Working towards goals

Today's WOD was tough.  It was a 15min AMRAP (As Many Rounds As Possible) of:

800m run
20 power cleans-105#
30 burpees
40 walking lunges
50 double unders

I only got through one round plus a 525m run on the 2nd round.  Whatever.  I was okay with the WOD as a whole.  I didn't quite hit competitor weight at 115#, but I did more than regular rx'd at 65#, so all was good.

Decided to work on my bar muscle ups afterwards.  It's on my 2014 goals list and I'm not going to get it if I don't work on them at least twice a week.  So I started warming up with red/purple bands.  I did a set of six on these and they felt good. Last week I'd hit 3 reps on red alone after my 10 reps on red/purple so I decided to drop down to just red after 6 reps today.  I was surprised at how much easier they seemed today.  I hit 7 reps on just the red band, then decided to try two purple bands just for kicks.  I got 3 more reps on the two purple bands!  What?!  I did try twice with just one purple after that but I think I was too fatigued at that point.  But I can see it.  I think that maybe, sometime this year I might just get one!  Progress feels good.  What are your goals?  What are you doing to get there?

I'm just an average crossfitter and I'll take it

This photo has been posted a lot on facebook lately.  Since I just did Fran today, that number happened to be fresh in my head.  I got 6:49 today and was plenty happy to be just above average.  My hands are still torn up from Bradshaw, so I went into it just hoping to get through without tearing more.  In the end, my hands were fine.

My other stats in comparison:

Fran-6:49
Grace- 3:55
Snatch- 95 lb
Deadlift- 250 lb
Back Squat- 185 lb

I haven't done 1 rep max's on any lifts in a really long time, but again I'm happy to be just about average.  Considering I'm 42 years old, and I'd venture to guess the average aged crossfit woman is much younger, I'll take it.  Some days I feel like I'm such a fraud.  I see these younger girls cranking out these awesome times or lifts and wonder who I think I'm kidding.  Then I see posts like this one and realize I'm still doing pretty darn good.  I know there's a curve and at some point my times and lifts will all have to decrease.  But for now I'm going to keep riding this ride and see where it takes me.

Fitness Goals for 2014

So it's been a long time since I've posted anything on my blog.  The new year is a time when most people make a resolution or two.  I'm not making any resolutions.  I feel like I'm at a great place in my life.  I've already given up anything junky and have added in as many healthy things as I can handle.  So instead I've opted to work on my goals.  My long term goal is to get a bar muscle up this year.  I've worked on them on and off over the 4 years I've been crossfitting, but always end up giving up.  Too many times I've hurt my shoulder and then stop because it begins to affect my wods (and I can't have that!).

This year, I've asked the coaches to help me.  I've video taped a few of them doing them so that I can watch the progression in slow motion.  I've figured out the best way for me to work into them slower, so I don't get hurt.  I've been doing them on the blue band pretty well.  I'd moved to the red/purple band and it was still great.  Then I tried the red alone and couldn't quite catch it high enough.  So now, I'm moving back to the blue and making sure I can hit two sets of ten before trying the red again.  I think this will work better.  I wasn't spending enough time on each band.

What goals do you have and how do you plan to get there?

Crossfit and traveling

I am traveling on vacation with my daughters this week.  We won a week in Scottsdale at my daughters school fundraiser.  Before leaving I had been dying for a break from crossfit.  I'd started doing the competitor workouts the past two or three weeks and my body was paying for it.  I had mentioned that I was really looking forward to a week off to allow for some recovery, both physically and mentally.

So why was it when we arrived Sunday evening I went online looking for local boxes?  I think it had to do with a six hour car ride.  I needed to MOVE my body.  Plus I love hitting crossfit affiliates while I'm away from home.  It's fun to see what they do the same and what they do differently.  Plus who needs rest?

Monday morning I woke up bright and early to hit the 7:30 WOD.  First thing I realized was that I wasn't at home and couldn't make my breakfast.  Hmm what to do?  I headed to Starbucks and got a Cafe Americano and the protein pack.  Ready to roll I headed to Crossfit 480.  The facility was very clean.  And all glass doors surrounding the place.  I really liked the place.  The newbies were friendly.  The other members didn't have much to say.  The head trainer seemed a bit put off that I was there.  I asked him about the games.  He said he isn't into that.  They didn't send anyone.  He said that since they've opened competition up to the internet, he has no interest.  He didn't ask about my experience or where I come from.  I thought that was odd.  The warm up was good, although mostly stretching and mobility.  Nothing really to get you ready for the WOD.  Then we did a strength of 3x3 for partial power cleans, only went to the shrug.  The WOD was 200m run, 12 dips, 6 thrusters (95#rx'd), 250m row, 12 dips, 6 thrusters for two rounds.  I've never done that many dips in my entire life and the thrusters at 95# got quite heavy.  I went 15:44 rx'd.  I was the last one done, but was the only girl that did it prescribed.   It was $15 for a drop in, which was reasonable.  It was a good workout and I'd initially thought I'd go back there.

The next day at breakfast, two people wearing crossfit t-shirts happened to sit behind us.  I couldn't resist and had to ask where they workout.  They said they owned a box further away but that Crossfit Magna was a great box and I should consider it.  That was one of the other places I'd seen online.  I didn't go there because they didn't have any morning WOD's.  I decided to suck it up and go to the 4PM class.  I showed up and was immediately greeted by a friendly member.  She introduced me to Coach Jenn who gave me the waiver.  I asked her about the rate for drop ins and she referred me to Brian.  He asked where I was from, how long I'd crossfitted and what affiliate I go to.  He knew Jeremy and told me I could have one class for free or the week for $15.  Now that's an awesome deal!  The WOD was tough.  There was a 5 min warm up of: 100 doubles, 10 arm circles, 20 mountain climbers and 30 sit ups.  The next part was a gymnastics emom.  It was 20 minutes of 5 strict pull ups, and 5 kipping dips.  I got through 14 rounds before I decided to get a red band for the pull ups.  At that point I did 2 strict and 3 on the band.  I somehow was able to get through all of the dips.  Then we were on to the main WOD.  That was a 15 minute amrap of 5 deadlifts (95#rx'd), 10 push ups and 5 squats.  I got 11+8 rounds.  It was a great workout and all of the people there were very friendly.  It was a very small box, but after being at both I would go back to Crossfit Magna anytime.

All in all, I'm glad I was able to get two days in, while still taking time off to recover.  And my girls didn't feel like I ditched them while on vacation.  Win!

Grace and dinner

I know weird title for a post.  But that's kinda what my day consisted of.  My daughter had an orthodontist appointment this morning and then drove herself to Starbucks and school (which took way longer than if I'd have driven).  So I had to go to crossfit at 11:00.

Our WOD today was Grace.  I'd done it a few months ago, so I knew I had to get it done in about 5 minutes.  Not great, but a goal nonetheless.  Oh first the description:

Grace:  30 clean and jerks at 95#

Today I got 4:38, victory!  It was a 1 min, 19 sec PR!!  I'll take it.

After finishing Grace we had a max effort pull ups.  I got 15 on that.  I probably should've tried for more, but my hands were pinching and I didn't want to  mess them up for the rest of the week.

Then I had to run a few errands and get to Costco.  I started plotting dinner while I was driving and decided to go with bacon wrapped filets.  I saw the recipe on Food Network and have to say they were the best steaks I'd ever made so I went with them again.  I had great intentions of taking a photo, but everyone was starving and I forgot.  But they were just as delicious this time around  If you'd like to give them a try the recipe is here.  I will warn you if you're following a traditional low fat diet, they aren't for you.  If however you are paleo, then go for it!  

We had those with some roasted brussel sprouts and sweet potato chips.  And with the leftover bacon, I made bacon wrapped dates for dessert.  Yep it was a good day!

The final week of the Open

I think by week the of the Open I was kind of over it.  I liked how we did it at our box last year better, just my personal preference.  Last year, I didn't sign up for the Open because it was supposed to be something that was to be done on the weekends. With three kids, I've never been able to go on weekends.  But they ended up doing the workout as the WOD every Thursday beginning the second week.  Just so happened, that I go on Thursdays.  So while I wasn't sad to miss 12.1 (7 minutes of burpees), it was fun to hit all of the other workouts.

So this year when it was time to begin signing up for the Open, I asked if it would be run the same as last year and they said yes.  So I signed up.  As it turned out, they decided to do the big Open "party"on Saturdays.  They also gave the option of Wed or Thurs evenings at 7 or 8 PM.  But again with 3 kids, going in the evening isn't very feasible.  They have been awesome and allowed me to hit the Open workout every Thursday during my usual class.  And most days, there's been at least one other person to hit it with me.  I don't really mind doing it alone or in a small group, but it is weird doing it early when no one else has hit it yet.  I don't have any tips or even target numbers to hit.

Week 3 was a repeat, so I felt like I went into that thinking it'd be easier than it was.  I couldn't believe how sore my quads were!  For three days!  And I didn't do much better than last year, which surprised me.  Last year I'd made it through Karen and then got 5 doubles.  This year I got 33 doubles.  But I'd thought I'd make it through all of them.  My doubles are good and I had two minutes left.  But my feet were numb and my arms were toast.  Good lesson there!

As for week 4, I felt good that day but of course as others were posting higher scores as the week progressed, I second guessed whether I could have done better.  I did almost exactly what I thought I would with 54 reps, but I know I could've finished those last 6 toes to bar.  My form was just sloppy on that last round.  I should've taken a second before starting and got myself together.

The good news is that I've been staying after class everyday to work on new things.  I'd been working on my dips, but have moved on to hspu's and bar muscle ups.  I can now string 3 good hspu's and can get two muscle ups with a band.  I'm at the red & purple band and hope to be off of the bands soon.  Learning new things and getting better at old things is going to be my focus now.  I've enjoyed the Open, but have never crossfitted for the competition.  I enjoy competing, but I think I lose focus of the bigger picture.  Which is to say since last September, I've lost 24 pounds and fit into the smallest size clothing I've ever fit into.  In fact, here's a photo of the shorts I just bought two pairs of.  Mostly because I was able to wear a size small!!

So yeah I've had fun doing the Open, I might even do it again next year.  But I'm kinda over it and looking forward to not worrying about what it'll be or when I'll do it.  What are your thoughts about the Open? 

My take on Crossfit Open 13.2

I had to hit the Open's 13.2 today.  Not optimal, but better than not getting it in at all.  I thought I was going to have to go it alone because everyone else will be doing it on Saturday at our box.  But thankfully there was one other person who needed to get it done today.  So Dustin and I were going to go while everyone else did the regular WOD.

Since there was only two trainers there, one had to run the regular class and the other had to count for us.  That meant Dustin and I couldn't go together.  He volunteered to go first and since I'd eaten breakfast only 30 minutes before I decided that would help me too.  Here's what the workout looked like:

I knew this would be a cardio test more than anything.  So I'd thought I'd jump all of the 1st round of box jumps, step the second round, jump the third and so on.  But during the first round, Jake kept no repping me. He told me I was opening all the way up on my jump down and that it needed to be while I was still on top of the box.  So then I started to jump up, step down.  That way I knew I'd get each rep. But that felt weird.  So for the remaining rounds, I only did step ups, step downs.  I felt like it was the old step aerobics days!  But overall I think it was a good strategy.  I never stopped.  I was able to transition without taking a break and keep moving even if it wasn't the fastest pace.

Then this afternoon a friend sent me a message that I'm in first place for my age group in our region & 35th worldwide!  While I know this won't last I had to take a screenshot of it, because it feels good!  I honestly have no illusions of making it anywhere near the top, but it's sure fun to pretend for a minute or two!  I really liked this workout a lot better than 13.1.

Those of you that have done it, which did you like better or think you preformed better at?

Crossfit Open 13.1

So last year I didn't compete in the Open.  I had been crossfitting for about a year and a half, but didn't feel strong enough to compete.  In the end, I ended up doing every workout except 12.1 anyway because our box did the open workout as the WOD each Thursday.  And trust me, I wasn't too upset about missing 7 minutes of burpees.

Fast forward to this year.  I decided that supporting my box was important and for $20 it would be fun to see where I ended up.  So when the 13.1 was announced I almost died to see my two least favorite moves together in one workout!

I was hoping that since they'd added a Masters Women's bracket for 40-44, that I'd get a little break.  But alas no luck.  Same workout as those dang fit 20 year olds!  Here it is in case you haven't seen it:

My max snatch was a 2 rep lift at 75 pounds and I suck at burpees.  So I didn't go into this workout with much confidence.  I ended up doing burpees step ups after watching other heats go before me.  It looked like it saved a lot of endurance as well as leg fatigue.  Turns out it was the right choice for me.  My problem was the 75# snatches.  They got in my head because I knew it was my previous max.  So I took them way too slow.  I did singles and took way too much time in between.  I ended with a 131 ,but was disappointed because I know I could've pushed harder and had more time to finish the burpees.  My tie break time (the time you completed your last full round of snatches) was 16:54.  6 seconds to get to my bar and complete one burpee.  

I think my strategy for next week will be to hit the workout on Thursday and then if I feel like I need to try again I'll still have Sunday.  Because I don't think I could do back to back days.  One of the benefits of the young that I don't have, is recovery time.

Overall I'm glad I'm signed up this year and am really having fun watching our beastly athletes get great finishes.  What was your finish, and how did you feel about it? 

Banana Blueberry Muffins

Here's a recipe that was passed on to me from Nick Robles at Crossfit Kinnick.  They are about 1 block and delicious!  I omitted the vanilla to be WLC compliant.  I threw all of the ingredients into our Vitamix and just poured the mix into the cupcake liners.  

Banana Blueberry Muffins

2 normal sized ripe bananas (about 1 cup)

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

5 eggs

1/4 cup of unsweetened applesauce

1/2 cup coconut flour

1 scoop vanilla protein powder 

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

2 Tablespoons coconut oil, melted

1/2 cup blueberries (frozen)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners or grease with coconut oil.

Add to a medium bowl the bananas, vanilla extract, applesauce, and eggs and using a hand mixer mix the ingredients together—I use a hand held blender to really chop up the bananas. 

In a small bowl whisk together dry ingredients (coconut flour, cinnamon, baking soda, protein powder, and salt). 

Add dry ingredients to the banana mixture and using hand mixer combine until well incorporated—had to switch to mixer because blender didn’t work as it was a little too thick.  Then add melted coconut oil and mix again until combined—if you don’t melt the coconut oil, it forms little chunks in your batter.  

Stir in frozen blueberries making sure not to break them up (mush) too much in the batter—frozen ones don’t mush.

Scoop the batter evenly into muffin pan (I usually get about 10 muffins).  These muffins don’t rise.  As such, how you place them in the pan is how they turn out.

Place muffin pan in preheated oven and bake for about 25 minutes or until tops are golden brown—sometimes the middles of the tops don’t look cooked, but they are.  You can also use a toothpick to make sure the center is cooked.

WLC Round Two

Today marks the end of the second week of the second round of the WLC (Whole Life Challenge).  It basically is a challenge among crossfit boxes.  You have to log points daily for things like diet, exercise, mobility, supplements, etc.  The diet is the hardest for most people.  You have 5 points daily and basically you need to eat clean, i.e. no grains, sugar, processed foods, alcohol, etc.

The first go round I ate Paleo and did great.  I lost 20 pounds and really enjoyed the transition.  This time I hadn't changed my eating much before starting the challenge.  So I'm not sure why I was disappointed when we started the challenge and I didn't see any weight loss.  I somehow thought it would just start falling off again just because I paid money to sign up for a challenge.

After the first week without any drop in the scale I decided to strictly zone my foods for the next week. I wrote everything down and got feedback from the experts at my box.  I realized I was only eating 8-9 blocks a day.  Most of the other girls were eating 11, so I decided to up my blocks to see how it went.  Turns out that was what I needed!  I'm down 4 pounds and have never eaten better!  My husband comments on how we have had the best dinners in the last two weeks.  Even the kids are mostly enjoying all of our meals!  Surprisingly they have really liked a lot of the dinners.

My biggest surprise when I started zoning my meals was that I was eating way too much protein at meals. I was thinking I was about 3 oz, but after weighing I realized it was close to 6 oz!  So that along with adding more snacks has been helpful.

I will post up some of the best recipes I've come across soon.

Battle of the Boxes

So I did it!  My first crossfit competition, Battle of the Boxes was this past Saturday.  I was slightly nervous, but less than I expected.

My workout was a min Helen.  It was two rounds of a 300 meter run, 14 kettlebell swings (35lb) and 8 pull ups.  I was surprised at how young and fit the other three women were in my heat and was even more surprised at how dang fast they took off for the first run.  I did my best to not fall behind and we all four entered the door together.  Two pulled ahead at the pull ups and were out the door before me, but I had a good lead on the fourth.  I ended up finishing in 5:04, which was okay.  There was an 8 minute time cap, so at least I finished well ahead of that.  But overall that put me in 16th place of 24.  I guess considering many of those girls were half my age, I should be pleased.

Then we moved on to the strength portion.  It was the Crossfit Total.  There was a 7 minute time cap for all four team members to find their 1 rep max of: back squat, shoulder press & deadlift.  My three teammates are WAY stronger than me so it was decided they would hit their max on the back squat and then as we stripped the plates for shoulder press, I'd hit what I knew was close to my max.  It ended up not giving me much time but I ended at 165 which was a 5# PR, so I was fine with it.  Then I hit the first shoulder presses.  I got two presses in.  One at 85 # and one at 90#.  That was an 7.5# PR, so I'll take it.  Deadlift I got three pulls in.  My last max was 225#, and on this one I hit 245# and then let them take over.  I didn't want to waste their time when I knew they'd kill it at over 300, the boys up over 400#'s!  We ended up finishing in 8th place overall, which I think was the highest for our box in the intermediate division.

So all in all I had a great time seeing such amazing competitors out there, and being there to cheer on my friends.  Watching the advanced division just brought it to a whole new level.  So impressive!

And now Monday morning, I get to go hit a full Helen!  What?! Yep that's our WOD today.  I'm still sore from Saturday, but it'll be interesting to see how it goes.

Have any of you ever participated in any other crossfit events besides the Open?  How did it go, and how did you do personally?

Today's WOD

I'm starting to get nervous.  I went to workout this morning and just before the WOD, we go over upcoming events.  The next Whole Life Challenge starts this Saturday.  I know it'll be good for me to cut out the dairy and Mexican food again, so I'm looking forward to this.  But I know it's tough to get through all eight weeks, so I'm a bit nervous.

Then there's the Battle of the Boxes that I agreed to compete in.  It's teams of four, two men, two women.  I never planned to compete, that's not why I crossfit.  But it seems they're always short women at our box and I know it'd be fun.  So I got talked into joining an intermediate team.  But it seems everyone else on my team would be fine in the advanced division.  That I'm just not ready for.  But I don't want to hold them back either.  So we'll see how this plays out.  Either way, I'm nervous about doing my first competition.  1 rep max lifts are not my thing, but at least now I've tried every lift so I know what I'm in for.

Lastly there's the open.  Again I have no desire to compete.  But last year our box did every open workout on Thursday and again on Saturday.  I happened to go every Thursday back then so other than the first week when they only did it on Saturday, I ended up doing every workout anyway.  At that point I thought I should've just signed up to see where I fell against others.  Now here we are again and I'm not sure if I want to sign up or not.  I'm old enough to now qualify for the masters division.  But even at that, I see women every day in that category that kick my butt.  So while it'd be fun to see where I fell (and yes I mean that literally!), I'm wondering if it would just be more money out the window.  I guess I have a little bit of time to think on this one.

I'd love to hear from fellow crossfitters why you will or will not participate in the Open this year.

Oh just to finish it off, our WOD today was: Diane with a finisher of max reps toes to bar.

I did Diane in 7:45 but subbed handstand push ups for 30# push presses.  And got 23 toes to bar.

Nope not me in the photo, just a great shot of toes to bar & it had credits.

Whole Life Challenge Recap

I made it through the eight weeks!  That in itself was a huge accomplishment!  I really wasn't going to do it.  I don't like paying money for things that I might think sound good, but know I won't be able to successfully complete.  After learning about the bonus points in the WLC, I realized it was something I could do.  Not only did I finish, but I was successful!  I used many of my bonus points, but not all of them.  I used them on my birthday, and on Bill's birthday.  We enjoyed every minute of those "cheats", and then jumped right back on track.

I lost 20 pounds!!  The last two weeks, my weight loss had dramatically slowed but still continued.  I decided to not worry about it, but to just focus on my goal of hitting 20 pounds.  I hit it with a few days to spare.  Now 20 pounds wasn't my initial goal.  Initially I'd thought I'd be happy with 10 pounds, 15 would've made me very happy.  But I blew through both of those and decided to try to hit 20.  And at the final weigh in, I'd also lost 9.25 total inches!  What?!  Crazy huh?!

It was great to see that I could do it and the kids would survive.  They didn't love all of the "meat" dinners I was making all of the time, but after awhile they didn't really notice as much either.  They still got the occasional pasta dinner or pizza.  We just ate something else that night.

In the weeks since, I've kept off all but 2-3 pounds.  It is the holidays, so I will work to keep my weekdays as pure as possible while leaving the cheats to parties.  I've really enjoyed seeing the results that eating this way as afforded me.  There are many facets that won't change.  I now don't need milk in my coffee.  While in Connecticut last week I ordered a cappuccino and felt like I was really cheating, but in reality it was fine.  I have to have a balance while remembering to keep the good outweighing the bad.  I'm definitely signing up for the next challenge that starts soon!  I'll keep you posted.

Killer WOD

So yesterday I went to get my normal Thursday WOD in.  I keep thinking with this clean diet, my workouts are going to feel easier.  I guess I'm wrong, they are always going to kick my butt.  I don't mind a tough workout, but I am tired of feeling like I'm going to keel over mid way through my workout.    Our workout was:

5 rounds for time of:

15 box jumps
12 toes to bar
9 thrusters (65#)

It seemed like one of the workouts I would've liked.  I've always liked every one of those movements.  So I figured 5 rounds would be tough, but I would do good.  Turns out I was wrong.  I did fine the first round.  By round two my heart was already beating way too fast.  By the third round I felt like I was barely moving.  I had to break each movement in half, which was fine, but I took way too much time trying to catch my breath.  I'm sick of breathing being my issue.  I think once I get this diet thing down comfortably I need to work on cardio stuff.  Not running at my usual pace, but maybe some sprints or something.  I wish there would come a time where I'm just satisfied with where I'm at and not have the next major thing to work on.

The silver lining was that I completed the WOD.  I almost threw up about 45 minutes later, but I didn't so I guess the day was a success.

Walking

It seems that I've lost my running mojo.  I had not run for a few months, deciding to focus on crossfit.  Then I realized my crossfit was suffering without my running.  So I dropped back down to two days a week and was going to start running.  But it was too dang hot.  So I've been on the treadmill.  And have found, I don't like running on the treadmill.  But I do like walking.  So rather than get frustrated, I'm walking more often.  I am aiming for 3-4 miles every day.  Today I am cleaning the house.  But I committed to walk my 3 miles.  So I cleaned until 10:00, then hopped on and did my 3 miles.  Now I'll go stretch and then finish up my cleaning.

I'm finding following the diet to be a bit easier than I thought it would be.  I am still eating too many unfavorable foods, but it's a 100% improvement from where I was.  I've been sauteing 1/2 a banana in coconut oil and topping it with cinnamon and a teeny bit of nutella.  It is the best!!!  I know I've got to keep it as a once in awhile treat instead of a daily treat though.  I'm also eating too many yams.  I've been having a whole one every day.  Half at lunch and half at dinner.  I shouldn't be eating them at all, but they are really good plus very filling.  I've been so hungry that I'm trying to find ways to be satisfied.  Now that I've had a few days of satisfaction, it's time to buckle back down and get to work.

Fail

Well so much for daily blogging.  I was in San Diego when I decided this would be a good idea.  The problem came when I watched three water polo games and then had to drive home on Saturday.  That day was out completely.  The idea of taking 10 minutes to slow down and reflect though hasn't been lost.

I had plenty of time while driving to reflect.  It wasn't exactly meditation, but it was time to myself to reflect.  Stephen was in the backseat doing homework so I didn't have music on or conversation.  I do like the idea of taking 10 minutes for myself everyday.  Sometimes I feel so guilty if I'm not doing something at all times.  It's good to remember that taking a few minutes every day is just as important.

I have also figured out it's not going to work to try to take that time while the family is home.  It seems any time I'm busy, everyone is fine.  But as soon as I want to take a minute for something quiet, everyone needs something.  So rather than try to fight it, I'm going to take the time during the day while everyone is at school or work to find my time.

I'm off to crossfit in a few minutes so I better go unload the groceries.  But I have enjoyed my few minutes of quiet.

Whole Life Challenge

Yes it's been too long since I've blogged anything.  I haven't been very motivated to run and feel like I can't blog if I haven't been running.  It's not like I've been lying around on the sofa, eating bon bons.  I have been going to crossfit 2-3 times a week.  I've also been hitting the treadmill all of the other days.  But I am not signed up for any races.  I felt like when I run races, I have to train and I don't have the time to train while doing crossfit.  So I decided to take a year without signing up for any races, and run just for enjoyment.  That was good in theory, but with the heat, I have found no enjoyment.  So I've been just walking on the treadmill.  It's not the end of the world, but I know it's done a number on my endurance to have taken off so much time from running.  Wednesday I did my first run on the streets in months.  I only went 3.5 miles and I felt like it was the worst run of my life.  I'm used to going out for a run, and running the whole time.  I am not super fast, but I never feel the need to walk.  Well Wednesday, I walked...often.  I felt like a failure.  But the weird this is, when I was done, my time wasn't all that awful.  It just reminds me that I need to be consistent.

This week the Whole Life Challenge that I'm doing through crossfit has challenged each of us to take 10 minutes every day to contemplate. Whether it's through meditation, journaling or whatever it's about being mindful.  So I've decided to blog this week.  It may not be about running, but it will be my thoughts about the day.  It's funny because I thought my thoughts were going to go in a completely different direction today, but once I started typing here I am.

It's been one week since the WLC started.  I didn't think I'd be able to do the diet portion of the challenge.  But I've surprised myself and have been fine with the diet.  I have only lost one point and it was a conscience decision.  I had a tri tip that I'd marinated before the challenge.  I didn't want to waste it, so I ate it and subtracted the point for the marinade.  It's definitely interesting to stop and think about how all foods are prepared.  I'm learning a lot and am glad I signed up for the challenge.

Crossfit Family

Today was my son's fourth crossfit class.  It's official that he can now beat me at most any WOD.  I knew the day would come quickly, but I thought I'd get at least two weeks on him.  This was his second time beating me, so I guess he's got me.  That doesn't mean I'm going to stop trying though!

Today we did:   dumbbell thrusters (men 35#, women 20#)
                          box jumps (men 24", women 20")
                          ab mat sit ups
21-15-9

He finished in 5:30, I finished in 6:33.  Not bad for me and really good for him.  His water polo coach was there too so I'm sure that was a good incentive for him to go faster.  Chris finished in some crazy fast time, oh yeah 4:57.  So he pushed Stephen and Stephen pushed me.  I guess that's the way it's supposed to work.

I have to say I'm loving going with my son.  It gives us something to talk about as well as things to work on together.  I hope soon hubby will join us.

Top Ten Running Songs

Here's my top ten on my running playlist.  I need new ideas...

#1- Sweet Caroline by Me First and the Gimme Gimmes
#2- I Want You To by Weezer
#3- The Rock Show by Blink 182
#4- Young Blood by The Naked and Famous
#5- Jolene by Me First and the Gimme Gimmes
#6- Bleed American by Jimmy Eat World
#7- Hey Ya! by OutKast
#8- Jump by FloRida
#9- Young, Wild & Free by Snoop Dogg & Wiz Khalifa
#10- Untouched by The Veronicas

I'd love to see some other top 10 lists.  I know some people don't listen to music or listen to podcasts.  I need my music loud and fast.

Top Ten Reasons I Run

#1 - I started to run because I hated it so much.  Weird I know.  But I was doing Crossfit and all of the WOD's involving runs always made me so mad.  So I took a year off and learned to run.  And I fell in love with it!

#2 - No excuses- Six months before I really decided to become a runner we were in Hawaii.  I didn't want to lose my fitness, so I made a conscious decision to run every day before the family woke up.  I ate & drank a ton while I was there and only gained one pound.  You can run anywhere, anytime!

#3 - Friends- I have met some great people through running.  Some on social networks that I've never met in person, some I've met or become closer to from running.

#4 - Food- I love food and have never been able to eat like good girls are supposed to eat. I eat a lot.  I try to make good food choices, but running lets me eat those extra calories without too much guilt.

#5 - Tech Tops- I've gotten some fun new tops at races along the way.  I love the conversations that start when I wear one of my tops out in public.

#6 - Shock Factor- I love that look when someone asks how far I went and I either say, "10 miles today" or "it was just a short 6 today".

#7 - Pride- I am so proud of myself when I look at how far I've come after only having been running for 13 months.  3 miles used to seem like such an accomplishment.  Now I would only run that distance if it was for a race.  Not because I HAVE to, but because I CAN.

#8 - Bling- I'm not one that picks races for the bling.  But I do have all of my medals on display in my closet.  Every day when I get dressed, I look at those medals and think about how far I've come.

#9 - Gear- I'm a technology junkie, so any excuse to buy something new to help me become a better runner, I'm there.  I love hitting my mileage limit and getting to go buy a new pair of shoes.  I love trying new ways to fuel.  I love it all!

#10 - Solitude- After about 6 months of running, I thought I should find a running group.  I wasn't able to find one in our area that ran at the times I wanted to run.  I did find time to go out on runs on several occasions with other runner friends.  And you know what I found, I prefer to run alone.  I love my friends, and even my hubby, but when I run I like to be alone.  I like to crank up my music and zone out.  I don't want to worry about talking to someone or pacing them.  I just want to run and let my thoughts wonder.