Community Take 2

Today was the 29th annual James Joyce Ramble and we had a huge turnout of Craic athletes both running and cheering.  The 29th was even more special as it was Susie's first Ramble and first 10k.  I had low expectations for the race and someone managed to even miss those.  I had planned on running with Jack Daly and we started pretty far back and it took us a close to two minutes to get to the line.  2nd mile was a bit faster but not by much and I just never felt good. Things got worse when my calf which I injured last weekend really started to bother me.  Couldnt find a gait that was comfortable and ended having to walk run the last few miles. Normally I would have been pissed but what was I going to do?  I was really pysched to see Susie finish strong.

Place Divpl Tot Div   Guntime Nettime  Pace  Name                   

111    55/437 M2039   42:15   42:09   6:47 David Conner          

225    26/129 M4549   45:07   44:59   7:15 Dennis Mahoney 

 373    64/163 M4044   48:41   48:18   7:47 James Farnham

567    94/163 M4044   52:07   50:57   8:12 Jack Daly 

 669   238/437 M2039   52:50   52:26   8:27 Rob Ragusa     

900    79/129 M4549   55:07   55:07   8:53 John Durocher

1233    46/ 99 F4549 1:00:15   59:05   9:31 Beth McElhinney     

1336    87/161 F4044 1:02:19 1:00:31   9:45 Suzzara Durocher 

1584   404/533 F2039 1:06:12 1:04:24  10:22 Sarah Wessman 

Community

With Crossfit Craic having to go mobile during their renovation the broader crossfit community has shown its true colors once again.  Paul Teehan a regional qualifier needed a place to train for the next few weeks and after one phone call he was welcomed into another crossfit box - Crossfit Florian.   I drafted off of Paul's request and joined him for an early Saturday morning workout. 

20 min AMRAP
1000 row
10 hang cleans @205lbs

That was good for Paul but 205lbs was just too heavy for me so I scaled down to 185lbs.  That was still heavy by the way.

I beat Paul off the rower in the first round but he quickly passed me and left me in the dust even though he was cleaning 20lbs a rep more than I was.  I was happy with my effort but realized that I have lots of work still to do when the clean gets heavy as far as technique goes.  Bill Malcolmb came in to watch us and was generous with his time and expertise. 

I finished 2 rounds plus the row and 6 reps.  4 reps short of 3 full rounds.  Would like to try this one again. Felt good on the first row but slowed down considerably.

1. 3:48 - 10 reps
2. 4:14 - 10 reps
3.  4:16 - 6 reps

Heavy Fran

The 30 day No Bread challenge starts today and the bench mark wod was Fran.   I wasnt crazy excited about doing this one until I decided to scale it up and do Heavy Fran.   I knew it would be hard but in a completely different way.  I did the 6:30 class and there were so many new faces it was amazing.   We did 4 heats and every one really got after it.  Impressed to hear Sheehy did a 2:44 and Jack Daly did as well.  Super Impressive.

Heavy Fran (135lbs and C2B)

21-15-9

First round went quick but then slowed considerably.  Total time 9:07

Busy Week

A trip to the West Coast - combine that with an arrival at 1:30am and two meetings that started 7amPST and it left me no time to get any workouts in.  Usually I would be frustrated and pissed off but I was just too tired to be upset.  Thursday was no better when I got home.  Just trying to deal with what life is throwing at me.

Back Squat

Calf is feeling better but happy not to see anything that is going to press the issue. 

Warm-Up - 500m Row
Mobility

Strength: Back Squat 5×5 (same weight)

Warm up = 45(5), 135(5), 185(5), 225(5), 245(5)
265lbs(5) X5

  4 rounds of 5 of HSPU

Sunday - Rest Day

Rest Day

Travel and Alumni Game

The Golden Knights' men's soccer team will take on the alumni at 3:30 pm at Hantz Turf Field on Saturday, April 21st. I was the oldest guy on the field nudging put Todd Hansen by 3 years.   It was sad that Larry Martin missed his first game since 98.   Good turnout from the final four team.   Kirmse, Dan Benson, Willi Gould, Andres Garcia, Stan Brenner.  The game was a 1-1 draw.  We had about 25 players so it was hard to get any rhythm.  Not at all satisfied with my play other than one good pass that just had a little too much pace.   

It was great to see my Parents and Robin, Bob and Trent.   

The travel was made easier by electing to fly.  Here are a few photos from the flight from flight on the 8 seat Cessna 402.

 

Run Burpee WOD

 I really like all of the running we are doing in the programming.  That said I need to do more running specific WODs.  I find myself settling into a pace that to recover and not really activating the fast twitch like I should.   Need to do death by 10meters or a WOD where the alternate movement is the recovery.   My running has really gone south since I started Crossfit.

Today’s Workout:

4 Rounds for time:
Run 400m
25 Burpees

13:33

Messed up and didnt get my split for the run on my last run

Front Squat

I have been really tired lately and Im not sure why.  Its not the regular muscle soreness, exercise fatigue but more mentally tired.   Work has been even more consuming than normal.    I think it also has to do with no short term or specific goal to focus on.  I have been debating whether to do the Master's throwdown in Rhode Island or go to the Master's training camp in California.   Although the competition will be fun I think I would benefit more long term from the training camp.

WarmUp
Barbell Smash Quads-shoulders

Balance barbell in front squat no hands 10 reps
2 min hold at bottom of front squat no hands on bar - After the first 30 seconds i was ready to stop.  I just didnt have the desire to push through or deal with the pain.  Instead of quitting I just tried to relax which worked well.    I think when Im tired I just dont have the same edge to push.

Today’s Workout:

Strength: 1 Rep Max Front Squat

  

75lbs - 5

95lbs - 5

125lbs - 5

175lbs - 5

185lbs - 5

205lbs - 1

225lbs - 1

235lbs - 1

245lbs - 1

255lbs - 1

 

Intervals

Totally distracted as I made my way over to the Craic house this evening.   I was taking a short break from 6:30-7:30 to get a workout in but I couldn't really shut down the work end until the class began.  

Warm-Up 
200m run
Moving Mobility
PVC drill

Today’s Workout:

5 Rounds- each for time
Row 250m
5 Squat Clean Thrusters
10 Burpees
rest 3 mins between rounds

RX- 95/65

I scaled up to 135 with the idea that I have to be stronger and more efficient and the rep count was low enough for me to give it a try.  Pacing would be important so that each round was close as opposed to a constantly slower effort.  

Round 1 - 1:48  

Round 2 - 2:21

Round 3 - 2:01

Round 4 - 2:20

Round 5 - 2:15

Rest Days

BAA 5k

Met Dave C at the Craic house to commute into the run.   The good news is that I wasnt getting anxious in terms of how I would do which is a huge improvement over how I usually went into these events. It was a training event and nothing else.   The bad news is my legs are shot from Friday and Saturday's wods and that it was going to be ugly.

Place Div/Tot  Div   Guntime  Nettime Pace  Name                   Ag S Race# City/state       
===== ======== ===== =======  ======= ===== ====================== == = ===== =============

769  48/225  M4549   23:18    23:07  7:27 John Durocher          45 M  1059 Dedham MA  

Not a great result probably one of my worst 5k times ever. JJ Ramble is not going to be pretty.

Getting Schooled

Warm Up

Arm Circles
Leg Circles
Mt Climbers
Hip Extentsions

Max Height Box Jumps - 48inches

Today’s Workout:

Cash-in: 400m 
Run5 Rounds
5 Front Squats
7 Pushups subbed HSPU's

Cash-out 400m Run

9:03

Rico and Jack decided to do HSPU so I was guilted into doing it as well.  Those guys are HSPU ninja's so trying to stick with them was a fools errand especially because Im just learning to kip.   I went for it with strict  HSPU but in retrospect should have tried to kip even if it was slower.    Jack and Rico got a full round ahead of me and when I went out for my last run they were in a neck and neck sprint .  They finished in about 6 minutes.    A proper education is what the gave me as I got schooled.  

Deceiving

Warm-Up
Row 20 calories
30 Squats - hold 3 seconds at bottom

Mobility = Bullet Proof Shoulders

Today’s Workout:

3 Rounds for time:
20 Cal Row
30 Air Squats

When this got posted last night I got a text from a friend that said - Tomorrow's WOD looks boring!!! My response was those are the ones that kick you square in the junk and that is exactly what this one did.

In the warm up I think my 20 calorie row was around a minute.  In the first round for real I went all out and was pulling at 52 s/m  not sustainable long term but fine for a wod like this one.   I flew through the first round (just over a minute) and then slowed significantly in the next two rounds to finish at 4:44.  This would be a good one to do 3 rounds of this with a 5 minute recovery between.  That would be awful. 

Rest Day

Testing the Shoulder Strength

Warm-Up - 
40 Walking Lunges
Bullet Proof Shoulder work

Skill - Pistols

WOD
Strength: Shoulder Press 5-5-5-5-5 (increasing)

WU - 45 lbs
WU - 75lbs
WU - 95lbs
115lbs
125lbs
135lbs
145lbs
155lbs (1)

Sort of Helen's Friend

Today’s Workout:

5 Rounds for time:
Run 400m
10 wallballs
10 Pullups

______________________________

RX- as written – 12-15 mins

All unbroken came down to how fast I could run! 13:40

SARA

Warm Up

Big shoulder mobility


Today’s Workout:

SARA
12min AMRAP
5 Clean + Jerks
7 Box Jumps

Immediately after the 12 mins perform max reps in 1 min

RX-115/75 – max pullups
INT-95/65 – push-ups
BEG-65/45 – situps

When I did this 8 months ago I did 8 rounds.  I joined the Craic of Dawn 5:30am class and it was a nice big class.   The upside is the energy that the group brings and the downside is that I had to do the WOD outside.   I felt strong in the C&J's and just didnt have the speed in the Box Jumps.  I got either 9 or 10 rounds. I lost track so I have no real idea where I ended up.  The only bright spot was the pull-ups. I got 14 butterfly - dropped off and got 14 additional for a total of 28.

No Shoulders

Beautiful Saturday morning - clear but still a bit chilly probably in the high 40's.   Big class at the 8am.  Susie joined me which is always fun. 

Warm Up

400m Run
2 rounds
10 jump squats
10 jumping lunges

Mobility Work

“NO shoulders”
5 rounds
10 box jumps 24″/20″
10 walking lunges
10 sit-ups
10 walking lunges back to your box
Run 200


My box jumps continue to slow me down. Im not sure what the issue is but I will start to add them every warm up I do.

Time = 11:09

Nice work by Rico, Mitch, Rob and Ann

C&J's

 For Quality:
30 Clean + Jerks

The goal today is to work to a weight that is challenging for you to maintain good form and preform 30 reps at that weight. The clock will not be running so take your time and try to make each rep as perfect as possible.

I was happy to see this come up as I want to continue to work on this lift. My form, efficiency and strength continues to improve.    As I was warming up I was trying to decide on the weight and ended up at 175. I think I could have gone to 185 pretty comfortably.

Warm_ up

40 Sit_ups

30 Box Jumps

20 Pushups

10 pullups

C&J's

95 (10)

135 (2)

155 (1)

175 (1)

175(1)

175(1)

175(1)

175(1)

175(1)

175(3)

175(3)

175(2)

175(3)

175(2)

175(3)

175(4)

175(3)

175(2)

175(2)

Helen

i was pretty excited to see this WOD programmed.  Its been about 6 months since I have done this WOD and it would give me a pretty good indication of my overall fitness.  What I have really learned during the Opens is pacing.  Finding the right pace to minimize rests but also fast enough to set a good pace.    I'm finding out that an idea gym scenario for me is just a few people.   Don't necessarily need a rabbit but someone I can go head to head with is good.  Competing in a big group outside of my usual gym is something i need to focus on this year.   Dave C had set a sizzling pace in the 5:30am class and did a sub 8!   This WOD is largely about two things - can you run really fast and are you strong enough to do the movements unbroken.  I wasnt worried about the KB or pullups but I was worried about not slowing down too much on the runs.  My running has really taken a step backwards since I picked up crossfit and dropped running,  No surprise there!

Helen
3 rounds for time
Run 400m
21 Kettlebell Swings
12 Pullups

Round 1 - 2:20
Round 2 - 5:20
Round 3 - 8:03

Cleans and HSPU

Rare noon class today.   A mid day meeting got canceled so I took advantage of the opportunity to train in the middle of the day.


Warm_up

4oom run - first 200m easy - 2nd 200m hard

Hand Stand holds as warmup

Strength/Skill – Squat Clean – work to a Heavy 1
95lbs - 5 reps
135 - 5 reps
165 - 2 reps
185 - 2 reps
205 - 2 reps
215 - 1 rep
225- 1 rep

Form fell off - started to pull early but otherwise felt good.  I believe I can do more. Feeling stronger.



then
for time:
5-4-3-2-1
Handstand Pushup
Front Squat (135)

2:05

I love the fact that i have worked on 2 areas that i need to drill on 3 times this week already.

Rest Day

Good to get a non travel rest day in

Coached by my ego

I wasnt as sore as I expected to be from yesterdays wod but I can tell you that at 6pm I wondered if I had enough energy to even walk over to Craic.  I was looking forward to the wod even though I did a lot of barbell work yesterday because it was programmed at 115lbs.  115 wasnt awful but when I looked at the board RX+ had been added and it was at 135lbs.   This is one of those times I wish i could have kept my ego in check and went with 115lbs.   Of course that wasnt possible - Curse you Jack Daly for doing it RX+.   I felt good on the deadlifts and the push jerks but my legs were shot on the cleans and I just lacked the explosiveness I needed. 

For time:
Run 400m
3 rounds of the following barbell complex
5 Deadlifts
5 Hang Power Cleans
5 Push Jerks
Run 400m
2 rounds of the above complex
Run 400m
1 rounds of the above complex
Run 400m

_______________________

RX- 135/95 – 12-15mins
INT- 95/65 – 12-15mins
BEG- 65/45 – 200m runs – 12-15mins

14:01 - Got smoked by Dan and Jarrod  Nice work guys!

Heavy Duty

Wasn't sure what I was going to do today so when I saw this on Rob O'Brien's facebook page It looked like too much fun to pass up.  I knew it was long but those rest periods are perfect for me to reset and go hard again.  My big weakness is that I cant keep up with the leaders in the longer wods so this would be a good test.  

 

Jarrod was in the gym warming up and watching the women athletes finish up Cindy.  He was game for doing the workout,  I was happy as misery loves company.

 

"Heavy Duty"...

For time:

15-12-9 of:

•Thruster (135)

•Pullups

6:16

Rest 3 mins

15-12-9 of:

•Power cleans (155)

•Ring dips

18:37

Rest 3 mins

15-12-9 of:

•Deadlift (265)

•HSPU


Total time 31:58