RX THE WOD

One Year Fitter

Posted on June 24, 2012 by

Happy One Year Anniversary! Well, what a journey it has been! It seems a lot longer but the fact is I have been doing CrossFit for exactly one year today. I never kept a regular journal before so I’m amazed that what started as my WOD-log became a daily reflection on what CF does to me and us… I’m so humbled by others taking the same journey inspired by what I went through. I wish you even better rewards!

While this will be Year One of many years to come the fact remains that Crossfit is transformational for everyone and of all ages. I’m reflecting on some of my own stats on a year ago vs. today:
Body Fat: 22% to 8%
Metabolic Age: 43 to 13
Max Pullups: +600%
Max 2 min pushups: +300% – 45 to 132
Max Deadlift: 265 to 425 lbs
Clean, Snatch, Press all increased by at least 150%
Learned the double unders, muscle ups and handstand pushups, no-feet rope climbs and other fun movements…
This week I’m in Europe and this will be my first Level Grading Week following the method by Cell Fitness in Australia. Their 5-level fitness standards can be found here and this is what I will use going forward. In Year 2 every month I will complete the grading tests to help me focus and monitor progress towards CrossFit Open 2013…

And to celebrate, I broke my PR on the 2 min pushups to 132 today…

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Time Capping Vegas

Posted on June 23, 2012 by

We seem to have reached our 4-day time cap for Vegas tolerability. When the taxi lines are only exceeded by the breakfast queues it is time to leave… The local box is hosting an L1 cert today so it is back to GloboGym at the hotel. Speaking of which, it is astonishing how many trainers recognize CrossFitters in their gyms (what? not everyone is wearing Inov-8s?), but it does very little to change the layouts of these gyms. It is better to stare at rows of machines than to mess with tradition… Although remember, treadmills were originally invented as a form of prison punishment and forced labor, not to improve fitness…
Strength
Wendler trifecta – light deload week
10 double unders in-between sets
– shoulder press 5-5-5
– bench press 5-5-5
– clean 5-5-5
Conditioning
5 rounds for time:
– 10 pullups
– 10 double unders
– 10 pushups
[TIME: 5:15]
Endurance
4x200m row to find fastest time
[Fastest: 0:35]

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Off Strip Benchmark

Posted on June 22, 2012 by

This may not be the biggest attraction yet in Vegas but Crossfit Max Effort is a fantastic diversion away from staggering drunks or worse on the Strip especially at 7am.
The box loves visitors and they always have a couple of out of towners joining in the fun. Two of us dropped in from Philly on a dry, hot morning to be beaten into submission by the Filthy Fifty, again. At least this time my time improved so the brutality stopped much faster…

Benchmark WOD “Filthy Fifty”
For time:
– 50 box jumps – 24?
– 50 jumping pull-ups
– 50 kb swings – 35 lbs
– 50 walking lunges
– 50 knees-to-elbows
– 50 push press – 45 lbs
– 50 back extensions
– 50 wall ball – 20 lbs
– 50 burpees
– 50 double unders
[TIME:25:25]

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Valley of Fire

Posted on June 21, 2012 by

I’m convinced that Dubai was much colder than this. A day trip to the Valley of Fire in Nevada is more than any of us deserved… But at least it inspired an extreme WOD that I survived and felt good about.

Valley of Fire WOD
AMRAP for a set distance of 3-5 miles
(Rx temperature is 110F / 43C or above)
– 1 minute all out sprint
– next 30 seconds: 10 pushups and walk
Every 5 minutes: 10 handstand pushups
[SCORE: 16 rounds – Scaled to 92F/33C in Cedar City, UT]

Posted in Travel, WOD | 1 Comment

Resting Hoodoos

Posted on June 20, 2012 by

On this rest day we headed over to Bryce Canyon, by far the most surreal of them all. Great sandstone sculptures and formations (called hoodoos) by the thousands spread over a massive landscape. A great experience and well worth the strenuous hike into the depth of the canyon.
Rest Day Conditioning…
– 3 mile hike