9/29/11

Today was a decent session in the gym. Ended up looking like this:

Hang Power Clean 3 x 5 @ 70% - 175 lbs. - These weren't too bad, much easier than the hang power snatches on Monday.

Clean Pulls 3 x 3 @ 95% - 240 lbs

Clean Grip Dead-lift 3 x 2 @ 100% + 10 kg - 273 lbs

Behind the Neck Jerk - Heavy Single - Singles: 225, 245 (8 lb PR) - The 245 may have been a little questionable with the lockout, there may have been a slight pressing, but I'm counting it.

Rest 10 minutes then for time....

400m Run then...

6 Rounds of:

6 x #185 Front Squat

12 Pull-ups

18 Medicine Ball Sit-ups #20

then...

400m Run

Total time: 17.05. Solid metcon. The squats got heavy. I got all the reps of all movements unbroken. Although I did take some breaks between exercises, not for long though. I probably could not have gone much faster had I been more fresh. Good day, looking forward to tomorrow and some heavy-ish overhead squats.

9/28/11

Complete and much needed rest. Slept and ate a lot.

9/27/2011

Today was a good heavy day. I ate a lot yesterday in hopes of recovering, it seems to have helped. I felt decent in the gym today. I really need to work on knees from going inward on squats. I'm setting a lot of PRs, but my knees tend to buckle inward a bit, they did today quite a bit on my last heavy sets. I'm going to add in some accessory work in attempt to combat this muscle imbalance.

Front Squat - Heavy Single - 305 lb. 15 lb PR. This was heavy, I was going to go for 315, but 305 felt very challenging. Take 90% of that single for a double (275 lb). Then take 85% of the single for 3 triples (260 lb). The three triples at 260 were by far the hardest part of today. I had never gone that heavy for a triple before. My form deteriorated toward the end of this; I'm a little upset about this, but overall happy with my PR.

Rest 10 minutes then with a 315# bar...

AMRAP 4 minutes:

3 Dead-lifts

6 Toes to Bar

Rest 2 minutes...

AMRAP 5 minutes:

3 Dead-lifts

6 Toes to Bar

9 Push-ups

Rest 2 minutes...

AMRAP 6 minutes:

3 Dead-lifts

6 Toes to Bar

9 Push-ups

12 Dumbbell Push-Press

The workout was for total lbs lifted on the dead-lift. I got 48 reps total, so it was 15,120 lbs lifted. Overall a solid workout. The dead-lifts were not too bad, I feel comfortable handling 315 for reps these days. I really liked the workout today. Glad I set a PR and went heavy on the wod (most people did 225-275 range). Eating a lot and this lifting program are doing my lifts wonders. I just need my knee/leg imbalance to catch up so I can keep squatting safely.

9/26/2011

I didn't eat enough calories yesterday and ingested about 6-8 alcoholic drinks yesterday evening. Considering this I didn't exactly feel great today. I felt good on the lifting, but kind of dragged on the metcon. My shoulders and traps are not feeling too great, that max snatch and the 30 x 155 overhead yesterday was taxing. Because I didn't eat enough, I did look a little extra lean today which was cool, but right now I'd rather be performing my best than looking a little leaner. I was happy I nailed 185 x 5 on push-press though, I don't think I've ever gone that heavy before. Anyway, today looked like this:

Hang Power Snatch 3 x 5 @ 70% (115 lb) - I was going to go off of my 185 PR yesterday, but 3 hang power snatches at 135 was too much, so I took the weight down. I don't know how much my 1 rep power snatch is, I'd be interested to find out soon, both hang and from the floor.

Snatch Pulls - 3 x 2 @ 100% (185 lb)

Snatch Grip Dead-lift - 3 x 2 @ 100% + 10kg (207 lb)

Push-Press 5,5,5 - 165,175, 185 - 185 x 5 was a 5 rep PR. This felt heavy-ish, but manageable.

Rest 10 minutes then...

4 Rounds for time:

35 Squats

15 Burpees

20 KB Swings - 53#

25 Box Jumps - 24"

30 Double-unders

My time: 17.15. I did this workout with a guy that went to regionals last year. He beat me by about 2 minutes. I definitely did not feel great, but I'm glad I got in the gym and got the work done. I'm super excited for squats tomorrow!

9/25/2011

Today was so awesome. I said last Wednesday was the best session I've had in the gym, but today was just as good. I got a body weight snatch, a 30 lb PR. It went up easy and felt good. I probably could have gone heavier. I will be soon! Today looked like this:

Snatch - Max for the day - Singles: 155, 165, 175, 185. - I nailed 165 like it was nothing. I missed 175 three times before getting it easy. I then went to 185, my body weight, and missed it twice. On the third time I got under it and nailed it easy. It didn't feel that heavy, I just wasn't receiving the bar in the right spot. I almost put on 190, but due to time constraints left it 185. I will soon PR again. I was so happy about this. All this time in the gym and technique work is paying off. Can't wait for a 200 lb snatch!

Rest 10 minutes then for time....

3 Rounds:

10 Power Clean and Jerk @ 155#

15 Toes to Bar

20 Burpee Box Jumps 24"

800m Run

My time: 25.15. This was the fastest time of the day. I beat two decent athletes by about a minute. After the snatches the jerks were rough, but manageable. Today was overall a great session in the gym. I guess the extra rest really helped. I love to PR and lift heavy. Great day, excited for tomorrow.

9/24/11

I've been super busy between school and work. I had a ton of obligations toward the end of this week and had to shift some of my workouts around. I wasn't planning on taking 2 days off, but it worked out. My body needed the rest. I feel pretty good, I've really upped my calories and it's helping. I'm setting a lot of PRs and feeling good in the gym. I had school obligations all this morning and I couldn't get into the gym before it closed. So I decided to go for a run to a pull-up bar and get some activity in. It wasn't crazy, but a little more intense than active recovery. It ended up looking like this:

23:30 Run to a pull-up bar

Dead-hang Pull-up Pyramid - 7,6,5...1..5,6,7 - 7 Push-ups after every set of pull-ups

18:00 Run back

After the push/pull I messed around with the bar attempting bar muscle-ups and 'college-boy rolls.' I made a lot of progress on the bar muscle-up. I almost got a rep, I need a little coaching on it. The runs felt surprisingly good. There were rolling hills the entire time and I felt light on my feet. Overall a good day, it's nice to get a longer run in from time to time. I've really come full circle with my running. In the past running had been the base of my fitness. I considered how fit I was off my running times. Now, running to me is merely a skill like double-unders. It is something I need to be efficient and good at, but it is not a supreme measure of my fitness. It's still fun to get lost in my own head on a long run or have a great conversation with someone on a run, but I definitely view my relationship to running much differently than I have in the past.

Closer to regionals I will definitely ramp up my running and rowing, but for now it's all about strength.

9/22/11 & 9/23/11

Complete rest.

9/21/2011

Today was the best time I've had in the gym in a long time. I felt great and ended up setting two PRs. My hands and shins are getting quite bloody from all this lifting, but I love it. Anyway, today looked like this:

1. 2 Position Clean: Work up to 75% (198 lb) x2 (floor, mid-thigh) x 5 sets
2. Clean Pulls: 100%+10 kgx3x2 (284 lb)
3. Clean-Grip Dead-lifts: 100%+10 kgx3x2 (284 lb)
4. Rack Jerks behind neck: Heavy Single - Worked up to 237 lb. This was a 17 lb PR for me. I was really happy about this. I did some technique work prior to going heavier and it really helped. I video taped all my reps and really worked on correcting the form. I know I've got more in me and I'm excited to go heavier soon.

Dead-lift: Heavy Double - Doubles: 396, 418. I felt so great on the doubles that I decided to go for a new single. I set a 25 lb PR by nailing 440 lbs. This was a big break through for me, my dead-lift was more stagnant than my other lifts at going up. I'm glad I nailed this. Today was such a great session, I feel great.

Rest 10 minutes then....

For time:

21/15/9 - Renegade Rows (2 x 30#)

42/30/18 - Box Jumps (24")

400m,600m,800m Run

-Time: 14.05. All the rounds and reps corresponded, i.e. 21-42-400 = 1 round. This was a nice and fast metcon. I felt pretty good despite the long lifting session beforehand. Today was the best day I've had in the gym in a long time. I love lifting heavy and setting PRs.

9/20/11

Today was a great strength session. I was happy with another PR.

-1 Rep Max Chest to Bar Pull-up: Scored 78 lbs. I also went for 98 lb for a regular pull-up afterward, almost got my chin over the bar, but couldn't. I have not done these in a while, looking forward to getting some more lbs on my weighted pull-up in the near future.

Back Squat - Heavy Single, then 90% of that single x2. Then 85% of the single x 3 x 3.

Heavy Single: 363 (7 lb PR)

90% x 2: 328

80% x 3 x 3: 308

Front Squat - Heavy Single, then 85% of that single x 3 x 5.

Heavy Single: 284 lb

85% x 3 x 5: 241 lb

Rest 15 minutes then...

5 Rounds for time:

35 Double-unders

200m Run

Time: 6.22. Complete sprint, want to do this again fresh. The runs and DUs after the squatting was rough. Overall a great day, excited for tomorrow.

9/19/2011

It felt great to get back into the gym after a disappointing FGB score this weekend. I hit it hard today, it felt good.

Bench Press - 3 x 5 @ 165 lb - 20 push-up chaser after each set (rack the bar, drop to the deck, immediately do 20 push-ups, ideally unbroken. I got the first 2 sets unbroken, couldn't get the third one, did 10/5/5.)

2 Position Snatch @ 75% (128 lb) - Floor, Below the Knee 2 x 5.

Snatch Grip Dead-lift @ 100% (175 lb) - 2 x 3

Snatch Pulls @ 100% (175 lb) - 2 x 3

Snatch Grip Push-Press 5-5-5 - 155,175,185 - these felt hard, the last set was brutal, a 5 rep PR.

Rest 5 minutes then:

With a 25 lb vest, 20 minute AMRAP:

Knees to Elbows

Burpees

Lunges (r/l = 1 rep)

Start the first round with 1 rep of each, 2nd with 2 reps, 3rd with 3 reps etc...

I scored 13 rounds and 13 knees to elbows. The burpees were by far the worst part of this workout. I didn't have anybody to compare my score to, no one else had worn a vest yet today. Overall a solid workout, excited for tomorrow and heavy squats.

9/18/2011

Complete Rest

9/17/2011

Fight Gone Bad 6.

I was supposed to go in a heat at noon. I ate about 9:15 am. I ended up not going until closer til 2 pm. This long absence of food made me feel like I had nothing in my gas tank. I was really looking to score 400+ reps, ended up only getting 362. This was very frustrating. I didn't feel recovered. I think 'Mary' took a lot more out of me than I thought it would. I gassed out pretty hard on the last round. I want to do this workout again, soon. I'll break 400 if fully recovered.

Today was rough on me mentally, but tomorrow is another day. I'm excited to hit it hard on Monday.

9/16/2011

Complete rest.

9/15/2011

Today was VERY different. Today was the first time I've ever done WOD then lifted. I took about a 10 minute break between the WOD and the lifting, but I still felt crappy on the lifting in comparison to doing it fresh. This is the first and last time I'll be doing my WOD first. Despite how I crappy I felt I set a PR. Anyway, today looked like this:

'Mary'

AMRAP 20 minutes:

5 HSPU

10 Pistols (alternating legs)

15 Pull-ups

Score: 8 Rounds and 4 HSPU. I got all my pull-ups unbroken. And the pistols went really fast as well. I got the first 5 sets of HSPU unbroken, then it was 3/2 until the last round when it was 3/1... time. Overall a solid performance, I'd like to do this again once I've got kipping HSPUs down. All my reps today were strict.

Rest 10 minutes then...

3 Position Clean @ 65% (177 lb) - Floor, Below Knee, High Hang -3 reps x 5 sets

Clean Pulls @ 100% (260 lb) x 3 x 2

Clean Grip Dead-lift @ 100% (260 lb) x 3 x 2

Behind the Neck Jerk - Heavy Single - Worked up to 220 lb. This was technically a PR, but my form on this movement is not perfect. I basically pressed the bar instead of getting under it. I have a long way to go on the jerk, front and behind. I've come a long way, but there is definitely still a lot of room for improvement. I'm going to video tape these next time to get some feedback on them.

Overall a solid session in the gym, despite the fact it was out of order.

9/14/2011

Complete rest.

9/13/2011

AM Session

Back Squat - Heavy Single, then 90% of that single x2. Then 85% of the single x 3 x 3.

Heavy Single: 356 (4 lb PR)

90% x 2: 320

85% x 3 x 3: 300

Front Squat - Heavy Single, then 85% of that single x 3 x 5.

Heavy Single: 275 lb

80% x 3 x 5: 220 lb

-These squats took a while. They felt good, I was happy with my PR. I was so taxed after this lifting session I decided to break up my lifting session and metcon.

PM Session (6+ hours after AM session)

Metcon, for time:

50/40/30/20/10 Squats

After every round of squats:

10 Dead-lifts (255#)

15 Ring Push-ups

My time was 9.23. The ring push-ups were surprisingly the hardest part. All the dead-lifts and squats were unbroken. I had to do a really long warm-up after this morning's strength session. I was very tight; particularly in my hips. I also took a two hour nap today between workouts, something I don't usually do. Today was great.

9/12/11

Today was the first day of the 11 week strength program I've written and started. It's a modification of workouts put out by Mike Burgener. It should be a solid plan, I'm excited to get some heavier weights over my head. Already set a PR of sorts today! (5 rep snatch grip push-press? technically a PR?). Anyway, today was a great strength session, not too taxing and a very taxing WOD.

Strength:

- Bench Press – 3 x 3 @ 177 lb (these were light, I'm still sore in my chest from last week)
1. 3 Position Snatch: Work up to 65%x3 (floor, mid-thing, high hang) x 5 sets @ 115 lb
2. Snatch Pulls: 90%x3x2 (160 lb)
3. Snatch-Grip Deadlift: 90%x3x2 (160 lb)
4. Snatch-Grip Push-Press: 5, 5, 5 - 135, 155, 175 (this was heavier than I've ever gone, felt good)

Metcon:

9 Rounds for time:

12 Over-bar Burpees (not facing, parallel)

8 Overhead Squats (95#)

2 Muscle-ups

29 Double-unders

My time was 24:45. This is a competitive time. I didn't feel too great, but I don't think there is anyway to feel good on this WOD, it was just tough. Overall a great session in the gym. Excited for tomorrow.

9/11/11

Much needed complete rest.

9/10/11

I wanted to get in a heavier metcon today, but no specific lifting considering the 11 week lifting program starting on Monday. I altered a metcon the gym posted as today's WOD; throwing in a heavy movement. It looked like this:

For time:

50/40/30/20/10

Box Jumps 24"

Squats

After each round:

6 x 175 lb Hang Power Clean

200m Run

My time was just a few seconds over 17 minutes. Good workout, I felt decent. The 175 got heavy toward the end, but I got all the sets of HPC unbroken. Good day, excited for a day of rest and for heavy lifting on Monday.

9/9/11

I was really sore in my upper body today. After a thorough warm-up I got in a metcon. I didn't go 100% on anything, more of active recovery. Overall a good day, excited for tomorrow.

80 Lunge Steps

30 Knees-to-Elbows

20 Thrusters (95#)

50 Double-unders

400m Sandbag Run (40#)

50 Double-unders

20 Sumo-deadlift High Pulls (95#)

30 Toes-to-Bar

800m Run

My time: A little over 17 minutes. I wasn't going balls out on this workout. I probably could have gone a bit faster, but today was active recovery. I can't remember the last time I did a thruster with 95 lbs. It felt like almost nothing.

9/8/11

I was sore in my traps, shoulders and triceps today. I haven't been this sore in a while. Today was a good session in the gym, although overall discouraging because it was basically a bunch of movements I'm bad at (bench press and HSPU). It's good and humbling to do poorly at things. Definitely motivates me to work harder and focus. Anyway, today looked like this:

Bench Press 5,4,3,1,1 - 177,177,185,198,198 (my bench press is awful and after yesterday I didn't feel too hot today. I'm glad my left pec didn't hurt at all from today. I haven't benched in two months because I tweaked it so bad this summer. I'm looking forward to putting some more weight up on bench press in the coming weeks.)

'Diane'

For time:
21-15-9
225 lb Dead-lift
Handstand Push-ups

My time was right under 14 minutes. This is not fast. Looking over my records I have not even timed this workout before. The dead-lifts were all unbroken and extremely fast. I got 10 HSPU right away, by the last set I was doing them as singles. I really need to work on kipping my HSPU and HSPUs in general. This was discouraging. I've set a new goal to do 'Diane' in under 5 minutes.

Rest 10 minutes then....

10 Minute AMRAP:

10 Toes-to-Bar
20 Wall-Balls

Score: 7 Rounds (210 reps) - This was a good amrap. Really felt it in my core and shoulders. Excited for tomorrow.

9/7/2011

After 3 days off I was definitely recovered. I felt good today. I did something a little different today. It ended up being an interesting session in the gym.

For time:

'Franimal'

With a 25 lb vest:
21/15/9
Bodyweight Thrusters (185#)
Chest-to-Bar Pull-ups

32.30. The hardest workout I've done in a while. Give it a try. The thrusters were difficult. The most I got unbroken was 3. I did most of them in 2s and 3s. The last set of 9 was completely in singles. The pull-ups were extremely easy in comparison. I'm glad I finished, there is a 40 minute cap on the workout. Overall a good session. Definitely differant than usual. I'm starting a 11 week program starting Monday. I'm super excited about it.

9/4, 9/5 & 9/6

Complete rest. I was only going to take 2 days off. Ended up taking 3 because I felt I needed it. I'm starting a new 11 week strength program on Monday and I want to give my body some rest prior to the program.

9/3/11

Rack Jerk, front with split - Heavy Single - got up to 205, missed 225 twice. My shoulders are fried from a lot of overhead during WODs. I'm pretty upset I missed 225, but some days are just not good days.

Metcon:

10 Minute AMRAP:

60 Bar-facing Burpees

30 OH Squats (120#)

10 Muscle-ups

Score: 107 reps (1 round and 7 burpees) - This is much better than I did during the open. I could not get a single muscle-up during that time (last April). I'm happy about my score this time, it's nice to see some legit progress. I finished the burpees in 4.15, the OH squats 10/10/10 in 7.15. Overall a great effort, I can tell I need rest, going to take two days off.

9/2/2011

Snatch - work up to 135, then 1 Squat Snatch EMOM for 10 minutes - 135#

Front Squat - Heavy Doubles - 275, 285#

Conditioning, for time:

30 Calorie Row

30 Knee to Elbow, Toe to Bar (essentially 60 reps, alternating exercises)

30 KB Swings 72#

30 Renegade Row 40#

30 OH Plate Lunges 55#

30 Burpees

My time was 14.30ish. The weights were pretty heavy on this workout and the knee to elbow/toes to bar were wicked. Great conditioning. The OH plate lunges with the 25 kg plate was a new challenge, it felt much heavier than just 10 lbs. Overall a good session in the gym.

9/1/2011

10,9,8....1 - Thrusters, 135#

10,12,14,16,18,20,22,24,26,28 - Box Jumps 24"

The rounds corresponded. The thrusters weren't too bad. The box jumps ended up being a lot more difficult than I thought they were going to be. My time was 14.20, fastest of the day.

8/31/2011

Complete rest.

8/30/2011

Dead-lift - Heavy Single - Worked up to 415 lb. This was a PR. It went up easy, I probably could have gone for more. I'll PR again in the near future.

Conditioning:

21/15/9

155 Power Clean and Jerk

Burpees

50 Double-unders after each round

400m Run after each round

This was an extremely difficult workout. One of the hardest I've done in a while. I put out a huge effort, this was hard.