Think "Light" thoughts....

 “Everybody wants to be a “powerbuilder”, but don’t nobody want to lift no heavy-ass weights.” – Ronnie Coleman

That quote was going through my head, but replace "bodybuilder" with "crossfitter", while I was trying, and failing, to clean the 185 lbs so I could start more front squats.  I also tried to use the force a bit, which also did not work.  

This did not work for me.

Here is more on my first RX competition

Event 1:  

155 is heavy for me.  It is heavy for most people, but it is really really heavy for me.  I did accomplish my goal of going through each movement unbroken for the first round...then it just got ugly.  Deadlifts were easy, but the hang-cleans started to kill me.  I could only do about 2-3 at a time then my grip would be gone.  Obviously I used the hook grip but it just wasn't enough.  Then the shoulder to overhead...yeah right.  That was terrible.  I eventually had to go into a split jerk to get through them.  I ended up with 2+23 total which meant I got into the shoulder to overhead of my third round.    

Ended the first round in 22nd place (out of 25)

Event 2:  

The most feared event for me, the 185lb front squat.  oy!   It took me two attempts at successfully cleaning the bar.  I was more affected by the first event than I thought because I could do 185 a few times in a row without failing a few days prior.  Once up, I did 5 front squats before putting the bar down.  The problem was, I could not get it up again. Sounds like a typical male problem.

Then came the Sit-ups which I did "ok" on.  I got 71 in 2 minutes but I should have gotten to 80.  Then came the burpees which were surprisingly tough to get up on the 45lb weight.  I struggled and only got like 15 in the minute.  Again..should have done better.

I came in 24th on this event.  

Event 3:

I almost killed myself on the turkish get-up.  I was fine with my right hand, but struggled with my left (I'm making it too easy to make fun of this).  When I came down i dropped the 75 lb steel ball onto my shoulder/chest.  Ouch!  Luckily I caught it with my right arm before it could do serious damage.  I did decent on the row (15 cals each round) , and ok on the box jumps but could never get into a good rhythm. The tire flip was a bitch cause we just don't do them often. 

I came in 25th in this event.  Sigh.

Overall I came in 21st out of 25.  I have no idea how that is even possible considering I never did better than 22nd in any event.  The way they computed score confused me.  

Thoughts:

First thought I had after each event was pure disappointment.  I did not stack up to my peers like I had hoped.  I was distraught.  Really actually pretty down on myself.  

As time went on, what Brando, Brad, Jake, Karen.... told me is true.  This was my first competition at RX weights, and they were not light.  I never backed down from the weight, never thought "maybe I should not do Rx"  I did not quit.  And that is what I'm taking away from this event.  That I have made some incredible improvements over this time last year.  I could not do a 2 pood kettle bell swing last year at this time, let alone a 2 pood turkish get up, but I did it in the competition.  I know I'm not elite, but it was good to "compete" against them for once.  

"Fans" and "Coaches"

610 cheering section!

I could feel the love while I was working out.  Especially when I was struggling.  Having the support that the group from the box formally known as 610 was amazing.  Everyone looked out for one and other and really pushed each other to succeed.

Also great was having Coach Brad (he's not the coach officially yet, but will be eventually) help me through some tough times with the tire and with the DT workout.  He helped me pace through them and gave me some form tips to make the movements more efficient.  Other guys with much more experience helped me through too including Jake and Brando.  It was good to have the tips yelled to me when I needed it the most.

Final Thought.   

I HAVE TO WORK HARDER!  

What time is it?!?!

GAME TIME!

It's time for yet another competition for me, this time in my own backyard...just about literally.  Crossfit Advanced is holding the second annual "Test Your Metal" crossfit competition at the Lehigh Valley Sportsfest located at cedar beach..only about 1/4 mile from my house.  I am really excited for this competition because it will be my first time doing a competition at the "prescribed" level.  As with past competitions I really watched my diet the past 2 weeks and I feel like I am ready to go!  As has been my ritual below are the workouts for test your metal:

Workout #1:

10 minute Amrap of "DT"

12 Dead-Lifts
9 Hang Cleans
6 Shoulder to Overhead

All at 155lbs

Thoughts:  This is not a light weight for me, but it is a weight I can handle.  It's amazing to think that last year at this time I could only dream of cleaning this weight, not it is something I can handle easily (for 1 rep).  Luckily it will not be too hot tomorrow so sweat will not be a huge problem grip wise, but regardless of that fact, I will bring with me a rosin bag and maybe even some gloves to test out.  The shoulder to overhead will really tax me.  I am hoping to get through one complete round unbroken then breaking it up as necessary.  In order to save some grip, I think I will do 11 deadlifts with the alternating grip before switching on the 12th to the hook grip so I can move on to the cleans quickly.

Goal:  I'd like to get 3 complete rounds in...hoping that I feel good and am able to get 3+ in.

Workout #2:

3-2-1 minute AMRAP

3 Minute AMRAP of 185lb front squat
1 minute rest
2 minute  AMRAP sit-ups
30 sec rest
1 minute  AMRAP burpees

Babies can do it...why can't I?!?!?!

Thoughts:  Ew.  Front Squats are my nemesis.  I am terrible at them.  My 1rm is something like 205 so 185 is a HEAVY weight for me to do an AMRAP of.  Beyond that, I have trouble with my depth so getting no-repped is a real concern.  Last week we did 5x5 front squats for strength and I got to 175 and failed on my 4th rep.  This is something I just have to grit my teeth and fight through.  On top of the front squat, because this competition is outside, you have to clean the bar up.  185 is a heavy weight for me to clean.  Again, I can do it but when I'm tired will I be able to do it late in the round?  to be seen.  My strategy is to try and not kill myself with the front squats and make up as much as I can with sit-ups and burpees.  This is the one event that scares me.

Goal:  If I can get 10 on the front squat I'm psyched.  I have to try and squat clean the bar up so I don't waste energy.  I am thinking something on the order of 40ish on the sit-ups and hoping for 16-20 on the burpees (you have to jump onto a 45lb weight so that is why I'm not looking at 22-25).

Workout #3
Fight gone bad...ish

5 stations 45 sec at each station for 2 rounds

Rowing for Calories
Turkish Get-up (2 pood)
Box Jump (30")
Sumo-Deadlift High pull
Tire Flips

This is a turkish get up.  I have to do it with a 72 lb kettle bell.  

Thoughts:  I really hope I start on the TGU so I can do rowing last.    The difference between first and last in the turkish get-up would be no more than about 3 reps.  It is a slow movement so why kill yourself on it when you can save yourself for the box jump?  This one is really going to make me winded.  Also, I've never done a turkish get up with 2 pood, it should be interesting to say the least...hope my arm doesn't snap!

Goals:  I don't know what number to put to this but I hope I can get about 15 Box-jumps each round and at least 2 TGU's.  We'll see though!


Regardless of my placing at the end of the competition, it will be fun!  There are a lot of ex-610ers competing or coming to support the competitors.  Can't wait!  

Results from Mid Atlantic Affiliate Challenge

Wow...what a weekend. The Mid Atlantic Affiliate Challenge was exactly that...a big challenge.  Before getting into the results I need to thank everyone who came out for Crossfit 610, both the scaled and Rx teams, some on VERY short notice.  There were also some fans in attendance, which added to the energy.  Without much more talk...here is the weekend in a nutshell.

Crossfit 610 Team Representing

WOD #1:

120 Pull-ups
120 OH Squats (95/65)
120 bar facing burpees
600m Prowler push (135/95)
20 min time cap

Myself, Drew, Sam and Rochelle went at this.  Starting with the Pull-ups Drew banged out 15, followed by me with 20 and Sam with 10.  After that, I have no idea how many we did.  I do know that Rochelle was anxiously waiting for us to finish.  Took up about 3-4 min..which was not great but we got through it.  Time for hte OH squats...shit.  I got no-rep'd a few times cause of my depth but Rochelle killed these for us.  It was a huge help for her to step up her game in a big way...it is something that was a recurring theme through the weekend.  on to the burpees..we split them up into sets of 10 a person.  Got to the prowler push where Drew and I each did 50 meters and felt dead.  The girls each did their 50 meters and then we split it up into 25 meter sets.  We got to 275 meters before the time expired.

Mike and Evan Killing 225lb prowler push

Finished 5th out of 7 teams in this event.  Not the start any of us wanted.  But we had lots of time to come back.

WOD #2:

Snatch Ladder

Gerbino did awesome on this event, tieing her PR and coming oh so close to setting a new one at 115.  Then Chris came through and destroyed it.  Setting a new PR for himself at 185.   great job by both of them to keep us in the game.

Finished 2nd in this event!

WOD #3

10 min amrap
Rope Climbs while holding 225lb Axle

We decided to go with 3 rope climbers and one person of strength in this workout.  So Sam and I sat this one out while Rochelle, Chris, Drew, and Julie attacked the WOD.  As I stated previously we were at a dis-advantage in this event because of our relative lack of experience in climbing, but I have to say Chris, Julie and Drew did really well here.  And Rochelle held on to that 225 pound bar for almost the whole 10 minutes (took a 20 sec break at around the 8 minute mark).  It was awesome to watch them hold that  axle, you could see the pain in their faces but they never thought about quitting.  Awesome job by them together.

Rx team holding the axle

We finished the event with 20 rope climbs good for 4th place in the event.

We ended day 1 in a tie for 4th place.  Not the best day for us, but we never quit.  Day 2 would prove to go much better for us.


DAY 2!

WOD #4

12 minute amrap
10 Alternating squat clean thrusters (95/65)
75 meter sand bag carry (105/55)

After some debate, and some coaching from Mike, we decided to put Chris and Rochelle into this event..and what a great decision that was!   This workout looked absolutely terrible.  Rochelle and Chris killed it though.  She kept up with him the entire time and really helped put the team through it. The look on their faces at the 10 minute mark said it all, this workout was brutal.

They finished this workout in second place!

WOD #5

Stadium Workout
300m row
30 Toes to Bar (or knees to elbow)
30 Deadlift
30 Dumbell Thrusters (25/15)
50 Double unders

Court Finishing up with doubles while Tony and Mike spectate!

The way this worked was each member went off in order, but the second person could not start until the person in front of them was done the movement.  We decided to go Myself, Drew, Julie, then Sam was being the anchor.  In this event you truly are only as strong as your weakest player.  Sam has only been doing crossfit for like 3 months and she did amazing through this workout.  I finished in about 8 minutes with Drew only having to wait a few times (my bad).  The double unders were a lot harder than I thought they would be at the end. The team finished in about 17 minutes and some change.  We are confident that we actaully won this event but the scoring got screwed up and the 3 teams that finished in the time cap were all given first place points.

We finished this workout (officially) tied for 1st place.

We finished the "regular" events in second place, but only up on the third place team by 1 point! The final workout would be critical for us.


WOD #6

Each member of the team must complete one round
5 Snatch (115/75)
10 Shoulder to overhead
15 Front Squat

Then

In the same order 50 meter Yoke Carry
165 lbs
215 lbs
265 lbs
355 lbs

THEN

same order
10 Burpee Box Jumps (20")
15 Wall balls (20/14)
50 foot walking lunges (25/0)

Eek...this is pretty Daunting.  We decided to go with Myself, Chris, Rochelle and Julie.  The order would be Julie, Rochelle, Me and Chris.  We start and Julie gets through her set pretty quickly...then Rochelle does her set unbroken.  It was awesome to see.  For someone who went down thinking she would hurt the team, she ended up being one of our strongest members and contributing the most.  Then I go..and I take a bit of time getting through the set.  Chris makes it through pretty easily but we're still the 4th out of 5 teams to get outside.  Crap.  It was all of our first time doing a yoke carry..and honestly we had no idea what the weight was (we were all pretty surprised when we saw just how heavy in poundage it was...it felt a lot lighter).  We fly though this movement and enter the building in third place.  We all get through the final movements and end in 3rd place for the event.  It was brutal but it was over.

We ended the event in 2nd place!  It was a constant fight to get back into the game after the rough start, but we never quit and gave each workout everything we had.  I could not be happier with the team that came down with me, no one ever complained about which WOD's they were in, they just attacked whatever came at them and as a team we conquered.  So very proud to be associated with those people and with Crossfit 610 in General.

The Rx team had a rougher go at it, but still did amazing.  Coming in 6th out of 23 teams.  They were in contention all the way up until the end.  It is really inspiring watching those guys and girls go at it, the speed and intensity they have is contagious and the coaching tips were invaluable.


In ending, it must be said how organized the whole event was.  The judges were great and the facility (Crossfit BWI) was fantastic.  I do wish they gave 2nd and 3rd place scaled teams some recognition or prize, but with only 7 teams, I can understand why only the top scaled team was rewarded.

Had a fantastic weekend!  Can't wait to do it again someday!

Final Standings for Scaled

CrossFit South Arlington 

CrossFit 610 

CrossFit Adaptation 

CrossFit 1st State 

CrossFit Harford 

CrossFit Deleware Valley

Trident CrossFit 

Final Standings for Rx

District CrossFit

CrossFit Old Town

R.A.W Training

Trident CrossFit

CrossFit Lorton

CrossFit 610

CrossFit Williamsburg

CrossFit BWI

CrossFit Athletics

CrossFit 215

CrossFit 324

CrossFit Dupont

CrossFit 1st State

Southern Maryland CrossFit

CrossFit DC

CrossFit Rubicon

CrossFit 757

CrossFit Old Town #2

Push511

CrossFit Athletics #2

South Baltimore CrossFit

PA's Fittest Competition Overview

I now have my second crossfit competition under my belt.  It was a bit of a wild ride to say the least.  Lots of highs and definitely some lows as well, but overall it was a fantastic day.  Here is an overview.

WOD #1: The emergence of Senor Denos

600m Row, 30 ring rows, 30 ring dips

Journalmenu.com was there to take photos!  More on them soon!

I got a little thrown off mentally for this wod, I thought it would be 30 ring dips then into 30 ring rows…nope.  No excuses though, it is what it is so just go out there and try and kill it.

It started well enough on the row, I was averaging about a 1:43 per 500m so I didn’t kill myself and I felt good going to the rings.  Then it started to go downhill…. I did 7 fast at first, then I could only do about 4 at a time.  But I made it through them before most of the people in my heat.  Ring row time.  This is where everything started to go wrong.  My blood was already boiling from how poorly I did on the ring rows but then when I started to do the ring dips one of the rings started to slip lower than the other one.  It would have been ok if it was just a little bit, but during one of my dips, it slipped all the way down causing a no rep.

This is where senor denos came out.  I started cursing…loudly.  I was just angry.  Not at anyone in particular, more than likely I was just angry at myself.  When time expired, I had only completed 23 of the 30 rings dips and continued to curse loudly and walk away.  You see, when senor denos comes out, I get loud…I just don’t care.  Some people have quiet disappointment…not me or him (how do you type when you talk about an alter ego?), I turn into a foul mouthed 5 year old who didn’t get his way.

I want to note here, I’m not saying that I would have completed if the ring didn’t slip. There was no way I was finishing that wod in time whether or not that ring slipped or not. At the time I needed to channel my anger somewhere and the inanimate object seemed the best choice.

I believe I finished at about 15th in this event.  It goes without saying that I did not come close to my goal.

WOD#2 Victory for Senor Denos

Snatch time.  This is the event I was most looking forward to.  The Snatch Ladder.  I felt great warming up for this event.  When my name was called, I easily made it through 85, 95, 105 and 115 ….now time to hit up 125.  My nemesis the past 2 weeks.  I HATED 125!  I was angry again.  But this time, I was angry at the bar. I channeled that anger and I got 125 up…EASILY.  Woah..ok that was unexpected.  Surely I would fail at 135…nope.  Got 135.  I actually slammed the bar down at this point.  At a weight that was introductory to the rx division, I acted like I was Jake getting 245.

Senor Denos didn’t care.  It was a 20lb PR for me.  Ok time for 140, I was on a high, I could lift a house right now.  Boom.  140 was over my head like it was nothing.  SLAM!   I’m the strongest man on earth!    Bring 145 to me so I can make it look like a paper weight.  3-2-1 go!  Oh shit..this just got real.  Failed on my first attempt (I should note that I was close on this).  Second attempt, not even close.  Third attempt…I hit myself in the face with the bar.

Yes, you read that right.  I lifted and slammed my face into the bar.  Ouch.  Instantly I remember that there are 300 people here that just saw that.  Do’h.  I’m the dumbest man in the world!

Regardless I hit a 25lb PR on the lift.

Here I do have to say thank you to Jake for having his oly lift classes.  It was a huge help in preparing me for this.  His help along with some pointers from Mike and lifter Chris were critical in helping me get that weight.  My form is still a train wreck but it is miles ahead of where it was because of you guys.

Goal of 125 lbs was demolished.

WOD #3: “Fran” : Senor Denos Hates that Fran Bitch

I’m not going to go too much into this other than to say I sucked.  Plain and simple.  I was not mentally prepared for this workout.  Once I was done that snatch ladder I got too cocky or optimistic or something and just completely dropped the ball.  I finished with a time of 7:57, a full minute slower than just 3 days ago.  Terrible.  The only bright spot was doing the final 9 pull-ups unbroken (it was nice having Molly and Evan screaming at me…there was no way I was coming off that bar).  

This would be a silver on my original goal list but a non-medal on the new goals list.

Final Standing

In the end, I came in 15th place out of 36 competitors in my division.

I will have much more on this event in the coming days, including how I saw some athletes react to judging, the overwhelming support from those not competing, and a little bit more on senor denos.

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!  

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).

I'm a sissy

One of my many, many goals in crossfit is to go to be able to compete in a competition and do relatively well, meaning that I do all workouts prescribed and I do them to the best of my ability.  So this past Saturday Karen, Dave, and myself decided to head to West Chester for the Lockdown competition.  4 guys and a girl from CrossFit 610 were competing and I wanted to show my support while also judging how far I need to go to be able to do well in a competition.  Here is what I learned.  I am a weak lil sissy and  I have VERY VERY VERY far to go before I’m anywhere near the level some of these gyus are on.  Even the “weakest” competitor would destroy me in every single workout (except for the final WOD, which I think I could do well with, but prolly not after 11 other WODS). 

Dennis is on the leftand all the competitors are on the right.

It was very awesome to watch though, I wish I could have stayed longer but the group with me wanted to leave (and good thing cause I passed out on the way home).  In the end trainer Mike took away First place!  His wife Molly took second in the women’s competition which is awesome!  The other members of CrossFit 610 also did amazing. 

What do I have to do to get to the competition level?  Well, one of 2 things.  Either be patient and try to get in one next summer when I have reached all my fitness goals or contact Mark McGuire and have him recommend me a doctor so I can be there in like October.  Considering that I like the size of my balls and I don’t feel like buying a bunch of new hats, I think I’ll go the natural route.  

What I am going to do though is more than just the one WOD a day.  I need to work harder and do a hell of a lot more than I am so I can get my cardio and strength up to par.  Two a days have to start happening and I also have to start getting on the rower after each and every workout.   I am starting to want more than just to be fit, I want to be a competitor.  

Only 2 weeks left of the best fit of your life Challenge!

Friday WOD:  3 rounds of 50 double unders, 20 KB swings

I tried to do 2 pood but it was just too much.  My grip is nowhere near where it needs to be.  I also really need to continue practicing my double unders.  Completed in 14:10 which is just pitiful.  

Saturday WOD:  7 muscle ups (7 ring dips, 7 ring rows), 21 SDLHP (Sumo Dead Lift High Pull)  14:49  

I felt great during this workout and really busted my ass to finish before 15 min.  I did a purple band for the ring dips which I'm a little embarrassed about since I think I can do them without it.