WODs & Well-Being

August 31, 2011 First off... welcome to all my new readers! Please feel free, as I said before, to leave comments and "follow" my blog!! I would love to hear what you have to say and try to answer questions (even if I have to consult with the pros)! I really just want to inspire people and if anyone is thinking about Crossfitting and changing their lives hopefully my story is enough to push you to give it a shot! So I felt better last night, not as tired, so I guess the early night on Monday night was good for me. Arriving at CFW this morning my legs were a little sore and the middle of my upper back, probably from the SDHP's. However I am finding it harder and harder to figure out what is making me sore since I am constantly sore in different spots. I am a "second day" sore person (typically). Meaning, the first day I am ok, and a little sore... but the second day is when the real soreness sets in. I should clarify that this is a good sore. This is a welcom...

August 30, 2011 I was exhausted last night when I got home from work around 7:45. I don’t even think exhausted is the word… my eyelids were heavy and I just wanted to curl up in a ball and sleep. I have nasty fall allergies and I am thinking that the storm may have jumpstarted them with all the trees flying. I was in bed at 9:00 and slept pretty well… Funny thing was, I woke up thinking about CrossFit and what the WOD would be this morning. I was thinking (at 5am) that we haven’t done burpees in a while, maybe I was dreaming about them. I went downstairs and decided to hop on the website real quick to see what was in store… hmmm what do you know… BURPEES! M and K must have been in my head last night! Off to CFW I went, T was there burpee-ing (is that a word) away when I pulled up. I got right into the warmup. Funny how a 200m run feels like nothing now. My feet feel light and my breathing is much more controlled. The 9 fundamentals are coming along every week with my form improving...

August 29, 2011 Ahhh, good old Monday morning. Seems to always creep up on me the same time every week! Before bed last night Hubs and I were talking and I said "you know, it feels really go to be getting rid of all this suff that we dont need or want want anymore... less clutter, less stuff to bog us down... kinda seems like we are on a mission to do the same thing with our lives."  I am  feeling good, motivated and determined (hehe, kinda like the title to my blog, see how that works) to get my life where I want it. I am surrounded by a wonderful family, very supportive parents, and the best friends I could ask for. I have always been a "reach for the stars" kinda girl, something instilled in me as a child, whatever you want you can do it... typically, I follow everything through to the end. Never give up. My problem, fitness. I love working out, I love feeling strong. For some reason I have never actually pushed myself hard enough. The more I think a...

August 28, 2011 Off day from CrossFit... but boy did I get my workouts in this weekend. Yesterday when we got home from our morning workout I decided to start to tackle one of the biggest projects in our house. The Basement. What I mess. I admit, it is 99% my "stuff" that has been piling up year after year in boxes and tupperwares. Every time I was cleaning upstairs and wanted to make room for something I would box up some stuff and throw it down there. The problem is, that we have been planning to move for what feels like 100 years. The first time we put the house on the market I started packing up all the nick nacky things around the house, as well as all the picture frames and personal items. This was to make our place "more marketable" to people looking. It would have been nice if people actually came to look... alas we didnt sell. However the boxes still remained in the basement. We listed again a few years later, and the same thing happened. At that poin...

August 27, 2011 Took a half day of work yesterday to enjoy the "last" day of summer. It was wonderful to soak up the sun for a few hours and relax with friends. I also was able to make it to the New Balance store to try out the sneakers that I have been eying on the internet. I did a lot of looking and researching to find the correct shoe for crossfit. My good old faithful Nike Air just isnt cutting it, and I really needed a new pair of sneaks anyway. So I of course went right for the Nike, but after trying on the Nike Free, which is the low profile Nike sneaker, it just wasnt the right choice. I looked at a few other sneakers on line and when it came down to it, the winner (in both crossfit reviews and price) was the New Balance 20. What do you think? www.shopnewbalance.com I was so excited to wear them this morning! I was also really excited just to have a Saturday workout. To be able to go with Hubs was nice since we havent been there together for the last two weeks...

August 26, 2011 Ask me two weeks ago if I would have been able to "walk on walls" I would have told you you were NUTS. In fact one of the first days Hubs and I were at CFW we saw someone doing them, wall walks and I was secretly thinking... good lord... I would be terrified I would fall on my face! When I arrived today, I had no looked at the website so to my surprise (and shock) I saw T doing wall walks. Fear went straight through me. However, I had to get into the mindset of "I can do this!!" I was tired. I woke up tired... didnt really get a good nights sleep last night. I hopped right onto the row machine for the 1K row... and completed the rest of the warmups. When I was done T had finished and I was ready to get going on the Strength and WOD. Strength was squats. I love squats... almost as much as I love deadlifting (this is for real... they are my favorite exercises). So my 1 RM was 185lbs. I and I were both kinda convinced that my 1RM was higher, lik...

August 25, 2011 Today if my "off" day... not going to lie, it felt good to sleep for an extra hour... I wasnted to share this, I found this HERE Top 10 Reasons Why Women Should CrossFit 10. weak and feminine are NOT the same. 9. you fear no challenge. 8. you should train like an athlete not a hamster 7. you refuse to be a damsel in distress. 6. you don’t need machines…you are the machine. 5. you have yet to realize your full physical potential. 4. aerobics is SO 1980’s. 3. that which does not kill you will only make you stronger. 2. you’re willing to sweat, not just “glisten”. 1. there’s just nothing cooler than a strong woman! I agree with that last statement 100%... http://crossfitbabes.tumblr.com/post/7361166868/crossfit-women-of-crossfit-waco

August 24, 2011 What do you think? I think this is a pretty cool pic... www.crossfitwachusett.com M snapped a picture while I was in the middle of my push jerks yesterday. To my surprise when I went onto the website last night to see what type of "torture" I was facing for this morning, there I was!! I was pretty excited to see this, and hey... not to shabby! I was sore this morning, and tired. Between the rowing and the push jerks my legs are quite sore. I didnt really realize it until I started to warm up today. It was also a little hard to get out of bed, but I am determined to push through everything... I didnt get to bed till 9:45 last night so I sort of expected the struggle. K was standing at the edge of the garage when I arrived... she was pointing to the grass to the left of the house... as I pulled in I saw what she was pointing at... a skunk. Thankfully my pulling in scared the critter and off into the woods he went. As K said "it would have been a V...

August 23, 2011 Wow, was I excited to get to do deadlifts this morning. I looked a the WOD last night again and it totally pumped me up for this morning. I did sort of have a crappy night sleep again last night, but once the alarm goes off I am pumped to get over and start my workout. The warmup was a jog around the block, the first time I did that... maybe the 2nd or 3rd day that we were at CFW by the time I got to the end of the first 400 I was winded... That day, I didnt give up. I just kept going as much as I hate running. Today, it was cake. I started off strong and slowed a bit (damn hills) but I kept a good strong pace and tried to control my breathing the whole time. Went pretty quick. I was reading something on a crossfit website or chatroom (that I didnt think to write down the name of) yesterday at lunch. It talked about really taking advantage of, and listening to the trainers while you are at crossfit. Take what they say as soon as they say it and apply it 100% to wh...

August 22, 2011 I admit, I cheated. I looked at the website last night to see what todays WOD was gong to be last night before I went to bed. The weekend was rough as far as "soreness" goes. Saturday I was sore in my right lat (thank you 55 pullups Friday morning)... than on Saturday night while at dinner with friends my arms tightened up and I all of a sudden felt like I had carrying around 25lb weights all day and I just put them down. By Sunday I was thankful I was taking an "off" day. My lower back was sore, not sure why... maybe from the walk we took Saturday morning, and my left arm, I have no idea what muscles is near my elbow, but thats the one... that one, and my left bicep. It was hard to sleep last night. I was hoping by the time I got up this morning my left arm would be a little less sore, but no such luck. Even the three ibuprofen I had before bed didnt do the trick. So, I was actually looking forward to warming up and stretching it out before doin...

Follow your heart, never surrender your dreams. Constantly work towards your goals. Believe in yourself, and always be truthful. Take time to enjoy life's pleasures. Keep your mind open to new experiences. Think before acting, but don't forget the joys of spontaneity. Make your own decisions. Look out for yourself, but remember that you share this universe with others. Look for the good in others, everybody has their own song to sing. Live each moment to the fullest, for a moment too soon becomes a memory. Look for opportunities, not guarantees. Hope for the best. Give people a chance to love you, for that is how you learn to love. Live your life for yourself, but always be considerate of others. Believe in tomorrow, for it holds the key to your dreams.  ~ Melissa Ososki ~

August 20, 2011 Ahhh, Saturday. Yesterday was a long day at work, however for the first time in months I did not partake in our Friday afternoon "social hour" when we all sit around and unwind and have a beer or two. I guess it helped that I was in a meeting till after 5:00, so it really didnt feel like I wasnt partaking, it felt like social hour didnt happen at all. My legs were sore all day, a good sore. I am figuring out that wearing heels at work for 9+ hours is actually helping my recovery. I wore flat sandals on Friday and could feel my legs get tighter and tighter as the day went on. Hubs and I woke up this morning and knew we wanted to do "something" that would be considered exercise. We got out of bed and spent an hour or so having coffee on the back deck, which we really need to do more often (rather than sit on the couch like zombies). We talked and shared how we both felt after our first full week. Neither of us want to burn out... and  moderation ...

August 19, 2011 Left work at 4:00 yesterday for a dentist appointment, got home around 7:00 and was so exhausted I couldnt stand it (my own fault for staying out till 1:00 on Wednesday night). I dragged myself to the couch, Hubs and I had dinner and we started to watch the Pats game. 8:00 rolled around and he was off to the shower. I  went to bed, turned the TV on to watch some more of the game... next thing I knew I woke up at 1:30am, glasses still on my face and I hadnt moved. I fell asleep before he even came out of the shower. Woke up rejuvenated and ready to go. Since yesterday was my "off" day I felt like there was something missing all day. Hubs went (he took Wednesday off) so I knew what the workout was and how he had done. He also let me know that he had met M, who is K's husband. They own CFW together and he had been away since we started. They are going to participate in a Triathlon this weekend so they will be closed this afternoon and and weekend. Monday ...

Today is my "off" day. So I wanted to post the CrossFit Women's Creed that I have found over and over on various CrossFit websites... its very inspiring. I am a CrossFit woman. I do not wear mekup to the gym. I wear chalk. I do not get manicures. I scrub the calluses of my hands. I do not glisten or smile while I'm working out. I sweat, grunt and curse. I am a CrossFit woman. I am as proud of my muscles as I am of my scars. They are the evidence of my hard work and dedication. I am a CrossFit woman. Increased work capacity is my mission. Elite fitness is my goal. I am a CrossFit woman. I may scale a WOD, but I will never quit or give up. I do what others won't and I excel where others can't. I am stronger mentally and physically because of it. I am a Crossfit woman. I am invincible. And you could be too... This image makes me drool... www.crossfitnea.com

August 17, 2011 Soreness set in when I got home from work last night. I was feeling pretty good all day, than as I started to relax I was feeling it. Mostly in my upper body from the overhead press and in my calves (still). My right calf seems to be bothering me more than my left, but I knew I was going to wake up and push through my workout. Went out to buy some new clothes yesterday at lunch time, it was time to update some of my wardrobe. I feel like I really struggle to get ready for work every day and with the limited time I have to get dressed and organized for work I need to be able to go into my closet and just grab something that I know I will feel comfortable in the "fit" of. I am building a new wardrobe, as my old job it was so easy to throw on jeans and head to work every day. It didnt really matter. Now, I have to be "professional" and dressed for that every day in the office. I like it, but it has certainly taking time to get  used to. Hubs was t...

August 16, 2011 What a morning!! Today was a great day as the WOD was much more geared towards what I am comfortable with. I am doing my best to stay away from using my “crutches,” which are my straps, my gloves and a bar pad for squatting. I think it’s a mental thing for me… but still, I know like anything else, if I just get used to it than I will be ok. After my workout (which is now) I am feeling the callouses on my hands burning, and I am hoping they aren’t going to blister… So, Hubs came home last night after his session and had said that K was writing the WOD on the board for today before he left. He was very excited to see a strength day up there! I too was excited, and couldn’t wait to see my old world, and my new world collide… than again… I was also a little nervous about pushing myself to the limit. I have never done that before. I was exhausted all day yesterday. I think it was a combination of the workout in the morning and still sort of recovering from the weekend ...

August 15, 2011 Hubs and I decided it was time to start a new adventure. We feel like we have tried everything when it comes to styles of training and “diets” that we prefer to call “lifestyle changes.” Nothing seems to work. We stick with it for a few weeks, than as the weekends set in a month into it we decide its time to have a pizza… than its easier to go out to dinner one of the nights…. And before we know it, we are back into our old habits. We are both pretty well adjusted to strength training. Hubs has been lifting for years and I started up quite a few years ago myself. He has been teaching and training me to know what exercises work for me, and what will give me the best “bang for my buck” so to speak. For our wedding in 2005, we were in “fantastic” shape. I use that in quotes because it was only fantastic because when we look back at it now, it was pretty fantastic. Had you asked either of us then, we would more than likely have not had the same response....