I'm a big girl now!

That's right, ladies and gentlemen -- I'm finally potty-trained!!! Mom told me it would happen one day!!
:)  But, really, I am marking my calendar today with another CrossFit first for me ... pull-ups without a band.  I did 12 rounds of Cindy (5 pull-ups, 10 push-ups, 15 squats), and did not use a band on any of the pull-ups.  Now, mind you, I'm not saying the pull-ups were pretty by any means, especially since my body couldn't decide whether it wanted to kip regularly, butterfly kip, or swing like an insane monkey (the third option ended up winning most of the time, I think).  Still, it's a beginning.  Gotta start somewhere, right?

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go to do the potty dance.

The Evil CrossFit Plan is working

Today was body composition test day #3. For those who do not nerd out on numbers, skip to the next paragraph for the synopsis. For the rest of us number nerds:  at my last test a month ago, we learned in the prior 28 days that I had lost 1.5lbs of fat and gained 3.5lbs of lean mass.  This last month's results showed a slow in the progress -- lost 0.5lbs of fat and fained 2.5lbs of lean mass.  Still, that means, in the last two months, I've gained 6.0lbs of lean mass, while only increasing my weight by 4.0lbs.  It looks like the most significant change has been the caliper readings at my thigh -- from 25.5 to 22.5 to 21 -- which seems counterintuitive, given that my thighs have begun to hulk out of my jeans and dress pants. 

Bottom line:  CrossFit + Meat in diet = Hill continuing her transformation into BeastGirl. :)

The Accidental WOD

I have to say, today's WOD (workout of the day) was quite good ... which, in my twisted "I love the Kool-Aid" head, means it was quite difficult.  I will say that, with some tips from trainer William, I feel like I have the form of the squat snatch down, finally.  I managed to do 4RM (rep max) of 53 lbs, and I feel confident I can build from that.  I just found myself fatiguing quite quickly, so that the squat became less of a squat and more of a bent knee.  :/  Ah, well, always room for improvements!

After the workout, I had to make a trip to Feeders Supply for some cat food and kitty litter.  I grabbed the cat food and the 25lb bag of kitty litter, hauled it on my shoulder up to the counter, paid, and hauled it out to the car -- and felt very whipped.  What the ... 25lbs wearing me out??  I didn't think the WOD was THAT bad!!!  But, of course, does Beast Girl give up?  Hell no.  So, I got to the apartment, threw on my backpack, threw the bag of litter on my shoulder, walked it up the twisty flight of stairs and into the apartment, before feeling ready to die.  I was soooooo pi$$ed -- how could one little WOD leave me so freaking weak?  Seriously??? WTF????  And, just when I prepared to kick the bag in anger, I noticed:

Oooops.  :) Ah, well, two WODs in one day?  BeastGirl can handle it. :)

How do you want to die?

How do you want to die?

How about death by burpees? 

Sure, why not!! 

For my sane family and friends who do not do CrossFit, here's a quick video clip of a burpee:

Now, regular death by burpees means that, at the beginning of minute one, you must do one burpee ... and then you rest ... until the beginning of minute two, at which time you have the remainder of the minute to do two burpees ... until the beginning of minute three, at which time you have the remainder of the minute to do three burpees ... and so on, with an increasing number of burpees and a decreasing amount of rest time before the next minute starts.  Due to time constraints, we did multiples of three.  So, the first minute, we did three burpees ... the second minute, six, etc ... until we failed or gave up or died. 

I am happy to say that I finished 6 rounds, completing the round of 18 burpees with more than 10 seconds to spare, but knowing I didn't have it in me to do 21 in the next minute.   63 burpees.  Given that, before I started eating meat a few months ago, knocking out 10 wore me out, I'll take it.  

The take-home message?  Since a picture is worth a thousand words ...

Ups and Downs

Today was a great example of one of those CrossFit days with highs and lows.  It started with many failed attempts to do butterfly kipping.  I just don't feel it yet, and I got too easily frustrated today to make progress -- LOW.   Then, we moved on to L sits and L hangs. (For those who don't know what L sits are -- sit down on the ground with your legs in front of you, put your hands on the ground either side of your body fisted up, and lift your legs.) I discovered that I can maintain an L sit on the ground pretty easily -- HIGH.  Then on to handstands, which I utterly fear due to my panic of having my feet above my head -- LOW.  William helped me to do two handstands against the wall, my first two ever -- HIGH.  But I know I need to work on them more so I can start doing real handstand pushups -- LOW/HIGH mix.  Then, on to the WOD -- 5 pullups, 10 modified burpees (each burpee included a roll on the ground -- carpet burn on the elbows!!!), and 15 kb swings (35lbs), AMRAP [As Many Rounds As Possible] 20 minutes.  I managed 7 full rounds and completed the pullup and burpee portion of the next round.  Ended the workout with a good session of stretching and then called it a day.  Highs and lows, up and downs ... just call me bipolar Beast Girl. :)

Note to self, Beast GIrl ...

Note to self, Beast Girl ... if you're going to follow up a "Death" WOD (see prior post) with a Hero WOD Rx+ the following day ... make sure, before the Hero WOD, you have some of this:

or you'll end up like this:

with maybe a couple more muscles than this stick person. 

That being said, I did Wittman -- 7 rounds of 15 kb swings (36lb), 15 power cleans (65lbs), and 15 box jumps.  For the box jumps, women's Rx was 18".  I jumped 20", thus Rx+ -- my first ever!!!!!! Yay!!!! So, that totally eclipses my sucka$$ time of 36:00, right? I'm going to say so.  And it has also earned me two days' rest, which I may spend looking like Mr. Dead Stick Person.  But, again, with a couple more muscles. :)

Let's go sledding!!

What better way to enjoy one of the coldest days of this winter than by going sledding?!?!  Yay, fun!!!

But, you might say, "Now, wait a second, Beast Girl, even though it's cold outside, you need to snow to go sledding.  Sledding without snow -- are you a little confused?  Perhaps one too many CrossFit WODs have made you delirious?"  Well, yes, you are correct -- in fact, many CrossFit WODs have left me delirious ... but none so much as today's WOD, which included pushing a sled. 

Now, for my non-CrossFit family and friends (or, as some people might say, the sane people), let me explain the sled.  I've included a photo for added explanation:

Weights are stacked or hung on the smaller poles -- for the females,135lbs. From my online research, it appears that the sled itself weighs about 33 lbs.  For the purposes of this WOD, we started out by pushing the sled using the two high poles (on the right in the picture) down the length of the room -- about 50 feet, maybe? -- and then, for the return trip, pushing from the opposite side of the sled (left side of picture) using the two lower, horizontal poles.  We did this 8 times, with approximately 2-3 minutes of rest between each round, with the final score being all 8 times added together (not including the rest periods).  Here's another visual, for added clarification --

Even though my time for these pushes was less than six minutes, I can definitely say this is the most strenuous, painful WOD I have ever done.  Murph, step aside -- while you almost made me cry thanks to your hour-long torture, you didn't make whimpers spontaneously jump out of my mouth in less than 3 minutes.  The heavy sled push is now Beast Girl's official Death WOD. 

And, of course, the irony is that, by the time I got home, I was thinking, "Hmm, I wonder how much I could improve my sprint time if I did sled pushes more often..."

Beast Girl, 28 days later

Today was body composition testing day #2.  Daniel and I lament that we didn't do a body comp test until January and missed getting to measure all the advancements my body made between October and January.  For me, my measurements on January 10th meant little, having no prior measurements for comparison. So, today was the true test. Sure, I had noticed improvements in my strength in the past month.  And I had noticed that my thighs now want to rip through my pants without me getting mad and hulking out!  But was that really muscle mass, or perhaps additional fat as well?  And those two pounds that the scale shows I've gained since my prior body comp test -- what do those two pounds mean?

I'll spare all the numerical details gleaned by the calipers and cut right to the chase.  In 28 days, I lost 1.3lbs of fat and gained 3.3lbs of muscle.  Holy shitake mushrooms!  Perhaps there is something after all to this CrossFit and meat-eating thing! Beast Girl needs meat!!!

"Only I can defeat me"

On this day of rest, I share a great quotation from CrossFit Lisbeth: 

"My time on this earth is limited. My actions don’t have to be. The opportunities are as wide and as open as I want them to be. The only limiting factor is my mind. Only I can defeat me."

Hells yeah.

Nothing too exciting

A entry more for bookkeeping than for entertaining the masses, mainly due to a lazy Hill-day.

Today's WOD:
5RM bench press -- 80lb (limited by pain in my elbows/upper arms rather than by strength)

Then, AMRAP 15 minutes of 5 HSPU, 10 back squat (75), 15 ring rows -- 6 1/3 rounds.

Then good massage. 

Now, tired laziness. :)

"Do you really want to blog today about failing your workout?

That was the question asked by my trainer Daniel after I told him that I didn't think I would be able to finish the WOD.

The WOD I did today was "Holbrook" -- 10 rounds of : 5 thrusters (Rx 75), 10 pull-ups, 100m sprint.
There was no way I was going to be able to do Rx on thursters, so I brought it down to 65lbs and did 100m row rather than running. 

After the fifth round, my arm muscles and tendons were so tight, they were screaming and my grip was giving.  That's when I looked at Daniel and received the above-listed question. And that's when I didn't quit ... because I just couldn't give in to defeat.  Sure, I failed a few times -- rounds 8 and 10, I failed at my first attempts to clean the bar up for the thrusters.  Boom, down went the bar ... and I rested for a few more seconds, thinking, "Tonight, I will not blog about failing to complete this WOD." 

Ladies and gentleman, I will not keep you waiting any longer ... I did complete the WOD.  It took me almost 30 minutes, and I immediately ran for my bag to douse my arms in BioFreeze afterwards ... but I completed it. 

Thus, this blog entry is not about failing my WOD. Instead, I'll use (the rest of) it to give credit to Holbrook, in whose honor the WOD is named.  Really, no matter how much I might blog about my pain in CrossFit,  it's nothing compared to the sacrifices made by young men and women like Holbrook.



US Army Captain Jason Holbrook, 28, of Burnet, TX, assigned to 1st Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne), based out of Fort Bragg, NC, was killed on July 29th, 2010 in Tsagay, Afghanistan when insurgents attacked his vehicle with an improvised explosive device.

He is survived by his wife Heather Holbrook and his parents Joan and James Holbrook.

First posted January 27, 2011

And I call myself an animal lover!

Going along with my theme this year of "Sorry, animals, but you must die so I can thrive and perform well," I learned an exercise today called "skin the cat."  (And despite the saying, I don't really think there's more than one way to do it.)  Here's a quick video to give you an idea of what the exercise is (since it's easier to watch than to explain):  

And here is me, at the prospect of this exercise -- "No, sir, please don't make me!"

But do them I did.  It took me a bit to get the hang of it, mainly because being upside down makes me panicky.  Fortunately my understanding trainer William was very reassuring.  Maybe I can transfer this learning experience to attempting unmodified handstand pushups.

So, for the record, the WOD was:

500m row
50 walking lunges with 25-lb plate overhead
40 back extensions
30 wall balls
20 ring dips
10 skin the cat
20 knees to elbow
30 burpees
40 GHD situps
75 squats (modified from Rx vertical jumps due to rehabbing stress fracture)
For time.  And, being so happy I managed to skin the cat, I completely forgot to write down my time. :)  Different priorities on different days. 

Grip(e)

Since I was incapacitated yesterday (after Friday night's dips), I went to the gym today to attack yesterday's WOD -- For time:  1000m row, then 1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/10 kb swing (women's Rx 45lb), with each round of swings followed by a round of Cindy (5 pullups, 10 pushups, 15 squats).   I was unimpressed with my time of 27:48.  I hate to point fingers, but if I had to assign blame, I'd blame the wardrobe department. (Bad reference to a bad movie that is a guilty pleasure of mine -- 10 points if you can identify it, with points being redeemable for not-a-darn-thing.) 

No, I will say that, of my many challenges with this workout, my grip may have been the silent killer.  Historically, I have swung the 36lb kettlebell ... so this was quite the step up for me.  I was happy that I could still get the thing up over my head ... but after the first couple of rounds, my grip started to give, which started impacting my pullups, too.  Two pullups, and my hands would quit. My hopes to straight-set my pullups were shot.  Arg! But, hey, I have lots of pretty new callous/blisters to show for my endeavor.  And I did straight set eight of my ten pushup sets.  So the WOD wasn't all a disappointment. :)

Freak Nasty, Skoal, and my WOD

Can you find the common denominator for Freak Nasty, Skoal, and my WOD?  Hells yeah -- lots and lots of dips!

I now do ring dips without band assistance. Woohoo! Of course, they're pretty much one ... by ... slow ... one ... well, maybe three unbroken.  But, still, that's one step closer to a muscle-up, right?  Score!  (Skoal?)

So, today's WOD was:

1RM OH squat -- 53lb.  On a positive note, that is the most I have ever OH-squatted before.  Still, I'm not happy with the depth, especially since I can normally whip out ass-to-grass squats.  After some talk with trainer William, I foresee myself spending some time in the bottom with a bar. 

Then,
AMRAP 20 minutes:  15 SDHP (65lb), 15 ring dips, 30 double unders.

Since I'm rehabbing the tibial stress fracture, I substituted 150m rows for the double unders, while keeping the rest of the workout Rx.  As stated above regarding the ring dips -- look, ma, no bands!!   I managed 4 full rounds, getting through 6 dips in the 5th round.  While my number of rounds was low, I'm happy with the SDHP (first time to do 65lb as Rx) and with the dips (66 -- isn't that more than in the Da Dip? Perhaps I'll have to do a ring dip WOD based on the song one day).

Now I'm going to go reward myself with a nice dip ... in hot water with espom salts ... but I leave you with a comic, just in case you missed the theme of this post.

PR at the dentist!

So, my CrossFit workout actually takes a back seat to another story of success today (but, I believe, somewhat related).  I had my six month dental check-up this afternoon.  I don't know if all dentists do this, but my dentist starts off the appointment by poking my gums above each tooth and then seeing how many bleed.  A year ago, I had 9 bleeds.  Six months ago, I had 7 bleeds.  Today, 2 bleeds!! A new PR!! :) So, in looking for the cause, I notice there are two relevant changes in the past six months:  a new toothbrush (Oral B super-duper-awesome power brush with all these nifty little heads and a timer and everything) and my dietary changes (return to eating meat).  To me, the obvious responsible variable seemed to be the toothbrush.  However, a few moments later, the hygienist pointed out that, today, I had more tartar and plaque build-up than six months ago.  So, to me, that would seem to indicate that the toothbrush and/or cleaner teeth is not the source of the gum health, as my teeth were less clean today than at the last cleaning.  That leaves me with the other variable -- a return to eating meat.  I know that I have felt amazingly better and stronger since I've started eating meat again, with the progress being most obvious during my CrossFit WODs. In my opinion, my improved gum health seems like another sign that my more balanced diet now is improving my health, from the inside out!  Now I hope that my decrease in wheat/corn products might increase the health of my teeth from the outside in.  We'll see at my next dentist's appointment. And I'm hopeful that, just as my gum health is improving, so are my stress fractures.  Please hurry up and heal!!

Oh, and the WOD was great today.  I have to love any workout that involves pistol squats.
21 L-pull-ups
20 One legged squats, alternating legs
18 L-pull-ups
16 One legged squats, alternating legs
15 L-pull-ups
12 One legged squats, alternating legs
12 L-pull-ups
8 One legged squats, alternating legs
I did the L-pull-ups band assisted.  I forgot to write down my time -- under 15 -- 14:52, maybe?  Then,

Row 800m -- 2 min rest -- row 800m -- 2 min rest -- row 800m for time -- 15:30. 

Then some great stretching yoga.  Good stuff.

Push jerk ... and not the whiney jerk in the check-out line at Whole Foods.

Started off my week-long vacation with a good CrossFit workout. 

5R max push jerk: 70 (Up from 3R max of 68 on 12/3)
Then AMRAP 15minutes
10 thrusters (55lb)
10 barbell rows (55lb)
10 knees to elbow.

I managed 5 rounds, although Rx was 65 and I would surely have done fewer rounds Rx. 
I need to work on my kipping ... or lack thereof. 

Also, had some great meals today.  Dinner tonight was my own version of chicken cordon bleu with a huge salad.  See, this is what happens when I don't have to work.  CrossFit, time with a book, afternoon nap, and awesome dinner.  A dream day!

Saturday 1/22/11

Well, I went to bed last night, fully expecting to take today off as a rest day.  When I got up, though, I felt pretty darn good and ready to do a workout, even if I might have to scale it back a bit. I did not want to undo that all the great massage work I got yesterday, especially on my shoulder.  The WOD was 30-20-10-5 back squats (women's Rx 115lb), pull-ups, kettlebell swings (women's Rx 45 lbs), and straight-leg sit-ups.  I scaled to 80 for back squats, 36 for kb swings, and band-assisted pull-ups.  Good workout, 23:52 ... not too much, left feeling challenged but not destroyed.  I would like to work on up-ing my back squat weight, but today wasn't the day since I can still feel all the squats from my workouts throughout the week.  Also, I need to set aside some time to practice kipping.  Damned if sometimes I feel it and sometimes I don't!

Also, clothes shopping for my new Beast Girl physique is frustrating.  I'm not complaining, mind you.  I'll take strong, difficult-to-clothe muscles over weak skinny little limbs anyday.  Still, that might be a WOD I have to conquer this week -- find slacks that fit my tiny waist but relatively large glutes and thighs -- AMSAP (as many stores as possible) before failure.  And, as with all WODs, tears are optional. :)

Welcome to my blog!

Welcome to my blog, everybody! Which, at this point, is one person! :) That's ok, though ... if anything, this blog will serve as an online record of my CrossFit and fitness accomplishments and failures (since failures are just as important as accomplishments).

Today, I get to discuss accomplishments!! Last night, I set a new 5 rep max deadlift of 145lbs -- about 125% body weight.  That's up from 115 at the beginning of November.  I definitely felt the form more last night than in my November 5R max session.  Last night, I realized that it's not about the arms at all.  So, when I started to stand up and my arms said "NOOOOOOOO, you can't lift this weight!"  I told them to shut up and kept pushing through my legs.  Yeah, good stuff. 

Of course, being a novice, I know this learning curve is going to hit a brick wall soon. So, I'll enjoy this large strides while I can!

BeastGirl