The movement that I struggle with the most and I'm determined not to let it get the better of me.
I had to go to the 5 am class this morning as Missy T was selected to be part of the combined strings orchestra and is going to play at all the schools in the district for the next few days. It means an early start for her every day which then rolls onto an earlier than normal start for me. I actually see it as a good chance to trial the 5 am classes as I may have to change my class times next year when both the girls are in high school and catch the bus just after 7 am. I'm seeing it as a chance to start work earlier and getting home while it's still daylight. I'm just not sure if I want to start getting up at 4 am to allow me to go to the gym in the morning or maybe going to the afternoon classes which are busier and I still won't be getting home until after 5:30 pm. I actually don't feel too bad for getting up so early but the black circles under my eyes are telling another story.
The beauty of going to a different time slot is that we had a different coach. I love my 6 am class and adore Jardan as she always gives me things to work on but it is nice to get a different view point. Something that I do in the snatch is loop the weight out instead of keeping it close to my body. I've been told this many times by various coaches and have been trying to correct it but Coach Dave gave me some tips on how I was pulling the weight up from the deadlift position. After a couple of incredibly uncoordinated attempts I understood what he was trying to tell me. Sometimes it helps if there is a different spin put onto the coaching.
No PB for me today but I'm so tired and sore from yesterday. To be honest, I'm happy to continue to work on my technique with the snatch as I feel like if I continue to lift with my current form I will keep the bad habits that I have developed. I find it hard to change what I do.
We then finished with a 6 min metcon of 60 med ball cleans, 30 pistols and 15 push ups. I normally use the pole to help my balance with the pistols but I think I'm relying on it too much and am not building leg strength as I'm pulling myself up. Today I used the box as a depth finder. I started with 16" but I threw a bumper on there as my legs were fried from the cleans. It was a fun little workout to finish off the day.
Showing posts with label strength training. Show all posts
Showing posts with label strength training. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 10, 2014
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
New PBs
Today was a strength day with front squats and bench press with a partner AMRAP WOD as a finisher. I was put with 2 girls that lift a bit heavier than me but that was okay as I needed that push today. My previous 1 RM was 50 kg and I was happy to hit that again. As we went through the reps I realised that I could possibly beat my previous max. I attempted 52.5 kg in my second last round but failed as my head just got in the way ... I had failed the lift even before I picked up the bar. I decided to give it another crack for my last round of 1 rep and I got it! Yay! A PB for today!
We then went onto bench press. A few weeks ago I pushed out 6 reps at 37.5 kg but couldn't record it as we were doing 7 reps. Today I smashed out the 37.5 kg and also did 4 reps at 40 kg. Another PB for the day!
The finisher was a partner WOD and I partnered up with a lovely girl, Gabby. The WOD was:
We then went onto bench press. A few weeks ago I pushed out 6 reps at 37.5 kg but couldn't record it as we were doing 7 reps. Today I smashed out the 37.5 kg and also did 4 reps at 40 kg. Another PB for the day!
The finisher was a partner WOD and I partnered up with a lovely girl, Gabby. The WOD was:
Partner AMRAP – 12min
9 Dead-Lifts
6 Front Squats
3 Push Press
I was planning on doing 25 kg for this and Gabby was thinking 27.5 kg. She was willing to go down to 25 kg but I thought it was a good opportunity to push myself and we went with 27.5 kg. I found it quite tough but also doable and I finished with a score of 7 rounds + 9 DL and 4 FS. It's great to be paired up with someone who is a bit stronger as it pushes me that little bit harder.
I also got a nice compliment from one of the coaches, he commented on how I was killing it lately and have really stepped up a notch. It's always nice to get such positive feedback :-)
Friday, November 08, 2013
Deload
I have been trying to include some deload days in my strength workouts. Typically, I'm tired by the end of the week and instead of taking these days off entirely I have been going to the gym and still working out but lifting lighter. It does feel good physically as I am really focusing on my technique rather than trying to lift at my max. I do, however, find it difficult to train with others when I'm doing this. Last night I tried to partner up with a newbie so I didn't feel so lame lifting piddly little weights but unfortunately there weren't enough racks to go around. We were split up and I was put with a couple of more experienced girls. Of course I felt bad that we had to change weights to accomodate my much lower weight. They didn't mind as we had plenty of time to get the workout done. I finished the night feeling a little low as I felt like I didn't work nearly hard enough but I need to remind myself that I'm doing it for a reason.
In between the front squats we had to do ring dips. Like my pull ups, I'm at that point where the orange band is too much resistance but unassisted is a little too hard. I did manage to get a few reps out without the band. I need to figure out how to make that transition which will allow me to get stronger in these movements.
In between the front squats we had to do ring dips. Like my pull ups, I'm at that point where the orange band is too much resistance but unassisted is a little too hard. I did manage to get a few reps out without the band. I need to figure out how to make that transition which will allow me to get stronger in these movements.
Wednesday, October 09, 2013
A Win!
As I said yesterday, when I first started Crossfitting with regularity (that is, more than 2 times a week) I went through a sweet period of getting PBs everytime I entered the box. This kept me motivated to keep on showing up because I was loving the progress. This has slowed down somewhat and each strength session doesn't have the excitement of earlier in the year (I still love them though).
There are so many movements to work on and in my head I feel like I have plateaued which may be the case but looking back on my workouts I noticed that while I'm not getting PBs in everything every week, I'm still getting PBs. I think, too, that I'm comparing my records with those of my friends (both in the box and online) and my bests are nowhere near their bests. I know not to compare myself but I find I do it often and then I look back to see my progress and realise how well I'm going.
Today we did power snatch to find our 1RM. I couldn't remember what mine was and was a little disappointed when I finished at 27.5 kg until I got home and logged the workout and realised that this was a PR! I also did a little research on the ratio between the snatch and clean and jerk and I'm right in the ball park with what I should be lifting for the snatch.
It just goes to show that in my head I'm in a plateau and maybe I am for some lifts but lifting isn't about nice linear lines.
There are so many movements to work on and in my head I feel like I have plateaued which may be the case but looking back on my workouts I noticed that while I'm not getting PBs in everything every week, I'm still getting PBs. I think, too, that I'm comparing my records with those of my friends (both in the box and online) and my bests are nowhere near their bests. I know not to compare myself but I find I do it often and then I look back to see my progress and realise how well I'm going.
Today we did power snatch to find our 1RM. I couldn't remember what mine was and was a little disappointed when I finished at 27.5 kg until I got home and logged the workout and realised that this was a PR! I also did a little research on the ratio between the snatch and clean and jerk and I'm right in the ball park with what I should be lifting for the snatch.
It just goes to show that in my head I'm in a plateau and maybe I am for some lifts but lifting isn't about nice linear lines.
Monday, September 02, 2013
What a Weekend!
I was lucky enough to be able to spend the weekend down at Brissy with a few girlfriends to see Pink in concert. OMG what a show! She is absolutely amazing and so athletic ... to be able to perform while flipping upside down is just incredible and she seems so down to earth as well.
The stage musical Grease was on at QPAC as well and while a few of my friends were shopping my mate and I decided to wander over to see if there were any tickets available. It was meant to be because as we were there chatting to the people in the ticket office 2 tickets became available that were in the middle and near the front. Luck was on our side! Both J and I loved every minute of it and spent the rest of the afternoon chatting about our favourite parts.
The remainder of the weekend was spent doing a little bit of shopping but mostly eating. I had organised a trip to a Teppanyaki restaurant. We had a fantastic night (even if it got a bit messy).
Today it was back to reality. I was grateful that it was a pretty cruisy day at CrossFit, just working on our power clean technique. There were only 4 of us in today's class and it always intrigues me how people pick and choose their workouts. Met cons are always really busy wherease strength and technique days are quiet. I think people don't feel like they work hard enough in the latter even though Sean always pops in a finisher at the end of the workout, today was max pull ups and max double unders where both get your heartrate up.
I don't mind the fact that there was only a few of us because it felt like we were getting some one-on-one coaching. Yet again I was given some great tips which will help me with my lifts in the future ... I sometimes find it hard to break a certain habit (like bending my arms too early in the high pull) but it is just a matter of breaking the lift down to focus on the parts that I need to work on.
The stage musical Grease was on at QPAC as well and while a few of my friends were shopping my mate and I decided to wander over to see if there were any tickets available. It was meant to be because as we were there chatting to the people in the ticket office 2 tickets became available that were in the middle and near the front. Luck was on our side! Both J and I loved every minute of it and spent the rest of the afternoon chatting about our favourite parts.
The remainder of the weekend was spent doing a little bit of shopping but mostly eating. I had organised a trip to a Teppanyaki restaurant. We had a fantastic night (even if it got a bit messy).
Today it was back to reality. I was grateful that it was a pretty cruisy day at CrossFit, just working on our power clean technique. There were only 4 of us in today's class and it always intrigues me how people pick and choose their workouts. Met cons are always really busy wherease strength and technique days are quiet. I think people don't feel like they work hard enough in the latter even though Sean always pops in a finisher at the end of the workout, today was max pull ups and max double unders where both get your heartrate up.
I don't mind the fact that there was only a few of us because it felt like we were getting some one-on-one coaching. Yet again I was given some great tips which will help me with my lifts in the future ... I sometimes find it hard to break a certain habit (like bending my arms too early in the high pull) but it is just a matter of breaking the lift down to focus on the parts that I need to work on.
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
That Moment ...
... when you put more weight on the bar than what you thought. Oopsie!
Today was a strength day. First we had to do strict press. I went into today's workout with a goal, my previous best was 30 kg and I wanted to beat that. The rep scheme was 7 rounds of 3 and I calculated my weight so that I reached 32.5 kg on my last round. Unfortunately I failed my 3 reps at this weight but I did get 1 rep out so, yay, a PB!
Second was 5 sets of 7 back squats. My PB is 52.5 kg so again I back calculated so I hit 55 kg at the 5th round. I set up my first set at what I thought was 40 kg and thought, boy, that feels really heavy today. The next set I chucked on 1.25 kg each side and was disappointed with how hard it was and knew that I had to hold at that weight and then I double checked my weight. I grabbed 2 x 15 kg plates and had a 15 kg bar ... ummm, that's 45 kg, Doofus! No wonder it felt heavy! No PB's on my squats today but 7 reps are a lot different to 3 and I was really happy that I did 4 sets at 47.5 kg. My legs are already starting to feel it.
Last, but not least, was floor press which is like bench press except you lie on the floor. I like this one as the plates give a bit of a buffer so if I fail I won't get crushed under the weight. I knew that I wasn't going to get a PB on this one as it was 3 rounds of 9. My PB for bench and floor press is 37.5 kg, today I did 32.5 kg which I was really happy with.
I was really happy with how I went today. I'm often not sure if I get depth in my squats when I start lifting heavier so today I got a med ball out to give me a depth finder and was pleased that I was hitting it. Overall, it was a good strength day.
Today was a strength day. First we had to do strict press. I went into today's workout with a goal, my previous best was 30 kg and I wanted to beat that. The rep scheme was 7 rounds of 3 and I calculated my weight so that I reached 32.5 kg on my last round. Unfortunately I failed my 3 reps at this weight but I did get 1 rep out so, yay, a PB!
Second was 5 sets of 7 back squats. My PB is 52.5 kg so again I back calculated so I hit 55 kg at the 5th round. I set up my first set at what I thought was 40 kg and thought, boy, that feels really heavy today. The next set I chucked on 1.25 kg each side and was disappointed with how hard it was and knew that I had to hold at that weight and then I double checked my weight. I grabbed 2 x 15 kg plates and had a 15 kg bar ... ummm, that's 45 kg, Doofus! No wonder it felt heavy! No PB's on my squats today but 7 reps are a lot different to 3 and I was really happy that I did 4 sets at 47.5 kg. My legs are already starting to feel it.
Last, but not least, was floor press which is like bench press except you lie on the floor. I like this one as the plates give a bit of a buffer so if I fail I won't get crushed under the weight. I knew that I wasn't going to get a PB on this one as it was 3 rounds of 9. My PB for bench and floor press is 37.5 kg, today I did 32.5 kg which I was really happy with.
I was really happy with how I went today. I'm often not sure if I get depth in my squats when I start lifting heavier so today I got a med ball out to give me a depth finder and was pleased that I was hitting it. Overall, it was a good strength day.
Monday, February 25, 2013
When You're Hot, You're Hot
But when you're not, you're not.
Another less than stellar day at the box today but I was a little nervous when I saw today was a squat snatch strength day. The snatch I have no problems with but the overhead squat is a different story.
I seem to lack some flexibility in my back and today was unable to reach the depth required for the squat. I even struggled with the broomstick! Today I kept my weight really low and in my rest time worked hard with the broomstick to focus on getting the technique right but I guess it is yet another thing I have to work on. I refuse to let this stuff get me down as I know that eventually I will get there.
The positive from today is the little met con workout we did as a finisher which was a 10 minute partner AMRAP of wall balls and hollow rock. One partner punches out as many wall balls while they can while the other partner holds the hollow rock position.
I worked on my technique with the wall balls and was happy that I picked up the pace. My partner and I churned out over 150 wall balls in the 10 minutes which we were pretty stoked about ... not bad for a pair of over 40's women.
I wonder if half my problem the last couple of days is the fact that I signed up for the CrossFit Open. After reading the rules I have noticed that scaling the workout is not an option and if the workouts are scaled the score can't be submitted. There are so many moves that I have to scale (and I'm sure that I'm not the only one) ... I can't even do some of the basics for crying out loud! Anyway, I can only try my best and will not sacrifice form to lift weights that are beyond my capabilities and look to improve over the next year.
Another less than stellar day at the box today but I was a little nervous when I saw today was a squat snatch strength day. The snatch I have no problems with but the overhead squat is a different story.
I seem to lack some flexibility in my back and today was unable to reach the depth required for the squat. I even struggled with the broomstick! Today I kept my weight really low and in my rest time worked hard with the broomstick to focus on getting the technique right but I guess it is yet another thing I have to work on. I refuse to let this stuff get me down as I know that eventually I will get there.
The positive from today is the little met con workout we did as a finisher which was a 10 minute partner AMRAP of wall balls and hollow rock. One partner punches out as many wall balls while they can while the other partner holds the hollow rock position.
I worked on my technique with the wall balls and was happy that I picked up the pace. My partner and I churned out over 150 wall balls in the 10 minutes which we were pretty stoked about ... not bad for a pair of over 40's women.
I wonder if half my problem the last couple of days is the fact that I signed up for the CrossFit Open. After reading the rules I have noticed that scaling the workout is not an option and if the workouts are scaled the score can't be submitted. There are so many moves that I have to scale (and I'm sure that I'm not the only one) ... I can't even do some of the basics for crying out loud! Anyway, I can only try my best and will not sacrifice form to lift weights that are beyond my capabilities and look to improve over the next year.
Monday, February 04, 2013
Something New
Today we did a strength workout of 5 rounds of 1 power snatch, 3 squat snatches and 5 overhead squats. I have not done a lot of work on the snatch or overhead squats and have never tried squat snatches before so I was a little aprehensive but also looking forward to giving this workout a go.
We started the session with some mobility work to allow for more flexibility in our back and shoulders and then it was onto the broomstick. My hips weren't playing nice today and it took me a little while to warm up. It was my own fault as I fluffed around at home and didn't allow myself time for the extra mobility that my body needs.
I was paired up with my usual partner. We are both in our 40's and spend a lot of our time chatting about things. The good thing is we have similar issues with our mobility so there isn't that pressure there to go beyond our limits trying to keep up with a young 'un. I was pretty pleased when she agreed to using the 10 kg bar today as I wasn't confident I could overhead squat anymore than that.
As usual I found the overhead squat an awkward movement and really had to fight to have good form. We were lucky to have plenty of time to focus on mobility in between sets and I spent a lot of the session stretching with the band or practicing my squat facing the wall. The coaches were so patient and encouraging as it was a totally unfamiliar move for most of us. I know next time overhead squats and squat snatches come up I will improve on today's attempts.
We started the session with some mobility work to allow for more flexibility in our back and shoulders and then it was onto the broomstick. My hips weren't playing nice today and it took me a little while to warm up. It was my own fault as I fluffed around at home and didn't allow myself time for the extra mobility that my body needs.
I was paired up with my usual partner. We are both in our 40's and spend a lot of our time chatting about things. The good thing is we have similar issues with our mobility so there isn't that pressure there to go beyond our limits trying to keep up with a young 'un. I was pretty pleased when she agreed to using the 10 kg bar today as I wasn't confident I could overhead squat anymore than that.
As usual I found the overhead squat an awkward movement and really had to fight to have good form. We were lucky to have plenty of time to focus on mobility in between sets and I spent a lot of the session stretching with the band or practicing my squat facing the wall. The coaches were so patient and encouraging as it was a totally unfamiliar move for most of us. I know next time overhead squats and squat snatches come up I will improve on today's attempts.
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Strength Day
Today we did front squats, another exercise that I enjoy doing. I have been going to the early sessions over the last week. It's great as they are smaller and today we had 3 coaches to around 8 people so there was ample opportunity for the coaches to keep a good eye on our form and iron out any glitches.
One of the coaches, Dave, picked up that my knees are going slighly forward on my squat so has given me an exercise to do to ensure that I push my knees out and stay off my toes. Funnily enough it is the same exercise that Lisa gave me when I did my few sessions with her. On squat days I need practice my squat while facing a wall which will force my knees out. By getting this right, it will help me with my various olympic lifts as often I am trying to get the bar over my knees.
The other pointer I got from Jardan a few weeks ago. I have been working on my breathing during my lifting moves and I'm amazed the difference it has made to my lifting the last couple of days. I didn't get a PB today but I felt really good in the lifts and I think with the little tweaks that the coaches have given me I will see some improvements in the near future. I also think that while I have lifted heavier on front squats before I didn't get low enough in the squat that time so today may have been a lower weight but it was a lot better form.
As usual, we finished the workout with a 'final blast' (to use a 12wbt term). This was a partner workouts of medicine ball cleans and double unders. The prescribed weight for the workout was 6 kg med ball which both my partner and I used that means we RXd the workout. YAY! That was one of my goals for the year :-D It was a pretty easy workout to do as prescribed but, hell, I'm notching it up!
One of the coaches, Dave, picked up that my knees are going slighly forward on my squat so has given me an exercise to do to ensure that I push my knees out and stay off my toes. Funnily enough it is the same exercise that Lisa gave me when I did my few sessions with her. On squat days I need practice my squat while facing a wall which will force my knees out. By getting this right, it will help me with my various olympic lifts as often I am trying to get the bar over my knees.
The other pointer I got from Jardan a few weeks ago. I have been working on my breathing during my lifting moves and I'm amazed the difference it has made to my lifting the last couple of days. I didn't get a PB today but I felt really good in the lifts and I think with the little tweaks that the coaches have given me I will see some improvements in the near future. I also think that while I have lifted heavier on front squats before I didn't get low enough in the squat that time so today may have been a lower weight but it was a lot better form.
As usual, we finished the workout with a 'final blast' (to use a 12wbt term). This was a partner workouts of medicine ball cleans and double unders. The prescribed weight for the workout was 6 kg med ball which both my partner and I used that means we RXd the workout. YAY! That was one of my goals for the year :-D It was a pretty easy workout to do as prescribed but, hell, I'm notching it up!
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Deadlift Day
As the kids are on school holidays I have committed myself to get to the gym everyday this week. I often miss certain important workouts as normally I don't go everyday and as a result in the 7 or 8 months I have been going to CrossFit I have never done a deadlift WOD. I love deadlifts, they are my favourite exercise so I was super-keen to go today.
I'd had a shocker sleep last night and have a crick in my neck that has been bugging me (I really need to book in for a massage). You know it's bad when you have to have painkillers and foam roll at 2 am. In hindsight, I shouldn't have gone to the gym this morning but I kept thinking that it was deadlift day and I have been itching to get to a deadlift day for ages.
It was great to have the coaches and my partner keep an eye on my form during the workout. It seems that I have a couple little habits like raising my butt just before I lift and therefore putting more pressure on my back. I found it hard to iron out these little things that I most probably have been doing for years but the good thing is that I can learn from it and next time deadlifts come up I have the verbal cues that help me to maintain good form even when the coaches aren't there. It always amuses me when I do a lift at home I have the coaches voices in my head playing the cues of 'knees out', 'set your back' etc
Something that I learnt from Emazon experience is to not allow my conditioned mind to flood my thoughts. There was a small part of me that thought my form was pretty good so to have someone say that there were some issues my initial thought was, "damn, yet another exercise that I have to practice/I'm not good at." It's silly where my head goes sometimes but I blocked those thoughts and appreciated the feedback I got as it will make me stronger without potentially hurting myself.
After our strength sessions we tend to have a little finisher and today's was:
I'd had a shocker sleep last night and have a crick in my neck that has been bugging me (I really need to book in for a massage). You know it's bad when you have to have painkillers and foam roll at 2 am. In hindsight, I shouldn't have gone to the gym this morning but I kept thinking that it was deadlift day and I have been itching to get to a deadlift day for ages.
It was great to have the coaches and my partner keep an eye on my form during the workout. It seems that I have a couple little habits like raising my butt just before I lift and therefore putting more pressure on my back. I found it hard to iron out these little things that I most probably have been doing for years but the good thing is that I can learn from it and next time deadlifts come up I have the verbal cues that help me to maintain good form even when the coaches aren't there. It always amuses me when I do a lift at home I have the coaches voices in my head playing the cues of 'knees out', 'set your back' etc
Something that I learnt from Emazon experience is to not allow my conditioned mind to flood my thoughts. There was a small part of me that thought my form was pretty good so to have someone say that there were some issues my initial thought was, "damn, yet another exercise that I have to practice/I'm not good at." It's silly where my head goes sometimes but I blocked those thoughts and appreciated the feedback I got as it will make me stronger without potentially hurting myself.
After our strength sessions we tend to have a little finisher and today's was:
For Time:
21 – 18- 15 – 12 – 9 – 6 – 3
Push Ups
Med Ball Cleans
I chose a 4 kg ball but in hindsight I could have gone to the 6 kg. I tend to go lighter when I haven't done an exercise before. My scaling for pushups was a bench which is the scaling between knee and full pushups. After a discussion with the coaches it was decided that I modify my reps as well and started at 18. I quite enjoyed this one, it was a challenge but I never felt like I couldn't get through it and completed it in just over 7 mins.
Friday, June 29, 2012
Doncha Just Love It
Last night I had another Skype session with Lisa. I settled down to the computer a few minutes before to ensure everything was working okay and to make sure I wasn't late. We had invited my parent's over for a quick takeaway dinner prior as they have been looking after the kids over the school holidays. So as I set myself up for my session, my girls went for a shower and as per last week they decided to have a fight, Hubby was yelling at them to be quiet and my mother picked that time clean out the fridge. I'm not really sure why she did this but she had the fridge door open and it was beeping as a warning. She was also putting things on our cooktop so it was beeping too. FFS!!! Luckily it had all settled down by the time the session started.
Anyway, I had sorted out my sound issues that I had the previous week and I was happy with the session I had. I'm looking forward to getting to the gym next week and giving it all a whirl.
Anyway, I had sorted out my sound issues that I had the previous week and I was happy with the session I had. I'm looking forward to getting to the gym next week and giving it all a whirl.
Friday, June 22, 2012
Strength Training
I recently contacted Lisa from Women's Strength Coach to work more on my technique. I love weight training but want to ensure I'm doing the right thing to prevent injuries, particularly as I am not getting any younger. I have been lucky with regards to injuries but I think the last round of the 12wbt, Crossfit and the fact that my job has me sitting for most of the day has taken it's toll and I'm continuing to have a couple of issues with my hips.
My session was last night and was done via Skype. I had set Skype up on my computer the previous weekend and thought I had it all okay but unfortunately, while the picture was great, Lisa was unable to hear me so there must be a microphone issue there. I turned to my trusty Motorola Xoom for back-up. The picture quality wasn't as good and her picture kept on freezing so not exactly ideal and because of that we didn't go through my posture and only went over my squat technique. Once she made a few corrections I could feel an immediate difference.
It was a great experience and am looking forward to next week's session. I have a tendency to get really nervous about this sort of thing as I have this belief that I will be really bad at it and will make a fool of myself. Like my Crossfit experience, I have realised that I don't suck at all.
My session was last night and was done via Skype. I had set Skype up on my computer the previous weekend and thought I had it all okay but unfortunately, while the picture was great, Lisa was unable to hear me so there must be a microphone issue there. I turned to my trusty Motorola Xoom for back-up. The picture quality wasn't as good and her picture kept on freezing so not exactly ideal and because of that we didn't go through my posture and only went over my squat technique. Once she made a few corrections I could feel an immediate difference.
It was a great experience and am looking forward to next week's session. I have a tendency to get really nervous about this sort of thing as I have this belief that I will be really bad at it and will make a fool of myself. Like my Crossfit experience, I have realised that I don't suck at all.
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Getting It Right
Recently Liz wrote a very timely blog with the title of "Leave that ego at the door – the performance enhancement edition" As I continue on my fitness journey I often get reminded of just that. For me it's a fine line of believing in my own abilities and pushing myself to beyond what my mind tells me I'm capable of without losing my form. I have a tendency to stay with weights I know I can lift as I don't trust that I can do it but there are also the times when I have pushed myself before I was ready. This week I have worked on my shoulder presses with a combo of strict press, push press and push jerks. For the life of me I couldn't seem to 'get' the push jerk, granted I was fatigued by the time I got to them but I seem to lose the explosive movement and would try and push the weight up instead. As I looked around I could see the other girls lifting more than me and while this stung a little (considering I was pushing more in the strict press) I kept my weight low and worked with the trainer to get my technique right. I must have done something right as I have had DOMS from that session.
Thursday, May 26, 2011
My Blonde Moment
Week 1 is almost over and I have to say I'm enjoying the program more this round. I think it's because it's not focused on weight loss for the Lean and Strong Program. The food has been fantastic, I think I have loved everything we have had this week. The base calories are still around the 1200 mark with snacks but I am adding a smidge more and while I'm starving by meal time I don't have that constant hunger that I did last year.
Training has been really good. I rocked up to the gym on Monday and was about to start my bicep curls when I noticed that one of the barbells was already set up for the weight I wanted so I used it. As I worked my way through the set I was thinking how hard it was and berating myself for being such a weakling. I refused to go back down in weight and battled through all my sets (and nearly doing a foo-foo valve) only to realise when I was done that what I thought was a 2.5 kg plate was actually a 5 kg so I did an extra 5 kg than what I thought. I guess there is no turning back now!
Training has been really good. I rocked up to the gym on Monday and was about to start my bicep curls when I noticed that one of the barbells was already set up for the weight I wanted so I used it. As I worked my way through the set I was thinking how hard it was and berating myself for being such a weakling. I refused to go back down in weight and battled through all my sets (and nearly doing a foo-foo valve) only to realise when I was done that what I thought was a 2.5 kg plate was actually a 5 kg so I did an extra 5 kg than what I thought. I guess there is no turning back now!
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