Above Average

Normal people sleep in on the weekends. Get up late, go to breakfast or bum around the house in their pajamas drinking coffee. While I'm not sure exactly how it happened, I am no longer one of those people. I am now one of these people. The ones who are up early in sneakers and gym shorts, torturing themselves with an AMRAP on a perfectly good lazy, very hot Saturday morning.




Fifteen minutes of pain in the form of 12 American swings, 6 sprawl/high pulls, 12 lunge passes and a 50 meter run. I almost didn't show up, but I went. Then during the workout I wanted to die, but I finished. Not too bad, all told.

And afterwords when I had gotten some energy back I hopped up to the bar and busted out four kipping pullups, chin over bar, in a row! Just four days after my first pullup ever. I'm terribly proud of this accomplishment. And just think, if I had given into temptation and stayed in bed I wouldn't have passed that milestone.

Blocked

AMRAP 15 Minutes:
15 walking russian swings
10 front squats

16 kg KB, Finished 8 rounds + 10 steps.

Today's WOD was rough. Rough in the I didn't do nearly as well as I hoped or hit it as hard as I would have liked kind of way. A few rounds in I could feel my lower back and hips reacting. Not painful, but definitely carrying all the work, which made me nervous. And made me slow down. I can still feel it in my hips two hours later.

Lately I've been fighting to get over a hump in my workouts. It's completely a mental block and I just can't seem to push through. My progress in every area is fantastic. Getting a pull up is closer with every attempt. Eating Zone has body fat percentage falling and pounds are just dropping off me. (I stepped on the scale on Monday night. 158.6#, the lowest I've been since probably early high school.) But I just can't seem to push myself to my own satisfaction in the workouts.

goals

Yesterday a teammate and I were chatting and the conversation came around to being a baby rugby player, brand new to the game and simply terrible. The conversation also came around to how bad of a rugby player I was at first. I really was terrible. That first season involved lots of enthusiasm, but not much else. And I stayed terrible for a good long while with the original enthusiasm fluctuating in a reverse correlation with my frustration. It wasn't until the rest of my life was on solid ground that I started to really improve. Unsuprisingly (in retrospect) a huge part of what allowed for the improvement was fitness.

The difference between me now and me five years ago, or even two years ago still sneaks up and shocks me regularly. If I talk about my workouts or my performance in a match enough to annoy people it's not because I'm completely self-centered. (Really.) It's because in my head I still think of myself as completely nonathletic and am still absolutely amazed to discover these capabilities within myself.

For example, Monday night was our first 7s sprint workout. Bags ran up through a short warm up and got the fifteen of us started on sprints pretty quickly. She announced the first set and without even thinking about it I placed myself in the first group on the line. Next to three of my fittest teammates. Something completely out of character for the baby rugby player I was. Two years ago I might not have shown up for fitness training, choosing to wait for "real practices" to begin. Five years ago I'd have asked if you were crazy for suggesting that I even run sprints at all.

I can't pinpoint what changed. What exactly caused me to go from "I only run if something is chasing me" to "I can't have a pint even though one my favorite beers is tonight's fire sale because I'm doing the Spartan Challenge at CrossFit." Maybe it's simply that I fell in love with a sport. Maybe it's been there all along and was just waiting to come out. In any case, I know that if I of all people can do it anyone can. You get your feet wet, then before you know it you like the water so much you're up to your knees. Turn around again and you're swimming with the goal of keeping up with the big kids.

And swearing off some of your favorite guilty pleasures. I've told a few people, including a couple CrossFit coaches at last night's 'nutrition workshop.' Still, I want to put it in writing. On the internet where everyone knows and can make fun of me if I fail. Over the past four and a half months I've had pretty good results with a mostly-Zone, lots of cheating eating pattern. I want to see what I can do eating like an athlete in training.

Primarily:
1. NO sweets (including no sugar in my coffee) and
2. NO alcohol

Work in progress:
3. Eat at least as many servings of vegetables as fruit a day.
4. Decrease cheese to two servings a day.

Between unlimited kettlebells and 7s sprints the workouts will take care of themselves. However, six weeks without a cookie or a margarita will be a challenge. During the first part of 7s season. This will test my self-control and how far I've really come in the past few years...

Perservere. Overcome. Conquer.

This morning I hit the snooze at least twice laying in bed and contemplating completely skipping out on the 300 workout. Then I remember that I'd already shelled out the money for the program and I might as well just do it. Which in turn made me wonder why I pay to torture myself this way. Once at the gym I continued to wonder as my apprehension grew through the body comps (though that was better than expected) and warm up and intro. But finally my hands were on the pullup bar and we were off.

Not only did I manage to survive the Spartan workout, but I also finished within the allotted twenty minute time. The dead lifts and kettlebell clean and presses I totally knocked out, absolutely no problems. A 10 kilo kettlebell? Please. I eat those for breakfast.

Even the jumping pullups, even the final 25 reps of the day, didn't give me much of an issue, proving to myself that most of my issue there is mental. I chose to step up for the box jumps, which turned out to be a wise decision because at about 2o in my legs started getting shaky and somewhere after 30 I actually caught the edge of the box with my foot. My pushups need work, but it was the floor wipers that made me want to cry. Randall and my spotter (whose name I have forgotten...) got me through them in sets of five or four or three at a time.

Then, before I knew it Mike was calling the four minute mark, I was up and on the bar for pullups and then I was done. At 17:24.

And after a half an hour and a liter of water I was back to making silly faces.

Anticipation

It's just a workout, right? Nothing to be scared of. Twenty minutes of pain is no big deal. After all, if I can do this (multiple times) without falling on my face a few deadlifts and kettlebell presses are nothing. Right?

(Photo stolen from the fabulous and talented Randall Setzler.)

300

Finding 300 reasons that my doing the Spartan Challenge, which starts in just over a week, is absolutely insane would not be particularly difficult. Much less difficult than actually completing it. This thing terrifies me, specifically the benchmark workout. Last year's video. Feel free to pause that at 34 seconds in where it lists the workout. This, my friend, makes the I Am Crossfit workout look like a short stroll to the gelato shop.

BUT I am not focusing on this. I am not focusing on the fact that I still can't do a pullup, that I hate box jumps or that just watching those floor wipers makes we want to cry. Instead I'm focusing on the fact that while it will kick my ass it can only make me better. Stronger. And hey, look, a kettlebell portion! I can do that...hell, if I can keep running and rucking and tackling during the 79th minute of a rugby match, I can do all of this. Because I Am CrossFit.

Hey, that's me!

Crossfit Central filmed our kettlebell class last week and interviewed a few of us. My entire interview was the vocal intro to the video, which is very cool. I always feel awkward with a camera around - I know what kind of faces I make when I work out. That makes being a CrossFitter interesting, as there are quite often cameras around. The video workout, by the by, totally kicked my ass.


Old School Training from CrossFit Central on Vimeo.

food and fitness

The Zone has its ups and downs. Weekends are when I'm the worst at sticking to it. And most days I only manage to get three or four meals Zoned. But I keep telling myself that it's a start. Better than nothing. Today for a very late breakfast I had eggs scrambled with feta, spinach, and avacado. Quite tasty. And I've found that roast beef and provolone with fruit and almonds is my favorite lunch. Greek yogurt is too expensive, but it's sooo good.

Rugby practices start a week from Monday. My activity levels will go way up as our coach has been reported to be gleefully thinking of inventive fitness torture. And I'll be thanking Crossfit.

40/30/30

Just under a year ago when I started the kettlebell class at CrossFit Central Jeremy, who was my coach at the time, tried to convince me to start Zone dieting. No way was I ready to be that serious about things. I was just there to get in better shape for rugby, not to win a triathlon or even lose weight, as I told him vehemently. (I tend to push back when people try to push me into things.) Over the summer I started to consider zoning, even more once rugby season began and I could physically tell my nutrition wasn't up to par with what I was putting my body through.

Still, even that feeling wasn't enough to get me over the hump of actually bothering to measure my food and worry about conforming to the zone-prescribed macro-nutrient proportions. Tonight I'm still not sure about it. Food shouldn't require a calculator. Nor should it take over half an hour to make a salad. But, I decided if I'm going to do this I Am Crossfit thing I'm going to do it right. And, like any lab procedure or fitness movement, though, I assume one gets better with experience.


3 Block Dinner:

• Salad (2.65 oz spinach, 0.5 cucumber, 2 slices ham, 1.5 oz feta cheese, 2 T (1 ounce) avacado)
• 2 Triscuits
• 3 cashews
• 1 cup milk

What I learned:

• It takes a heck of a lot of spinach to get to 5.333 ounces (1.333 cups) worth.
• Food shouldn't require a calculator.
• The right amount of spinach is way more filling than the zone equivalent of Triscuits.
• This is going to take some will-power and time and mindfulness.
• That left over pumpkin bread is looking really tasty, even after a delicious salad.

I am Crossfit part I

Crossfit Central is doing the "I Am Crossfit" program to kick off 2009 - intense workouts outside of class in addition to the usual and zone dieting, keeping a food journal, before and after measurements, the whole bit.

Benchmark workout is 3 rounds of:
400m run
15 pullups
7 hanging cleans

I chose the 65 lb weight and attempted pull ups with a band and today I didn't finish in the given 12 minutes. Disappointing, but there's nowhere to go but up. And, not doing olympic lifts very often or being able to do even a single real pull up I knew I was really challenging myself. So, here's to 2009. Fitter, faster, and more of a bad ass on the rugby pitch.

Rocktoberfest II

Second Rocktoberfest pledge: Baking. I have a fairly large number of friends with October birthdays. And I'm going to make cupcakes for each of their celebrations that I attend.

Recently I discovered a dark chocolate cupcake recipe that is fabulous. I made it for a work potluck and they went over quite well, so I think that's what I'll make for my teammates' post-rugby practice birthday drink up at our sponsor bar.

Tuesday's workout was killer - eight rounds of 20 seconds hand to hand kettbell pass-offs, followed by eight rounds of the same, but power swings, then snatches, then sprawls into a high pull. I managed everything except the snatches with a 16kg kettlebell. I'm getting there...

Sidenote - the pumpkin ice cream at Amy's Ice Creams is amazing.

Rocktoberfest

For whatever reason I keep thinking I'm going to leave work (13 minutes and 20 seconds) and walk out into a chilly, dim late fall evening. Despite the fact that it is most definitely still summer here in Austin. I think my body has decided enough with this weather, if we can't have it for real, we'll fool ourselves. Even Denver wasn't as deliciously cool as expected. Not incredibly hot, and the changing Aspen's on the drive to Boulder for Sunday's match were lovely, but it was nothing like I had hoped. Then again, pretty much nothing about the month of September, much less that trip, was. On the bright side, the beds in the hotel were fantastic and the pitch in Boulder was downright lush. An "oh, please tackle me" kind of lush.

October isn't starting out so great either, for a variety of reasons. I am, however, going to attempt to celebrate Rocktoberfest along with The Modern Gal. I pledge that I am going to do my best to make that 16 kg kettlebell my primary weight. I may not be able to press 16 kilos by the end of the month, but I will at least be able to snatch it. That will make me feel like I rock.

Also, I pledge to come up with another pledge for Rocktoberfest...

Plus, DQ has Pumpkin Pie Blizzards for the month of October. I'm going to see Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist tonight with friends. Iron Man is out on DVD. Sunday I get my birthday cake during Pattie and Carrey's house warming. Not to mention that I get to play lots of rugby during the month of October. Fun, low-stress rugby with our B-side, starting as eight man.

*I know I'm not blogging much. Keep up with me on Twitter instead.*

Fit

Yay strong, competitive women! And yay Crossfit!


I came back from my kettlebell workout today to Katy's post about her team Crossfit training. After spending my entire bike ride back thinking how much I love being able to conquer a tough workout and how I can't imagine not having fitness always be a part of my life, no less. That her team is working out together is great idea - I wonder if the Valks would be down for it? It'd be a great way to combine two of the best things in my life.


My WOD was five rounds of:

5 Burpees
10 Snatches
10 Box Jumps
15 KB swings

I finished in 14:32 with a 12 kb Kettlebell. Not too bad.

a bit too much

Yesterday, I managed to kick my own ass. My bicycle is currently my only form of transportation - aside from begging rides from friends, the bus, and my own two feet. And I hate asking for rides. So yesterday I get the brilliant idea to ride my bike to rugby practice. After having ridden my bike to and from work and from work to my kettlebell workout. It's about five miles from my apartment to practice, with a slight uphill grade, as all of Austin slopes uphill from the river. Not really all that bad, or so I think.


Yeah, right. I made it through practice and through the ride home, but man am I regretting it today! If it I hadn't had the kettlebell workout I think it would have been okay, but for right now I'm gonna stick with the bus or bumming rides.

workout of the day

42 High knees with jump rope
7 Turkish Get Ups
7 Kettlebell snatches/side
7 In/Outs

I was four in and outs short of five full rounds.

Tuesdays and Thursdays are my favorites. Instead of eating on my lunch hour I go and work out. Thirty minutes of an all-out-no-holds-barred-how-hard-can-you-push-yourself kettlebell class at a nearby Crossfit gym. No matter how I feel when I walk in, once I leave the rest of the day goes much better. I'm usually shaking, my hands far from steady, even my legs not sure of what they're doing after pushing so hard. But my mind is clearer and I'm more alert. Today I can even breathe better, but that might be the 2nd Zyrtec in four hours that I took right before leaving work. On a bad day I'll come back to work feeling ten times better than when I left. Granted I'm smelly and gross and drenched with sweat. But I let myself cool down a bit, change clothes and get back to work, grabbing lunch when I can during incubations. And life, it is good.