Wednesday

AM
6 sets:
500m row @ 1:59.0-1:59.9/500m
:90 rest (6:00 after set 3)

PM
3 sets not for time:
15 glute-ham sit-ups
2 muscle-ups
+
A. Power clean, build quickly to a heavy single
+
5-4-3-2-1 for time:
Strict handstand push-ups
Power cleans, 90% of A

AM

1:59.5

1:58.5

1:59.5

1:59.2

1:59.6

1:59.5

PM

complete
+
A. 175, 185F
+
8:42 @ 157

Finally felt strong on the rows this morning (it's been a while). Had a hard time settling into 1:59 until the final 2 rows; was at 1:56-1:57 or 2:00-2:01 on the first 4 and I just made it average out to 1:59 (or 1:58..oops), but the last 2 didn't bounce around nearly as much.

Muscle-ups felt better than they have in a long time.  Major off-season goal: proficiency.  And learning how to kip the dip.

Very weird day for power cleans - the bar felt heavy, but I was doing a much better job of getting lower instead of getting wider to catch it.  Only tried 185 once; just pulled and didn't get under it at all.  157 felt like 177 during the FT piece, I don't like how heavy these felt... 155 should be a no-brainer weight for me to hit every time, but today I had to think about it each time and quite a few were pretty ugly.  

Opened with 5 strict handstand push-ups again!!  So glad that something good came out of all this Regionals prep.  Singles the rest of the way through, failed 2 reps on the round of 4 but other than that these felt good.  It would have taken me 8:00 just to accumulate 15 reps a few weeks ago, so this is cool. 

Super excited for my weekend off... I honestly don't know what I'm going to do with myself. Looking forward to some new goals and new priorities in the off-season. 

Tuesday

AM
shoulder prep
+
30:00 AirDyne @ Z1, off every 5:00 for 2 dead hang to inverted

PM
A. Squat snatch gauntlet, 1 every :90 starting @ 95 and adding 5 every :90
B. Handstand walk, 1 x 100' for time
+
3 rounds for even times:
400m run hard
21 wall balls, 14 to 10'
3 rope climbs
4:00 walk rest
+
10:00 AirDyne @ Z1

AM
complete

PM

A. 135 (PR +5), 140Fx2

B. 1:01 (50/40/10)

+

6:04

7:15

7:41 

+

complete 

HOORAY FOR A SNATCH PR!! Gauntlets are the best. These felt great today. I spent a little extra time doing some scap work this morning that I've neglected a bit over the past few weeks and I think that made a big difference in staying tight through the turnover. Really hope I don't have to wait another 12 months for the next 5lbs. 

Handstand walk has gotten faster; I really tried to kick up before I felt ready at the turn around. Lost track of where I was, I thought I was at the 30' mark on the way back and I knew I didn't have another 20' in me, so I came down on purpose, but it was actually the 40' mark and I coulda/shoulda just finished it. I kicked back up really quickly though and this didn't add any significant time. 

First round of the run/wallball/rope climb thing felt great - ran in 1:50, wallballs unbroken, and deliberate rest on the rope climbs (STILL not confident doing these under fatigue, but they are objectively much better). Ran the second 400m in 1:49 and came in and promptly hit a wall. I don't know if it was the humidity or what, but I just died. Wallballs still unbroken, but the resting at the rope got to be ridiculous. Third round was awful; run in 2:01, wallballs still unbroken but took a really long time before picking up the ball, and lots of staring at the rope wishing it was over. 

One more training day, then a much-needed break. This is the first time in 4 years that I really feel like a break is needed from a mental standpoint. 

Monday

30:00-60:00 aerobic recovery of choice, VERY easy - hike, bike, or swim

75:00 walk with Chelsea @ the Loveland Bike Trail

Sunday

AM
A. Muscle-up, accumulate 7 on the rafter rings
B. Hang clean, build quickly to a tough single
+
For time:
49 glute-ham sit-ups
35 CTB pull-ups
21 hang cleans, 135

PM
For time:
30 row calories
:60 top of deadlift hold, 205
30 strict handstand push-ups
:60 top of handstand hold
30 toes-to-bar
:60 hang from bar
50' axle overhead walking lunge, 105


AM
A. 6 complete on normal rings, 4 fails on rafter rings
B. 175 power (PR +10), 185 squat
+
13:45

PM
27:43


Today was a great day! So much better than last week. It's amazing how much stress has been lifted since I finished interviewing and made a decision for the next phase of my life.  Also, seeing the light at the end of the tunnel for starting the off-season helps.  I haven't had 2 consecutive days off since July, and I'm very much looking forward to a little break.

Muscle ups felt great today (especially for a Sunday). Wanted to complete most of the reps today instead of flailing around on the rafter rings for an hour, which was probably the correct choice considering I STILL can't get one on the rafter rings.  

Hang cleans didn't feel as great as last week, but I moved the 175lb bar better than last week and was able to catch it above parallel.  185 was SUPER ugly, but I think it was because I didn't warm up a hang squat clean at all, I jumped from the 175 power to the 185 squat, whereas last week I stripped a little weight, hit one easy hang squat clean at something like 155, then bumped back up to 185.  I still get wider instead of getting lower when the power cleans get heavy, which is why I feel like I should have warmed up the hang squat clean again today.

Glute-ham sit-ups felt great in the beginning - did 21 without stopping or slowing at all, then got super dizzy and had to stop much more frequently.  I think these took exactly 3:00 (SO SLOW, jeez).  Wanted to practice butterfly CTBs, so this piece took a large chunk of time, but then I ended up resting way too long between sets of 3 so for the last 10 or so I just hit quick singles so that it would be over with.  Opened with 7 hang power cleans (PR!) then 5, but then I faded badly - my legs got really tender where the bar bounces off of them so I started hesitating before stringing reps together, and then by the end I did doubles and I think singles?  This was stupid, but the bruises are no joke - my legs are going to look like Chelsea's.  I don't know why they bruised so easily/quickly today.  It's probably leukemia.

Rested about 60:00 between AM and PM.

Rowed at 900+ cal/h. The deadlift hold SUCKS.  OMG, I was not prepared for how terrible that would feel.  The bar was literally slipping out of my hands (even with a mixed grip/hook grip).  Broke all the holds into 0:30/0:30.  Got to the wall and hit 5 strict handstand push-ups EASILY... what?! That was shocking.  A few doubles after that, then all singles.  Through 15 felt great, 15-25 slowed way, way down, and it felt like the last 5 reps took longer to accumulate than the first 25 reps together.  My shoulders just felt completely fried, and I think I failed 4 or so throughout the last 15.  Started with 6's on the toes to bar, then a 5/4/3 to finish.  Axle lunge unbroken, I'm surprised my shoulders were able to keep the bar overhead because they were so tired by this point.  Glad that's over.  Wouldn't be sad if that's the last I see of this event... 

Saturday

AM
8 sets:
200m run @ high effort
2:00 walk rest
+
10:00 thoracic extension & rotation work

PM
A. Squat snatch, take your time and build to a max
+
For time:
250' handstand walk
+
15 sets:
:30 AirDyne @ 90% aerobic
:30 AirDyne @ 50%

AM
@ Withrow 

0:42

0:40

0:41

0:41

0:45

0:43

0:44

0:43

PM

A. 125, 130F, 127, 130F

+

6:07

+

complete 


Running felt great through 4 sets this morning, then legs started to get really heavy and couldn't quite find the same speed on the last 4 sets.  Definitely felt the shorter rest... eesh.  Felt really rough for a few minutes after the last set.

Snatches felt soft and sloppy, not crisp at all. 

Handstand walk took FOREVER, every time I would come down I just felt no sense of urgency in kicking back up. First 60' unbroken, then mostly 30' chunks. Maybe next time I'm at the track I will go for a max distance, I definitely feel like I could go much farther than 60' if I had a straight shot. 

Friday

AM
5 rounds for time:
9 deadlifts, 165
9 CTB pull-ups, mandatory sets of 3 unbroken throughout

PM
For 21:00:
1st: 7 muscle snatches, 55
2nd: 1 rope climb
3rd: 5 thrusters, 75
+
20:00 AirDyne @ Z1

AM

8:35

PM

complete

AM session was more like 5 rounds @ 80% - all deadlifts easily unbroken, and butterfly is coming along nicely.  Took quite a bit of time between sets of 3 - was more interested in hitting quality butterflied sets than the time. Only two sets of 3 throughout the whole thing that weren't in rhythm (one was Conner's fault, he jinxed me). 

EMOM felt good, plenty of rest between movements. I still think the muscle snatches are the worst part. 

Thursday

30:00-60:00 aerobic recovery of choice

30:00 AirDyne complete

Would have preferred to swim, but ended up having a hectic day...

Wednesday

AM
10 sets:
500m row @ 2:00.0-2:00.9/500m
:90 rest (6:00 after set 5)

PM
3 sets not for time:
12 glute-ham sit-ups
2 muscle-ups - try these on the rings hanging from the rafters
+
A. Hang power clean, build quickly to a moderate/tough double
+
For 12:00:
Evens: :20 row @ 900 cals/hr
Odds: 1-2 strict handstand push-ups + :10 handstand hold
+
For 12:00:
Evens: 5 toes-to-bar + :10 hang from bar
Odds: 10' axle overhead walking lunge, 105

AM

2:00.6

2:00.6

2:00.6

2:00.6

2:00.7

2:00.7

2:00.8

2:00.8

DNF

PM

complete(ish) 

only 4 total muscle-ups, all on my normal rings 

+

A. 165

+

complete 

2 across 

+

complete 


UGH, I'm sorry for not finishing the rows this morning.  There was really no good reason for not finishing, other than it started to really suck.  I don't know if I would have been able to hold on for the last two, but I didn't even try.  I grabbed the handle to start the 9th and then just put it back.  Felt like shit this morning - after a 12 hour interview day yesterday, which was mentally exhausting, and not having enough food or water throughout the day, then having a cocktail at dinner and sleeping like shit, all this added up to make it more unpleasant than usual this morning.  Not making excuses, just noting the factors that contributed to making the decision to be a quitter.

Muscle-ups on the rings from the rafters was a complete failure.  I didn't count how many I attempted, but it may have been close to 20.  At one point I tried one muscle-up on my normal rings just to be sure that I could still DO a muscle-up, and I could, and from that point I alternated several failed attempts on the rafter rings with one successful muscle-up on my normal rings.  I felt like I couldn't turn over as aggressively on the rafter rings; a couple were close but just a hair shy (wide, I guess?) of being controlled at the bottom of the dip.  Plus there was that one rep where I overrotated and fell through the rings.  That's the second time I've done that and it's scary as hell.  Anyway. The 4th successful muscle-up took pretty much all I had left; I caught it SUPER low and the dip took approximately 7 and a half minutes to lock out.  Failed a couple of attempts (on the normal rings) on the 3rd set and just called it, I knew I was done for the day with these.

Glute-ham sit-ups are definitely getting easier and easier with the continued exposure.

Hang power cleans felt excellent.  Love the quick bounce at the hips.  Could have done a 3rd at this weight.

Strict handstand push-ups are definitely better with wider hands and also hands farther away from the wall - pretty much at the border of the 24" by 34" box.

Row, toes to bar and axle lunges were all fine and easy.

Feeling extremely grateful and lucky to have been able to make the choice to stay in Cincinnati for the next several years; CSC, the people at CSC, and the ways that I've grown and changed as a result of being at CSC make up 97% of the reason I choose to stay.  The other 3% is the minor detail of cost of living.  I guess the science here is pretty cool, too.  Love this place.

Tuesday

shoulder prep
+
30:00 AirDyne @ Z1, off every 5:00 for 5 thrusters @ 75 + 1 rope climb

complete

Crazy to think that this time last year, 1 rope climb every 5:00 stressed me out.

Monday

30:00-60:00 aerobic recovery of choice, VERY easy - hike, bike, or swim

30:00 swim complete 

Sunday

AM
A. Hang clean, build quickly to a tough single
+
For time:
35 glute-ham sit-ups
7 muscle-ups
21 hang cleans, 135

PM
For time:
30 row calories
30 strict handstand push-ups
30 toes-to-bar
50' axle overhead walking lunge, 105

AM

A. 165 power, 185 squat

+

13:57 with no successful muscle-ups

PM (same session)

22:45

165 hang power clean felt super easy - pulled it right into the neck. Failed the hang power clean at 175 (out in front), so switched to hang squat clean.  I can't just "get under it" - these still feel like two different movements to me.  185 hang squat clean was very easy, deadlifted 195 and chickened out.

Glute-ham sit-ups done in 1:55 - still way too slow, but better than last week.  Failed 4 muscle-up attempts, even with ample rest, and I was at the rings for close to 10:00. I was getting very frustrated and wanted to move on.  So I did.  Opened with a set of 5 hang power cleans, then all 2s and 3s.

After the AM session was over, I had gotten frustrated to the point of tears.  It's been harder than I expected to do the team workouts alone, and then to do so poorly on them.  Stephen reminded me that this is all just training, and that I'm doing things that I need to work on anyway.  He also said that I am on the roller coaster of frustration in regards to muscle-up proficiency, and this is just a low point.  Thanks, Stephen.  I'm sorry for crying in your office.

With a bit of an attitude adjustment, the PM piece went much better - after all, it's just training.  Rowed in just under 2:00 (900+ cal/h).  All singles on the strict handstand push-ups, but no fails!  These took 16:00, I didn't watch the clock but must have been going one every 0:30 or so.  Toes to bar and lunges both went much better than last week - 6's on the TTB, and lunges unbroken.  

Saturday

AM
6 sets:
200m run @ high effort
3:00 walk rest
+
10:00 thoracic extension & rotation work

PM
:60 to establish a max snatch (mandatory men's bar, you can load the to your desired starting weight before the clock starts)
6:00 rest
100' handstand walk for time
+
10 sets:
:30 AirDyne @ 90% aerobic
:30 AirDyne @ 50%

AM
@ Withrow
0:43
0:43
0:43
0:43
0:42
0:41

PM

125

+

1:07 (60'/40')

+

complete 

Enjoyed the track work this morning - needed the change of scenery. The 3:00 walk rest was perfect timing to make it the 200m back around to the start.

Snatches didn't feel great today, the 125 was really ugly. Tried to hit 125 a second time within the minute but couldn't get under it. 

Handstand walk went better than last week, I definitely prefer a longer first leg. The last 10' were very slow but made it without falling. 

Friday

AM
On an 18:00 running clock:
Every :60 for 9:00: 5 unbroken deadlifts, 165
Every :60 for 9:00: 5 CTB pull-ups, unbroken for as long as possible

PM
For time:
45 power snatches, 55
5 rope climbs
30 thrusters, 85
+
20:00 AirDyne @ Z1

AM

complete

PM

12:22

+

complete 

Deadlifts were easy.  CTBs were okay - butterfly wasn't as good as it was the other day, but still hit maybe 5/9 sets with all 5 in rhythm.  All sets unbroken even if I had to reset the kip.

Found it impossible to care on the PM piece. Just not interested. 

Thursday

30:00-60:00 aerobic recovery of choice

mobility @ home

+

90:00 walk through Spring Grove cemetery while my car was in the shop 

Totally overwhelmed by the history and peacefulness... Completely relaxing, despite getting a little bit lost. 

Wednesday

AM
9 sets:
500m row @ 2:00.0-2:00.9/500m
:90 rest (3:00 after sets 3 & 6)

PM
3 sets not for time:
12 glute-ham sit-ups
2 muscle-ups
+
A. Hang power clean, build quickly to a moderate/tough triple
+
For 10:00:
Evens: :20 row @ 900 cals/hr
Odds: 1-2 strict handstand push-ups + :10 handstand hold
+
For 10:00:
Evens: 5 toes-to-bar + :10 hang from bar
Odds: 10' axle overhead walking lunge, 105

AM

2:00.7

2:00.6

2:00.6

2:00.6

2:00.7

2:00.5

2:00.6

2:00.5

2:00.5

PM
complete, 90" rings

+

A. 155

+

complete

950-1050 cal/h

2 across (!)

+

complete 

Dear lord, these row intervals are getting to be extremely unpleasant.  I don't know what was wrong with me this morning, but I felt like I had no power in any of my muscles, and to keep the pace I had to make up for it aerobically.  Stroke rate was much higher than usual (>30) and, usually, when I start, I get down to the low 1:50s then settle in to the correct pace, but today I never got the faster pace in the first few pulls and had to really work to keep it between 1:59-2:01 for the whole distance.  Gross.

First set of GHD sit-ups was awful, I am still a bit sore from Sunday and it felt like things were ripping within my abdomen (probably an appendix), but the second and third sets were fine.  Jumped to the 90" rings for the muscle-ups - missed the first attempt, but then made the remainder without misses.

Really happy with the hang power cleans - I've never done these at "heavy" weights before the practice last Sunday, so I wasn't really sure where I'd end up.  I was able to bounce these quickly without pausing, but feet started to go wide on the second and third reps, so I called it here for the day.  This was fun!

Couldn't find 900 cal/h on the row, so just rowed at what felt comfortable, which ended up being a little higher.  So happy with the strict handstand push-up improvement! I forced myself to widen my hands just a couple of inches (this is horrible from a gymnastics standpoint, but necessary for this I think), and that made a huge difference.  Still within the 34" box.

The last EMOM was a bit of a struggle, my hands are fucking wrecked (I keep ripping the same spots deeper and deeper), so the toes to bar were miserable, and I got a very weird cramp in one glute on the first set of the lunges, which made these unpleasant.  Cleaned the axle without problems for 4 sets, but the 5th set was weird, I missed the clean but didn't drop it, then mixed-grip-hang-cleaned it, which was probably the ugliest thing in history.

Tuesday

AM
shoulder prep
+
30:00 AirDyne @ Z1, off every 5:00 for 5 thrusters @ 85 + 5 CTB pull-ups

PM
A1. Snatch, 1-1-1; 2:00 rest
A2. Handstand walk, 3 x 50'; 2:00 rest
+
3 sets:
400m run hard
20 wall balls, 14 to 10'
3:00 walk rest
+
10:00 AirDyne @ Z1

AM

complete; CTBs were butterflied!

PM

A1. 125, 130F, 130F

A2. complete, unbroken 

+

2:53 (1:56)

2:52 (1:54)

2:52 (1:53)

+

complete 

I've gotten fairly proficient with sets of 5 kipping CTB pull-ups, so I wanted to use this morning to practice butterfly - great success!  4 sets of 5 in rhythm, plus a 4/1 and a 3/2 (without dropping off the bar, just reset the kip). This is very exciting.  Just like everything else, it's all about patience and using the hips.  Funny how this is the recurring theme.

Snatches felt great, even with a men's bar! 125 was easy (jumped 95, 115, 125); caught the first 130 but lost it behind; just pulled the second 130 and chickened out on getting under it. 

Handstand walking was totally easy, even with lifting shoes and wrist wraps on for the first 2 sets. 

Paced the run slightly better than I did on Saturday, this was maybe 90-92% effort. This definitely qualified as hard, but I could have run a little faster (story of my life). All wallballs unbroken and fairly easy. Other than pulling up my knee sleeve, I had no problems immediately picking up the ball. 

Nice day :)

Monday

30:00-60:00 aerobic recovery of choice, VERY easy - hike, bike, or swim

30:00 swim complete

Sunday

AM
For time:
50 glute-ham sit-ups (get split here)
5 muscle-ups
15 hang power cleans, 135

PM
A. Strict handstand push-ups, 10 x 1-2; begin a set every :60
+
For time(s) - get after movement:
30 row calories
30 toes-to-bar
50' axle overhead walking lunge, 105

AM
14:39 (3:12, 11:55)

PM
A. complete, all singles
+
6:27 (1:39; 4:40)


Today was really tough.  I was extremely sore going into it (mostly from the GHD sit-ups from Friday), and was not expecting to do very well on anything.  The moral of the story: I'm so relieved to be the alternate.  Hoping all female appendices remain intact.

The 50 GHD sit-ups were MISERABLE.  My abs are so sore that I was waking myself up last night every time I rolled over (which was a lot), and the stretch when reaching back to touch the plate was excruciating each time.  Did these in 5x10, but everything was really slow.  This was literally all I had today; I'm really hoping that with continued exposure the soreness won't be this severe again, and this is all just because it's been so long since I've done these.  

Failed the first 3 muscle-up attempts, and I got very worried.  I had absolutely zero strength or stability in my core at all.  Finally hit one muscle-up (caught it as low as humanly possible), and each one after that got better and better (no fails once I got the first one).  I was resting about 0:60 before each attempt here.  Also, I just used rings at my regular height - I was worried enough about muscle-ups under fatigue and on a Sunday morning, so I wanted to give myself any advantage I could get on this workout.   The hang power cleans were surprisingly tough - I wanted to hit 3 sets of 5, but I was only able to do 3 sets of 3 and 3 sets of 2.  This whole workout was terrible and demoralizing.

The PM session was also terrible.  No fails on the strict handstand push-ups, but never even tried for a double (it wouldn't have happened).  Rowed at 1100 cal/h, which felt really good and sustainable for much longer.  Toes to bar were a disaster - all sets of 5, but I couldn't kip - my abs and core were just fried.  So these were pretty much strict.  Also I have 3 hand tears from this morning, so this whole piece was unpleasant.  It should not take me 3 minutes to accumulate 30 toes to bar, and it wouldn't on any other day, but the combination of everything this weekend just made these miserable.  The axle lunge was harder than I expected; failed the clean the first time, then cleaned it with a mixed grip the second time.  I refused to drop the axle throughout the 50' because I was afraid I wouldn't be able to clean it again.  Side note, the axle was loaded to 110lbs.

Ok, I'm done whining.  I knew these workouts would be tough for me, and I'm looking forward to repeating some of these things next week and improving.  Despite my poor performance, this was a really fun day with Chels and Mark and Lea and Brandie and Jessie and Stephen and poor Austin in his hospital bed.  Get better soon, buddy!

Saturday

AM
For time:
800m run - this is the important piece here, go as fast as possible while still being able to hit 50 wall balls under 3:00
50 wall balls, 14 to 10

PM
:60 to establish a max snatch (mandatory men's bar, you can load to your desired starting weight before the clock starts)
6:00 rest
100' handstand walk for time

AM
complete; run in 4:04

PM
125, 130F
+
1:20

Today was so much fun!  I LOVE doing these team-style workouts.  I know I said I was fine being the alternate, but I'm going to be super jealous of the team training together without me next weekend :(  I really hope that Stephen pairs me up with whoever the male alternate ends up being and we can participate throughout the next few weeks, too.  Also, I would really enjoy some team pieces sprinkled in throughout the year... it's just a really refreshing change of pace.

The run/wallball workout was actually pretty easy - I did not follow directions and paced the run quite a bit.  I'd call this a nice 85% - if Stephen has me repeat this, I can run quite a bit faster.  I haven't run much at all since last summer, and what I have done is all at a Z1 pace, so I was way too cautious. Wallballs broken 25/10/8/7, and I coulda/shoulda hung on for a bigger opening set.  I could probably do 35/15 without a problem.  The 14lb ball felt light as a feather after all the 20lb wallball shots over the past several weeks!  (I didn't get my total time, I knew Stephen was timing us all, but I have no idea where I finished.)

I was very concerned about snatching with a men's bar - snatching isn't my best move to begin with, and I've never done any Olympic lifting with a men's bar.  My hands are too small to hook grip it, so I was pretty shocked that I was able to snatch 125.  For me, I feel like the 0:60 window is too short for to add weight and make a second attempt - 2 attempts at the same weight would work if I miss the first lift, but adding the plates today ended up being really stressful and taking up too much time, and I wasn't focused for the 130 lift at all.  I really didn't mind the men's bar when all was said and done!

We split the 100' handstand walk into 2x 50' - the first 50' was easy and unbroken, and felt pretty fast.  I definitely could have kept going.  Coming down and kicking back up made the second 50' much more difficult - I could feel my form getting really shitty and my arms just felt really heavy.  Speed slowed way down, and I fell at either the 30' or 40' mark, not sure which.  If we repeat this, I'd prefer to try to go the maximum distance unbroken that the size of the gym allows (maybe 70'?) with a shorter second leg.

Anyway, super fun day with awesome teammates!

Friday

AM
9 rounds @ easy effort, I just want you to get in the volume here:
5 unbroken deadlifts, 165
5 unbroken CTB pull-ups
+
3 sets not for time:
10 glute-ham sit-ups

PM
On a running 15:00 clock:
Every :60 for 5:00: 10 power snatches, 55
Every :60 for 5:00: 1 rope climb
Every :60 for 5:00: 7 thrusters, 75
+
20:00 AirDyne @ Z1

AM

complete

PM

complete

Had to be at work super early today, so did the AM at 2:30 and the PM at 5:30.

Deadlifts and CTBs were nice and easy.

10 glute-ham sit-ups at a time are perfectly reasonable; not looking forward to 50 for time on Sunday...

On the 15:00 EMOM, my expectations of which pieces were going to be worst was completely backwards.  I was dreading the rope climbs, but this was by far the easiest movement.  Thrusters were totally easy.  Those power snatches though - those were not pleasant.  I think one of my least favorite movements in CrossFit are light weight, high rep power snatches.  They get me every time.

thoughts / alternate

The team workouts were (finally) announced last night, and it turns out that I'm the alternate for CSC.

I'm relieved.

Being a member of a Regionals team has been a goal of mine since I watched the team train and compete in 2012 (I was less than a year into CrossFit).  Spectating at the 2012 Regionals inspired me to alter my training to treat CrossFit as a sport rather than just fitness.  I've worked really, really hard for the past 3 years in pursuit of that goal (among several others), and I couldn't be happier with my progress.  I've come a loooong way.

I had a conversation with Chelsea in November, in which we were talking about the looming Open, and potentially Regionals, and I commented that I wasn't ready to be on the team this year.  I wanted to contribute to the team score in the Open, but I knew I had too many holes in my game to really be a part of a Regionals team in 2015.  Then, maybe 2 weeks later, I got a muscle-up.  Then, I started to get muscle-ups consistently.  I admit, that shifted my perspective - I thought a team spot in 2015 might be possible.  And I wanted it.  And I was ready to work for it.

This was a good Open for me, I've already recapped that.  I contributed 3 scores for the team, which was pretty cool.  And, since CSC was on the bubble of even qualifying to Regionals, every point mattered and every score was valuable.  I'm really proud of my contributions.

The most stressful part of this whole experience was waiting for Stephen to name the Regionals roster.  We had 5 potential females for 4 spots, and I wanted to be one of the 4 so, so badly.  And I was.  After the roster was posted, I felt a huge sense of accomplishment.  Everything was out of my hands.  Either Brandie or I would be the 3rd, and I knew that would be an easy decision once the workouts were announced, considering we're polar opposites in terms of strengths and weaknesses.  Honestly, I assumed I was the alternate all along, unless by some miracle there was a 1RM back squat (although there probably would have been a legless rope climb buy-in, and I would still be out).  Furthermore, running through the 2014 events last weekend was pretty demoralizing.  Ok, maybe I can do a few muscle-ups now, and a few handstand push-ups, but I'm still not ready.  I contributed to the team's qualification, I was considered to be on the team, and I earned a place on the roster.  For this year, that's enough.  Onward!

(none of you ladies better get hurt; I don't want our team to be time-capped waiting for me to accumulate 30 strict handstand push-ups...)

Thursday

30:00-60:00 aerobic recovery of choice

30:00 swim complete

Wednesday

AM
9 sets:
500m row @ 90%
2:00 walk rest (4:00 after sets 3 & 6)

PM
A. 1 power clean + 2 hang squat cleans + 1 front squat + 2 shoulder-to-overhead, build to a tough set
B. L-sit, 3 x max perfect hold; 2:00 rest
+
3 sets @ 70%:
10m handstand walk
200m run
10 CTB pull-ups - goal is unbroken
2:00 walk rest
+
3 sets @ 70%:
45 double-unders
15 burpees
45 double-unders
2:00 walk rest

AM

1:58.2

1:58.1

1:58.1

1:58.1

1:58.3

1:58.1

1:58.2

DNF

PM

A. 165

B. 0:21, 0:16, 0:17

+

2:35

2:38

2:40

+

3:02

3:02

2:48

Welllll.... I think I found the limit on a sustainable pace for Rowing Wednesday.  These felt great through 5 sets; the 6th started to creep above 90% trying to match the pace I had established.  Wasn't recovered before starting the 7th set (even though I had the longer rest at that point), and this was really, really hard to hold.  Made it 250m through the 8th set and just completely lost it.  It didn't really occur to me to finish out the 8th and 9th sets at a slower pace - seriously, at that point, it would have been like a 2:10 - but Conner and Chelsea both said that's what they would have done, so now I feel like a little bitch.  Sorry, Stephen :(

PM session was nice, but I was exhausted - not sure if it's just because it was the first really warm day of the season, or the harder AM session...

Barbell complex was much harder than I thought it would be. Power cleaned 175, returned it to the hang, and promptly dropped it. 

L-sit was hard today, too. But they were as perfect as I can make them, pointed toes and all. 

The handstand walk + run + CTB workout was quite enjoyable. All unbroken. 

It was really hard to find 70% on the double-under + burpee workout. I was breathing pretty hard throughout the whole thing, and ended up just standing around a lot. Burpees were very slow. But double-unders were better than they have been recently! Still not great, biggest set was 42, but much, much better than they were on Sunday. 

Tuesday

AM
shoulder prep
+
30:00 AirDyne @ Z1, off every 5:00 for 7 thrusters @ 65

PM
For 12:00:
Evens: 1 muscle-up
Odds: 4 tall box jumps
+
For 12:00:
Evens: 2 strict handstand push-ups
Odds: 6 alternating pistols
+
For 12:00:
Evens: 8 tough kettlebell swings
Odds: 8 wall balls, 20 to 10

AM

complete

PM

complete
30" box
+
complete
+
complete
70lb KB


Solid day! Everything felt great.  

Kind of a rude wake-up call to have thrusters first thing in the morning, but after the first set, these were fine and easy.

No fails on the muscle-ups, and these felt better on the fat rings than they have in a while.  Box jumps were really tall on the first couple of jumps, but got used to it once I got into it.

Strict handstand push-ups continue to improve.  2 sets of 2, and only one fail (trying to go for a 3rd set of 2).  Pistols were mostly great.  Knee continues to behave.

Kettlebell swings were tough but no issues.  Wallballs felt pretty easy for the most part.

Monday

90:00 massage

Sunday

For time:
500m row
125 double-unders
25 deadlifts, 185
25 toes-to-bar

12:30, partner-style with Austin 

Errrrrrrrrrrrr.............

I thought Austin and I would SMASH this. Clearly not. I'm sorry, buddy! It was all my fault :(

I started on double-unders, these were shit today and Austin had to wait maybe 0:30 or so for me to finish. Rowed at 2:00 (easy). I think we fucked this up on the deadlifts by trying to hang on too long, at least for me - we planned to do 20/20/10, we should have dropped every 10. We didn't communicate super well and got lost a little bit on the rep count in the middle. The weight wasn't an issue, for me it was all grip by trying to hold on too long, and the bar slipped out of my hands involuntarily on both of my second sets of 5.  This means that grip was completely 100% fried when we got to the toes to bar. I did the 5 first then hung on while Austin went, and we dropped off every 10, but I had to rest way too long before jumping back up every time.  This was horrible.  At the end of every set of Austin's, I was slipping little by little off the bar, and I'm so relieved that I didn't fall early for any sets, but it was close.  This is where we lost the most time, by far.  Chelsea and Brandie were ahead of us coming off the rower (due to my shit double-unders), and maintained that lead throughout the deadlifts, but the TTBs were where the majority of the time differential occurred. Fuck. 

Messed around with some butterfly pull-up practice while everyone else did the last event.  With a little bit of practice, I think I could be somewhat good at these soon.  I should really start practicing, I've said it before and then never really done it.

Sigh.  So much work to do.  Onward.

Saturday

AM
For time:
12 unbroken thrusters, 95
3 rope climbs
9 unbroken thrusters, 95
2 rope climbs
6 unbroken thrusters, 95
1 rope climbs

PM
9-6-3 for time:
Strict handstand push-ups
Hang power cleans, 110
Bar-facing burpees

AM

5:00

PM

16:50 

Home @ CSC!

Thruster/rope climb workout was good.  I think I paced this pretty well... was forcing myself to jump up for each rope climb before I felt ready.  Some of the thrusters got a little slow (pausing at the top), but these weren't bad at all.  Didn't get in trouble on the rope until the very last climb... forearms were SHOT.

Annoyed that things I'm very good at (hang cleans and burpees) are always paired with something I'm very terrible at (strict handstand push-ups).  Stupid CrossFit.  This was approximately 0:50 of work and 16:00 of staring at the wall.  The first round wasn't bad, was back at the wall for the round of 6 at 5:45, but then the 6 strict handstand push-ups took 8 or 9 minutes to complete - an enormous amount of fails.  Hang power cleans were super easy; burpees were easy, too, but I didn't really push the pace on the 9 and 6 because I knew I'd be resting at the wall anyway. To be fair, I did better on this than I thought I would - not sure if I could have even done 18 strict handstand push-ups at this time last year.

NEXT.

Friday

On a running clock:
0:00-6:00 to establish a hang squat snatch max in 3 attempts (1 every 2:00)
6:00-7:00 rest
@ 7:00 complete a max L-sit on parallettes hold
+
For time:
9 muscle-ups
9 clean & jerks, 95
+
10:00 AirDyne easy

@ CrossFit Active Performance

115, 125, 130

0:36

+

8:06

+

Complete on Assault bike 

Really looking forward to running through some of last year's Regional events this weekend! I guess today went as well as could be expected. 

Hang snatches felt great, fast under the bar again (PR +15). So... I've now power snatched 130 and hang snatched 130... I really should be able to squat snatch more than 130.  Bah. 

L-sit was easy until it wasn't. 

Flirted with the idea of stringing muscle-ups together, but they didn't feel as strong as they did earlier in the week. All singles, tried to go one every 0:45. Done at 7:35, clean and jerks all touch and go and easily unbroken.