More Team Building at the Job . . . .

The boss is always saying that I am too distant, aloof and all around jerk and need to implement some team-building into my management . . . soooooo, today the boys did Fight Gone Bad. How's that for building a team . . . through destruction of the team members.

Fight Gone Bad
Wall Ball
75# SDHP
Tire Jumps
75# Push Press
Row

3 rounds, 1 minute each station, 1 minute rest between rounds, score is total number of reps and calories rowed. It sucks . . . but it is awesome.

Team WORKout & Nathan catches up

Today, as part of a "teambuilding" exercise, I brought our training program to work.

We broke up into 3 teams and pounded out the following:

12 - Team Tire Flips (550# tire)
60 - 25# KB SDHP
250' Sled Drag (180#)
9 - Team Tire Flips
45 - 25# KB SDHP
250' Sled Drag
6 - Team Tire Flips
30 - 25# KB SDHP
250' Sled Drag
3 - Team Tire Flips
15 - 25# KB SDHP
250' Sled Drag

Lobus (the boss) "forgot his clothes", so he didn't participate. Our two man teams were, in order:

Dan & DJ - DNF (completed 1 round, both quit)
Jeremy & Jason - 15:15
Bill & Taza - 15.33

I called Nathan on my way home and he headed over. He did one that Jeremy and I did last week, based on CrossFit's "GRACE" (30 Clean & Jerks with 135# barbell)

We did it with 102# stone. He knocked it out in x:xx

Row, row, row your . . . . rower?

Today was three Tabatas (8 rounds of 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off)

Rowing - scored by meters rowed
Abmat Sit-ups - scored by total reps
Rowing - scored by meters rowed

Rowing sucks . . . 'nuff said.

Nathan
Round 1 - 764 meters
Round 2 - 78 sit-ups
Round 3 - 741 meters

Taza
Round 1 - 907 meters
Round 2 - 56 sit-ups (I would have done better, but my gut kept getting in the way!)
Round 3 - 781 meters

Nathan's 1st and 3rd are separated by only 23 meters, whereas mine are separated by 126 total.

Wednesday - 10.28.09

Today we modeled our work out after CrossFit's "Jackie"

Jackie is 1000 meter row, 45# thruster x 50 and 30 pull-ups

We don't have a pull-up bar yet, so we did 50 push-ups

I did fairly well on the row and thrusters, but stunk it up on the push-ups.

Nathan did the push-ups quickly, but without full range of motion for the majority of them.

Not our greatest showing . . . .

Taza - 13:35
Nathan - 11:35

102# Boulder

We have two boulders that we have been playing with, doing thrusters and various carries. Tonight, for the first time, we weighed them. I was floored to find out that one of them is 83# and the other is 102#. I would have guessed them to be about 40# and 60#, repectively.

I don't know if 102# constitutes a boulder, but it just sounds better than rock. Maybe I could have gone with "stone"?

At any rate, today's was CrossFit's "GRACE" (30 Clean & Jerks) with a 102# boulder, rock, stone, instead of a 135# barbell. It was tough to get a good grip and it doesn't go up or down even like a barbell does. We will definitely see this one again.

Jeremy - 11:58
Taza - 6:07

Heavy Stuff 10.23.09

Friday, Jeremy and Nathan came over and we did a circuit reminiscent of the early days of Titan Training . . . .

3 rounds

550# tire flip x 5
Boulder Thruster x 5
Suitcase walk across yard (L there, R back)
Keg walk across yard (racked there, overhead back)

Not for time . . . just for fun.

This one AGAIN?!?!

Just got back from the company sales meeting, so after a couple of 4 hour drives in a 24 hour period, I really didn't want to train today. Thankfully, Jeremy called and came over.

We did one that Nathan and I did a couple of weeks ago, Crossfit RVA's "Katie Brown"

AMRAP 10
with a 55# Kettlebell . . .

9 goblet squats
6 OH swings
3 SDHP

Jeremy - 7 rounds, 5 squats
Taza - 8 rounds, 3 squats and I quit 18 seconds before the time limit. LOSER!!

When we revisit this one, my goal will be 9-10 rounds . . . and no quit. I want to see this one before the end of November and use it as a gauge for progress for all of us.

Welcome Dan!

Today was Dan's first day with us.

We went through about 70-80 squats for warm-up and for Dan to begin to become familiar with the movement.

The workout was . . . .

10 rounds for time of:

10 Tire Jumps
30 Sledgehammer swings (L,R,L,R . . . ) with a 12# sledge

Dan scaled to 20 Sledgehammer swings with the 8# sledge and went AMRAP in 10 minutes.

Jeremy - 14:14
Taza - 14:16

Katie Brown

Took this one directly from a recent WOD at CrossFit RVA . . .

Katie Brown
9 Goblet Squats
6 Swings
3 SDHP

AMRAP 10

We have an adjustable kettlebell, so it is hard to get exact with the whole "pood" deal, but we put together a 55# KB, closely approximating a 1.5 pood, which would be about 53#.

Nathan - 7 rounds, 5 squats
Taza - 7 rounds, squats, swings & 2 SDHP

I really should have gotten that last SDHP. My rest before the final round was 1 second too long.

Preparing for Wrestling Season

Nathan called last week and we talked about him coming over to help him prepare for wrestling season. He has to gain about 10 pounds and increase his strength. The weather prevented us from getting together last week, but today was clear skies.

The workout consisted of (for time):

500M row

5 rounds of:
10 burpees
160' Farmers' Walk with 70# dumbbells

500M row

Nathan:
1:55 - 7:15 - 2:09

Taza:
1:37 - 12:48 - 1:48

As you can see, my times were better on the row, but Nathan killed me on the 5 rounds. From now on, we're just going to row. It will be better for my fragile self-esteem. We'll be back at it on Wednesday.

update: Jeremy went this happiness a week or so after Nathan and I. His times are:
1:39 - 11:01 - 1:49

Thursday's Workout - 07.16.09

Today we did 5 rounds of 500 meter rows.

Rounds 1, 3 & 5 were done at just over half speed
Rounds 2 & 4 were done at full blast and timed

Jeremy
Round 2 - 1:44.8
Round 4 - 1:49.3

Taza
Round 2 - 1:33.3
Round 4 - 1:47.7

Tuesday's Workout - 07.14.09

Catching up with this week, so far . . . .

Tuesday, Jeremy and I made it up on the fly.

3 rounds of:
Burpee Broadjumps - 80'
Walk back
Rack Walk with 60# water filled keg - 160'
Farmers Walk with 70# DBs - 160'
Overhead Walk with 35# 10' slosh pipe - 160'

Jeremy finished at 10:44
Taza finished at 15:11

I also almost threw up when I inhaled a bug. Training outside is awesome!

Three of us today!

Today we carried, carried, carried and burpied.

Rack walk with 65# water filled keg the width of the yard
Overhead walk with 65# water filled keg back the width of the yard
Walk the width of the yard and back with 60# heavy bag on your back
Farmers walk the width of the yard and back with a 70# dumbbell in each hand
10 burpees

5 rounds or AMRAP 20 minutes (whichever comes first)

Jeremy was the champion today with all 5 rounds in 15:49
I completed 4 rounds, all of the carries and 1 burpee in 20 minutes
David completed 4 rounds in just over 20 minutes

I was so exhausted that I fell asleep during our family Bible reading time . . . and I was reading out loud at the time!!

Has it really been this long?

Because I do not want to contribute to the narcissism that runs rampant in our day, I will only post when another person joins the workout. Today, Jeremy came over and we did another quick one.

100 35# Kettlebell Swings
100 pushups

These could be broken up any way and intensity was the goal. I didn't want a lot of resting.

Jeremy - 10:53
Taza - 12:45 (if I remember correctly)

Until next time . . . .

Weeeee're Baaaaack!

Well, it has been about 4 months since my last post and even then they were sporadic. I, for one, have been completely flaking when it comes to exercise and eating right. Work is my excuse, but the real reason is because it is easier to eat crap and not work out. You'd think if I "didn't have time to exercise" I would be more concerned about my diet. Oh no! I don't do many things half way, so it all went out the window.

I am going to make another effort at it. I really don't have a choice. My children are getting older and I want to, as well. I want to enjoy, care for and protect them. I can only do that so well when I am probably 50-60 pounds overweight and not doing anything about it.

A couple of changes . . . We are now meeting in my backyard, not at the carport. This changes the list of things available to us. Working with the barbells is going to be a bit tougher, so we will probably eliminate that for now. Working bodyweight, kettlebells, odd object and met-con will be the menu. This may change again if I am able to outfit the garage.

Payment . . . I really don't know what to do about this. I will talk with the attendees and see what we come up with.

Today's workout was simple. However, after the layoff, it was not easy for me to keep intensity.

3 rounds for time of:

35# KB Clean & Jerk (L & R) x 10
35# KB Snatch (L & R) x 10
35# KB Swing x 10
Farmers Walk the width of the yard and back with 70# DB in each hand

My time was 10:25 and Jeremy ended at 11:45.

I have or will invite all of the original players (Billy, Cody, Jacob, Reagan, Nathan, David and Jeremy). Weather permitting and God willing, I will be in my backyard every evening at 6:00 pm. I hope they can all make it.

Today's Workout - 01.08.09

Today, Jeremy and I worked on the Clean & Jerk form.

It seems that the biggest obstacle is getting away from the strict shoulder press. Recruiting the hip drive and getting under the bar seem to be counter-intuitive. However, we found that the idea of creating more power with good C&J form is accurate.

I was able to get a PR of 205#. It was on my third try, but because my form improved, I hit it. It was motivating. Once we get the C&J down a bit more, we will work on the Snatch.

Nathan showed up also and I put him to the following:

AMRAP 20
with a 35# KB

3 left C&J
3 right C&J
6 swings
9 SDLHP

Unfortunately, the amount of rounds was lost in the excitement. He wasn't huffin' and puffin', however, so I know he could have done more.

DO NOT QUIT!!!

Please read this knowing that I think it is a little sappy. It's a bit overstated and the cheesy paraphrases from "manly movies" are a bit uncomfortable. However, there are some good thoughts here and the spirit of what is written should be important to all of us. It was written by Jon Gilson of Again Faster.

"In the bottom of a clean, quads burning, you’ll want to quit. Pulling deadlifts, the skin on your hands tearing, you’ll want to quit. Your body protesting, crying for relief as your veins pump waste, you’ll want to quit.Your mind will scream from its high perch, commanding you to stop, lest you break, crash, and burn. Feeling the outer limits of your capabilities, it will hit every physical and emotional alarm in the arsenal, rocketing pain, misery, and doubt into your thoughts.It would be easy to give in to the hot rush of your brain’s emergency brake. To drop the bar. To get off the rings. To let your knees collapse as panic breaths heave through your chest.

Don’t. Superhuman performance is separated from mere fitness by the undeniable need to persist, to never give up. Those who achieve are resilient. Standing when you want to fall, punching when you want to tap out, and running when you want to walk are the necessities of elite athleticism.

High intensity compound movement, performed with moderate loads, will bring you face-to-face with this crux—quit or continue—faster than anything else on earth. Unique in its ability to elicit pain, this combination of distance and weight will expose your character with every repetition.When the knurling scrapes your shins, and your traps bunch into knots, you’ll make a decision, one that will affect every aspect of your life. Give in to the agony, and you will always give in. Cave to demands that crush you, and you’ll always cave. Roll to the floor, and you’ll always exist beneath those who choose to stand.Remember that the walls of the gym are nothing more than physical barriers, meant only to separate us from the elements. What you do within those walls will echo in your daily life, and you would do well to choose your actions wisely.Push for one more repetition. Live through one more pull. Get to your feet one more time. This decision will accumulate momentum with each iteration, and you will move into the realm of greatness. Like a boulder rolling downhill, you will become unstoppable, undeterred by the falsehoods of your weak mind.

Next time the demons of hardship come rushing forward, push them back. When your muscles bellow for relief, carry on, and smile at the sting. You will become more than an athlete, and you will be amazing."

Today's Workout - 01.07.09

Today we focused on the complementing posterior and anterior chains.

We tackled . . .

50 35# KB Swings
50 Sledgehammer to tire

5 rounds

The sledgehammer part of it was 25 each side, per round. Also, no sliding the hand up the sledge handle. The hands had to be together at the end of the handle . . . no choking up during the workout.

My time was 23:50.

Today's Workout - 01.06.09

Today we stole (but modified) another one from CrossFit.

We did 1/2 Angie, which was . . .

50 pull-ups
50 push-ups
50 sit-ups
50 squats


Again, the goal was INTENSITY. Drill it out, no stopping, short rests.

My time was 11:43. When we did this before, we substituted recline rows for the pull-ups. This time I subbed Jumping Pull-ups and did worse. My time last April was 10:38.

What does this mean? At least a couple of things . . . First, my diet is absolutely HORRIBLE right now. I know this has a TON to do with my production. Another piece is CONSISTENCY. I have been the most consistent, but that means nothing. I need to pick a schedule and do it, come what may. Another piece is what we are going to be working on as a group, INTENSITY. I know for a fact that I can ramp it up.

I am going to think about these three pieces quite a bit this week. Diet, consistency and intensity. Do I want it or don't I?

Today's Workout - 01.05.09

Today was a short one, but helped us to focus on INTENSITY.

We did CrossFit's Grace which is . . .

30 - 135# Clean & Jerks for time

Times will be posted to comments.

My time was 4:40, if I remember correctly (maybe 4:49?).

Today's Workout - 01.02.09

Today's prescription was the following:

35# Kettlebell Circuit
Clean & Jerk Left
Clean & Jerk Right
Snatch Left
Snatch Right
Swings

5 Rounds for time.

Jeremy was the only athlete to participate and he completed 5 rounds of 10 in only 20:08. Great job, Jeremy!

Today's Workout - 01.01.09

Today we revisited the dreaded Pyramid of Dumbbells.

Push Press each weight 10x . . . all the way up the pyramid and all the way down . . . no stopping, for time.

After all is said and done, we did a total of 190 presses with 10,000 pounds!!

It's not often one can say that he pressed 10K pounds, but we did!

Times:
Taza - 13:56
Jeremy - 20:29
Cody - 29:14