What BMI really stands for

I took the day off today, I was due for a rest day after 4 straight days.  I'm going to take the day to type about the BMI or "Body Mass Index" and what a load of shit it is.   Yeah, that's right it is complete BS.  I'm sure that insurance companies love to go by it, but for anyone who actually is an athlete, has any muscle mass, or leads an overall healthy life style...it is crap.   My BMI is at 25.1.  I am OVERWEIGHT!   yeah....ok.  I have to wear a belt with size 32 jeans...and I'm overweight?   get the f*$& out of here.

My BMI...apparently I'm overweight.

You can calculate your own BMI by the below equation or by searching online for the many calculators.

Wikipedia goes into depth about the limitations, and although they are well understood within the medical community, there are a lot of people who use this to judge how healthy they are.  This line of thinking is flawed.  The correct way would be to get your body fat percentage.

Many consumer scales have a body fat % function, but there are a lot of problems with this method too.  How much water weight you have, how much salt you eat..among others.  I encourage you to read about the limitations here but if I had to choose between this and BMI..i would always choose this.

The best way would be to get in a water tank and let an expert figure it out, but a more inexpensive way would be to use calipers.  Now, I do not know my body fat percentage, but I am considering getting the calipers so that I, and others at my box, can figure this out and use it as a way to track progress.

WOD

REST DAY.  I get to take down a tree in my back yard tonight so that will be my "active" part of the day.

DIET

I did well and badly yesterday.  I had Chinese food, but Chicken and broccoli can't be THAT bad for you right?  I then went to the movies and had a soda (first one in months) and a few hand fulls of popcorn.

Eye of the Tiger...

I wish I could do a Rocky montage of me from the beginning of crossfit.  It would be epic.  I can picture some great music..me puking here and there.  Then a scene that starts with me only lifting a bar..then fades into a bar plus small weight...then a bar with more weight and so on til now.  We could even put an old skull cap on Mike or Molly and have them yelling at me "FASTER!  SPEED SPEED!" like Mickey.



That's it..I'm being Rocky for Halloween!  Karen..you can be Mickey.


On another note...I did 100 95lb thrusters!   That is a huge accomplishment for me as I usually shy away from those types of weights in long WODS.  I am getting better...and I'm getting better Faster than I thought I would!

WOD

Yesterday's workout was especially brutal.  It was another HERO WOD but not a "normal" hero WOD.  It was a Football Crossfit WOD named after Robert James Kalsu.  He was a professional football player who played for the Colts for a few years before joining the military and being deployed to Vietnam.  Sadly, he was killed in action by mortar fire.  he was an offensive lineman which is makes sense when you read the workout.  Note: this was in the top 5 hardest workouts I've ever done.  Absolutely brutal.

WOD (08/29/2011)

"Kalsu" (note..it was modified from the "actual" Kalsu)

100 Thursters
4 burpees on the minute, every minute until you complete your thrusters.

Time:  28:39  at 95 lbs

WOD (08/30/2011)

20 min amrap
10 HRPU
10 T2B
169 m run with 45 lb plate

7 full rounds and 17 reps into 8th

Diet

Pretty good yesterday.  Got to the grocery store and got some Nuts and fruits for the day.  Forgot lettuce so I'm without my normal salad .  

Hungover

Do hangovers have to refer to alcohol?  Yesterday I didn't have a single drop of alcohol.  What I did have though was a ton of sugar and a ton of sleep.  Too much sleep it seems.

Yeah..this was me on Sunday

This morning I just could not get out of bed.  Last week I had no problem getting up every day at 5am after going to bed at 11 or sometimes 12.  Last night I was asleep before 8.  Sooo 9 hours of sleep is too much for me.  Got it.

I think the moral of the story is to find the right amount for you.  I think 8 hours might be too much for me..and 9 hours is surely too much.   If it wasn't too much it is because I changed my pattern...bodies don't do change well.   Find the balance that makes you feel the best.  It might not be exactly what is prescribed by someone online.

WOD (08/28/2011)

Partner WOD:  While one partner works the other must hold a 2 pood kettlebell

25 double unders
50 135 lb dead lifts
50 push-ups
50 24 inch box-jumps
50 135lb floor wipers
50 1 arm db snatch
25 double unders

Justin and I split each for a time of 10:20.

DIET

Ummm.  Good and bad.  The good. Had a good breakfast, some fruit, and sushi for dinner.  The bad:  Well sushi is kinda bad too but add to that ice cream after dinner and some salt water taffy during the day.  So any good was totally wiped out by the bad.   A new week means new emphasis on nutrition...at least until the holiday weekend.

Pukie!

When I was in college, and for most of my twenties, the term "puke and rally" meant you drink til you puke...then you start drinking again.  Well, now it means that in the middle of a workout I puke..then I go back and finish the workout.  I have puked from 3 workouts now.  And rally'd in 2 of them.  The third I didn't puke until after the workout was over.

Pukie #1:  Very first day of crossfit.  Elements 1 made me vomit.  After I threw up I had to jump on the rower and do 1000m.

Pukie #2:  Running Filthy Fifty:  this was just disgusting.  Got done and puked my brains out.

Pukie #3:  Hammer.   Dry heaved during round 4.  Got back in it and finished the 4th and 5th rounds.

In some crossfit circles a pukie is a badge of honor and shows you brought yourself to your maximum.  I think it is one badge that I'd like to not have.  Regardless, it is good to know that I gave it everything I had and I know I could not give it any more.  Although, I think that today the reason I was puking was cause of Dehydration.

I should note here that although a lot of cross fitters will be impressed by your pukie, we all know it's not good to do it regularly.  If it happens a lot, there is an underlying cause and you need to find out what it is.  Whether sickness, dehydration, or something I don't know about.

WOD

Today was a HERO WOD

U.S. Army First Sergeant Michael "Hammer" Bordelon, 37, of Morgan City, Louisiana, assigned to the 1st Battalion, 24th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division (Stryker Brigade Combat Team), based out of Fort Lewis, Washington, died on May 10, 2005, from injuries sustained when a car bomb exploded near him in Mosul, Iraq on April 23, 2005.

He is survived by his wife Mila; children Mike Jr., Jacob, and Johanna; mother Dolores; and sister Doreen Scioneaux.


Hammer - 


5 Power Cleans (115)
10 Front Squats (115)
5 Jerks(115)
20 Pull-ups


5 rounds with 90 seconds rest between rounds


My time:  28:02


Diet

IT was good for the most part.  Had a bbq to go too and had a few beers and some great food.  Otherwise, I was good with eggs, fruit, and nuts.

Trying a big boy workout

Although I've been doing crossfit for 4 months now, I still feel like the small guy.  In fact, the best way to describe my feelings are that I feel like the little brother of the gym.  I'm older than most of the competitor guys but I want to be like them...I want to compete with them...hell..I want to beat them.  Does this not sound like a little brother who wants to play with his big brother?

If you've seen the movie "Little Giants" I think of myself as Risk Moranis's character (Danny O'Shea).  His brother Kevin (played by Ed O'Neal) is a football star who excels at everything.  Danny just wants to be able to play with his brother but his brother just keeps beating him.  This sets up a coaching battle between Kevin's Cowboys and Danny's reject bunch of Giants.  In the end, the giants go on to win the game but not without an epic halftime speech.




 Of course, no one at crossfit610 has stopped me from doing a WOD with them but in my head I know that right now I can't do the same weights or complete the WOD in the same time as them. I look at Mike, Frank, Tony, Fox, Jake, Evan, Molly, Heather.... the list goes on... as role models...I want to emulate their actions at the gym.  They have all been doing this for longer than I have, and some of them have highly competitive backgrounds (Mike was a college wrestler, Jake a college Shot putter, Evan college football player, Molly a college soccer player ...).  The end goal of course is to beat them, not in an I want to beat my rival type of way..but more in a friendly competition type of way. I just want to be close to their level.  Think of Rudy..I may not be a starter on the team..but I hope to push the team further.  I hope they work harder to beat me someday.

Which is where the "little brother" feeling come from...I feel like I have to work my way to their level...they had a head start now I have to work even harder than them to reach it.  Have I worked harder than anyone on that list before....no...not even close.  I should put some of the WOD's they do in this thing...i'd seem like a giant pussy.  But I am working...and hopefully one time I can compete with them at a workout.

WOD

Today Rest Day

Yesterday - 2nd round (playing with the big boys...modified of course)

9/11 throwdown without the row

11 - 36" box jump
11 - 125 lb thruster
11 - burpee c2b
11 - 125 lb power clean*
11 - HSPU*
11 - 1.5 pood kb swing*
11 - toe to bar
11 - 175 lb dead lift
11 - 115 lb push press

* means scaled.  Rx is 175lb pc, full hspu, 2 pood kb swing

time:  17:02

One of the Reasons I Love CrossFit

Something happened during the class this morning that just reminded me of one of the reasons that I started to get into the whole crossfit thing.

Competition!

The workout consisted of 21-15-9 of Chest to bar pull ups then 30 inch box jumps.  It is a workout I can do prescribed which is a main ingredient in what happens in my head.  A box member Frank was also at the morning workout.  For workouts workouts that don't involve weights I like to use him as a comparison.  (Note: I have never beat him on any workouts and prolly won't for a while.)  We started the workout on bars next to each other.  As the workout started we were neck and neck.  I found out very quickly that chest to Bar pull ups are a whole lever harder than chin over bar.  We finished 21 around the same time.   Then started the 15 round of box jumps where I got through a bit faster.  I started the pull-ups and  got through 8.  I did the 9th...but did not get my chest high enough.  So instead of moving on and cheating ....I set back up and tried again.  Fail.   Finally, on the third try, I super kipped and got my chest to the bar.  It cost me about  5- 10 seconds.  I started the box jumps at the same time as Frank and he was able to bang out all 9 a full second ahead of me.

Yeah this might be more motivating than competition..but not much!

Now, of course, I was pissed for a second but that was it.  I didn't care that Frank beat me.  Hell, I was proud of him for killing the workout.  I was proud of myself for hanging in there.  Without that little bit of competition I think I would have added 30 seconds, or more, to my time.  It was just the motivation I needed to keep going strong and finish the workout.  When I'm competing the only thing on my mind is the task at hand..never a thought of quitting, or what to have for dinner...just working hard.  That's it.

What motivates you and really helps you kill a workout?

WOD

No strength today..just a dynamic warm up.

WOD:  21-15-9  c2b pull-up - 30" box jump

I had about 6 failed c2b's but I think I redid most of them.  

Time:  7:51

Cash out:  30 reps of goat #1, 30 reps of goat #2, 400 m run.

I did back extensions as my goat 1 because I feel like it will help me with a bunch of workouts.  Then did hanging cleans as goat #2.   I only put 95 lbs on the hanging cleans and I did them pretty well.  Love the hook grip.   

Diet

Killing it!    Have not eaten anything horrible in the past 2 days.  Feeling great!  

A day in the life

What an amazingly hectic couple of days. To those who say they can't find time I call shananigans on you!  Let's go over my schedule each day this week.

5am:  Wake up
6am:  Begin CrossFit
7am: Done Workout, dress and head to the gym.
8am: After leaving the gym, I sit in traffic for a while before arriving at work.
8am-8pm work (except on Monday when I left at 5:30 so I could go to the gym again from 7-8)
8-9pm: drive home...but this week they are doing construction on I-78 and I sat in traffic for an extra half hour
9pm   : get home
9-11: make dinner, eat, relax with Karen, and pack my lunch for tomorrow.
11pm: go to sleep.

Repeat the next day.  Yeah, it's been that kind of week.  I'm not feeling dead or anything, just as you can see there has not been much time for a social life..but what do I need to do during the week anyways?  

So my advice for the day is MAKE TIME.  Yes you can do it too.  The only people that I think have an excuse are those with young children at home.  I don't know what that's like so I can't say you can make time..but anyone else..you have no excuse.   If you go before work I think you'll feel great the entire work day and be more productive.   5 hour energy has nothing on crossfit!

Eff this stuff!  

Tips for "making" time

• Go in the morning
• Instead of going straight home..go to the gym.  It will make you feel like you made time
• Don't lay down when you're home, if you relax it is harder to get going again
• Get a list of home WODs so that if you can't make it to the gym you can get a great workout in at home.

WOD


Strength: Find 2 rm hanging snatch
WOD    :  Karen  150 wall balls for time

Strength:  I got 105 lbs and just missed 110 pounds.  This move was a lot harder than I thought it would be.  Molly asked if I'll ever be happy with a weight I get up...and my answer is no.  But I'm starting to feel bad when people are like "good job" I never just say "thanks"  I say "yeah  but I want to do  better"  I gotta get a lil more positive 

WOD:  I was actually happy with my time here.  I set a goal in my head of 10 minutes.  I started with 25 straight then slowly went from 10 in a row to finishing with 5 in a row.  I did the workout prescribed (20 lb medicine ball) which made me really happy.  Final time:  9:50


Diet


I am killing my diet.  Having protein after workout.  Eggs for breakfast.  Fruit before noon then only veggies and protein after lunch.  I have had some cashews each day.  Doing well.  30 days until Vegas!

Tomorrow is a 2 a day.  I think I'm gonna do some sprints or some rowing tomorrow night.

That's f&*$^ing SMART

Do you ever create goals only to realize they are unachievable?  Do you find yourself asking "Why didn't I get to my goal?  I worked hard, gave it my all and still came up short" .

Well, let's try to use an example of a goal I've set for myself in the past...any why it failed.

Problem

Goal:  To have a six pack.

I set this back in college and even did an ab exercise every night and played a lot of sports.  This was before I drank every weekend so alcohol wasn't the problem.  I went at my abs for like 2 weeks and saw NOTHING.  Sure the exercise was getting easier but who cares if I'm not seeing anything.  

Analysis of the problem

This failed because the goal was kind of subjective.  What is a six pack?  If I don't see it and others do, does it still count as being accomplished?   The second reason it failed was because of the time scale.  you noticed I said 2 weeks.  No one..not even the old creepy cut man on tv...can get a six pack in 2 weeks if they've never had one.  

Ok, maybe you CAN get a six pack in 2 weeks.

So how could I have made this a better goal?

Use SMART goals. It is an acronym for Specific Measurable Attainable Realistic Timely.

So let's see what I can make "get a six pack" into a goal that CAN be achieved.

S: I want to have defined abs.  Easy enough...Let's not forget what we want.

M: I have to decrease my body fat percentage... measurable using a home scale (even if not accurate, it sets a threshold)

A:  I believe this is attainable, my body fat is not out of control, but their is a layer of pudge.  Talk to friends to help determine if something is doable..they might now you well enough to shape the goal.

R:  Well it is relevant to my fitness goals.  It's not like I'm saying "I want to cure cancer" and then going to the gym to do so.

T:  I need to evaluate the amount of time it takes to accomplish this goal.  2 weeks was clearly not enough.  How about  a year?  or 3 months?  

Once you have determined that a goal is possible sit down and think about the same questions a journalist has to answer.  Who?  What?  Why?  Where?  How? 

Who can help me?  What do I need to do in order accomplish the goal?  Why do I want to do it?  Where can I go to accomplish it?  How will I accomplish the goal?

If you answer all these questions then you have a plan.  Go at your goal.  Remember why you're doing it and stick to your original game plan.  

WOD

Strength: 8 x 1 85% 1rm full squat clean

WOD: 5 min amrap "L" sit to 100m run; 5 min amrap 25 DU to 5 DB floor to over head; 5 min amrap 15 flat sit-ups 15 burpees.  3 min break between amraps

Strength:  Felt pretty good doing this.  I may have set the weight a little high to begin with and Trainer Molly wanted me to work more on my form so I lowered it.  It was a good call because as i lift heavier weights, the form is becoming more and more important.  I have to work on getting my elbows up and getting under the bar faster.

WOD:  L sits suck.  like a lot.  Like a whole lot.  I'm becoming better and better at my DU's and after banging out 61 in a row yesterday the 25 today were easy....well easier.  Once your arms start burning from the floor to overhead lifts..eek 25 seems like 100.  Also, I need to spend some time on my dumbell work, man that felt different and I felt weak.

Amrap 1 (L sit):     8.5 (the goal of this was to have a low number...I had a lot)

Amrap 2 (sit-ups):  3  even

Amrap 3 (DU's):    4+25 using 35 lb dumbells.  

Diet

After the crap food fest that was last weekend, I really got on track yesterday.  Had trout for dinner...it was the first time I've had it and it was delicious.  At well for lunch and breakfast as well.  Salad and eggs with some fruit and cashews as snacks.  

I turn 30 in 31 days.  I'm into my final month as a 20-something.  Typing that just depressed me.

Is it possible to get Diabetes from one weekend?

Holy sugar overload. This past weekend was a vacation weekend for Karen and I and boy did I take it easy. It was super relaxing to just sit on hte beach and do nothing and I needed it. I could not have asked for nicer weather. But taking 3 days off of crossfit was a mistake. A big one...

Oh so worth it.

What didn't I eat this weekend? Well if it was good for you then I prolly missed it. Here is a list of some of the stuff I ate.

Salt Water Taffy
Gummy Dollar Coins
Ice Cream (3 servings)
Cooke ice cream sandwich
Caramel Pop-Corn
Pancakes (twice)
Sausage
Lobster Tail (drenched in butter of course)
Steak (may have been the healthiest thing I ate)
and a few beers.

Yeah...over indulge much? My body hates me. My mind hates me. But my tastebuds love me. :-)  (oh and my skin hates me...sun burn OWWWW!)

What advice do I have to give today? Do as I say...not as I do. I am not happy about what I did, but being strict for so long led me to it. Because of this failure of a weekend I decided that I need to set a goal for myself.

Early Morning Walk on the Beach

GOAL: I WILL BE UNDER 160lbs before my 30th birthday.

Leaves me about 1 month ot lose about 5-10lbs. Doable? YES! Easy? NO!

Tomorrow I will go into how I plan on accomplishing this goal.

WOD

Strength: 75% x 5; 85% x 3; 95% x 1+ of both back squat and push press
WOD:  Helen- 3 rds of 400m run, 21 kb swings, 12 pull-ups

Strength:  Killed it.  Ended up doing 4 of 205lbs (215 is my 1rm) on the back squat.  and doing 3 of 100% of my 1rm push press.

WOD  Did ok here.  Was able to do the first round unbroken and then rarely rested on the second and third round.  My Time was 11:37

I also went back for a second round of working out this evening and have some great news to share!  First off...I was able to do a 165 squat clean!  I tried 170 but failed so I know my new 1rm for that.  I also banged out 61 DU in a row!  I was just trying to get to my previous pr of 38 and just kept on going.  Felt great to breat the half century mark...100 here I come!

It Takes The Edge Off

Before I get into the main purpose of this blog, I need to ask for your help.  I will be participating in Fight Gone Bad 6 at the piazza at Schmidts on September 17th.  Fight Gone Bad is a WOD that takes place every year and helps to raise funds for a few charities including one which makes sure that children of special operations soldiers who are killed have a full ride to college.  If you can donate anything please go to this link:  https://fgb6.rapidgiving.com/frp/fundraise.aspx?pk=33E48YY   and help out.  Think of it as the breast cancer walk for crossfiters.


Now for the main event.  This week has been extrememly stressful on me at work and a little bit at home.   My car went kaput, I have a major document to finish before Friday, and my own neurotic thoughts about my job have all left me feeling stressed.  I have found though that CrossFit has really helped relieve some of that stress. (and so has this blog, thanks for that e-mail this morning Chris, I had been at work 3 hours already when you sent it and it put a smile on my face to know that someone I have never met reads this and like what I type)  I assume the good mood from the workout releases those all important endorphines in my brain but I also think there is another reason it helps.

  I don't think about anything while I'm doing hte workout.  My mind goes completly blank when I'm in the zone.  It's like meditating without all the "hmmmmmmm" and insence.

Ooohhhhmmmmmmm....

A blog I frequent talks about this very thing.  Within her post on meditation and the WOD she mentions "I hope you'll be happy to discover that you do not always need to sit quietly in order to unify your body and your mind. "   Those moments of absolute peace as my mind goes blank are my most cherished while doing the WOD.  Of course Michelle lists a few other example of how you meditate during your WOD, so check out her posts.  

oouuuuuuucccchhhhhhh.....

So my advice to you all is...be at peace when you're doing a WOD.  whether it's through silence...or yelling at yourself.  Either way...you won't be thinking about whatever was stressing you out at work or home anymore....and that is peaceful enough.  


WOD
Wednesday:   Strength: 1rm Snatch    WOD:  800m run - 30 power snatches - 800 m run


PR ALERT!  I upped my snatch pr to 105lbs from 95lbs.  I was not super happy with this..but at least I'm going in the right direction.  I really have to work on keeping the bar close to me and getting underneath that bar.  GOTTA BE FAST   I completed the WOD with a weight of 85lbs in 11:30.  After starting the workout I realized I should have used 95lbs.  Who knew a power snatch is a ton easier than a full snatch?  


Thursday:  Rest day.  I have softball tonight but I may also try to run a mile to track a personal best in the 1 mile run.  


DIET


I have been doing great on my diet for 2-3 large meals and on all my snacks recently.  Yesterday I had eggs and fruit in the morning and then some pork and a salad for lunch.  It was delicious.  But then I had to head to Philly and my diet went to hell in a hand basket.  I had some Wawa chicken tenders and cashews for dinner then met my good friend at Rock Bottom in King of Prussia for a drink and baseball.  (Note: the food and beer is delicious at that place..check it out if you're in KoP).  I only had one beer but I did have some wings and picked at a sof pretzel.  Blah.   Gotta keep working!

Happy Birthday CrossFit610!!!!

Although I have only been a part of the CrossFit Community for about 4 months, I want to congratulate Mike and Molly on running a successful box for a year now!   While looking at the pictures this morning at the gym I can't help but be amazed at hoe much progress has been made by everyone at the box.  Huge quantities of fat has been lost and an even larger amount of confidence has been gained by the members.  To those have been with the gym for the full year, congrats on making it that long and on all the changes you've made in your life.  I can't wait to see where I am in one year.

There is a little bit of bittersweetness to today though.  It is trainer Mike's last full day before heading off to open a new box in Long Beach New York.  It's been truly a pleasure (and pain) to train with him.  The gains I've made would have been impossible without his guidance and support through the really tough workouts.  Thank you Mike for all that you've done for me and Karen.  

With that all said, I think we (the members of CrossFit 610)  need to work even harder to show Mike that he's leaving the best bunch of muscle heads in the country...and also to show that Molly is a better trainer than him.
 :-P

In all seriousness, I know we are in great hands with Molly and Evan.  At least half of my progress can be attributed to Molly's tutorage.   I really wish Mike the best at CrossFit King of the Beach.  In fact I already know a day where I might be visiting his new box and I'm a bit excited to see what he's done there.

WOD  


Strength:  3RM Tap and Go full squat cleans
WOD:     365 Burpees. (can do with a partner)

Strength:Well, I am both super happy and super pissed at what happened with the strength today.  The bad news: I could not do 155lbs 3 times in succession because my form when going down breaks down when I use heavy weights.  I wanted to punch the wall when I failed on the third rep of 155.    The good news:  my 1rm was 145 and I was able to do 2 reps of 155lbs. (I think my one rep max might be somewhere in the 165 range now, but it wont go on my list until I actually complete 165) I was also able to go full depth on the squat portion which is a HUGE breakthrough.  It takes some stretching before hand but it can be done.  So my finale completed max weight was 135.

WOD:  are you serious Mike?   So I did 185 burpees of our groups 365 (there were 3 of us).  We completed in 19:55.


Diet


Like my strength, my diet was both good and bad yesterday.  Had eggs for breakfast, salad for lunch...then went to my sisters for her birthday where we had fondue.  The fondue dinner was fine, shrimp, scallops, steak, chicken, brocceli...all great.  Then dessert came out.  Welp..there went that good day.  Had some cookie cake, some rice krispy treat...yeah...stupid.   Gotta work hard this week.

It Doesn't Look That Tough

Never...and I mean NEVER say those words before a crossfit workout.  You will eat them...and then likely puke them back up.  There are workouts and weights that just seem so easy, but when inserted into the workout they become insanely difficult.  For example, if I told you to do 10 reps of power cleans at 135lbs and then do a 200m run, the reaction out of muscle heads is "that's easy, no big deal".  Then you realize you have to do 10 reps, run 200m, then do 9 reps and run 200m...so on to 1 rep and 200m.  Oh..and you have to do it AS FAST AS YOU CAN!  ouch!   It can be vomit inducing at times.   

So never, ever, ever, ever say "that doesn't look so bad" when you see a crossfit workout.   And if some one says "that's easy" then challenge them to come in and give it a try.  

WODs

Saturday:  Barbara 

5 rounds of:

20 pull-ups

30 push-ups

40 sit-ups

50 air squats

3 min break between rounds.  

Times  4:45, 6:30, 6:05, 6:45, 5:57  (times are approximate as they were taken by my phone constantly running)

This was a crossfit 610 field trip day to the local park.  Proves yet again that if life throws you a curve ball, you CAN still get a great workout in.   Had a great time with this group.  Acorns were going places that even the best squirrel detective could not find.  

Me crapping in the woods

Great group of people.  Missing 2 who had to jet early.

3 of the 4 motions in action.  Missing the Pull-up bar.

Marc helping the future of crossfit!

Sunday:  Rest day.  Painted a room in the house

Monday:  Strength:  70% x 3; 80% x 3; 90% x 3+ of Back Squat AND shoulder press

WOD: 100 DU, 100 Ring Rows, 100 Double Unders

Rings Rows SUCK!   As for the strength I felt like I killed it.  I was able to do 5 reps at 90% which is funny because 90% is about 190lbs which is 5 pounds HIGHER than my one rep max of about a month and a half ago.  The shoulder press I was able to do 8 reps of 90 lbs (my one rep max is 95lbs).

As for the WOD...ouch.  False grip still is a problem but I tried to do it for a lot of the ring row stuff.   Double Unders are getting better each time I do them.  I got through the first 100 in about 1:45 which means I would have killed my 2 min max of 105.     I'm moving in the right direction!

Diet

This past weekend was difficult diet wise.  I did well at times..then when I was presented with free ice cream the caveman in me just disappeared and fat Dennis made an appearance.  Ice cream is without a doubt my biggest vice and I have to do more to control it.  Did some great grocery shopping yesterday which should help make this week go really well.  

Unfaithful

From across the room you see them.  As you begin your approach, you realize that you shouldn't be doing this, you don't care though.  The thought of putting it in your mouth is all that matters.  All thoughts of what you should be doing are gone, the only thing going through your mind is lustful thoughts.  Then...it touches your lips and a feeling of euphoria sweeps throughout your body.  You can't help but smile as you ravage what is in front of you. The sweet tastes dance in your mouth, the smell lingers in the air.  As you finish, you feel completely satisfied....

That is until guilt sets in.  Should I have done that? (prolly not)  What will happen now? (might get yelled at by your trainer)  Was it worth it? (undoubtedly yes)  Then you realize..you can't wait to do it again.

You guys know I'm talking about food here right?

Cheating on your diet is something that happens.  You can not avoid it.  In fact, I will argue that you SHOULD cheat on your diet.  If you love a certain food, then by all means enjoy it.  But what you have to do is not over indulge.  If ice cream is your vice, then get a small cone, or a small sundae.  There is no need to get a 3 scoop cone and then follow it up with a large blizzard (who does that? ;-)   Use the food as a reward for putting in a  lot of effort for the week.  This isn't modern little league where you get a "participation trophy", which is just crap, you should only get a reward if you EARN it.  If you tell yourself that, then you will likely put in more effort so then the reward tastes even sweeter.

WOD

Dynamic Warm-up
WOD:  7 minutes to find max balance snatch; 3 min hand stand walk; 2 min max double unders

Dynamic warm up was an 800m run, 500m row then a lot of stretching
WOD:  It was the first time doing the balance snatch so there was a bit of a learning curve here but I got 105 lbs.  I think I could have done more but just ran out of time.

It was also the first time doing the hand stand walk.  That was ummm..fun?  I did like it actually and I really wanna practice it a lot more.  I made it 41 feet.

Double unders I am starting to do a LOT better with.  I broke the 100 barrier and got 105 in 2 minutes.


DIET


I am reintroducing the diet section here because it helps me track it a lot better.  I cheated yesterday, but for good reason.  Karen and I went to Musikfest and trying to find healthy food there is near impossible.  Regardless, I did find steak on a stick at the "Made in Brazil" food booth.  It was delicious.  I followed it up with a soft pretzel and then a root beer float.  I did well with lunch and breakfast though.  3 eggs, apple, plum, chicken garden salad, and some cashews.  So all in all...I'm chalking it up as a win.

Fran Likes it Hard and Fast

Today marked the final piece in the results of the crossfit610 best shape of your life challenge.  We had to do Fran and compare it to our previous Fran time.  Let me tell you something about Fran..she is a raging bitch who just can not be satisfied.  When she's done with you...you look like this:

The point of Fran is to sprint through the entire workout.  You do 21-15-9 of thrusters and pull ups and when you're done you feel like it.  You feel like you just ran the New York marathon.  But because it takes into account strength and endurance, it is a great workout to measure your results against.  

8 weeks ago I tried to handle Fran and did not do a fantastic job of it.  The weight I chose was 65lbs and it took me 14:02 to complete the workout.  (for comparison, the record at our box is 2:13 at 95lbs).  Today I pushed myself a bit more by upping the weight to 85lbs.  It hurt.  It hurt even more because we did seven 100m sprints 3 minutes before starting Fran.  I had a goal in my head of 12 minutes.  Not a great time by any stretch of the imagination, but it would have been a great improvement to knock off time while increasing my weight.  The workout started and I immediately felt it in my legs, I though I could do 21 unbroken, but that just was not the case..I got 12 and had to drop the bar.   The pull-ups just about killed me.  I was hurting but I finished the first round in about 4 minutes.  I don't remember much about the middle round other than to keep breathing and to not puke.  In the final round I was able to get through the thrusters, but then the pull-ups just killed.  I did 3 to start then I had to do them solo.  Not a positive.

I completed the entire workout in 10:12, which was much better than my goal!   Still not a great time, but next time I do this workout (likely in early October) I will do it prescribed and hopefully will be around the 9 minute time frame.  

So below are the accurate before and after statistics.

Fran:  14:02 (65 lbs)   10:12 (85lbs)

Weight:  173.6    163

Chest:  39"    38"

Waist:  36.5"   34.5"

Hips:   36"    33.75"  

I'll try to get the before and after photos soon and have them in this post.

Although the statistics are nice to report, what I care about is how I feel and I'm happy to report that I feel wonderful.  I have yet to get tired of a crossfit workout and even find myself making time to go.  My diet is under control and although I'm not keeping track of points for a contest anymore...I am not veering from my semi-paleo pallet.  I actually love the way the "diet" is set up.  It works...FOR ME.  

I am also VERY happy to report that Karen (digital mustard)  won the box contest for the most weight lost in the 8 week period!  She lost 8.17% of her weight!   She has stuck with the program for 16 weeks now and is still working hard!  I can see her confidence starting to peek through now as she moves more into some of the strength.

WOD

really?  You didn't read anything above did you?   Scroll back up and start from the beginning..all the WOD information is in there.   

IT'S TEE-SHIRT TIME!!!!

I hate to admit this, but MTV's "The Jersey Shore" is recorded on my Tivo.  I am not ashamed to admit that it's there because my wife loves to watch the train wreck that is their lives.  But I have to say, I do enjoy watching it when it is on because I find Pauly to be freaking hilarious and the endless fights between Ronnie and Sammy can make anyone feel better about their relationship.  What does all this have to do with fitness?  Well, I am going to use the guys to go through what my goals are and are not...all that GTL (gym, tan, laundry) time has paid off for a few of them.

Ronnie

Ronnie is as strong as an ox (and seemingly as dumb as one too).  The guy looks like he could lift a house and move it out of hte way of a nor'easter hitting the shore.  I will not debate his strength but his physique is not quite what I'm hoping to gain with all my working out.  My step-brother is always talking about "getting huge" and although I can understand that goal..it's just not what I want...at all.

Vinnie

Vinnie..yeah he's pretty funny.  And according to Snooki..he's huge in a completely different way than Ronnie.   wink wink nudge nudge.  Vinnie is the least cut guy in the house but let's assume he is very strong..his diet is just not right.  He has a layer of pudge before getting to his muscles.  Again, this is just not what I am looking for myself.

Mike "The Situation" 

Mike is known for his abs (which I find repulsive because they just don't look natural).  He is a pretty cut dude but when I look at him I just don't think athletic.  he spends a lot of time at the gym but I don't know if he's any good at anything but lifting some weight and getting cut.  He almost looks fake strong.  He's definetly weaker than Ronnie (proven when Ronnie knocks his ass out in Italy).  So although the situation is closer to what I hope to mold my body into..it's not quite there.

Pauly D

I feel like Pauly is the best person out of the guys (with Vinnie a close second).  He is funny, never really takes anything overly serious and seems like a nice guy.  Other than his billion tattoos, I think if I could choose any body to have out of the guys..it would be his.  He seems strong..has an athletic look to him and is not too big. He is cut but not overly so that I'd feel like I'm in a Mr. universe competition.

So there you have it..I think I would choose Pauly D's body.

I can't begin to tell you how fruity I felt googling "jersey shore guys shirtless" to get the pictures above.


WOD

Strength:  65% x 5; 75% x 5; 85% x 5+ shoulder press
WOD:  15 minute AMRAP   25 box jumps, 20 KB swings, 15 T2B, 10 burpee

Strength:  I did 8 of 85lbs on the shoulder press.  My 1rm is 95lbs so I think I'll be able to beat that..at least I hope so!

WOD  used RX on all but the KB swing.  I wanted to work on my form there.  i did 2 + 61 (9 burpees short of 3 rounds)




CAB'S HERE!!!!

It Just keeps falling off!

Today marks the end of the 8 week "Best Shape of Your Life" Challenge and I have some exciting results...

I lost 9 pounds.  My total 16 week weight loss is 25 lbs.  I started at 187 pounds and am now at 163.


I list between 2 and 2.5 inches on every measurement
My chest was 39...it's now 36.5 (I think)
My stomach was at 36.5...it's now 34.5
My waist was at 36...it's now at 33.5

and I feel great. (I'll get the official measurements for you later)

I think the most important thing I've learned over the past 16 weeks is that it's not that hard to find time to workout and that eating well is just as important, if not more so, than working out.  Just because the contest is over does not mean I'm going to start eating like shit again...I will continue to follow the principles I learned during the process to try and continue seeing results.  I'd like to be a solid 155 lbs.  I have a LOT more work before achieving that goal.

WOD

Strength:  65% x 5; 75% x 5; 85% x 5+ on back squat then 

92% x 2 x 1; 94% x 2 x 1; and 98% x 2 x 1 on full squat clean

WOD: 10-R-9- R-8-R-7-R-6R-5-R-4-R-3-R-2-R-1-R

Where R=200m run and the reps are for a full squat clean

Strength I felt good doing the squats.  I need to warm up a bit more cause the first set it took me a lil while to find my depth. I was able to do 7 of the 85% weight.  For the squat cleans..I felt a lot more comfortable doing them.  Although my form isn't perfect, it has come a long way over the past few weeks.  Because 98% was hard to figure out, I just did my max and was fairly easily able to d the 2 reps.

WOD:  it took me 27 minutes and some change today to do the workout.  I used 120lbs on the squat cleans and it felt REALLY heavy once I got down to the 1 rep. 

   

oh..on saturday I was able to get in my 2000m row and got it done in 7:48 which is really good for me.  When I started crossfit, I was doing a 2:10-2:20 500m row..now I'm averaging under 2 min on longer rows.  makes me pretty happy.  

There is always a time

If you diet regularly you have likely heard of the Glycemic Index.  In it’s simplest form, it is just a measure of the effect of carbs on blood sugar levels.  But why is that important?  It is important because if your body receives too much sugar and can not burn it off fast enough it begins to store it.  The method of storage is actually FAT!  I might be the only person on earth who did not know this..I thought the fat on my body was from eating fatty foods and that gets stored.  I don’t know if I could have been more wrong.  I was thinking..I’ll eat a bunch of gummy bears instead of mcdonalds…look they have no fat so they won’t add to my waistline..just might make me hyper.  D’oh!  

They are evil...pure delicious evil.  

Even paleo foods contain sugars so recently I have been trying to front load my day with the foods that contain the most sugar, specifically fruit.  On a recommendation from trainer Evan, I try to eat all my fruits before about 1pm.   If I do have fruit in the afternoon or evening, I try to make it a low GI fruit so that my sugar is limited.  In the past week it has really helped me take off a few pounds and makes it easier to sleep at night actually (both could be more cause of the exercise, but it couldn't have hurt).  Below is a good chart that shows the GI index for some fruits.

WOD

I have done something like 14 WODS in a row (to the gym 13 of the last 14 days)  so I am taking a big breather this weekend by camping.  Of course, I'll stay active with a light jog or some swimming but nothing rigorous, gotta let the body heal.

Took the Plunge!

What did I get myself into?  I just signed up for my first CrossFIt competition!  I will be competing in the “Festivus 2” competition at CrossFit Relentless in Hartford Ct.  You might be asking yourself why I am traveling so far to do it, and the answer is it is because it is a competition for Novice and Intermediate crossfitters only.  I’m going to again take a look in your mind and hear you say “oh great, so even if you do well it is against the JV team”.  And while this may be true, you don’t see people who just started boxing book their first fight against Manny Pacquiao, or you don’t see Little Leaguers go up against Roy Halladay.  I have to start somewhere so I decided to start where I belong. 

Festivus..the competition for the restofus

The competition is still 3 months away so I have plenty of time to keep working.  My main goal will be to not embarrass my box, or myself.  I want to go up there and do well enough that people go, “wow, they train him well down there in Allentown”.  We’ll see how everything goes, but I’m not going to change anything in my training except to keep trying to do two a days when possible (usually mon and thurs).

WOD

Strength: 5 5 5 5 5 front squat going up in weight each time

I started at 145lbs and was fine through my first 3 sets (145, 155, 165) but was only able to get 3 reps in at 175 so I dropped back down to 165 for the final 5.  I can feel myself being able to do more and I think my form is not horrible.  It’s amazing how concentrating on pushing up your elbows can help get you through the final few reps.

WOD:   21-18-15-12-9-6-3 Pull-ups then HSPU

Let start this with…I sucked.  My grip just would not cooperate (stupid sweat).  But let’s go to the positive...I am getting better at the HSPU kips.  It is something that I am going to keep working on as I’ve seen some big gains in my ability with it recently.  I did this in 27:10 (ew).

Hero WOD's

Press always covers the deaths of people who are waste's of talent who kill them selves (Amy Winehouse) or famous ditzes (Britney Murphy, Anna Nicole Smith) but the death of a soldier overseas seems to always be on page 2 if mentioned at all. The recognition for these hero's is left to their family or friends.  Well, Crossfit has a way that they use to memorialize some of the fallen soldiers, police officers, and firefighters and that is through naming a workout after them.  I will now make it a point to include the description of the workout when I do the workout.    Please take the time to read the info and give them a moment of respect and rememberence.

Today I completed McGhee.

Corporal Ryan C. McGhee, 21, was killed in action on May 13, 2009 by small arms fire during combat in central Iraq. He served with 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment of Fort Benning, GA. This was his fourth deployment, his first to Iraq. Ryan was engaged to Ashleigh Mitchell of Fredericksburg, VA. 

He is survived by his father Steven McGhee of Myrtle Beach SC, his mother Sherrie Battle McGhee, and his brother Zachary. 

WOD

Strength  Wed: 2 full snatches every minute on the minute for 10 minutes

Wed: 3 rounds of 50 air squats, 7 muscle ups, 10 Hang Cleans

Thurs: McGhee:  5 DL, 13 Push-ups, 9 Box jumps 30 MIN AMRAP

Wednesday:  I am continuing to learn the proper snatch motion (I really did just LOL to that sentence).  It feels like there are a million things that have to go right to have "perfect" form.  I am really trying ot stay on my heels which is hard for me since I have done everything on my toes.  Got some good tips from Johnny who watched as I completed a bunch of them, the tips were truly appreciated.    

WOD:  15:45 with 115 lb Hanging clean.  I did not think I could get through it, but luckily Trainer Mike hooked me up with great form and I was able to complete.

Thursday:  OUCH!  This hurt.  I was one box jump away from losing my breakfast.  I completed 15 rounds with a 195lb dead lift and 24" box.   But it was not easy, in fact I think this was the hardest I've gone on a WOD in a long time.  30 min AMRAPS suck!   the good news is that I did each station unbroken every single time (but once on the push-ups).  

Tonight I go back to the gym to work on some skills that I need to practice.  I think I am bringing my addiction to a whole new level.

You Don't Have to Worry About Drinking the Kool-Aid

One of the aspects ot Crossfit that I enjoy the most is the sense of community.  It goes well beyond those who are members of your box.  There are several events during the year which stress fundraising and awareness for very noble causes, a prime example is the 9/11 Throwdown (see the link in the upper right of the page or link http://dennis-crossfit.blogspot.com/p/9-11-throwdown.html) .  

Don't have to worry about the Kool-Aid cause you're not allowed to drink it!

I have always been opposed to anything that had a "cult" like feel to it.  Friends tried to get me to hash which I think is more of a cult than anything.  They go into making funny names and make you embaress yourself by dancing in a circle or some non-sense like that (note: I have no idea what they do but I know it has to do with popping cherries).  I have never been a churchgoer as I'm not very religious and I hate how many (note how I said many and not all) religions endorse judging of others, which is something I can not stand.  But crossfit kind of just snuck up on me.  I know I can go to the gym and be surrounded by people who want to help me achieve my goals, even if it is just by yelling "come on!".

Some examples of the community are someone being genuinely happy for me after I could do a few kipping pull ups   Another girl yelling "PUSH!" as I was trying to do one of my first true ring dips.  I don't now these people well but that support was great.  It even goes to helping make sure proper form is being applied during lifts.  I was doing some push presses with a member the other week and he really helped me work on keeping my back straight to avoid injury.  And finally, we all know I am fairly weak right now compared to other guys but I have never heard a complaint for having to share a bar with me and take off and put back on weights...it has actually be quite the opposite as these guys always help me out and try to push me to new levels.

It is just another reason that I love going to the gym..


WOD

Strength: 40% x 5; 50% x 5; 60% x 5 Shoulder press
WOD   :  15 min amrap  5 thrusters, 8 pistols, 200m run

Strength:   This was a bit too easy for me.  I think I need to reset my 1 rm shoulder press.  I flew through these weights.

WOD:  I got 7 +13.  used 115 on my thrusters which I think was a good weight..could prolly go to 120 or 125 if I were to do it again just to push myself a bit more.   I started really slow but hit my stride in in the middle rounds.  I found that I am getting better at my resting time, but I need to push myself a bit more when going from something rigorous to a lift.  Control my breathing!

It makes me want to punt a kitten

You all remember jump roping right?  Frolicking on the playground during recess, not a care in the world.  Maybe you sang songs and did double dutch....  awww memories.  

Well double unders are the complete opposite of that sweet memory.  Yes, it is still just jump roping but it is letting the rope pass twice under your feet.  Simple in concept, difficult in execution...at least when trying to do as many as you can in a specific amount of time.  It's all good once you get in a groove, but the second you mess up.  No big deal you tell yourself,  then you start going and boom you mess up after 2 more.  Ok, the blood pressure is a lil higher.  You try to get going again and boom, it gets caught in your shoe laces.  At that point I feel like kicking a kitten, or puppy, or anything that is in your path.  God help any cute furry little animal that comes near me.  It is THAT frustrating!

WOD

Strength:  40% x 5; 50% x 5; 60% x 5 back squat then full squat cleans 92% x 3 95% x 4
WOD  2 min on 2 min off double unders for 3 rounds.  Difference between the max and min you have to do burpee to box jumps.

Strength: I have to thank trainer Mike for taking the time to help me with my form on the full squat cleans.  I am going to keep working on my form, gotta get my back in check before going to the big weights!

WOD:  I did 267 double unders (89 each round). I likely could have gone to 100 in the second and third round but I knew the rules already.  I think that makes me a type 2 crossfitter...crap.