Update- Like I Could Crawl out of my Skin

Snakes are ewwwwww

3/21/11
Back squat 3-5-7

5 Rounds for time:
25' Handstand walk
5 Burpees

Not a great day.  Weights are starting to get really heavy in the 3-5-7.  To the point where I don't really trust myself to squat at home with my iron plates.  Only managed 1 rep with 310#, 280x5, and 250x7.  The metcon was fun.  I did it on the sidewalk in front of my house with my 5 and 7-year olds cheering me on. 

3/22/11
DE bench press 8x3 on the minute, 50% of 1RM
Ring dip 2x10
Handstand pushup 5x5

Weight for the BP was 125#.  I experimented with a few different methods of adding band weight, which was new and cool.  May switch to a Westside style strength phase since I'm getting so beat down under heavy barbells lately.  Elbows were screaming after yesterday's handwalking.

3/23/11
Front squat 3-3-3

5 Rounds for time:
7 Dumbell thrusters 45#
7 C2B pullups
7 Burpees

GHD situps 4x10

Finally a lift goes my way.  Hit 255# in the FS, a 10# PR for a 3RM front squat.  Then cut the weight to 230# and strained a muscle in my upper back.  Fuckin' awesome.  Metcon went well thankfully.  5:56.  All sets unbroken. This was Rick's (trainer at CFWC) birthday WOD.  35 today.  Obviously.  Happy Birthday man!  Hope you had a good one
J

Chill Pill?



Totally Paleo

3/16/11
Bench press 3-5-7

Complete as many rounds/reps as possible in 5 minutes:
30 Doubleunders
15 Power snatches 75#

Bench press sucked.  Unlike the press on Monday, which stalled in the round of 3, the bench stalled in the round of 7.  And the 3s and 5s were no picnic either.  Weights went 227.5x3, 207.5x5 and 187.5x6.  Not sure what the issue is.  Maybe I need to put ring dips back into my weekly routine.  Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr...   Decided to do try a half version of the CFG open WOD to get a feel for it before I did it for reals on Saturday.  Managed 3 rounds, 30 DUs and 12 power snatches at about 90% effort.  Still hurt like all hell.

3/19/11
Complete as many rounds/reps as possible in 10 minutes:
30 Doubleunders
15 Power snatches 75#

6 rounds, plus 30 DUs, and 14 snatches.  1 rep short of my goal of 7 rounds.  Gotta be fuckin' kiddin' me.  They've extended the deadline another week, so of course I'll have to have another go at it.  Which thrills me to death.  I'm currently ranked 693rd.  One more stinkin' rep would move me up 100 places to 593.  I am NOT kidding.
J

3/15/11 Naughty Bunny

Every minute on the minute for 6 minutes:
2 Power cleans+1 jerk 185#

5 Rounds (not for time):
10 Unbroken handstand pushups
10 Ab-wheel rollouts

The power clean/jerk workout was fun, and a lot tougher than I anticipated.  Typically I'm challenged more in the clean than the jerk.  If I can get it to my shoulders then it's going overhead.  Not a one of these jerks felt great.  It's amazing how fast the technique goes away if you're not practicing them often.  After the cleans and jerks I wasn't feeling up to a timed WOD, so I threw the little HSPU/ab-wheel dilly in to get some practice in a few movements that I hate.  All HSPUs unbroken, all rollouts sucked.  Rested about 3 minutes between rounds.
J

3/14/11 Hope Springs Zoftagular



Maybe spring's coming after all

Back squat 3-5-7
Press 3-5-7

After a weekend that included CFNA's Green Beer and Burpees WOD in downtown Naperville, this old carcass was feeling pretty sore, legs particularly.  The WOD included 100 rep sets of air squats, lunges, pushups and ummmm...burpees.  Did the squats in one shot and nearly did the same in burpees.  Nothing like an extraordinarily whiny person right next to you to keep you moving.  Anyway, with all the lactic yuck in my legs I didn't hold out a lot of hope that the squat numbers would show up the way I hoped.  Took a very long warmup and a bit of rolling out, and they were really tough, but I'll be damned if I didn't hit the numbers anyway.  305x3, 275x5, and 245x7.  The press was another story unfortunately.  Triceps and shoulders just didn't have any pop after 100 pushups (which are a weakness that demand attention).  Only managed 2 reps with 157.5.  I did manage to salvage the session with very tough sets of 145x5 and 130x7.  I took the miss at 157.5 as a message from the gods to lay low for the rest of the day. 
Power cleans tomorrow
J

3/11/11 I Like You in Blue



The weather for GB&B will almost
certainly look like this
from crossfit.com

5 Rounds for time:
7 Push jerks 135#
20 Air squats

Nice little WOD.  Light enough that you probably won't put the bar down, but heavy enough after a few rounds that you really want to.  After round 3 the squats really take their toll on your ability to continually jump the weight overhead, and completing the squats becomes an exercise in fortitude.  Good, good fun.  Put up a 3:45.  Haas, he of the Herculean strength, came along an hour later and posted 3:34.  And now I of course hate him.
Green Beer and Burpees tomorrow.
J

3/10/11 Of Course I Kept the Video

Not me. But I sure wish I was there
From crossfit.com

Front squat 3-5-7
Bench press 3-5-7
Deadlift 3-5-7

Complete as many rounds as possible in 5:00:
Row 10 cals
3 Muscleups
9 GHD situps

Good day of heavy (relatively speaking) lifting with a spicy little nugget to top it off.  Lifts went like this: FS 250x3, 225x5, 200x7.  BP 225x3, 205x5, 185x7.  DL 350x3, 315x5, 280x7.  The front squats and DLs felt very light, which is encouraging.  I redid the same numbers as last week in the bench because they were such a struggle and I just wasn't happy with them.  They were stil tough, but better.  Probably have to start microloading the press and the BP next week.  The short little metcon at the end was much harder than I expected.  I totally underestimated the effect the heavy lifting would have on the muscleups.  They were a struggle from the 2nd round on, which in numbers this low, they should not be for me.  Managed 3 tough rounds and a little change.
J

3/8/11 Swedish Dark Chocolate

Power clean 8x2 on the minute
1000m Row for time
1 Hour of swim drills

Power cleans weren't too tough at 175#.  Had Haas take a good look at my form and he made a few adjustments to the scoop, which helped quite a bit.  There weren't a lot of fast times on our board in the 1000m row, probably because the majority of our athletes chose to complete the other component of the WOD ("Annie") before the row.  I'd never rowed 1000m for time before, but I know that the last 2 times I did "Jackie" I rowed around 3:18, so I had high hopes for a fast time.  I managed a lackluster 3:13, then laid on the floor for 10 minutes while my throat felt like it was bleeding.  Not sure if the power cleans took their toll, my effort just wasn't there, or if I simply have an unrealistic expectation, but I thought 3:05-3:10 was doable.  In my heart I don't believe the effort was lacking.  I held a 1:35 pace until the final 200m, then gave it all I had left in the tank, for what it's worth.  Afterward, it was straight into the pool to help a member of ours who's training for an Ironman with his swim technique.  Interestingly enough, I kept coming back to CrossFit cues to get my point across when there was a language barrier (in regards to swimming, he's as American as they come), and he made phenomonal progress in just an hour.
Good stuff
J

3/7/11 Flash-y Skivvies

Back squat 3-5-7
Press 3-5-7

Ring handstand pushup ladder
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8 for time
(Must come off the rings after each unbroken set)

Pretty good day.  Hit 300x3 in the squat, which I don't remember ever doing, at least not as easily as today.  Also 270x5 and 240x7.  The press also went pretty OK at 155x3, 140x5, and 125x7.  Probably have to microload this next week.  The ring HSPU ladder was a bear.  I originally was planning on working up to 10, but it wasn't happening.  In fact, the 8s were a real struggle, and that was with a lot of rest between efforts.  Time was 6:33.  As hard as it was, I'm encouraged at the way this movement is progressing.
J

3/4/11 One Day Bed

5 Rounds for time:
Handstand walk 20 yards
45# Walking lunge 20 yards

GHD situp 3x20
Back extension 3x15

Well it was a grey, rainy day but unseasonably warm.  Try 70 degrees warm.  Had to get outside and work out, so I measured out a 10 yard course on the front sidewalk, pulled out an empty olympic bar, and gave this little dilly a shot.  I won't lie, I am far from perfect at handwalking.  In fact, I can't even remember the last time I practiced it, so the 1st round took a little while.  But as the WOD wore on, I seemed to hit my stride, and it became a lot of fun.  I got some interesting looks, reaffirming my position as "Crazy Workout Guy", which has become a point of pride.  Interesting to note: you'd think that spending as much time as I did either upside down or resting, that the quads and hips would be fully recovered and ready for the lunges.  Not the case.  Stabilizing in the handstand position took so much out of those muscle groups that the lunges were a hot, burning jar of suck, that only redempt themselves by NOT further smoking my upper body.  Overall. this WOD was far more taxing on every level than I thought it would be.  I love it when it that happens:)
J

3/3/11 I Smell Happy

Front squat 3-5-7
Bench press 3-5-7
Power clean 6x3 on the minute
Glute-ham raise 4x8

Phenomenal day!!!  Woke up feeling great, fully recovered from my short-lived illness, and looking forward to getting back in the Clubhouse.  To top it off, the gorgeous morning weather made me think spring may come along after all.  Front squats felt light (245-220-195).  Bench press could've been a little better, but I got the reps in, if a bit of a struggle (225-205-185).  Kept the PCs light and fast at 165#.  GHRs sucked, but they always suck.
More tomorrow
J

3/2/11 Koptobblerific

                             
Came down with some kind of bug on Tuesday.  Congested, achy, run down...basically shitty.  Decided to lay low, rest up, and wait til Thursday before I hit it again.  Slept over 11 hours and feel like a new man this morning.  Looking forward to picking up some heavy stuff. 
In the meantime, check out the above video.  Greatest.  Speech.  Ever.
J