3/31/14

I'm for sure on my gym's Regional team, but I had to give 14.5 another go for my own reasons. I just wanted to push myself to my limits and improve over my last effort. My triceps/chest/shoulder/posterior chain were all smoked from Saturday. I just wanted to go way outside my comfort zone and push myself to that next level though. My goal was to get all the thrusters unbroken (last time 15 was 9/6 and 12 was 6/6). Today I got the 15 unbroken, but dropped the 12 for a 9/3. It just hurt... too much... I was disappointed in myself for breaking this set, but overall I was happy I improved my time by about :30 seconds. I wanted to open up more on the set of 9... but there was just literally nothing there in the tank. I went as hard as I was capable of doing and pushed myself to do something I had never done before; that is what Crossfit is all about for me.

This year's Open was really interesting for me. I have improved my fitness in a lot of ways this year. I have the biggest 'engine' I've ever had and I'm stronger than ever. BUT I'm actually worse at pull-ups and burpees than I have been in years past. I think I just need to get back to the basics of gymnastics and keep my bodyweight closer to 190-195 instead of 200-205.

It was been a good year coming off of Marine Corps OCS. To come back and train as hard and consistently as I have been has been amazing. I plan to keep the intensity and consistency just as high this year and I want to compete at the 2015 Regional individually and score top 48 on all 2015 Open WODs.

I'm pumped to be on such a great team with a lot of talented and hard working people. It will be a fun Regional this year!

3/30/14

Complete rest.

Body is generally smoked. Ate a lot yesterday and today; took a nap both days as well.

3/29/14

Triceps have some DOMS from 14.5? WTF? Anyway, I had a super solid training session with one of my best friends from the gym. The Open is over, I'm on the regionals team at my gym and I'm pumped to train my ass off over the coming months and into the 2015 season. Today was what it's all about, training hard with your friends and having an awesome time pushing yourself.

A.
A1. Death by C2B Pull-ups (20# vest)
-Got through the 12th minute, took off the vest and did one more minute, 13 reps. These are feeling better already.

A2.
3 Sets, rest as needed:
10 Kipping HSPUs, working speed/efficiency
-Complete

B.
Four sets of:
Bench Press x 5 reps
Rest as needed
Dead-lift x 5 reps
Rest as needed

-185# + 365#
-185# + 385#
-190# + 405#
-190# + 415#

-I felt a lot better on the dead-lifts than the bench press. At least benching felt better than it did a few weeks ago.

C.
Complet 3 RFT:
Run 330 Meters
5 Bar Muscle-Ups
20 Kettlebell Swings (32/24kg)
40 Double-Unders

-Clock got jacked during a busy Saturday morning, but it was probably around 10-12 minutes? That is a total guess. It felt good to run, really pushed it and got quality intensity out of this workout; MU were 5 3/1/1 and 3/1/1. Great training session, excited to rest and throw some weights around next week!

3/28/14

Today was pretty fun, I'm excited for the Open to be over. This has been a good Open for me. I hit some strength number PRs during the Open and had consistently the highest finishes I've ever had in an Open (and strangely the worst overall finish I've ever had, but that is largely due to the time domain/cutoff of the second workout). I also felt more calm, confident and less stressed throughout this Open than ever before.

14.5
Complete rounds of 21, 18, 15, 12, 9, 6 and 3 reps for time of:
95/65 lb Thrusters
Bar-Facing Burpees

-12.22.

Splits:

21 (:43) (2:23)
18 (3:20) ( 4:52)
15 (5:45) (7:17)
12 (8:17) (9:34)
9 (10:06) (11:10)
6 (-) (11:39)
3(12:14) (12:22)

-I think the set of 12 burpees took way too long, I would be able to improve there. Also I might have been able to turn on the intensity more during the set of 9 burpees. I started going 100% on the set of 6 thrusters, should have started the burners during the set of 9 burpees.

3/27/14

Complete rest. Body is feeling better than it did yesterday. Pumped to hit it tomorrow, whatever the workout might be.

3/26/14

Solid session this morning. I was tired when I woke up and felt generally smoked. My biceps/forearms are sore from yesterday, which is good. Need to improve those pull-ups badly. Snatching felt okay, back squatting felt good. Pushed it hard on that set of 10. I'm looking forward to some much needed rest tomorrow and to give the last 2014 Open workout my all on Friday.

A.
Three sets, not for time, of:
6 Strict L-Pullups

B.
Five sets of:
3-Position Snatch
(one from the floor, then the mid-hang, then the high hang)
Rest as needed

-135#, 155#, 165#, 175#, 185# (fail - missed the mid-hang snatch, quit the set there)
-Definitely feeling beat up in the shoulders

C.
Back Squat
*Set 1 – 5 reps @ 70% (315#) of 1-RM
*Set 2 – 3 reps @ 80% (350#)
*Set 3 – 1 rep @ 90% (390#)
*Set 4 – 10 reps @ 75-80% (325#-350#) - went with 335# (77%), this is 10# more than I did for the set last week.
Rest 2 minutes between sets

D.
2 Rounds, not for time, of:
25 Banded Air Squat
25 Cal Airdyne (easy)

2 Rounds, not for time, of:
25 Banded Back Squat (45#)
25 Cal Airdyne (easy)

3/25/14

I wasn't sore today, but I felt a little exhausted. Overhead squatting felt absolutely horrible on my shoulders. My elbows can't seem to stay locked out on heavy sets. This is something I really need to work on, it's an embarrassing weakness.

A.
Overhead Squat - 5,5,2,3,3

-135#, 185#, 225#, 225#, 225#
-I was trying to go for sets of five all the way through, right elbow was not having those sets of 225#.

Front Squat
*Set 1 – 5 reps @ 60% (225#) of 1-RM
*Set 2 – 3 reps @ 80% (315#)
*Set 3 – 1 rep @ 90% (345#)
*Set 4 – 5 reps @ 75% (285#)
*Set 5 – 5 reps @ 83% (320#) - 5 RM PR
Rest 2 minutes between sets

-Complete, felt a little tired, this was probably just mental discouragement from how shitty my overhead squatting feels / is generally. Got all the reps solid, was happy to PR.

B.
Five sets of:
3-Position Clean
(one from the floor, then the mid-hang, then the high hang)
Rest as needed

-185#, 205#, 225#, 245#, 255# - I think this is technically a PR? Didn't feel too tough though, more there.

C.
Complete as many reps as possible in 7 minutes following the rep scheme below:
Thruster x 3 reps (100/65 lbs)
Burpee-Over-Barbell x 3 reps
Thruster x 6 reps
Burpee-Over-Barbell x 6 reps
Thruster x 9 reps
Burpee-Over-Barbell x 9 reps
Thruster x 12 reps
Burpee-Over-Barbell x 12 reps
Thruster x 15 reps
Burpee-Over-Barbell x 15 reps
Thruster x 18 reps
Burpee-Over-Barbell x 18 reps

This is a timed workout. If you complete the round of 18, go on to 21. If you complete 21, go on to 24, etc.

-Finished round of 15 + 4 thrusters - more there, should have gone harder in the last minute.

D.
On a 30:00 clock....

EMOM 20:
-Odd: 8 C2B Pull-ups
-Even: 6 HSPU

-At 24:00 - Max set of C2B
-At 27:00 - Max Butterfly Pull-ups
-At 30:00 - Max Strict Pull-ups

-Finished all the reps on the first part, the second half of HSPUs was a lot of 5/1 and 4/2, last set was 3/3
-12 C2B
-18 Butterfly
-5 Strict
-I realize these numbers sound horrible... But after 80 C2B Pull-ups and 60 HSPUs those max sets were really rough. Looking forward to working on these movements more.

3/24/14

Gave 14.4 another go this morning. It was a really great time in the gym. I wanted to get to that second round so fucking bad... and I did. I did all singles on the MU today, instead of opening up with a bigger unbroken set (I think I did a set of 4 last time). I was hurting like crazy after about rep 15 of muscle-ups. I've never gotten nauseated from a gymnastics movements like I did today. I also got that 'fran' cough from this workout today, which I did not last time. I tried to push my body way outside my comfort zone and luckily  I didn't fail any MU. Huge effort, great stuff. This is why I love crossfit so much, it gives you the chance, daily, to really test yourself and push outside your comfort zone and achieve new levels of fitness that you didn't think was possible. It is pretty amazing.

-217 reps / 13:14 tie breaker.

Pumped to train tomorrow!

3/23/14

Complete rest. Body is feeling much more recovered than it was during the middle of the week.

3/22/14

I kind of bastardized the workout today. I cut out a bunch of shoulder-to-overhead / HPSU / split jerk volume that was programmed. I want my shoulders to be fresh for my second attempt at 14.4 on Monday.

I was a little confused as to why I weighed in at 203# this week. +2# from last week. Didn't change much at all from last week where I was -3#. I did eat a lot on Tuesday and Wednesday because I didn't feel recovered, but nothing crazy. Not really sure what's up. I rarely weigh myself, maybe this is just normal deviation. But I'm going to stay consistent with this, I'm in it for the long run.

A.
Three sets not for time of:
4 Strict HSPU + 4 Kipping HPSU
L-Sit x 20 seconds

-Complete, was supposed to be sets to failure, but kept the volume really light.

B.
Split Jerk x 1 rep
*Set 1 – 55% (155#)
*Set 2 – 65% (185#)
*Set 3 – 75% (205#)
*Set 4 – 80% (225#)
*Set 5-8 – 81% (230#)
Rest as needed

-Complete, everything felt easy and fast. There was supposed to be some singles at 90%, but I cut them out. There was a S2O metcon that I cut out altogether.

C.
Four sets for times of:
Run 330 meters
20 Burpees to 6″ Target
Rest 3 minutes

-2:14, 2:27, 2:24, 2:19
-Running felt really good. So did the burpees. Great conditioning, felt light on my feet. Not too taxing. Pumped to get after it Monday morning!

3/21/14

Open 14.4 

AMRAP 14:

60 Cal Row

50 T2B

40 Wall-ball

30 Cleans (135/95#) 

20 Muscle-ups 

-198 reps (18 muscle-ups). 10:05 tie breaker. I was confident and calm up until the rings. I thought I paced things really well. I was gassed on those rings though. Most brutal set of muscle-ups I've done in a while. I'm looking forward to giving this another go. I want to get to that second round, bad! 

Splits:

-2:46 (row)

-5:18 (T2B) 

-6:58 (wall-ball)

-10:05  (cleans) 

3/20/14

Much needed complete rest. I have some serious DOMS in my hamstrings. I'm guessing it is from those hang cleans on Tuesday.

3/19/14

Today was a 'rough' training session. I wouldn't call it a bad session, I just felt torn up from Monday and Tuesday. Tomorrow's rest is much needed.

A.
Front Squat
*Set 1 – 5 reps @ 60% (225#)
*Set 2 – 3 reps @ 80% (305#)
*Set 3 – 1 rep @ 90% (345#)
*Set 4 – 5 reps @ 75% (285#)
*Set 5 – 5 reps @ 80% (305#)
Rest 2 minutes between sets

-Got all the reps, but didn't feel great. DOMS from those squat cleans yesterday.

B.
Five sets of:
Power Clean x 1.1.1
(rest 10 seconds between singles)
Rest as needed

-195#, 225#, 235#, 245#, 255# (f) - failed the 3rd rep on the 5th set. Felt weak here. Usually love to power clean. But tried to keep the intensity up.

C.
Three rounds for time of:
20 Wall Ball Shots (30/20 lb)
20 Toes to Bar

-6.01. Lungs felt decent, had to break up the wall-balls, wasn't planning on that. Went as hard as possible.

D.
Six sets for max calories of:
60 seconds of Airdyne
Rest 60 seconds

-30, 28, 25, 30, 29, 30 - felt awesome here, learning to love the pain/effort of the Airdyne.

E.
NFT:
50 Banded Air Squats (1 black band)

-Complete

3/18/14

Today was an awesome workout. Part D was super intense, really hard/mental gut check for me. Glad I pushed it really hard. I felt pretty weak on the back squats. Not sure if it was the running on Saturday or I'm still a little fried from 14.3. Anyway, I hit all the percentages. Really tough day, great training. Pumped to it tomorrow!

A.
6 Sets:
7 Strict Pull-ups
:15 L-sit Hold on Rings
:60 rest

-Complete, tougher than I thought it was going to be. Looking forward to hitting more strict stuff.

B.
Five sets of:
Snatch x 1.1.1
(rest 10 seconds between singles)
Rest as needed

-135#, 165#, 185#, 190#, 195# - felt decent here, good stuff. 195# is technically a 3 RM for a set of 3 not TnG.

C.
Back Squat
*Set 1 – 5 reps @ 70% (315#)
*Set 2 – 3 reps @ 80% (350#)
*Set 3 – 2 reps @ 85% (370#)
*Set 4 – 1 rep @ 90% (390#)
*Set 5 – 10 reps @ 75% (325#)
Rest 2 minutes between sets

-This is the weakest I've felt in a while, but hit all the %s.

D.
Every minute on the minute for 20 minutes:
Odd Minutes: 115/75 ll Hang Squat Clean x 10 reps
Even Minutes: Muscle-Ups x 3-6

-5 Muscle-ups for first 10 minutes
-3 Muscle-ups for second 10 minutes
-Cleans unbroken the first 10 minutes, then went to 5/5 and 6/4 for sets.

-This was an awesome session. Really great stuff. Ate a ton afterward in hopes of recovering better. Pumped for tomorrow.

3/17/14

Today was an awesome training session. Lifetime PR on strict HSPUs. Felt decent on the shoulder-to-overhead stuff, haven't been doing much of it, but have been doing a lot of heavy split jerks. Anyway, super solid training, really fun day with my training partner. I think we were both happy to come off a rest day and just train instead of doing another Open workout. Pumped to train tomorrow!

A.
Two sets for quality, not time, of:
Weighted Chinese Plank x 60 seconds
Strict Handstand Push-Ups x Max Reps + Strict Pull-up Chaser

-45#, 90# (felt heavy on the second set, interest to do more weight on this in the future)
-12, 9 (12 is a lifetime PR of strict HSPU, never gotten more than 9 ever), pull-up chaser = equal reps to HSPU

B.
Every minute, on the minute, for 10 minutes:
Strict Shoulder Press x 1 rep
Build over the course of the 10 minutes so that by minute 8 you are at 90% (170#) of your 1-RM.

-135# x 2 minutes
-155# x 5 minutes
-165# x 1 minute (this rep was tough, wasn't much more there, so dropped weight back down)
-155# 2 minutes

C.
Pick up immediately after your 10th minute of shoulder press at that weight with…
Every minute, on the minute, for 10 minutes:
Push Press x 1 rep
Build over the course of the 10 minutes to today’s heaviest single.

-175# x1 minute
-220# x 5 minutes
-230# x 3 minutes
-240# x 1 minute (failed lockout)

D.
Four sets for times:
AirDyne 75 Calories or Row 500 Meters (AD preferred)
95/65 lb Shoulder to Overhead x 25 reps
Rest 3 minutes
(note whether you rowed or rode Satan’s cycle)

-3:52
-4:26
-4:22
-4:48

-Really great conditioning, this really hurt. All S2O unbroken.

3/16/14

Much needed complete rest. Upped my calories a bit yesterday and today. My posterior chain/chest/tris are smoked.

3/15/14

DOMS started setting in hardcore last night. I am wicked sore today. I usually never get this sore from dead-lifting in my back/glutes/hamstrings. I generally felt 'fried' today. Plus the benching we did today felt extremely weak. I haven't benched or done tricep accessory stuff in over a month and I was feeling that today. On the very positive side, I'm down 3# this week. This is more weight than I want to lose per week, hopefully the weight loss will be more gradual (1 # per week) over the next few weeks. Through in some tricep stuff at the end just for fun.

A.
Three sets, not for time, of:
15′ Legless Rope Climb x 3 ascents
Strict Handstand Push-Ups x Max Reps

-Complete, HSPUS were 8/6/6

B.
Four sets of:
Bench Press x 5 reps
Rest as needed

-All sets at 185#. Didn't go heavy here, felt pretty weak.

C.
Complete as many rounds and reps as possible in 20 minutes of:
Run 330m
2 Muscle-Ups
4 Push Press (115/75 lbs)
8 Burpees Over the Barbell
4 Push Press (115/75 lbs)
2 Muscle-Ups

-6 Rounds + 16 reps. Clock ran out just as I was finishing the final set of push-press. I felt great on the running today. I haven't ran in months due to terrible weather in Chicago. It was great to get outside and run!

D.
3 Sets:
Lying Tricep Extensions x 10 @ 2 x 35# DB

2 Sets:
Lying DB Floor Press, thumbs toward face x 10 @ 2 x 55# DB

-Complete

3/14/14

Did the Open workout in the morning instead of at night. This is a lot better for me mentally. I have to work in a law firm 9-5... adjusting to this whole office life thing. I would much rather smash weights before work than after. Anyway, I was really happy with my effort today. Stupid/dangerous on the back, but I gave it my all and didn't compromise form as much as many people will. 

A. 14.3
 AMRAP 810 Deadlifts (135/95 lbs)
15 Box Jumps (24″/20″)
15 Deadlifts (185/135 lbs)
15 Box Jumps (24″/20″)
20 Deadlifts (225/155 lbs)
15 Box Jumps (24″/20″)
25 Deadlifts (275/185 lbs)
15 Box Jumps (24″/20″)
30 Deadlifts (315/205 lbs)
15 Box Jumps (24″/20″)
35 Deadlifts (365/225 lbs)
15 Box Jumps (24″/20″)

-150 reps (finishing 20 DL at 315#). 

-Did step ups the entire time. Unbroken until set of 275#. Went 10/5/5/5. 315# was a set of 5 and then singles. Tie breaker was 5:44. Not planning on doing this one twice. The only place I could make up some time is on doing jumps instead of step ups on the first few sets, but I don't know how much this would gas me for the later sets. Happy with my effort.

B. Super easy 3k cool down row. 

-13:30 

3/13/14

Complete rest.

3/12/14

The weather this morning was some of the worst I've ever seen. For Chicago it was just horrendous; so much wind, so much snow and ice. It was the first time I've actually been pissed about the weather. The 20 minute walk to the gym took me about 30 this morning. Anyway, once I got the gym and started moving I became a lot happier. I had a really great training session. Had to go light on the snatching due to my ridiculous hand tear. Everything else felt great though. Also my training partner PRed his snatch and his snatch + hang snatch. He is really close to a bodyweight snatch, it is great to see him progress.

A.
Three sets, not for time, of:
Toes-to-Bar x 12 reps
Alternating Pistols x 10 reps (5 each leg)

-Complete, felt easy. Pistols in nanos are no problem now. I used to have to rely on my weightlifting shoes.

B.
Six sets of:
2-Position Snatch
(one from the floor, then the hang)
Rest as needed

-2 Sets @ 135#, 4 Sets @ 155#
-Kept this really light, my hand is jacked up.

C.
Dead-lift
*Set 1 – 5 reps @ 70% (345#)
*Set 2 – 3 reps @ 80% (395#)
*Set 3 – 2 reps @ 85% (425#)
*Set 4 – 1 rep @ 90% (445#)
*Set 5 – 10 reps @ 73% (355#)
Rest 2 minutes between sets

-I was basically doing these off my finger tips due to my hand, got all the reps and felt good though.

D.
Six sets of:
AirDyne Intervals
2 Minutes @ 85-90%
60 Seconds @ 60-65%

-Cals: 72, 80, 60, 65, 58, 65
-Went as hard as possible, definitely felt myself gassing toward the end. Great effort.

3/11/14

Today was a great training session. It was great to get back to training hard and just having an awesome time in the gym. I felt great on everything. I missed yesterday's workout, so I kind of had to bastardize both Monday's and Tuesday's workouts into one session, it ended up being really solid though. I haven't back squatted and front squatted in the same session in a while. I used to do it all the time and it was fun. Set some solid PRs.

A.
Every two minutes, for 12 minutes (6 sets):
Clean & Jerk x 1.1 @ 85-90%
(rest 10 seconds between singles)

-Went with 245# (85%), no misses, felt really good.

C.
Back Squat
*Set 1 – 3 reps @ 75% (325#)
*Set 2 – 3 reps @ 80% (355#)
*Set 3 – 2 reps @ 85% (375#)
*Set 4 – 1 rep @ 90% (395#)
*Set 5 – 1 rep @ 95% (415#)
Rest as needed

-Felt really strong.

B.
Front Squat
*Set 1 – 5 reps @ 60% (225#)
*Set 2 – 4 reps @ 70% (275#)
*Set 3 – 3 reps @ 80% (315#)
*Set 4 – 2 reps @ 90% (345#) PR
*Set 5 – 5 reps @ 80% (315#) PR
Rest 2 minutes between sets

-Was tough after A, but felt good.

D.
For Max Reps:
4 minutes of Burpees to 6" target
3 minutes of Wall Balls (30#)
2 minutes of HSPU

-60, 45, 11.
-Wall-balls were really tough, the HSPU felt absolutely terrible after the wall-balls, went 3/5/3 on reps. Should have taken a minute break and then gone for a larger unbroken set instead of trying to get right on the wall.

E.
Five sets for times of:
Row or AirDyne 60 Calories
40 Double-Unders
Rest 3 minute

-3:25, 3:28, 3:24, 3:35, 3:46 - felt really good, great conditioning.

F.
3 Sets, not for time, rest as needed:
15 Strict HSPU lockouts (basically a HSPU to two ab-mats at 100% speed)
20 Banded Air Squats (1 black band)

-Complete.

3/10/14

Today is a day I will probably remember for the rest of my life. I can't believe I didn't get into the round of 16 on 14.2. It was not for a lack of effort. There was absolutely nothing I could have done differently. I didn't butterfly at all this time through and I got all the OHS unbroken. I had :50 left on the clock to get 14 pull-ups and I only got 11. I was doing singles as fast as I could, my hands just couldn't stay on that bar. Embarrassing performance. I'm calling it now, I will have the biggest point disparity between 14.1 and 14.2, probably world wide, for people who actually put 100% effort into the workouts. (Meaning, not counting the people who posted a decent score for 14.1 and then 1 rep for 14.2 or vice versa).

I knew I was bad at gymnastics stuff, but I didn't realize I was this bad. I'm glad today exposed this, it's a bit of a wake up call. All the huge PRs I've set this year (some of my best include a 315# x 20 RM back squat, 490# x 1 RM dead-lift, 225# x 1 RM snatch) don't even matter if I cant' do C2B pull-ups better than average joe.

In 2011-12 I was much better at pull-ups. When I injured my elbow in August 2012, I stopped doing kipping pull-ups in training for about 6 months due to injury. This showed in the 2013 Open, I performed very poorly on 13.5. Then in May 2013 I went to OCS, didn't train kipping pull-ups at all the entire summer. I got back to crossfit in September and I just haven't gotten "good" at kipping C2B pull-ups again.

Yeah I had extreme DOMs, yeah I had a horrible tear that tore more. It doesn't matter, everyone faces adversity and those are just excuses that I refuse to rely on. The reality of the situation is that I'm just not that good at C2B pull-ups right now. I'm 24 years old and have a lot of time to improve this movement. I'll be back.

Crossfit is constantly humbling and humility is good. My season is over. Excited to get back to doing what I love, training.

Score from Friday: 135
Score from Monday: 141

3/9/14

My biceps are have a lot of DOMS going on, took a lacrosse ball to them a couple times throughout the day.

Other than that, complete and much needed rest.

3/8/14

My body felt a lot better today than yesterday. I'm not sore at all in my biceps and shoulders which I'm happy about. Monday should be good to go. I'm excited to give it another go. Facing adversity and stepping up to a challenge way outside your comfort zone is one of my favorite things about crossfit. I will give it my all come Monday. I am lot better off mentally after training again. I had a really good morning session with my bros. They are great dudes.

I also weighed in today at 204#. I just wanted to know where I'm at given my terrible performance last night.

I haven't weighed in since 12/7/13 at 212#.

So I happy that my reduction in calories has worked. I haven't been super crazy about it, but I've cut out dairy and reduced my overall carbohydrate/caloric intake. I've also set a lot of strength PRs since cutting weight, so it's been good.

A.
Every minute, on the minute, for 20 minutes:
Power Clean x 1 rep
(add 5-10 lbs every minute until you reach a weight that you miss, then back off 5-10 lbs and stay there with the intention of hitting all remaining reps at that weight)

-5 minutes @ 235#
-4 minutes @ 255#
-3 minutes @ 275#
-1 minute @ 285# (PR tie)
-2 minutes @ 295# (failed both attempts)
-5 minutes @ 275# - felt really solid here

B.
For 15 minutes, rotate through the following three stations on the minute:
Minute 1 – 200m Row (took about :40 every time, kept 1:40-49 every interval)
Minute 2 – 10 Deadlifts (225/155 lbs)
Minute 3 – 12 Burpees to 6″ Target

-Complete, felt solid.

3/7/14

I did very poorly today. Embarrassingly so. I've put in a lot of work this year. Way more than last year. Way more consistency, way more intensity, way more sacrifice. I basically entirely stopped drinking alcohol last September. I can count on one hand the times I've been drunk since then (I binge drank a lot last year from June 2012 to June 2013, the legal culture in Chicago is entirely based around binge drinking). My rest has been more consistent than its ever been. My diet has been very consistent, as much so as in 2011-12 when I got serious about my food intake.

I've set countless PRs this year and got 20th place in the North Central region on a workout last week, beating many 'Games' athletes. Most regions I would have been in the 10-15 range. My motor works, my strength is solid. I can't do C2B pull-ups or handstand push-ups to save my fucking life though. It's not an effort thing, they just shut off. I know how to push myself to a lot of places where people are not willing to go mentally. I'm a fucking Marine officer. The effort is there. It's just so frustrating to blow up a workout and fucking suck. Getting beat by average dudes that barely put in any work. They can't even snatch 155# and they beat me on this shit.

I feel like a joke. It is like a joke how shitty I did today. I obviously let myself down and I feel like I let those around me down, but I don't think anyone actually gives a fuck.

I'm too successful in other facets of my life to get upset about being bad at one modality of exercise that is irrelevant to anything other than crossfit. It's more just frustrating. Big lanky dudes are not made for gymnastics.

I don't really know what to say aside from that. I've put in a lot of work and I'm proud of myself. My gymnastics is just not there. It's a gaping hole in my fitness under crossfit's definition of fitness. Not sure exactly what I need to change about my training. Maybe I just need to drop 20 lbs and see how I feel. Maybe I just need to do actual gymnastics for a few months.

I don't fucking know. I've put in a lot of work and I school a lot of people at crossfit, often. I can throw around weights, deal with the pain and run and do aerobic/lactic stuff like it's my job. I don't even get lactic/aerobic in C2B/HSPU workouts. I just fucking fail. I don't know what I'm going to do, but something has got to change.

Anyway despite that my left hand is ripped as fuck...

Goal for Monday morning is 192 reps (16 OH + 16 PU + 16 OHS)

The reality of the situation is I will not be competing individually at Regionals this year. It was not my goal going into the season, my goal was/is to be on my gym's team. This is determined by the top 3 placing men in the Open. I am, as of now, just too unbalanced of an athlete to compete the Regional level individually again. 2012 might have been my only opportunity as the field gets more and more competitive. This is a hard pill to swallow after my performance/placing last week and all the hard work I've put in. But I don't sugar coat anything. It's just not there, despite my best effort. What a shitty feeling that is. Tomorrow is another day.

3/6/14

30 Minutes Mobility

30 Minutes Airdyne, super easy


Body feels good, shoulders are a little sore, but I feel ready for anything.

3/5/14

Great training session this morning. Body felt great, much better than yesterday. Pumped to rest tomorrow and hit whatever 14.2 is on Friday!

A.
OHS - 10,10,10,10

-135#, 165#, 195#, 215# (Fail - got 7 reps)

Behind Neck Jerk - 1,1,1

-245#, 265#, 285# (fail) - missed this rep, but my shoulders were not feeling happy after the OHS

B. Five sets of:
Back Squat x 2-3 reps
(let feel dictate load, if you feel good, go heavy)
Rest 3-4 minutes

-3,3,3,2,2 - 315#, 345#, 365#, 385#, 405# (2 RM PR)

C.
Three sets for times of:
12 Overhead Squats (115/75 lbs)
10 Box Jumps (30″/24″)
8/6 Muscle-Ups
Rest 3 minutes

-1:47 (unbroken), 1:58 (6/2), 2:47 (4/2/1/1)

D.
For max meters:
4 minutes of Rowing
Rest 4 minutes
2 minutes of Rowing
Rest 2 minutes
1 minute of Rowing

1250m, 640m, 350m = 2240m Total - felt awesome.

3/4/14

I was a little toasted this morning. I only got to sleep about 5 and a half hours between last night's workout and the session this morning. I had to cut out the shoulder-to-overhead due to some tennis elbow inflammation. I could have done it, but I don't think there would have been any benefit. Physically I felt fine, was a little discouraged because I had to cut the shoulder-to-overhead out. Overall a solid day, ate a huge PWO meal in hopes of recovering extra. Pumped to train tomorrow!

A.
Every minute, on the minute, for 6 minutes, complete:
5 Squat Cleans (175/115 lbs)
Work for speed and efficiency, and then bring breathing and focus back to calm state before your next set.

-Complete, felt really easy, all reps touch-and-go.

B.
Complete as many rounds and reps as possible in 4 minutes of:
10 Ring Dips
10 Chest-to-Bar Pull-Ups

Rest exactly 3 minutes, and then . . .

C.
Complete as many rounds and reps as possible in 4 minutes of:
20 Wall Ball Shots (30/20 lbs)
10 Toes to Bar

3 Rds + 6 C2B
2 Rds + 20 WB

D.
3 Sets, NFT:
6 Strict C2B Pull-ups
15 Weighted Sit-ups, Anchored (100# DB)

-Complete

3/3/14

AM Workout (0530) 

Gave 14.1 another go. I usually train everyday at 5 AM. On Friday I did the WOD around 8 PM and got 353. I naturally did better this morning. My goal was 360+ ... I got 395. I was obviously stoked about this score. I felt really good and paced the entire workout, I went out of the gate very slow and it paid off. I only broke up the last two sets of snatches 9/6. Missed about 4-5 double-unders throughout random sets. Great day in the gym for me. I might get around to the usual programming this evening after work if I feel good/have the time.


I was pretty anxious yesterday. My hamstrings were still really sore and I really wanted to get 360 reps. I was stressing about my performance for the first time in a very long time. I'm usually stoked to train and throw around some heavy weights every morning. It was good to go out there and push myself way outside my comfort zone. Training is fun. Training is easy. You get to hangout with your best friends and lift heavy weights. Competing is not always fun and it's never easy. Competing is a great way to bring out the absolute best performance you've got though. There is no way I would have gone this hard without the push of competition. I guess that makes the stress and anxiety worth it. I'm really proud of myself and the training I've put in this year. I've been very consistent and worked very hard. I really hope HSPU do not come up in the Open. They are the only thing really holding me back.

PM Workout (1900) 

Had a long day at work and school, but got in the gym and felt great.


A.
Two sets of:
Accumulate 60 seconds in an L-Sit
Accumulate 60 seconds in a Handstand Hold, Nose-to-Wall
Accumulate 60 seconds Front Leaning Rest on Rings
(the top of the push-up position with rings 1″ off the ground)

-Complete

B.
Every minute, on the minute, for 10 minutes:
Clean & Jerk x 1.1.1 @ 80% (225#)
(rest 10 seconds between singles)

-Missed minute 7 and 9... went into 12th minute to finish all 30 reps. Felt strong though, this seemed tough. I've never done a 3 EMOM at 225#.

C.
For time:
15 Thrusters (135/95 lbs)
5 Rope Climbs (15′)
12 Thrusters
4 Rope Climbs
9 Thrusters
3 Rope Climbs
6 Thrusters
2 Rope Climbs
3 Thrusters
1 Rope Climb

-9.48. Ouch. I was training alone and straight up did not want to do this. Went hard anyway.

D.
3000m Row @ easy effort

-Time of 12:46.

3/2/14

Complete rest, spent about 20 minutes on the foam roller. Hamstrings have extreme DOMS.

3/1/14

Hamstrings/glutes sore. Rest of body feels fine. Fun little session today, pumped to hit it Monday!

A.
Three sets, not for time, of:
Toes to Bar x 15 unbroken reps
Alternating Pistols x 10 each leg
Roll to Candlestick x 5 reps

-Complete

B.
Every minute, on the minute, for 8 minutes:
Back Squat x 3 reps @ 75 (325#)

-Felt really easy; felt really strong, way more there.

C.
For 15 minutes, rotate through the following three stations on the minute:
Minute 1 – 45 Seconds Row (went to 250m every time)
Minute 2 – 15 Wall Ball Shots (20 lbs)
Minute 3 – 10 Ring Dips

-Complete, everything felt good.

2/28/14

I went hard, I set a PR. I wanted 8 rounds + (360+ reps), but it just didn't happen today. I was proud of my effort though. Monday morning I will give it another go just for the hell of it!

11.4
AMRAP 10
30 Double-under
15 Snatch (75#)

-7 Rounds + 7 Snatch (352 reps). PR (previous best was 7 + 22 DU from 2/13).