Honey, I'm Home!

I never really left actually, just took a break. I am glad to say though, that I have a new outlook and I hope that the break leads to a change for the better. If you missed it, I added a page up at the top (wrote it a while back and never got always kinda chickened out about posting it) that details a little bit about me, in a roundabout kinda way. I like that. It's like a puzzle. Can you figure it out?

To catch you up real quick, since going on hiatus:

I traveled home to Hawaii and got in some good WODs at my sister's box, Crossfit Waipio.

I participated in the 31 Heroes WOD. That was a beast! I hit set new PRs in C&J (110) and Snatch (70).

 I finally bought a wetsuit and braved the cold California waters for some surf.

 Hoku graduated from Puppy Preschool with flying colors!

I can do unassisted kipping pullups for *all* the WODs (at least the ones we've done).

I totally fell off the paleo wagon in Hawaii and am trying to get back on it.

I complete Fran for the first time ever and did it Rx'd.

I started using Beyond the Whiteboard to track my results.

 My dad and I reconciled. He even came to visit me in SD.

You could say that I've been a busy body or you could say that I haven't. Either way, I felt busy! On to the WOD! Here's what we had today:

Fun yeah? I thought so.

My first reaction when I saw this was "huh... it's so short." That looks like a lot of stuff to do in 12 minutes. It sure felt like an eternity during it though.

It took me almost twice as long to do the step-ups as it took me to do everything else COMBINED! Those were killer. It didn't help that I couldn't really see over the kettlebell to know where the box edge was. I definitely almost fell a couple times. The first round I got through unbroken, but the rest I had to break into 10/5/5. It was hard getting up there for those last few reps. Everything else wasn't so bad. I used the swings to try and catch my breath and get ready for the next round of step-ups. That approach kind of worked... until I got more and more tired.

My result: 4 rounds + 10 (25 lbs)

My goal was 4 rounds. It took a lot to keep stepping onto that box in the final seconds. Even though my back was to the clock, I knew it was counting down. I just gritted my teeth and tried to keep moving and not drop the weight. My legs are going to be feeling this one later today. Thank goodness for some fish oil!

On a side note, here's some pics of what's been going on.

Reppin' Crossfit Waipio during the WOD today.

Tandem SUP at home with my sis.

The "after" picture from 31 Heroes.

My dad chowing down on some fresh uni at the Little Italy Mercato.

My little graduate!

She may love my dad, but she still hates the water!

Happy Monday!

Hey there.

I'll keep it short and sweet today. Here's what we had.

I was happy to see cleans. We hadn't done them in a while... and I was happy to see power cleans. I didn't feel like squatting all that way. We had a good warm-up session and I finally settled on loading the bar with 70lbs. 

I felt good throughout the first few rounds. By halfway, I felt a bit tired but still strong. I was taking slightly longer breaks between the rounds. My first few cleans were good, but I had to really concentrate on the last two. Those were the hardest to get out. 

In the end: 9 rounds

I wanted 10, but it didn't happen. I was happy enough to be doing cleans. 

On a side note, some shots from my weekend.

Took Hoku to the Loews Surf Dog Competition down the road from my house!

World record for most dogs (and human) surfing at one time.

This nice lash was from double unders on Friday.

Sunday breakfast... "Black Forest Pancakes" non-paleo choc chip pancakes with paleo cherry jam. 

Mmmm good.

Happy (Belated) Birthday!!

Missed a few days again... sorry!!! Somedays just get busy you know? I've actually spent most of that time in the kitchen. I'm gritting my teeth and making a wholehearted attempt at zoning my meals. I had a few too many cheats during the past week and am trying to get back on track. I've tried (not very hard) in the past, but I'm always intimidated by the amount of measuring. Plus, I cook a lot of things that are complex (paleo spaghetti, beef stew, etc). How do you figure out zone portions for that? Nevertheless, here I go. So far my first full day is going well. Hopefully this time it will last and maybe I'll see some differences.

Anyways, on to the WOD.

I was excited to see this. I have a new fondness for box jumps. Don't ask why, I just started to like them. Weird. Whatever. And who doesn't love deadlifts? The only thing I didn't like about this WOD was that the reps increased. That just takes a toll on you mentally. Time to grit and bear it.

I loaded the bar and got ready to work. The first 10 DLs were good, but I knew by the end of that set that I wouldn't be able to do the next set unbroken. That was fine with me, I was using decent weight. The second set went by 10's and the last set by 5's. I had to concentrate really hard at the end on not sacrificing form. I kept wanting to pull with my back instead of my legs. I did on a couple and I can feel it in my back now. Not so enjoyable. 

My time: 9:09


On a side note, I celebrated my birthday on Saturday. Great day! It was a little ugly out, but still made the best of it. It was better than being on deployment last year for sure!

Here's some shots.

Pre-birthday dinner. It's not paleo, but it was gooooddddd.

And of course some oysters. Yum!

My birthday present! It's awesome.

Celebratory German Chocolate Cupcake. 

Jump Around

Today was another of those "it doesn't look so bad" days. Just like every other time too, I was horribly wrong. Guess that I'll never learn. It will always be bad.

No weights, but tough work nonetheless.

I started the first two rounds not using a band for pull-ups, but I knew that wouldn't last. By the third round I was on the red band. The pull-ups were still a struggle. 30 seconds of max effort, even with pacing, is tough. I was exhausted after 20 seconds and really had to push to get in a couple more reps each time. 

The tuck jumps sucked, but once I got a pace going I felt good. I actually was able to get more reps at the end than in the beginning. Laura made us turn around and face the back wall away from the clock a few rounds in. Except my shin hurts now. Boo!

Lastly, the sit-ups. My game plan was to be consistent. I'm not very fast at doing them, but I held on and managed to get 15 almost every time.

Here's my breakdown at the end of it:

Pull-ups: 154 reps

Tuck jumps: 447 reps

Sit-ups: 158 reps  

Total: 759 reps

I'd say that's not too shabby.

On a side note, I wore my Reebok Crossfit Nanos for the first time today. Not too bad. They definitely need a break in period. I'll do a shoe comparison/review once I get a good feel for these. 

I got the black and grey ones.

Hoku chilling outside this afternoon.

Check out this pic that Laura took this morning. My minions!

Pull-ups!

Mini-WOD Monday (and Friday)

Ah!!! With all the excitement happening Friday (I got promoted!! Wooo!) I forgot to post the workout. And man it was a good one.

Did your heart just sink? Did you stomach turn to knots? Did an audible "ugh" just escape your lips? 

No? Huh... well you're sadistic then. All those things happened to me and everyone else who showed up Friday morning. I thought back to the Open and 12.1. I squeaked out 86 burpees in those 7 minutes, but it was hhhaaarrrddd. Like, crawling off the floor hard. Now, I have to do 100? I knew it wasn't going to be pretty. 

Our trainer Christa had done this workout before we showed up. How motivating is that?! Just so that we really didn't have any room to complain, she did the workout balls early in the morning to prove to us it could be done. Her time: 8:57. She said that she tried doing sets of 10 reps, but knew that would be too much. She broke it down farther to sets of 5 reps. 

I set out at the beginning with that mentality: 5 reps. While I was doing the first set though, I felt too good at 5 reps to stop, so I continued to 10 reps. It took me about 20-25 seconds to finish, then I would rest about 10-15 seconds before starting again. That worked for the first few rounds, but then I started to slow down. I kept good form, no peeling off the floor this time and I was certain to finish all 10 reps unbroken for each set. That helped me. The whole time I just kept thinking "don't stop." I made it to the end. And I beat Christa.

My time: 8:40

I was dead at the end. D.E.A.D. dead.

Now, on to today. It's the first Monday of the month which means... Mini-WOD Day!!!

Here's what we had.

When I walked into the box, I was hoping that I misread the 50 and it was actually 25 or something. Nope. 50 reps. 

With that confirmed, I um... *cough* may have instantly lost 15 lbs. Haha. I wanted to be able to get to 50 and as soon as I felt the 105 lbs I loaded up, I knew it wasn't going to happen at 120 lbs. Maybe, but I do have to get to work by a certain time. Can't stay there all morning doing individual squats. I experimented with both high bar and low bar back squats. I actually thought that I felt a little stronger with low bar, but I found it a little harder to balance. I probably did 60/40 high bar/low bar. That part of the WOD took about 17 minutes to get through.

Then I had to tackle the HSPU. I did it with one mat and sets of 10. A couple times I got off balance and accidentally pushed myself off the wall. Whoops. It was hard, but I made it. Sooner or later I'm gonna have to figure out kipping these. I've seen videos but can't seem to get myself to attempt it.

Lastly, the row was the row. I worked on form and keeping my stroke count low compared to the time. Okay... not my best time, but definitely better form rather than just hauling all out and wasting energy.

All in all, it took me about 35 minutes to finish the whole WOD, but that was with little rest between the different exercises. 

Hope that everyone has a great week!

Oh man, Oh man

When I first started CF a few months back, I didn't think thrusters were that bad. I may have even enjoyed them. Now, I realize that is probably because I was doing them with very little weight and once you add on the weight, they are not so enjoyable.

On the other hand, I kind of enjoy box jumps now. Weird.

It wasn't really the time cap that got me (you had to do all the reps required within the minute), it was tiredness. I could clean the bar up fine and for all but the last round, I completed my reps within 35 seconds unbroken. Once I got through with 7 reps, I knew I was going to have problems. 

I was tired. 

I resolved to door the next round in sets of 4. That worked out but it took my almost the whole minute to get all the reps done. I knew I was done after that. By the time I could even pick the bar back up, the round was halfway over.

My score: 8 reps/min max @ 7:51

On a side note, a couple more shots from Murph.

Pre-Murph

Post-Murph

Where I live, you can surf 50ft from the shore.

Back in the Box

Didn't go into the box yesterday cause I was so sore. Then I got guilt tripped by Oscar. Sorry!!!

Woke up this morning, still sore, but decided to go in. Maybe it wouldn't be that bad? Ha! It wasn't a WOD that I would consider difficult... no running, just rowing, but yeah, it still hurt. At least I put some weight on the bar.

I pressed 65lbs, which normally is a moderate weight for me. Today, it felt like it was 100lbs. For reals, I had to take some deep breaths and after the first round I had to break the set into 10 and 5. The best part about this WOD was the box jumps. For some reason, I am starting to really like box jumps. Idunno, I'm weird like that or something. 

My time: 13:41

Sorry for the pretty blah post, I'm tired and sore still. The good news is that I've got a few more pictures from Murph. I'll post those soon!

Memorial Day Murph 2012

OMG! I have been so bad at writing lately. I'm sorry to those (if any) who read this. I'm working on being better.

I had a great long weekend. Saw Battleship on Friday. I thought it was hilarious, but that's probably because I made fun of all the Navy stuff the whole time. Mostly, I watched it to see Alex Skarsgaard (aka Eric Northman). I also got a bit homesick seeing Hawaii and Pearl Harbor. I was there when they were filming this. Seems like such a long time ago.

Anyways, I spent most of my weekend thinking about Monday. Why? Because I had Memorial Day Murph to prepare for. I remember the first time I ever saw the Murph WOD. I thought it was batsh*t crazy. Seriously, who does that to themselves? Mostly due to the fact that I hate running, I knew I would never do this WOD.

Well... there I was at 10:00am Monday morning, warming up to start. I knew it would suck, but I pushed those thoughts out of my mind and remembered why I was doing it: to honor those who have served and sacrificed for their our country.

I had settled on just doing my best to pace the miles as fast as I could without killing myself. Turned out okay. I don't know my exact time for the first mile, probably around 8:30ish. There was another girl, Christy, who I basically paced off of. She finished just ahead of me.

I broke down the pull-ups, pushups, and squats Cindy-style (5, 10, 15). That worked great for me. I felt like I kept my pace pretty good. I managed to stick with kipping using the red band, I was pretty proud of that. I'm glad I stuck with Cindy-style. The pull-ups def got hard by the end and I really needed to use the kip. At halfway through I had to break the pushups into 5-couple-of-breaths-5. The squats, I just tried to keep going.

I was out the door for the second mile right around 34:00.

And then I DIED. Like for reals, my legs just did not want to move. My knees were killing me from all the squats. I felt like I was towing a tractor trailer around the block with me. If you've never been to CFEV, there's a pretty good restaurant around the corner from the box called Mission. It being a holiday and all, there were a ton of people waiting outside to get seated. I just yelled "excuse me" every time and ran right through them. Oh well. Hopefully it reminded them that Memorial Day is about more than just food. I pushed through until the end.

I made it back in the door at 46:11. Yay me. It did suck, not gonna lie. It was hard, but I'm glad I did it. I'll definitely do it again next year.

Here's some shots from the morning.

The 9:30am heat doing their work.

Did I mention that I hate running?

Me and Hillary post-Murph

The "Two Brown Chicks," me and Laura.

Oscar and I from the 6:00am crew.

Irene and I cheering on the 11:00am heat.

Winded...

No weights today... boo! Just sprints waiting for us. Great. At least it would be a fast WOD and I could get in some supplemental work afterwards.

At least there was no thinking involved. All you had to do was run the distance. Our trainer, Laura, even told you when to go again. I like simple. I do not sprints as much. Brought back memories of doing sprints around the track for rugby. I used to dread 200m sprints. Dread. Today was no real exception.

I felt good for the first 100m felt good. Pretty much everything after that sucked. We did the whole down-and-back thing for the 200m. I'm not a fan of that because you have to slow down to turn around and then it just takes so much more for me to pick the pace back up again. The 300m sprints turned out to be me just trucking around the block as fast as I could. 

Needless to say, I was dead by the time this was over. That supplemental work I was talking about? Turned out to be just a few rounds of kipping pull-ups. That was all I could get out.

On a side note, I spotted this awesome stickered van on the way home today. Hawaiian Pride!!!

Mini-WOD Monday (again)

It was such a beautiful weekend here! I spent most of the weekend outside. Took Hoku to the park on Saturday, that was a lot of fun but she hates her collar and harness and just moped around most of the time at the park. Then on Sunday, got some good sun time in at the beach. It's just not the same as Hawaii though. I miss the non-kelpy beaches of home.

After all the gorgeousness, it was time to get back to work today...

At first glance, I thought it looked pretty fun. Burpee pull-ups though? What about the vertically challenged of us? Ok, fine. I'll grab a box.

The first WOD went without any major hitches. I loaded up 85# for the front squats. It was doable, but keeping them unbroken was a kick in the butt. By the last set, it took pretty much everything I had to get the last rep up. The burpee pull-ups I wasn't a fan of. I thought it was awkward to do a burpee then get on a box and do a pull-up. There was just no way that I could reach the bar from the floor. So sad, I know. Too bad there's no getting over the shortness, I'm pretty confident that I've stopped growing.

**I'm just going to add in here that while 4 minutes seems like a long rest, it goes by so FAST!** 

Before I knew it, I was having to start the next WOD. I choose the 25# kettlebell and the 15# bag. I felt like the 15# bag was a little light, but that's 75 bag slams when everything is over. I stuck with my choice. The kb push press were definitely a lot easier with my right arm than my left, I expected that. They actually turned into more push jerk by the end when I was getting tired. The OH lunges sucked as usual. The bag slams were blah. I still prefer the ball, my forearms were getting tired of gripping the bag each time that I had to pick it up. Not a favorite.

Rowing was ok. I averaged 26 seconds for each round. While I was aiming for the fastest time that I could get, I was also trying to ensure that I was using an efficient stroke. Wildly pulling at the rig is not going to help me any. I was pretty happy with my performance. It's kinda funny, the 30 seconds of rest is longer than it takes you to row 100m, I def enjoyed that rest.

My total time: 29:28

I'd say that was a good start to the week. Bring on the holiday weekend!!! Woo! 

Have you signed up for Murph yet? Get it done!

On a side note, some shots from my weekend.

Started things off with a paleo carnitas burrito. 

At the park.

Hoku practicing her tragic, moping face.

Perfect tanning weather. 

Friday Fun (a little late)

Sorry for all the missed posts lately. It's been a crazy week around here. I didn't feel so well on Tuesday but was hoping that it was just allergies. After taking some zyrtec and realizing that didn't help at all and feeling pretty crappy later watching Totem, I resounded that I was indeed getting sick. Ugh, I hate being sick. I especially hate being sick while watching something as awesome as Cirque du Soleil. I stayed home sick on Wednesday and took Thursday off from CrossFit as well in order to kick this cold. Luckily, it worked and I was back at the box yesterday morning.

Here's what welcomed me back.

At the box, we just started something new, which I think is an awesome idea. In our Foundations classes, there are 3 WODs that we use at the end of each. Now, we've worked those WODs back into our programming and are using them as benchmarks. Sounds like a great idea to me. 

I decided to use this as training for when I eventually have to do Fran. After the warmups, I loaded up 65lb and got ready to start. 

For some reason, I always forget that thrusters are much harder than push press. It was doable, but I couldn't finish any of the sets unbroken. I had to go by fives in order to keep good form. The box jumps were actually my best part of this WOD. I had a good rhythm that I was able to keep up the whole time. The run portion was, well, a run. Like any other. Mostly I used it as an opportunity to catch my breath before getting back to thrusters. 

My time: 13:00 

That's actually 27 seconds slower than when I did this in Foundations, but considering that I did this in Foundations with just the 23lb bar... I'd say this is still an improvement. Looking forward to doing this again in the future and seeing how I fare.

On a side note, here's some shots from the week.

Push press on Tuesday.

The show was amazing! Can't wait to see another one.

This little pup keeps me pretty busy too. She likes getting into trouble. 

Get Ready

After a beautiful weekend here in San Diego, I was not ready for the week to start. I wanted to keep lounging around and enjoying the sunshine with Hoku. Unfortunately, at 4:45am I was reminded of reality when my alarm sounded.

Back to the grind, here we go.

Today was my first time using the bag instead of the ball and I must say... I prefer the ball. That little bounce at the end makes a huge difference. My forearms were burning by the end of the WOD. It took a lot to keep the sets unbroken and still get a decent run. I ended up digging pretty deep in the end to push for that last run up the block. 

My time: 12:55 (15# kb/20# bag)

On a side note... some shots from my weekend.

I spent Friday afternoon cuddling up to this cutie.

Paleo cheat: char siu sammy from the Asian Persuasion food truck at the Asian Cultural Fest.

Sunday breakfast: Paleo sweet potato hash.

Dinner tonight: Paleo crockpot carnitas. Mmmmm.

And... I GOT MY FIRST STRICT PULLUP EVER TODAY!!!!!! Woo!