Sept. 29th, 2012 - Diamond of the Tough

Last weekend I took part in my 3rd CrossFit competition, not counting the 2010 & 2011 CrossFit Open.  It was called the ‘Diamond of the Tough’.  It was a lot of fun during and after, but not so much fun right before.  As much as I enjoy competing in CrossFit competitions and workout with that as one of my primary goals, I get really nervous and anxious as I come closer and closer to an event.  I was wicked nervous before this one, as my wife Kandi can tell you.  But once they called my heat out and I was walking out to my position to start the first WOD, I instantly felt better and focused.  Kandi took a picture of me chatting with my judge right before the WOD started and it surprised me how happy I looked right then.  Like any WOD that I have stressed out over ahead of time, it felt really good to stop thinking and just starting doing!

Overall I had a great time and was very glad that I went and competed once again.  Like every CrossFit competition I have been to, it was a well-run event and a lot of fun.  CrossFit is the only sport that I have been involved in where 30 seconds before game time it is more than likely that the guys you will be competing with any second will turn to you and wish you good luck.  Honestly, that does not really happen very often anywhere else.

I also got to meet a couple CrossFit celebs, including one of my CrossFit heroes idols, Freddy Camacho.

Freddy is just as happy in person as he appears to be in every photo I have ever seen of him.  He is a very nice guy too!

Katie Hogan in the background

Workouts:

1. Bear, 5 rounds (Clean, front squat, STO, back squat, STO) without letting go of the bar and only a touch and go on the ground at the end of each round.  8 minutes to complete and then as many deadlift reps as possible with the same weight.

2. 5-10-15 yard shuttle run

3. Standing broad jump

4. 3 rounds for time:

- 24 Double-unders

- 12 OHS w/95#s

- 6 C2B pull-ups

1. 175 lbs. + 18 deadlifts. 

Tried to reset my grip in the hang and lost my balance and dropped the bar.

2. 14.34 seconds

3. 92 inches

4. 3:52 

Overall, I finished 9th out of 20 in may age group (40-44) after finishing 6th in the on-line competition.  Luckily for me, the scoring was weighted for the shuttle run and the broad jump.  Those events were not weighted very heavily (10% each) and the genetic lack of speed and broad jump ability were not held against me compared the weighting for the scores of the the first and last event (40% each).

September 27th, 2012

Workout of the Day

A. Five sets of:

Front Squat x 3 reps @ 85% of 1-RM

Rest 2-3 minutes

B.  Three rounds for time:

20 Russian Kettlebell Swings (32/24 kg)

10 Box Jumps (30″/24″)

(Russian swings – only to shoulder height)

Rest 5-7 minutes, and then . . .

C.  Four sets for max reps of:

60 seconds of Wall Ball Shots

60 seconds of Rest

(Challenge yourself to get as far north of 100 reps as possible.)

A. 235 x 5 x 3

B. 3:30

Stepping down on box, still protecting my foot. Unbroken otherwise.

C. Skipped

September 25th, 2012

Workout of the Day

A.  Six sets of:

2-Position Clean

(just above the knee, and then just below the knee – but off the ground, pause for 1 full second below the knee before the second clean)

Rest 2-3 minutes

B.  Every minute, on the minute, for 6 minutes:

5 Strict Pull-Ups (ladies – 3 reps)

Strict Handstand Push-Ups x Max reps

C.  Every minute, on the minute, for 6 minutes:

8 Pull-Ups

Kipping Handstand Push-Ups x Max Reps

D.  Every minute, on the minute, for 12 minutes:

Even Minutes: 5 Power Cleans @ 65% or your 1-RM Clean

Odd Minutes: Row 200 Meters

Phases B-D should take no more than 25 minutes – use no more than 1 transition minute between the phases.

A. 155#, 175, 195, 195, 195(F@below knee clean), 195

Fell over backwards on 5th set. Other than that these felt pretty good. The contrast between above the knee and below the knee was interesting.

B. 5,4,3,3,2(lost balance and came off the wall), 3

C. 4, 3, 4, 3, 1, 3

I interpreted Max reps for strict HSPUs and kipping HSPUs as meaning unbroken/without coming off the wall and that is how I did them.

D. Power cleans at 165# (65% of 255). All sets of power cleans were unbroken, with little or no pauses.  Felt good on pull-ups today, rep range was very doable. HSPUs felt pretty good, as did cleans.

I love/hate the shift from going 4 or 6 minutes at a time on the first two AMRAPs and then doubling the time domain for the third AMRAP. Really makes you have to suck it up and be mentally strong during the third AMRAP to keep moving, go unbroken, etc.

September 24th, 2012

Workout of the Day

A.  Six sets of:

Halting Snatch Deadlift + Mid-Hang Snatch + High-Hang Snatch

Rest 2-3 minutes

B.  Five sets of:

Snatch Balance x 1 rep

Rest 2 minutes

C.  Back Squat

* Set 1 – 5 reps @ 75-80% of 1-RM

* Set 2 – 3 reps @ 85-90%

* Set 3 – 1 rep @ 90-95%

* Sets 4-6 – 8 reps @ 70-80%

Rest 2 minutes between sets.

D.  Three sets of:

GHD Sit-Ups x 20 reps

Rest 30 seconds

Glute-Ham Raises x 6-8 reps @3011

Rest 30 seconds

A. 115 lbs., 125, 135, 145(failed on high hang), 145, 150

These felt pretty good, need to work on sitting back on my heels.

B. 135 lbs., 145, 155, 165, 170

I was not really feeling up to going heavy on these today, but the technique felt really good. Bar felt solid over head.

C.5×265, 3×305, 1×325, 8×245, 8×245, 8×245

D. GHDs: Skipped

    GH Raises: 8, 8, 6

My abs are still smoked from GHD sit-ups and T2Bs on Friday.  I am sure they will be good to go in a day or two, but it was still a little painful to attempt even one GHD sit-up today.

September 22nd, 2012

Workout of the Day

A.  Complete as many reps as possible in 4 minutes of:
1 Clean (power or full)
1 Chest-to-Bar Pull-Up
2 Cleans
2 Chest-to-Bar Pull-Ups
3 Cleans
3 Chest-to-Bar Pull-Ups
4 Cleans
4 Chest-to-Bar Pull-Ups
. . . and so on up the ladder
Men = 205 lbs, Women = 135 lbs.

Rest exactly 8 minutes, and then:

B.  Complete as many reps as possible in 4 minutes of:
1 Clean (power or full)
1 Chest-to-Bar Pull-Up
2 Cleans
2 Chest-to-Bar Pull-Ups
3 Cleans
3 Chest-to-Bar Pull-Ups
4 Cleans
4 Chest-to-Bar Pull-Ups
. . . and so on up the ladder
Men = 155 lbs, Women = 105 lbs.

Rest exactly 8 minutes, and then:

C. Complete as many reps as possible in 12 minutes of:
250 Meter Row
25 Kettlebell Swings (32/24 kg)
50 Double-Unders

Compare to here and here

A. 5 rnds + 6 cleans (Jan. 21: 6 rnds + 2 PC)
B. 7 rnds even (Jan. 21: 6 rnds + 7 PC/6 C2Bs)
C. 2 + 20 double-unders (Jan. 21: 2 rnds + 25 KBs)

Went down on part A, but up on B & C.

A. 205# felt pretty heavy today, probably because of the 30 C&J w/185#s that I did yesterday. I had much more difficulty cycling 205#s and using good form during the second half of the 4 minutes than I expected. I think I missed two reps because I did not get under the bar/bring my elbows around quick enough. Much more singles than last time. Need to focus on getting under the bar quickly on power cleans & snatches to be more efficient/save energy. C2Bs unbroken during part A. Yay!

B. Cycling with 155#s felt great! I think I went through 5 rounds before I broke the power cleans up. C2Bs got hard at that point, and I only did 2-3 at a time for the rest of part B. Could really speed up with just a little improvement on those, but still feel much better than in the past.

C. Kind of died here and still got 20 more reps than last time, so not too shabby. With a little more mental toughness on the KBs and practice with doubles, 3 + very doable. Gotta think one more rep, than 2 more reps, then 3 more, etc. Now that my foot is better, I will plug in quick 15-20 rep sets of doubles during the rest between heavy sets here and there

September 21st, 2012

Workout of the Day

A.  For time:

185 pound Clean and jerk, 30 reps

B.  Five sets of:

Close-Grip Bench Press x 5-6 reps

Rest 90 seconds

Toes to Bar x 12-15 reps

(keep these quick and unbroken)

Rest 90 seconds

C.  Three sets of:

Weighted Dips (Stationary) x 8-10 reps @ 20X2

(hold for two seconds at the top)

Rest 90 seconds

GHD Sit-Ups x 15-20 reps

Rest 90 seconds

A. For time:

185 pound Clean and jerk, 30 reps

Time: 5:59

B. Close-Grip Bench: 185×6, 205×6, 225×5(a little ugly), 215×5, 215×5

T2Bs unbroken: 15, 15, 15(started to lose some speed), 12, 9(lost speed and kip rhythm)

C. Tempo Dips: 10#sx10, 20#sx8, 20#x8

GHDs: 20, 20, 20(last 5 reps were pretty slow, pretty quick pace on the prior sets)

Sorry about deviating from the program. The 30 C&Js w/185s came up on the main site and in our gym recently and I just really wanted to test myself on it. Huge progress on a heavier weight WOD like that between when I started following the competitor’s blog late last year and now. Thanks CJ Martin!

September 19th, 2012

Workout of the Day

A.  Eight sets of:
Tempo Front Squat @ 31X1 + Front Squat
Rest 2-3 minutes

Three second descent to the bottom of the front squat, then pause for one full second (“one-one thousand”) and get up to standing as quickly as possible, then reset, breath, tighten up and perform another front squat with no tempo restriction. Build to the heaviest load possible.

B.  Three rounds for time of:
10 Power Cleans (135/95 lb)
20 Barbell Weighted Walking Lunges (135/95 lb)
30 Pull-Ups

Rest exactly 3 minutes, and then . . .

C.  Three rounds for time of:

Run 800 Meters

30 Kettlebell Swings (32/24 kg)

A. 30 Kettlebell Swings (32/24 kg) A. 185, 205, 225, 235, 245, 255, 255, 255, 255

These felt pretty good. I liked the tempo + 1 rep format.

B. 12:23 (paused to catch my breath on the lunges, but never put the barbell down)

C. Skipped.

Main goal on part B was to not put the barbell down on the lunges. No reason for me to do so if it is on my back. Thought about carrying in the front rack for the challenge but that would have given me an excuse to put it down. I was reasonably fast on the pwr clns, but broke the pull-ups up a lot.

Skipped C because I have been feeling pretty beat up and spent for the last week or two. Today I felt like my body was finally feeling a little better. Wanted to avoid smashing it too much today, give it a little more rest and ride that wave into Friday. However…I sort of feel like a weenie for skipping it after seeing CJ’s 2nd post!

I am looking forward to attending the Athlete’s camp. I think that I struggle with the mental game part of CrossFit as much as anything else.

September 18, 2012

Workout of the Day

A.  Six sets of:
Halting Clean Deadlift + Hang Clean
Rest 2 minutes

Pull barbell from floor to just above the knee and pause for 1-2 seconds – you should feel weight distributed through mid and rear foot, tension through your hamstings, and lats should actively pull the barbell into your thighs, then stand tall, then clean from the high hang position.

B.  Five sets of:
Snatch Balance x 3 reps @ 70-80% (130 to 150) of 1-RM Snatch
Rest 2 minutes

C.  Three sets for times of:
Row 500 Meters
50 Double-Unders
15 Handstand Push-Ups (Scaled to 7 HSPUs)
Rest 4 minutes

A. 135, 165, 185, 195, 205, 205

B. 135, 135(F@3), 135, 145, 150(F@3)

C. 4:40, 4:57, 4:52 (lots of trouble with double-unders )

September 17th, 2012

Workout of the Day

A.  Six sets of:

Halting Snatch Deadlift + Snatch Pull + Power Snatch + Snatch

Rest 2-3 minutes

B.  Over the course of 8 sets, build to a 90-95% of 1-RM Split Jerk

C.  Back Squat

* Set 1 – 5 reps @ 80% of 1-RM

* Set 2 – 3 reps @ 85-90%

* Set 3 – 1 rep @ 90-95%

* Sets 4-6 – 10 reps @ 65-75%

Rest 2 minutes between sets.

A. 115, 135, 145, 155, 155, 165(F)

Failed on full snatch on last set. Bar ended up a little behind me overhead.

B. 135, 155, 175, 185, 195, 205, 215, 215 (F)

C. 280, 305, 325, 245

September 15th. 2012

Workout of the Day

“Last Man Standing”
On the minute, every minute, perform the following – once you fail at a certain movement, move immediately to the next (starting with the next minute interval):

Push Press x 1 rep
(start at 135/95 lb and add 10 lb. every minute)

——–
Front Squat x 1 rep
(start with the weight you finished with on the push press, add 10 lb. every minute)
——–
Picking up on the one minute segment that you would have been starting your next round of front squats, perform 20 Wall Ball Shots on the minute, every minute, for up to 7 minutes. (If you make all 7 sets, terminate this portion of the workout and move on.)
If you cannot complete all 20 shots within the designated minute, this portion of the workout is over . . . move on to the next phase of the workout.
——–
Picking up on the minute you would have been starting your next set of wall ball shots, perform 10 Handstand Push-Ups (ladies – 7 reps) on the minute, every minute, for a maximum of 7 minutes.
If you cannot complete all 10/7 HSPUs within the designated minute, your workout is over.

(Goal is to keep working for as long as possible…to be the last man/woman standing.)

A. 215

10# PR!  Came pretty close to getting 225# and a 20# PR.  Next time :)

B. 265

C. 7 rounds 

D. 0 -shoulders were done

100% more confident on wallballs since we worked them so hard last year on the competition programming.  Like night and day.  Only broke once on the last set of 20 reps.  On the HSPUs, I probably should have scaled these with a pad and practiced kipping HSPUs, but my shoulders were fried at this point.

Fun and creative WOD! Loved it!

September 12th, 2012

Workout of the Day

A.  Complete as many rounds and reps as possible in 4 minutes of:

165/115 lb. Hang Squat Clean x 4 reps

Burpees x 6 reps

Rest exactly 3 minutes after Part A, and then:

B.  Complete as many rounds and reps as possible in 6 minutes of:

135/95 lb Overhead Squat x 4 reps

Ring Dips x 12 reps (ladies – 8 reps)

(take the OHS weight from the floor)

Rest exactly 3 minutes after Part B, and then:

C.  For Max Calories:

8 Minutes of Rowing on Concept2 erg

A. 4 + 2 Hng Sqt Clns

B. 4 (struggled with OHS)

C. 160 cals

The row was really tough after B & C. I did a WOD last week with 2 x heavy squats on the minute for 5 minutes and then a 10 minute row for calories. I thought that was bad.  That was not bad, this was BAD! The heavy-ish hang squat cleans were much easy than they were a few months ago. OHS, not so much.

September 11th, 2012

Workout of the Day

A.  Take 10-15 minutes to build to a heavy Snatch

(heavy is based on how you feel – if you feel fast and your mechanics are good, keep building, if you feel sluggish or mechanics are off, back off and work on speed and technique)

B.  Take 10-15 minutes to build to a heavy Bench Press

(same thing here – heavy is based on how you are feeling today – not on what you think your max load should be)

C.  For 20 minutes, perform the following movements every odd and even minute:

Even Minutes: Power Snatch x 3 reps @ 70-75% of today’s 1-RM

Odd Minutes: Bench Press x 3 reps @ 75-80% of today’s 1-RM

A. 165 lbs (PR is 185)

Felt a little sluggish and failed a couple of times on 165.  I was not pulling under the bar enough/fast enough today.  Dropped back down to 155 and focused on technique and then came back up to 165 and got it.

B. 265 lbs.

C. 125 (75%) Power snatch x3 , 215 (80%) bench press x3

Focused on full extension and pulling myself under the bar on the power snatches.  Felt good to work the power snatch outside a metcon.  Been awhile for me.

Pre-WOD

Snatch assistance medley

Post-WOD

3x3 Snatch Push Presses w/115

Starting low and then adding each week.

September 10th, 2012

Workout of the Day

A.  Complete as many rounds and reps as possible in 8 minutes of:

135/95 lb. Thruster x 5 reps

135/95 lb. Power Clean x 10 reps

Pull-Ups x 15 Reps

Rest 4 minutes, and then,

B.  Complete as many rounds and reps as possible in 8 minutes of:

20 Kettlebell Swings (24/16 kg)

30 Walking Lunge Steps

40 Double-Unders

Rest 4 minutes, and then,

C.  Complete as many rounds and reps as possible in 8 minutes of:

10 Burpees

20 Push-Ups

30 Anchored Sit-Ups

A. 3 Rounds + 5 Thrusters + 10 Cleans

(kind of hit the wall about 6 minutes in)

B. 2 Rounds + 11 KBS

C. 2 Rounds + 10 Burpees + 11 Push-Ups

(push-ups got me here)

Never really recovered after A, but felt good strength wise on the thrusters @135 for a change. Looking forward to doing more of these multi-metcons. They suck in a good way and build metcon capacity like crazy.

September 8th, 2012

Workout of the Day

A.  Front Squat

* Set 1 – 5 reps @ 75-80% of 1-RM….210 to 225

* Set 2 – 4 reps @ 80-85%….225 to 240

* Set 3 – 3 reps @ 85-90%….240 to 250

* Set 4 – 2 reps @ 90-95%….250 to 265

* Set 5 – 2 reps @ 95-98%….265 to 275

* Set 6 – 1 rep @100-105%….280to 295

Rest 2 minutes between sets

(Compare to July 2, 2012.)

B.  Take 10-15 minutes to build to a heavy-ish Clean & Jerk

C.  Against an 8-minute running clock, perform the following, in order:

“Fran”

Complete rounds of 21, 15 and 9 reps for time of:

95 lb. Thruster

Pull-Ups

and then,

using the same barbell, build the barbell and establish a 1-RM Clean & Jerk in the remainder of the 8 minutes.

POST TWO SCORES – You must post two scores; (1) time to complete “Fran”, and (2) heaviest successful clean & jerk within the 8 minute period.

TOTAL SCORE – Your total score will be your 1-RM Clean & Jerk in lbs, MINUS 1 lb for every second over two minutes it takes to complete “Fran.”  ADD 1 lb for every second under two minutes. For example: Fran = 2:07, C&J = 275, TOTAL = 268

A. 5×210, 4×225, 3×240, 2×250, 2×270, 285×1(F)

I stalled out for about a full second at the bottom of the last squat. I should have done 280. My legs are still a little tired from a WOD that I did w/heavy squat cleans followed by a 10 min. row for calories on Thursday, so I was not expecting to PR. But 270×2 felt pretty good. It almost matched my 2-RM of 272.5×2 and I could only do one rep @ 270 back on July 2. I have been in a slump on both my front and back squat since PR’ing on both back during the first couple of cycles that we did after the regionals. Volume in the programming then just fit better for me vs. the higher volume over the last couple of squat cycles maybe?

July 2, 2012, 270 lbs.x1, June 4th, 300×1. April 20th, 290×1

B. 205#s then (F@215). I moved on after the fail

C. Fran = 4:13, C&J = 215 lbs., SCORE = 82

Compare to the last time we did this WOD in December 2011, Fran = 4:16 C&J = 195, SCORE = 59. So a nice little PR on this WOD. Considering we have done much less metcon work than back then, I am happy with some improvement and looking forward to trying it again a couple of months fro now. My Fran PR is 4:04, and that was after working up to a 1-RM Strict Press prior to Fran in the same workout. Last 3 times I have done Fran, in addition to prior to following the competition blog, something heavy has been programmed into the daily WOD too. Hopeful that means that if I do it alone I could PR by a much bigger margin some day. From a training perspective, I like doing it this way. Very good training for similar WOD in a competition.

I power cleaned B&C today. Felt that after the fail on the front squat, squat cleaning would have been counter productive.

September 7th, 2012

Workout of the Day

A.  For Max Reps:

3 Minutes of Double-Unders

(compare to July 17, 2012)

B.  In 8-10 attempts or less, find your 1-RM Snatch

Rest as needed between attempts.

(You may elect to do either a power or full, but please note below next to the weight lifted whether it was a full or power snatch.)

Do not take more than 10 total attempts . . . we have a fun day planned for Saturday.

C.  Five sets for max reps of:

Strict Handstand Push-Ups x Max reps @ 1010

(if you break tempo, you terminate the set – no resting at either the top or bottom)

Rest exactly 60 seconds

Perform these per Games standards – abmat sandwiched between two plates – the abmat should be the same level as the plates.

(compare to July 16, 2012)

A. 106

No compare to in July, I was laying off double-unders due to heal up my foot. 28 unbroken to start, then about a half a dozen trips before finding my groove again to go 8-12 reps at time. Only 4th or 5th time I have done double-unders in the last 4 months, so pretty good considering. Just need to relax.

B. 95, 115, 135, 155(F), 155(F), 145, 155(F), 155(F), 155(power snatch)

Squat snatches except for the last one, which I power snatched. Snatch felt really good when the weight was light, but once I got a little heavy I just did not have the pop in my hips today and was not pulling back/getting under the bar at the top. Did a heav-ish WOD yesterday for an online comp with some heavy squat cleans followed by a 10 minute row for calories. Still a little spent from that.

C. 7/5/4/3/3 (compared to 5/4/4/3/2 in July, +4)

Felt pretty good today on HSPUs. Definitely feeling the extra strength from all the pressing and dips we have been doing.

September 6th, 2012

Qualifier WOD #2 for Diamond of the Tough Comp

A. On the minute (OTM) for 5 minutes: 

- Perform 2 cleans for As much total weight as possible (AMTWAP)

Rest 5 minutes

B. 10 minutes to achieve max calories on the rower

A. 2250 lbs. (used 225 lbs. x 10 reps)

B. 220 calories

Squat clean was not feeling 100% smooth, so I went about 10 lbs. lighter than I thought that I could hit on a good day.  Worked out okay, I probably would not have done well with more weight today.

220 cals was tough, but about 10-20 reps above the low range of my goal. Feel pretty good about that result and there was nothing left in the tank at the end.

September 1st, 2012

Workout of the Day

A.  Two sets of:

Unbroken Muscle-Ups x Max Reps

L-Sit x Max Hold

B.  For time:

25 Shoulder to Overhead (135/95 lbs)

50 Back Squats (135/95 lbs)

75 Pull-Ups

100 Kettlebell Swings (24/16 kg)

125 Double-Unders

C.  Rest until fully recovered, and then . . .

Three sets for max reps of:

30 seconds of GHD Sit-Ups

30 seconds of Rest

30 seconds of Double-Unders

30 seconds of Rest 

A. Muscle-ups: 3 singles x 2

L-sits: 15, 8 (horrible, could not keep my feet up)

B. 24:38-ish? Clock shut off at 10:10.  Estimated time

C. GHDs: 15/14/14

Double-unders: 35/18/30