I had a chemo port installed last Thursday in a minor outpatient procedure.
Friday, I had my second round of the gem/tax chemo at the hospital. I went back to work for a couple hours after chemo and then headed to the gym for the first workout of the 2017 CrossFit Open.
I turned 55 last month, which is the age where new standards come into play for the Open workouts. So, it had been my goal for a couple years to participate this year. However, I guess I never really anticipated the health issue that I'd be facing, so I'm participating, but not quite the way I expected.
For everyone, the rep scheme was identical - an ever increasing number of dumbbell snatches followed by fixed sets of burpee box jumps. For everyone, the rep scheme was 10-15-20-15-30-15-40-15-50-15, with a 20 minute time cap. For athletes 55 and over, there is an Rx (as prescribed) workout and a scaled workout. The primary difference for 55+ males was a 20 pound dumbbell for the scaled workout vs. 35#, and a 20" box vs. 24". Also, all 55+ athletes could step up and over the box rather than jump.
To be honest, the scoring system is a bit strange. Anyone who does the workout Rx and gets just one rep scores higher than someone who does it scaled, even if the scaled athlete finishes all the reps in 2 minutes. I could easily do some reps at 35# and 24", but I knew I couldn't finish the workout in the time limit. So, I opted for the scaled workout, knowing that it would be a better challenge for me, rather than the Rx version, which would be a slog.
I was surprised to feel as good as I did as we got started. The first 10 snatches were trivial. The first 15 burpee box step-ups went way better than expected. Round 2 was also solid. In round 3, my fast start caught up with me a bit, but I still did the snatches unbroken, but I rested some during the burpees.
In the 4th round, my spinal erectors started to scream a bit (this sounds like it was a common problem for athletes) and I started to slow down. I finished the 4th round at 14:45, and I still had a chance to finish the workout. But, suddenly, the pain at the base of my right spinal erector started to become too much. I had to break up the final set of 50 snatches into 3 sets and I lost a lot of of time. I started my burpees just past the 18:00 mark, and I only did 1 burpee and then cried "No mas".
I was completely redlined and on the verge of throwing up. Having done chemo only a couple hours earlier, I wasn't really in the mood to be throwing up on the gym floor, so I went with discretion rather than valor.
But, I bet I'm near the top in the world wide standings of people who did the open a couple hours after chemo. I'll take that.
Hopefully, this Friday's workout will be a lot easier.
For the rest of the weekend, I didn't do a lot. Luckily, I felt better than after the previous round of chemo, although I don't feel great. I walked 4 miles with my wife and our dog on a warm day on Saturday. On Sunday, we tried to walk outside, but it was cold and windy, so I bailed. Instead, I walked 75 minutes on the treadmill.
And, I tied some flies. Trout season is 33 days away.
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