living the dream

This week has kicked my butt a bit!  On top of the heavy work load at the box, my head has had a few moments of considering my total disappointment in this round of Whol30 and wanting to throw in the towel.  I mean, what a waste that would be when I have less than a week to go.  Yesterday I had a random daydream about an Oreo cookie.  Just one… I’m not even sure I remember what they taste like after 3+ years grain free, but a girl can dream…  Great.  Now I’m thinking about Oreos again, so back to the good stuff.  Heavy squats Monday, then Wednesday was a leg destroyer, Thursday made the hands more than a little tender, then this morning I PR’d my 3 rep max deadlift.  Not complaining, actually feeling pretty satisfied with the accomplishments, but my body is relieved tomorrow is a rest day.

That’s pretty much been the story of my life since Monday :-p

Fri. Apr. 24:

Part 1. Another BIG sexy Squat Clean + Jerk Complex
2- Squat Cleans+ 1-Jerk  #75
1- Squat Clean+1-Jerk  #85
2- Squat Cleans+1- Jerk  #95
1- Squat Clean+1- Jerk  #105
*Increase load after each set*
Part 2. Deadlifts: Work up to a HEAVY set of 3 Reps, drop the loading 10%-15% and then go for MAX reps

HEAVY 3 reps – #215, rep out – #135 x20

Yaaaaaaa-BUDDY!!!  215lbs for 3 reps 😀  Don’t suspect my 1RM is reasonable at #240 anymore!!

Thurs. Apr. 23:

Part 2. Teams of 2, AMRAP 20 Minutes:
30- Lateral Barbell Burpees
30- Chest to Bar Pullups  pull-ups
30- Power Cleans
*Power Clean weight increases each round.

P. Cleans – #65/#75/#80

Ok, there’s something wrong with this statement, but I’ll make it anyways.  I loved the lateral barbell burpees today 🙂  Found a rhythm to them and strung them together all fast and seamlessly.  Fun times 🙂  The pull-ups were a mess and came down to 1 rep each, so we didn’t get as through as many rounds as this WOD intended, but TB and I had fun anyways.

Wed. Apr. 22:

21 – 15 – 9 Reps of:
Thrusters #95/#65   #55
Front Squats #95/#65   #55
Wallballs 20lbs/14lbs

Time – 8:26

Sweet jeeeeezuz!!  This was ridiculous!  Kinda reminded me of 15.5, or maybe worse?  At least part of 15.5 was sitting on a rower!  In a sneaky sort of way, this was 135 squats.  Not heavy squats, but 135 reps with a PVC pipe still feels heavy near the end.  I nearly cried when I got home and remembered how many stairs were involved every time my pup had to pee.

step up

I need to vent for a minute.  I agree that everyone is different and the only person I am responsible for is myself.  If you want to cheat on your diet, or cheat reps in a WOD that’s up to you.  It’s generally none of my business.  There’s an exception to that.  When you join our Whole30 discussion group and post a pic of a chocolate skor cluster with a comment “is this Whole30? hehe!” it becomes my concern.  This might not have bothered me all that much if you hadn’t been my partner for Murph and cheated a rep or two off every round.  And if I wasn’t already waking up thinking about chocolate I may have cut you a little more slack too.  But listen, it’s not my job to count your reps for you, but when trying to transition smooth and efficient, counting reps is the way to go.  When my usual WOD buddy doesn’t have to miss a WOD for an exam, we are seamless.  So while yes, you are only cheating yourself in the end… don’t try to drag me down with you!  I’m committed and hard-working.  Get with the program.

Sat. Apr. 18:

Ok, I probably shouldn’t be blogging about today at all considering I called in sick.  I never call in sick, but after a 4th night of not sleeping much I felt justified.  PLUS the mobility workshop going on at CFD seemed like something I really needed.  As for the WOD first, maybe not so much… but I was there, so… yeah.

Ahh… Murph.  Done as a partner WOD today thankfully!  Cause had it been solo I might have said “eff this!!” during either of the runs.  It was a beautiful sunny day, but heading up the hill to the turnaround point was running head first in a wind tunnel lol!  Maddy and I paired up and decided to split the middle chunk in to rounds of Cindy.  Good plan I think 🙂  Kept us moving at a steady pace the whole time, although I have no idea what our end time was.

Fri. Apr. 17:

So much for the chiro miracle I had hoped for.  Day 3 running on very little sleep.  Day 3 getting out of bed at 3-something cause I just couldn’t get comfortable enough to hope for more sleep.  As soon as I got up and got moving around, the back feels fine.  Arg.

4 Sets:
1 Power Clean+ 2 Front Squat + 2 Jerk Complex
*Increase loading for each set*

75 / 85 / 95 / 100

Got up to #100, but my clean was ugly, squatted easy-peasy, then failed the jerk.  Shook it off and tried again.  This time failed the clean!  Again, and again…  Took me a few attempts, but I finally completed the complex at #100.  Same weight as last Friday…  that’s not the point of this exercise but running on fumes I decided to be ok with that.  Also didn’t want to really mess up whatever is going on with my back.

Thurs. Apr. 16:

Team 10k Row
*Teams of 3, switching every 250m*
*Every 5 Minutes, perform 3 plate pushes (1Each)*

Time – 48:47

Sweet jeezuz this was rough!  Learned my lesson when I took the bait of Greg encouraging me to row harder to reach 5800 meters before the 5 minute plate push.  I switched gears and rowed HARD.  Then wanted to die for the next 10:00.  Noted.  I figured this one would take a while, but didn’t expect nearly 50 minutes.  Clearly, cause post-WOD I had to toss Yuko in the car, rush home to inhale some food (cause I was starving and kinda dizzy!) and book it to my chiro appointment.  Thank God I made that!  She cracked me like crazy!  Maybe I’ll be able to sleep properly again without being unable to breathe every time I move.  Not fun.

Wed. Apr. 15:

Pretty proud of my little man today 🙂 Who turned 3 months on Monday.  Yes, that is a thing.  I’ll only have him till he’s a year, so we’re gonna celebrate.  Happy 1/4 birthday Yuko lol.  Back to today – first we got up early and headed to the track. It’s been quite some time since I’ve brought Yuko along, like the last time we were still at the point where I had to carry him up and down stairs and he really sucked at walking. Today we managed to run together (super-slow, but it’s a start!) for almost a whole lap!  Then we walked another, and he settled down and slept on my hoody while we went through a Rachel WOD creation. 5 rounds with a partner – jog 1/2 lap, sprint 1/2 lap, 10 burpees, 30 second plank hold, tag your partner.  Ok, I did sprint-ish.  The first 3 anyways. I’m disgruntled at how downhill my running capacity has slipped. Something to work on. And not the point of this story.

After the track we headed to Yuko’s first day of puppy school 🙂 ok, I was a little nervous that he might poop in the classroom, but also excited to meet the rest of his litter 🙂  From the minute we walked into the centre he was a bit of a spaz, but there were dogs everywhere and lots of stuff to sniff. I had to pretty much tackle him so the vet could give his vaccines and he jiggled like a jumping bean on the scale.  Wish I new what his weight was when I got him, cause today was 10.5kg… Ever seen the movie Best In Show? The group of people which I share the “Y” litter with sort of reminded me of the movie.  An eclectic group, although all very nice. There was Yorkie and his stereotypical gay couple who have avoided any dog socialization up to this point as they were fearful that others may not have vaccinated their beasts. And I’m not making an assumption here, the more chatty of the pair threw in a “me and my husband” comment at one point that made hubby turn a bright shade of red. Then there was the French woman who got paired with Yvette. That doesn’t happen by accident, right?  There was also a young couple who had Yugo. Seriously? That was confusing when she kept saying his name and my little fur ball didn’t know what to think. I mean, I guess when you pick the letter “Y” for a litter, there are only so many options. One thing I did pick up from the little meet and greet while we all sat in the waiting room (the people sat, the dogs strained to sneak in a little play session) is that while I’m really pretty easy on Yuko in terms of demands, he’s really pretty awesome.  He settled in the chaos better than most. He doesn’t bark a lot, which many voiced as a concern. AND he’s the only of his litter who sleeps through the night! That’s lucky for him since we’ve had the pups 6 weeks now! He would have got the old “return to sender” ages ago.

Yup.  That’s my boy.  Sure I’ll listen to you and “Sit”, but don’t expect my attention to be undivided.

 

be awesome, it’s Friday

This morning was quite possibly the best Friday coffee WOD of all time.  HUGE turn out and wicked-fun workout.  Get this – something you will rarely hear me mention outside the confines of my own head – I KILLED IT!!  Like, 70 box jumps (yes, JUMPS.  We’re talkin’ on AND off and the Rx height 20″), speedy Gonzales through the burpees (pretty burpees.  I know, I know.  oxymoron) AND #35 kettlebell swings the real way (overhead).  I felt unstoppable 😀  It was awesome!  Then, when I got home afterwards I learned that the “killed it” feeling was mutual.  Had breakfast, then needed a nap!  That’s unheard of.  Trust me it happened, and for the last few hours I’ve been fighting to keep my eyes open at work.

Fri. June 27:

Teams of 3
One athlete works at a time:
100 Pullups
100 Burpees
100 Box Jumps, 24/20
100 KBS, 70/53   #35
100 Box Jumps, 24/20
100 Burpees
100 Pullups   ring pulls

Result – 26:03

Thurs. June 26:

I’m going to call this week – the week of the pull-up.  3 of the 4 WODs I’ve been to (I think… might be 4 of 4) we’ve been on the bar in some context.  My hands will confirm this.  Gnarly.  Today’s WOD didn’t sound too bad.  The row is kinda long, but only 15 Clean and Jerks and I don’t have an aversion to air squats.  Sh*t!  I underestimated the row!  Kept up my efficient rowing skills for the 1000m (2nd person off the rower), but didn’t anticipate the wobbly legs that would carry me from the rower to the bar!  Jeezuz!  Now those legs are the same ones I’m going to count on while I haul 75lbs over my head?  Really?  The clean and jerks were my biggest time suck for sure!  After 10 minutes of hell came the lovely pull-ups.  Something just clicked!  I pulled off the best few sets of kipping pull-ups to date 🙂  Then the wheels fell off entirely.  But I’m CLOSE!!  🙂

Part 1. AMRAP, 10 minutes:
1km Row
15- Clean and Jerks, #135/#95    #75
100- Air Squats   78 (time ran out)

**Part 2. Unbroken Chest-Bar Pullups
8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8  8 rounds of 3-4 reps
1 Minute Rest between sets

I made it. Now what?

NOTE– This post was written yesterday (Tuesday) with the intention of posting then.  My Waterloo computer no longer knows how to add pictures and a world without pictures is just boring.  Cambridge has saved the day!!  That being said, TODAY is DAY 31 😀 I’m proud of the commitment I showed to get through the Whole30 for the whole 30 days, but today the lack of accountability is messing with my head.  Just have to keep reminding myself… the cheats aren’t worth it.  Just keep on keeping on.

A few important milestones this week and next, but I’ll save the next week one for now.  Today is Whole30 day 30 😀  What does that mean?  Hmmm… not entirely sure it means anything.  Other than that tomorrow is Whole30 day 31.  This has been such a great experience (well, aside from the “kill all the things” days) that I really don’t have any intention of a ceremonial dive off the deep end back to my old habits.  BACON is in my future, but sugar is not.  Would it be considered a “cheat” that Saturday at my birthday BBQ I allowed my mom to talk me into mashing a frozen banana and sprinkling it with walnuts so she would have something to stick a candle in?  Maybe it is, but I don’t feel guilty.

I guess it’s not a milestone, but Sunday was 1 month until my closing date 😀  Now I really need to start packing.  With juggling managing the two stores, playing hockey 3 nights a week and crossfit 5 times a week, my “free time” is limited.  Can’t wait to get out of my building though.  Love my actual apartment, but the building sucks.  Like today… I get a call at work at 11:00am letting me know they will be showing my place at 3:00 today.  Say what?!?!  “Um.. I need more warning than that!” was my response.  “well, if we will need to fill your place for July 1, we need to show it.” I’m told.

“WHAT!?!?  How about Aug. 1!” I barked back.  Idiots.  And with bolting out of bed to get to the box this morning, I’m sure my place is not staged for a showing!  There could even be underwear on the floor or something. (not likely, but ya never know!!)  I put my foot down for today, but I will now be living with the knowledge that there could be people through my apartment over the next month and a bit.  Fun.

Before I get soooo far behind that there’s no chance of catching up, here’s the specs:

Tues. June 24:  7:30am

This morning I was standing in the washroom at the box while shoving my hair into a ponytail when I looked down at the random compilation I had thrown on, apparently in the dark.  Lime green socks, teal shoes, blue tank top, purple bra.  The thought that ran through my mind – OH GOD!  Please don’t let Coach Sharon the matching police show up today!  Figured I was safe, cause other than Friday morning, we don’t usually see her at 7:30am.  WRONG.  😮  Lucky for me, Coach Dave kept us pretty occupied and I don’t think she noticed!!

Part 1. Strict Press: 1-1-1-1-1   #85

Part 2. 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 (12 min cap)
Strict Press, #95/#65  #55
Strict Chest-Bar Pullups  ring pulls

Time – 11:57 Boom!

Part 3. Dave’s treats

50 wallballs, for time*   #14

to be completed in as few sets as possible

Result – 2:08, 2 sets

Mon. June 23:  6:00 am

Sunday night I played ball hockey and had my jet pack strapped on again it seems.  Speedy Gonzales!  I’m starting to come to the conclusion that my body just isn’t adapting to crossfit in the AM, hockey in the PM.  The days that I take a rest from CF and just play hockey, I play soooo much better!  Boo.  Side note, I forgot a sports bra and had to play in my girly Calvin Klein.  Got a team mate to tape my straps together to prevent too many waredrobe malfuntions, but the experience still sucked.  And I don’t have big boobs.  My heart goes out to all the sports-playing girls with giant tah-tah’s!  WOW!  I’ve lived sore muscles, but never sore boobs!  Too much information?  Ah, well.

Perception really is reality.  Such an important lesson to learn, and a useful tool if you can teach yourself to become more aware of how your actions, and more importantly reactions, could be perceived on the other end.  I work in retail.  This is the story of my work life.  But walking into the box this morning, I realized it can be the story in real life too!  Now that I have a longer commute to work on Monday mornings, I’ve had to abandon my 7:30 WOD in favor of the 6:00am spot.  On a Monday morning, it’s not the easiest thing to do, even for me!  Coach Dave came over to me at one point and mentioned “I like seeing you at 6 on Mondays :-)” (yes, said with a smile!)  “sigh… I have to was my response”  That was NOT the right answer!  “You don’t have to do anything McDowell.  You WANT to.” he said.  And he’s totally right!!  I DO want to.  More than many things.

For time
800m Run
30- Burpee Box Jumps, 30/24   20″ (but JUMPED first half!)
800m Run

Result – 11:37

Part 2. c2b pull-ups

7-7-7-7-7-7-7   kipping, sets of 3

I don’t think I’ve ever run so slow :p  My legs felt like they were 6″ long.  Or weighed 100lbs each.  I kept going, but it was not a nice light run! hahaha

Sat. June 21:

Reading this Friday night, I expected 24 minutes of pure awful:

“The Ghost”

6 rounds of:
1 minute of rowing
1 minute of burpees
1 minute of double-unders
1 minute rest

Try for as many reps as possible of EACH exercise, not just total score.

Part 2. Tabata Hollow-rocks

Part 3. Plank holds (6×30 sec plank, 10 sec rest)

For Ghost, the first 2 rounds anyways, awful it was.  Hoping off the rower in round 1 and jumping into the burpees offered a valuable lesson.  My legs were not as reliable as I had expected, I nearly landed on my face.  Noted.  By the half-way point auto-pilot kicked in.  Even got a few double unders!!  😮

Post-WOD was “goat” practice time.  While I’m not sure I can even consider it a goat anymore, I worked on my pistols.  At the beginning of June, I proposed a challenge to DK for 30 pistols, for time.  As the month progressed, it became pretty clear that DK wasn’t taking my challenge with any level of commitment.  This being said, it’s his loss at the end of the day.  I, on the other hand, have been practicing like crazy and getting pretty decent.  Managed my 30 in a row post-WOD yesterday with minimal stumbles.  My BUTT is SORE today though!  YES 😀

it’s all a choice

Whether or not I have faith in my coaches has never been a question.  This being said, the past weekend proved without a doubt that Coach Sharon’s insistence in the importance of rest days is the truth.  My mind hated every minute of it, but after the two days away from the box, I played like a rockstar at my Sunday night ball hockey game 😀

As for Whole30, today is day 26.  It is said somewhere that after 22 days your brain just accepts things as habit.  I think I’m at that point.  It’s not really a challenge anymore, it’s just the way my life is now.  Coach Sharon completed her Whole30 yesterday and had been counting down the minutes until her ice cream parlor crawl she had planned for day 31.  At the end of the day, she was totally let down by all the hype she had prepared in her mind.  The ice cream wasn’t satisfying, didn’t really even taste that good at all, and left her feeling shitty afterwards.  I asked if she ever really wanted the ice cream, or if it was just a little rebellion against the feeling that something had said she could not have it?  Most likely the second option was the response.  But never did anyone or anything force this challenge upon us.  It was a CHOICE all along, and one we made for ourselves.  Side note – she also noticed that she slept horribly that night.  Moral of the story… what you put into your body really does affect your life, but it’s up to each of us to decide which choices we make.  I’m not planning day 31 to be a chance to jump back into old habits.  I have moments where I just want to chew a piece of gum, but that’s about it in terms of cheat urges.  OH!  My one little thing I might experience on day 31… BACON.  But I’ve put in the hard days getting over the sugary sh*t I used to eat, to the point that I no longer need it in my life.  So why go back?

Monday was my birthday.  Monday was also my first day in my new store.  The new challenge was exciting and a little scary all at the same time.  While it’s not my first time managing the Cambridge store, it is my first attempt to manage 2 stores simultaneously.  So far, so good.  Needless to say, the week has been a busy one!  Monday – Cambridge, Tuesday – Sport Chek, Wednesday – Cambridge, Thursday – Waterloo, Friday – Cambridge…  Hence the blog drought.  First day in Cambridge, I brought my lunch as usual.  Note to self – I’m spoiled in Waterloo with our functional little kitchen.  Had to cut my avocado with a fork.  For my shift on Wednesday I was more prepared!

In need of a WOD re-cap:

Fri. June 20:

Part 1. OTM, 30 minutes:

2 Power Cleans*   #75, #85, #95*, #75, #85

3 Burpees

*increase weight every 5 minutes

Part 2. Not for time:

75 overhead squats     #45

#95… epic FAIL.  Could NOT get the bar up high enough to get underneath.  Stripped weight off and focused on opening my DAMN HIPS.  But my burpees were pretty :-p

Thurs. June 19:

This is what was posted Wed. night –

For Time:

7km RUN

Have to say, I when I read this I was MAD.  Like, crossed-arms, little brat, pending temper tantrum kind of mad.  Crazy thing is, I really do like to run, but after taking a rest day Wednesday I really just wanted to lift sh*t!!  I mean, I get my share of running with ball hockey 3 nights per week.  Thankfully by the time I woke this morning, my mind was in a better place and I put on my big girl pants and headed to the box.  Here’s the real story.  As Coach Dave said “you can’t believe everything you read online!”

For Time:

5km RUN    4.5km – 21:43

Deadlift:

7 minutes to build up to a heavy 5 reps    #185 (boo-ya!)

Bench Press:

7 minutes to build up to a heavy 5 reps     #100

2 minute row – max calories         35 calories

 

Tues. June 17:

Self doubt rode around like a monkey on my back this morning.  I don’t know what was causing it, but I woke up and didn’t have much feeling in my feet.  I mean, I could feel the lovely throbbing pain running down the back of my right leg and the elephant standing on my foot, but blindfolded I wouldn’t be able to tell you if I had shoes or socks on.  Could have been the fact that I spent all of Monday in running shoes after forgetting to bring my comfy work Birks to Cambridge with me.  Could have been the stress of the new position.  Who knows.  One thing I DO know is the lack of feeling made me more hesitant than usual with seeing my nemesis lift posted on the website.  Ahhh… the snatch rears its ugly head again.  Cue my inner ninja.

For Time:

21- Power Snatches, 115/80   #55

21- Lat. Barbell Burpees

15- Overhead Squats, 115/80    #55

15- Lat. Barbell Burpees

9- Squat Snatches, 115/80   #55

9- Lat. Barbell Burpees

Time – 11:37

Truth be told, although I went crazy light with this one… I actually didn’t suck as bad as I had worried I might.  Fav. part today – overhead squat!  Super-challenging to do, but once the bar was overhead I was able to just keep everything in control to push through.

Mon. June 16:

It’s not just about another year older, I’d rather see things as another 12 months of experience under my belt.  June 16 2013 was a totally different me.  I had yet to discover the wonderful world of crossfit.  I was still driving around in my big black torpedo (Sunfire).  And I was contentedly throwing away money every month renting my apartment.  So much can change in a year!

AMRAP 20 Minutes:
15- Calories on the Rower*
20- Kettlebell Swings 1.5pd/1pd
25- Box Jumps
30- Abmat Sit-ups

Result – 4 rounds + 15 cal, 7 KB

But who’s kidding who.  Dave obviously made us finish the round.  So… 5 rounds – 22:03

add it to the list

Potluck Saturday at work 😀  The wonderful aroma of roasting butternut squash is slowly making it’s way into my office… mmm…  The Saturday potluck idea was something we started a few years ago, but after a few broken attempts, DK and I came to the conclusion that we are the only ones really willing to do the cooking part as well as the eating part and it’s a better situation if we just have a party of two.  It’s no fun to get all excited and put in the effort to find the others idea of potluck is to show up with a bag of buns or a tray of day old cupcakes.  Lesson learned.  Today will be amazing.  I think I’ve mastered the pulled pork and DK makes the best roasted butternut.  😀

#springishere!  (finally!)  In time for a little Friday post-WOD coffee sesh in the sunshine 😀

Fri. May 9:

AMRAP in 30 Minutes:
2- Power Cleans #225/#155    #85
3- Front Squats #225/#155    #85
4- Deadlifts #225/#155   #85
5- Strict Pullups   thin blk band 😀
400m Run

Result – 8 rounds (a little over the 30 min. mark) 😀

WICKED WOD!!  This one could make the “all-time favs” list.  I felt pretty bad-ass crushing all of the pull-ups with just the little band.  Resisted the urge to put my foot on the box as I got tired for a little push-off action too.  I did underestimate the run portion though!  Expected that part to be the “rest” bit.  Wrong.  Sure, the first few rounds it was a nice and easy trot around the building… but the last few rounds it felt twice as long, as if it had somehow become uphill, and like I was pulling a piano.  I looked at the clock as I was cranking out my 8th round of pull-ups and thought “1:16 to go… I can get in the last run!”  So I literally ran from the bar, out the door, and turned things UP to try to make it back to beat the buzzer.  Kept a good pace for the first 100m… then the ground tilted and the uphill feeling began (or so it seemed)… brushed it off and kept pushing… made it to 200m, then 250m, then 300m… I think that’s when the piano-pulling came into play.  It was rough!  Thoughts going through the old head – “you won’t die… when did it get so hot… just keep going… can’t breathe… almost… there…”  Haha!  It was AWESOME!

Thurs. May 8:

Part .1 Back Squats: 2 sets of 10 reps (50%-60%) immediately after perform AMRAP Back Squats with the same loading   #95, AMRAP – 35 reps

Part 2. OTM for 12 Minutes
Odd Mins: 10- 12 reps- Barbell Bent Over Rows   #55
Even Mins: 8-10 reps- Ring Dips    thin blk band

**note to self – when ring dips are on the menu, bring tall socks in case the band option presents itself.  Bare shins are not the way to go.

life’s a burpee

Ah… the Open. It can lift us up with finding new PRs, crushing a particular WOD, and the awesome in-house camaraderie. The last 4 weeks in CF Division have been filled with an intoxicating energy that has knit our community even tighter.  We can learn of capabilities we didn’t know we had and push past barriers that believed existed previously. Yet sometimes what can raise you up can also throw you back down. Hard. Such is the burpee of life I guess. :p

I’m glad I signed up for this.  It’s proven to be an even greater opportunity to learn more about my strengths and weakness than I ever could have imagined. I’m of course talking of both the mental and physical here.  I’ve enjoyed some personal victories in getting a few double unders, my first chest to bar pull-up (followed by 7 more), and 31 toes to bar.  But there’s also been some dark moments. One week to go, and while there has been a lot of fun times, I won’t deny the fact that I’m ready for it to be done.  I’ve set some good benchmarks for myself to work to improve and to compare against again in time. However, I’m ready to crossfit just for the love of crossfit again.

14.4 left me feeling defeated and disappointed in myself. In 14.1, I went in fully aware that the double unders would have my number.  I fought hard, but the defeat was something I had somewhat mentally prepared myself for.  14.4 was a different story.  My goal in my mind had been to get to the cleans. The row went as planned, although it’s pretty tough to screw that up, but the toes to bar presented a far greater issue than I had given them credit for. I thought we were “tight and sh*t”. Wrong. I only needed 50, but in 10 minutes all I could make count was 31.  And what felt like 100 “no reps”. Interesting moment for me, although this won’t make any sense to most, my awesome judge told me at one moment when my mind had all but given up “get MAD at the bar McDowell!  MAKE IT COUNT!!!” With that comment, I no longer felt all alone on that stupid bar. I may have only gotten a few more legit reps before the time expired, but I gave it everything to do just that.  To MAKE IT COUNT.  Saturday I had a conversation with Coach Sharon that once again drove home just how amazing our coaches are.  I shared my disappointment and her words of wisdom once again helped me snap out of it.  “You have to have a thick skin to crossfit.  There will always be something you need to work on and it’s usually a long list…  You are too hard on yourself.  You have nothing to prove.”  She speaks the truth when I get so caught up in my head that I can’t see it for myself.  Much appreciated.

For the first time in maybe, well ever… I chalked. I will most likely go back to avoiding the shtuff in the future.  There have been maybe three times I’ve shredding my hands to the point of bloodshed.  All of which have been times I’ve caved to the draw of the bucket of the messy white dust.

Thankfully a friend pulled out her handy-dandy krazy glue (a crossfit essential I’ve learned) and stuck me back together after blood was washed away with a contained a yelp from the peroxide pour.  Like I said, I never chalk, but Friday I was at the point of trying anything to get in my 50 reps.  So chalk I did.

Side note – I’m still hooked on turkey meatballs.  Anytime you put fennel seeds with ground meat I’ve discovered you can’t really go wrong.  This kinda looks like garbage, but it was sooo good 😀  Meatballs, mushrooms, kale, and a handful of this kale salad mix.  I’m a no-dressing kid.  Weird, I know.  But there was a little tomato sauce on my meatballs so that makes me a little less of an oddball I think.  Not sure why the pic was taken on my couch…  Although I don’t really concern myself with logic when all I want to do is EAT what I’m photographing.

get a grip

Quick recap in a moment of calm during the storm.

Workout 14.3

WOMEN – includes Masters Women up to 54 years old
Complete as many reps as possible in 8 minutes of:
95-lb. deadlifts, 10 reps
15 box jumps, 20-inch
135-lb. deadlifts, 15 reps
15 box jumps, 20-inch
155-lb. deadlifts, 20 reps
15 box jumps, 20-inch
185-lb. deadlifts, 25 reps
15 box jumps, 20-inch
205-lb. deadlifts, 30 reps
15 box jumps, 20-inch
225-lb. deadlifts, 35 reps
15 box jumps, 20-inch

Crossfit Games Open for the first time… here’s my thoughts so far:

14.1 – I wish I could have done better.  But wishing won’t get double unders for me, so practice I will.

14.2 – I know I could have done better.  A good lesson in heading into each WOD with a strategy.

14.3 – I DID my BEST!  No regrets with this one.  I gained a better appreciation of the benefit of mixed grip when the weight gets heavy!  Tried a deadlift with strict grip (if that’s what you’d call it) and just… couldn’t… hold… on!!  “NO REP!” has got to be one of the worst things anyone can ever say to you :p  No hard feelings Coach Sharon 😉

STILL – Very happy with my 95 reps 😀 A box mate asked after I finished “what’s your 1RM deadlift?”  “#225” I responded.  “Not anymore!!” he said!  This may be true 🙂

Anyone else find that this WOD completely kicked their BUTT??  I was yawning incessantly while cheering on my CFD family, and falling asleep on my couch before 8:30.  Also, frozen solid.  Crawled into bed in socks, pj pants, a t-shirt and a hoodie!  Say what??  Strange.  Thankfully after a solid 9 hours of sleep I woke up feeling my usual awesome self 🙂

Downside to my post-WOD uselessness – didn’t cook anything for my Henry’s/Sport Chek double header today.  So breakfast was the usual egg whites & sweet potato, but lunch is meatballs w/salad, dinner is meatballs with eggplant, and if I need a snack?  A meatball?  Can you tell what was the only protein I had left in my fridge?  Here’s hoping inventory doesn’t run till tomorrow… I don’t have enough meatballs for that.

 

little bur-peep

Note to self… when you’re hungry as a horse post WOD, eat first then log your workout.  What the hellll is a “burpeep”?  Couldn’t tell ya but my brain switched into autocorrect mode to avoid even writing the word burpee it seems.

The last two days have been kind of action packed, although I’m feeling that may be the theme for this week.  Monday I hit up the box for the 7:30am WOD, then to Henry’s, then to Moksha Yoga for the 7:30pm hot yoga “practice” <– I’m told that’s what it should be called.  Not class.  Oops.  I LOVE the heat in there.  My muscles were begging for a good stretch and my hips were really tight for some reason after the weekend.  For the first time ever I found it almost too hot though.  Felt kinda garbage after.  Weird.  The instructor (yup, probably the wrong word again) was one I haven’t practiced 😉 with before.  He talked a lot.  Not sure how I felt about that.  But I did get a good sweat.  Like, the kind where you’re hanging out in downward dog and sweat runs and tickles your nose fur.  I have no question about how I felt about THAT.  Not a fan :p  Anyways, Monday WOD:

Part 1.
10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 reps of:
Thrusters, #95/#65    #55  
30 Double unders after every round of thrusters.

Part 2.
10 minute Muscle up Wave

I liked this one 🙂  Should have been a tough guy and Rx’d this though.  The #55 went up all 55 reps quite comfortably.  Get comfortable with being uncomfortable, right?  AND… I GOT SOME DOUBLE UNDERS!!  Mostly right at the end when the WOD was all said and done, but whatever.  The scaled version for this one was 20-30 seconds of practice each round.  Well played Coach Dave 😉 we’d still be there now if I had 30 to do each round.

Tuesday I hit the 9:15 with work Dave.  After months of talking about it, he’s finally all in and loving it 🙂  Does that count as my “make someone else better” action?  I put the bug in his ear.  If I ever won the lottery, I can think of a few other people in my life who I feel could really benefit from all crossfit has to offer…  It has certainly helped me be a better me.  Yesterday, it tried to make me barf.

AMRAP in 5 Minutes of:
750m Row
30- Hang Power Cleans #135/#95   #65
30- Hand Release Burpees, 6 inches above reach
REST 5 Minutes
AMRAP in 7 Minutes of:
750m Row
30- Hang Power Cleans #135/#95     #65
30- Hand Release Burpees, 6 inches above reach
REST 5 Minutes
For Time:
750m Row
30- Hang Power Cleans #135/#95    #65
30- Hand Release Burpees, 6 inches above reach

Result – 15/30+10/9:38   – going on memory here.  May not be exact.

This genius thought “I can go hard in the row!  Keep my split time around 1:45 and fly through the 750m!”  WRONG.  400-450m in, I was dying.  Slowed things down to a more realistic pace, but still wobbled to the bar on jello legs and had to take a second to recompose my breath before picking the thing up.  By round 2, I knew better.

Spent my afternoon at Sport Chek playing with boxes and shoes and generally trying to make sense of the chaos there.  This weekend is inventory.  That in itself is a scary word for anyone in retail, but in this store it’s terrifying.  My manager brain has to be turned off.  It’s not my store.  But if it was, I’d be in an all-out panic.  Sets the scene for my weekend though.  Looks a little something like Henrys/14.3, Henrys/Chek, Hockey/Henrys with sleep tucked in there where possible.  By Monday, I’ll be spent.

 

 

scattered

This post never made it past the draft stage yesterday.  It would seem that my productivity came to a standstill after I started cooking.  Made an eggplant dish, which is so good and really simple.  Slices of eggplant, white onion, chunks of red pepper & tomato sauce all tossed in a casserole dish and in the oven @ 350 for 60 minutes.

Figured if I was going to have the oven on anyways, a batch of turkey meatballs could join the party.  Besides, would need a protein to chow with my eggplant.  Once everybody was doing their thing in the oven, I realized I could clean my apartment.  Then I also realized I should eat something.

meat w/montreal steak spice + sweet potato = HEAVEN

The logic that went along with that thought was: I could watch an episode of Walking Dead while eating.  One thing led to another.  3 episodes of Walking Dead later… my apartment was NOT cleaned.  But at least I had lunch made for the next few days, right?  This may come as a shock seeing as I was always the girl who got poked at cause my tv was the big black item in the living room that was never even plugged in, but I’m addicted to Walking Dead.  Thanks D :p  About time my Netflix subscription started to earn its keep again since I ran out of Orange is the New Black episodes.  Back on track.  I’m clearly not much less scattered than yesterday.  Here’s proof.

Sunday March 9:

Who is responsible for the design of shampoo bottles?  Some have the right idea, some just suck.  Why would you ever create a bottle that will be containing a liquid which is used in small quantities which CANNOT be stood on its head??  Who hasn’t gotten near the end of a bottle of shampoo and tried to strategically prop the thing in the shower so that next time around, they won’t have to go through the long process of waiting for the stuff to flow ever so slowly to the spout?  And the propping never seems to go well.  Next time I get in the shower, of course I forget about my shampoo propping and grab one of the supporting bottles causing everything to jump ship into the tub.  Or maybe it’s just me…

I do have to warn you, I’m full of randomness today.  Maybe I should have warned you before the shampoo rant?  Too late.  Went to the 10:00 am WOD this morning for one of Coach Dave’s educational Sunday sermons.  Always a good opportunity to get for in check before getting back to heavy loads.  My focus for today was – OPEN HIPS, BIG SHRUG.

Teams of (2) One Athlete working at a time, complete:
AMRAP in 12 Minutes:
7- Medicine Ball Cleans   #12
7- Hand Release Pushups

result: 8 rounds each + 7 med ball cleans

After the WOD, headed to Hog Tails BBQ with a bunch of CFD people for the Sunday brunch that I’ve been hearing about for months.  Every week the menu is different I’m told, and wow!  There was some crazy stuff ordered!  I should have taken a picture of the very popular fried chicken waffle sandwich which had to be more than 6″ high!  Ok, so I’ve been wanting to check out Hog Tails since they catered our box Christmas party, but I had more of the dinner menu pulled pork in mind…  If ever there was a time to “cheat”, I s’pose this was it, but with a hockey game to rush of to shortly after brunch I went with poached eggs and bacon instead.  Boring.  I know.  Still want pulled pork…

Hockey was a wild one.  We ended up losing 9-7 I think, but we played a pretty good game.  I love 3 on 3, and co-ed.  It’s FAST!  Actually prefer the teams that don’t have any girls on them, as silly as that may sound.  Guys are just out to play.  Bump and grinding happens, but they don’t cry about it.  The team we played today had 3 girls, 2 of which felt it kosher to give it out, but couldn’t take it at all.  It’s hockey.

Then came Sunday cook-fest.