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January 18, 2013
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Straight forward class. I like the Level 2 classes best when there is a strong focus on form and technique. Last night we did squat cleans and strict pull ups. Skill Squat cleans: in sets of 3s we worked up to as heavy as we felt like, with good form. I felt really good last night so decided to go for a new 1RM. Quickly worked my way up to 62.5kg, my previous max, and realised it felt easy. Ended at 75kg which I did once and then failed twice in a row. But one is enough right?! Although I failed the two following attempts the one I did get felt really solid. Need to practice precision though, I place the bar a bit too far down on my shoulders a little too often, making me lose balance and forcing me to drop the bar. Strength Pull ups, strict: 5x3 reps with a minute rest between each. Think about keeping the body in the hollow position, no flopping the legs around. WOD 10 minutes AMRAP of:7 push ups7 power cleans (42.5kg) Did 7 rounds and 11 reps (but did the last three power cleans on over time completing 8 rounds). Push ups: got this through with good speed, no problem doing 7 quick ones, chest to floor, every round. Phil told me I need to extend my arms a bit more in the top position though. Power cleans: no problem with these either, but they take so long! I need to spend a couple of seconds putting the bar down and resetting every time. Need to think about how I can speed that cycle time up. Good workout. After, for those who didn’t get to 8 rounds, Kat have us a bonus of 90 seconds hanging basket. Knees up!

Straight forward class. I like the Level 2 classes best when there is a strong focus on form and technique.

Last night we did squat cleans and strict pull ups.

Skill

Squat cleans: in sets of 3s we worked up to as heavy as we felt like, with good form. I felt really good last night so decided to go for a new 1RM.

Quickly worked my way up to 62.5kg, my previous max, and realised it felt easy. Ended at 75kg which I did once and then failed twice in a row. But one is enough right?!

Although I failed the two following attempts the one I did get felt really solid.

Need to practice precision though, I place the bar a bit too far down on my shoulders a little too often, making me lose balance and forcing me to drop the bar.

Strength

Pull ups, strict: 5x3 reps with a minute rest between each.

Think about keeping the body in the hollow position, no flopping the legs around.

WOD

10 minutes AMRAP of:
7 push ups
7 power cleans (42.5kg)

Did 7 rounds and 11 reps (but did the last three power cleans on over time completing 8 rounds).

Push ups: got this through with good speed, no problem doing 7 quick ones, chest to floor, every round. Phil told me I need to extend my arms a bit more in the top position though.

Power cleans: no problem with these either, but they take so long! I need to spend a couple of seconds putting the bar down and resetting every time. Need to think about how I can speed that cycle time up.

Good workout. After, for those who didn’t get to 8 rounds, Kat have us a bonus of 90 seconds hanging basket. Knees up!

Tags: crossfit WOD London PB 1RM progress

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August 01, 2012
1 note

CrossFit Session: crap calf, shot again

It’s open season on calves, it seems. Just as I thought the pain in my right calf was going away, I busted it open again.

Did DUs as usual before class, felt good. Got some really useful tips from Phil (get a tighter move by striving to make elbows almost brush my sides) and started another set when something snapped in my calf. Sigh. Back to no running, no jumping.

Phil also said foam rolling, and spot massage with a tennis ball. And to place the tennis ball right inside the knee joint, push calf and thigh together tightly and make rolling motions with the foot.

Skill

Rowing practice. It’s all about keeping the chain straight. Start with shins perpendicular to floor, back straight, arms straight.

Legs and hips work to push out, then a slight bend backwards in the hips, pull arms. Back remains straight for the whole move. Extend arms, handle following the thighs, when it reaches the knees bend slightly forwards, then bend legs back to where shin is perpendicular to floor.

Lather, rinse, repeat.

Warmup

Two sets of light front squats.

Strength

Finding 3RM for front squat, working up through 5 sets of 4 reps.

Ended on 65kg.

TABATA 8 sets of ring dips. Did first set strict, then the red band throughout. Did a total of 23 dips.

WOD

“Heavy Jackie”

For time:
1,000m row
50 push press (60% 1RM, 25kg)
30 pull ups (blue band…)

Finished, painfully and with excellent cheering help from Helen who finished first, on 15:41. Did the pull ups in 2s and 3s after the first 10…

Helen finished in astonishing 10:38, Debbie not long after. Awesome.

Tags: crossfit WOD training Jackie row rowing pull ups injury 3RM 1RM progress PB goal push press front squat ring dips

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June 23, 2012
1 note

CrossFit Session

Warmup on my own before class, DUs (getting them now!), PVC squat moves, OHS with 15kg bar.

Today skill/strength was of our own choice, with Colin advising.

Skill

Kipping pull ups. Starting to get them. Colin helped me break the move down in parts.

Told me to stand on a box and practice pushing back and away from the bar coming down, by first jumping up so the bar touched my chest. That’s apparently the part that most get wrong and thus fail to get the momentum and rhythm going.

Towards the end of the first 15 minutes I actually almost had my chin up over the bar after jumping up, pushing back and away, swinging forwards and then back to pull up again.

Will nail one next time!

Strength

Spent the next 10-15 minutes doing deadlifts.

New 1RM PB: 110kg!

WOD

7! (Pronounced with a shout, SEVEN!!!)

7 rounds of 7 each of:
Jumping ski lunges
Sit ups
Tuck jumps
Press ups
Jumping squats
Pistols (sitting on yellow box)
Burpees

Cut off at 20 minutes.

I was well under way to finish ahead of cut off, but as I did my last set of jumping lunges something snapped in my left hip. Felt like someone threw a golf ball at me.

No intense pain, but a grinding ache, didn’t want to continue and make it worse.

Colin said to leave it for now, as there is no intense pain, but stay mobile. If not better by Monday, see a doctor/GP.

Will limp home now. Still happy, I almost did a kipping pull up and set a new best deadlift! 110kg! Woot!

Tags: 1RM PB crossfit deadlifts double unders exercise jumping lunges kipping personal progress pistols pull ups training injury fucking hard

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June 21, 2012

CrossFit Session

Kat has the worst sessions. I mean that in the best possible way. Hard!

Warmup

TABATA of DUs, 8 rounds (20 secs on, 10 rest).

Strength

Finding squat clean 1RM. My 1RM is 75kg. Need to get that up to 85kg as next goal.

When I do squat cleans I really feel it in my right wrist. Old injury acting up, and after a session it goes really stiff. Stretching?

WOD

In classic Kat style, a BOGOF…

First AMRAP for 7 minutes of:
5 push ups
7 KB swings
9 ring dips (used 2 red bands)

Rest 1 minute. I managed 4 rounds and up to 3 KB swings.

Then every minute on the minute for 10 minutes:
3 squat cleans 70% 1RM (50kg)
7 box jumps (green box)

That second drill I really couldn’t keep up. Had to skip two minutes in the middle and rest. So hard.

In fact, felt so much harder than usual, and after we were done I realised why. I never used a green box before, I always use the lower blue ones! Duh.

Well, from here on it’s the green box then.

Tags: DUs KB swings WOD box jumps crossfit double unders exercise kettlebell push ups ring dips squat cleans training 1RM progress Personal Best Personal progress goal PB

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April 15, 2012

Personal bests and goals

So I don’t have to keep saying the slightly embarrassing “I don’t remember…” every time an instructor asks me what my personal best is on whatever.

I’ll just keep editing this post when I set / reach a new goal / level.

Brain Goals 2013

-

Fitness Goals 2013

Develop a decent snatch technique! Heels down, butt out!

50 burpees in 3:00…

Proper barefoot running technique.

Knowing by heart the full Beijing 24 step yang style short form.

Cardio

Row 1 mile: 6:39

Run 1 mile: 7:53 (treadmill)

CrossFit Total (explanation and rules)

Latest: 238 (scaled, KB snatch instead of press due to shoulder injury)

1RMs (sometimes 3 RMs)

Back squat: 90kg

Front Squat: 70kg

Strict Press: 40kg

Push Press: 45kg

Snatch (Squat/Power/Split): 40kg/45kg/47.5kg

Clean (Squat/Power): 62.5kg/50kg

Clean & Jerk (Push/Split): 50kg/55kg

OHS: 45kg

Deadlift: 120kg

Weighted pull up: 0kg

Turkish get-ups: 22kg right, 20 kg left dumbbell; 15kg barbell

KB Snatch: 28kg (right arm)

Max unbroken reps

Max height box jump: Green + 2x20kg plates + 2x10kg + 2x5kg

Pistols: 6 right / 4 left (on box)

Ring dips: 3

Push ups: 23

HSPU: 0

Pull ups (all strict): 6

Kipping pull ups: 5 really ugly ones

Double unders: 49

Toes to bar: 15

Muscle up: 0

WODs and other assorted stuff

100 double unders for time: 3:26

50 burpees for time: -

Fran: 12:35 (previous: didn’t finish under 15)

Cindy: 7 rounds on 10 minutes

Grace:

Elizabeth:

Chelsea: 23, scaled (latest)

Annie: 09:56 (latest)

Wilmot: 16:44 (4 rounds only, latest)

Fight Gone Bad:

Filthy Fifty, strategy: 43:18 (previous: 55 mins)

Jelly Legs (Colin’s favourite): 327 reps

Dallas push up test: 3:42 (latest)

12 Days of Christmas: 41:59

Bop til you drop: 91 reps (then 15 burpees buyout)

Tags: 1RM PB Personal progress goal RX crossfit 3RM progress performance records goals log

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March 26, 2012
1 note

CrossFit session

When Andrew says that the Mondays at CrossFit London are as good or as bad as your weekend was he isn’t joking.

If you’ve been good you’ll leave energised and bouncy, if you’ve been bad you will leave with what you had for lunch on your shirt.

Warmup

Air squat exercises, samson stretches, some burpees and kettlebell swings.

Then a playful WOD which obviously wasn’t today’s real WOD.

For time:
21-21 kb swings - burpees
15-15
9-9

I didn’t finish my final 9 burpees, and then we moved on to setting up for a deadlift based WOD.

In pairs, I with Debrah, we worked ourselves up to 1 RM, and then were supposed to go down to 1.25 times our body weight for the WOD.

While Debrah hit that, weighing in at considerably less than my chubby self, I found my 1 RM at 85kg. Went down to 70 for the WOD.

WOD

Jones Crawl! For time, 3 rounds of:
10 deadlifts (70kg)
25 box jumps

Killed myself and clocked in at 07:06. I’m happy with that!

Tags: crossfit training WOD deadlifts 1RM box jumps kettlebells burpees jones crawl