No place like home

Hopefully heading home today! 🤞Or at least getting unhooked from some of these machines so I can get up and shuffling around! I don’t tolerate drugs well at all. Pain drugs make me barf. Anti-nausea drugs do the same. Yesterday started hugging the barf bucket and a loved time spent in recovery post-surgery before heading to my room. Best solution, live with the pain as much as possible and sleep LOTS. Today will be better 🙂 I have the best “nurse” at home ❤️

prelude

Ok, I’m at work and bored and entirely unfocused because there’s too much going on in my head to think about drafting invoices and purchase orders.  Thankfully my boss gave me a get-out-of-jail-free card today for my un-productivity.  Tomorrow I have surgery.  I’ve known about it for months and gone through a whole range of emotions, the current one being a mix of impatience and acceptance.  I’ve also set out over the last few weeks to make sure I’m as healthy as possible so I can heal QUICK and get back to doing all the stuff I like to do.  When I got the call last week with the time of my appointment, I was a little bummed cause I have to be at the hospital at 6am. 😦  First thing I said to my girl “boo.  I won’t have time to go for a run first.”  Yup, that’s me in a nutshell.  Send me good vibes and stuff at 8am tomorrow, k?  I’ll let you know how this goes!

Life is good

Life is good.  Like, been walking around with a big smile on my face for days kinda good.  This past Saturday I asked my girl to marry me.  Like, for real.  We’ve daydreamed together about our wedding for a long time and I was ready to finally work towards making it actually happen. ❤ A friend commented on Sunday out of the blue how much he admires our relationship.  He loves how much we obviously care about each other and the respect we both share.  There was more to his little speech but my not-so-rock-solid memory has misplaced it at the moment… Anyways, he made me smile cause it’s true 🙂  We can truly be ourselves together.  A couple of geeks who do silly things and laugh non-stop.  We both could spend the whole day cuddling and watching neflix and be perfectly happy.  We like adventures together but we also like the less exciting times too! Life is good. 😀

Last weekend was a long weekend and for once we had no real plans, so what do you do when you have a whole 3 days to waste? Workout and make food!!  By Monday my pretty much everything hurt.  It was awesome!!

I’m going to talk food in a separate post, cause the workout recap is tedious and I can ramble on about food and nutrition for ages too.

Friday Sept 1 2017

HERO Friday – Brownwood Dallas 5
50 Burpees
then…
10 Wallballs
10 Shoulder to Overhead 65lbs
10 Pull-ups
10 Box Jumps
10 Sit-ups
5 Rounds
then…
800m Run
Time – 28:25 Rx

Well, this was a challenging one no question.  My cardio is horrible right now.  I’m disappointed in myself for letting it get so bad, but overall I feel better when I’m not squeezing runs in on top of my already busy life so I’ll survive I guess.  Except we’re competing in Festivus Games again in just over a month and I don’t want to totally suck.

Saturday Sept 2 2017

100 Air Squats
90 Double Unders
80 Jumping Pull-ups
70 Sit Ups
60 Push Ups
50 KB Sumo Deadlifts 32kg
40 DB Push Press 25lbs
30 Weighted DB Box Step Ups 25lbs
20 Burpees
10 Man Makers 25lbs

We did this one as a partner WOD, cause Saturday is partner WOD day.  Even split in half if was pretty rough! Can’t imagine doing it as individuals.

Sunday Sept 3 2017

1. STRENGTH – BACK SQUAT
8 Minutes to Build to a HEAVY 5 Reps 135lbs
7 Minutes to Build to a HEAVY 3 Reps 155lbs
6 Minutes to Build to a HEAVY 1 Rep 175lbs
2. OLYMPIC LIFTING – SPLIT JERK
EMOM, 12 Minutes
Complete 1 Split Jerk, adding weight each round
3. SKILLS (skipped today!)
4. CONDITIONING
800m Run
30 Cal Row
25 Burpees
20 Squat Clean 75lbs
5.BARBARA
20 Pull-ups
30 Push-ups
40 Sit-ups
50 Air Squats
5 Rounds

Ok, I was tired today.  Friday and Saturday flattened me a little… well the legs anyways.  Got chatting and missed the skills portion which I was relatively ok with since I really didn’t feel like 55 HSPU (or going upside down at all if I’m being honest).  I kinda fluffed Barbara as well.  Still got a good workout though! 😀 Sundays are so much fun and now that hoceky is done we can actually go to them.

Monday Sept 4 2017

Partner Workout – Run together, split all others as desired
400m Run
100 Front Rack Lunges 65lbs
50 Toes to Bar
100 Double Unders
50 Calorie Row (while partner holds plank)
100 Hang Power Cleans 65lbs
50 Burpees
100 Shoulder to Overhead 65lbs
50 Deadlifts 165lbs
400m Run
Time – 41:41 Rx

HOLY CRAP!!  But I’d totally do this one again.

 

In motion

Some days it just feels like I’m stuck going through the motions. Get up, get dressed, go to work… but I’m not in a job I want to continue going through the motions with right now. I mean, I like what I’m doing generally, but it’s not the career I see myself in. I had a good job.  One I worked really hard to earn but it was taken from me, so now I’m trying to figure out what’s next. Starting next week I’ve stepped down at Sport Chek to part time again and will start something new. I’m both nervous about it and pretty excited, so hopefully it can become what we’re hoping it will 🙂 Also will give me the opportunity to go back to school, which I’m really excited about!

Took the whole weekend off from crossfit after Friday’s WOD pretty much flattened Amanda and I. Went for a hike Saturday instead 🙂 and played ball hockey last night as usual. Well… kinda.  I played defence for the first time in a long time and enjoyed it! Lol! Also badly needed a good crockpot weekend to replenish our lunches stash.  Last week there was a drought in that regard and the freezer needed to be restocked! After both crocks running Saturday making chicken curry and again Sunday with chili and a beef/vegetable mixture we’re good to go!

Friday July 14:

Right up until the 3, 2, 1 GO!!! I didn’t want to do this one.  At all.  But once I got going it wasn’t that bad.  Got through the 15’s and 12’s and my mind calmed a little knowing the remaining rounds were less than 10 Reps each.  Sometimes it’s really just a head game to convince yourself to make it through.  I certainly wasn’t fast, but Rx on this one was a huge victory for me!! 90 pull-ups!? Yeeeah!  Thankfully my hands didn’t rip up the first set of 3, but the last set ended in bloody palms.  Hate that 😕 And another reason there was no WODs happening over the weekend! After a round of Krazy Glu to hold my wounds closed I survived the work day, but at night my hands were kinda angry.

 

 

Just coast

Where do I begin… it’s been an interesting nearly 2 weeks of learning stuff. I’ve found the effects of nutrition and exercise fascinating for a long time, but I’m kinda diving into a whole different level that I didn’t even know existed. When I was still at CFD Coach Sharon used to tell me all the time that I was overtraining. I figured if that was he case, my body would let me know. Days where I was really sore or overly fatigued I’d take a rest day then jump right back into routine again. It seemed to work for me, so I carried on, but was that the start of the weight issues? I mean, I knew I was gaining weight then, but had no idea why. Could my restricted diet and excessive exercise be the reason? WTF!?!? Seriously!?!? I used to look at the badasses in the box like Coach Dave who trained pretty much non-stop and really didn’t think of my exercise routine as excessive, but I know now you have to take into account your own situation and listen to your body on a deeper level. It’s more than just sore muscles that suggest it’s time to assess things! A super clean eater who works out a lot should NOT be gaining body fat! That can be a sign that your body is in panic mode and fighting for survival.

So what’s the answer? That I’m not sure yet. I know I need to test out a month or more of lower intensity to see if this theory is right, but I haven’t gotten myself to the mental preparedness for that yet. Crossfit is my therapy and I’m scared to let it go.

Back in the game

Order is restored in my world a bit… I finally feel I can call myself a crossfitter again 😀 For now anyways, I’ve been WODing 2-3 times per week and I’m back to the regular routine of something-is-sore every day pretty much. My hands aren’t overly excited about all the pull-up bar and rope climb abuse from this week, but that’ll get better. I don’t feel like a newb anymore 😉  Although… Tuesday I felt like I had never climbed a rope in my life but my 165lb back squat went up quite easy.  PR is coming for that one soon!  Baby steps.

Wed. May 3:

BUY IN – Big Clean Complex
Every 4 minutes for 20 minutes complete:
1 High Hang Squat Clean
1 Hang Squat Clean
1 Squat Clean
1 Push Jerk
1 Hang Squat Clean
1 Squat Clean
1 Push Press
1 Hang Squat Clean
1 Squat Clean
1 Split Jerk
*Increase weight each round – 55, 75, 80, 85, 90

WOD – 
For time:
21-15-9
Overhead Squats 65lbs
Pull-ups
Time – 8:38 Rx

Tues. May 2:

BUY IN – Squat Wave
Every 2 minutes complete:
3 Back Squats @ 80% 1RM  145lbs
1 Back Squat @ 85% 1RM  155lbs
3 Back Squats @ 80% 1RM  145lbs
1 Back Squat @ 88% 1RM  160lbs
3 Back Squats @ 80% 1RM  145lbs
1 Back Squat @ 91% 1RM  165lbs

WOD – 
For time:
21-15-9
Kettlebell lunges (per leg)  16kg
Burpees
5-3-1
Rope Climbs
Time – 12:40 Rx

Wahls Protocol

If there’s any interest… my Wahls Diary will be on this blog: https://battleworthfighting.wordpress.com/2017/04/26/my-wahls-diary-prequel/

We survived Festivus Games his past weekend 🙂 Amanda as a competitor and myself as photographer. Still digging myself out after more than 1,500 images were captured, but I’m excited to share these soon! Only a handful of the 130 competitors were from CFC and while it was kinda nice to shoot some different people, I’m always most concerned with capturing “family”. Especially when things are crazy intense like they were at this one with 14 lanes per heat!

Now there’s a plan

Let us back-track for a moment… 5 years ago I had just moved to Waterloo.  I had been living a pretty crazy life with a long drive to and from work every day and LOTS of ball hockey. Also quite committed to the global gym scene.  I had recently started the whole Paleo routine trying to fix some health crap. Oh! And I was skinny!! Not healthy necessarily despite all my efforts, but shopping for pants mad me happy for the first time in my life. Unfortunately that was the only thing really at time, but it was pretty huge. Life in Waterloo was a real change. I was 6km from my job, with an awesome gym in between. I had so much time on my hands I didn’t really know what to do with it at first, but I figured it out. Reconnected with an old friend from work who had gotten into personal training and started lifting. You probably know that drill… Monday leg day, Tuesday back and biceps, etc.  Pretty boring stuff, but I wanted to gain some muscle. Then one day I found crossfit. It was new for me, but brought the cardio element back to my world which I had been missing (Waterloo doesn’t offer the same ball hockey opportunities Toronto did!!). It was new, and scary, and exciting… and FUN!!  Downside… I slowly started to gain weight. At first I thought, all good its muscle. And in a sense I was right! But every season I was shopping for new clothes cause the old ones didn’t fit anymore. After a while I started to freak out a bit, so I tightened up my diet (which was pretty strictly Paleo already) and worked out more. But the weight kept creeping up. Could I have been going about things all wrong?! Fast forward to today and finally realizing that crossfit and Paleo could be responsible for my weight gain!! WTF!?!? I read this a few days ago which really got the ball rolling in my mind:

paleo-made-fat-pop-tarts-got-shredded/

I felt like this guy completely understood how I’ve felt!! I mean, I have a pretty decent 6-pack that I’ve worked really hard for, but there’s this layer of body fat covering everything.  I did a bit more reading and decided it was time for a change. I had already made the decision to give up nut butters, which at least had me in the right direction, but I’m increasing my carbs as well. After 5 years of quite a low carb intake, it might be just what my body needs? Or I might get fatter. I’m really hoping option A is reality.   There’s a part 2 to this rant. With dropping the fat content, my macros were in line with what Coach Jen had recommended at my nutrition consult, but my calories were still quite low.  So I asked! Explained my frustration and what I was looking for and got another response I hadn’t been expecting!  My focus had been set on adjusting the diet component once again, but Jen’s thoughts were along a different line.  Could crossfit be to blame?  Seriously??  So now it’s a matter of trying to determine wether my super-clean eating or intense workout routine is the reason I can’t shed a few pounds.  Not binge eating, or nights of drinking, or sitting on the couch… a clean diet or exercise.  What. The. FUCK.  Jen is also looking to lean out before a very important event in June, so she is readjusting her workout routine with the same goal in mind.  “We could lift together!  Misery loves company, right?” she said haha!  Anyways, her plan involves just lifting 3 times a week and cutting the WODs to 2 per week MAX.  They are great, but they cause stress on your body (says Jen) Some people handle stress by loosing weight, some bodies go into panic mode and store everything as fat!  So… sitting on the couch might actually be a more effective way to lose weight?  I don’t know… so confused.  What I DO know is crossfit keeps me sane and happy, so I’m making some adjustment to my workout routine for now but focusing more on the nutrition part.  Last night we went to Olympic lifting class instead of the WOD for the first time in ages 🙂  It’s kinda strange how I used to feel like I was ripping myself off from the sweatfest I needed and just went through the motions of the class without much enthusiasm.  Last night was so different!  I loved it 🙂  and Coach Carson is amazing!  The crossfit side of things will benefit SO much from working with him too.  Plus if I can actually lean out a little the gymnastic parts should improve as well.

Anyways… long rant.  I have always had a goal, but now I feel like I have a plan too.  Hopefully that’s the difference this time.  To be continued…

Chaotic

This post could be a chaotic one… just saying.  I’ve got a bunch of thoughts swimming around in my head and I’m not entirely sure how I’m going to put them all down quite yet. 🙂

Tomorrow a good-sized group from CFC are starting the Whole Life Challenge.  I considered it, but A: I’ve already done it.  Twice.  B: I can think of better ways to spend money right now.  C: Although I did seriously consider it, I just couldn’t see how it would create enough of an impact to make a difference.  I eat clean.  Other than the once a month pizza night cheat meal, I’d have to give up gum and spend more $$ on clean bacon.  Just not enough of a difference to make a difference.  Anywho… I’ve decided to give up nut butter for the duration of the challenge instead.  Cause as always, I’m not happy with my body and want to find whatever is making me carry around extra fat.  I mean, I have abs!  I can see them sometimes… like when I move or whatever.  But I want to just see them.  So maybe no nut butter will help.

I’m dealing with an MS relapse this week.  Not a bad one, but still not fun and in a totally new environment makes it challenging.  My Henry’s crew new me.  They new what was normal and how to help when things were rough.  So did my CFD crew.  This is a new experience with Amanda too and I’m really doing my best to communicate things with her and help her understand.  I know how it feels to be on the other side of things too where you just want to help but you have no idea how.  I read a post yesterday (while sitting on my butt with a warm Magic Bag draped over my legs) that described very well the communication challenges.  I shared the post with Amanda cause it seemed easier than trying to interpret my own version.  The author refers to MS as her sidekick.  It’s something that has an invisible but constant impact on your physical well-being and state of mind.  Yet no matter how long you’ve been living with this sidekick, it can still be quite challenging to decide how much to keep to yourself.  It’s also challenging cause when things are my normal I have no need to share anything, but when something comes up I mentally often don’t have the space in my mind to also take into consideration how to explain what I’m dealing with.  My mind is occupied with “Just get through this.  It will pass.”  I mentioned to Amanda yesterday, it’s a battle in my mind cause there can be a fine line between I don’t want you to feel like I’m shutting you out and I don’t want to get to the point where it’s like a broken record.  This week os thankfully not too bad.  I can still crossfit (although not quite at my usual intensity but it’s something!).  Coach Jason approached me after the WOD on Tuesday where I had scaled to a 75lb bar when I really wanted to try at least 95 and commented “is that YOUR bar?! You could have done heavier! 😉 ” Oh, trust me… it’s a tough enough mental battle to convince myself to be smart.  I did call in sick to work yesterday, which is hugely odd for me, but the pain in my legs has been pretty intense.  Ever had frostbite?  Know how it feels when your frozen bits start to warm up again?  Well, that painful burning sensation has moved in from just above my knees to my toes and doesn’t seem to want to leave quite yet.  Anyways, if it interests you here’s the post I read:

https://www.msconnection.org/Blog/October-2016/An-Inconvenient-Sidekick#

I had my weekly dose of puppy therapy on Wednesday 🙂  Pluto came to work with me and kept me smiling.  He’s actually the only reason I didn’t call in sick Wednesday too, but look at this kid?  How could I pass up the chance to chill with him?

Amanda and I are starting a little side project together.  I’ve been hired to shoot at CFC (like, NOT for free!) and  my awesome girl wants to join the fun too!  When we shoot together I figured it wasn’t right to just put my signature on the photos so yesterday we came up with a name and logo 🙂  With the Open right around the corner, we’ll have plenty of opportunity to shoot too!

 

focus forward

Haven’t been able to figure out where I wanted to go with this. 2016 is more than 2 weeks behind me now and I’m going to be totally one of those people and say “thank GOD it’s over!!”  Don’t get me wrong, it had some pretty awesome highlights, but one of the biggest shit storms my 34+ years has seen. I’m thankful though… I have an amazing girl who has been incredibly supportive ❤  Once Henry’s is officially in the rear view mirror I’ll have a chance to figure out what the next chapter is.

Another great form of therapy… CFC 🙂  Way too much has happened to get caught up completely, but last Friday’s WOD is worth recording.  I was a little sad when we we told Hero Fridays was taking a break till spring, but Open WOD Fridays are pretty awesome too!  Especially when the WODs are ones I’ve seen before.  Well, awesome in an “oh joy!!  I get to relive that horror!!” kind of way, but still!  I get to kick my old score in the butt too.  When I first say 14.3 I was 7 months in to Crossfit and managed to complete 95 reps.  I went in to round 2 excited to see how far I’ve come since then.  Didn’t disappoint myself at all.

Friday Jan. 13

Open WOD 14.3
AMRAP 8 Minutes:
10 Deadlifts #95
15 Box Jumps
15 Deadlifts #135
15 Box Jumps
20 Deadlifts #155
15 Box Jumps
25 Deadlifts #185
15 Box Jumps
30 Deadlifts #205
15 Box Jumps
35 Deadlifts #235
15 Box Jumps