Nasty Girls

Workout 30 October 2010:

"Nasty Girls"
Three rounds for time of:
50 Squats
7 Muscle-ups
115lb Hang power cleans, 10 reps

Results: 14'47
Previous best: 24'02 (17 Sep 08)

I got to pick my own workout today at CrossFit Confluence and since I couldn't make it to the gym this past Monday for Nasty Girls, I decided to make it up today. I started out at a fast pace (though I knew I couldn't keep it up), completing the first round in three minutes with no breaks in the squats or cleans, and dividing the MUs into two sets of four and three. For all remaining rounds, I broke up each exercise into two or three sets, except for the last set of cleans which I was able to do straight. Overall I'm thrilled at my nearly 10 minute PR!

Triplet

Workout 29 October 2010:

Time for 21-15-9 reps of:
Wallball, 20lb ball
Sumo Deadlift High-Pull, 75lb
Push-ups

Results: 6'27
Previous best: none

Today's workout was at CrossFit Confluence. We did a quick triplet today for the Friday Happy Hour workout. Even though it only took me six minutes, this was an intense workout. After catching my breath, a bunch of us decided to mess around on the rings and pull-up bars working on front and back levers and ring and bar muscle-ups.

Shoulder Press

Workout 28 October 2010:

Shoulder Press 1-1-1-1-1-1-1

Results: 115-125-130-135-140-145-150(F)
Previous best: 115-125-130-135-140-145-145(F) (28 Dec 08)

Today's workout was at CrossFit Confluence. I'm still chasing that elusive 150lbs which I haven't been able to hit in almost two years. However, I probably came the closest today, so there is some glimmer of progress.

After this workout, we did a partner workout where each person had to do 30 push press/jerks, but only one person could work at a time, and the reps only counted if the other person held their barbell in the rack position. I did 95lbs and my partner, Hillary, did 45lbs. We finished in 3'52 (I think) which ranked near the top.

OHS and Fran's Red-Headed Step-Sister

Workout 26 October 2010:

Overhead Squat 3-3-3-3-3

then

Time for 21-15-9 reps of:
Thrusters, 85lb
Toes-to-bar

Results:
OHS: 95-115-125-135-140lbs
Thrusters/T2B: 8'32

Previous best:
OHS: 95-105-115-125-135lbs (30 Sep 10)
Thrusters/T2B: none

Today's workout was at CrossFit Confluence. Less than a month and already an OHS PR! I probably could have gone another 5lbs since my shoulder position felt much stronger than last time, though it still had flaws as the weight got heavier, but I saved myself for the second workout. Soon enough, I should have a bodyweight OHS!

The second workout was a bastardization of "Fran" which is 21-15-9 of thrusters and pull-ups. I'm honestly not sure which is worse. The thrusters got heavy very quickly, but I was able to do each round in only two sets. The toes to bars were equally challenging and I broke up each round into two or three sets. I was aiming for anything under 10 minutes, so I'm pleased with my time.

Tabata

Workout 24 October 2010:

"Tabata This"
Tabata each of the following:
Squats
Pull-ups (strict)
Push-ups
Sit-ups (Abmat)

Results: 13+4+9+8=34
Previous best: 12+6+6+9=33 (kipping pull-ups, 28 Sep 10)

Today's numbers show a small improvement since I last did this workout a month ago. Had I been able to do kipping pull-ups instead of strict, I would probably increased my Tabata score a few more points. My short-term goal is to get double-digits score in all the exercises.

Back Squats

Workout 21 October 2010:

Back Squat 10-10-10

then

Tabata Squats

Results: 155-165-175lbs
Tabata 12

Previous best: none, Tabata 14 (13 Sep 10)

Today's workout was at CrossFit Confluence. My goal with the back squats was to get up to 170-180lbs while maintaining good form. The lifts went well and I could probably hit 180-185lbs for a 10-rep set within a few weeks. The Tabata squats were painful after the heavy lifting, but I was able to get a score of 12, which isn't much lower from my PR of 14.

McGhee

Workout 20 October 2010:

"McGhee"
Rounds in 30 minutes of:
225 pound Deadlift, 5 reps
13 Push-ups
9 Box jumps, 24 inch box

Results: 14 rounds
Previous best: none

This workout was done at CrossFit Confluence. This was a challenging workout and one of the longer ones I've done in awhile. A true "McGhee" calls for 275lb deadlifts. I was originally going to do 185lbs, but Coach E had me go for 225lbs. That weight proved difficult, especially coming off Monday's workout, but I was able to stick with it the entire time and maintain good form. I was hoping for about 12 rounds, so I'm pleased with 14. My push-up endurance continues to make some improvement, though I did break up the later rounds into two sets of 9-10 and 3-4.

This workout is in honor of Corporal Ryan C. McGhee, who was killed in action on May 13, 2009 by small arms fire during combat in central Iraq.

Deadlifts

Workout 18 October 2010:

Deadlift 1-1-1-1-1-1-1

Results: 285-295-305-315-325-330-335lbs
Previous best: 235-255-275-295-310-320-330lbs (5 Mar 08)

Today's workout was at CrossFit Confluence. I'm thrilled with my lifts today since the last time I was able to deadlift over 300lbs was over a year and a half ago. I was also able to PR by five pounds on this particular workout. These numbers essentially came out of nowhere and are largely part of the great group at the gym. Although the 335lbs is not a deadlift 1RM PR, it's very close.

Push Swing Jump

Workout 17 October 2010:

Rounds in 15 minutes of:
85lb Push press, 10 reps
10 Kettlebell swings, 1.5 pood
10 Tuck Jumps

Results: 6 rounds
Previous best: none

I just wasn't feeling it today. I originally planned for 20 minutes, but I was struggling at the end of round one, so I cut the workout short. This shouldn't be an excessively challenging workout, so next time should go much better.

Dip Swing Push

Workout 16 October 2010:

Rounds in 12 minutes of:
3 Ring dips
6 Kettlebell swings, 1.5 pood
9 Push-ups

Then:
Tabata Sit-ups

Results: 9 rounds + 3 dips
Tabata: 8 sit-ups
Previous best: none
Tabata: 9 sit-ups

My goal for today's workout was 10 rounds. I didn't anticipate the extent of the should fatigue from this combination, so I'm ok with not quite meeting my goal. Despite being only three dips per round, they quickly wore me out. I should focus on that exercise as one in which I should be able to make excellent progress.

Pull-ups and Burpees

Workout 13 October 2010:

Ten rounds for time of:
8 Pull-ups
12 Burpees

Results: 19'53
Previous best: none

Today's workout was at CrossFit Confluence. This workout was supposed to include 12 pull-ups per round, but I scaled back since the last time I did high-rep pull-ups, I caused some mild muscle damage from which I have finally recovered. Last time, the pull-ups were 100 straight, so I would probably have been ok partitioning them today, but I wasn't taking chances. The workout went well and I'm pleased with my sub-20 time. Next time, I should be able to safely do all the pull-ups and I'll still hope for a sub-20.

Diane and Annie

Workout 12 October 2010:

"Diane"
21-15-9 reps of:
185 pound Deadlift
Handstand push-ups (3/4 ROM)

then

"Annie"
50-40-30-20 and 10 rep rounds of:
Double-unders
Sit-ups (Abmat)

Results:
Diane: 6'55
Annie: 9'40

Previous best:
Diane: 14'06 (200lb, full ROM HSPU, 26 May 08)
Annie: 11'25 (6 Sep 10)

Today's workouts were at CrossFit Confluence. Today was Diane's birthday at the gym, so we did the "Diane" workout in her honor. Afterwards, she chose "Annie" as her birthday bonus workout.

Diane went well but I can't really compare my time today to previous times since I went for speed and shortened my HSPU range of motion by touching the top of my head to an Abmat on the floor compared to my usual forehead to floor. That probably shortened my ROM by 1/4. I also went lighter on the deadlifts since I'm still cautious going heavy for high reps. I'm happy with my time, but want to go for full HSPU next time.

I'm thrilled at my nearly 2-minute improvement in Annie, especially coming off Diane. Most of that time improvement was in the double-unders. I did all of the first 50 in a row and then just tripped up a few times in the remaining rounds. I probably could have had an even better time if my abs weren't already sore from kayaking over the weekend.

Kayak

Workout 9 October 2010:

White-water kayaking, 6 hours

The morning was spent learning basic kayak techniques. I then ran class 1-2 rapids during the afternoon.

Power Snatch

Workout 8 October 2010:

Power Snatch 1-1-1-1-1

then

Rounds in 12 minutes of:
3 Pull-ups
6 Push-ups
9 Squats

Results: 105-115-120-125-130(F)
14 Rounds

Previous best: none

Flexibility and fear of dropping under the bar continue to be my biggest two obstacles with the snatch and its variations. My hip flexibility has been improving, but I haven't worked as much on shoulder and upper body flexibility.

The second workout went well since I was hoping for 10-15 rounds.

Hopper

Workout 7 October 2010:

Time for 21-15-9 reps of:
Handstand Push-ups
Sumo Deadlift High-pulls
Toes to bar

Results: 10'34 (shortened HSPU ROM)

Previous best: none

Today's workout was at CrossFit Confluence. To improve the speed of this workout, I shortened my HSPU range of motion by touching the top of my head to an Abmat. Usually, I do full ROM HSPU which is a forehead touch to the ground. I'm still working on improving my shoulder strength and should be able to easily do full ROM and not lose significant time from fatigue. Today was the first time doing toes to bar. It took a little while to develop a rhythm, so I lost some time in the beginning. I also need to strengthen my core more so I can do them using less momentum.

Squats and Deads

Workout 4 October 2010:

Back Squat 5-5-5-5-5

then

Ten rounds for time of:
15 Deadlifts (95lb)
15 Push-ups

Results:
Squats: 185-205-215-225-230lbs
Deads and PUs: 13'03

Previous best:
Squats: 185-205-225-235-235 (17 Feb 10)
Deads and PUs: none

Today's workout was at CrossFit Confluence. The squats went well and if we didn't have to hurry through the sets a bit, I would have started at a heavier weight. The final 230lbs went well enough that I could probably get 235lbs next time, even if I start heavier.

The second part of the workout was a killer. I scaled the deadlift weight from 135 -> 95lbs to protect my back. I was able to get through most DL sets unbroken, so next time I should up the weight 10-15lbs. The push-ups were painful and by the end, I was breaking them up into sets of 3-4.

Bench and Bonus

Workout 2 October 2010:

Bench Press 1-1-1-1-1-1-1
then
In five minutes, do 25 sit-ups then as many box jumps (24-inch box) possible in the remaining time.

Results:
Bench: 185-195-200-205(F)-205(F)-200-200
Box jumps: 86

Previous best:
Bench: 135-145-155-165-175-180-185
Box jumps: none

Today's workout was done at CrossFit Confluence. I was tired and sore from yesterday's workout, so my bench numbers were lower than usual. Although I technically beat my PR at the 1x7 workout, I've done several other max effort bench workouts with a PR of 225lb.

The sit-up/box-jump mini workout was a nice addition to an otherwise pure strength day. I think next time I can get 100 jumps if I push myself a bit harder.

Dirty Thirty

Workout 1 October 2010:

"Dirty Thirty"
For time:
30 KB Swings (16kg)
30 Wall Balls (20lb ball)
30 Box Jumps
30 Ground to Overheads (75lb)
30 Push Ups
30 Pull Ups
30 Sumo Deadlift High Pulls (75lb)
30 Slam Balls (20lb ball)
30 Sit Ups
30 Burpees

Results: 23'43
Previous best: none

This workout was done at CrossFit Confluence to celebrate Coach's 30th birthday. We were given a 25-minute time limit, so I knew I would have to push to finish. Fortunately, there was a great crew at the gym and I finished faster than I thought I could with their encouragement. I started at the ground to overhead station and finished with the box jumps. My lungs were on fire for a good 20 minutes afterwards.