journeyintoselfmatters

I like kettlebells. Here, I am doing kettlebell "wall bells", and I am in mid motion transitioning to catch the bell underneath in a squat. When we did these in warmups, the 1.5 pood felt good. When I got to them in the workout, the bell was flying all over the place! That is what I love about kettlebell training - it always seems to surprise me. Kettlebell training has also been essential in my development of a stronger core. While I haven't been powerlifting training (taking a hiatus for at the most a year), I can already sense that my core is a million times stronger than it was when all I was doing was the compound lifts of bench, squat & deadlift plus a few minor accessories.

As an update, since I have been gone so long, I still have been consistently crossfitting. I tend to go at least 4 times a week, with usually the goal being 5 if possible. My eating has "generally" cleaned up as well. I am a definite "gourmande" as they say in French - so it is difficult for me to eat clean all the time. So my goal is to eat clean at breakfast and lunch every day & then dinner at least 4 times a week. 80-20 rule for me here.

But back to Crossfit -- I have definitely drunk the Kool-Aid. I tend to tell everyone who talks to me about fitness, getting fit, working out, blah blah blah, about Crossfit. Tell them to come do a class with me on Saturday, talk to them about how much fun it is and how great of a community we have at Crossfit Omaha. Despite my constant gabbing, I have YET to get any of my friends/family to commit to doing Crossfit. I have had ONE friend come and do a Saturday workout with me. She loved it, but didn't commit due to various reasons. Hmmmm...maybe I need to adjust my approach?

Couldn't help but post this link ---- given my new chosen profession (or what will be in one year):

http://thedreamteacher.blogspot.com/2009/03/speaking-out-for-teaching.html

She nailed every reason why I want to become a teacher. Except one. I love my chosen subject. I am seriously passionate about languages. Hell, by the time I was 18 I had studied French, Spanish, German and Italian. Even went to night school at the local community college for my Spanish classes because I thought the Spanish classes in high school were too slow. Really. I was such a nerd about languages. Still am I guess.

This week at Crossfit Omaha has been Benchmark WOD week. I have to tell you, it has been one hell of a week. And it isn't over with yet! I really like doing these benchmarks because it is easy to go back later on and do them again to see if you have improved. I like to improve. But then again, who doesn't? If you go through life without feeling a desire to improve - you are just a zombie. And not the cool, hip zombies either. You are a lazy zombie. Blah.

So today I am having a helluva time lifting my arms. And tonight I'll be doing either Fran (21-15-9 Thrusters #65 and pullups) or Karen (150 Wall Balls for time). Haven't decided on which will be the least painful. The workout that caused the pain was brutal. He kicked my ass. But then again -- heroes' wods should kick your ass. They should remind you of the people who serve and die for your freedom. Here's to you DT.

04/16/09
DT
5 rounds for time of:
105 pound Dead-lift, 12 reps
105 pound Hang Power Clean, 9 reps
105 pound Push Jerk, 6 reps

Scaled this to 100 pounds. Time limit was 20 minutes. I was in the process of NOT locking out my last push jerk when time was called.

04/15/2009
Cindy
As many rounds in twenty minutes of:
5 Pull-ups - 10 Pushups - 15 Air Squats

Ended with 11 rounds + 10 pushups. This is a 1 + round improvement from the last time I did Cindy. AND I am sure that my pushups were legit this time. I think last time I even counted them if I fell to my knees. Not this time. LEGIT!

04/13/2009
JT
21-15-9 reps for time of:
Handstand Pushups
Ring Dips
Pushups

Had 1 ab mat under my head for the HSPU. Also used a blue band on the first 21 ring dips (was the only band open) and then a tan band for the rest of the rounds. I think that I could drop to a purple on ring dips next time. That was the first time I did ring dips. Ever. So I was pretty cautious. Finished in 23:37.

Saturday 04/11/2009 was a fun team workout. Was a great day outside - so included running with a 14# wall ball. Really -- we must have looked like idiots. But how's that for FUNCTIONAL fitness???

04/10/2009
Annie
50-40-30-20-10 rep rounds for time of:
Double Unders
Situps

This was embarrassing. 15:56. I suck at double unders. But I figured I won't get better at them if I keep subbing them out. I ended up getting NINE in a row the last 10. Maybe I am on my way to getting them down...

04/07/2009
Helen
3 rounds for time:
400 meter run
21 Kettle Bell Swings, 1.5/1 pood
12 Pull-ups (garage pull-up bars will be used for this workout)

15:22

Bring on more benchmarks! I am ready for ya!

Here at Crossfit Omaha we have some truly amazing coaches




Every single one of them knows not only how to teach - but how to coach.

Every single one of them expects me to go all out every day. No excuses.

I'm truly lucky to train under you guys




Thank you.


Workouts (I'm really behind, so I won't post all of them):
Monday 3/30/09:
3 rounds for time of:
Tabata Burpees, 4 roundsTabata Situps, 4 roundsTabata Wall Ball,
4 rounds
Rest 1 minute
Total: 261


Saturday 3/28/09:
Team Hanging Grace
50 reps for time:
75 pound Hang Squat Clean and Jerk
Teammate: Bryce
Time: 7:40


Friday 3/27/09:
21-15-9
Box jumps 20 in
Deadlift 140#
Clapping pushups (hopping the first 21 and then to "on knees" clapping)
Time: 9:10


Thursday 3/26/09:
GOT MY FIRST ROPE CLIMBS!


Wednesday 3/25/09:
30th BIRTHDAY!
and...
Push press --- ended up with 118 x 2 for last "set" of three. I think we ended up doing close to 9 sets that day.

I just had to share this. Found it on the Crossfit Affliates blog:

I would like to let you in on a little secret: A secret to CrossFit excellence. Your thoughts may now be drifting to the foundation of any elite fitness program -- nutrition. Okay, so now the gears in your head are turning and now switching to intense metabolic conditioning. I'm not denying that you are right because you are, in fact, correct. What are you thinking about now? Is it gymnastics perhaps, weightlifting, sports? Ah, so you know the theoretical hierarchy of developing an athlete. Big deal, right? Actually yes, it is quite a big deal and I trust that each of you fully understand it.
So, those are the essential ingredients for forging elite fitness but what happened to that secret that I mentioned? Now don't fret my contrarian brethren, I'm getting to that. As a CrossFit trainer, I strive to teach you every movement correctly so you can perform them safely. As you become consistent with the mechanics of the movement, only then will we ratchet up the intensity. Once the level of intensity seemingly cannot go any further, we must dig deep within ourselves to overcome the mental and physical exhaustion. Is this an easy task when tackling a WOD by ourselves? I would venture to guess that most of you probably answered a resounding "NO" to that question -- I know I did. Sometimes we need just a little more, that extra push that will compel us to fight through the discomfort. But where do we find that? Where does it come from? It comes from the little secret.
So, what is this secret already?! The secret of course is you, me, and every other member of the CrossFit family. And whittle that down even further to the members of your own affiliate box. Do they give up on you? Do they tell you that it's okay to quit when they know that you can continue? The dedication and loyalty that I've seen within my members is truly second to none. Just when you think you cannot go any further, you hear the screaming, the words of encouragement, the "Pick up the f*#*ing bar." And so you do. You pick up the bar and keep going.
The secret: There it is. We know this secret. We understand it and we embrace it for its marvelous meaning. Seeing the determination and willingness to push yourself further than you've ever imagined is something that I truly treasure. We are not wired to quit. We just aren't programmed like that. And because of that, we will not and cannot accept mediocrity. Our CrossFit family will take us to new levels of intensity that we've never experienced before. In turn, we will reach new levels of fitness that we never dreamed possible. I would like to offer a sincere "Thank you" to not only the members of CrossFit Ramstein, but to the members of every CrossFit affiliate around the world. Our support system will now and forever remain unmatched!

Happy St. Patrick's Day! This is definitely one of my favorite holidays. I think it must be because of my love of Guinness! I also have over 1/2 Irish heritage, with my mother being full-blood Irish-American and my dad having a percentage in him too. Its also one of those holidays were you get together with friends and family and just have fun. There are no dinners to make or presents to buy...it is just plain fun!

Crossfit has been great lately. On Friday the WOD posted was backsquats! 5x5s! Now that is my kinda workout. I really had to adjust my form to the crossfit-style back squat, which took some time. At the last set of 5's I think that I finally started to perfect that form thanks to Kylie and Joe's cueing. You see, the way that I squat when I am powerlifting is completely different than that of the crossfit style. I am much more upright, with a more "oly weightlifting" style squat (i.e. chest up, hands in tight to shoulders, elbows driving in front of my body) when I powerlift. I ended up doing 187# for the last set of 5's. It was really light though. I felt that I needed to just work through the change in the form, and concentrate less on trying to max out. Next time around, with my form perfected, I'll go for the max out.

Last night was a different kind of monster. WOD was:
6 rounds for time of
15 DB powercleans (from the floor) (25# DB)
15 Wall Balls (14#)
200M run

Finished around 20:20...there was a time limit of 20 minutes on this one, so not sure of my final time, but Kylie said I came in about 20 seconds after time was called. My lungs were shot. Physically, the wall balls and powercleans were not so bad. I know one of my weaknesses is my lung capacity (stupid smoking for 12 years will do that to you) and this one really pushed me there. I did make sure to work at my highest intensity, which I feel really good about. If this workout would have come up when I first started crossfit it would have killed me. So kudos in that I almost finshed it! Next time around...I'll kill it. ;-)

So after my pity party on Friday night (which the more and more I think about it - I REALLY was frustrated about my rhythm and not my ability) I came into Crossfit Omaha on Saturday morning looking to redeem myself. Perhaps a little overeager, because I ended up doing an extra round! Didn't realize it until afterwards of course, but hey! I am pretty sure it made up for the suck that I had on Friday night. We did the following:
6 Rounds (I did 7)
20 lunges
20 ball slams (16#)
Time: 10:45 -ish
Lunges give me butt cramps. And I continued to have these through Tuesday! Couldn't walk up and down stairs for fear that I would loose control of my legs and fall. I was officially walking like a duck.

Monday and Tuesday consisted of workouts that included a few of my favorite movements:
Monday:
25 minutes working with a partner
12 Handstand pushups
12 KTE
Tuesday:
15-12-9-6-3 reps for time of:
Sumo deadlift high pull (75#)
Push jerk (75#)
Time: 10:21
We then messed around a bit with handstand walks. A note on that - Crossfit has started to satisfy my desire for doing gymnastics again. I always dreamed about the fact that a gymnastics place would offer adult classes, because I was certain I would join. I did gymnastics for 14 years! I still dream about it. At least now I get to do certain things like handstand pushups, handstand walks, etc. without looking like an idiot!

Man -- I haven't been disappointed in myself during a workout for a long time. But this time I most definitely was. The workout was fairly straightforward:
4 rounds
15 pullups
18 wall balls (10 ft 14#)
21 kb swings (1 pood)
I wish I knew where things started to breakdown. Anyways, my forearms were screaming, I had dirt in my face from the wall balls that kept hitting the dirt and then on the 4th round, to top it off I landed really hard from dropping off the pullup bar and the balls of my feet are in major pain (was wearing VFFs). I felt that I couldn't get a rhythm. I felt I wasn't up to my potential. And with the pain coming from my feet, I basically gave up. Yep, I gave up. I don't do that very often. But I...gave...up. To everyone out there...never give up, it really isn't worth it....and you'll end up with a big D for disappointment floating around your head. Now off to ice my feet...

One week later and here I am posting the results. Oh well.
Miami was incredible. The competition went smoothly, the crowd was fun, most of my powerlifting buds were there...and I GOT SECOND PLACE! This, in and of itself, is a HUGE accomplishment for me. To give you an idea, I am usually placing much lower than that (last year I placed 6th). Due to a few key movements in weight classes, as well as decreased participation (most likely from the economy) I was looking, before the competition, to place second. However, Priscilla Ribic, world champion, who normally is in the 148lb weight class, moved up to the 165lb class. Now, if I was able to get all my lifts in, I could make a run at first place.

Squats: I ended up lifting a 330lb squat. My 3rd attempt I failed (347). I hate to say it, but I knew then and there I needed that squat to stay in the race. Donna Marts, my competition, is a really good bencher and decent deadlifter. I was pretty disappointed after that lift, because I did my classic "getting soft" in my midline when coming out of the hole. While my midline is MUCH stronger since I started crossfitting, it is still my weakness.
Bench: 226 lb personal record! Bench was soooooo smooth. I hit it right in the groove Check it out:


Deadlift: Got 330 lbs on my second attempt. That matches my personal record. But it was a heckauva lot easier than the last time. Went up like a rocket! My 3rd attempt, the coach wanted to drop me down, since Donna made her last deadlift and there was no chance for me to win, but he didn't get the attempt change turned in in time. So, I tried to pull 363. Yeah. 33lbs over my personal record. It was ugly. But hell, I got it off the floor before I started shaking like an egg beater!!! Here's that funny video:


So all in all, was a great day. I ended up pr'ing on my total by 10 pounds! And second place! I still can't get over it.

So what is next? I am taking a break from powerlifting for 3 months (at least) to concentrate on crossfitting full time. I think that this switch-up will help to strengthen some, if not all, of my weakness. Plus, I really want to see what that will do to my body composition. Hell, swimsuit season is coming up right? But seriously, I am thinking of traveling back to Miami is August for the North American/Pan-American Powerlifting Championships. Not sure about that though, so will keep ya posted.

As some of you know, I will be competeting in my 4th USAPL Women's Nationals on Sunday morning. One great thing about it? It is in MIAMI!!! Talk about a great location! Another awesome thing about it? I have a chance to place 2nd.

At first I thought -- ugh...pressure -- As usually my placing is around 5-6. This year though there is a huge drop in the amount of women competing, which makes my placing possibility higher. I will have to hit all of my lifts. My numbers will matter much more than they have any other year. Good thing I have Gregg Jones, master number-worker helping me out! But in the end, that pressure I felt after first seeing the roster has dissipated. Why? Well I figure that it truly is the same as any other competition I go to. I always put down my best. I always go 100%. And who knows? Maybe this tight competition will make me go 110%, 120%? Lets hope so...I am looking for some rockin PRs. More to come...

I've been awful about posting lately! So sorry! I get caught up...then say - well I got these great photos on my camera of Crossfit Omaha workouts, so "wait until you get those uploaded onto your computer" and then put off posting until I have those done (which I haven't yet), etc. etc. I think that it is just time to repost. Especially as it has been 2 weeks since I have posted last. Sad. Honestly, not sure that I remember all of my workouts!



Well anyways, what I really wanted to say is that I have been doing this little experiment: drinking a lot of Guinness! I've told my friends that I am convinced that it is making me stronger. Or really, maybe that is just an excuse to have more of it! I actually think that Guinness is clearly placed on the right side of the Healthy/F-off Scale, and try to convince myself that it is placed higher on the healthy axis than it probably should be. No matter though, I have upped my Guinness intake for the past month and it seems to have paid off (see that squat workout below)! Got to love the scientific method.

01/28/2009:
3 Rounds for time of:
21 - 24 inch box jumps
15 - 14 lb wall ball
9 - 77 lb sumo deadlift high pull
Time: 11:41

01/26/2009:
Powerlifting squat day:
Worked up to 335 for 2 repetitions. Full gear. Felt AWESOME! Given that my one rep max at this weight is 347, I think I am gonna kill the squat at women's nationals. Must be all that Guinness.

1/22/2009:
Did good ol "Kylie L" (7 rounds: 7 burpees, 7 pullups, 7 box jumps). Finished in 11:16. I remember this one back in August and how much I hated it! I checked and back then I finished in 14:39...now thats a pretty decent improvement :)

1/21/2009:
Modified the Crossfit Omaha workout a bit...needed to go heavier in the deadlift since I am so close to Women's Nationals: 185# DL 5 reps20 Air SquatsStill did 5 rounds. Finished in 6:53. My back was screaming at me...I just screamed back.

1/20/2009:
Powerlifting: Bench and Deadlift. I found out that my bench shirt needs replacing because 220 (or was it 230?) felt like I wasn't getting any pop out of it. Took a look at the seams and it was time to thow that one away! Can't remember how deadlift was...

1/19/2009:
Powerlifting: Squat. I have no idea what I did that night...and don't have my book in front of me to record it here.

1/17/2009:
Powerlifting: Deadlift. Once again, can't remember.

1/16/2009:
CFO workout of 50-40-30-20-10 rep rounds of: Box Jumps, 20 inch box ; Situps. Finished in 17:23 and I remember that night I finished last out of the group. That sucks. Box jumps and situps are both weaknesses of mine that I need to continue working on.

I think that I'm all caught up now on the workout posts...

Ok -- I am done with winter! 4 more weeks until beautiful Miami Florida. Honestly, the weather better not let me down there - it must be bikini weather...and tank top weather. I miss my tank tops. Honestly though, I am getting pretty excited for this competition. My training has been a bit erratic, for instance the blizzard like weather we had on Monday prevented me from going to Lincoln to train with my powerlifting coach, but that's how it always is. I never train like I would like to. Every competition I always go back and say that my training will be more consistent the next time around...but it never is. I guess at least I am having fun. That's why I do it anyways!

Tuesday I went to Crossfit Omaha and did the WOD of:
5 Rounds
12 full clean squats (I did 77#, Rx'ed was 95#)
15 pushups (Rx'ed was 21)
Time limit: 20 minutes

Positives about this workout: I finally got the motion of slapping the bar against my thighs down pat. I have bruises (painful nasty ones) to show for it. Ricky, one of the trainers at CFO, is fantastic at breaking down complex movements into phases and really amazing at showing/teaching these movements.
Negatives: I did not finish in the time limit. I was FIVE pushups away from finishing. This was most definitely a case of 'the pacer' coming out in me. I paced myself way too much. I get to a point sometimes in these 'moderately' heavy workouts where I am afraid of form-breakdown and that fear makes me slow down. I remember hearing while I was on round 4 someone call time and it was 17 minutes something - I kicked it in gear and honestly think that round 5 was my fastest! And despite my screaming thighs and occasional grunting (which I never do but couldn't help myself here - I so wanted to finish in time...) I blasted through the squat cleans. For the final 15 pushups I went as fast as I could but my dang arms kept on failing. Being that close yet still failing to make time made me mad. But a postive in all of this failing was a breakthrough in my limits. A realization that I can complete complex movements (safely) under far more stress than I think I can. I am grateful for every time that I have a breakthrough like this because they are those catalyst moments that will only propel me forward. So Tuesday was a good day.

Tonight I am off to Lincoln to train powerlifting - no blizzard to stop me today.

Was perusing my favorite sites today and found this article by Jon at AgainFaster.com : DONT QUIT . I really love the way Jon writes - simple, to the point and inspiring. Take a look!

Was at CF on Saturday and participated in a team workout -- I think that team workouts are the best. They push me to work harder because I am not only accountable to myself, but also to my teammates. Was a good time and left my calves hurting even until today (Thursday). Also on Monday I did some powerlifting training. I haven't benched in a long time. I think even since the competition! I worked up to 195 x 2 with the shirt on. Not a bad workout, considering the time off!

I also can't believe that I am only5 weeks away from Women's Nationals. I will compete again at 148 since my bodyweight has been hovering low. It should be an awesome competition - with my goals for this one being the following: Squat: 350-360# range; Bench: 230-240# range; Deadlift: 340# range. Personal Records all around! Can't say where I feel like I will place, since I am not sure of my competitors yet. I always do go in with the goal to never place last! Which, you know, may sound bad, but the caliber of women competing in the 148# weight class is outstanding. There are a few world champions and world record holders.

Tonight I'll be training squat and deadlift -- more than likely putting the suit on (which I LOVE!). I'll also hit up Crossfit Omaha on Friday and Saturday. I need to force myself into a rhythm again since the holidays got me all "cheered up"!

Weakness: MIDLINE Strength. Resolution: Work my @ss off to make it strong.

Today I really felt that weakness. I did the following:
3 Rounds:
Row 500m
15 Deadlift 155#
15 KB Swings 1.5 pood

After round one I dropped to 1 pood. My midline was screaming at me, and I didn't feel comfortable enough swinging that KB around. I finished in 20:13.