An Ode to Angie

To my dear friend, Angie,
whom I saw earlier today.
Your presence was unnerving
and made me want to run away.

Pull ups by the dozens? And
a hundred push ups to follow?
Before forcing me to do sit ups
that make my core feel far from hollow?

And to top it off with squats,
when my body already feels like jelly.
It'd be okay if it weren't for time,
and if you weren't a b*&^# about me being smelly.

I can't help it that I sweat a lot and
that my hands started to bleed.
It was my first time RX'd tonight;
this isn't the support I need.

I know that my pull ups and push ups
could be much stronger,
and that I should have repped through my squats faster
instead of sandbagging and taking longer.

But everyone was watching me
and I felt a bit self-conscious.
Not to mention, a little aggravated I was the last one standing
and feeling a bit nauseous.

Nonetheless, I persevered
and finished in just over thirty,
falling to the floor,
feeling sweaty, bloody and dirty.

You are one nasty girl, Angie;
I think you scare me more than Fran.
Now please leave me alone for awhile,
so that I can take care of my torn hands.

A Short CrossFit Fairy Tale

Once upon a time (today), we did the following WODS; this is how I did:

Overhead Squats
3-2-1-1-1

30-35(1)-35(2)-37.2-40

"Isabel"
30 snatches for time

5:22 at 35 kg

To be brief I still need to work on my form. In regards to the OH Squats, I need to focus on locking out elbows and my core rather than worrying about my squat form so much. As for the snatches, I need to really focus on my pulls, jumping the bar overhead and dropping underneath it (weird I would have that problem with dropping underneath it *screws face up into fake confusion*). However, I was practicing my snatch form a little bit after the WOD and, strangely enough, they felt stronger than when I was actually doing the workout. Apparently my fairy godmother was helping me out after the fact, which I suppose is okay.

The End.

Brittany World in Five Minutes or Less

Remember awhile back when I mentioned that school was taking over my life? Well, it has not really gotten any better and may not for at least another week. As a result, I figured I would give you all a crash course in what's happening in "Brittany World" since I haven't been as diligent as I would like to be with my blog lately. So here has what has happened to me this past week in five minutes or less.

Saturday: I ran a 10k. My goal was to run the race in somewhere between 45 and 50 minutes; I finished in 55 minutes exactly. Needless to say, I was less than pleased. Throughout the entire race, my feet and legs were heavy. I was never able to find a good (and/or comfortable) pace; instead, I felt drudged down and tired. Lucky for me, my mom's apple pie made me feel better.

Sunday: I took a rest day and spent the majority of it driving seven plus hours back home from my parents' house in Minnesota. I also ate like crap. I'll chalk it up to emotional eating from my less than stellar performance in the 10k and my lackluster "I'm on vacation" claim.

Monday: I went to the Fort. We completed push presses; my highest was 50, which I'm not sure if it was a PR or not. We also did seven rounds of 10 box jumps (30") and 10 SDHP (30kg). I finished the WOD in 5:48 and thought I was pretty bad ass because I thought I had beat Stacy. Then I realized that she had done 35 instead of 30 and I was immediately humbled. I also did not recognize that I had, in fact, made it back from vacation because I did eat some cake. Whoops.

Tuesday: We worked on our snatches. Like last time, Stephanie and I shared a bar (even though she can lift far more than me). I did reps of 3-2-1-1-1. I completed 30-35-40-40-and then failed at 42.2 before moving onto the WOD, which as three 6:00 AMRAP rounds of 25 double unders, 10 sprawls and a 100 meter sprint. I was able to complete three full rounds each time as well as about fifteen double unders (give or take a few). I was also able to get my puffy butt back on my diet. Hello - better eating.

Wednesday: I had every intention of going to the early morning class but then decided it would be more to my benefit to go to school early. The result? A rest day. It was also a good food day too.

Thursday: I went to the state park across the way since I wouldn't be able to make it into the Fort. I turned on Phil (my iPod + Nike guy who talks to me and records my time). According to Phil, I ran 6 miles in 50 minutes. Now why didn't I do that last week? Ugh.

Oh. I ate well yesterday too. It feels good to be back on the perimeter and out of sugary, puffiness Hades.

Friday aka Today: I'm currently grading papers and deciding what WOD I will do on my own if I have time before going to my other job. I'll let you know what happens.

Okay... so that's all I got for you. I would have made an exciting video for all of you to watch regarding my week but that would have taken more than ten minutes and I unfortunately have to go back to grading papers. See you all later.

America Runs on Dunkin'...

Wanted: The "Hunger" Monster (and donuts)

...and I run on beef and eggs, more or less. (I apologize; I bought a black coffee at Dunkin' Donuts this morning and the label is almost literally staring me in the face). Although I have been continually keeping track of my calories this past week on the DailyPlate. I'll just let you in on how I've been feeling lately.

Honestly, I feel pretty dang fantastic. Although I've been having some major cravings lately (let's just say it's a woman's issue), I have managed to stay relatively far away from that furry orange creature they've labeled as "hunger" on the Weight Watchers commercials (see above) and limited my indulgences to almond butter and 85% dark chocolate (both of which I might add are delicious). I've also somehow managed to stay on a regular eating schedule. I've fasted every day this week so far for at least twelve hours in between eating times.

Personally, I like fasting. I get to eat a lot and then I don't have to worry about food for awhile. My random teaching/working schedule sort of works well with this method. I think this is because when I'm at school, I would rather focus on school and catching up on my work (Because let's be honest: No one actually likes to grade papers when they have the opportunity to do, well, anything else beside grade papers). Regardless, I think things are working out pretty well and that I am seeing some difference (albeit very little) even though I refuse to weigh myself.

Now you're probably wondering: Why would she refuse to weigh herself? Isn't that part of the challenge? Well, yes it is, but I would rather wait to weigh myself until absolutely necessary. I have a tendency to obsess over my weight (like really obsess) whenever I weigh myself because it is never low enough for my liking. As a result, I try to go by how I feel rather than what the number says on the scale. It's my way of keeping my sanity.

Anyhow, that is how my eating habits have been lately. I should also mention that I did the burpee/running WOD yesterday morning in my front yard. It was horrible, and by horrible, I mean kind of awesome.

The Rundown

It's official: School is taking over my life. As a result, I have not had a lot of time to write my blog. So... here's the rundown on this past week:

Friday, I did "Helen" prescribed for the first time. I completed the WOD in 11:18. Needless to say, I was very excited.

Team Saturday, we did 200 meter partner carry and then three rounds of 2:00 of muscle-ups, power cleans (bw), and air squats and then another 200 meter buddy carry. Lisa and I teamed up for this and she was nice enough to carry me for about 300 meters. In the end though, we did not come out on top but we did get 200 reps. Yay for us.

Sunday, I played with my new toy I received for my birthday. My toy, the iPod+Nike chip, fits within my new kicks and measures my pace, calories, distance, etc. It even lets me play a power song to get me going (bet you can't guess what it is...) Anyhow, I decided to jog a 3K, which I completed in a little less than 15 minutes. After running my 3K, I decided that it wasn't enough and then jogged for an extra 20 minutes. According to Phil (the voice on my iPod), I ran 2.5 miles. I'm not going to argue with him.

Monday, we did two rounds of 500 meter row and AMRAP pull-ups. Essentially, we were paired with someone and competed against them. While one person rowed, the other did pull-ups and vice versa. Jennie and I were partnered up (guess, who won?) My rows were far from impressive (around 2:00 each) and I was able to crank out 20 pull-ups both rounds (which I was fairly happy with considering pull-ups are my arch nemesis).

Tuesday, we first did overhead squats [OH squats] (3-3-3) before moving onto "Karen." True to form, while OH squatting, I nearly dropped the bar on my head and fell on my ass. However, I did OH squat 25-30-35 kg. I'm not even sure if 35 kg is a PR or not. Personally, I was just glad that I was able to practice my snatch form.

Onto "Karen." Also true to form, I lost count, got confused, and I'm almost positive that I did at least 10 extra reps. Regardless of my counting ability, I did manage to crank out the workout (however many reps I did) in 10:00, which was 1:46 better than my previous time.

Finally on Tuesday (Tuesday was a big day for me), I did a rowing WOD. I completed three rounds of 1:00 on, 1:00 off, 1:00 on, 1:00 off, 1:00 on, and 1:00 off. All in all I rowed 2252 meters (or something like that).

Today (Wednesday), I took a rest day. I wanted to workout in the morning but, like I said in the beginning, school has taken over my life. Instead, I decided to read student papers rather than CrossFitting. Of course, I would have preferred to do the latter but you can't always get what you want.

Food Update

Friday Foods
Here's the low down on what I ate yesterday. These are all approximate values.

• 21 whole almonds
• burrito bowl (extra chicken, guacamole, hot salsa, iceberg lettuce)
• 1/2 cup veggies (yellow squash, green/red pepper, zucchini)
• 1/2 lb burger w/blue cheese
• 2 slices of bacon
• 2 paleo margaritas
• 2 regular margaritas

Saturday Foods
Again, all of these are estimates:

• 1/4 cup whole almonds
• 3 eggs
• 2 tbsp of guacamole
• 3 oz of sausage
• 1 oz hamburger
• 1/4 cup strawberries
• 1/2 cup blueberries
• 1/4 cup chili
• mixed nuts w/raisins
• 2 paleo margaritas
• 1 Irish car bomb (thanks, guys)

Fell Down Seven Times, Got Up Eight

Today was not a good day for me CrossFit-wise. For some reason or another I was just exhausted when I arrived at the Fort, and it didn't help that I wasn't exactly mentally prepared for the tasks laid out in front of me: 2000 meter row time trial (9:03.2 = absolutely terrible for me), three sets of five weighted ring dips (2.5kg - 5kg - 10kg (PR)) and nine rounds of nine body rows and nine push ups (10:02). It actually wasn't until I was done with the WOD that I actually felt a little more energetic and felt up for more strength and skill work; however, since it was getting late and I didn't want to interrupt the Ramp-Up class going on, I decided to go home.

On my drive home I contemplated my performance, going back and forth between scolding myself and reassuring myself that I was trying to change my diet and that everyone has their (in my case, really) bad days. However, my mule streak kicked in (thanks Grandma) and I decided that I would have to do an additional rowing WOD to take back my title as well as put myself up there on board for weighted ring dips. I know it doesn't seem like much but it makes me feel better about the whole situation.

"Now stick out your butt like: 'Haaaay!'"

When I arrived at the Fort yesterday for the ladies class, my eyes were immediately drawn to the strength workout: Snatches. All perverted humor aside, I was actually excited to try this. I had never done the movement before, so when Jennie began going over the form, I was paying close attention.

She broke down the movement, starting with the high pulls and then overhead squat position before putting it all together. Jennie really emphasized sticking out your butt when starting, in a position I would now like to deem as the "Haaay! Position." I digress though.

We did 3-2-1-1-1 reps of Power Snatches. I completed three reps at 25, two at 30, failed twice at 35 (the first time because my grip was too wide and the second because I fell backward when I was dropping underneath) and then completed my last single rep at 35 (about time!). Needless to say, I was determined to get that 35, especially since the weight didn't seem all that heavy. Once again, it was my form holding me back. As it seems I may have the same problem with my snatch (seriously, get your mind out of the gutter) as I do with my clean and push jerks: I still need to drop under the dang bar. Regardless though, I liked the movement and am excited to keep working on it.

As for the actual WOD, we did the following:

Five rounds for time:

15 deadlifts (50% of your single rep max = 50kg)

30 double unders

My time? Nine minutes, which I was relatively pleased with. It helped tremendously that I repped entirely through both movements my first round and was able to crank out at ten deadlifts each subsequent round (except for the last one where all I did was nine) and primarily sets of 10-20 on my double unders. Of course, there were moments where I didn't get 10-20 reps and was only able to complete sets of five or so, but those moments were few and far between. I actually felt good about my jumping rope ability yesterday.

Anyhow, in the end it was a good quick metcon, and just for the record (*cough* Tommy Mo *cough*), there was no sandbagging involved.

All of us lovely ladies posing for the camera.

All us lovely ladies ready to dead lift

On another note: Mariah just came back for her first CrossFit WOD since she had her baby. Welcome back!

The Better Body Challenge

I've decided to take on CrossFit Fire's 60-Day Better Body Challenge. So... as a result, I've decided to let you all know what I am eating, which I would rather not do but whatever. It's part of the rules, so I guess I will follow suit on this one.

I've give you just a general overview of what I'm trying to accomplish. Essentially, I'm working on leaning out rather than losing weight. As a result, I am trying to follow the fat/carb/protein/calorie ratios that Bill laid out for me this past spring, with one exception: I'm trying to limit my carb intake to about 20 or so. I will probably end up asking Bill for more advice on this or to reconfigure my ratios, but for the time being, my ratios look something like this: 113 grams of fat; 45 net carbs; 81 grams of protein; 1521 calories total.

If you want to check out what it is I'm eating, feel free to look at my profile on The Daily Plate. It's got all my dirty details up there. Also, if you have any good recipe suggestions, feel free to send them my way. I like to try new things when I get the chance. Also, any advice as to how to incorporate more fat into my diet would be helpful as well. Wow... I never thought I would ever say that...

One last thing: One of my co-workers brought homemade zucchini bread to work today. It looks delicious, don't get me wrong, and when she offered me some, I felt bad telling her that I don't eat bread. Her response? "That's not good." My response? Nothing. I didn't feel like getting in a nutritional debate with a PhD.

Food Update

I have been SO good all week and then today I crumbled: I had a piece of key lime pie.

Dangit.

Back to the drawing board.

Monday Funday

For Labor Day, we did a special team challenge for Monday's WOD:

1 mile run
Seven rounds for time:

• 10 weighted walking lunges (20 kg/15 kg)
• 5 burpees

1 mile run

Well, I was excited when I saw this workout. There's no reason to explain why. To prepare for Monday Funday, I warmed up by rowing 500 meters, cut the sleeves off my tshirt, slipped on my new kicks (thanks boyfriend) and teamed up with Tommy Mo. Our strategy? Go as fast as you can and try to keep up with The Show.

When Bill gave us the 3-2-1-Go!, Tom and I were off. I started out ahead of Tom but he quickly made his way past me. I then spent the rest of first mile trying to catch and then pass Sparky, which I managed to do both. I'm not sure how fast our first mile was and I'm kind of sad about that because I would have liked to know whether or not it was sub-seven.

In regards to the walking lungs and burpees, well, they were just what they were. The burpees allowed for a little bit of rest and the walking lunges took a dueling on my legs. Fortunately Tom was counting and we finished them sooner rather than later. All we had left then was catch up with The Garth Show and Matty-Lo.

The first 200 meters or so of that second mile run sucked. My quads were tight and I was having difficulty keeping form on my run. I could actually feel myself heel striking. However, soon enough my legs started to loosen up and I was on the move again. Tom quickly moved out ahead of me, which left me trying to keep him in my sights throughout the rest of the run.

I'm not sure how long the second mile took either but unfortunately Tom and I were not able to catch Garth and Matt. I pulled into the Fort at 22:07, almost two minutes after the speed demons, and then fell to the floor in order to celebrate second place and the fact that we were done.

Personally, I think my new shoes helped my run with the big boys; I felt that fast.

Team Barbara

Saturday was "Team Barbara":

In teams of two, complete seven rounds of the following:

20 pull ups
30 push ups
40 sit ups
50 squats

*Only one person may be working at a time.
*Reps may be distributed however the team sees fit.

Bill put Super Dave and I on the same team. Our strategy? Go until we need to stop, and then switch. While we kept to this throughout the WOD, we both tended to stick with our strengths. Dave did more pull ups and push ups while I did more squats and sit ups.

In the beginning, it seemed that we had a pretty fair lead on all the other teams but then out of nowhere Tom and Jamie caught up and passed us. I'm blaming round three or four when Dave and I had some minor counting problems. It just goes to show you that every second counts. Regardless, it was a good WOD and Super Dave and I were able to finish second.

Friday Goods

Thursday was Kilo's birthday and, as a result, he was able to pick the WOD for the following day. I'm not sure if he saw this WOD somewhere or if it was of his own creation, but it was awesome. We started out with some deadlifting, three sets of five (65-75-85), before moving onto the following:

Kilo's BDay WOD

With a 400 meter run in between each three rounds:

3 rounds for time:
7 deadlifts
7 box jumps

3 rounds for time:
5 deadlifts
5 box jumps

3 rounds for time:
3 deadlifts
3 box jumps

Like I said, "awesome," right? Well, I thought it was. Deadlifting, box jumps and runs are all good in my book; however, I was a bit hesitant to go too heavy during the WOD because I didn't have a whole lot of energy (It had been awhile since I had eaten, let's just say that). As a result, I did not go at the 85% of my five rep max that day (72 kg). Instead, I went with 60 kg so I wouldn't be completely gassed round four and so that I would be done in the 15-20 minute cut off period.

During the WOD, I'm not sure if it was actually the lack of food, if it was completely mental, if it was just the workout itself, or if it was all of the above, but the weight started to get to me more than I would have liked. In the end, I finished the WOD in a little over twelve minutes, and then I went home and ate. I had a good breakfast (some eggs and sausage... yummy); I had had a good workout. Friday was a good day.

Bawl Baby

I went to the Fort Wednesday for the routine WOD, and I have to admit that my performance was not nearly as exciting as our visitor Jar_n 's (insert your vowel here; I don't want to spell his name incorrectly). I can't deadlift so much weight that the bar is bending. Jennie and I even tried to pick it up together and it was a no go; however, I digress.

On Wednesday, started with the push jerk (3-2-1-1-1) before we did this little number:

AMRAP in 12:00:

5 handstand push ups [HSPU]
10 body rows
15 heavy kettlebell swings (32 kg/24 kg)

As far as the push jerks go, I did 35-40 - 45 - 50 - 52.2 kg, which was a PR for me. I'm not sure if I could have done 55 or not, my form is not the best on my push jerks. I have the same problem with them thatI do with my cleans: I need to quit being such a baby and drop under the bar more.

In regards to the WOD, I was able to complete five rounds plus five HSPUs, ten body rows and ten kettlebell swings. I did my first round of HSPU with just the 25 kilo plate below my head. I repped through them but knew I would be struggling (and I was afraid that I would face plant into the plate: I have issues with looking through my handstands) if I tried to maintain that depth, so after a rep or two my first round I put the ab mat on top of my plate. Unfortunately, it was then too easy. I should have gone back to using just the plate at that point but the fear of crushing my face took over and I stuck with the ab mat.

As far as kettlebell swings go, I also have some form issues, which were easily remedied. I wasn't bending over far enough, and I appreciated Bill correcting my form during the WOD because it helped with that 20 kg bell.

In regards to the body rows - well, they were body rows. I did them. I got through them and really don't have much to say about that. Overall though, it was a good workout. I just wish I hadn't sandbagged on the HSPUs. I'm such a baby.

Row, Thrust & Jump

Yesterday I went into the Fort after my afternoon class to complete my first rowing WOD for the week. Essentially it was "Tabata Rowing," where you complete a number of rounds (I did eight), twenty seconds on and ten seconds off.

My score looked something like this: 98-96-92-89-88-87-87-88. Let me tell you, I was struggling with the rows after the fourth round. When I hit 92, I promised myself that I wouldn't go below 90. Well... as we can see that did not happen; however, I was glad that I at least kept my numbers in the high 80's. Overall though, I'm not going to lie: It kind of sucked and I wish that I had had someone there rowing beside me. Perhaps, if I someone else had been there beside me, then I wouldn't have dropped below 90.

After I finished my little rowing excursion, I set out to complete some heavy thrusters (35 - 40 - 45) before moving on to the following metcon:

• 10 Thrusters (60 kg/40 kg)
• 50 Double Unders
• 8 Thrusters
• 40 Double Unders
• 6 Thrusters
• 30 Double Unders
• 4 Thrusters
• 20 Double Unders
• 2 Thrusters
• 10 Double Unders

Well, I did the prescribed women's weight (40 kg). I'm not sure if I was overzealous or what, but it was heavy. It is weight... Anyhow, I kind of struggled with my thrusters, particularly after my first round. I'll be honest, I did a lot of one, two and three rep sets. After the first ten, I was simply unable to string together more than that.

On the other end of the spectrum, my double unders felt okay. They are improving, which is all I can really hope for. I've been focusing more on using my wrists rather than my shoulders and have seen quite a bit of improvement, although the most I am able to string together is about twenty, give or take a few. Regardless, improvement is improvement.

At the end of the day, I finished this metcon in 12:03, which I'll live with because I have too. I suppose I'll just have to keep working on my superhero status.

Day 2: No Sugar Challenge

I ate a dried cranberry and some berries. Does that mean I lost? Please say "no..."

Dammit! I'm so weak.

Cleaning with Frustration

When I walked into the Fort last night, I knew exactly what to expect. The boyfriend (Matt: Look at that Tom. I gave him a name. *Smiles*) gave me the heads up on the WOD, most likely to help me wrap my head around it. As most of you know, I put my cleaning ability right up there with my pull ups; however, when I walked into the Fort that day, I was determined to clean 50 kg, a weight that has been alluding me for some time now.

The strength workout was 3-2-1-1-1 of power cleans. I did three reps of 35 kg; two reps of 40; one rep at 45; one rep at 47.2 and then moved onto 50. I stepped up, took a deep breath, told myself that I was going clean 50 kg, and then set up for a new PR. Then my lack of form stepped in. My problem this time wasn't dropping under the bar or my elbows but rather I didn't jump high enough and pulled my arms into the scarecrow position too soon. In the end, my new PR was actually an EPIC FAIL. It was frustrating and so I decided to channel that frustration into the metcon.

The metcon also included cleans, this time hang power cleans. The metcon consisted of:

7 rounds for time:

• 3 cleans (85% of PR = 40kg)
• 6 box jumps (mid-thigh = 26")
• 200 meter sprints

Essentially, I wanted this workout over and done with. I was annoyed with my lack of results during the strength WOD; I had a headache and was just generally not in the best of the moods. It didn't help that I felt like I had someone screaming in my ear throughout the duration of the workout. It also didn't help that after I finished I realized that my box was only 22" instead of 24" like I had thought, and so my box jumps were not as tall as I wanted. Regardless, I finished the WOD in due time, in a little over fifteen minutes, 15:11 to be exact. It was a tough one and I was glad when it was over.

On a side note, I will get that 50 kg clean if it kills me. Seriously.

Day 1: No Sugar Challenge

Day 1 has a checkmark beside it. Woo hoo. Onto Day 2...