Death by Pull-ups (A Botched Attempt Anyways)

Ok…so I found a park with a pull-up bar…thought I could do a “Death by Pull-ups” WOD because I was having some pull-up withdrawls. Just as I was about to jump up on the bar for the first minute, it starts to rain. So…I grabbed a towel and my chalk (like that was going to do any good) and decided to proceed as planned. (side note the bar was not only wet now, it was also about 2-3” in diameter…not sure exactly what the diameter was, but I could not wrap my fingers around it so that I could touch my thumb.)


So…I draped the towel lengthwise over the bar to keep the rain off best I could. I would pull the towel off with 1-2 seconds left and then jump on the bar as the timer went off. Rounds 1-10 were pretty good. I felt strong on the pull-ups, doing all reps C2B in an attempt to get better at this, coming off the bar with 40-45 seconds to spare. Round 11 hits hits and I feel a familiar pain in the middle of my left palm. Being the stubborn mule that I am I decide to continue and on round 12 I come off the bar after completing my 12th C2B pull-up to find a bloody palm with a freshly torn callous. At is point I had about 40 seconds until I had to get back on the bar for 13 more PUs. I made the decision to cash it in and quit while I still had some flesh on my palm. This decision was by far more painful than the torn callous. It is the first time I have not finished a WOD due to a torn callous. Maybe I am too deep into vacation mode or something…I don’t know. I definitely feel left wanting after that botched attempt of a WOD.


Oh…and I am about 99% sure I did round 5 twice. I got distracted when my 16 month old little girl came running under my feet.


I did cash-out with 21 more C2B PUs broken based on how my hand felt (7-8 at a time) and 10 L-Pull-up Negatives.

Annie

Vacation WOD #4

50-40-30-20-10 rep rounds of
Double Unders
Sit-ups (unanchored)

as Rx'd: 5:58 (PR by :29)

Previous best was 6:27 on 5/19/10

Did this in the bedroom. Ceilings were a bit low. I kept hitting the ceiling. It really only messed me up on the first round.

Here is the breakdown of the Double Under reps. All Sit-ups were unbroken.
50 (25-14-11) kept hitting the ceiling with the rope.
40 (36-4)
30 (unbroken)
20 (unbroken)
10 (unbroken)

I think I can shave another 5-10 seconds off if  I can do the first two rounds unbroken. Maybe next time.

Gonna hit another WOD this afternoon. Going to hit some parks with the kids and if I find a place to mount my rings I am going to do some Pull-up/Muscle up WODs. I will post the details later.

400m Runs and Wallball Shots

AMRAP in 20 minutes of:

Run 400m

40 Wall Ball Shots, 20# ball to 10' target

as Rx'd: 5 rounds plus 10m.

Last time I did this I made it 120m after the 5th round. Arse was dragging today.

Heavy Handstand Helen & 150 Burpees for Time

Vacation 2010 AM WOD:

Heavy Handstand Helen

3 Rounds for time of:

Run 400m

2 pood KB Swings, 21 reps (70# DB)

12 HSPUs

This WOD is supposed to be done with a 1.5pd KB, but all I grabbed was the 70#DB so I improvised.

The last time I did this WOD was last year about this time (11:32 using a 55# KB on 6/23/09). I wasn't sure how it would go. I didn't feel like I plowed through it with as much intensity as I should have so I was surprised to see that my time improved.

Today's time: 9:52

I guess I am pleased to get a PR on an impromptu vacation WOD. I lost most of my time on the last round of HSPUs. The first two rounds of HSPUs were unbroken. I kept losing my balance due to fatigue on the last round. I did them in sets of 4-4-2-2. I probably need to start working them back into my warm-ups. I should have been able to crank these out all three rounds unbroken. All the KB swings were unbroken and Runs were slow...around 1:40-50ish each round.

Iliopsoas update...felt fine during the DB swings and the HSPUs, but I could feel it during the runs. Didn't really hurt, but I could tell it wasn't normal...

PM WOD: 150 Burpees for Time

as Rx'd: 9:44...slow and steady...that's my motto...

Flo-Ri-Da!

Day one of two traveling to FL. We made a pit stop in Jackson, MS for the night. I hate missing these WODs...and I am having a hard time not setting the alarm here at the hotel so I can get up early and throw some sort of a met-con together...I feel like a junky who can't get his fix.



I am sure the rest will do me some good. I packed my foam roller and plan on doing some intense MFR and stretching over the next 10 days...but I also packed along a 20# Med ball, my rings, chalk, jump rope, and a 70# DB...so after a couple of forced rest days due to traveling I will be back at it in some form or fashion...in the beautiful Florida sun...


Catch you guys on the flip-side...

Oh...almost forgot...523 miles in a Minivan with a 5 y/o, 2 y/o, and a 15 mo/o, 1 stop for gas, as Rx'd:

8.5 hrs...


Got another 4.5hrs to go tomorrow...

DB Thrusters and GHD Sit-ups

Three rounds for time of:
50 pound dumbbell Thruster, 15 reps
30 GHD situps

Rebecca Voigt 5:45 (35lb db), Mikko Salo 5:53, Kristan Clever 6:03 (35lb db), Miranda Oldroyd 11:13 (40lb db).

As Rx'd: 6:12**

**I had an equipment malfunction on the GHD. On my second round of 30 GHDs the foothold came undone and slid down about 2-3 notches. I stopped to fix it and lost some time. Ben was timing me and said it was right at 4 seconds to fix it. That would put my time at 6:08, but at the same time I got 4 seconds of recovery. I am going to keep the 6:12 as my benchmark for next time. Just wanted to make a note of the debacle.

I was shooting for sub 6min, but coming off of yesterday's 70+ min disaster of a WOD I will take it. I surprisingly felt pretty good until I hit the 3rd round of GHDs. I hit a monstrous wall. I literally thought I was not going to be able to come back up on a few of the last reps.

My body is screaming for a rest day. My left shoulder has a twinge and my left iliopsoas muscle is screaming. I did some Shoulder Press and Split Jerk as a cash out and had to cut the Split Jerks short due to pain in my shoulder and my hip on the split. I then started to do some handstand walks and could feel the strain when I was fighting to stay balanced.

I was going to do some DU practice, but decided that since that would directly recruit the iliopsoas I decided to call it a day. Lots of yard work to do later and I want to be able to walk...

RJ

Five rounds for time of:
Run 800 meters
15 ft Rope Climb, 5 ascents
50 Push-ups

As Rx'd: 72min and some change…


My loving, and devoted wife, and one of my best friends stopped the watch two separate times a little before I was actually done. It was taking me so long…and from their perspective it probably looked like I was done. I mean I had to sit down and tape up my fingers 3 different times on the last round of rope climbs due to hide coming off. I’m not too upset, I wasn’t setting any land speed records with this WOD.

The WOD soon became a test of will…after the first round my mentality switched to, “I just need to survive and get through this”. Metabolically I should have scaled it, but it is a hero WOD...and I don't think it truly honors them when you scale it. What is an hour and fifteen minutes of misery compared to sacrificing your life for God, family, and country? I wasn't even out of breath in the slightest at the end.
After the fifth 800m run I was at 56min. I was hoping to get it done under an hour, but I hobbled into the weight room and my left quad, groin, and hamstring all cramped up on me. It took me a good 5-8 min just to rub out the cramps enough to continue. I literally could not put any weight on my leg without the muscles seizing up on me.

Truthfully I almost didn’t finish this WOD…I mean all in all, by the end, my hands look like hamburger with several chunks of skin now torn or missing from 5-6 fingers, my left leg has a nice rope burn, and my groin, quad, and hammie on the left side feels like I was kicked repeatedly over and over from cramping up so bad…but I just kept saying this is a small price to pay to honor the fallen.

Sergeant Major Robert J Cottle didn’t quit on us…so I wasn’t going to quit on him. RIP Sergeant Major Cottle.

Overhead Walking Lunges and Burpees

Five rounds for time of:
45 pound barbell Overhead walking lunges, 50 feet
21 Burpees

Let trailing knee gently kiss the ground on each lunge.


As Rx’d: 8:04 (PR’d by 1:35 from 12/09/09)


All my burpees were to games standards (i.e. chest and thighs to deck to body vertical with a jump and overhead clap at the top).


On another note, the lunges were all done with full hip extension at the top and not rolling through. Meaning I was sure to come all the way up and not just cycle through with a bent knee and muted hips. I have seen some fly through WODs containing walking lunges by stopping short at the top of the lunge and then cycling through. Almost as if keeping a bent knee and not coming all the way up...hard to explain, but I wasn't having it. It is faster, but it is not full ROM and therefore not considered Rx'd. I wanted my reps to be games legit so I could rightfully compare my time to others on the MP.

Can Protein Turn into Fat?

I have been dabbling around Dr. Kurt Harris' Website and some of his articles are pretty interesting.

Thought I would share one of my favorites. I have actually heard this question asked and is the title of one of his blog posts. Click on the link below to read through it. It isn't too geeked out that you can't make heads or tails out of it. If you have trouble, just ask...I will try to break it down for you.

http://www.paleonu.com/panu-weblog/2009/8/27/can-protein-turn-into-fat.html


Also, What's all the hype about Omega 6 and Omega 3 Fatty Acids?
http://www.paleonu.com/panu-weblog/2009/6/22/fats-and-oils.html

Overhead Squat 7x1

Buy-in: 8hrs of shopping with the wife

WOD: OHS 7x1 as Rx’d:

185-185-205-225-240-255-275(f)-275(f)-275 (got it!)

I made it to the bottom on the first two attempts at 275 but when I started up I lost it going forward. I took my time before the third attempt. Did some practice reps with the PVC and then gave it a go. It was slow going, but I slowly got to the bottom with out dumping it and it came up surprisingly easy.

I had Amanda stand to the side to make sure I was dropping into the hole and going at or below parallel on each rep.

I decided to stop while I was ahead. 275# is a 10# PR according to my records.


$-Out

6 and 30 DUs and Handstand Walk Practice. I think I have almost got the HS Walks down. I’m no expert, but I PR’d tonight. I was able to walk about 5-7m a couple of times and once I traveled 10-12m unbroken. Felt pretty good.

100m Sprints

In the end I am glad this WOD came up because I learned something today...I wasn't fast when I was 280#...and I'm still not fast at 200# either...


100m Sprints x 10 as Rx'd:


16.86-15.89-15.54-16.13-16.04-16.32-16.18-16.13-15.38-15.20


Avg. time: 15.967


If my memory serves me right, I am pretty sure I ran a 15-16sec 100m back in college when I weighed 280#...weird...geared for power not for speed I guess...

Muscle-Ups, Forward Rolls, Pistol Squats, & Handstand Walks

My first thoughts when I saw this WOD was, “Skill Day!”


Three rounds for time of:
10 Muscle-ups
10 Forward rolls
20 One legged squats, alternating
Handstand walk 20 yards


as Rx’d: 18:06



MUs were done as singles after the first 3-2. Probably could have strung some more together, but I did not want to miss reps due to fatigue later on. May have gamed it a little too much.

The forward rolls had my head spinning. I had to take a few moments to regain my bearings before hopping up on the box for the pistol squats.

Pistol Squats were done on a 20” box so I could get full ROM. I have a hard time doing them on the ground due to inability to keep my leg up and out in front of me.

The Handstand Walks were more like Hand Stand Stumbles, but I got vertical and took about 3-4 steps each time before falling. Funny thing is I almost decided to practice some handstand walks yesterday, but decided to take a complete rest day…

Rows (SDLHPs) and Wall Ball Shots

No rower…1 SDLHP (45#BB) = 10m rowed

For time:
Row 2K (subbed 200 SDLHP) (200 unbroken)
50 Wall-ball shots, 20 pound ball (30-20)
Row 1K (100 SDLHP) (26-35-25-14)
35 Wall-ball shots, 20 pound ball (21-14)
Row 500 meters (50 SDLHP) (31-19)
20 Wall-ball shots, 20 pound ball (20 unbroken)


Otherwise as Rx’d: 16:57


Breakdown of my reps are noted above. I was shooting for 175 on the 200 SDLHP and when I got to 175 I knew I could gut out the last 25. Made for a tough 50 Wall-balls following though. I stepped away from the bar too much on the middle round of SDLHPs.


If I don’t see another SDLHP for a couple of cycles it won’t hurt my feelings any. I’ve to get a rower…those things are for the birds…


Word to the wise boys...get your mind right and go to your happy place on this one...

SDLHPs and Body Weight Bench Press

No rower…1 SDLHP (45#BB) = 10m rowed

For time:
Row 500 meters (50 45#BB SDLHP) Unbroken
Body weight Bench press, 30 reps (12-6-4-4-4)
Row 1000 meters (100 45#BB SDLHP) Unbroken
Body weight Bench press, 20 reps (6-3-3-2-2-2-2)
Row 2000 meters (200 45#BB SDLHP) 75-30-35-35-25
Body weight Bench press, 10 reps (7-2-1)

as Rx’d: 17:48 (PR)


5/18/09 time @ 220#: 24:36 PR by 6:12 but I also benched 25# less each rep and round this time. Apples to oranges I guess…really was hoping for sub 16 or so.


Bench gave me a lot of trouble today. Going into it I planned on doing 20-10, 10-10, 10 for the three rounds of bench, but as you can see above that it didn’t really work out like I had planned. I can tell I haven’t benched in a while. I was a little concerned going into it about how my pec would feel/hold up, but it held up well. Just lacked endurance, power, strength, stamina…insert whatever you want…on bench today.


SDLHPs were bad, but I am surprised at being able to string together as many as I did. I wasn’t expecting to be able to get the second round of 100 unbroken or 75 on the first part of the 200.


I think I am going to start throwing bench in once a week just for pride's sake...nothing more...


I also need to work back up to where I was cranking out 40-60 push-ups a pop and totaling 200-300 push-ups a day again.

Elizabeth

Day 4 of PaNu approach to Nutrition. BW: 195.2

21-15-9 reps of:
Squat Clean 135 pounds
Ring dips


As Rx'd (Squat Cleans): 8:09


I may be comparing Apples to Oranges here. The last time I did Elizabeth with the Rx'd weight and reps on Squat cleans but did a 3:1 bar dip sub for ring dips. My best time using the aforementioned sub was 10:51.


Today was 2:42 faster but I did less reps on dips...


I have changed my diet a bit and dropped about 5#'s in the past couple of weeks...not sure whether or not that is affecting me or not. I have felt pretty good for the most part, but today I didn't feel like I had any gas in the tank after the first round. Enough of the excuses though...shooting for sub 8 next time.

Pull-ups, Push-ups, and Body Squats

15 rounds for time of:
5 Pull-ups
10 Push-ups
15 Squats


as Rx’d: 8:02


I had Amanda time me and count my rounds for me. I thought I could break 8 min. I think I lost most of my time in the squats…but I can say they were legit full ROM. Push ups were legit chest-to-deck and lock out at the top. Used a Butterfly kip for the Pull-ups sans a few regular kips in the beginning when I lost my rhythm.

Deadlift 5x5

WU: 135-225-275


Work Sets:
335-360-385-410-430f (3.5 reps)-385


My form went out the window on the 4th rep of 430#. I got it above the knees but my back was pretty rounded. I might have been able to fight through it to lock it out, but I want to be able to do tomorrow’s WOD…so I dropped it and will live to fight another day.

Check This Out!

A while back a guy on the message boards sent me this link, http://www.paleonu.com/get-started/ . I misplaced it until the other day and have now reconnected. I am going to try and apply as many of the recommendations from the list as possible. I will post updates to let you know how it goes.

I don't really care about losing weight, I just want to be healthier, lower my body fat, but maintain my level...or even increase my level of performance.

The ideas are very counter cultural, but I hey...since when do I care what culture says??

Here are some other posts from the blog you might find interesting

Why we don't need carbs or "carb loading" for athletes
http://www.paleonu.com/panu-weblog/2009/5/18/there-are-no-essential-carbohydrates-even-for-athletes.html

The PaNu approach and CrossFit Training
http://www.paleonu.com/panu-weblog/2009/12/25/panu-eating-and-high-intensity-training.html

Am I 100% on board with all his recommendations...not necessarily...but I am willing to give it an honest go and see what happens.

I did about a 27 hour fast on Tuesday and felt pretty good all day. I may try it again next week...we shall see...

The original link above can be found under my nutrition links as "PaNu" if you ever need to, or want to access it again.

Front Squat, C2B Pull-ups, and Double Unders

Still running a day behind. I may come in later today and do the 5x5 DL WOD, but I may wait until tomorrow too.

Complete as many rounds in 12 minutes as you can of:

185 pound Front squat, 5 reps
10 Chest to bar Pull-ups
20 Double-unders

as Rx'd: 7 + 5 FS + 10 C2B + 13 DUs


As I figured they would be, DUs were the bane of my existence in this WOD. I was able to maintain the C2B PUs unbroken using a butterfly kip for the first 3 rounds. After that I would do 7...dangle and then 3. My last two rounds I did 6-7, dropped and then finished the round.



DUs were unbroken for the first two rounds. I crashed hard on the 3rd round. I couldn't find a rhythm to save my life. I could really tell the C2B pull-ups were affecting my ability to spin the rope. My forarms and grip were fried. On rounds 4 - through 7+ I was stringing together about 4-7 DUs at a time to complete the round.


DU are improving, but I still need to continue practicing these during my WU and $-Outs.

Northeast Regional Qualifier Event 1

Three rounds, 21-15- and 9 reps, for time of

135 pound Overhead squat
Chest to bar pull-ups

as Rx'd: 4:45


All OHS were unbroken. First round of C2B pull-ups were unbroken. Second (5-3-3-2-2) and third (2-2-2-2-1) round of C2B Pull-ups were a different story…



I almost started from the rack but after watching the video on the MP and asking on the boards I found that the Rx’d event at the Qualifier started from the ground so I snatched the weight (except for the last round…it was a wide clean and jerk).


My grip was gone after rep 5 of the 15 C2B pull-ups. I should have gamed this better. I almost stopped at 11-12 on the round of 21, but I felt good and gutted out all 21. I thought I would be okay for the next two rounds…boy was I wrong. In hindsight I should have gamed it better and dropped to shake my arms out after the first 11-12 C2B pull-ups. That might have been enough to fight off grip failure.


I can tell I have not practiced OHS in a while. I was a little shakier than I expected to be. Still a great WOD. Hats off to those who do this in 4min or below!

South Central Regional Qualifier Event 4

For time:

10 Muscle-ups
15 Handstand push-ups
155 pound Squat clean, 20 reps
Run 550 meter**

As Rx'd: 8:10.09


**Note: The little grey post before the last telephone pole on Laird is approximately 550m from the edge of the green turf coming out of the weight room.

PR'd on consecutive MUs with 7. I got a little greedy and went for 8 and about ate it. The left ring swung out and behind me. I'm thankful that I did not rip my shoulder out of socket. In hindsight I think I should have stopped and shook it out after 5 and then finished with 5. I got the 8th and 9th MUs consecutively, missed the 10th and had to regroup. Lost some time there pacing and shaking the arms out.

HSPUs were broken 11-4. Not sure why I did that. I had it in the tank to crank out all 15...guess I was looking ahead too much to the Squat Cleans. I knew they would be the toughest part of the WOD. They weren't as bad as I thought they would be. I felt pretty strong and solid on them. I did break them up 5-5-5-5 tryng to save my lungs and legs for the 550m run.

The first half of the run was more of a shuffle until my legs and hips finally opened up. The second half was much better. I actually looked and felt like I was running. I should have pushed it harder on the first half...like always...

In hindsight, I think I may have gamed this one a little too much in the middle...and maybe not enough in the beginning with the MUs. Oh well...live and learn...

$-out: Double Under Practice. Hit a new PR for consecutive DUs (44). Previous best was 38. Hoping to get 50 unbroken next time.

Northwest Regional Qualifier Event 4

No Rower: Standard Sub is 1 Burpee = 1 Calorie Row

For time:
Row 30 calories (30 Burpees)
95 pound Thruster, 30 reps
20 foot Rope climb, 3 ascents (touched the I-beam on all ascents)
30 Kettlebell swings, 1.5 pood
Row 20 calories (20 Burpees)
115 pound Thruster, 20 reps
20 foot Rope climb, 2 ascents (the I-beam on ascents)
20 Kettlebell swings, 1.5 pood
Row 10 calories (subbed 10 Burpees)
135 pound Thruster, 10 reps
20 foot Rope climb, 1 ascent (I was about 3-5 feet short of the I-beam on this ascent.)
10 Kettlebell swings, 1.5 pood

On the last rope climb my grip was toast. I hung there for a few seconds with my feet locked in and tried to shake out my grip...I was completely at a loss. I was about 12 feet or so in the air and could not get myself to budge at all. I was literally stuck. I did not have the grip strength to even hold on long enough to bring my feet up and regrip. I didn't want to risk falling and breaking a leg so I came down.


I stood around and stared at the rope for a few seconds until I decided to go ahead and finish the WOD and come back to it after the KB swings. 
Everything except Rows as Rx’d: 18:14 (with the last climb being 3-5’ short of the I-beam.)

I kept the clock running and did the last 20’ climb after the 10 KB swings and finished in 20:20....this put a damper on the whole WOD for me...can't really say it is legit because I DNF the rope climb within the parameters of the WOD. I did the work, but not within the confines of the WOD requirements. I probably should have come back down and then shook it out and reclimbed but I made a split decision and now I have to live with it. Still a good workout...just a bitter taste in my mouth...

800m Repeats

Four rounds, each for time of:

800 meter run

Rest as needed between efforts.


First I did some weighted pull-ups with Ben...

5x5
25-45-60-70(3)-60-65


Then I did some double under Practice...
12-27-33-38...which is a new PR for me.


Then the dreaded 800's
Today's times (6/4/10):
3:11.61-3:22.97-3:28.98-3:30.22

Last time (11/1/09):
3:20.10-3:24.92-3:31.38-3:32.80

Rested 3-4 min between runs.


Total time running was 13:33.78 (13:49.20)...15-16 second overall PR. My rest time last time was the same...somewhere between 3-4 min.


Think I am gonna try that WOD posted by Andy a few days back...Taking a rest day tomorrow to head down to SDC.

Randy

75 pound Power snatch, 75 reps for time.

as Rx'd: 3:37

(PR from 4:10 back in July '09)

I read the article on the MP about various ways to do a snatch and I did mostly muscle snatches minus a few power snatches when I started to fatigue at the end. Posterior chain and grip is toast.

I did 45 unbroken before I started pausing with the weight overhead. Cranked out about 3-pause-3-pause until about 55-56 or so and then I was doing couplets and singles with a little pause on the deck. My goal was to keep moving. 

The Seven

Seven rounds for time of:
7 Handstand push-ups
135 pound Thruster, 7 reps
7 Knees to elbows
245 pound Deadlift, 7 reps
7 Burpees
7 Kettlebell swings, 2 pood
7 Pull-ups


as Rx’d: 28:37


This WOD was a first in a long time where I had to stop and sit-down to catch my breath in the middle of a WOD. It kicked my rear. The thrusters were, by far, the worst part. Everthing was done unbroken, but there were several rests between exercises.

I may...may...try to do the 800s tomorrow in the afternoon...may...

Shoulder Press 5x5

115-135-150-165-175-185(2)-135

On rep 2 of the 185 I had a slight bounce at the bottom and that was my signal that I was done. Don't want to be a cheater. Last time we did 5x3 I did 185x3. Not sure how 175x3 compares to that. I may do the Sevens tomorrow depending on what the MP WOD is. Or I may just catch it next time around...

Nutts

Finally back in town and it feels great. I decided to give Nutts a go this morning and will hit the Shoulder Press Later this afternoon when I pick up Cael from summer school. He likes to to to the weight room with Dad.


For time:
10 Handstand push-ups (unbroken)
250 pound Deadlift, 15 reps (unbroken)
25 Box jumps, 30 inch box (slow and steady and unbroken)
50 Pull-ups (35-15…should have pushed through to 40 but I was looking down the road)
100 Wallball shots, 20 pounds, 10’ (25-25-15-15-12-8…lots of character failures)
200 Double-unders (HA…too many breaks to remember. I think I strung together around 5-8 at a time on average)
Run 400 meters with a 45lb plate. (I called upon the experience from my former days as a 280# O-lineman and reinstated the Hog Trot…it was more of a shuffle than a run)


as Rx’d: 26:35


Hit a wall on the Wall Balls and Double Unders. I started the DUs around 10-11 min in. Started the 400m shuffle around the 21-22 min mark. I can tell I have been out of sorts for the last few days. My hips feel pretty fatigued and tired. Good to be back in a somewhat regular routine though.


$-Out: Mowing the lawn and power washing the house…might even set a corner post later today if I have time…