Friday, April 13, 2012

Busy, busy week

Work seems to be exploding again. We are working on a number of new products, rolling out products to new customers, working on securing venture capital to stay in business, etc., and it's been kind of crazy.

This week, on Monday and Tuesday, I worked late and never worked out at all. Finally, on Wednesday night, I made it a priority that I'd get to the gym. The workout started with a "pick your own" strength movement, with 1-5 reps done every minute on the minute for ten rounds. I chose front squats, trying to focus on correct form. I have lifted well over 200 pounds using a cross-over grip that is only used by people with terrible shoulder mobility. My goal on Wednesday was to find a weight that was possible but difficult using the correct grip. I ended up doing 10x3 at 125 pounds. My wrists were a bit sore at the end, but I made it.

After that, we did a 12 minute workout, as many reps as possible, of dumbbell manmakers, rope jumping and tuck jumps. It was one of those workouts that looked easy on the white board, but didn't turn out that way.Yesterday's CrossFit workout was a classic "hero" WOD - McGhee. I had first done this workout last November 19th. I was going to link to my post about that workout, but I see that I didn't write anything about it. We were really busy at work in November and December and while I was at the gym as much as possible, I didn't post much. Anyway, the "hero" WODs are notoriously difficult, and this one is no exception.

30 minutes, as many reps as possible:
5 deadlifts
13 push-ups
9 box-jumps

The prescribed weight for deadlifts is 275 pounds. I know that this weight would become a limiting factor for me before 30 minutes had expired. In November, I used 205 pounds and finished exactly 12 rounds. Last night, I decided to use 225# and try to go past 12 rounds, even if by a single rep.

Things started out pretty well, and I finished my 6th round with 16 minutes left on the clock. By this point in time, it had become obvious that push-ups were the real limiting factor. I could do the five deads uninterrupted, and I could do the box jumps the same way, albeit slowly. But, by the mid-point of the workout, I couldn't do 13 straight push-ups without rest. So, I started focusing on breaking up the 13. I'd try to get to 9 or 10, rest for a bit, and then finish. In one set, I only got to 5, rested, and then only got to 9 and had to rest again. But, I finished my 11th round with over 3 minutes on the clock.

At this point adrenaline seemed to kick in and I did one of my faster rounds, finishing my 12th round with almost a minute to go. I did the five deadlifts quickly, and then headed to the push-ups. I got in 7 quickly, but had to rest. I got in 3 more and had to rest again. And then I ran out of time.

I did beat 12 rounds by 15 reps, and I used a heavier weight than last time. So, I'd call it a successful effort. Total reps are kind of scary:

Deadlifts - 65 reps at 225# - almost 14,000 pounds
Push-ups - 166 reps
Box jumps - 108 reps

Any one of those alone would be a good workout. All of them together, and I'm sore today.

Tonight, I'm planning to go to CF again. After a tough workout last night, and because Saturday's are usually tough, I'm guessing tonight will be a much easier workout.

Tomorrow looks like a nice warm day. My options for the day include the following:

1) Ski
2) Ride my bike
3) Run
4) Trout fishing
5) Some of the above
6) None of the above

As of now, I'm planning to fish in the morning with my son. Then, I'll probably go for a bike ride or a run in the afternoon.

Monday is the Boston Marathon. While I'm not running (it's now been 16 years since I last ran Boston), a number of my friends will be there. The weather forecast for Monday is scary, with temps in the mid to high 80s. I've run in one Boston where the temperature approached 80F and it was my worst performance ever there. Hopefully, the forecast will turn out to be wrong and the weather will be amenable to fast times.

No comments: