Feb 18 WOD: Dead lift workout and core work

I didn't have time to do the Wendler as I arrived just in time for the 12:30 pm class today. After the class, I was in such a hurry to make it to my 2 pm class that Amie offered to pack away my bar for me and I even forgot to take a photo of the board!

The metcon was 9 minutes AMRAP:

- 12 dead lifts (275/185)
- 24 pull ups
- 36 walking lunges

You know how much I love dead lifts, but 185 is way too heavy for me -- that's my 1RM! I settled for 125. I also did ring rows instead of assisted pull ups.

My score: 2 rounds + 16 ring rows

After the metcon we did accessory work, which was 3 rounds of:

- 45 sit ups
- 30 glute bridges
- 15 band stretches

Ugh, sit ups! Another one of my goats.

In other news, Rich Froning sets a 300 lb snatch PR...

Shut. The. Door. Is there anything this guy cannot do?

Feb 15 WOD: Double metcon + Wendler

I like going to the 10 am class because the box is usually empty when I arrive and there's a bigger chance that I'll be able to do the Wendler. No rush. No worries.


Strength: Back squat

I'm saving the dead lift for Monday since we'd already done it yesterday.

3 x 70% = 3 x 85 (it was supposed to be only 80 but I realized later that I didn't use the correct plates because I wasn't paying attention when I was loading the bar - oops)
3 x 80% = 3 x 95
3+ x 90% = 5 x 105

Assistance 1: Good mornings

1 x 10 x 35
1 x 10 x 45
1 x 10 x 55
2 x 10 x 65

Assistance 2: Overhead squats

1 x 10 x 35
1 x 10 x 45
3 x 10 x 55


WOD

A. 5 minute AMRAP squat clean to overhead (thruster or jerk - Rx: 165/110)

B. 4 RFT:

- 15 medicine ball sit-ups
- 15 kettlebell swings
- 30 double unders

For Metcon 1, I used 65 lbs and was able to crank out 16 reps (split jerk). For Metcon 2, I used a 10 lb ball and a 12 kg kettlebell and did the sets unbroken (except for the DUs). I DNFed and was able to do only 2 rounds + 11 double unders. I don't feel that bad about it though. I just made up for the DNF by doing the assistance lifts.

Feb 14 WOD: Valentine's shmalentines

Who needs Valentine's Day when you have CrossFit to make your heart beat faster and make you feel amazingly alive? Although I can't say that CrossFit will never break your heart or make you cry, you know it will never leave you for as long as you're able and willing to work out.

Pre-WOD, we worked on the dead lift. We were given 15 minutes to work up to our 3RM. I was able to do 165 lbs.

Anyway. We did a partner WOD today, which was 10 RFT:

- 5 dead lifts (225/155)
- 200m run
- 15 hand release push ups

For those who weren't going Rx, the scale is 70% of our 3RM, so I did 120 lbs. I partnered with George but we didn't share a bar. There was some confusion about the mechanics of the PWOD at the beginning. I think it's supposed to work like this: Round 1 - Partner 1 does dead lifts and when he's done Partner 2 runs 200m, then Partner 1 does the HRPUs. Round 2 - Partner 2 does dead lifts, then Partner 1 runs, then Partner 2 does the push ups, and so on until both of you complete 10 rounds together. Anyway, there were so many questions and clarifications that we just did what we could in 20 minutes (that was the time cap).

My score: 7 rounds + 200m run

And this was our reward for showing up:

That's right. The way to a woman's heart is CrossFit and flowers. Okay, and maybe also chocolate (but it has to be 72% cacao).

Feb 12 WOD: Long WOD hello

O.M.G. I just died 5 times today, thanks to the insane WOD.

It was 5 RFT:

- 10 power cleans (135/95)

- 15 burpees

- 20 kettle bell swings (24/16 kg)

- 25 wall balls (20/14)

- 3 minute rest

I used 55 lbs for the power cleans, a 12 kg kettlebell for the KBS, and a 10 lb ball for the wall balls. Except for the power cleans, all the exercises were my goats, so I'm surprised at myself for not wussing out when I found out what the WOD was. Although I did have second thoughts during the warm up but it was too late to back out.

We rarely have long WODs like this (note the 40 minute time cap), unless it's the weekend or there's a holiday. I was late at work for the first time! The workout was so deadly that people have been tweeting about it since this morning. And I think a lot of people will have their rest day tomorrow.

My time: 39:09

Feb 11 WOD: Overhead squats with a side of weekend hangover

Some of the people from the lunch crew decided to go to Hamilo Coast during the weekend, thanks to Amie's mad organizing skillz and Smacky, who offered his Pico de Loro unit...

Beach dreaming with Isabelle, Rachelle, Coach Jordan, Marix, Smacky, his cousin Glen, Johann, and Amie

... so it was understandable that we didn't feel like working out much today. You know that feeling when you had a great weekend or a great day and you just want to hold on to that? Sigh. But we all must go through the bad in order to appreciate the good. In life, at work, and during the WOD.

On to the WOD. We worked on heavy hang power snatches for 15 minutes, with emphasis on form and technique. I did only up to 55 lbs. After months of working on the snatch, I feel like there's still something missing in my snatch. These are the few times when I wish we had mirrors in the box.

The metcon was 7 RFT:

- 7 overhead squats (95/65)
- 7 burpee box jumps (18" for both ladies and gents)

I used 45 lbs for the OHS and did the burpee box jumps as prescribed. Before the WOD, we were talking to Coach Raf about burpees. We watched him doing burpees seemingly without effort and asked how we could improve on ours. He told us to throw our bodies down chest first instead of slowly lowering the chest to the floor (it taxes the shoulders and tires you more quickly). Well, I tried it during the WOD and I did notice a small difference in terms of efficiency.

My time: 12:43

Feb 8 WOD: Christine + Wendler

The site didn't post the WOD, just an obscure message that the workout will have something to do with dead lifts, then an invitation to "check in and find out". As it turns out, we're doing another benchmark girl, Christine. Yay. But before that -- Wendler.


Strength: Shoulder press

Warm up: 5 x 25

65% x 5 = 5 x 40
75% x 5 = 5 x 45
85% x 5+ = 6 x 50


WOD

Christine is 3 RFT:

- 500m row
- 12 dead lifts (body weight)
- 21 box jumps (24"/18")

I weigh 117 lbs, so thinking about doing the workout as prescribed didn't seem so far-fetched. I went with 115 lbs and partnered with Gerard for the row. Since there were 6 of us and only 3 rowers at the box, it was agreed that the boys would go first and the number of minutes we were idle would be deducted from our total time.

My time: 15:42

The workout was all legs, and I remember a particular moment during the last row I had my eyes closed, wishing it would all end. Ugh. Christine is brutal.

Feb 7 WOD: Round 2 with Cindy

Still bleary-eyed, I checked the site for today's WOD, and what I saw woke me up good -- we were doing our second dance with Cindy. I don't know what I was expecting but it certainly wasn't a benchmark workout. Sneaky coaches!

Cindy is 20 minutes AMRAP:

- 5 pull ups
- 10 push ups
- 15 squats

The first time we did Cindy was in sometime in September. I was able to do 12 rounds + 10 push ups that time so I was looking to beat my previous score. I did a scaled-down version of the pull up using rings. Miggy explained that if we'd been using the pull up bands for a long time and still couldn't do no-band pull ups, it would be better to train other upper body muscles in the meantime. But I made up for that by doing "man" push ups -- finally!

The first few rounds were okay, but I started to slow down by the 6th or 7th round. It was like a slow burn, and I understood why we were told to pace ourselves from the beginning.

My score: 14 rounds + 4 push ups. And I couldn't be happier.

I celebrated by having a paleo lunch of ampalaya with eggs and homemade chorizo burgers.

Feb 5 WOD: The one where I almost quit

We worked on the clean and jerk today. We were given 10 minutes to work up to a heavy single, with emphasis on form and technique. I worked my way up to 85 lbs.

For the metcon, it was 5 RFT (20 minute time cap):

- 15 thrusters (75/55)
- 12 toes to bar
- 9 box jumps (24"/18")

Knowing that I needed to last 5 rounds, I used only 45 lbs for the thrusters. Coach made us girls use the rings for the toes to bar (or knees to elbows in my case) and had the guys use the bars. For the box jumps, I used the prescribed 18" box.

The first round was okay - I was even able to do the thrusters unbroken. But by the time I reached the 3rd round I wanted to quit. Seriously quit. I was out of breath and dizzy, it was like staring death in the face. But I'd never quit a WOD in my more than 1 year of doing CrossFit and I wasn't going to do it today.

My time: 18:46

Feb 4 WOD: Snatch, a triplet, and mobility

For the first 10 minutes, we worked on the snatch (90-95% of 1RM). I used 45 lbs only and did full snatches.

For the metcon, it was 3 RFT (with 10 minute time cap):

- 10 chest to bar pull ups
- 10 front squats (165/115)
- 10 burpees

I used the band for the pull ups and 75 lbs for the front squats. I'd planned to use only 65 lbs like I did that last time we had a front squat WOD, but Coach remarked that I should add more weight since we're only doing 3 rounds of 10 reps each. Curses, foiled again!

My time: 8:14

Post-WOD, we did a whole lot of shoulder mobility exercises. They called it "bulletproofing" the shoulders. I don't know about bulletproofing but my shoulders were on fire after that.

Feb 1 WOD: Bar complex + Wendler

Strength: Back squat

Warm up: 5 x 45; 5 x 65

65% x 5 = 5 x 75
75% x 5 = 5 x 90
85% x 5+ = 5 x 100

Back squats, I've kinda missed you.


WOD

OTM for as long as possible:

- 3 power cleans (135/95)
- 3 front squats
- 3 push jerks or split jerks

The rule was, we were to do each set unbroken (no re-gripping off the floor). And as it says on the board, you're done when you break a set. I used 55 lbs for the complex. On hindsight, I could've gone a tad heavier but I wanted to be able to do all 20 rounds.

My score: 20 rounds

Jan 31 WOD: More cleaning

I think I'm prioritizing CrossFit too much. I make sure that my mornings are free because I don't want to run the risk of missing the WOD. How sick is that? Must. Get. A. Life.

I don't know what it is with the workouts this week, but most involve the clean. It's one of my favorite exercises but I always end up with slightly bruised shoulders. Today's WOD was 15 minutes AMRAP:

- 1 chest to bar pull up + 1 toes to bar
- 10 hang squat cleans (95/65)
- 1 chest to bar pull up + 1 toes to bar
- 10 ring dips

I used 55 lbs for the hang squat cleans and parallettes for the ring dips. For the CTB, I used the blue band. I'm so jealous that Amie can do no-band pull ups already!

My score: 4 rounds + 6 hang squat cleans

Jan 29 WOD: Squat cleans and another DNF

For the first part of the workout, we did OTM (on the minute) 10 x 2 heavy squat cleans. That means every minute, we were to do 2 squat cleans. I used 65 lbs the first 5 minutes then added 20 lbs more. It was challenging but doable.

For the metcon, we had to do the following within a 15 minute time cap:

- 15 dead lifts (Rx: 95)
- 15 push ups

I did the WOD as Rx'd -- yes, even the push ups -- but I wasn't able to finish. I only managed to eke out 7 rounds + 8 dead lifts. I can't believe I've gotten my butt kicked and DNF-ed 2 days in a row!

(source)

Jan 28 WOD: 3RM Front squat + Wendler

Strength: Dead lift

It was time to get back on the Wendler 5/3/1 program again since I'd recalibrated my 1RM for the dead lift, back squat, and shoulder press. Cycle 4, here we go!

Warm up: 5 x 65; 5 x 85; 5 x 105

65% x 5 = 5 x 110
75% x 5 = 5 x 125
85% x 5+ = 7 x 140

I didn't have time to do assistance lifts anymore so I think I should go earlier next time.


SWOD: Front squat

There was 15 minutes for us to get our 3RM front squat. Rach and I shared a bar and we worked our way up to 105 lbs. PR for me since my 1RM last year was 100!

We used racks for the front squats

Metcon

We were given 14 minutes to do:

100 double unders (yep)
30 pull ups
30 front squats (Rx: 95 lbs)
30 pull ups
100 double unders

The WOD was obviously challenging as only 2 people in the previous 3 classes were able to finish it. I used 65 lbs for the front squats and the blue band for the pull ups. I was able to do a total of 173 reps (only until 13 of the second set of pull ups).

The second heat going at it (don't mind the shoe)

Jan 25 WOD: Kipping skill

I rushed to catch the 12:30 PM class, and I'd barely arrived when Coach Jordan asked if I wanted to do the paleo challengers' WOD as warm up. I said yes without knowing that it was 12 x 30 seconds max reps burpees - gulp! I did them at an easy pace though and got a total of 85.

After that, we worked on kips. We learned that we should swing from the hips and not the legs or the arms. Then we were taught how to use our legs as if we were jumping up so we could bend our arms and then pull our chins over the bar. I think I'll need to work on this before every WOD.

For the metcon, we did OTM x 12 minutes:
- 1st minute: 3 power cleans
- 2nd minute: 40 double unders
- 3rd minute: 3 power cleans
- 4th minute: 40 DUs... and so on

I gots fresh calluses on my CrossFit man-hands

I used 55 lbs for the cleans and was able to complete the 40 DUs only once. Boo, me!

Jan 24 WOD: CrossFit Total

I got excited when I checked the site and saw that we're doing the Total again today. The first time we did it was way back in May and I'd been wanting to get my new 1RMs so I can continue doing the Wendler 5/3/1.

This is what the CrossFit Total looks like:

Back squat 1-1-1
Shoulder press 1-1-1
Dead lift 1-1-1

Similar to Olympic lifting, your score is the sum of the best of 3 attempts.

Isabelle, Amie, and I shared a bar and for the back squat we reached 130 lbs. For the press, Amie and I did 60 lbs while Isabelle did 70. For the dead lift, Amie did 165 while Isabelle and I did 180. We thought that was the end but Coach Pau suggested that we try 185. I was able to do it and decided to stop there because I already felt lightheaded and dizzy. Isabelle kept going, though, and finally she stopped at 225. She's a fembot!

Grabbed from Isabelle's tweet

My Total score: 375 - a 30-point increase from my last one! My goal is to breach 400 next time. :)

Jan 22 WOD: 1RM Push jerk

After some months, we got to work on our push jerk again today. For the first part of the WOD, we had 15 minutes to get our 1RM push jerk. I shared a bar with Rach and was able to work my way up to 90 lbs -- a 5 lb PR! :) Rach set a PR too, with 100 lbs!

The metcon was 15 minutes AMRAP:
- 200m run
- 12 box jumps (24/18)
- 12 chest to bar pull ups

I used an 18" box for the box jumps and a blue band for the pull ups. My score: 4 rounds.

Before the WOD, I noticed this posted beside the board. I know a lot of girls are disappointed because of Rule #4 (Keep your shirts on!).

CFMNL house rules

Jan 21 WOD: The Chief

Another day, another benchmark WOD. And today, it was The Chief. It looked like this:

5 rounds of 3 minutes AMRAP with 1 minute rest in between rounds:
- 3 power cleans (135/95)
- 6 push ups
- 9 squats

Coach Jordan said that if we weren't able to do a complete round at the end of 3 minutes, we could pick up where we left off at the start of the next round. Then Coach Pau said that if we're slow at one exercise, we should make up for it with the next one. And he said that we should aim to do 4 rounds during the 3 minutes. While he was talking I kept nodding yes, but inside I was like, "WHUT." Anyway, I used 65 lbs for the power cleans and did "girl" push ups. My score: 20 rounds. I did it!

Jan 18 WOD: Filthy Friday at the box

We did the benchmark WOD called Filthy Fifty today. It was the second time for me to do it, although when I did it the first time last year, I'd scaled and did the "Dirty 30" instead.

So this is the Filthy Fifty:

50 box jumps (Rx: 18")
50 jumping pull ups
50 kettlebell swings (Rx: 12 kg)
50 walking lunges
50 knees to elbow
50 push presses (Rx: 35 lbs)
50 good mornings (Rx: 35 lbs)
50 wall balls (Rx: 14 lbs)
50 burpees
50 double unders

I did everything except the wall balls as prescribed -- you know how attached I am to those 10 lb balls. Anyway, it started out well and I was making good time until I reached the wall balls. It was all downhill from there. I had a hard time with the burpees more than anything else. If it weren't for Amie who kept count for me and cheered me on, I would've given up then and there. And even though I DNFed I still did the 50 DUs and finished in about 37 minutes.

The thing I love about long workouts like this is it makes me feel so alive after! Good way to kick off the weekend.

Jan 17 WOD: 21

So I finally bought a gym bag yesterday. I was actually looking to buy a sports bra in the Reebok store but they disappointingly didn't have any in their Eastwood branch. Then I remembered what my friend told me about the cute and not-so-expensive gym bags that Reebok has so I checked them out and ended up getting one!

Here it is, ready for its first WOD

I like the neon yellow lining and the compartments it has. It's big enough to double as a travel bag too (though I personally prefer using backpacks).

Before the WOD, I worked on my favorite goat, the double unders. I got the idea of targeting a certain number everyday from Amie. She said she makes it a point to do 100 DUs a day; I decided to do 50 DUs a day. I should probably do something like add 10 everyday or every week for a challenge.

Anyway. We did 3 different exercises today. We were to do 7 rounds of the following for 21 minutes:

1st min: 2 to 3 towel pull ups
2nd min: 10 kettlebell push press per arm (total of 20 reps)
3rd min: 3 dead lifts

I partnered with Rach and we used an 8 kg kettlebell for the push press and a 135 lb bar for the dead lifts. We had initially used a 105 lb bar but Miggy added 2 15 lb plates in between sets. This is probably the 3rd or 4th time that the coaches have done this (they do it to almost everyone, actually). I guess I should be glad that they know what I'm capable of more than I do.

We completed all 7 rounds and felt great afterward. I got light bruises on my forearms because of the KB press though.

Jan 15 WOD: Wild

Today, we did 10 RFT:

- 6 burpee pull ups
- 6 front squats (Rx: 95 lbs)
- 6 box jumps (Rx: 18")

I scaled and did burpee jumping ring pull ups, and used just 65 lbs for the front squats. But I did use an 18" box. Ten rounds seemed a lot but it was doable. As expected, we hadn't even reached halftime and people were already groaning and shouting and grunting. It wasn't a pretty sight. And it took a lot of concentration to keep the form as good as possible (especially when doing the front squats). My time: 21:14.