Thursday, March 31, 2011

NEW MOVEMENTS

I tried a few new things today.....and it was a success. One of the movements has been years since I have done and I remember why it has been so long.....they hurt:

3 Rds
50 DU's
50 Back Extensions

My time
6:49

The back extensions were tough and for some reason I broke up my DU's at least 10 times the first Rd. I think it was because i did not warm up at all on my DU's. Next:

4 Rds
10 Glute Ham Raises
20 Walking Lunges
30 DU's

My time
6:27

Then I took a break and coached Broc and when I finished I did 50 GHD sit ups. I was really excited to be able to do these now and the Glute Ham Raises destroyed my hamstrings. I will be doing these more.

NU

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Greatness is achievable

“A man can be as great as he wants to be. If you believe in yourself and have the courage, the determination, the dedication, the competitive drive and if you are willing to sacrifice the little things in life and pay the price for the things that are worthwhile, it can be done.”
-Vince Lombardi

Open WOD 11.1......I finally got to do it!

So....I am excited.....excited to have tried this WOD, excited to complete it, and excited to be excited. I continue everyday to keep my spirits up and this only lifted me higher:

"No matter how you fall, just think of how to get up fast."

I will continue to get up and get better:

WOD 11.1
10 Min AMRAP:

30 DU's
15 Power Snatch

My score
304 points
6 Rds + 4 Snatched

I had to do 1 arm snatches due to the broken collar bone but was able to go unbroken. It felt great to just go. Here is the You Tube link below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KSRZMlcuCfg

Here is the video of me doing the WOD 3/29/2011 just 15 days after breaking my collar bone (3/14/2011). I did not do the WOD in time to submit it but I am good with that. Getting healthy and in a position to be able to do something like this is the direction I am going towards. I will keep finding new things, and because of this I am learning a lot about myself.

NU

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Continuing to Heal

As I continue to heal my spirits continue to lift. I have been noticing more mobility in the arms and am now able to lift DB's and put pressure on the arm. I took X-rays yesterday and still have a noticeable break...but....bone is forming which is a great sign. I did some work yesterday as well:

5 Rds
50 DU's
30 Air squats

My time
6:18

Messed up on some of my Double. After the WOD I did 110 straight Doubles followed by 192. I was very excited. I continued to play around with then until I got to class to coach and decided to go for another RD of Max DU's:

My score
258 (PR)

I felt like I was on auto-pilot after 150 a cannot believe i was able to get this number. My old PR was 249. This morning when I got to the box I did Max Back Extensions: 51 I have been playing around with them everyday when I am in the gym and am now holding DB while I do them as long as using static holds at the top. Nice to be able to keep getting better! Cannot wait to start hitting the WODs hard again!

I will be coaching tonight and look forward to doing some more!

NU

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Feels Good to "WOD"

Did my first "WOD" since breaking my collar bone on March 14th. Felt awesome to GO!

5 Rds
50 DU's
30 Air squats

My time
5:59

I was able to hit all the doubles unbroken but still cannot go to fast on the air squats. I have to hold my arms up on my chest as I do them with my chest dropping making it difficult to hit below parallel. I loved the feeling though when I finished. I am going to be doing this again as a 10 Min AMRAP.....and probably quite a bit until I am able to increase movements I am able to do. And.......one thing that is tough for me.....today is the last day to submit for the Crossfit Games. I was thinking of submitting 30 DU's just to have a score in to try to help Crossfit South Bend down the road if I am able to do some of the WODs. But.....the Games website is not allowing me to submit anything.....so, maybe that will not happen.

In any case I have come to the realization that I am not competing as an individual, but that does not mean I do not want to compete in dome fashion. I can do 30 DU's and did them as my wife watched. So.....why not submit 30 for my own sanity. I hate feeling like I have to keep explaining myself and am now going to do what I want to do, that is to do what I can, not be stupid and enjoy the season in what ever aspect I can. good luck to everyone and thanks for the support!

NU

Saturday, March 26, 2011

Excitement on a Rope

30......the score I now know I can get on the 11.1 Open WOD. Last night I was messing around again:

100 Air Squats:

My time
2:07

They felt good and kept a good pace throughout. I was planning to do more of the same from the other night until Chels asked me if I could jump rope yet. i said I had not tried and began to jump to see how the collar bone felt. Before I was unable to jump......this time a different story was written. I jumped and began swinging my wrists and began going higher until I realized if I had a rope I would be able to do DOUBLES.

Chels then said, "Why don't you grab your rope?" I hesitated a second and then went to the basement to bring it up. I began my first jump rusty. I stopped after 4 when I hit my bare toe with the wire rope.

"Are you ok?" Chels asked.

"Ya I just nailed my 2nd toe, going to get shoes."

Grabbed my shoes and began again. 34! Nice. I told her I was going to go for 100, I felt good enough and wanted to get some sort of work out of my new found movement. 54 came next. Then 74! I kicked the carpet out from under me. 95!

"I am going to get 100!"

104! I set the rope down and smiled. I did it and no pain. Only a tight shoulder which was normal with the injury. I am ecstatic and ready to keep progressing.

I am at a crossroad. I have 1 day to decide if I am going to try the Games WOD. I know I can get 30 points and I think that if I place my arm tight on my body I can get 75# up and then drop it pain free.......allowing me to get a few RDS in and another week to recover giving me a small shot at getting to Regionals Individually!

The decision will be made soon.....I want to be smart about me decision though......

NU

Friday, March 25, 2011

Messing around at home

Last night I got home and the wife was off to a ladies night and I got to hang out with Jada for a short time before bed. Then I started messing around with what my body would let me do. I began to try abmat sit ups....not happening...eventually I found my body able to do bent knee leg raises, Squats, and calf raises:

Last night:
60 knee raises
150 air squats (4:01)
60 knee raises
159 calf raises
50 knee raises

No time on any of these except the air squats. I went really low on every rep but with my collarbone it makes me unable to keep my chest up making it hard for me to get low. The knee raises helped to burn my abs but not anything close to giving a good workout. The calf raises burned as usual.

I am still continuing to gain range of motion and having less problems with sharp pains when I move wrong. I plan to continue trying new things while I rehab back to 100%.

NU

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Brushing My Teeth

Brushing my teeth today was awesome, I was able to use my left hand! The great part is I am left handed and have not had a good brushing in 2 weeks...it makes me happy that I can now brush properly and not like my 14 month old daughter who chews on hers. Just another step in the right direction and towards cleaner whiter teeth.

This morning the class was great. After class I was able to do back extensions and boy did they take my mind off the shoulder. After awhile your back gets so tight that you stand with a beautiful arch:

4 Rds: Max Back Extensions (Almost)

40 / 33 / 35 / 31

I say almost because I could have done more but feared not being able to get off the GHD machine. Instead I stopped when I knew I was still able to unlock my feet and get off with one hand. It still left my back feeling tight and I loved it. Anything I can do that gets me feeling like I did something at this point is a good thing. And everyday I wake up I feel better and better. Soon, I feel, I will be able to run and do SOME upper body exercises. Excited to be training again!

NU

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Getting some work in

Yesterday was the first day I would say I got a WOD in. Not really a WOD a but it felt good. A couple days ago I began doing air equate and also some bent holds as I call them. I bend over and activate my posterior chain for as long as I can. As for what I did yesterday:

300 walking lunges

My time
8:54

Someone in the box (Abby) turned off the clock as I was walking so the time may be off a bit. I will be doing lot of these as I hold my hands to my chest and walk pain free. After:

4 sets
20 back extensions

The back extensions felt good as well. I will continue to find ways to keep moving and get as much of my body involved as I can while I heal (pain free). I am doing a lot of air square as well and think in a couple weeks I may do a 1 hour air squat AMRAP. That should be crazy. Just inn at the box challenged me to do 1000 air square but that seemed ridiculous so I said 1 hour. We will see if it happens or not. We will see what I do today! Hoping to get work in everyday from here on out as I work to recover and towards the 2012 Games!
_________

This morning I video taped myself. I will continue to do this to monitor my progress. I felt good but have to hold my arms up. I was able to speed up the sir squats as I got more comfortable:

100 Air squats

My time
2:01

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x3jzp_wTbYw

NU

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Surprise! Reebok clothes!

We went to Indianapolis yesterday to visit and help judge WODs at Crossfit Indy North for the Open, see friends, and hang out with family. On my way down I got a text message that someone from Reebok wanted to talk to me. When we arrived I started judging individuals and in between heats began talking with Jeremy, Reebok rep, about Crossfit and everything in between.

He had seen me at the Great Lakes Invitational, The Arnold, and my un-finished Fran video. After he saw the video he e-mailed it to there corporate execs, after seeing it they wanted to have me wearing Reebok gear in all my videos and when I train. Nothing official but he wanted my sizes and they would begin sending me Reebok gear! How cool!! I am not sure when I will receive anything since the Crossfit line does not release until May 15th, but hopefully when I am all healed up I will have some gear to wear. I am excited, as you can tell, and am very positive for the future.

on a side note they extended the WOD 1 deadline for the Crossfit Open until March 27th because of issues with registering athletes. Thia gives me one more week of hope. I am going to play it smart, but you never know!!

IF ANYONE HAS ANY EXERCISES THAT I CAN DO AS I RECOVER PLEASE SEND THEM MY WAY!!

NU

Friday, March 18, 2011

Broken Bones Heal

Collar Bone is feeling much better today. I have a lot more motion now and am able to move in directions I haven't since.....well....Monday. It is a good sign, ready to start training! But, first we are heading to Indianapolis in the morning where i would have been doing the Open WOD. instead I will help Judge and motivate people. Should be a fun trip!

One thing, on the lines of training, Crossfit South Bend decided to create an affiliate team in hopes of making it to Regionals. That would be awesome because you do not have to complete all 6 WODs of the Open to participate in Regionals! This is special News I was not aware of. So.....I am thankful that they even thought of doing this and hope the best for everyone competing for the Box. It will be awesome to watch.....and no matter what the outcome is I am thankful to have a crew like them back at the Box.....

Thank You Everyone!!!!

They also gave me a sweet card yesterday morning, I understand my circumstances are not bad by any means.....but the fact that they recognized me enough to do that and that they know how much Crossfit and the Crossfit Games mean to me is awesome of them. Thank You ALL!

NU

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Tricky Business

(Jades loves Kale Chips!!!)
So.....what to do......Double Unders....cannot do because I have a broken collar bone.......Power Snatch....cannot do because of a broken collar bone. This Sucks!

So, what I can do is find a way....by Sunday....to be able to do these. I have heard things from tying the jump rope to a door nob and taping my arm down so I can do 1 handed snatches. I am still trying to find the best way to go about this. I know every week it will get easier. I am just hoping that I can do something nonchalantly to be able to say that I competed in the 2011 Crossfit Games. It would be better if somehow I finished top 60.

I was going to just DQ all the events but I thought why not give it the old college try and video tape myself....well....trying. So that is what I will do. More to come when details are decided.

As for some more news.....Chelssie (my wife) signed up for sectionals! I judged her doing the Open WOD this morning:

10 Min AMRAP
30 DU's
15 Power Snatches 75#

Her score
211

As I right this she is currently in 6th place overall in our Region. She was hoping not to be last and look at her. I am so happy for her and she is very excited to have done it. I told her it is a blast and she will become addicted like.....me....and my broken collar bone.

I said she may surprise herself and qualify on or be very close to it. Go Chels I am rooting for you!

NU

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

2011 Games began last night

I am looking towards the future while walking in the present and learning from the past.

"The past is nothing but a springboard for the future."
-anonymous

My wife sent this to me and I feel it holds true.

With the Games starting today I will enjoy watching the journey of so many athletes as they show their heart and abilities. It would be a blast to compete a long side...but the hand I have been dealt with a broken collar bone does not allow that.

I did do my first WOD during my injury: Calf raises (did about 200 as fast as possible.) I will have great calves by the time I am 100%!
NU

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Stepping Back

I woke up Monday with a plan I had been ready for all week. I was going to do Fran followed by Bull. I was hoping for a PR in Fran or at least a sub 2:15. When I got to the box at 12:30 I was ready to go. Chels started the iPad 2 to record the action. I was getting ready to finish Fran when things turned a 180......I jumped on the bar and was getting ready to fly back down to finish my final rep on Fran when I lost my grip and went flying off the bar.......

"What just happened......?" Huh.....I stood up confused...."What just happened?" I looked at Chels as she was in shock. " I think I broke my collar bone.". No pain, but I knew something was wrong. When I landed on my should I felt a snap and then when I rolled over I felt a snap back in place.....still no pain. Adrenaline is an amazing hormone. It took about 30 minutes until I felt anything, but I knew the result of the fall.

Stepping back....I started to think about the timing of the injury, all the work, the sacrifice, the expectations......all for nothing! Not true.....everything I did Up to this point has made me better and stronger as an athlete and a person. I thought that my training was all for "The Crossfit Games," the competition I have dreamed of competing in since finding Crossfit. But, I realized something, thanks to Crossfit I found an outlet, a passion, something to pursue, and a way to compete everyday! I do not need the Crossfit Games to show everything I have worked for. Thanks to Crossfit I have an outlet everyday to compete against myself and time to push my limits.

Stepping back I see the big picture. A picture that is clear and bright. I know I will get to Compete again in a few weeks and keep pursuing my ultimate goal of being the fittest and healthiest I can. It could have been worse.....I was very close to landing on my head, or worse on the bar less then a foot away. That is the miracle I only have a broken collar bone. In all that can happen this is minimal, it shows how little control we truly have over our lives. The miracle of life is unbelievable, the little things we take for granted are the ones that mean the most. I will use this small set back to open up my eyes and truly hold onto every single moment big or small..

I will be back to compete and plan on doing everything I can to be better next year..... I feel i was given the gift to continue training and will use it to be the best! But, I know if anything steps in front of me I will accept it. It is easy to blame and complain. I am thankful for what happened.....I am thankful.....it has shown me how lucky I have it!

Thank you all for you kind words, support, and prayers! Good luck to all who start to compete today, hold on to every moment and enjoy it!!!!!

The Video of the Accident-

http://m.youtube.com/index?desktop_uri=%2F&gl=US#/home

NU

Sunday, March 13, 2011

Crossfit Indy Sectional prep WOD


Pictures from the Arnold Classic:

I asked Bryn from Crossfit Indy North for a couple more WODs again. And he delivered. I started with my own strength work to see how the arms and lats felt:

Snatch 1 RM
135# x 1
155# x 1
175# x 1
185# x 1
195# x 1
205# x 1
215# x 1 FAILED
215# x 1
225# x 1 FAILED
225# x 1 FAILED

I could not get locked out at the top. I do not think I had the pull strength yet to get that overhead. Then did 255# clean and jerk to see how that felt. Again i felt weak, i am hoping it is still from Mary and not a rebuild phase that that workout left me in. We will see in time. Lats are definitely still tight and sore. Arms are much better.

After the strength did Bryn's WODs:

21-15-9
Squat Snatch 95#
Pull ups

My time
5:14

I felt like a 400# man doing pull ups. Any sort of pull right now is very difficult. Next:

5 Rds:
3 Min on 1 Min rest count total Rds finished as your score

3 Deadlift 275#
6 Push ups
9 Box jumps 30'

My score
15 Rds (I did 3 Rds every 3 minutes)

I went at a pretty slow pace for the last WOD. I was just drained afterward, plus I had been doing deadlift work the last few days. No burpees and KBS done. I will hit them up tonight.


NU

Friday, March 11, 2011

Almost 100% after the Arnold

So....the Arnold messed me up.....or should I say Mary. I still have lasting effects in my lats and biceps. They feel like shards of glass are in the every time I flex or extend the muscle. I was able to do some work today though:

Diane

My time:
5:08

I took long breaks in between sets but was still tiring. Then:

10 Min AMRAP
7 Hang Squat Clean 95#
10 Push Ups Hand release

My score:
12 Rds + 3 Squat cleans

Felt good going all out on this one.

I will be doing Burpees and KBS tonight at home. I cannot wait because I will be doing Fran on Monday and am going for a new PR....Sub 2:10....should be fun. Trying to get better everyday!

When I got home I did something I regretted during and after:

4 Rds
25 Burpees
25 kBS 1.5 Pood

My time
8:58

Put it on YouTube from our new Ipad 2-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_pc0vMkjHs

NU

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Behind the Scenes at "The Arnold".....A Wife who deserves the World

When I first started Crossfit I loved the individual aspect. Being able to rely solely on your self. Your training benefits when others do not train as hard or as smart as you. I love relying solely on myself, with all the blame placed on me if I do not live up to expectations. At least I thought it was all on me.......I know now that is not true. I have someone who works behind the scenes harder then I do......My Wife!

My wife is there at every competition rooting me on. She has me STOCKED with food and encouragement. She knows my weaknesses and she is my number 1 fan......but I need to prove myself to her more then I do to anyone else! She is the one yelling in every video.....and when I finish the WOD she is the first one to make sure I am drinking and eating enough. This is not junk food either....she makes energy bars, salads, meat balls (turkey, chicken, you name it), and ensures I have more then enough for the day or week. The time she puts in is unbelievable. I cannot thank her enough. I bet it must feel like a thankless job......but I want to say thank you and I consider you a huge part in me being where I am in all aspects of life.....and to top it off she does it while taking care of our 1 year old Jada at every event! AMAZING!

I cannot say enough about the things she does behind the scenes. She always brings me down to earth when I get excited and brings me up when I am down. She is my wife and my coach.

I want her to know nothing she does unnoticed. I would not be, in any aspect of my life, as successful as I am with you in it! Thank you for all you do.

As for working out today:

30-20-10
Wall balls 20#
Hang Power Clean 95#

My time
3:50

Grip was shot which made it very difficult to keep hold of the bar:

10 Min rest -

7 Min AMRAP
Max back squat 95#

My score
108

Hoping that tomorrow I can completely get into the swing of things. It will all depend on if my lats and arms are better.....still messed up from Mary.....I am scared of Mary!!!

NU

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

The Arnold....Part II

Sunday morning came with me hoping that the pain would subside so i could get through the day....instead the pain increased. This was the first moment in my life that the anatomy of the human body was clear. I could point out exactly where the Lats began in my lower back and where they ended in my upper back, I knew the exact size and width of every muscle in my back. I could easily close my eyes and paint a picture of the anatomy of a human back with every intricate detail of the back. As for my arms....I could not bring them over my head nor straighten them. I woke up and stuck my arm between my leg to help straighten it out.....to much pain. Chelssie had purchased a rolling "stick' to help loosen muscles.....it worked......it also made me learn how to make new faces. I was rolling around whimpering and squinting like a little puppy dog. Horrible!

Then....back to the Arnold. We started the day with a WOD where we had to carry a 100# Med ball across the Ballroom about 50 M away to a 6 ft wall, throw the ball over the wall and then follow it, we then picked the med ball up and ran around the wall back to the start.....1 rep.....AMRAP 5 minutes. There were 2 other people in my group and we had 2 med balls.....2 people work at the same time while one person waits.

It was a lot of fun and I forgot about my arms. We did 22 Rds and after the 5 minutes and I actually felt loose.....for about the next 5 minutes until my arms locked back up in a 90 degree angle.

Here came the tricky part, if anyone knows me they know I did not come all this way to sit on my but. The problem was they had to make a cut of the bottom 50%. My team was in a tie breaker to go home. Oh no...not if I have anything to say about it. The tie breaker:

6 60# med Balls had to be ran the 50 M and around the wall....we had 3 team members.....GO.....I was the first one around the wall and had my first ball dropped and then i realized....this is a weakest link work out.....I was only as strong as my weakest link and it was just now rounding the corner while the other team was now picking up there last 3 balls. We were going to be done. They finished the final lap and started celebrating.

I could not even swing my arm for the chance of injuring my muscles even more to show my feelings. Noe what? I was done.....Fortunately I am a good negotiator...I went to Rogue and started to ask if I could jump on another team......NO!!

Bill Henninger and Brian Yoak were not having it. After i realized it was useless i started pouting in the corner with my friend Nick Fory. Then an angel.....my team member came up to me and said we were in! They had expanded the field and add mine and Nick's team back in!!!! Yes!

The next WOD was:

10 Min AMRAP

Axel Deadlift 225# with a Parallel Grip (no switch grip on the bar, palms had to both be facing the body)

While 1 person is Deadlifting the other 2 run 2 laps and then you can stop and switch members to have them start deadlifting. No one is a loud to begin to lift until all members have completed 2 reps and all members are present at the bar.

We began to strategize....my first partner could not pick up the axel bar....great....the other one said he was good. the bar was very slick and with a parallel grip it was very difficult to grip because it spun as well. An axel bar is about 2 inch thick pipe. Very hard to grip!

I started on the bar and started lifting. My partner came and relieved me, then i relieved him and began lifting again. the next time I came back he said his grip was shot! We were about 4 minutes into the WOD. i said I would sit on the bar and just keep lifting. They ran I deadlifted the rest of the time. We ended with 73 reps.

When I got back i told Chelssie what happened and she said he did not even get a rep the last time he was at the bar.....demoralizing.....we were done for sure......then the rankings came out.........WE WERE DONE!

Now what? ....Again.....i started my negotiating........"Brian....any teams need someone?" People were leaving early because they did not know it was lasting a full 3 days....so teams were getting sponsored athletes added to them left and right....why not me? "NO!" Brian would yell at me! I told Chelssie we could go....I did not want to watch the final event if I was not going to be in it.

And then.......another Angel....Kevin Montoya walked up to me.....he had done Mary with me on Friday and his arms were permanently locked at 90 degrees. He looked as though he was walking around making a diamond sign on his stomach all weekend, probably how i looked to everyone else...."You want to take my spot on the final WOD? my Team moved on." "Yes" I said. "Let me ask Brian" I had high hopes. Kevin came back and said Brian said no....as he was telling me this I saw him walk over to Spencer Hendel if he would join the team, an immediate no came out of his mouth.....so i put my negotiating hat on and yelled to Brian...."Brian.....I am still a go if you need me!!!!" He smiled and raised his pointer finger letting me know to hold on.....was I in?

Kevin later walked over and said Brian said i could take his spot...Yes!!!!

The Final WOD:

2 Rds

40 Burpees (2 people working at the same time)
500lb Yoak carry 30M
60 KB swings 1.5 pood (2 people working)
500lb Yoak carry 30M
30 Wall climbs (2 people working)

Our time:
9:52

2nd place overall in the final event. It was a lot of fun and a blast.....to top it all off Graham Holmberg came up to me and grilled me about my numbers and how much I could lift. He then invited me to his gym to train with him! What an honor.....he said he would get a bunch of people together so we could all throw down.....I am very excited for that.....but first........

THE OPEN BEGINS MARCH 15th...........I AM READY!

NU

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Dreams are Good...Reality is Better...The Arnold Classic...Part 1

Have you ever wanted something so bad you can only seeing it happening in Dreams. I have dreamt of moments where I competed with great athletes in ultimate conditions. I have seen the great in the dreams and the defeat. I have imagined ever possible situation and outcome. I have dreams that occur just as the wind blows.....they come and go so fast that they are only that to me....Dreams. This weekend was supposed to be a dream come true. To stand and show why I train. To compete and manage to show I belong. I had visions of standing tall with hands held high.

Sometimes a Dream remains a dream when reality hits.....

The weekend started with seeing every major sponsored Crossfitter standing within 20ft of me....Chelssie nudging me to talk to them and me standing back in a daze. Finally I got the nerve to talk to Tommy Hackenbruck and Mikko Salo. They were going to be doing a WOD, Mary, first thing in the morning. It was one that I had no intention of doing because FRAN was coming up and I wanted to be on my game. Mary is 5 HSPU - 10 Pistols - 15 Pull ups. Mikko suggested I do Mary to do, as he would say, "a burner of a WOD." So, I threw everything out the window and said sure. Her comes Mary!

Mary came and went and so did any hope of seeing my Dream come true. Mikko Salo, Tommy Hackenbruck, and Kevin Montoya all did Mary with me. I was hoping to keep close and not look like a fool. Fortunately I did not look like a fool, in fact i stood out. Surprisingly I was able to stay ahead of Kevin and Tommy and hang with Mikko.....in fact i even led the whole way. The problem was that we had no judges. They told us to keep track of our Rds. Is that possible in a 20 Min AMRAP? NO!!! No one was able to keep track....all I know is I beat everyone....Mikko was the only question mark....did I??....I will never know with no real proof. I do know that I held my own and may have......maybe.....beat Mikko. In the Games this year i can try again. The guess is I got between 17 1/2 Rds and 19 1/2 Rds. Again we will never know.

I decided to take off the rest of Friday due to the lack of movement in my upper body and my thighs being shot from the pistols. I was hoping I would be ready for Fran first thing in the morning......I wasn't!

FRAN started with high hopes and as I jumped on the pull up bar they were immediately dashed. I had nothing left and knew it. I ended up with a 3:06 Fran time.....55 sec off my PR. Not at all what I was hoping.....and definitely not what I had dreamed it would be.

After Fran i was bummed. I new I had made a mistake when I did Mary, yet I was so happy i did. I stood toe to toe with the best but could not stand toe to toe with Fran today. They announced what was next...

We were to be put in teams and perform a par the the 2010 Crossfit Games Final. Each member of the team did 1 WOD as a 7 Min AMRAP. I did the 1st WOD because it had the least amount of pulling....which was almost impossible for me to do at this point:

7 Min AMRAP:

30 Hand Release Push ups
1 12ft Wall Climb
21 OHS 95#

2 Rds

I could not make it over the wall for another Rd. My grip was gone and I stood there suffering to climb the wall. It was a crowd pleaser as they kept watching me fall from halfway up the wall.

The last WOD of the day was a Team Grace....bad part was 1 of my team members had never don a 135# Clean and Jerk before:

90 Clean and Jerk 135# with 2 Bars

I did over half the reps and we finished at 4 Min even. You could have 2 people working at the same time while one person rested. This actually helped to loosen my arms and lats up.

Sunday morning came and I was in worse pain then the day before. I could barely lift my hands up and was struggling to grasp that I potentially had 3 WODs to do today. I knew it could not get any worse...........at least I hoped.........

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

The Anticipation Builds...

I am so excited about this weekend....unexpected things to come and I am ready for anything. I feel great and plan to take the whole day off tomorrow from training. We will be leaving, my wife and I, tomorrow for Columbus, OH and the ARNOLD! This is what we call a vacation.....especially me. Many great athletes will be in attendance and will be throwing down.

I woke up this morning thinking about the competition. I decided to do some Yoga instead of training. Was nice to get really loose. ready for the weekened.....

NU

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Central East Regional WOD and The ARNOLD

I taught the class this morning and had the intent of doing the Central East Regional WOD. I was able to do it.....but not the success I was hoping for:

Regional WOD
5-4-3-2-1
MU's
Bear Complex 115#

My time
5:26

My PR on this is 4:43....I was not happy with this. I keep working on MU's but I cannot seem to crack that elite time I am training for. I will continue to increase my MU work because I do not want this exercise to decrease my chances for moving on to the games. I know it is going to be a big factor in the regional and will be in at least 1 WOD. I need sub 4 on this workout. Always trying to get better.

On a side not I got an e-mail about the Arnold Classic. It seems that Friday will be a sign up day for workouts that you would like to do against Games Veterans. I am going to sign up for as many workouts as I can. They said to be careful as to how many you do, but I want to compete as much as possible. We will see what type of WODs they are.

Saturday will be FRAN and a chance to do a part of the Final Games Workouts.....then Grace at night. We will be placed in teams of 3 and compete for a chance to compete against Rogue and Again Faster. Should be an interesting set up. i am very excited for the weekend and what is to come. Always training to get better and enjoying every second of it!

I went to the Box after work to train the 7 PM class.....no plans of training myself....until I remembered Firebreather Tuesday. Then I realized about plans.....they change. We did a brutal WOD:

5 Rds
10 Burpees
30 Ft Overhead Walking Lunge 45#
7 Squat Snatches 115#
30 Ft Overhead Walking Lunge 45#

My time
10:42

Quads and mid back were fried!! Never again...haha...

NU