The Thin Blue Line

Workout 31 July 2010:

"The Thin Blue Line"

Ten rounds for time of:
7 Cleans, 95lbs
20 Wallballs, 20lb ball
1 Muscle-up

Results: 37'28
Previous best: none

Today's workout was one designed by CrossFit Confluence to honor Pennsylvania State Trooper Paul G. Richey who was killed on 13 January 2010 while responding to a domestic disturbance call. The rep scheme was based on Trooper Richey's badge number, 7201.

This workout easily ranks in the top 5 most painful workouts I've done. If I were doing this workout at home, I'd probably scale to 5-6 rounds. However, with everyone's encouragement at CFC as well as keeping in mind the reason for the workout, I was able to finish it without any scaling. If I'm feeling masochistic, I might up the clean weight to 105lbs next time.

Squat K2E Swing

Workout 28 July 2010:

For time:
185lb Back squat, 20 reps
40 Knees to elbows
60 Kettlebell swings, 1.5 pood

Results: 16'02
Previous best: none

It feels like I haven't done squats in ages, so today's workout was a welcome return to one of my favorite exercises. I chose a squat weight that would allow me to do the 20 reps in 3-4 sets. The knees to elbows were difficult as usual, and I had to break those up into sets of 4-8 reps. I initially thought about using a 1 pood (16kg) kettlebell for the swings, but decided to go for a challenge and use the 1.5 pood (24kg) kettlebell. I surprised myself by doing all the swings in only three sets. I'm aiming to beat the 15-minute mark next time.

Knees to elbows are an unusual, but very effective core exercise. You simply grab a pull-up bar (any grip works, but I use a standard pull-up grip) and then touch your knees to your elbows, as the name suggests. If you can't do many of these, try just tucking your knees as close to your chest as possible and then gradually increase your range of motion as you gain strength.

Luce

Workout 26 July 2010:

"Luce"
Three rounds for time of:
Run 800m
10 Muscle-ups
50 Squats

Results: 28'38
Previous best: none

This is a scaled back version of the full "Luce" which has 1K runs, 100 squats, all while wearing a 20lb weighted vest. Even scaled back, this workout was rough. The first round went well, but doing 50 squats and then going running is challenging, although not nearly as bad as the last mile in Murph which is proceeded by 300 squats. Next time, I'll do the full 1K run and increase the squats to 75 per round.

This workout is in honor of Army Captain Ronald G. Luce, who died August 2, 2009 in Qole Gerdsar, Afghanistan after his vehicle was struck by an IED.

Walk in the Park

Workout 24 July 2010:

25 Dumbbell cleans
Farmer's walk, 300m
25 Dumbbell swings
25 One-armed DB OHS, alternating
Farmer's walk, 300m
25 Pull-ups
25 Dumbbell push-jerks
Farmer's walk, 300m
25 Burpees
Farmer's walk, 300m

Results: 31'20, 25lb dumbbell(s)
Previous best: none

This grueling workout was courtesy CrossFit Confluence. Usually we're told what the workout of the day will be a few minutes prior to starting. Today we were only told what to do a step at a time. We started out at the gym, then after the cleans, carried our dumbbells about 300m away to the park where the second instructor gave us the next tasks. Then, back to the gym, etc.

The most difficult part of this workout was the grip strength required for the Farmer's walks. I had to stop several times during each walk, albeit briefly, to set down the weights so I didn't drop them. I originally planned to use a pair of 30lb dumbbells, but there was only one available, so I had to use the 25lbs. Although I'm glad I used a lighter weight for the walks, I would have preferred to go heavier with the cleans, swings, squats, and push jerks.

Best part of the workout was the random guy telling us "God give you strength" each time we passed him on his porch.

Jerk and Jump

Workout 23 July 2010:

Rounds in 15 minutes of:
Push jerk, 85lbs, 5 reps
7 Box jumps, 22 inch box

Results: 13 rounds + 5 push jerks
Previous best: none

My goal going into this workout was to finish 10-15 rounds. Since the reps were low, I didn't have to break up the jerks or the jumps into multiple sets. Ideally, I would have gone with a higher box jump, but only had enough weights and supplies to stack up to 22 inches. Eventually, I'll build a box ~30-32 inches. I'll also go up to 95lbs on the jerk next time.

Deads and HSPU

Workout 21 July 2010:

Five rounds for time of:
Deadlift, 5 reps, 225lbs
Handstand push-ups, 5 reps

Results: 14'43
Previous best: none

My original goal was to do this workout in under 10 minutes. Then I realized that alternating between moderately heavy deadlifts and flipping upside down made it a challenge to not pass out. I stayed with it, but slowed down the pace a bit. The deadlifts went very well and didn't bother my back at all. The HSPU were more challenging, and I had to break the later sets up into 3 and 2 reps. This is definitely a workout I want to tackle again. I probably won't change the deadlift weight much, but I want to get strong enough to do the HSPU on my parallettes.

Cleans

Workout 20 July 2010:

Clean 3-3-3-3-3-3-3

Results: 95-115-125-135-145-155-165lbs
Previous best: none

I didn't have time to warm up as much as I would like prior to this workout, so I stuck to somewhat lighter weights. Since my 1RM is about 205lbs, I should be able to do three-rep sets at about 175-185lbs, but do need to be careful with my back since by the third rep, form starts breaking down at heavier weights. Next time, I'll go for a straight 3x7 at 155-165lbs and then go up in weight from their in subsequent workouts.

Deconstructed "Angie"

Workout 19 July 2010:

Ten rounds for time of:
5 Pull-ups (strict)
5 Ring dips
10 Sit-ups (Abmat)
10 Squats

Results: 20'15
Previous best: none

This workout is a modification of another workout I often do called "Angie" which is 100 pull-ups, then 100 push-ups, then 100 sit-ups, then 100 squats. Instead of doing each exercise straight through, I broke it up into ten rounds. Since "Angie" uses kipping pull-ups which I can't do at home, I changed it to half the number of strict pull-ups. I also swapped push-ups for ring dips simply for something different. I was doing well until the later rounds when fatigue set in for both the pull-ups and ring dips and I had to break up the reps into sets of 3 and 2 reps with a small break in-between. Next time, I'd like to break the 20-minute mark while increasing the pull-ups and dips to 6-7 reps per round.

Scale the workout by adjusting the reps per round, or number of rounds. Pull-ups can be assisted or done as chin-ups while ring dips can be swapped for bar dips or (modified) push-ups.

Weighted Chins

Workout 17 July 2010:

Weighted Chin-ups 5-5-5-5-5

Results: 20-27.5-27.5-30-32.5lbs
Previous best: 5x5 @ 32.5lbs (2 Jun 09)

Since it's been so long since I did any weighted pull-ups or chin-ups, my goal was to work up to 32.5lbs which I did about one year ago. The pull-ups actually went better than I thought and with some extra pull-up work, I should easily be able to do another 5x5 of 32.5lbs, if not more.

If you're not strong enough to do weighted chin-ups, there are a number of ways you can do self-assisted pull-ups or chin-ups. If your gym has a gravitron machine, you can use that to easily adjust how much of your weight is supported. If you have heavy-duty resistance bands, you can loop those around a pull-up bar and your foot for support. If you have neither, this video offers a few ideas to try.

Thrust and Sit

Workout 14 July 2010:

Three rounds for time of:
85lb barbell Thruster, 15 reps
30 Sit-ups (Abmat)

Results: 10'15
Previous best: none

When people ask me what I like to do for "cardio," I tell them "lift heavy things quickly." This is an example of one of those types of workouts. The thruster weight is scaled back to one at which I can do all of the reps each round in one or two sets. Since thrusters place a reasonable demand on the core (more at heavier weights), I added some extra stimulus by throwing in the sit-ups. Again, pick a number of sit-ups that you can complete in 1-2 sets per round. The goal is to keep moving, rather than repeatedly go to failure. Next time, I'll probably up the thruster weight to 95lbs and add on a few sit-ups. Ideally, I'd like to do GHD sit-ups instead, but don't have the equipment at home to do them. I also want to break 10 minutes.

Mini "RJ"

Workout 13 July 2010:

Mini "RJ"
Five rounds for time of:
Run 400 meters
10 Pull-ups (strict)
15 Push-ups

Results: 29'54
Previous best: none

This is a new CrossFit hero workout (see below) that I scaled down considerably from its true form. A real "RJ" is five rounds of run 800 meters, 5 ascents of a 15ft rope climb, and 50 push-ups. Since I'm still trying to get back to my pre-back injury level of fitness and also since I lack a climbing rope at home, I scaled the workout to something I thought I could complete in about 20-30 minutes. Next time, I should be able to go up to the full 800 meters and increase the number of push-ups per round to at least 25. I'll also either increase the number of strict pull-ups or do towel pull-ups to better simulate a rope climb.

This workout is named after Veteran LAPD officer and United States Marine Corps Reservist Sergeant Major Robert J Cottle, 45, was killed by an improvised explosive device while on patrol in Southern Afghanistan on Wednesday, March 24, 2010.

Lunges and Burpees

Workout 12 July 2010:

Five rounds for time of:
45lb barbell overhead lunges, 15 lunges
15 Burpees

Results: 17'48
Previous best: none

The recent overhead squat workout showed that I needed to work on balance when lifting overhead, so I did a quick metcon today that focused on that skill. I used a much lighter weight, but this was still good practice for maintaining good core control since I did all 15 reps of the lunges unbroken each round. The burpees were thrown in for further metcon, and also to work on push-ups. I broke up the burpees into 2 sets per round; I hope to do them unbroken in the future.

Snatch Swing Squat

Workout 10 July 2010:

Warm-up
Four rounds of:
Run 400m
2-3 minutes rest

Three rounds for time of:
20 Dumbbell one-arm snatch, (10 per arm)
20 Dumbbell swings
20 One-legged squats, alternating

Results: 15'11 (30lb dumbbell, 10lb dumbbell for squats)
Previous best: none

This is my second workout at CrossFit Confluence. We started out with a 4x400m as a warm-up and also a skill session to practice forefoot (Pose) running. Each round focused on a different aspect of the Pose running technique- hamstring kick, "scraping" the ground, and utilizing elbow drive. We went at 60% intensity for the first three rounds, then 90% intensity the last round. I was able to run the final 400m in just over 1'20.

The workout itself was a challenging metcon. None of the individual exercises were particularly difficult, but the combination quickly wore me out, especially after the warm-up. The snatches were actually quite easy since I had been used to doing heavier weight in my past kettlebell classes. The swings were also relatively easy. What slowed me down the most were the one-legged squats and that was primarily due to muscle fatigue. I used a 10lb dumbbell for counterbalance as discussed in a recent post. Overall, great workout, and all the encouragement at Confluence was appreciated. Next time, I'll try for a 35lb dumbbell or kettlebell.

Overhead Squats

Workout 8 July 2010:

Overhead Squat 1-1-1-1-1-1-1

Results: 95-105-110-110-112.5-115-117.5lbs
Previous best: none

I've rarely been able to do heavy overhead squats due to a general lack of bumper plates AND a place where I could safely throw down weights. At previous Olympic lifting classes, I was able to practice the snatch and have a 1RM of 125lbs. The last half of a snatch is identical to the last half of an overhead squat, so there is some carryover. However, the most difficult part of the OHS for me is squatting down with the weight and maintaining balance; if I can reach the bottom, I can almost always stand back up.
Although not great, I'm happy with these numbers. I failed once during an early 110lb attempt (not recorded above), but was able to recover and hit higher weights once I became more used to the movement and had better balance.
Flexibility is still an issue, though improving. I also need to focus more on driving my traps up to have active shoulders on which to better support the bar.
Now that I can do this lift at home, I'll be programming it in much more frequently as there's really no better exercise for building core strength.

Hopper

Workout 6 July 2010:

Three rounds for time of:
10 Muscle-ups
10 Forward rolls
20 One legged squats, alternating
20 Shoulder taps

Results: 34'04 (squats with 20lb dumbbell)
Previous best: none

Today's workout is an interesting mix of various gymnastics skills designed to work all major muscle groups. The muscle-ups are standard fare in my workouts and went reasonably well. I'd still like to get back to the point where I could do several in a row without even coming off the rings or resetting my grip.
The forward rolls are new and were primarily thrown in simply for some skill work. I'm working on trying to walk on my hands (more below) and one of the safe ways to get out of a handstand safely if falling is by doing a forward roll. On the same note, I did shoulder taps which is a good skill for building up to handstand walks using a wall for support. Although these are easy, don't do too many in a row since they can make you dizzy.
Finally, pistols (one-legged squats) improve leg and core strength as well as stability. I used a 20lb dumbbell as a counter-balance. Holding a dumbbell in front of you while doing pistols helps improve balance and can actually make the squats a bit easier (as long as you don't use excessive weight) and allow you to squat deeper without losing balance.

Elizabeth

Workout 5 July 2010:

"Elizabeth"
Time for 21-15-9 reps of:
Clean 95lbs
Ring dips

Results: 17'52
Previous best: 16'50 (24 Dec 09)

I'm always cautious with this workout since it's what started my back problems, though it really wasn't the cause. I decided to stay at the same weight as the last time I did it back in December. I was hoping to get about the same time knowing that my cleans would be stronger and faster while the ring dips would cause more trouble. The cleans did go well since they're now less than 50% of my 1RM. As predicted, the ring dips really slowed me down and after the first set, I could do no more than 4-6 in a row. By working on my chest and tricep strength, I should see a significant improvement in time on this workout.

High rep cleans are very demanding, so be sure to appropriately scale the weight. The full version of "Elizabeth" uses 135lb cleans. Scale both the weight, as well as the type of clean (power clean, hang clean, or hang-power clean) as needed. If you don't have rings, substitute 1-2 bar dips for each ring dip as able.

Burpees and Sit-ups

Workout 3 July 2010:

Time for 35-25-15 reps of:
Burpees
Sit-ups (Abmat)

Results: 13'11
Previous best: none

Just a quick metcon for today. Two of my relative weaknesses right now are push-ups and general conditioning, and burpees are a cure for both. I was aiming for under 12 minutes for this workout, but the burpees got me. Ideally, I'd like to get this workout under 10 minutes in the relatively near future.

Squat Pull Jump

Workout 2 July 2010:

Rounds in 12 minutes of:
135 pound Front squat, 5 reps
10 Chest to bar Pull-ups
20 Double-unders

Results: 3 rounds + 5+6 reps (strict pull-ups)
Previous best: none

New workout today with a nice mix of strength work, gymnastics, and metabolic conditioning. The squats were relatively easy and I used the lighter weight to work on form. I'm still having a hard time getting good spine extension and need to work on keeping my elbows up. The pull-ups slowed me down the most as I had to break up each round after the first into sets of 2-4 reps. I can't do kipping pull-ups at my home gym, so I'm stuck doing strict pull-ups. The double-unders went surprisingly well for not having done them in awhile. I've been hitting myself in the back of my head recently with the rope, but didn't run into that trouble today. I was also able to consistently get 10-15 jumps in a row. My goal next time will be to complete at least four rounds. As long as I continue to work on the pull-ups, this should be easily achievable.