[moose]

Thursday 25th June
----------------------------------------------------
Strength workout:
- Deadlift: Back to normal - felt good .
Worked up to 4 sets of 5 reps with 150kg (80% of 1RM).
----------------------------------------------------
CF WOD: AMRAP in 20 mins
- Thrusters ×5; Hang Power Cleans ×7; Sumo Deadlift High-Pulls ×10 - all at 45kg
Thought this one looked pretty easy on paper.
20 minutes later and pre-WOD smugness securely wiped off my face.
Finished this one just 4 reps short of 8 rounds.
Must have been putting in some effort - got some "wow - that looks like hard work" comments from a couple of other folks in the gym. Me: completely unable to reply.

Just got home from this workout when No1 son begged me to take him out for "another one of those workout things".
The sweat was still dripping off me, but in this "sit-in-front-of-a-TV-and-turn-to-mush" age, I couldn't say no. These kids are the future you know...
(Jeez - I'm beginning to sound like my dad - all sentences now start with "in my day"!)

So, I picked a "Travel WOD" from CrossFit Fuel's (wfs) selection and off we went.
- Susan: 5 rounds for time of: 200m sprint; 10 squats; 10 push-ups
Threw an extra 200m sprint off to finish (just to get back to where I'd left our stuff), and finished in 7:56.

Today's rating = I'm the Moose of Doom once more!

[moose]

Saturday 27th
No training - enforced day off to do jobs around the house!

Sunday 28th
iCourse at CrossFit London.
A totally awesome day. How they crammed so much into one day I have no idea.
Can't put into words how good this was - if you're reading this and you've not been to the iCourse - get booked!

Monday 29th
I don't think I'll be training today.
My ears and toes seem to be fine, no other part of my body is working as it should.
And the pain - oh the pain....
Damn you iCourse!!!

[moose]

Crushed after seeing photo of myself at the iCourse.
I thought the belly had been shrinking. God was I wrong!
Delicate ego is now in fair amount of pain - at least it matches the pain in my body.

If anyone sees me near junk food, please punch me.

Today's Rating - Jabba (as a 'nice' colleague described me last week...)

[moose]

Tuesday June 30th

Had very painful physio on achilles today. Ouch!

Opted for yesterday's WOD - the CrossFitTotal.
- Squat 155kg
- Press 65kg
- Deadlift 155kg

Very disappointed.
Squat and deadlift were both at least 25kg below best, press 10kg down. Tweaked something in my lower back on the squat with the 155 - an old problem that pops up from time to time - so couldn't go any heavier. With any luck it'll be OK in the morning.

Did another of the Travel WODs with Number 1 and Number 2 sons.
- 10 rounds of 10 burpees / 100m run
Did it in 17:41.
Was very hard work - back (from squats earlier) turned my run into more of a waddle.

Am I pushing things a bit too far? Don't want to take time off, but should I?

Today's rating = Not a very happy bunny!

[moose]

Wednesday 1st July

Couldn't do today's WOD - 10k run today (strict instructions from physio who's treating my achilles!)

Went to gym to work on pull-ups, air squats, press-ups - that kind of thing.

Got my first pull-up!!
It wasn't pretty but it was with a 'normal grip' and ticked all the boxes.
Woohoo!!

Press-ups, squats, all the other stuff went OK too (back still tender from yesterday's shenanigans though)

Also took up the July Thruster challenge from the CrossFit forum.
- 35kg (65lb) thrusters for 9 reps - felt good, so did the next one too.
- 35kg (65lb) thrusters for 15 reps - in for a penny, in for a pound. Went for the 3rd set too
- 35kg (65lb) thrusters for 21 reps
I'll probably regret this when I move up to 45kgg / 95lb next time, but I'm up for it.

Today's rating - a mongoose - I'm up for it again!!

[Gubernatrix]

moose, on Jul 1 2009, 07:30 PM, said:

Got my first pull-up!!
It wasn't pretty but it was with a 'normal grip' and ticked all the boxes.
Woohoo!!

Woohoo indeed! Well done

[moose]

Friday 3rd July

Strength Stuff
Bench - worked up to 4 sets of 6 with 87.5kg.
No pain in dodgy shoulder (for the first time in months), didn't struggle to complete my sets. Quite chuffed.

July's Thruster Challenge
(from CrossFit.com's message board - wfs)
9 x 95lb/45kg
also did (to 'prepare' me for the next session)...
12x 95lb/45kg
12 reps felt like a couple too many. Am I going to struggle in weeks 3 and 4?

WOD
75 power snatches with 75lbs (35kg)
A bit rusty on the technique, a bit out-of-breath, a bit watching-Muzza-play-tennis, but all good fun
15:34

Also managed another dead-hang pull-up. Added a few slow, controlled negatives, and then a good few using a neutral grip.
I think (and I might be putting the kiss of death on this now), I think I might be getting this. I sense a 'click' moment is not too far away...

Today's Rating - I think I'm a Moose again

[moose]

Tuesday 7th July
July Thruster Challenge
I'm on the 2nd week, 2nd workout now - 45kg (95lbs) × 15 reps.
This was OK.

CF WOD
21, 18, 15, 12, 9, 6, 3 reps of Front Squat @ 185lbs/85kg; GHD sit-ups.
Had to scale this one a fair bit.
- Never done a GHD sit-up before, and don't have a GHD bench thing (that might be why I've never done them before )
- Scaled the Front Squat back to 65kg/135lbs - 85kg is my max so I doubt if I'd manage 21 reps...
- Scaled the reps back a bit too
- Essentially this is the "pack" version from CrossFitBrandX
21, 15, 9, 3 reps of Front Squat @ 135lbs/65kg; sit-ups
Did this is 9:23

I enjoyed this WOD a lot. In hindsight, this was probably coz it was too easy. Should have stuck with the regular rep scheme.
But boy oh boy do my wrists and forearms hurt from the front squats (even now - 2 days later)! Does everyone else suffer from this?

Rating - Something with antlers, but not quite a moose I think....

[moose]

Friday 10th July

Strength Stuff
Bench - worked up to 4x4 @ 92.5kg
Deadlift - worked up to 2x4 @ 160kg, 4 @ 165kg, 4 @ 170kg
Well chuffed with this. Only a couple of weeks back (CFT) I couldn't pick up 155 in the deadlift, and here I am doing 4 at 170!.
I'm not complaining, but what's going on?

CF WOD
Picked up on the WOD from Sunday (?)
Shoulder Press 1-1-1-1-1, Push Press 3-3-3-3-3, Jerk Press 5-5-5-5-5
Shoulder Press 60kg, 62.5F, 60, 62.5, 62.5F
Push Press 62.5, 62.5, 62.5, 65, 67.5
Didn't have time to complete the Jerk Presses before another comittment. Poor planning on my part. Bah!
Other presses felt pretty good though.

Did a second WOD
Number 1 son (12 yo) wanted to do some training, so we set off to do Tuesday's (?) 400m, 50 squats for 4 rounds WOD
I scaled the squats to 35 as my hamstrings were twanging quite painfully after the deadlifts earlier.
No 2 and No 3 sons (10 and 7 yo) also tagged along and did some training. Some issues with intensity with these guys - but I'm well impressed that they're at least willing to try.
Have temporarily lost my scrap of paper - but I did this in about 12 mins.

Rating - Solid Moose today!

[moose]

Tuesday 14th July

Strength Stuff
Squat - Worked up to a single with 162½kg.
Was supposed to be doing 3 sets of 3 with that weight, but knees really hurt, for no apparent reason (karate?). So, I went easy to give them a break. Quite happy with 162½ though - last squat session was a nightmare.


CF WOD
Couple of days behind coz of weekend.
Did the WOD from Monday today.
Thrusters 1-1-1-1-1-1-1
Managed 65, 70, 72½, 75, 77½, 80, 80kg.
Very nearly failed the 1st 80kg - 2nd rep I focussed on the hip drive. Big difference!

Also - for a laugh (well, everyone else thought it looked funny ) - I thought I'd play with the pull-up WOD from Saturday
Didn't time it, only did 4 rounds, and scaled it down to a shadow of its former self:
- 3 Strict pull-ups (close grip); 5 band-assisted pull-ups; (no kips)
ROM was laughable, but I worked hard
(anyone have any tips for getting that last quarter of the movement?)
Focussed on the negative element. I'm sure this is doing me some good...?

Rating - Still a Moose today, but no antlers!

[moose]

Wednesday 15th July

Strength Stuff
Deadlift - Worked up to 3 with 170kg, and a single at 175kg.
Was supposed to be doing 3 sets of 3 with 170, but I was feeling fruity after doing so well with DLs last session. Putting the weight up just that little bit was not so smart. Still, I'm not too narked. 175kg is still 175kg.

CF WOD
Nancy - Run 400m, OHS × 15 reps @ 45kg (95lb)
- Scaled the OHS to 35kg. Did a few at 45kg prior to WOD. This really kills my shoulders (very inflexible and very sore). Balance wasn't quite there, so went with a weight I knew I could do 15 reps for. Turned out to be much better than I thought. For future reference, 40kg might have been better.
- Swapped the runs for 500m rows (not running just now - physio says so - achilles problems)
22 mins exactly.

Before doing this WOD, I picked up the July Thruster challenge again...
I've got as far as 45kg for 21 reps (week 2 day 3).
Quite pleased - managed this without breaking into sets. Broke into a sweat though! . Not sure if I'm looking forward to next week though...

Rating - No change. Still a Moose today, but no antlers!

[moose]

Tuesday 21st July

Back in the groove after Fri/Sat/Sun/Mon off for the old man's birthday in the frozen north...

Strength Stuff
Squat Worked up to 170kg for a single
Bench Worked up to 2 × 3 reps at 100kg (body weight)
- this is the final week of an 8-week powerlifting prog - thus the low reps.

CF
Skipped today's Deadlift WOD as I had already planned heavy deadlifts for later this week.

July Thruster challenge: Jumped back in on wk 3 day 1
- 52½kg for 9 reps.
- Also did 52½kg for 12 reps.
Did this unbroken, but it's beginning to get tough...

Also did some light OHS and snatch practice.
45kg for a few single power snatches. These really hurt my inflexible shoulders.

Couple of questions for any FK:UKers who are listening in...
I've no idea if those power snatch numbers are any good at 100kg body weight (my technique is, I think, OK). Any thoughts out there?
Any tips on increasing shoulder flexibility...?

Cheers!

[Chet]

moose, on Jul 22 2009, 10:15 AM, said:

Any tips on increasing shoulder flexibility...?

Nice one mate.

Shoulder dislocates are great for shoulder flexibility for starters - I do them before every workout.

Do you do them just now?

[moose]

Chet, on Jul 22 2009, 12:53 PM, said:

Nice one mate.

Shoulder dislocates are great for shoulder flexibility for starters - I do them before every workout.

Do you do them just now?

Thanks Chet

No I don't do them right now. In fact, I'm really poor at warm-ups and cool-downs of any kind. Might explain why everything always hurts!!
I remember catching you out of the corner of my eye doing discolates at the recent iCourse and wondered if they might be a good idea.

I've recently begun to listen to advice (I always know best !!) so I will begin dislocates forthwith.
Thanks again

[moose]

Wednesday 22nd July

Only had time today for some deadlifts.
Worked up to a single at 177.5kg.

[moose]

Thursday 22rd July

WOD
DT
- 5 rounds of deadlift × 12; hang power clean × 9; push press × 6. All @ 70kg (155lb)
- scaled this down to 55kg as I'm not too comfy with the presses (70kg is my miltary press max) and the HPCs.
Last time out I had trouble hanging on to the bar at 50kg...
- Also, I just noticed, I accidentally did 15 reps for all of the rounds on the deadlift. Not sure if this affected my time though - this is a light DL weight for me

Finished in 14:29
Last time out did 50 kg (and 12 rep DLs!) in 13:44

[moose]

Friday 24th July

Strength Stuff
Bench Press Worked up to 2 sets with 105kg - 2 reps, then 1.
Here endeth my current power routine.
Might leave the power stuff out for a while and concentrate on stuff I'm rubbish at (pull-ups, HSPUs etc...)

CrossFit WoD
"Lynne"
5 rounds for max reps of: body weight bench press; pull-ups
-scaled this one heavily.
Just did bench with body weight+, so no danger of me doing max reps for this. Opted for max reps of prush-up instead.
Still can't consistently do pull-ups. Max reps of ½ wouldn't look too good, so did band-assisted pull-ups to get a good ROM.
27/9; 16/7; 14/4½(!); 12/4; 9/3.
The earlier bench pressing took more out of me than I thought. I'd normally get 35+ max push-ups.
Already frail ego in pieces

Haven't done a rating for a while so...

Today's rating = hamster (frail and weak, mouth stuffed with food)

[moose]

Saturday 25th July

Brought No.1 son along for some olympic lifting coaching
(he "wants to be strong"... he's nearly 13, I think he's getting hormones ).
Seemed to enjoy it, and picked it up OK (well, better than I ever did). Next step, London 2012!!

But what he was really keen to do (and how do I bottle this enthusiasm??), was today's...
...CF WoD
AMRAP in 20 mins
10×Wall balls; 10×GHD sit-ups; 10×Back Extensions
- don't have a wall, or a ball, so subbed for 2×10kg DB thrusters.
- Subbed GHD for normal sit-ups.
- Back extensions as RXd as possible on available equipment (!)
- Son did ½kg thrusters, and floor "supermans" instead of back ext.
We had a...umm.... err.... clock malfunction during this WOD. Like dad forgot to set the timer. Doh!
We made our best estimate of time and knocked out 10 rounds each before calling it quits.

Despite his preference for video games and TV , No.1 son seems very keen on CF-style workouts.
Any tips out there on how to keep him interested - I have a tendency to bore people to death by overcomplicating everything (I'm a scientist) - I don't want to put him off.
And please no "don't train your family" advice. I agree with this, but our sessions are turning into valuable father/son time and we'd both like to keep this.
Other than keeping my mouth shut - any advice?

Today's Rating - Top effort from No.1 son. He gets the rating today. Flying Squirrel. He can get no higher.

[moose]

Ouch! Just fell down my stairs and put my shoulder rehab back about 6 months.
It's a damaged tendon (the one that goes from the bicep and through the groove in the shoulder, I can't remember what it's called)
My excellent physio is on vacation for 2 weeks.

Anyone have any ideas on what I could do to aid recovery (stretches etc..)?
I had one tip last week (dislocates), that I'm doing now, any others?

Ta!

[Gubernatrix]

Bad luck Moose! hope it gets better soon