Metcon

Friday, April 30, 2021

Garage Gym

1300

Warm Up

Bring Yoke upstairs

Hip Hammy

Jump Rope - skips, drills

Comptrain Barbell Warm-up

Metcon

"Knuckle Ball"

AMRAP 15

60 double unders

30 air squats

15 deadlifts (135#)

This was pretty tough.  For me it was an exercise in double unders.  Round 1 was 5:30, Round 2 was 6:00, on Round 3 I got through the double unders and 5 air squats.  Total 2 Rounds + 65 Reps.  The double unders were taking me around 10 sets.  Best was round 2 where I did 6 sets of 10 without any misses.

Programming was scaled from Comptrain for 4.30.2021 which called for 30 wall ball shots and 275/185# deadlift. 

Easy Run

Thursday, April 29, 2021

Rocky Mountain Greenway Trail

1430

2.88 mile (32:33 moving time, 11:18 pace) 2 laps around the Croke Canal Loop.

SLIPS - Back Squat

Wednesday, April 28, 2021

Home Gym

1130

SLIPS

Stretch - Foam Roll, Hip Hammy, Wrist Mobility, up facing scorpions

Scales - left leg, right leg, 30 seconds front transitioning to back for 30 seconds

L-sit - 4 times max effort (7-10 seconds)

Inversions - hs hold, hspu to 2 abmats - 2-2-1 reps

Plank - right side plank 30 seconds, left side plank 30 seconds; prone plank on extended arms and one leg raised for 1 minute

Back Squat

12x95

10x105

8x115

6x125

4x135

2x155

2x175

2x185#

Trying to get some good volume.  Felt good on all of the sets.

A Few Days of Running

Sunday-Tuesday, April 25-27, 2021

Germantown Park

While visiting my folks, I took in a couple of nice runs.  I always enjoy running at sea level and this was no exception.

Sunday - 3 loops around the subdivision - 3.74 miles, 10:34 pace, 39:37 moving time

Monday - 2 loops around the subdivision - 2.52 miles, 10:56 pace, 27:35 moving time

Back in Arvada on the Croke Canal Loop

Tuesday - 2 loops - 2.91 miles, 10:40 pace, 31:03 moving time

SLIPS - Bench Press

Wednesday, April 21, 2021

Garage Gym

1600

SLIPS

Stretch - Hip Hammy, Wrist Mobility

Scales - both legs front and back scale 30 seconds

L-sit - 4x straight leg max effort (5-7 seconds)

Inversions - HS Hold (10 seconds) HSPU to 2 abmats 3 x 2 reps

Plank - 2 minute hold (felt really easy)

Bench Press

8x95

6x115

5x135

3x155

2x135

1x175

1x185#

1x195 failed (video)

Performed 3 pull-ups after each of the first five sets.  15 pull-ups total.

Front Squat - Metcon

Tuesday, April 20, 2021

Garage Gym

1300

Warm Up

Jumping Jacks

Foam rolling

Hip Hammy

Wrist Mobility

Squat Therapy

Comptrain Barbell Warm-up

Weightlifting

Every 2 minutes, for 12 minutes (6 sets):

Front Squat

*Set 1 – 3 reps @ 75%

*Set 2 – 2 reps @ 80%

*Set 3 – 1 rep @ 85%

*Set 4 – 1 rep @ 90%

*Set 5 – 1 rep @ 95%

*Set 6 – 3 reps @ 90%

I set my percentages off of a 200# front squat as it has been a while since I have tried to go heavy.  I made all of my lifts and even 190# did not feel too bad.

Metcon

“Charley Horse”

For time:

75/50 Calories of Rowing

25 Front Squats (175/115 lbs)

25 Burpee Box Jump-Overs (24″/20″)

I was lit up and not ready for this.

75 cal row - 6:30

25 FS 95# - 10:30 (sets of 5)

25 BBJO (12") - 15:40

This was a grind, but a good exercise in mental toughness.  It is kind of a pain to set up BBJO, Rower and Rack in my single car garage gym space.

Programming was from CFG for 4.20.21

EMOM

Sunday, April 18, 2021

Garage Gym

1530

Warm Up 

Hip Hammy

Steel Mace 360s

Movement Prep

EMOM 30

(5 rounds of the following)

station 1:  3 pull-ups

station 2:  10 push-ups

station 3:  15 air squats

station 4:  10 abmat sit-ups

station 5:  15 kbs

station 6:  10 wall ball shots (14# to 10')

The pull-ups and push-ups were quick (10-15 seconds)

The air squats and sit-ups were slower

The kbs and wbs took the longest (30-35 seconds)

I had sufficient rest to work on good mechanics without the limiter of stressing metabolic conditioning.

Easy Run

Sunday, April 18, 2021

Lakecrest Park

1030

2.93 mile (31:47 moving time; 10:50 pace) run around Lake Crest Park.  I started out intending to do the Croke Canal Loop, but my stomach was a bit queasy so I headed back after a short loop.  After passing some gas, I felt a lot better and did loops around the park.  The large loop was taking me around 3:50.

Deadlift - Metcon

Saturday, April 17, 2021

Home Gym

1200

Warm Up

Hip Hammy

Wrist Mobility

Comptrain Barbell Warm up

Weightlifting

Every 2 minutes, for 20 minutes (10 sets):

Deadlift x 3 reps @ 80% of 1-RM

(Normal overhand grip today, no switch grip)

Based on 300# 1RM, I warmed up with 135, 185 and 225#.  I started at 225# and did the last 9 sets at 240#

Metcon

For time:

800 Meter Run

80 Alternating Reverse Lunges with KB/DB Farmer’s Carry (24/16 kg)

800 Meter Run

I scaled this to 1000 m rows and did unweighted reverse lunges.  I finished in 14:33 and felt good about the effort.  I should have added some weight to the reverse lunges, but not 16 kg.

Programming was from CFG for 4.15.21.  My traps were pretty sore after that workout.  Not sure why.

Easy Run

Thursday, April 15, 2021

Rocky Mountain Greenway Trail

1300

2.87 mile run (33:16 moving time; 11:33 pace) around the Croke Canal Loop.  Overcast and in the low 40's.  I felt kind of sluggish (probably due to weighing in at 196.5# this morning).

SLIPS - Thrusters

Tuesday, April 13, 2021

Home Gym

1200

SLIPS

Stretch - Hip Hammy, wrist mobility

Scales - Front Back on Left/Right Leg - about 25 seconds each position

L-sit - Every 30 seconds, 5 second effort

Inversion - Hold, HSPU to 2 abmats - 2-2-1 reps

Plank - 2 minute hold

Thrusters

Warm up with Comptrain Barbell warm-up and thrusters at 45, 75#

7 sets of 3 reps

95

95

100

105

110

110

110#

Front Squat - Metcon

Monday, April 12, 2021

Garage Gym

1300

Warm Up

Foam Roll

Hip Hammy

Jumping Jacks

Squat Therapy

Comptrain Barbell Warm Up

Front Squat

Build to heavy single @32X1 tempo

then max reps at that weight (no tempo requirement)

I worked up from 95, 135, 155, 165 and finally 175#.  I considered trying 180#, but did not want to drop a squat in my relatively tight home gym.  After a couple of minutes, I managed 2 reps at 175#.

Metcon

Every 4 minutes for 12 minutes (3 sets)

500 m row

10 front squats (95#)

The front squats were supposed to be 70-75% of 1RM clean.  I figured I am in the neighborhood of 135#, but wasn't really feeling that great and opted for the low end at 95#.  My rows were on the order of 2:20 and with a moderately paced transition, I was finishing the rounds at:

3:07

3:13

3:22

Which was slower than I expected and I was not thrilled about getting on the rower with less than 1 minutes rest.

It was a good workout and pretty challenging.

Programming was from CFG for 4/12/2021

Hip Extension / Roman Chair

After beating myself up for not grabbing the free hip extension in time, I came across another listing for a hip extension being offered for $40 in Arvada.  I messaged the seller and picked it up last night.

It is a cheap lightweight hip extension manufactured by Legacy International, Mahwah, NJ and I cannot find any other details.  They appear to have been in business from 1996-2000 and have a few trademarks including "Body Under Construction" and "The First Name in Fitness"

I was looking for a posterior chain development tool and this fits the bill.  It is stable enough for me to do sit-ups on as well.  If I use it regularly enough, I would consider upgrading, but if it sits idle most of the time, I will probably resell it or give it away down the road.

Purchased from Joey (Facebook Marketplace).  This guy had a pretty kick ass powerlifting gym set up.  With Rogue Bumper Plates, Ivanko deep dish plates.  Dedicated bench press area and a nice hack squat machine.

Looking at the picture, it is the exact same one that was offered for free and the Joey just flipped it for a quick $40.

Tempo Run

Sunday, April 11, 2021

Rocky Mountain Greenway Trail

1300

1.46 mile (15:32 moving time; 10:39 pace) quick lap on the Croke Canal Loop.  As it was a quick metcon today, I wanted to get some additional conditioning.

Metcon - Crossfit Quarterfinals Test 5 (s)

Sunday, April 11, 2021

Garage Gym

1200

Warm Up

Hip Hammy

Wrist Mobility

Squat Therapy

Steel Mace 360's

PVC Pass Throughs

Comptrain Barbell Warm Up

Bergener Warm Up

Metcon

For time:

9-6-3 

Snatch

Burpee box jump-over

185 lb., 30 in.

Time cap: 7 min.

I scaled this test to an 85# Snatch and 24" BBJO and that was a good test for me.  I have not been doing much Olympic lifting and a 30" box jump frightens me.  On my best days, I can land it on soft plyo boxes.

I finished the 4 rounds in 6:37 and felt good about the effort.  The camera angle left a bit to be desired, but it still showed me some opportunities to improve my snatch.  I am still hopping back instead of strictly driving up.

I liked the quarterfinal tests a lot and regret not doing tests 1 and 4 over the course of the weekend.  What struck me most was the accumulated fatigue.  My abs were trashed after test 2 and my shoulders were feeling it after test 4.  I nearly took a rest day instead of attempting test 5.  Had I done test 1, they would have been box HSPU, lighter weight dumbbells and DU.  Test 4 would have been at around 80% of my true 4 rep max.

Test 1 - HSPU, DB HPC and S2O, DU

Test 2 - GHD Sit-ups, Rope Climb, Pistols

Test 3 - WBS, Row

Test 4 - Front Squat

Test 5 - Snatch, BBJO

Free Hip Extension

Yesterday afternoon, I came across a free hip extension being offered on Facebook Marketplace in Arvada.  I saw the ad 39 minutes after it had been listed and before I could type a response, it was already sold.  Not a particularly awesome unit, but certainly something I would have paid $20 for.  It also seemed to take up a bit of a footprint.  I would still like to have some equipment for posterior chain development

Glute Ham Developer ($400+)

Reverse Hyperextension ($350+)

Back Extension ($200+)

Rogue Donkey ($1945)

Sorinex Frankenhyper ($3299)

Powerlift Posterior Chain Developer (call for pricing)

Metcon - Crossfit Quarterfinals Test 3 (s)

Saturday, April 10, 2021

Garage Gym

1200

Warm Up

Hip Hammy

Wrist Mobility

Squat Therapy

Easy Row

Steel Mace 360's

PVC Pass Throughs

Metcon

For Time

100 Wall Ball Shots (14# to 10')

100 Calorie Row

This was significantly scaled from the 2021 Crossfit Quarterfinals Test 3 which called for 120 WBS (20 # to 10') and 120 Calorie Row with a 15 minute cap.

I started the wall ball shots with the intention of doing 10 sets of 10 with a short rest.  I felt so good, that I opted for a large set of 20, then 10, then sets of 5, until I finished 100 reps in 8:06.  I took a surprisingly long transition and my first pull on the rower was at 8:31 and I finished the row as 17:08, holding a roughly 700 calories/hour pace.

Metcon - Crossfit Quarterfinals Test 2 (s)

Friday, April 9, 2021

Garage Gym

1200

Warm Up

Hip Hammy

Wrist Mobility

Banded shoulders

Jumping Jacks

Metcon

For Time:

50 Abmat sit-ups

5 rope climbs (10')

50 walking lunges

40 Abmat sit-ups

4 rope climbs (10')

40 walking lunges

30 Abmat sit-ups

3 rope climbs (10')

30 walking lunges

This was significantly scaled from the 2021 Crossfit Quarterfinals Test 2 which called for GHD sit-ups, 15' rope climbs and pistols on a 60-50-40-30 rep scheme.

Scaling the volume and the movements was good for me.  It was a steady effort with some good movements I have not done in a while.  I would like to set up my rope somewhere that would allow for 15' climbs, but have not figured that out yet.

Round 1 ~ 6:30

Round 2 ~ 6:30

Round 3 ~ 5:00

Total time was 18:01 (which proved it was scaled well given the 20 minute time cap).  Ratna worked out with me, substituting crunches, 2x ring rows, and side lunges.

We finished with a walk.  0.45 miles unweighted and 0.45 miles with a 50# sandbag.

2021 Quarterfinal Tests

Although I did not qualify for the quarterfinals, I still wanted to look at the tests announced today with scores due by April 12th.

Test 1

For total time:

3 rounds of:

  10 strict handstand push-ups

  10 dumbbell hang power cleans

  50 double-unders

Rest exactly 1 min., then:

3 rounds of:

  10 kipping handstand push-ups

  10 dumbbell shoulder-to-overheads

  50 double-unders

50-lb. dumbbells

Time cap: 10 min.

Test 2

For time:

60 GHD sit-ups

6 rope climbs, 15 ft.

60 alternating single-leg squats

50 GHD sit-ups

5 rope climbs, 15 ft.

50 alternating single-leg squats

40 GHD sit-ups

4 rope climbs, 15 ft.

40 alternating single-leg squats

30 GHD sit-ups

3 rope climbs, 15 ft.

30 alternating single-leg squats

Time cap: 20 min.

Test 3

For time:

120 wall-ball shots

120-cal. row

20-lb. ball, 10-ft. target

Time cap: 15 min.

Test 4

For max load:

4 rep-max front squat

Time cap: 20 min.

Test 5

For time:

9-6-3 

Snatch

Burpee box jump-over

185 lb., 30 in.

Time cap: 7 min.

These tests were designed to challenge the top 10% of open athletes and let the cream of the crop separate themselves and get invited to one of the live Semifinals events.

As a back of the pack athlete that 88,594 out of 137,351 worldwide men and 47,050 out of 73,589 North America men.  I needed to be 7410 or better to make the cut (top 10%).  I was just a bit outside being at 64%.

I also confirmed that I was 2,404 out of 4,987 Men 50-54 in North America.  I was ecstatic to find myself in the middle of the pack.  My performance in each event was less impressive at 3,333, 3,891, 3,014 and 3,307 for 21.1 through 21.4 respectively, but completing all of the workouts moved me up.

The tests themselves would not go well for me.

• Test 1 - 0 reps (I do not have strict HSPU, at my best I could only do 1 rep)
• Test 2 - 60 GHD sit-ups would wreak havoc on my abs, I might manage 6 rope climbs, but could not do a single pistol
• Test 3 - 120 wall-ball shots and 120-cal row.  I am going to give this one a try and see how far I get before the 15 minute cap
• Test 4 - This looks fun and I will establish a 4 rep max front squat
• Test 5 - 0 reps as I cannot pull a 185# snatch.  I am not even sure if I could manage the women's weight of 135#; I just noticed they raised the stakes with the plyo box height for men at 30 inches and women at 24 inches.  Ouch.

I feel the tests are well programmed and should allow for good separation of athletes.  I have been working on inversions and need to spend more time climbing a rope and working on pistols.  I should probably spend more time Olympic lifting as well.

The age group online qualifiers will be held the week of May 3rd.

Metcon - Bench Press

Thursday, April 8, 2021

Garage Gym

1200

Warm Up

Hip Hammy

Wrist Mobility

Movement prep - up downs, kbs, rope skips, drill, doubles

Metcon

6 min

400 m run followed by

AMRAP of

40 DU

20 KBS (35#)

10 Up Downs

rest 2 min

7 min

400 m run followed by

AMRAP of

40 DU

20 KBS (35#)

10 Up Downs

rest 2 min

8 min

400 m run followed by

AMRAP of

40 DU

20 KBS (35#)

10 Up Downs

This was a tough little workout that showed me that up downs are not any better than burpees.

6 min - 1 round + 19 reps

7 min - 1 round + 5 reps (2 round + 24 reps total)

8 min - 1 round + 16 reps (3 round + 40 reps total)

Programming was from CFG for 4/8/2021

Bench Press

Pyramid

6x95

4x115

2x135

2x145

2x155

4x145

6x135

This was a surprisingly tough effort.  Programming was adapted from Vintage CF for 4/8/2021

SLIPS - Metcon - PU

Wednesday, April 7, 2021

Home Gym

1200

SLIPS - 

Hip Hammy, Wrist Mobility, Down Dog

Scales - Front and Back on left and right legs - 30 seconds each position

L-sit - 4 times max effort - around 5 seconds

Inversions - HS Hold 15 seconds, 3 sets of HSPU 2 reps to 2 abmats

Plank - 2:00 minute hold

Metcon

21-15-9

Row for calories

Back Squat (135/95)

I used the ladies weight and managed to go 15/6 and 9/6 and 9 on the 3 rounds of back squat.  I was pulling around 800 calories per hour on the rower.  My transitions were slow and deliberate.  I finished in 8:33 and felt pretty good about the effort.

Pull-ups

EMOM 10 - 2 reps

I was able to complete this without issue.  I felt surprisingly good, despite weighing in at 193# this morning.

Metcon programming was from CFG.  The rest was self programmed to round out the hour.

Easy Run

Tuesday, April 6, 2021

Rocky Mountain Greenway Trail

1200

2.86 mile run (32:17 moving time; 11:16 pace) around the Croke Canal Loop.  Around 50 degrees but still.

Easy Run

Monday, April 5, 2021

Rocky Mountain Greenway Trail

1200

2.88 mile run (33:05 moving time; 11:29 pace) around the Croke Canal Loop.  I felt heavy and sluggish, bt the weather was certainly pleasant and it was good to get outside. 

Westin, Cape Coral, Florida

Friday, April 2, 2021

Westin (Cape Coral, Florida)

I had a chance to check out the fairly standard hotel gym which included 2 adjustable benches, TRX, med balls, kettlebells, 5-50# dumbbells, "functional fitness" machine and some cardio equipment including ellipticals and treadmills.

I did 4 rounds of Cindy and then did some dumbbell military presses and then dumbbell bench press.

In the afternoon, I swam in the lap pool and had a a great time doing mostly freestyle with a few lengths of back stroke and breast stroke.  Overall, I managed 450 meters in a little over 20 minutes.  I have not swam laps in quite a while and certainly miss it.