25/02/09

3.5km Run

Time:

Squat Tabata: 14
Push-up (45 up) Tabata: 3
Sit-up Tabata: 9

24/02/09

Another Girl

21-15-9:
Push press, 40kg (25kg)
Ring pull-ups

(20kg press, orange pull-ups)

Time: 5:27

Need to concentrate more on midline stabilisation through my workouts. I'm leaning back too much in the push press...and the issue is showing up in a lot of other movements as well. Kettle bell swings, for example.

This went over pretty easy. If you look at my heart rate profile, you'll notice a nice even rate around 175. However, I don't feel this is high enough, particulaly for a workout like this. I'm yet unsure as to where the blame for this lies - in my current level of fitness, or in the degree to which I'm pushing myself.

20/02/09

Angie tonight. So now, from having done none of the benchmark workouts I get two in one week.

Given the state of my pull-ups and push-ups the first half of this one scares me, and I look forward to that last push-up. While the sit-ups should be fine, my abs ache all over after Annie on Wednesday.

And so...

Angie:

For time:

*100 pull-ups
*100 push-ups
*100 sit-ups
*100 squats

(Pull-ups with orange & yellow bands, push-ups on knees, sit-ups with feet pinned & abmat)

Time: 28:15

I was quite happy with the pull-ups. I think I can probably drop one of the bands - yellow perhaps. My kipping is getting better, and once I can start stringing my reps together I should see faster improvement.

The push-ups sucked. Even on my knees, I find it difficult to knock these out. The biggest problem is pushing out from the bottom. This is also the issue I have with ring-dips. It may be the same strength deficiency that is holding me back with both these.

18/02/09

Annie:

50-40-30-20-10 of:

*Double Unders
*Sit-Ups

(Sit-ups with legs straight out, heels together, toes pointed upwards)

Time: 8:45

A blow-out on my last Annie time (5:55), which I was able to do with my feet pinned. Slower and harder to do it this way.

I'd awaited this workout in eager anticipation...to much I think, because I missed way too many of the double unders. Too much thinking. At one point, I was actually having trouble working out if the rope was moving under me twice or just once.

17/02/09

7 rounds for time:

*10 x SDHP @ 24kg
*10 x ring dips

(Ring dips spotted with red band)

Time: 14:--

Another 6am session - I've enjoyed them both very much, and may try to make a habit of attending them.

At Bjorn's insistance, this was done as Rx'd.

I was able to move the weight well enough. I'd have done much better if I could make a consistant habit out of driving my hips harder. I noticed this a bit yesterday, also, where I wasn't hitting full extension at the top of the deadlift.

As a result of the loss of power through this slip in form, I missed lifting the bar as high as I ought to on several lifts toward the end of the later sets.

Arm strength still has a way to go, but the red band makes ring dips sufficiently difficult. Despite three attempts, I didn't really manage to acheive my final rep in the dips.

16/02/09

Diane

21-15-9:

* Deadlift, 100kg
* Handstand Push-up

(Deadlifts @ 80kg; pike handstand push-ups...of the bar first, then with knees on tallest box for last 5 or so)

Time: 7:38

Tried the 100kg in warm-up - too much. Might have been able to do it but felt good about the speed with which I was able to move through this.

My deadlift form went a bit toward the end of the second set - just need to make sure I reset at the end of every lift. It's the negative phase that gets me, and it's perhaps better to drop it at the top rather than decent with an outward curve in my back.

The handstand subs, too - need to watch my form and keep my hips high.

13/02/09

21-15-9:

*KB swings @ 24kg
*Burpies

Time: 6:49

Not a fantastic effort, but was able to push well to the end thanks to some shouting from Zane.

Whenever we work with 24kg kettle bells, there is a bit of a scramble to get one of the few there are of that weight. I got one this time, but in future will grab something lighter.

I think that my desire to do workouts as Rx'd is limiting my progress, rather than encouraging it. The bar set by the weight prescriptions for the average CrossFit workout is, I suggest, quite high. Indeed, the modality aims for the development of elite fitness and thus the average workout will not be for the average individual.

Now, while I have made good progress since beginning with CrossFit, I still have a long long way to go. I can't do more than 3 kipping pull-ups in a row, my max-reps for push-ups is somewhere around 20, and and attempts after that drop to around 10. And in this workout, I really struggled with the weight of the bell. Not struggled to do it, but struggled to maintain intensity and form - and I believe that more benefit it to be derived from these than from simply moving heavier weights.

Unless I'm mistaken, metabolic conditioning depends on intensity - feelings of gasping breathlessness, lactic acid burn, and being close to hurling are what we're aiming for. But I find that in most situations, doing workouts at Rx prevents me from acheiving such a state, and I'm sure this is a block to my progress.

This is to say nothing of the injury risk associated with poor form, and there is nothing I would hate more right now than to have to take time off training.

11/02/09

Power clean: 1-1-1-1-1-1-1

40-50-60-65 (pretty rough)-67.5x-67.5x


4 workouts in a row, and walked into this workout feeling really good. Great to be back to workouts/propper diet; can really feel everything coming back online.

10/02/09

Cindy

AMRAP in 20 mins:

*5 pull-ups
*10 push-ups
*15 squats

Rounds: 13

Far from great. Pull-ups still let me down: they are mostly knocked out as singles and really slow me down. I'm not sure if it's better (from a development perspective) to do them propperly but interupted or assisted and continuous.

Push-ups, too. These were all done on my knees, excepting a couple early in the workout.

Really need to keep score of these AMRAP workouts during them. Honestly, I think 13 might be a bit generous...there may be an extra two rounds that came out of nowhere. But I'm going to stick with 13...this is what I posted at the gym, and also on the main site.

First main site workout that I've done, also first morning sessions (6am).

09/02/09

AMRAP in 10 mins:

*10 kb swings (24kg)
*10 burpees

5 rounds.

Then...

Tabata bottom to bottom squats.

Lowest Reps: 8


Good to get back into the swing, though effort during the main workout wasn't very impressive. Too many breaks druing the burpees, and not enough intensity during the swings. That said, at least the swings were in unbroken rounds (it's easier to push, than to build up to a full swing). Bad technique, though...the bell dragging me around too much.

08/02/09

Four rounds for time:

*400m run
*2 min rest

Can't figure out my watch...not sure of total time. May have been around 15:20, but not sure if that included the warm up.

So - it didn't stop when it should have. Have barely felt able to walk around last couple of weeks.

Got some good rest today, stocked up on good food, and pushed myself around a track...may have broken the back of the party momentum.

Intend to be at the gym tomorrow evening, so we'll see.