Fitness-1/9-bench press, snatch, deadlift, deadlift tabata, "Chips Ahoy"

Saturday

Big one at the little gym today. Here's right to it:

Bench Press

2 x 5 @ 95#

2 x 5 @ 135#

2 x 5 @ 185#

Hang Squat Snatch

1 x 5 @ 75#

2 x 5 @ 95#

2 x 5 @ 115#

Deads

2 x 5 @ 155#

2 x 5 @ 185#

2 x 5 @ 235#

This was all sub-max, continuing on in our de-load week. It felt nice and light and was a good warm-up for what was to come.

From here, we went after a tabata. A "tabata" is performed by doing 20 seconds of work (going for maximum repetitions) followed by 10 seconds of rest for 8 consecutive rounds on one exercise before switching to another. Generally, a tabata wod will consist of 4-5 exercises, and your overall score will be the combined total of your lowest round scores for each exercise . Today we just went after one exercise and there was no high or low round. Every rep counted:

Tabata Deadlifts @ 275#

score=50

This was my first deadlift tabata and it was tough. I was shooting for 80 and didn't even come close. I'd no idea how tough it would be in the later rounds. My high round was 11 and my low was 5. I'm aiming to average 8 a round next time out.

We were given exactly 10 minutes of rest before getting after "Chips Ahoy," a chipper performed AFAP:

400m farmer's walk, 24kg kb's

30 pull-ups

30 push-ups

30 box jumps, 24"

30 sit-ups

400m run

time=10:57

I went after this one pretty hard and was certainly feeling the deads. The pull-ups after the farmer's walk, as well as the box jumps, were the major hang-ups in this one for me. My grip, and my body too for that matter, is pretty beat after this week and I'll look forward to rest tomorrow.

Nutrition-1/9

Saturday

sleep: 8.5 hours on the night

9:45am

-2 organic hardboiled eggs

-2 links isernio's extra lean all natural chicken sausage

-large banana

-1 cup organic whole milk

-1.4g epa+dha

10:15am

-double 16 oz. americano, black

12pm (post wod recovery)

-"Recoverite"-15g prot, 49g cho, 4.5g glutamine

1pm

-2 organic scrambled eggs

-4 oz. chicken breast

-1/3 cup walnuts

-mixed grapes, pine apple, pears, apples (app. 6 oz.)

-2.5g epa+dha

-double 12 oz. americano, black

5:30pm

-4 oz. chicken breast

-1 organic hardboiled egg

-1/4 cup walnuts

-1.4g epa+dha

8pm-10pm (Chuckanut Brewery Cheat Meal)

-1/2 plate (shared) of chicken nachos w/sour cream, guac and salsa

-4 pints Strong Ale

10:30-12:30am (Uisce's)

-3 single Red Breast Irish Whiskey

1am

-2 oz. bbq potato chips

-2 oz. cheddar cheese

-1/2 pint Ben and Jerry's Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream

-140 oz. water on the day

Fitness-1/8-"357"

Friday

The body was feeling pretty good when I got into the gym today but the intensity just wasn't there. I had a hard time getting fired up and even though my body wasn't necessarily sore, it was tired. But I still made the most of it and went through this one. I just went at a "lower" gear and if felt good to get a sweat up but go sub-max. "357" was 7 rounds AFAP of:

3 x handstand push-ups

5 x hang power cleans, 185#

7 x pull-ups, chest to bar

time=15:30

I moved through this one pretty slow and steady. I was happy with the hspu's as I was able to make it through the entire wod using only 1 abmat under my head. I had to kip, but it was still a huge step in the right direction. Nice and quick session in the gym today. Getting ready for a good one tomorrow.

Nutrition-1/8

Friday

sleep: 9.25 hours on the night (brilliant)

9am

-3 links isernio's extra lean all natural chicken sausage

-2 organic hardboiled eggs

-large banana

-1 oz. dried apricots

-1.4g epa+dha

9:30am

-double 16 oz. americano, black

12:30pm

-6 oz. pork loin

-1/3 cup walnuts

-6 oz. carrots

-small organic pink lady apple

-1.4g epa+dha

4:45pm

-4 oz. chicken breast

-1/4 cup walnuts

-2 oz. dried apricots

7:15pm(post wod recovery)

-"Recoverite"-15g prot, 49g cho, 4.5g glutamine

8:30pm

-4 oz. chicken breast

-2 organic hardboiled eggs

-1/4 cup walnuts

-1 cup blackberries

-small organic pink lady apple

-1.4g epa+dha

9:30-11pm (out with some friends)

-single Laphroig single malt, 12 year

-2 single Red Breast Irish whiskey

12am

-4 oz. chicken breast

-1/3 cup walnuts

-2 organic hardboiled eggs

-1 cup organic whole milk

-3g epa+dha

-130 oz. water on the day

Fitness-1/7-press, "Daniel"

Thursday

Started the day out with some light press work, continuing on with a sub-max/de-loading week. Sets looked as follows:

-2 x 5 @ 65#

-2 x 5 @ 95#

-2 x 5 @ 115#

Even though this was light, I felt strong today. Likely because my shoulder felt better today than it's felt in months after I tweaked it doing weighted pull-ups a while back. It's not 100% just yet but it's close. I'll look forward to loading the press back up next week.

After the press, went after "Daniel," one of the brutal Hero wods. I hadn't done this one before and was excited to give it an inaugural run. I was also stoked because this is the first week I've been really disciplined with my rest and nutrition in months and I was feeling good going into this one, especially after the rest yesterday. "Daniel" is the following performed AFAP:

50 pull-ups

400m run

21 thrusters, 95# (went @ 115#)

800m run

21 thrusters, 95# (went @ 115#)

400m run

50 pull-ups

time=17:05

I was pretty jacked up with this performance and I felt it affirmed what I'm doing nutritionally/rest wise. There were certainly places I could've rested less, mostly on the thrusters, but overall I pushed pretty hard and had good gas in the tank. Thrusters do continue to get easier too and going at 115# didn't seem like too much trouble. The extra work is paying off.

After I recovered a bit, I put a little 5 round triplet together to work through un-timed:

max rep strict ring-dips (no kip)

10 GHD sit-ups

10 GHD hip extensions

My reps on the ring-dips were 7, 6, 5, 5 and 4 respectively. They're a nemesis of mine but they continue to improve. Looking forward to tomorrow.

Nutrition-1/7

Thursday

sleep: 8 hours on the night

7:15am

-2 organic hardboiled eggs

-3 links isernio's extra lean all natural chicken sausage

-large banana

-1 cup organic whole milk

-1.4g epa+dha

-650mg ca, 250iu vit d3

8:15am

-triple 16 oz. americano, black

12:30pm

-4 oz. pork loin

-2 oz. chicken breast

-1/3 cup walnuts

-small organic pink lady apple

-3 oz. dried apricots

4:30pm(post wod)

-"Recoverite"-15g Prot, 49g CHO, 4.5g glutamine

-2 oz. chicken breast

6pm

-4 oz. chicken breast

-1/4 cup walnuts

-small organic pink lady apple

-2 oz. dried apricots

-1.2g epa+dha

9pm

-6 oz. pork loin

-1/3 cup walnuts

-1 cup raspberries

-8 oz. carrots

-1.4g epa+dha

10:15pm

-1 cup organic whole milk

-1.5g epa+dha

-130 oz. water on the day

Fitness-1/6-Rest-"Sisu"

Wednesday

I took it nice and easy this evening and really concentrated on some good rest. And I think my body is already starting to thank me for it. I'm looking forward to getting after some work in the gym Thursday.

About a week ago, during a similar rest session, I took the time to watch "Sisu," a documentary shot over in Finland about Mikko Salo, winner of the 2009 CrossFit Games. If you've not watched it, I strongly encourage you to. Right now, it can only be watched with a subscription to the CrossFit Journal. But trust me, it's completely worth it, and almost for this video alone.

"Sisu" is a form of stoic courage and unwavering perseverance in the face of long odds and hard challenges. It is intrinsic to Finland and its people. And perhaps, as CrossFit claims, no man captures the word better than Salo himself. The man is an absolute specimen.

This is a free clip of him from that documentary performing the chest-to-bar "Fran" workout from the 2008 CrossFit Games in a time that would have put him tops on the board. And afterwards, he doesn't even go to the ground. When asked he explains why. Pretty hard not to root for this guy.

"SISU"

Nutrition-1/6

Wednesday

sleep: 8 hours on the night (restless though, think my body's adjusting back to good nutrition and maybe having a few withdrawls or something)

7:15am
-4 oz. pork loin
-1/3 cup walnuts
-large banana
-1.4g epa+dha

8:30am
-triple 16 oz. americano, black

11:20am
-4 oz. wild caught blackened sockeye salmon
-8 oz. carrots
-1/4 cup walnuts
-small organic pink lady apple
-1g epa+dha

3:15pm

-4 oz. pork loin

-1/3 cup walnuts

-3 oz. dried apricots

-1g epa+dha

8pm
-1 organic hardboiled egg
-3 oz. chicken breast/turkey breast (mixed together)
-2 links isernio's extra lean all natural chicken sausage
-6 oz. blueberries
-small organic pink lady apple
-2.8g epa+dha

10:10pm
-4 oz. chicken breast
-2 links isernio's extra lean all natural chicken sausage
-1 cup organic whole milk
-1.5g epa+dha


-110 oz. water on the day

Fitness-1/5-"Plus 3", ring support/rope work, run

Tuesday

Was a big day of work. Started out with a morning wod called "Plus 3." It was 10 rounds of the following AFAP:

-3 x snatch high pulls (bar passes the nipple-line), 175#

-6 x ring dips

-9 x toes to bar

time=24:30

This time was weak. I petered out on the rings about 5 rounds in and I just couldn't get going on the toes to bar, was having a tough time cycling them. Just had to grind this one out.

After, I finished the morning session with 21-18-15-12-9 rep rounds of ring-support knee tucks w/12 ft rope climbs between each round.

I came back in the afternoon, approximately 5-6 hours later, and went after a run. The distance was approximately 3800m, likely a little more.

time=17:28

This was a decent time for just under 2.5 miles, nothing spectacular, but decent. I had a little more left in the tank for this one which was fine, was planning on a sub-max effort. The promising thing about this one was being able to hold a consistent pace in the 7min/mile range. I felt like I finished at the same speed as I started which was the goal of this one.

Nutrition-1/5

Tuesday

sleep: 8 hours on the night

8:50am

-1 cup organic whole milk

-2 oz. pork loin

-1/4 cup walnuts

-medium banana

-1.4g epa+dha

-650mg ca, 250iu vit d3

10:30am (post wod recovery)

-"Recoverite"-15g prot, 50g CHO, 4.5g glutamine

1:15pm

-4 oz. pork loin

-1/4 cup walnuts

-6 oz. blueberries

-6 oz. carrots

-1.4g epa+dha

4:30pm (post wod recovery)

-"Recoverite"-15g prot, 49g CHO, 4.5g glutamine

8:15pm

-1.5 oz. Balvenie single malt, 12 yr

9pm

-4 oz. pork loin

-1/3 cup walnuts

-2 small pink lady apples

-2 oz. dried apricots

-1.4g epa+dha

10:15pm

-1 cup organic whole milk

-3 oz. pork loin

-1.2g epa+dha

-125 oz. water on the day

Fitness-1/4-hang clean and jerk, front squat

Monday

My body was hurting today, a little DOMS from Saturday's chipper. Not to mention I didn't do myself any favors nutritionally or rest wise. Knowing that I was going clean starting today, I didn't hold back much over the weekend in regards to alcohol/nutrition and I could feel it today. But was still good to get back in the gym and I'm stoked to have a new and intense drive to train again, feeling motivated.

Started with some strength work today. This is a de-loading week in our cycle so the weights were light and consequently, I kept rest short. I timed 1 minute active rests between every set in which I'd perform some type of calisthenic to keep myself warm.

Hang Squat Clean and Jerk

-2 x 5 x 95#

-2 x 5 x 115#

-2 x 5 x 135#

Front Squats

-2 x 5 x 145#

-2 x 5 x 165#

I was feeling pretty good and loose after the strength work and it was nice to have 165# feel light on the front squats. In the past, much more than 155# has felt really heavy to me during met-cons but I'm getting to a place where I know I can handle weight like that no problem. It feels like more mental victory than physical.

I finished the session with some productive hspu and muscle-up work.

Nutrition-1/4

Monday-Back in the nutrition/rest saddle

sleep: 7 hours on the night (poor, must commit to 8 minimum)

7am

-1 cup organic whole milk

-1.2g epa+dha

-650mg Ca, 250iu vit d3

8am

-16 oz. triple americano, black

11:15am

-4 oz. pork loin

-1/4 cup walnuts

-8 oz. carrots

-small apple

-1.2g epa+dha

3:15pm

-4 oz. pork loin

-1/4 cup walnuts

-large banana

-1.2g epa+dha

5:15pm

-12 oz. double americano, black

7:15pm

-4 oz. lean ground beef

-1 large link isernio's extra-lean all-natural chicken sausage

-1/3 cup walnuts

-2 oz. dried apricots

-1 large banana

10:50pm (post wod recovery, late one tonight)

-Recoverite=10g prot, 33g CHO, 3g glutamine

-3 oz. pork loin

-1/4 cup walnuts

-small apple

11:55pm

-1 cup organic whole milk

-1.5g epa+dha

-350mg Ca, 150iu vit d3

-145 oz. water on the day

Fitness-1/2-snatch, bench press, "The Chipper", deadlifts

Saturday


Today was a big day in the gym. Started with some sub-max strength work. Sets looked as follows:


Snatch
-5 x 140
-3 x 160
-1 x 185


Bench
-5 x 190
-3 x 215
-1 x 235


All of these efforts were sub-max, geared down in preparation for the day's wod. I felt strong coming off the floor in the snatch today, 185 went up pretty easy. The rep at 235 on the bench went up easy but felt heavy, my shoulders a bit sore/fatigued from kb swings the day before. The snatch and bench were a great warm-up for what was to come.

We went after the chipper wod from the 2009 CrossFit Games. It was the final wod to decide the winner and is one bad mother. It is "The Chipper" and it kicked my but. "The Chipper" is the following done AFAP:

-15 squat cleans, 155#
-30 toes to bar
-30 box jumps, 24"
-15 muscle ups (I had to scale: 45 ring pull-ups/45 ring-dips)
-30 db push press, 40#
-30 double unders
-15 thrusters, 135#
-30 pullups
-30 burpees
-300ft walking lunge w/plate overhead, 45#

time=34:34


Brutal and very painful workout. Having to scale to the ring pull-ups and ring dips was painstaking, but I made it through. Everything else about this wod, movement wise, wasn't too bad...except for the walking lunge. 300ft is a long ways. I got to the lunges with the clock @ 27:00 and I thought I'd go the course with only a few rests. Wrong. By the end, I was only ripping off 4-5 at a time. This was the most pain I've ever experienced from one specific exercise. I'll look to start incorporating it into my sessions more often.

I finished the day with some sub-max deadlifts, just to feel some heavy-ish weight.

Deads
-5 x 275
-3 x 315
-1 x 365