good. (Next step... do 10 in a row. Right now, I can just do 1 at a time.)

Next big goal: an honest to goodness, nose-to-the-floor, feet-not-touching-the-wall handstand push-up. I guess I should work on my presses and on my handstand balance.

CFSC

I spent a very productive hour training with Hollis at CrossFit Santa Cruz! It was really cool to be there, after seeing it so many videos and photos on the website. The space was a lot smaller than I expected. I got to meet Annie - a celebrity encounter, for sure.

Warm-up: rowing. Got lots of good tips, like making sure my hips and shoulders move as a single unit when I start to push, and pushing off with the ball of my foot, and pulling the bar to my belly-button and not leaning back *too* far.

Technique work: I asked for advice on cleans and kipping pull-ups. We worked on snatches instead, since they're more difficult than cleans, and learning them would mean killing two birds with one stone. I forget the progression of movements we worked on, but it was basically breaking the left down into its component parts - dip drive, dip drive + shoulder shrug, dip + shrug + high elbows, etc. I got good feedback on my squat position, and my starting position for deadlifts. Makes me wish I had a class nearby I could attend.

Similar instruction for the kip - we broke it down into its component parts: shoulder movement, hip movement, etc. I was not very successful, but I'll keep practicing.

Workout: 21-15-9 Power snatches & kipping pull-ups.
(Supposedly for time, but I was concentrating on form, and another trainer had stolen his stopwatch.)
It felt sloppy and uncoordinated, but I definitely have a better idea of what I should be doing, so that's good.

Yay CrossFit!

Personal training update...

Two exciting developments.

1. Yesterday, I had a "consultation" at the UCD gym and got set up with a personal trainer. I met my trainer briefly and was pleased to discover that he knows what CrossFit is. (He helps train the local fire fighters and has used CF elements.) I'm looking forward to working with him.

2. Today, I'm heading down to Santa Cruz for a party. I figured I should try to stop by CFHQ as long as I was in town. I can't just drop in on a class - they require you to do a 1-on-1 training session first. So at 11 a.m. today, I'm scheduled to train with someone! I hope he can teach me how to do kipping pull-ups...

800m

Warm-up: A few squats, a little bit of stretching...

Workout: 4 x 800m, with 3 minutes of rest in between each one.

I did this on a treadmill (not that I wanted to! I went to the track - in the rain! - and it was locked. Boo!), so all of the 800s took exactly 3:06. They all felt pretty good - my legs didn't feel like Jell-O afterwards, and I only got really short of breath on the last one.

Starting Strength WO #2

Warm-up: 10 minute run (1.38 miles)

Squat
45 x 5 x 2
65 x 5
85 x 5
105 x 2
135 x 5 x 3 (Yay!)

Press
35 x 5 x 2
45 x 5
55 x 2
65 - F
55 x 5
60 x 3 (F on 4)
55 x 5 (4 + 1)

Power Clean
45 x 5 (from the "jumping position")
45 x 5
55 x 5
65 x 5
75 x 5 x 3

My power cleans were pretty ugly. I don't quite understand how you're supposed to touch your thigh on the way up. And I kept banging the bar into my neck. I wonder if there's a trainer in Davis who knows about lifting...


Update: I made an appointment for a "consultation" with someone at the UC Davis gym. We'll discuss my goals, and then she'll match me up with a trainer. I hope it's someone good!

Mary

Mary:

Complete as many rounds in 20 minutes as you can of:
5 Handstand Push-ups (mine were only a few inches deep)
10 One legged squats, alternating
15 Pull-ups (jumping)

I completed 8 rounds, plus 5 HSPUs and 6 squats. That's two rounds better than last month! The squats felt a lot easier this time around, but the HSPUs are still very shallow, and the jumping pull-ups were still pretty pathetic by the end.

Starting Strength WO #1

I followed Mark Riptoe's advice today, from Starting Strength page 196.

Warm-up: 10 minute run (8 mph, 1.34 miles)

Squat
45 x 5 x 2
65 x 5
85 x 3
105 x 2
125 x 5 x 3

Bench Press
45 x 5
55 x 5
65 x 2
75 x 5
70 x 5 x 2
(Didn't feel safe to keep doing sets of 75# without a spotter.)


Deadlift
65 x 5
65 x 5
85 x 5
105 x 3
125 x 2
145 x 5 x 3


I was the only woman in the room using free weights. Ridiculous.

Rest + Lentils

We had Mie's yummy lentils for dinner tonight, and they were, indeed, yummy. We added an eggplant and some dried, reconstituted seaweed.

My glutes are still pretty sore from hiking and Ultimate, but they're feeling much better after today's rest. And I'm happy to report that my back is feeling much better than it was a week ago.

Ultimate

Pretty high-quality pickup on a sunny afternoon. Hard to beat. I biffed a few catches on my first point out (arrrrgh) but played alright after that. I was trying to think about Pose Method running techniques, but who knows if I was doing it right.

I'm tempted to do Andrew's track workouts, to work more on my running. But I'm also excited about trying the squats posted for Monday's CrossFit WOD - I've been reading (well, skimming) Starting Strength, and it just makes me want to DO the things discussed.

In any case, tomorrow is a rest day for me. We shall see about Tuesday.

Hiking!

Took a beautiful hike along the North Blue Ridge Trail to Fiske Peak. Four miles from the trailhead to the peak, so eight miles altogether. Total elevation gain was 2100 feet. Total time (including lunch with a heck of a view at the top) was 3:20. Wonderful to be outside on such a nice spring day.

Climbing

We climbed for about an hour today - not too long, as I was getting tired quickly and Scott's a little sick. Felt pretty good.


I'm reading Ripptoe's Starting Strength right now. He's talking about grips, calluses and gloves. He says that gloves are okay to use if you have a cut or something on your hand, but "A desire to prevent callus formation (possibly so as to not snag one's pantyhose) does not constitute a legitimate use." Suck it up, buttercup, indeed.

And as long as I'm being crabby...

I like pretty much everything that happens to my body when I do CrossFit regularly. But I wish my hands didn't get callouses. Even though they're signs of hard work, I think they're ugly.

Fran

Warm-up: 500m row (1:53)

Fran

Round 1:
21 thrusters @ 50#
7 pull-ups w/55# assist, 14 @ 70# assist

Round 2:
15 thrusters @ 50#
5/10 pull-ups with 55#/70# assistance

Round 3:
9 thrusters @ 60# (yay!)
3/6 pull-ups with 55#/70# assistance

Time: 12:15

NOT feeling so hot about this workout. It was worse than when I did this a year ago. I tried doing the thrusters with a pair of dumbbells totaling 65#, but only knocked out 3. I need to practice those. And why are pull-ups so hard?

Windmills
5 x 20# (5 right arm, 5 left arm)
5 x 22.5#
5 x 25#

Last but not least
Also, I realized that when I did presses last week, I thought I was lifting more than I actually was. The bar I used weighs 35#, not 45#. Kind of the icing on the cake, huh?

Finally...
I slept better last night, but my back was still very sore when I woke up. I think it's on the mend though.

400s

Warm-up: Bike to the UC Davis track, discover that it's closed, bike home to the apartment treadmill. Rats!

4 x 400m sprint, with 2 minutes of rest in between each one
1:32 (10 mph)
1:30 (10.5 mph)
1:28 (11 mph)
1:26 (11.5 mph)

These felt a lot easier than I expected. I wonder what my times would have been if I had been doing them on a track though... I think the treadmill makes this easier.

PS - Thanks to Yoshi Dragon for reminding me of this workout. I can't believe you did it on a 100m track - those must have been some tight curves.

I didn't sleep well last night, I think because my back was aching. I feel it the most when I bend over forwards and let my body hang straight down. The ache feels like it's coming from the inside of my body, much deeper than my back muscles, closer to my chest. Scott massaged it a little bit last night - it felt great on my back muscles, but didn't affect the ache. Very strange.

Diane, yoga

Diane: 21-15-9 deadlifts and handstand push-ups, for time
I used a pair of 65# dumbbells for the deads, and did regular push-ups.
Time: 8:40

(Last time I did this was 1/07. I used 115# and did handstands against the wall. It took me 12 minutes.)

Now I'm off to yoga!


UPDATE, now that I'm back from yoga... Something's up with my back. It's been sore since Sunday, and I figured yoga would make it feel better... but now it feels worse. Grrr. I can't figure out what I did to it - I played Ulti on Saturday and Sunday and didn't do anything particularly jarring. Weird.

Good timing (more Ultimate)

A lucky day! I was on my way home from belly dancing class, wondering what I would do with myself for the rest of the afternoon, when I passed by the frisbee field and saw people out playing! I stopped by and discovered that they had only just started, so I sped home, grabbed my cleats, and spent a little over an hour playing high-quality, savage pickup. It was so nice to be outside under the sun, and I played pretty well too.

Ultimate!

I played frisbee today for the first time since November, and it felt good! My lungs felt good (no asthmatic wheezing), my legs felt pretty good, and my throws and catches felt not-too-rusty. I definitely felt more in shape than I did in the fall - I was still sprinting pretty well at the end of the 2nd hour.

To top it all off, it was absolutely gorgeous out - sunny, high 50's - and I'm definitely looking forward to playing again next weekend!

Presses, Climbing

Warm-up: 500 m row, under 2 minutes

Press
10 x 30#
5 x 40
5 x 50
5 x 55
5 x 60
4 x 65
0 x 70

Not bad! The last time I did these, I only got as far as 45#.


Scott and I climbed for almost 2 hours after that. I got to the top of the 10bs I've been working on and felt more fluid, controlled and balanced than I have in the past - a nice feeling, for sure.

EDIT (2/14/08) - Turns out I only got up to 55# on my presses - the bar I was using weighed 35#, not 45#. Drat.

Sprint Tabata

Sprint tabata, with a 4-minute warm-up and cool-down run on either end.

What's your favorite vegetarian recipe?

I'm giving up meat for Lent (but not eggs, I think). What's your favorite vegetarian recipe? Last night I made this lasagna for dinner - it is tay-stee!

Climbing - Short 'n' Sweet Night on the Wall

My yoga class felt excellent tonight - my glutes and abs were quite tight from yesterday's deadlifts. Afterwards, I met Scott at the climbing wall. We didn't do that many runs, but I got to the top of another 5.10b that I couldn't do the last few times I tried it. There's one move at the beginning that took several tries, but Scott was a good and patient coach, and I kept at it until I got it. I am very proud of myself. Yay!

Deadlifts

I joined Scott at the little gym this evening when he got home. This article inspired me to work on my deadlifts.

5 @ 100#
5 @ 110#
5 @ 120#
5 @ 130#
5 @ 140#
3 @ 140#

All done with dumbbells. Ugh. Next time I'm at the UCD gym, I'll have to figure out what my max is.

I did a few Romanian get-ups (20#) (because they're fun) and windmills (20#) (because they're fun *and* they stretch my hamstrings) and that was that.

Tabata Something Else

Had two very nice rest days this weekend! On Sunday, I went into San Francisco for a little culture (SF Museum of Modern Art), commerce (yay Market St. shopping!) and companionship (a Valentines-making party, which included vegan cupcakes.)

It was a little hard to get back into it today, but I did!

"Tabata Something Else"
57 Pull-ups: 11, 9, 6, 7, 6, 6, 6, 6 (all jumping... some were pretty pathetic)
57 Push-ups: 11, 10, 8, 5, 6, 6, 6, 5
66 Sit-ups: 6, 8, 9, 9, 9, 9, 8, 8 (feet hooked under the bed, arms across chest)
146 Squats: 19, 19, 17, 18, 17, 17, 19, 20 (Feel the burn!)

Total: 326

And now, back to my glass of water.

Climbing

Spent about 2 hours climbing with Scott tonight. I did not feel strong, but I had a good night overall. I'm *very* proud of myself for getting through a particularly difficult spot on a 10b. I've been working on it for a few weeks, and today I finally figured out how to get through it! It felt terrific.

We had shrimp with a banana + coconut milk + curry sauce for dinner. YUM.