Good stuff today. Perfect deload week - a nice and welcome break, fun but challenging work, and I'm definitely looking forward to some 1RMs next week. I have conflicting feelings about what's to follow, though. Barbell II is over next Friday, and then it's on to Games training. I know it'll be good stuff, but I'm dreading the return to regular metcons. Specifically, runs longer than 200m and workouts longer than 8 minutes.
A: Band pushups - tan and blue
I really don't even know how to describe these - bands hanging from the pullup bar, hands in the bands, feet on a box, life flashing before your eyes (hyperbole? probably). They went better than I would have guessed (maybe I just need to come to terms with the fact that I don't suck at pushups anymore. at least not as much.), but they were tough.
The goal was 3 sets of 8-10. I got 8 on the first set, but just 6 on sets 2 and 3.
B: Multi-depth jumps
Again, difficult to describe, but luckily there is video evidence. Note the awesome music switch for Greg's jumps.
Special guest gangster, indeed. He was sure he wouldn't be able to get these, but sure as shit made at least 2 perfect runs.
We went 5 times through. Zack and I had grand plans to do tricks at the end of the runs; he got a sweet 180 off the last run, but I just never quite had my bearings enough after that 4th tall jump to pull it off. There goes my circus career.
C: DB backward walking lunges
3 x 10 each leg 25# - 30# - 30#
D1: Swiss ball holds
2 x :45? I'm not sure how long he had us hold it. The first hold felt great - way more stable than last week and considerably less effort expended. The second hold, however, went straight to hell after about 15 seconds. My lower back just started to slowly clamp down, and I had to bring my foot down for a few seconds before just barely finishing out the last 10 seconds or so. Really painful.
superset w/
D2: Swiss ball hip extensions/leg curls
2 x 15
These just get worse every week. The second set, I rested quite a bit, and my hamstrings felt like death.
Conditioning:
CFO WOD was 'Black Lung' (21-15-9 box jump, burpee, ball slam)
Ricky swapped kipping pullups for the box jumps and, thankfully, switched up the rep scheme and added in a little rest.
3 rounds:
7 pullup, 7 burpee, 7 ball slam
rest :30
3 rounds:
5 pullup, 5 burpee, 5 ball slam
rest :20
3 rounds:
3 pullup, 3 burpee, 3 ball slam
Perfect rep scheme - my burpees got slow here and there, but I was able to keep moving with some semblance of intensity the whole time. Pullups felt pretty good until the end of the 5s. Ball slams were quick as usual. (I don't know why I dread them so much - it's always where I make up time.) Most importantly, I beat Zack by 1/2 slam. An important victory after my depth jump trick fail.
Friday, November 12, 2010
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Log 11/10
Last catch-up post!
A: Pistols
3x5 each leg unbroken
While my HSPUs have managed to improve without any direct practice, my pistols... have not. I used a purple band hanging from the pullup bar to help me get past the sticking point. The first set, I held on around the middle of the band; the second set I held on about 1/4 of the way up the band. For the third set, I tried unassisted, but only got 3 on the right and 4 on the left (and really, not eve that - I think my heel grazed the ground a couple times). So I rested a couple minutes and went back to 1/4 band or a little less. Felt good to do these again.
B: Press w/bands
8x3 44-44-44-44-44-44-44-49-49
These were not fast this week. Not terrible, but not as good as last week. My left arm just didn't want to fire. Blah.
C: Med ball granny toss (the first version in the video) - 14#
3x12
These were a little awkward at first, but lots of fun. Nice to get outside.. even nicer now that November is acting its age.
D1: Glute-ham holds (set up like a GH situp, then just hold level)
2x:30
Brutal. These are really difficult for me. My shoulders felt like they were going to come out of their sockets, I had to stay so tense.
superset w/
D2: Weighted hip extension (on swiss ball)
2x12 w/50#
Conditioning:
We did a version of Wednesday's CFO WOD - 3 rounds of 3 complexes, 200 m run.
I just used 88#, because GH holds did a number on my back. (My slow-ass presses probably didn't do me any favors there, either.) These were tough - an 88# back squat should NEVER feel that heavy. I'm sure my 3rd round was my fastest - Reba thought we were supposed to rest between rounds, which put me in striking distance on that last run. She was in a zone with her headphones, so I snuck up on her and we sprinted it out the last 100 m. It felt awesome - I love a good sprint-to-the-finish.
A: Pistols
3x5 each leg unbroken
While my HSPUs have managed to improve without any direct practice, my pistols... have not. I used a purple band hanging from the pullup bar to help me get past the sticking point. The first set, I held on around the middle of the band; the second set I held on about 1/4 of the way up the band. For the third set, I tried unassisted, but only got 3 on the right and 4 on the left (and really, not eve that - I think my heel grazed the ground a couple times). So I rested a couple minutes and went back to 1/4 band or a little less. Felt good to do these again.
B: Press w/bands
8x3 44-44-44-44-44-44-44-49-49
These were not fast this week. Not terrible, but not as good as last week. My left arm just didn't want to fire. Blah.
C: Med ball granny toss (the first version in the video) - 14#
3x12
These were a little awkward at first, but lots of fun. Nice to get outside.. even nicer now that November is acting its age.
D1: Glute-ham holds (set up like a GH situp, then just hold level)
2x:30
Brutal. These are really difficult for me. My shoulders felt like they were going to come out of their sockets, I had to stay so tense.
superset w/
D2: Weighted hip extension (on swiss ball)
2x12 w/50#
Conditioning:
We did a version of Wednesday's CFO WOD - 3 rounds of 3 complexes, 200 m run.
I just used 88#, because GH holds did a number on my back. (My slow-ass presses probably didn't do me any favors there, either.) These were tough - an 88# back squat should NEVER feel that heavy. I'm sure my 3rd round was my fastest - Reba thought we were supposed to rest between rounds, which put me in striking distance on that last run. She was in a zone with her headphones, so I snuck up on her and we sprinted it out the last 100 m. It felt awesome - I love a good sprint-to-the-finish.
Log 11/8
This is the beginning of a deload week, which I actually don't really like that much. I get that they're important and blah, blah, blah... but I don't ever really look forward to the break. It just means light weights and more volume. And I. hate. volume. This time around it's a little more fun, though. With the lifts changing every two weeks, the deload is a little looser and a chance to mix things up a little.
A: Box jumps - highest consecutive
3x5 24" + red + yellow (I really need to figure out the actual heights)
These were fun - I maybe could have done a red and a blue for the last set or two, but my landings were already a little iffy here and there so I wanted to work on that consistency.
B: Box squat
10x2 @ 60% (132#) w/ 60 sec. rest
These felt great this week - I could still get a little more consistent with the power off the box, but they feel comfortable.
C1: Handstand pushups
3xmax reps 12 (kipping w/abmat) - 19 (2 tan bands) - 16 (2 tan bands)
Ricky wanted us to aim for 12-20 reps, which meant beaucoup assistance. I was really happy to get that first 12 on the wall, but I knew I wouldn't get another set of more than 6. The bands are fine, but I never feel like I'm doing any work until the last few reps and then it's miserable. But, I'm definitely seeing improvement, so I'm happy.
superset w/
C2: DB Renegade rows
3x:45 w/ 30# 23 - 25 - 23
These were brutal. End of story.
D1: DB external/internal rotation
2x10 w/ 5#
I'm still not quite getting that internal rotation to the ground with my shoulder glued back, but it's getting better, and the left arm is REALLY close.
superset w/
D2: Glute-ham raises
2x5
Conditioning:
Reba had the bright idea to do the CFO WOD for Monday, minus the press. This was the last thing I wanted to do, which I made abundantly clear, as I so often do. But I stayed, the workout started, and it sucked. Shuttle runs were SLOW, and the squats made my right hip feel like it could blow out the side at any moment. Things just weren't firing right. The smart thing would have been to stop. I assume that it goes without saying that I did not. I had bitched and moaned so much about it that I felt like maybe I was just trying to create excuses. So I just took the squats nice and slow, and went on to the 2nd shuttle. More of the same. On the third round of squats, I finally felt like my hips were tracking right, and I could crank out some reps. But it was too late. I got a measly 59 reps total. Lame. On the plus side, I only had to do about half as many squats as Reba. Take that.
A: Box jumps - highest consecutive
3x5 24" + red + yellow (I really need to figure out the actual heights)
These were fun - I maybe could have done a red and a blue for the last set or two, but my landings were already a little iffy here and there so I wanted to work on that consistency.
B: Box squat
10x2 @ 60% (132#) w/ 60 sec. rest
These felt great this week - I could still get a little more consistent with the power off the box, but they feel comfortable.
C1: Handstand pushups
3xmax reps 12 (kipping w/abmat) - 19 (2 tan bands) - 16 (2 tan bands)
Ricky wanted us to aim for 12-20 reps, which meant beaucoup assistance. I was really happy to get that first 12 on the wall, but I knew I wouldn't get another set of more than 6. The bands are fine, but I never feel like I'm doing any work until the last few reps and then it's miserable. But, I'm definitely seeing improvement, so I'm happy.
superset w/
C2: DB Renegade rows
3x:45 w/ 30# 23 - 25 - 23
These were brutal. End of story.
D1: DB external/internal rotation
2x10 w/ 5#
I'm still not quite getting that internal rotation to the ground with my shoulder glued back, but it's getting better, and the left arm is REALLY close.
superset w/
D2: Glute-ham raises
2x5
Conditioning:
Reba had the bright idea to do the CFO WOD for Monday, minus the press. This was the last thing I wanted to do, which I made abundantly clear, as I so often do. But I stayed, the workout started, and it sucked. Shuttle runs were SLOW, and the squats made my right hip feel like it could blow out the side at any moment. Things just weren't firing right. The smart thing would have been to stop. I assume that it goes without saying that I did not. I had bitched and moaned so much about it that I felt like maybe I was just trying to create excuses. So I just took the squats nice and slow, and went on to the 2nd shuttle. More of the same. On the third round of squats, I finally felt like my hips were tracking right, and I could crank out some reps. But it was too late. I got a measly 59 reps total. Lame. On the plus side, I only had to do about half as many squats as Reba. Take that.
Log 11/6
Went in to CFO for the power clean/pushup ladder.
1 Power clean and 1 pushup on the first minute, 2 and 2 on the 2nd minute, etc., until you can't finish in the minute, up to 10 minutes.
I was unsure of what weight I should use, and waited until enough people bugged Amanda so that she would write up some weight suggestions. The highest weight she wrote for women was 143, so that's what I did. Big. Mistake. Had I been paying attention, I would have noticed the highest mens' weight was 176... do the math... 143 is a lot. More importantly, had I been thinking AT ALL about what I know to be my own abilities, I would have realized that I can not rep out 10 143# power cleans in any reasonable amount of time. Fairly quickly? Sure. Quickly enough to leave enough time for 10 pushups (generally a weakness of mine) while fatigued? Uh no. Dumb.
That being said, it could (and probably should) have gone a lot worse than it did. I made it through the 7th round with no problems - 20 seconds to spare. I was getting tired, and I realized I probably wasn't going to make 10, but thought I'd be able to squeak out 8. No go. I just barely got the 8 power cleans done, with no time to even drop to begin a pushup. So, I rested a minute, dropped to 132#, and in the last minute redid the round of 7.
Overall, I guess it wasn't a disaster. My pushups felt better than ever (thank you, barbell classes!!), and my power cleans, while sloppy, weren't a total train wreck until that 8th round. And even then, I was present enough to slow it way down and avoid injury (to my body, if not my ego). While it would have been smart to use 120# and knock out all 10 rounds, it was probably useful to get in over my head and hold strong.
1 Power clean and 1 pushup on the first minute, 2 and 2 on the 2nd minute, etc., until you can't finish in the minute, up to 10 minutes.
I was unsure of what weight I should use, and waited until enough people bugged Amanda so that she would write up some weight suggestions. The highest weight she wrote for women was 143, so that's what I did. Big. Mistake. Had I been paying attention, I would have noticed the highest mens' weight was 176... do the math... 143 is a lot. More importantly, had I been thinking AT ALL about what I know to be my own abilities, I would have realized that I can not rep out 10 143# power cleans in any reasonable amount of time. Fairly quickly? Sure. Quickly enough to leave enough time for 10 pushups (generally a weakness of mine) while fatigued? Uh no. Dumb.
That being said, it could (and probably should) have gone a lot worse than it did. I made it through the 7th round with no problems - 20 seconds to spare. I was getting tired, and I realized I probably wasn't going to make 10, but thought I'd be able to squeak out 8. No go. I just barely got the 8 power cleans done, with no time to even drop to begin a pushup. So, I rested a minute, dropped to 132#, and in the last minute redid the round of 7.
Overall, I guess it wasn't a disaster. My pushups felt better than ever (thank you, barbell classes!!), and my power cleans, while sloppy, weren't a total train wreck until that 8th round. And even then, I was present enough to slow it way down and avoid injury (to my body, if not my ego). While it would have been smart to use 120# and knock out all 10 rounds, it was probably useful to get in over my head and hold strong.
Log 11/5
How the hell did I get a week behind? L.A.Z.Y. Back to the grind...
I managed to lose the sheet I wrote last Friday's numbers on, so this is my best recollection.
A: Floor press
w-upx5 44
w-upx3 64
w-upx2 74
5x3 93 - 120 - 132 - 135- 145
These felt pretty damn solid.
B: Depth jumps
Again, we worked up to a 1RM first (24" plus ... I don't remember. I know I have that paper somewhere... update to follow.), then took Ricky's rough estimation of 30% off the top.
7x1 @30%ish (I'll get back to you.)
C: DB crossover stepups (20" box)
3x12 each leg w/ 25# DB
No creepy eye contact or synchronization this time... (see 2:30)
D1: Swiss ball plank holds
2x40 sec (ok, so the first one was only :30.. but it's Ricky's fault. I swear.)
superset w/
D2: Swiss ball hip extension/leg curls
2 x 12
Plank holds were shaky as hell, but not necessarily hard. I definitely felt the hip ext/leg curls a lot more this week - my hamstrings were shot.
I managed to lose the sheet I wrote last Friday's numbers on, so this is my best recollection.
A: Floor press
w-upx5 44
w-upx3 64
w-upx2 74
5x3 93 - 120 - 132 - 135- 145
These felt pretty damn solid.
B: Depth jumps
Again, we worked up to a 1RM first (24" plus ... I don't remember. I know I have that paper somewhere... update to follow.), then took Ricky's rough estimation of 30% off the top.
7x1 @30%ish (I'll get back to you.)
C: DB crossover stepups (20" box)
3x12 each leg w/ 25# DB
No creepy eye contact or synchronization this time... (see 2:30)
D1: Swiss ball plank holds
2x40 sec (ok, so the first one was only :30.. but it's Ricky's fault. I swear.)
superset w/
D2: Swiss ball hip extension/leg curls
2 x 12
Plank holds were shaky as hell, but not necessarily hard. I definitely felt the hip ext/leg curls a lot more this week - my hamstrings were shot.
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Log 11/3
I really really wanted to skip Barbell class yesterday. I don't know why. I just didn't. want. to. go. anywhere. But I had to go to work after class anyways, and I knew I'd be mad at myself if I didn't, not to mention to lazy today to make it up. So I dragged my sorry ass in 5 minutes late and, as I suspected, was happy I did.
A: Zercher squat - I ditched the PVC this week, because I was sharing a rack with Shelley and she set up without it. As a result, I got a shit-ton more weight on the bar. 164 felt just right - pretty damn heavy, but just before total form break-down.
w-upx5 64
w-upx3 88
w-upx2 115
5x3 120-132-142-154-164
Between sets, we did a little lacrosse ball torture on the hamstrings. Good stuff.
B: Pause press w/bands
We started out at the same weight as last week, and then were allowed to add weight at Ricky's whim. (Okay, not so much at his whim as when he thought we were getting enough speed.)
8x2
33-38-38-38-38-38(this felt awesome! I drew a star instead of a checkmark)-43-43
C: Rope climbs
3x6 - The foot lock felt a lot more natural this week. Win.
D: Med-ball clean/wall ball
3x30
The first round felt super bad-ass. Unbroken, fast, and easy. The next round was not fun at all - made it in 21 reps and then my legs just stopped listening to my brain entirely for about 10 seconds. The third round was just hellish. One at a time for over half, though I didn't really rest so much as let the ball fall, settle, and then right back at it. I guess I'm making progress with the mental game, but part of me would rather just have it be easy. All the time.
E1: Supine glute-ham holds
2x15 sec
E2: Supine hip extensions (on swiss ball)
2x12 w/ 50# DB
Not much to say about these - not terrible. The glute-ham holds were tough as I expected, but doable. Hip extensions were slightly awkward, but not difficult.
Good news! No more clean/wall balls! I'm looking forward to seeing what our accessory work will be next week. Not to mention, super excited for depth jumps on Friday.
A: Zercher squat - I ditched the PVC this week, because I was sharing a rack with Shelley and she set up without it. As a result, I got a shit-ton more weight on the bar. 164 felt just right - pretty damn heavy, but just before total form break-down.
w-upx5 64
w-upx3 88
w-upx2 115
5x3 120-132-142-154-164
Between sets, we did a little lacrosse ball torture on the hamstrings. Good stuff.
B: Pause press w/bands
We started out at the same weight as last week, and then were allowed to add weight at Ricky's whim. (Okay, not so much at his whim as when he thought we were getting enough speed.)
8x2
33-38-38-38-38-38(this felt awesome! I drew a star instead of a checkmark)-43-43
C: Rope climbs
3x6 - The foot lock felt a lot more natural this week. Win.
D: Med-ball clean/wall ball
3x30
The first round felt super bad-ass. Unbroken, fast, and easy. The next round was not fun at all - made it in 21 reps and then my legs just stopped listening to my brain entirely for about 10 seconds. The third round was just hellish. One at a time for over half, though I didn't really rest so much as let the ball fall, settle, and then right back at it. I guess I'm making progress with the mental game, but part of me would rather just have it be easy. All the time.
E1: Supine glute-ham holds
2x15 sec
E2: Supine hip extensions (on swiss ball)
2x12 w/ 50# DB
Not much to say about these - not terrible. The glute-ham holds were tough as I expected, but doable. Hip extensions were slightly awkward, but not difficult.
Good news! No more clean/wall balls! I'm looking forward to seeing what our accessory work will be next week. Not to mention, super excited for depth jumps on Friday.
Monday, November 1, 2010
Log 11/1
Banner. freaking. day. With the exception of the external/internal rotation, everything was dramatically improved this week. Love love love.
A: Hang clean
w-upx5 74
w-upx3 88
w-upx2 110
5x5 125 - 132 - 142 - 147 - 154
The 147s were a little slow - didn't get under very well, and the elbows were sluggish. I got my shit together for the 154s though. On the first rep, I forgot to release my right hook grip, but the elbows were fast for both reps and #2 felt pretty solid. My knees didn't even point in too much, like they tend to do on heavy power cleans.
B: Box squat
12x2 120#
These felt so much better this week - my third set was a tiny bit wobbly as I stood up, but overall I managed to reach back while staying relatively upright (probably could have been a little better but not bad), keep my knees out, and stand up fast. I even remembered to "spread the floor" with my feet, which is always a tricky cue for me. Beginning to really like these.
C1: Ring push-ups
3xmax reps 14-10-10 (hell. yes.)
superset w/
C2: Strict pull-ups
3xmax reps 7 - 6 - 5 (I was hoping to hold 7s across, but I'll gladly take this, too.)
D1: DB supine ext/int rotation
2x12 5# (started the first set w/10s, but switched to a 5# plate because my shoulders were all over the place. lots of junk going on in there)
superset w/
D2: Glute-ham raises
2x10 These finally feel e.a.s.y. Maybe those leg curls were worth it after all. Maybe.
No conditioning. I should have asked about it, but I was afraid Ricky would make us do this. Maybe I'll do something tomorrow on my own as penance.
Or not.
Whatever.
A: Hang clean
w-upx5 74
w-upx3 88
w-upx2 110
5x5 125 - 132 - 142 - 147 - 154
The 147s were a little slow - didn't get under very well, and the elbows were sluggish. I got my shit together for the 154s though. On the first rep, I forgot to release my right hook grip, but the elbows were fast for both reps and #2 felt pretty solid. My knees didn't even point in too much, like they tend to do on heavy power cleans.
B: Box squat
12x2 120#
These felt so much better this week - my third set was a tiny bit wobbly as I stood up, but overall I managed to reach back while staying relatively upright (probably could have been a little better but not bad), keep my knees out, and stand up fast. I even remembered to "spread the floor" with my feet, which is always a tricky cue for me. Beginning to really like these.
C1: Ring push-ups
3xmax reps 14-10-10 (hell. yes.)
superset w/
C2: Strict pull-ups
3xmax reps 7 - 6 - 5 (I was hoping to hold 7s across, but I'll gladly take this, too.)
D1: DB supine ext/int rotation
2x12 5# (started the first set w/10s, but switched to a 5# plate because my shoulders were all over the place. lots of junk going on in there)
superset w/
D2: Glute-ham raises
2x10 These finally feel e.a.s.y. Maybe those leg curls were worth it after all. Maybe.
No conditioning. I should have asked about it, but I was afraid Ricky would make us do this. Maybe I'll do something tomorrow on my own as penance.
Or not.
Whatever.
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