Water water everywhere

But I couldn't swim!
I took the kids to the indoor pool today. Cc is 2 and is in total denial that she cannot swim. Which means that you have to have eyes on her at ALL TIMES! She kept trying to swim and going under. I kept pulling her out. She kept pushing my hands away saying "I wanna do it" and sinking.
It was exhausting.

I got to ride outside for an hour though. It was 75 degrees today. Simple short workout. Ride away from the house for 30 minutes then ride back as fast as you can and see how much time you can shave off. The ride back is up hill. 30min out, 27min back.
Good enough.

Friday = Thursday.

I am a day off this week given the holiday. So rest day was Thursday and today was tempo run and Crossfit.

Tempo was a 10mi out and back at my house. Went 1:23 which is a pr for 10mi Tt. Good run for me. No potty stop but I did have to scale a 7ft fence to get out of my neighborhood.

Then after a couple hrs break I did The Bear. This is 5 rounds of 7 reps. A rep is a squat clean thruster to a back squat thruster back to the ground.
You have to add weight each round.
I had never finished it. Started super light at 65lbs and built to 95. It is a really tough workout!
Going out to dinner and to a movie tonight. Really excited!

Just do it

Had to take cold meds last night. They worked. My head was congested when I woke up but at least I got some sleep.
Went to the 6:30 class at the new gym. It is huge!!! We will run 3 programs at the same time. A warm up, then either mobility, strength or endurance and then a final wod.
Today I did the endurance path. It was 6x200m row on 2x rest. Rows were between 39 and 43 seconds. Rest was 80 sec.
Then the main wod was 20min time, as many rounds as possible (Amrap) of 15 toes to bar, 30 45lb plate lunges and 45 lift hand pushups (this was the limiter).
3 Rnds 57 reps. Solid but not exceptional. In the excuse department, I don't feel 100% and my disk is effecting my pushups.
I have had so much ice on my back that I killed layer of skin. I need to get the damn MRI so I can get this treated.
I have an rx slip that I got from the doc but couldnt find it this morning. I will call the doc back and try and get another.
Gonna take some time off from work this morning. This isn't the place for it. but I have 2 jobs and am at my limit. The intensity will ramp up next week with the new year so if I don't take the time now, I won't get it.
Here is Ellie opening Christmas presents. One of these days I will post a picture about exercise.
Ok, so a few hrs later and I did my run intervals for the week. 12x200m on 2min rest.
38 to 42 sec. Mostly 39 to 40. These track workouts are funny. By the 3rd lap I can feel myself losing power. Then for 8 laps I am sure that I am slowing down. But I didn't. My first 2 laps were the slowest at 41 and 42. My last was the fastest at 38.
And recovery time is so much faster with intervals than with long slow distance. Much more of a lung burner too. Not better, just different.

That hurt a bit

Was all excited to go to the new Crossfit gym drew opened up today for the 5:30am class. Till I woke up at about 12am and realized how dead I still was from yesterday's run. So I moved my alarm from 5 to 6.
This is the last "build" week before a recovery week so I going to shift everything back a day. So today I will swim at lunch. Cfe calls for 25m repeats on 45 sec. I going to go with 50m repeats on 1:30.
Then tonight I will do a cf wod that a friend of mine gave me this morning:
10rft of:
10back squat
10 pushups
10 deadlifts.
Rx is 135. My guess is I go 115.

That was the plan anyway.
I did the swim. 600m warm up and drill. 12x50 on the 1:30. Most were 54 sec. 400m continuous movement cd.
Then it hit me. I have a cold. And now I understand the lethargy and aches.
Skipped the cf wod in favor of rest. Hope to get ahead of this. Plan to hit hard tomorrow.

16mi at marathon pace. Poop break included.

Day after Christmas. 40ish degrees. Drizzle. 16mi run on the agenda.
Back at the Valero trail.
I have been eating pretty poorly given the holidays and have been having gi issues.
At about mi 7, I had to go. Thank god for Valero Porto potties!
This time I left the clock running. My time goal was 2:24. A 9min/mi pace.
I went out slow for the first 7, then with a 3 min pit stop I decided to try and make the time up over the next 9mi. Finished at 2:23:30. Last few mi at 8:25 pace.
So it went well. I started to wear down at about mi 11 but I kept the pace up fine.
I went back to my car patting myself on the back. I reach in my pocket for my keys. No keys. Long story short, I lost em. So I call Terri who has had it to the eyeballs with our kids and is wondering where I am and had to ask her to come get me. I was in the dog house for a while.
Still, cross another long run off of the list. 5 more to go.

This and that

Got a couple good sessions in today. The ice is helping my neck and tomorrow is going to be 100% kids so I figured today was a good day to put some work in.
In the morning I got an hour in on the trainer. That thing has been a life saver in terms of maintaining a bit of bike fitness.
Main set was 3x10min as hard as I could on 5 min spin. Also did 10min of as high a cadence as I could keep up.
Then in the afternoon I did a cf workout from last November called invite the girls. It was:
For time
20 pullups, pushups, Situps and squats
50 double unders (major skill problem for me) and 50 Situps
63 24kg kbs, 24 pullups
21 95lb thrusters and 21 pullups.
21:09.
Thrusters and double unders were the bottlenecks. But I was 3:20 faster than last year so let's call it a success.

Now I have to wrap as fast as I can an try and get a little sleep!

I just got faster and slower.

Ran my 9mi route around the neighborhood. Pr'd by a minute or so.
The bad news is that what I always thought was a 9mi run is actually (according to the gps) 8.64mi.
Oh well. Still a good run.
1:11.
Went back to the doc about my neck. I am getting tingling in my first 2 fingers now. He wants me to get an MRI.
The good news is that the only restrictions right now are no heavy weight overhead. So russian kbs and squat cleans but no Ohsq for a few weeks.

Pool

Got in the pool today. Didn't feel like doing drills. Just went swimming. 8x200m on about 1:30 rest.
Times were 2:14 to 2:24.
Swimming 1x per week isn't going to cut it during tri season. But for now it is fine.
My disk problem didn't clear up with the steroids so I am going back to the doc tomorrow am. My guess is that he will want an MRI. I have a few days off from work for the holidays. I am going to spend as much time as I can laying down. For now I am going to run and selectively cf. no weight overhead. That seems to aggravate it.
I sure hope that it clears up without having to loose too much fitness.
it seems like something always happens during a marathon training cycle. Usually it is some sort of sinus infection. But even with this, my brain was really asking for a rest and u was trying to push through and now I am hurt. Not sure of cause and effect but it is a conspicuous trend.

Yasso had no top end speed.

Bart Yasso was (is?) a famous distance runner. He developed a workout that he would do leading up to marathons. He would go to the track and do 8x800m repeats. His avg time in minutes and seconds tended to correspond to his marathon time in hours and minutes. After a while, if he wanted to hit a specific marathon goal, he would just work up to 8x800m at the corresponding pace. If he wanted to run 3:00 marathon, he would work up to 8x800m at 3:00 min each.
I ran 4x800 today at 2:57, 2:53, 2:54,
2:53. I am sure by the end of feb I will be able to hold that for 8 rounds. But I will not be running a 2:54 marathon. In fact, I would be thrilled with a 3:54.
I think this is one of the problems with cfe as a training method for people like me. It is one thing to take an accomplished endurance athlete and build strength and speed. They already have the endurance. I don't.
Still, 800's are a hell of a workout.

So much for a long run hangover

I expected to feel much worse than I do after Sunday's run. I slept fine and was ready to go for the 630 class.
4 Rnds of strict pullups for max reps.
10 9 8 8. Which ended up placing me better than I thought it would.
I saw scores from the 530 class in the 20's and figured it was the high score for the round that would be reported. Nope. Cumulative. So 35 was respectable.
Wod was a partner wod.
20min Amrap
15 air squats
4 DL
3 hang clean
2 thruster
1 push press.
Rx was 135 but we went 95. 26 Rnds.
I could have gone all day at that pace.
Oly shoes really help. Even on Airsquats. They make a big difference.
I am going to miss my lunch swim. Gotta work. Will slot it in on Wednesday.
I need to remember not to let hobby get in the way of work or work get in the way of family.

Been a few days...

Friday was cf in the garage.
Did a 20min ladder of single unders and weighted box jumps. 10 and 1.
Got 13 or so rounds.
Saturday was cycle. 1hr on trainer. Man set was 5 on 2:30 off 6 on 3 off 7 on 3 off 3 on.
Today was 5x3mi cutdown run. Lap 1 was about 9:30 pace. Lap 2 was about 9 min and lap 3 was about 8:15. So I ran about 2:12 but I had a 3 min Porto potty stop about 1/2 way through.
It was perfect weather and a pretty easy 15.
I am 2 days in to a course of steroids for what was diagnosed as a bulging disk in my neck. It is fine when I train but gets ugly when I sit up for Lon periods of time. Let's hope it clears.

My name is jimmy, and I am a heel striker.

Rain. More rain today stretching out for the next handful of days.
Might need to run in the rain today. Can't say that I want to but at some point I am going to have to stop making excuses and get the miles in.
Woke up at 5 to drive in to town. I figured of it was raining I would go to the 530 cf a d if it wasn't, I'd run. It was raining so I went to class.
For time:
100 toes 2 bar
75 sit ups
50 v ups
25 burpee box jumps 19:01
The t2b were done in 1's and 2's. It was ugly. Situps were unbroken and then the vups were 1's and 2's. I ha e noticed a big improvement in box jumps over the past 6 months.

I got out at lunch to do 7.3mi. Forgot my watch so I just ran at whatever pace I felt like. Very nice. I also wore my old chunky Nike lunar glides. Big heel drop. Even at 2 yrs old and who knows how many miles they are very comfy. It was a nice run. I needed it.

Oh. I am 41 today. There will be cake when I get home!

Tuesday track day

Met up with coach mike and the Alamo endurance folks at Churchill HS track this morning at 530.
It really made me want to be part of a group. Live and learn.
I did 3 sets of 200, 400, 600 with rest equal to work. 200's were 44 to 49 sec. 400's were around 1:35 and 600's were around 2:28. This workout gets hard really fast. Like at about the first 600. The good news is that the times held consistent even though I started to feel like I was running in mud.
Work was crazy so I didn't get to Crossfit till after I put cc to bed. I am starting to hear some domestic rumblings about the amount of time I spend working out. I will have to keep my head down. Too bad. I would like a supportive fan.
Worked up to a max Deadlift of 285. This is a 10lb pr. I was really excited. Finished with a short wod of toes to bar, wall ball and pushups. The pushups were tough. My massage therapist tried to check my stomach out through my shoulder today and my right arm is dead.
Tomorrow is bike trainer day. Not sure if it will happen given the mrs's mood. Now is not the time to use kitchen passes to train. I will need them all come summer time.
Here is what the 285lb bar looked like.

Pool party

630 cf class. Turkish getups, 35lb db hang squat cleans and a simple 12min Amrap of 50du and 10 pullups.
Pretty sluggish feeling today. I need to clean up my eating. I was gonna give myself a pass in December but the sugar is really dragging me out.

Swam at lunch for the first time in 2 weeks. From the cfe site I did a ton of 25m intervals on the minute. Times were 20 to 22 seconds.
The intervals were tough but the worst part was covering the 900m after the intervals were done to round out the mile.
I am second guessing my self programming. Might hire a coach.
No. I committed to try this approach for this race and I am not bailing now. Even if it blows up. I think I miss having someone to report to. And to have someone to rely on. "if I do what you tell me to do, I will be in good shape. But the truth is that it hasn't worked. So I am trying something different. And if it doesn't get me there I will go back to the drawing board.
Tomorrow is a track workout from a year ago. Then a benchmark wod in the garage tomorrow night.

Lost weekend

This was a recovery week after 3 build weeks. Good thing too, because it was a mess.
Yesterday I had to go to Dallas to get Terri her new car. So I flew to Dallas in the morning, bought the car then drove it back. It is a good 4.5 hr drive. I got home about 430, caught a quick map then went to a neighborhood holiday party. Ate pasta and cheesecake. No good.
So Saturday was a total write off. Sunday was pretty light too. I practiced clean and jerk for a bit. Got 155 up but failed 165 a few times.
Then after I got the kids to bed I had a chance to train a bit. I was going to run but I didn't want to take the time so I ran a little to warm up and did Fran.
I am not find of thrusters. I have flexibility issues that make them awkward. It just isn't pretty. Fran is 21-15-9 of 95lb thrusters and pullups. I have done Fran twice this year. Once in the 8:40's and once in the 8:30's.
Tonight it was 11:30.
It was really ugly. The best thing that I can say about it is that I didn't quit.

Back to class

Made the 530 cf class for the first time all week. It was really good to be back.
We did a long partner wod. I worked with a really good athlete and ended up pushing myself a little harder because of it.
Wod was:
250 kbs
200 sit ups
150 burpees
100 pullups for time.
26:22.
Pretty well split the reps in half.
I'd like to try 1/2 the total reps by myself to see if it was faster.
Felt last night's hang cleans during the kbs.
I really like the home gym setup. But I push harder in a group setting. That is just a fact. I can lift big at home without a drop off. But for a hard core met con, competition helps.

Weight

6.29mi run. 30 degrees. 51:56.
Decent tempo run.
Saw drew's pt guy about my shoulder. The guy hurt me bad. Hope it ends up helping.
Also picked up 260lbs of used bumper plates and a bar from drew. $340. Quite a deal. Tonight is max hang clean. Should be fun!
It was. 3rnds Cindy to warm up. Bar practice. 53211111 hang cleans.
135, 135, 145, failed 155, made 155, failed 165 a few times. Then cleaned 165 from the ground just to remind myself I could.

Rest day

The pinched nerve in my neck is driving me batty.
I was hoping that a rest day might help. Nope. It is worse. Today was tough at work. I am beginning to think that this is more stress than injury.
On a positive note, I drove by the new Crossfit gym to check out construction progress. Drew says that we will be in on Friday. I think there is 2 weeks worth of work left. We will see.
The good news is that drew is going to sell me used bumper plates and a bar..
It will end up being less than 1/2 the cost of new. I am psyched. Gonna pick em up tomorrow or Friday. I also met his masseuse who is going to work on my neck tomorrow. Keep your fingers crossed.

Could I get a normal day? Please!

Today was going to be cfe swim and garage wod.
Then I got the call that Ellie was sick and the nanny had to work and the inlaws were still out of town so was there any way I could come home to stay with cc so that Terri wouldn't have to take them both to the doctor?
So I came home about 2 a d garage wod'd.
From the cfe website 12x2 dead hang pullups on the :45sec. Done with 25lb db. Explosive efforts.
5 min rest.
12 min Amrap
6 push press w 25 lb db's
8 Russian kbs 25kg
10 burpees
8 Rnds, 11 reps.
Gonna swim tomorrow.

Or that could happen

Life is what happens when you are busy making plans.
Last post, I ended with a few different training options for monday Depending on how my neck felt.
None of them happened.
Instead, I ran 13.2 at 9min/mi with lots of hills.
It all started the night before. Terri was snoring so I went to the guest room.
Couldn't sleep. So I set my alarm for 6 instead of 5. I get up and start getting ready for work. Neck hurts so I am planning on a lunch run and an evening garage wod.
As I am on my way out, I hear cc calling me from her crib. I cannot resist her. So I go in to hold her. Plenty of time to get to work. Terri has to take Ellie to the bus stop so by waiting a little, I can keep cc from having to go out in the cold. After about 5 minutes, she says, "daddy, you no go to work today." I didn't need much more of a push.
So I stayed and hung out with cc till about noon. Then since the rain was gone I figured I'd make up Sunday's run.
Tough mentally. Windy and hilly but I can check it off the list.
Knees, ankles and achillies hurt toward the end. Had 1 gel at mi 7. Didn't bring hydration.
Today is swim at lunch and a garage wod from the cfe website.

Pinched nerve

So earlier this week I pinched a nerve in my neck. Not exactly sure when or how but I noticed it Monday and here on Sunday it is still with me.
Yesterday I went to a chiropractor. I didn't know what else to do and the constant pain was driving me crazy.
2 hrs later I didn't feel any better.
He said that the nerve was I flamed and would take time to heal. But that by the way I needed a good deal of chiropractic work and I should come back Monday.
If I could be in and out in 20 min, I might give it a try but honestly, with all the e-stim and time on the auto massage table his appointments are always 90 min at least.

Today it rained again all day. I ended up back in the trainer for an hour. I did football intervals. Hard for 2 plays, easy for 2. Hard for 2 commercials, easy for 1. It worked.

Not sure about next week. Would like to log some run miles but I want my neck to heal.

All I know is that the alarm will go off at 4:50am and it will either be time to run if it is dry, Crossfit if it is raining or swim if my neck hurts.

Nature calls

Raining. Which is good because after yesterday's grace and last night's poor sleep I wasn't good for 13.
So I used my new toys and did a deck of death in the garage.
Hearts were wallballs
Diamonds were 20" box jumps
Spades were pullups
Clubs were kettlebells.

Killer. I am excited about all the garage gym toys I have pulled together. The Pullup bar went up last night. It is a stud bar. Highly recommended! Bar is a little slick. I might tape it to get a little better grip. But it is stable for sure!
I would still like to run this weekend. And if I could get 7 in today and 6 tomorrow that would be ideal. But if it is less, so be it. Worst case is I do Tuesday's intervals today and I go longer during the week.
I had planned to build 3 a d recover 1 week in my original plan so if this weekend is light, that is fine.
And, I got a great bike trainer for my birthday so I need to get that running as well.
Well, no run. But I did hit the trainer for some bike intervals. Main set was 3 min all out, 2 min spin. 4 Rnds.

Amazing grace

Took a swing at grace today. Grace is 30 clean and jerks at 135lbs for time.
I did it in January and did not finish before the 15 or 20 min cutoff. Got 27 reps.
Today I finished in 11:43.
And I had enough left to cj 145, 155 and 165 afterwards. Failed 175 and 170. Didn't miss a single clean all day.
I need to work on my jerk though. I do not drop very low at all. So I am relying on a big push jerk to get the weight up.
I need to spend some time with a 95lb bar and practice getting really really low.
Tomorrow should be interesting. Target is 13.1mi but it is supposed to rain. We shall see...

Cut down run, kb fun

Yesterday was tempo run day. I went somewhere flat to treat myself. First 2 mi at about 8:50. Next 2 at about 8:20 and last 2 at about 7:45. Great run. I like cut downs. Easy to start, and I feel great at the end.
Then last night I did a kb workout in the garage. I am bad at Turkish getups!
14 rt hand tkgu, 12kg
50 swings at 24 kg
21 goblet squats @24
30 swings @ 24
21 goblets
10 swings
14 tkgu left hand 12kg
17:30.

Today, I am going to take a swing at grace!