12/28 The "Bear" Grrrrrrrrrr...

5 Sets of the "Bear" complex
1 Set consists of:
7 Rounds
Deadlift
Power clean
Front squat
Push press or jerk
Back squat
Push press or jerk from the back
*You must add weight every set.  The bar may not rest on the ground; touch-and-go only between push press from the back and deadlift.
Score by highest weight lifted for an entire set.

Hadn't performed this WOD in over a year and, well, it was a bear.  Had high hopes of succeeding with something close to bodyweight, but it was not to be.  Turns out 60 thrusters the day before the "Bear" is not the best idea.  Starting light at 95# my quads just blew up and I knew it was gonna be a fight.  115# and 135# went off pretty well.  155# took about four minutes (I checked the video) but I got through it.  175# was just a shit show.  The cleans were easy enough, as were the squats, but I just didn't have the legs to jerk the bar with any authority, and failed at the end of round 3.  Gaming this to hit your big weight early, and accepting failure in the next round or two would certainly yield higher scores, but that would, in large part defeat the purpose of getting the best workout in that you could.  It would also be douche-baggery at it's worst.
Rest tomorrow
J

12/27 Batman and Catwoman

5 Rounds for time:
12 Thrusters 95#
12 Pullups

Glute-ham raise 5x5

The WOD stipulated that each athlete should pick their own weight for the thruster, with the caveat that I wanted them to move fast.  I program this type of thing from time to time to see what kind of gauge our athletes have on their own ability.  Sometimes it works out great, others not so great, but is always a good learning experience.  I used 95#, which in hindsight, was a bit heavy.  Had to break the thrusters once in both the 4th and 5th rounds and finished in 5:50.  Way too much looking at the bar and walking from the barbell to pullup bar, rather than running.  Quads blew up for a good while after, which is always pleasant.
Something special tomorrow.
J

12/26 ...Your Smile and Your Little Finger...

Back squat 3x5
Standing press 3x5
GHD situp 3x10

I hadn't worked out since the 23rd.  As it turned out, I was busy enough with Christmas festivities at my folks', and the weather shitty enough, that I didn't make it to the Body Compound in Bloomington for a WOD on Christmas Eve, as was my intention.  I did however drink copious amounts of beer and my fair share of bourbon the night before. What can I say?  My brothers are instigators and I am ashamedly highly susceptible to peer pressure.  So, I was in no shape to work out anyway.  Then we had the pleasure of driving home Christmas Eve in the awesome central Illinois weather.  Apparently, the folks in the middle part of the state are cutting back on salt use.  A drive that took 80 minutes on the 23rd took 3 hours+ the next day.  Which was fun.
275# in the squat, which was zero fun, but by far the most I've squatted for 3x5.  I was on the fence about whether to try 140# in the press for the 3rd week in a row, or drop to 137.5#, which I felt confident about.  I opted for the latter and hit the 3x5 without too much trouble.  140# next week for sure.  I've been slacking a bit with core work lately, so I wanted to get some of that in without crippling myself for the rest of the week.  Hence the low volume in the GHD situps.
Nasty metcon and GHRs tomorrow.
J

12/23 Mary Klibbus!

Front squat 3x5
Bench press 3x5
Ring row 3x max

230# in the FS, 210# in the BP.  Managed 20, 18, and 15 in the ring row.  Headed down to Bloomington tonight to spend Christmas Eve with my mom, dad, two brothers and their wives and kids.  Back tomorrow night.  Hopefully squeeze in a WOD at one of the local affiliates.  And hopefully NOT have to deal with a flippin' blizzard on the way back.  Everyone have a great, safe, restful holiday.  Hit it again hard on Sunday.
J

12/21 Koptobbler!

Power clean 3x3

On the minute for 8 minutes:
3 Weighted pullups
Max reps power snatch 1/2BW
*Score by pullup weight x total power snatch reps

Hit 205# for all three sets in the PC.  Metcon was rough.  The idea was to go heavy in the pullup and then in the remaining time in the minute perform as many power snatches as possible.  I used 95# in the power snatch, which was a shade over 1/2BW, and 60# in the pullup which was a little too much.  I think I'd have totaled a lot more PSs if I'd gone with 50#.  I also performed the PUs on rings, which did me no favors.  At any rate, I managed 53 reps x 60# for a score of 3180.
Check out the vid below.  While it may be tempting to describe his performance with words such as gnarly or sick, Danny has mastered his chosen sport to a degree that I can only call beautiful.  The scenery is breathtaking, the music moving.  Enjoy
J

Wham!!! It Gets Better

Back squat 3x5
Standing press 3x5

Ended up short on time today.  Spent 7 hours painting a huge CFWC logo on the wall at the ClubHouse with fellow CFWC trainer Timmy.  We're not quite finished but if I do say so myself, it's looking sharp so far.  I then had two classes to coach with an hour of downtime between.  Normally I would have stayed after to finish the session with a pulling movement, but by the time the 7:15 class was over, the snowfall had gotten a little outrageous.  Thought it better to get my ass home.  Hit 270# in the squat, which wasn't too bad, and is definitely a PR for 3x5.  Tried 140# in the press for the 2nd week in a row.  Last week I managed 3x4 and was confident I'd hit 3x5 today.  The first two sets were a battle and I did hit 5s in both.  The 3rd was not to be though, and I only managed a triple.  I'm torn as whether to back off to 137.5# next week, or give 140# another go and hope for the best.  We shall see.
Tomorrow I'll make up today's power cleans and hit the CFWC workout of the day.
J

12/18 Why Madame You Are a Daisy

In teams of 2, with a 10:00 running clock complete
3 rounds of:
15 Sumo DL highpulls 95#
20 Wallballs
25 Throwdowns
------------
In remaining time, complete as many burpee box jumps as possible
Score by total burpee box jumps

Did this with CFWC athlete Shawn.  Divided the movements pretty much equally and blazed through the 3 rounds in about 3:30.  We then did the burpee box jumps (cool, fun movement...well as fun as anything with "burpee" in it can be) 3 at a time and finished the 10:00 with 80 total reps.  Good little smoker to open the eyes up on a Saturday morning.  It should be noted that Shawn won our most recent Paleo Challenge, dropping about 30# in 6 weeks, and is now officially kicking ass and taking names.  Atta boy Shawn
J

12/17 What's New Cupcake?

AM
Deadlift 1x5
Weighted ring dip 3x5

PM
For time:
100 Doubleunders
4 Rounds of "Mary"
(5 Handstand pushups
10 Pistols, alternating legs
15 Pullups)
100 Doubleunders

Deadlift was TOUGH!  I've pulled 355# for a set of 5 before, but never regripping each rep on the floor to eliminate bounce.  Way tougher.  Will probably drop to 5# jumps starting next week.  Ring dips at 50# weren't bad until the final set.  The metcon was a dilly.  The DUs took the starch out of me right away, but the rounds of "Mary" were still completely unbroken, just a few deep breaths between movements.  The final set of DUs were a different story entirely.  Felt like my lungs were crushing.  Had to break them up in sets of 10-15 to limp across the finish line in 9:06.
Some team WOD fun in the AM if my legs aren't too ouchy from pistols=)
J

12/16 Dude! Off! Get Off the Couch!



Who doesn't love tiny little badasses deadlifting stupid
heavy weights?  Love this pic

Front squat 3x5
Bench press 3x5
Ring row 3x max reps

No hiccups in the linear progression today.  Everything felt good and strong.  225# in the front squat, 205# in the bench press.  From week to week the FS has just never really felt any heavier.  I mean it's heavy, just that this week's loading didn't seem heavier or harder than last week.  Yeah core strength!  Ab wheels and GHD situps must be good for you.  Bench is getting tough, as is the press (see Monday's post).  Will probably have to start microloading with 1.25# plates soon to keep progress on track.  Ring rows were a pleasant surprise.  Knocked 'em out of the park with 19, 18, and 17 reps.
Tomorrow: deads, weighted ring dips, and conditioning (1st metcon since Saturday, I'm actually going to do it, not just blog about it).

J

12/14 A Big Ol' Belt Buckle

Power clean 5x3
Handstand pushup

Seriously pressed for time today.  Managed to stay on course with power cleans at 195# between bouts of busy-ness.  Rather than doing max sets of HSPUs today I opted to perform sets of 5-10 throughout the day, a training protocol known as "Greasing the Groove".  The idea is to do as many reps of a movement (that gives you trouble) per day without approaching failure.  The usual prescription is 50ish% or less of your max set (my max is 19).  Probably totaled about 75 reps all told.  Bailed on the conditioning, just couldn't find the time.
Rest tomorrow, front squats, bench press, and ring rows on Thursday.
J

12/13 All the Stars in All the Skies...

Back squat 3x5
Standing press 3x5
Weighted pullup 3x5

Squatted between coaching the 5:15 and 7:15 classes, then snuck the presses and pullups in while mopping the gym floors.  The glamorous life of an affiliate owner.  Hit 265# for the squat.  Tough, but I can tell there's a lot more in the tank.  Could only manage sets of 4 with 140# in the press.  Should be able to hit 5s across next week.  Pullups weren't terribly difficult at 55#.  Power cleans, HSPUs and some conditioning tomorrow.
J

12/11 \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/

For time, in teams of 2: (only one teammate working at a time)

30 Handstand pushups
40 Deadlifts 225#
50 Pullups
60 Wallballs 20#
70 Box jumps 20"
80 Push presses 45#
90 Doubleunders

Teamed up with CFWC she-badass Tammy on this one.  We typically do team workouts on Saturday mornings, and most of the time Tammy and I are paired with athletes who need a little help, so this was a nice change of pace.  She used 135# in the DL, a 15# wallball, and 35# in the push press.  We split the reps more or less equally, though this was not a requirement of the WOD, kept each other fresh, and blazed through it without a hitch.  After the last DU the clock read 11:20, about a minute faster than the next group.  It should be noted that both of us, and indeed most of the CFWC athletes present, completed this WOD on about 3-4 hours sleep (due to the CFWC ugly sweater holiday party last night, more on that later), making a smoker of a WOD that much more awesome.
Good fun
J

12/10 Fingers and Toes

Deadlift 1x5
5 Rounds for time:
10 Sumo DL highpulls 95#
10 Ring dips

345# in the DL.  Felt light, which is nice since 335# felt reeeeeally heavy on Saturday.  This WOD has been on cf.com a number of times, and I know I've done it at least twice, but the only time I was able to locate was 6:20 on 4/6/09.  Did a little better today.  3:10.  See crappy, sped up video below.  CFWC ugly sweater-themed holiday party tonight.  More on that later.
J
Dead

12/9 Like a Kiss to the Soul

Front squat 3x5
Bench press 3x5
Ring row 3x max
Ab-wheel rollout 3x8

The weights keep getting heavier.  It could be pure perception on my part and/or a growing confidence with heavy weights, but the sets don't really seem to be getting harder, even as the weights go up.  I know it won't last forever, but for now I'll take it as an indicator that I'm on the right track.  Front squat weight was 220#, Bench press 200#.  Ring rows (again, below parallel, rings set 1' above the box) went 17, 16, 16.
Heavy deadlifts and a dilly of a metcon in the morning.
J

12/6 and 12/7 Mmmmmmmmgrrrr...

12/6
Back squat 3x5

12/7
AM
Press 3x5

PM
Power clean 5x3
Weighted ring dip 3x5
Weighted ring pullup 3x5

So, my 5-year old's birthday festivities Thursday and Friday, and the awesome stomach bug that ripped through my household this weekend, threw a bit of a wrench in the works as far as training goes.  I only slept about 2 and a half hours Friday night and not much more than that Saturday night.  Sunday I felt like complete hell.  I managed to dodge the puke bullet but I just wasn't right.  Achy, cold, lack of appetite, exhausted obviously.  A couple of ibuprofen, which I do not like to take, and a sensational good night's sleep, had me feeling like a new man Monday morning.  All the same, I thought it prudent to ease back into the training game.  Hence, only the one movement, back squats.  Much to my surprise, the weight went up pretty easy, despite the weekend.  260# for sets across.
I decided to consolidate the important strength lifts that I missed Friday, Saturday and Monday into today's training, in an effort to get back on schedule.  All went well, so I'm satisfied that I've checked the proper box.  In the morning I hit 135# in the press, which may be a PR for 3 sets of 5.  In the evening, did 5 sets of 3 in the power clean at 190#.  The heel is finally good to go and the oly shoes are back on.  This makes Johnny a happy monkey.  Did the ring dips and pullups in superset fashion.  45# in the RD, 50# in the PU.
Rest tomorrow.  Front squats, bench press and ring rows on Thursday.  DL and conditioning on Friday.
J

12/4 Mmmmmm...Raspberry Cheesecake

Front squat 3x5
Bench press 3x5
Deadlift1x5

Was awakened at 2am by my 7 year-old, who was chucking his little guts out, and continued to do so into the morning.  Been up since.  But I love running the steam cleaner, so that's nice.  And sleep's overated anyway.  215# in the FS, 195# in the BP, and 335# in the DL.
More later
J

11/30 & 12/1 Rainbows and Butterflies

My baby boy is 5 today! Happy Birthday Doodle!

11/30
Power clean 5x3
Handstand pushup 3x max reps

The sore heel is finally showing some marked improvement, to the point that I've graduated from running shoes to Chuck Taylors.  Could be back in my oly shoes soon, which I'm looking forward to.  Used 185# for sets across in the power clean.  HSPU numbers weren't great, still an enigma, sometimes really good, other times so-so.  15, 14, and a real bitch of a 13.  We had a dilly of a metcon planned for Wednesday and I wanted to do it with the group, so I decided to forgo the conditioning today.  Which brings us to...

12/1
For time:
12 Deadlifts 275#/ 40 Wallballs 20#
9 DLs/ 30 WBs
6 DLs/ 20 WBs
3 DLs/ 10 WBs

This was from last years Alabama sectional, which was won by eventual CrossFit Games 2nd place finisher Rich Froning.  Rich's time was 5:43.  The DLs felt unusually light, not that I'm complaining, and were unbroken for the entire WOD, though just barely.  Wallballs were tough, but I managed to never take more than a 2-3 breath break at a time.  When it was all said and done the clock read 5:50, which would have been good for 3rd place in this event.  This is somewhat skewed, as this was the 2nd WOD of the day for the sectional competitors, and I was fresh.  Also, I was able to set up my barbell right next to my wallball station, thus reducing transition time to virtually nil.  Still, I'm happy with the effort, and also some feedback that my current training appears to be on track.  Resting today, as I'm pretty gosh darned tired and sore.  Back at it tomorrow.  Front squats, bench and ring rows.
Cheers
J