Spartan Shape-Up, Day 166:
I would like to start this post with an OW. Just, a big, whiny OW.
Remember that Crossfit WOD I posted a couple of days ago, that included the 100 sit-up "After Party"? Yeah. Apparently, I am experiencing an acute bout of DOMS that is currently making my life hell. I bet you had no idea that your abs could cry. Sob, even. I assure you, mine are (particularly that little top set. Those even hurt to touch. Ow.).
However. It was a CF day again, and as part of my 2012 promises to myself... No Excuses. Pain is temporary, and I probably wasn't going to die. So. To CF I went... praying there would be no big ab workout, admittedly.
The Warm Up looked like this:
3x:
15 KB swings
10 Squats
10 Hollow Rocks (some sort of weird gymnastic move, that happens to be ab-centric. Ow.)
Then, we did 3 "Benchmark" things. Basically, do the best you can, on this day. It is recorded in our binders, thus allowing you to track your progress. There are like 20 "Benchmarks" but today, we did three:
500m Ski, took me: 2:15 min.
1 Minute Box Jumps (16" box): 24
1 Minute Squats: 46
Ooooo boy. I knew I wasn't going to be good for things like push ups or pull ups today, so I thought box jumps and squats could be something I could bust out. When you throw caution to the wind and don't "pace yourself", but just go all out for a minute, it can be quite exhausting. I was annoyed I couldn't get more box jumps in... but I'm not yet comfortable jumping down from the box... I jump up, step down. Jump up... step down. I see myself losing a lot of time that way. However, then, I moved on to squats. OWNed that. That is one squat per every 1.30 seconds. I did start to slow a bit toward the end, too... soooo... a solid benchmark, I think. Next time... 55 in 60 seconds sounds good, right?
Anyway, then we were onto today's WOD:
7 rounds, for time:
9 Deadlifts
6 Power Hang Cleans
3 Front Squats
Completed in: 7:33 min.
So, here's the tricky part about this. I could dead lift the weight of a person. I could front squat a sizeable amount, too... BUT, you must do them in succession. (A deadlift brings the bar to your waist, then waist to shoulders is the Hang Clean, then On shoulders, down to squats... it is a good progression). This is where it got tricky for me.... What would my weight be?? I ended up going for 50#, because I had no idea and the prescribed weight for women was 95#. I figured 50 was a decent compromise, particularly knowing that physically I could deadlift that easily and squat it without issue.
And the clock started. First three rounds, I was a machine. Tonight's instructor even commented that next time, I should go up more weight, as I was making it look too easy. Rawr. Rounds 4 and 5 got a little tricky... I can see that the Power Hang Clean is my weakness, of the three. That is the maneuver that I got tired on. 6 of those in a row, by round 6 and 7 were UGLY. Could I do them? Yes. Did I do them? Yes. Did I find a weakness? Most definitely. And by weakness, I mean place to improve... hehe
However, I finished in a very respectable 7:33min, using a weight that was higher than average for a lot of the women, and was still in good shape at the end. Again, I sing the praises of doing a lot of squat-training before starting CrossFit!!
After that good time, we were on to the "After Party!"... You know, the stuff you add in, "just for fun"... today, it was 30 pull ups. For me, it was 30 jumping pull ups. Funny, I did notice today that I'm getting stronger at those - the negative portion (the down) I am feeling more in control of, and I am tiring less quickly. WELL on my way to one pull up by July! Woot!
And now... I'm off to crawl into the comfort of my bed, as tomorrow is REST DAY! Usually, I'm not so excited about Rest Day, but my body is TIRED today. I'm sore in my abs, my shoulders are sore, and my legs are definitely tired. Tomorrow, we give everyone a break, making sure to eat well, drink a bunch of water and stretch... and maybe roll on some PVC when I get home! Ah, the life.
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