METCON-Running, Push-ups

3 Rounds for time:

Run 400M
50 Push-ups

7:51

Felt all right. Last set of push-ups broken.

Dutch has a post up on his view of training. I share this outlook 100%.

Clean and Jerk

Clean and Jerk

In lbs:

135x1
165x1
190x1
205x1
215x1
225x1x4

Goal for this session was 225lbsx1x4. The C&J felt okay, I was a little loose in the catch and my elbows were not coming around fast enough. The jerks were okay too. I was in my basement on carpet, which hinders a little on the aggresion. I do not think I pushed any jerks out, but they did not feel super crisp.

Soccer

Played soccer today. We won 7-1. I got 3 of the goals. I have eaten a lot of cookies in the last 2 days and the diet has been off. I did not have a lot of gas today on the field and "pulled" my left hamstring while playing.

Wall ball Pull-ups

3 Rounds
30 Wall Ball
15 Pull-ups (did not BFK)
Rest 2min

I did not time the rounds. I did this as 3 intervals, trying to do the moves without stopping. It did not work. This was the second time I have really done wall balls and they kicked my ass. This WOD felt like it was the first time I have done CF. Doubles, wall balls, box jumps, all things I am very bad at. I am also going to try and not do the BFK, and do more pull-ups requiring the chin to break the vertical plane..ala OPT.

I hope everyone did well at FGB.

METCON- KB Swings, Push-ups

50-40-30-20-10

1 Pood KB Swings-RKC style
Push-ups

7:25

All push-ups breaks in the front lean and rest position. Quick METCON.

High Bar Back Squats

High Bar Back Squats:

In lbs:

135x3
225x3
260x3
285x3
305x3

These were high bar, done in WL shoes, A2A, and I tried to "bounce" out of the bottom. The 305 was a "PR", for the high bar. I do feel myself falling a little forward on when the weight was >285lbs. I think that is do to the bar going forward of my COM, because I am rising with more of the ass then the legs. I tried to focus on keep the bar over COM, staying upright all the while trying also to just lift the weight and not overthink it. It is amazing how close my 3 rep PR is in FS and HBS, 285 vs. 305.

I weighed 173.5lbs this morning. My weight seems to be about 2lbs higher then in the spring. The diet has been about the same, pants fit fine. I do feel stronger. I am still planning at competing at 77kg in November, so I do not want to try and actively gain weight.

METCON-KB Snatches, Pull-ups, Run

4 Rounds for time:

12 45lbs KB Snatches (6L/6R)
6 Pull-ups
14 45lbs KB Snatches (7L/7R)
7 Pull-ups
16 45lbs KB Snatches (8L/8R)
8 Pull-ups
Run 200M

20:37

This one kicked my ass. The runs became slow recovery runs after the second round. I reversed the pyramid on round 3,4. All subsets were completed without putting the bell down or coming off the bar.

I picked up a nice 45lbs KB at Fitness Factory Outlet in Aurora. They had a few, but 2 were good. Nice smooth finish and a nice handle. 3 other bells had a rough finish and the handle felt too fat. I also picked up a 20lb Wright Med Ball there too. I am stoked about that, after over 2 years of CF, I will soon be adding wall ball to my regular "moves".

Soccer

Play a game this afternoon. We lost 2-3. I did get both goals. I am happy with my level of fitness while playing, especially how I have been doing more KB work (but still KB metcons). I am the youngest on my team (35), the team we played oldest guy was 33. I really think CF is the best conditioning for soccer. I don't think you need CFFB, just regular CF, then sports specific done through playing.

Running

4 Rounds

Run 2min
Walk 2min

Ran in VFF on trails. Running felt good.

METCON-Body Weight

For time:
50-40-30-20-10

Pull-ups
Push-ups
Anchored Sit-ups
Squats

23:37

Pull-ups took a long time. Push-ups broken, sit-ups and squats unbroken.

METCON-Swings/MUs

For time:

50 1.5 Pood KB Swings (RKC style)
10 MUs
40 KBS
8 MUs
30 KBS
6 MUs
20 KBS
4MUs
10 KBS
2 MUs

12:07

MUs slowed me down. On the KBS focused on the hip snap. Effort about a 3.5.

Snatch Balance, Snatch

In lbs

Snatch Balance:
45
95
115
135
155
165
175
185
195-F
185
195
205-PR!
215-Failed

Snatch:
135
155
175
185
190-PR!
195-Failed

Wow, I hit 2 PRs today. First, the snatch balance. I do this instead of OHS, as it has a little more carry over to the snatch, but is almost the same as OHS. The first 195, I got sloppy in the bottom and the weight came forward. Then I hit 195 and stayed tight. I went to 205 (the goal for the session) and it went solid. I jumped to 215 and missed it in the catch.

I did not plan on snatching too, but my family was out, so I loaded 135 and it went up fine, the same with all of the weight to 185. I felt fast, 190 was solid, no press-out. I should have stopped there, but just put 195 on the bar, it was not close, but I was done. All in all, good lifts today.

KB Coaching Session

Met with Dave Kallas tonight. Dave is an RKC team leader and has been an instructor at the RKC certs. It is amazing the quality of coaches that are close to me.

We went over the KB swing, clean and press, snatch and get-up. All in all, my form was pretty good for a self taught athlete. He did give me a few pointers on the each of the moves. The only real move I struggled with was the press. The RKC folks teach a lot of maximum tension and keep the shoulders tights.

All in all good session, but KB confidence is gaining.

Soccer

First game of the season tonight. We lost 2-1. Conditioning felt all right after the KB work.

Kettlebell Thoughts

Kettlebells have a cult-like following just as much as CrossFit. In fact, they are very, very similar. There is a "mothership", there is a forum, and all the "main" guys blog their thoughts and workouts. The past month, I have read Enter the Kettlebell about 3 times, watched Enter the Kettlebell DVD a few times and even bought another DVD (web download) called Corrections..about how to correct common KB faults.

I have always liked the kettlebell. It is an excellent tool to be used in power endurance, metabolic conditioning. Another plus for me, it is a silent tool. It enables one to lift a fair amount of a load, a far distance, quickly, but without waking up the family at 5am. That is probably the number one reason why I personally find it so useful.

There are many things that a kettlebell can be used for, but there are only a few things it should specifically used for. In Enter the Kettlebell (ETK), only the essential exercises are used. Those are the get-up, swing, the clean and press and the snatch. While the get-up can be down with anything, the swing, and the swing-based clean (followed by the press) and swing based snatch are dependent of the kettlebell shape. There 3 exercises are great.

They are all based on the swing, that is taught in ETK as backswing (like a box squat, hinging at the hips), then hips snap forward (like coming up from a box squat). There is no pull with the arms. All momentum to move the bell is generated with a hip snap. This differs from the KB swing in CrossFit, where hips snap, but the arms finish by bringing the bell over the head. Is CF style better? Depends, but rather then debate which is better the important point is they are different exercises.

While the ETK swing only brings the bell up to about chest height, the weight can be moved overhead (thus moved further) by either swinging the bell, then catching in the rack and pressing it overhead (KB clean and press) or swinging the bell and catching it overhead (the KB snatch). Both of these moves are more work the swing because while the load is constant, the bell moves further. Also, both of these moves take energy generated parallel to the ground and re-direct it vertically. Then, take energy from dropping the bell down (vertical again) and re-direct it horizontal (back swing). This requires a good deal of coordination to do it right. This is also the exact same thing that happens in the CrossFit swinging kipping pull-up, another great move that is so misunderstood.

I believe the best things to do with kettlebells is to swing them, clean them, press them or snatch them. Everything else....get-ups, windmills, bent presses, bottom up presses are good exercises, but they can really be done with any type of load.

However, I do believe in the phase "of your only tool is a hammer, the whole world is a nail". Just doing KBs will get you better at KBs, which is great if you are a KB athlete. But, just as you adapt in strength and coordination to snatch more effectively, you adapt metabolically and each workout has less and less of a metabolic effect. So, there is less of all those good things...neuro-hormonal adaptations, which each consecutive workout.

On another note, the ETK uses essentially the same exercises every workout done as a hard, easy, medium template. I agree with the hard to stimulate adaptation, I agree with the light to recovery, but I disagree with a workout ever being "medium". Medium workouts always seem like "filler" and I have dropped "medium" intensity workouts since starting CF over 2 years ago. I am also in the best shape ever. I might do a "medium" intensity on an "off" day, but they are never planned. I would bet any following a hard, medium, light program outline would do just as well (if not better) following a hard, easy (recovery), hard, easy template.

That is what I have learned about the kettlebell in the last month. I am still enjoying my KB journey and will cont to "study" them for another few weeks.

ETK Program Minimum +METCON

ETK Program Minimum #2

5 min Get-ups 1 Pood KB

METCON:
3 Rounds for time:

42 1 Pood KB Snatch (6,6,7,7,8,8)
20 GHD Sit-ups
150 single skips

11:35

I missing the METCONs and constantly varied functional movement. I also did 80 1.5 Pood KB Snatches last night without setting the bell down. I did not keep time for the snatches, but 80 is the most 1.5 snatches I have done without setting the KB down.

ETK Program Minimum #1

Clean and Press 1 Pood KB, 10min

WOD:
AMRAP in 12min

50 1 Pood KB Swings (RKC style)
15 Swinging Kipping Pull-ups
200M Run

3 Rounds, plus 50swings in 12:22.

This is a little deviation from the Rx'd program. Pavel warns against this in ETK, but I am a free thinker. I wanted to work the swings, and run (which is the program minimum), but do some swinging kips to both work on that skill and increase some shoulder mobility.

The swinging kip is great to increase shoulder mobility and while the BFK, deadhangs and weighted pull-ups all have their place, the swinging kip is an important exercise in its own right.

The KB snatch and clean and press are coming around well. Close to me is an RKC team leader and I have been trying to set-up a session to evaluate my form. Hopefully, our schedule will connect next and he can evaluate my swing, clean and press and snatch. I am ready to move on.

ETK Program Minimum #2

2 Rounds:
10 Goblet Squat 1 Pood KB
10 Back Extensions
10 HSPU
10 GHD Sit-ups
10 Deadhang Pull-ups

12 KB 1 Pood Snatches (6/6) on the min for 8min. What clicked for me today was the need to begin the descent of the bell with hinging the hips back first, then dropping the bell and allowing it to reverse the path it took on the ascent. Doing this also helped with rubbing the calluses on the palm. I was doing this already with the right hand (much stronger), now I need to focus on the left hand too.

5min Get-ups 1 Pood KB

ETK Program Minimum #1

12mins alternating:

KB Swings 1 Pood RKC Style
150 jump rope skips.

Did not count reps or rounds, just focused on form. Did mainly 2 handed swings, but did do some 1 handed ones too.

Alot of talk about the AP photograph of the young Marine in Afghanistan. He was in Qalat, about 20km from where I was in 2005. We used to get combat casualties from there. Bottom line for Pat, those images should not be shown. The need to convey to people back home the realities of combat is bullshit. Those emotions, powerful are reserved for those who are there. Reading books, seeing photos, playing video games or for that matter doing "Murph" with a weighted vest pretending it is body armor is all really just pretending. The real deal can only be known by living it.

ETK Program Minimum#2

DROM for about 10min

10min Snatch Practice with 1 Pood bell. Worked on the back swing (hike-pass) and the drop and catch. Left hand starting to find the groove.

WOD:
5 Min get-ups with 1 Pood bell

First week of ETK Program Minimum. I am starting to get the hand of the bell. I think one to two more weeks of the program minimum, based around the swings and get-up, with just technique work on the snatch and clean and press. Next cycle is all clean and press and snatch.

ETK-Program Minimum #1

Program Minimum #1

5 min clean practice with 1 Pood bell.

Worked on keeping elbow tight and drop.

12min
KB Swings 1 Pood
Pull-ups: 5 per round, with 1 Pood KB hooked to foot
200M run-not fast

Did 3 rounds, first round was 2 handed swings, the second was 1 handed swings, final round was towel swings. Again, not going for volume, just working on quality of technique.

ETK-Program Minimum#2

ETK Program Minimum #2

5 min get-up. 1 Pood KB used.

This is the "push" phase of the Program Minimum. Yesterday, the swings, were the pull day. I have done GUs before, but today I just wanted to focus on form and staying tight everywhere, especially the wrist, elbow and shoulder.

I did not count reps, as the whole point of the Program Minimum is to build technique.

I also did some KB Snatch practice. I am working on "taming the arch", which is basically keeping the bell close on both the ascent and descent of the snatch and clean. I am also working on tossing the bell on the descent so it "floats" from my palm to my fingers and flies over the pad of skin at the base of my fingers (where calluses form). Right had is solid, left needs work.