(Gorilla beringei beringei)I started crossfit back in February '07...I think right around mid-feb.
Prior to that I was doing workouts concentrating on powerlifting and bodybuilding methodologies (3-4 years), but was quickly finding that I was getting bulkier (and fatter, lol) than what I wanted.
I needed something different and stumbled upon Crossfit...and have never looked back.
Unfortunately until now I never logged any of my progression.
My pal Chris inspired this blog:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------I tried to get my friend eric into what I was into. he always went hiking but never got into running. years later, it was he who got me back into working out. for a couple years I tried lifting weights. for a while i was convinced that that was what I needed to do to get into shape like all the happy in shape people we obsess about who grace our
idiot boxes. then eric, who became obsessed with fitness... my pal eric who didnt want to go for a run, became obsessed. his obsession, made him spend hours on the internet looking for new ways to get healthy and in shape. about a year ago he became obsessed with a new thing. he kept telling me to give it a try.. that it was better than lifting. it was a combination of cardio and lifting. eric had changed in a few months. he completely changed himself. Since the first workout ive done, I havent been forever changed. Its given me a different look on life and what is possible. I dont look at things anymore like they have limits. Ive always been fascinated by people who can go beyond what other people think they can. I never though I would be one of them. going forward crossfit is the standard. it makes all the other things I used to struggle with easier. I put this blog under life because it has changed mine. Its a free service that is provided and used by a great number of worldclass athletes and the men and women whom protect and serve our communities and our country. if you get a chance look it up. it could change you. Thanks kirsh. Crossfit.com people.
WORKOUTS:
9/16: Mountain biking for 4.5 hours - started on the M&M trail off of Cadwell forest...went all the way over Mt. Lincoln, thru the Holland Glens and down to Rt. 9...then went on Rt. 9 to dwight station and up (and i mean UP) Gulf rode to Cadwell entrance; awesome time all around but brutal...made a day out of it...think i shed a bunch of water weight, lol
9/17: WOD "Diane" - performed w/rx'd weight...sub'd 115lbs-95lbs standing presses for hspu's - can't remember the time, just know I took a crazy beating
9/18: WOD: (done as 50% day - for time: SDLHP 45lbs 100 reps; Thrusters 45 lbs 50 reps; SDLHP 50 reps; thrusters 17 reps; SDLHP 25 reps; thrusters 10 reps)...this completely kicked my ass...refer to note above...still took 16-17m if I remember correctly
9/19: Having trouble remembering but I think I did a half "Michael"...I remember my legs were beat to hell and all my hip flexors didn't feel like taking the beating from a full Michael - was also trying to intentionally do 50% WOD's because of feeling exhausted all around
9/20: rest day
9/21: WOD "Grace": did as rx'd w/135lbs - I can't remember the time - I think 16-17m? 135lbs was a good amount of weight for me, but it gave the opportunity to work on form with that much weight - especially lowering down from the jerk position on my wrists
9/22: WOD "Isabel": sub'd 95lbs to get form down; LOVE this exercise (high rep snatches) but need a lot of work to start adding weight and maintaining decent form - love the explosiveness of it; later in the afternoon I got "dragged" kicking and screaming into going mountain biking, lol. I was being a bitch because my legs were absolutely destroyed from the past week of beating my legs have taken - but still went for about 1-1.5 hours...just took it easy on the uphills, and was generally winded all around
9/23: Today was a "3-a-day":
1.) Finished a lawn with Chris and DJ - 2.5 hrs (shoveling, moving/raking dirt, used roller)
2.) WOD: 90 pullups and 90 dips; all pullups done strict (most to elbow lock, cheated on a few); tried to get as deep as i could with dips; broken into 30 sets of 3 pullups/3 dips
3.) Mountain biking - 2.5 hrs - biked on M&M trail near my house (Amherst Rd across from reservoir - crossed moody bridge rd - went to top of Mt. Orient (either orient or poverty) in Pelham)
9/24: Rest day
9/25: WOD: 5 rounds for time (SDLHP 95lbs 15 reps and Thrusters 95lbs 15 reps) - this workout about killed me. It took ~30m. The last two rounds took me a long time to get thru - heavy breathing and sweat pouring everywhere. Chris came to the gym (I almost didn't believe it) when I was on the 3rd round and I was already a heaping mass of sweat lol. Note to self: get your metcon up!!!
9/26: Ran a 5k - time: 30m on the nose; ran the Robert Frost Trail from Pulpit Hill Rd to Jueggler Hill Rd (N.Amherst-Leverett); first excuse: it was 90 degrees out with an intense humidity - I started off well and paced myself (walked for first 13m and estimated that to be about 0.4 miles...it was another 1.3 to the end and 1.7 on the return) - jogged 1.5 miles and felt great, but I seemed to hit a wall on the 3rd mile - legs were already destroyed from yesterday's workout and ended up walking half of it back
9/27: Did not feel like doing the WOD - legs are too burnt, and I'm sure I'm going mountain biking this weekend. I estimate that I walk around 2.5-3.0 miles a day at UMass (since first week in Sept), not including going up and down 4 flights of stairs (refuse to take elevator) so this is having an impact on my legs.
So, I subbed in a bunch of split jerks, c&j's, pullups and dips. I'm glad I did this, because I set a PR on the split jerk: 175lbs for 3 reps! I currently weigh 169-170lbs, so this was a great feeling...being able to jerk 5-6lbs over my bodyweight and hold it, elbows locked, above my head. Midline stabalization is the shiz!
Now here's a big 1 finger salute to all the bodybuilders out there, lol. Get your core muscles (abs, lower back, hips, glutes, hams, etc) strong - get off the damn bench!!! Stand up, lift a weight off the ground, catch it, push it into the air, lower it back down and place on floor. It's that easy.
Thought I had to myself this morning: crossfit in general (when adhered to Chris!!!) turns ppl into beasts, male or female. However - olympic lifts further transform a man into a man-imal. period.
Linear progression:
man -> beast -> man-imal.
I feel like I am now at the very beginning of the process that leads to my transformation into a man-imal, lol, tho I'm only still a beast at the moment...haha...3, 2, 1...go!
9/28: rest day
9/29: subbed in working with matt for crossfit today; worked ~5 hours (demolition work on a 2nd story balcony, scraping tar, moving plywood sheets, etc)
9/30: today was a "2-a-day":
1.) WOD "Cindy": performed 16 rounds in 20min; each round consisted of 5 pullups/10 pushups/15 air squats - pullups done strict to full elbow extension - total: 80 pullups (50 pullups+30 chinups), 160 pushups and 240 air squats
2.) finished working with matt on 2nd story balcony ~4-5 hours (moving plywood, nailing, laying roof, vacuuming, etc)
this morning my lats/shoulders/arms (front arm at elbow from 30+chinups yesterday and tri's a bit) are sore on a maybe 6.5/10 scale. feeling a tad bit sluggish but it is a monday and i did work all weekend. whoo.
9/16: Mountain biking for 4.5 hours - started on the M&M trail off of Cadwell forest...went all the way over Mt. Lincoln, thru the Holland Glens and down to Rt. 9...then went on Rt. 9 to dwight station and up (and i mean UP) Gulf rode to Cadwell entrance; awesome time all around but brutal...made a day out of it...think i shed a bunch of water weight, lol
9/17: WOD "Diane" - performed w/rx'd weight...sub'd 115lbs-95lbs standing presses for hspu's - can't remember the time, just know I took a crazy beating
9/18: WOD: (done as 50% day - for time: SDLHP 45lbs 100 reps; Thrusters 45 lbs 50 reps; SDLHP 50 reps; thrusters 17 reps; SDLHP 25 reps; thrusters 10 reps)...this completely kicked my ass...refer to note above...still took 16-17m if I remember correctly
9/19: Having trouble remembering but I think I did a half "Michael"...I remember my legs were beat to hell and all my hip flexors didn't feel like taking the beating from a full Michael - was also trying to intentionally do 50% WOD's because of feeling exhausted all around
9/20: rest day
9/21: WOD "Grace": did as rx'd w/135lbs - I can't remember the time - I think 16-17m? 135lbs was a good amount of weight for me, but it gave the opportunity to work on form with that much weight - especially lowering down from the jerk position on my wrists
9/22: WOD "Isabel": sub'd 95lbs to get form down; LOVE this exercise (high rep snatches) but need a lot of work to start adding weight and maintaining decent form - love the explosiveness of it; later in the afternoon I got "dragged" kicking and screaming into going mountain biking, lol. I was being a bitch because my legs were absolutely destroyed from the past week of beating my legs have taken - but still went for about 1-1.5 hours...just took it easy on the uphills, and was generally winded all around
9/23: Today was a "3-a-day":
1.) Finished a lawn with Chris and DJ - 2.5 hrs (shoveling, moving/raking dirt, used roller)
2.) WOD: 90 pullups and 90 dips; all pullups done strict (most to elbow lock, cheated on a few); tried to get as deep as i could with dips; broken into 30 sets of 3 pullups/3 dips
3.) Mountain biking - 2.5 hrs - biked on M&M trail near my house (Amherst Rd across from reservoir - crossed moody bridge rd - went to top of Mt. Orient (either orient or poverty) in Pelham)
9/24: Rest day
9/25: WOD: 5 rounds for time (SDLHP 95lbs 15 reps and Thrusters 95lbs 15 reps) - this workout about killed me. It took ~30m. The last two rounds took me a long time to get thru - heavy breathing and sweat pouring everywhere. Chris came to the gym (I almost didn't believe it) when I was on the 3rd round and I was already a heaping mass of sweat lol. Note to self: get your metcon up!!!
9/26: Ran a 5k - time: 30m on the nose; ran the Robert Frost Trail from Pulpit Hill Rd to Jueggler Hill Rd (N.Amherst-Leverett); first excuse: it was 90 degrees out with an intense humidity - I started off well and paced myself (walked for first 13m and estimated that to be about 0.4 miles...it was another 1.3 to the end and 1.7 on the return) - jogged 1.5 miles and felt great, but I seemed to hit a wall on the 3rd mile - legs were already destroyed from yesterday's workout and ended up walking half of it back
9/27: Did not feel like doing the WOD - legs are too burnt, and I'm sure I'm going mountain biking this weekend. I estimate that I walk around 2.5-3.0 miles a day at UMass (since first week in Sept), not including going up and down 4 flights of stairs (refuse to take elevator) so this is having an impact on my legs.
So, I subbed in a bunch of split jerks, c&j's, pullups and dips. I'm glad I did this, because I set a PR on the split jerk: 175lbs for 3 reps! I currently weigh 169-170lbs, so this was a great feeling...being able to jerk 5-6lbs over my bodyweight and hold it, elbows locked, above my head. Midline stabalization is the shiz!
Now here's a big 1 finger salute to all the bodybuilders out there, lol. Get your core muscles (abs, lower back, hips, glutes, hams, etc) strong - get off the damn bench!!! Stand up, lift a weight off the ground, catch it, push it into the air, lower it back down and place on floor. It's that easy.
Thought I had to myself this morning: crossfit in general (when adhered to Chris!!!) turns ppl into beasts, male or female. However - olympic lifts further transform a man into a man-imal. period.
Linear progression:
man -> beast -> man-imal.
I feel like I am now at the very beginning of the process that leads to my transformation into a man-imal, lol, tho I'm only still a beast at the moment...haha...3, 2, 1...go!
9/28: rest day
9/29: subbed in working with matt for crossfit today; worked ~5 hours (demolition work on a 2nd story balcony, scraping tar, moving plywood sheets, etc)
9/30: today was a "2-a-day":
1.) WOD "Cindy": performed 16 rounds in 20min; each round consisted of 5 pullups/10 pushups/15 air squats - pullups done strict to full elbow extension - total: 80 pullups (50 pullups+30 chinups), 160 pushups and 240 air squats
2.) finished working with matt on 2nd story balcony ~4-5 hours (moving plywood, nailing, laying roof, vacuuming, etc)
this morning my lats/shoulders/arms (front arm at elbow from 30+chinups yesterday and tri's a bit) are sore on a maybe 6.5/10 scale. feeling a tad bit sluggish but it is a monday and i did work all weekend. whoo.
10/1: did my own WOD (was not feeling the one posted on the site): deadlift 185lbs 7 sets x 10 reps - so 70 total 185lbs deadlifts; a few sets i concentrated on form and a few i concentrated on speed.
also worked on clap pullup and got sort of 1 complete but pullup muscles were beat from Cindy yesterday, lol. worked some tuck chinups, regular pullups, switch grips, and knees to chest hanging form smith machine bar. note: been working on swinging (like a monkey) from different bars to: 1.) eventually learn the kipping pullup 2.) loosen up 3.) because swinging like a chimpanzee is cool.
should i start doing parkour routines? that would piss off planet fitness ppl. haha.
10/2: rest day
of note: was watching some parkour and free running vids on youtube...awesome. i want to start concentrating on free running and getting parkour skills up.
note to self: work on plyometrics more (clap pushups, clap pullups, *tuck jumps*, verticals, horizontal leaps). keep working on explosiveness and power: snatches, cleans, jerks, etc.
when i grow up, i want to be spiderman (literally).
10/3: Modified the WOD a bit (due to the gym being extremely busy):WOD: thrusters (45lbs) x 45 reps, standing press (95lbs) x 30 reps, thrusters x 35, press x 20, thrusters x 25, press x 15. *total*: 105 thrusters (45lbs) and 65 standing presses (95lbs) completed in 14min.
completed 5 consecutive clap pullups! they were extremely quick claps as i'm getting just enough air to make the clap...but, they were claps nonetheless. also did 15-20 clap pushups.
note: right quad starting feeling cramped up (even after stretching) by end of session...it is still a bit sore today, but nothing really noticeable. should make squats tonight fun...
10/4: WOD: back squats 5 sets x 3 reps - 225lbs x 3 reps, 275 x 3, 305 x 3, 315 x 2, 315 x 1, 285 x 3, and 265 x 3. i tried to go as low and deep as possible. all squats were way below parallel - the squats below 300lbs i had ass to ankles. legs just weren't feeling it beyond 315lbs for some reason...perhaps it's the beating they've taken for the entire past month, lol.
also did 15 clap pullups, broken into 3 sets of 5 reps each. some of the reps were half-assed claps...for whatever reasons i was feeling self-conscious with each clap as if i were trying to draw attention to myself (when i was simply just trying to perform the exercise correctly!)
10/5: Modified the WOD a bit (partly due to gym being busy again):
- ran 400m
- hang power clean (75lbs) - 50 reps
- L-pullups (10); tuck pullups/chinups (30)
- hang power clean 40 reps
- tuck pullups/chinups (30)
- hang power clean 30 reps
- tuck pullups/chinups (20)
had timed this WOD at the start but some goons took over both the squat racks where i do the cleans. i was 17m in after the 10 l-pullups and 30 tuck pullups. this was a bruuuuutal workout, lol.
10/6: mountain biking with the crew for 2 or so hours i'd guess - the bike i was using was completely f'd up so this actually became a very intense workout. amongst many other problems, the rear rim was bent, causing the rim to drag a bit...this turned a normally fun ride into the anaerobic workout from hell! legs took a thrashing pumping that bike up hills.
10/7: a 2-a-day (sort of):
1.) WOD "J.T.": sub'd 115lbs standing press for first 21 reps; used 95lbs for last 24 reps; sub'd 2:1 parallel bar dips for ring rips (90 total bar dips) - time: i want to say 17-18m? dips took the longest amount of time.
2.) disc golf w/josh - did 1 round (18 holes) on northampton course - played night golf...this is the absolute shiz! played from 11pm-5am, haha. we took our time, but there is a lot of walking involved - not sure how much - 3 miles all together maybe? either way, had tons of fun...little glowing orbs flying thru the sky rocks.
10/8: rest day even tho it is a scheduled WOD - basically slept most of the day due to being up all night
10/9: took another rest day - listening to my body and going with it.
i've been pushing myself hard for a while now. i'm going to force myself to do this next 3-day set as 50% days...maybe the next 6-day set. i think knowing when to back down a bit is key. of course, trying to make sure that the ego remains in check is always a challenge. i find that when i intentionally do 50% days, many times my testosterone and ego get in the way. i get in the zone, essentially, and have conditioned myself to want to go hard all the time.
so, message to myself: DO 50% DAYS! you need to back off for a bit, and let yourself recover properly, so that when you do go back, you go back that much harder.
10/10: took yet another rest day
this morning (10/11) i noticed that going up several stairways on my morning walk was a bit easier - lactic acid didn't build up as quickly...also felt lighter and quicker than usual. should i take another rest day? hrm...
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