WODs & Well-Being

May 30, 2013 I was looking for a good image to "sum up" my day today... and there were plenty with the "finish each day and be done with it" quote from Emmerson... however I felt as if they were too "pretty" to sum up how I feel right now. When I came across this one, I laughed. I needed to laugh. So here it is: Today was just one of those days. Not sure where it started or why... but I can not wait until my head can hit the pillow tonight. I slept terrible last night which probably played a massive roll in my "bitch-tastic" mood. I dont get a lot of sleep at night to begin with, so when I am up for 2 hours tossing and turning in the middle of the night it results in a pretty horrible day to follow. Days like today are days that I get frustrated at mundane things. I start to fall back into my old habits. As I said to one of the guys I work with today "Mrs. Optimism is taking a day off." Which is funny by two fold, one, I have N...

May 23, 2013 Like everyone else on the planet, there are some morning I find it hard to get out of bed. There are some days its hard to put on a "happy" face and walk around like I have everything together. There are times when I take a long hard look at where I am in my life and think "is this where I thought I would be." I havent always been a positive person, I have talked about that before. In fact, the "glass is always half full" people always seemed to find a way to piss me off because I felt like I was just treading in deep water constantly and going absolutely nowhere. I was so unhealthy. I may have looked like I had it together on the outside (to some... dont ask Hubs, he knows I was a walking headcase). I had more nights than I want to remember where I say at home and beat myself up over where I was in life, what I was doing, why I was stuck in a crappy job, why I couldnt afford to buy a house... I wouldnt sleep at night because as soon as...

May 9, 2013 Oh what a beautiful morning, oh what a beautiful day!! I was really really excited to see the WODs released last night and read about the standards. Of course the terrifying feeling of not having a muscle up has passed through my head over and over... and that is one BIG fish I have to learn to fry... and quick! Now, the way they have structured the WOD's this year for teams is  little different. There are two WOD's every day. Each of the 6 teammates will have to complete at least one WOD a day that will also include the rest of the 5 teammates. The second (or first) WOD on each day will be just one man and one woman from each team. All three of each gender have to perform one of the 2 person workouts and all three of the 6 person workouts. It was pretty clear that of the three, day two was right up my alley. I can do Jackie, but I have tough time with pullups. I would be ok with the walking lunges and oh presses... but my double unders and handstand pushup...

April 30, 2013 I woke up this morning the same as any other morning. Felt like I slept ok… headed to the gym… had a fantastic workout… nothing out of the “norm,” and headed in to work. Things sort of turned to shit from there… No, there was no traffic, I didn’t drop my keys in a puddle, stub my toe, burn myself on my curling iron, receive any bad news or even forget my lunch at home… but for some reason the mood was at a miserable low. There we have it folks. It can happen to anyone, a bad mood! I feel like there are all of a sudden those moments where you start thinking about things in life and get overwhelmed. I honestly didn’t get to work and start thinking about anything in particular, it just was something in my subconscious that had a sour flavor. When that happens I find myself having negative thoughts… which SUCKS.   Its like a glimpse back in time of my life when I was out of control. When I let one little thing destroy my day. When I wasn’t happy with anything. So ...

March 29, 2013 Whats on the menu? Creamy Chicken Verde Bake (find it HERE ) and because they are kick ass and delish  Sweet Potato Banana Mashed (find it HERE ) again! How easy was it to make? This was the easiest thing I have made over the last few weeks. The hardest part honestly was going to Market Basket for the stuff to make it. I hate that store. I usually stop at Hannaford and on a Friday night its usually not too bad. Well, I heard that Market Basket had coconut flour on sale and since I was going to be making dessert for the gym I needed to get there to get some. Thats shiz is expensive and I was almost all out. Anyway. What a zoo. Plus, even though I have "Grocery Store Anxiety" (yes that is self diagnosed) I have an easier time with Hannaford because I know the store and I know where to get the stuff we typically buy. One would have thought they were giving shit away at Market Basket. It was horrific. Anyway. Once I got home the prep of the chicken was quic...

March 16, 2013 Today was the day. I was going to attack 13.2 for the second time. I talked to M and came up with a pretty good strategy for how I was going to approach this workout. I knew I wanted to get at least 10 rounds. I had to get my mind into the right state and kill this workout. I was trying not to put pressure on myself, but in reality, I couldnt stop thinking about it. The time finally came and I was warming up. My head was spinning. M basically just said "dont stop moving." He and I both new that those shoulder to overheads were easy for me and the deadlifts even easier. What I had to do was make sure that my mind told my body not to stop or slow down at all on those because the box jumps were going to take the longest. When the clock started I was totally in a zone. I could hear the cheers and see the people, but at the same time I couldnt see or hear anything except the one spot on the floor that I was staring at through my bar work and the wall when I tu...

March 14, 2013 The 13.2 announcement was made and excitement crawled right back into my body. I was really excited to get to CFW this morning. This workout was going to be a huge challenge for me, but one I was more than willing to accept. KP and I paired up again and this time I went first. Honestly, I was just pumped to get going on the workout. I knew I was going to give it my all, but I also knew I was going to give it a second shot on Saturday regardless of the outcome. When the WOD was released last night I shook my head and thought... this is going to be one of the workouts that looks like its going to be "easy" on paper, but when you get going, the tank is going to run dry quickly! This is exactly what I didnt want to happen. I knew that I could do the shoulders to overheads without a problem and the deadlifts really quickly, it was the box jumps that were going to take the biggest toll. I was relieved in the fact that it was going to take the same toll on every...

February 22, 2013 Today was an interesting day for me in my training. I was really excited to see that we were going to do 1RM deadlift, as we havent since back sometime last fall. M made it perfectly clear that we were not to "over exert" as we have the open coming up and it takes weeks to come back from a real deadlift 1RM. I have had this arbritrary number of 300# in my head for months, the number that I want to hit for my deadlift. We set my lifts to be 150 for 5, 205 for 3, 255 for 1 than one shot at 300lbs. I failed. You know what... thats ok. I have come to realize that there is so much  more to this whole thing than just numbers. Its so important to be well rounded and have the ability to not only lift a lot but to be able to compete metcons and pull and push my body weight quickly. In the last few months while I have not been focused on the deadlift I added 30+ lbs to my clean and jerk, 20lbs consistently to my snatch and taken minutes off of my times in girl W...

January 23, 2013 WARMUP: 3 Rounds - Row 250m - 5 Pushups - 10 Ring Rows - 10 Inchworms - 10 Shoulder Dislocates - 10 Grasshopper Couch Stretch 2 Min Each Leg WOD: Richie Rich 3 Rounds for Time - 10 Chest to Bar - 20 KB Swings (1pd) - 30 Box Jumps (20") (10:05 Rx) SKILL/STRENGTH: Midline 3 Rounds - 10 Toes to Bar - 10 GHD - 10 Hollow Rock .

January 9, 2013 Its so important to visit your goals daily. Look at where you are, where you have been and where you are trying to go. Sometimes taking a look back at where you have come from allows you to push harder towards future goals. When starting something new its common to set unreasonable goals... you want what you want badly but have no idea how long it will take to accomplish. However, when the time finally comes that the goal is attained, its an incredible feeling. Suddenly, the urge hits to set another goal... something you feel that might be out of reach but "hey, anything is possible." You just want that feeling again. Time will go by and maybe you will set more goals while still reaching for the ultimate, or maybe you will sprint towards that ultimate and hit it again... just in time to set another. Goals are so important in life, but almost as important is the ability to celebrate your milestones... slow down and take a look back at where you have come ...

November 19, 2012 22 Days of Thanks 2012 - Day 19 I am thankful for the local food pantry. Tonight I took some time after work to volunteer at the food pantry in Devens MA.My office did this last year and I wrote about my experiences. It was such a eye opening night for me that I really wanted to do it again. This is the same organization that we ran the 5K road race for a few weeks ago. I was thrilled when I found out that I wasnt going to miss the date to volunteer for my trip for Thanksgiving. Again it was one of the most humbling and rewarding things I have been able to take part in. I am really looking forward to heading over there for their Christmas date this year. Already all signed up!   Take a moment to think about your local food pantries at this time of year... and all times of the year.  WARMUP: 3 Rounds - Jump Rope Circuit - 10 Air Squats - 10 Scorpions - 10 Back Extensions - 1 Rope Climb WOD: Open 12.3 18 Minute AMRAP - 15 Box Jumps (20) -...

November 14, 2012 22 Days of Thanks 2012 - Day 14 I am thankful for a special treat. Today I turned 32. Its kinda funny... I have to actually think about my age when someone asks me how old I am because I cant really believe that I am over 30... let alone 32. Not that being over 30 is a bad thing, or I am old or something... because I know that I am not. Sometimes I just feel like time is passing by but I am staying the same age. Clearly, thats not the case! I can say that I felt amazing last year on my 31st birthday, I was on the up and up... getting my shit together and heading in the right direction. I have to say, 365 days later, I am feeling even better than I thought I ever could. If you asked me at 30 how I was feeling it would be a totally different story. I am so happy and proud of the changes I have made in my life. Now, that special treat... this was my mission on the way home from work. Hubs was stopping at the store to get the good to make me an incredible Birth...

November 10, 2012 22 Days of Thanks 2012 - Day 10 I am thankful for date night... ... and I will leave the details to your imagination! WARMUP: Row 500m 3 Rounds - 10 Squats - 10 Pushups - 10 Shoulder Openers Row 500m WOD: "Morrison" 50-40-30-20-10 for time - Wall Balls (14) - Box Jumps (20) - KB Swings (1pd) (25:20 Rx) SKILL/STRENGTH Butterfly Pullup Work .

November 5, 2012 22 Days of Thanks 2012 - Day 5 I am thankful for my DVR. I am going to be honest, this one is pretty petty... but I have to throw it in there. I have a few shows that I love to watch and if it wasnt for my DVR, I would never get to see them. I dont even really know what time or day any of the shows are on that I watch in real time! Its nice to be able to curl up on the couch on a Friday night or Sunday morning and catch up on what I missed. Not to mention I get to watch all the shows Hubs cant stand when he isnt home (thats one thing he is thankful for for sure)!! WARMUP: Run 400m 3 Rounds - 10 Air Squats - 10 Pushups - 10 Ring Rows - 10 Abmat Situps WOD: Dirty 30 for time - 30 Walking Lunges - 30 Knees to Elbow - 30 Push Press (35) - 30 Back Extensions - 30 Wall Balls (14) - 30 Burpees - 30 Double Unders - 30 Box Jumps (20) - 30 Jumping Pullups - 30 KB  Swings (1.5 pd) OLY: Clean 1 on the minute for 7 min 110, 125, 140, 145, 150, 1...

November 3, 2012 22 Days of Thanks 2012 - Day 3 I am thankful for my support system. What better feeling is it when you have someone cheering you on? When the going gets rough and you have someone standing by pushing you, believing in you and encouraging you to finish. Sometimes it takes that little extra umph to help cross the line of where you feel like you just cant go on... When working out at a CrossFit gym that is an experience that is more frequent than you would imagine in any other circumstance. This morning I had decided I wanted to face the WOW... the Lumberjack 20. This is a tough WOD, a long one, which requires focus and a lot of push to keep on going. I have done others like this one, a Hero WOD, usually long and pretty grueling. I asked around for someone to accompany me and understandably those who did not complete Fran yesterday wanted to do that. So I was on my own... but really... I knew I wasnt on my own. Its like that on a daily basis at CF. Whether its yo...

October 27, 2012 I dont know if this is a "problem" or if its a good thing... but I just cant say no to a challenge! Hubs and I were on our way to the gym this morning and we were talking about what we were going to do. I had said that I wasnt really interested in doing the WOW, so I thought I would work on some skills... still unclear of what I wanted we arrived at the gym and were ready to get moving. I started to warm up and was approached by one of my fine CFW Ladies... she says "want to do the WOW with me" and I respond "no." She was getting warmup up and fired up for it, and as I am familiar with, wanted some company. The next thing you know she asks JM if she wanted in and she accepted. Well... they only had to look at me the right way (ok they just had to look at me any way) and I was in. Before I knew it I was setting up my weights getting ready to start a pretty grueling WOW. I was happy I did it... it was a lot of work, a challenge for ...

October 24, 2012 WARMUP: 400m Run 3 Rounds - 10 Incoworms - 10 Step Ups - 10 Ring Rows - 10 Air Squats 200m Run WOD: "Machine Head" 15 Minute AMRAP - Row 250m - 20 Hand Release Pushups - 20 Box Jumps (20) (4 + 265 Rx) SKILL/STRENGTH 3 Rounds not for Time - 10 Hollow Rocks - 10 GHD - 10 Toes to Bar .

October 4, 2012 Today was another WOW day! I saw this go up and needed to do it. It certainly looked like it was going to be a challenge and thats exactly what I needed. Hubs and I are leaving tonight to Killington to Celebrate our Anniversary so I am going to be away from CrossFit for 4 days. We are going to give it a shot to do something while we are there, but of course you get the best workout when you are at the gym. I think I was actually saying the above quote to myself over and over while I was doing this WOD. It was one of those workouts that chips away slowly and once you get over the hump you just have to keep baring down and pushing to the end. At some point it feels like it will never be over and at another point I would think "all I have left is this this and that, I can do this." At no point did I think I was going to quit or wasnt going to be able to finish, I think I have been past that for a while, but I will say that I didnt think some of the elements...

**Had to post some of the few dates I missed back in June/July for my archive** July 17, 2012 WARMUP: 3 Rounds - 20 Double Unders - 5 Wall Balls - 10 Walking Lunges - 15 PVC Good Mornings Couch Stretch WOD: 2012 Games Chipper - 10 OH Squats (95) - 10 Box Jumps (20) - 10 Thrusters (95) - 10 Cleans (125) - 10 Toes to Bar - 10 Burpee Pullups - 10 Toes to Bar - 10 Cleans (125) - 10 Thrusters (95) - 10 Box Jumps (20) - 10 OH Squats (95) (13:55 Rx) SKILL/STRENGTH Back Squat 5, 3, 1+ 175, 185, 210 (4) .

**Had to post some of the few dates I missed back in June/July for my archive** July 7, 2012 Last morning with my friends at NEPA! Thanks for letting us WOD with you guys! WARMUP: 3 Laps (400m ea) 3 Rounds - 20 Squats - 10 HR Pushups WOD: Hope 3 Rounds for Time -Burpees -Power Snatch (75) -Box Jump (24) -Thruster (75) -Chest to bar Pull-ups -1 min of rest (one minute at each station keeping consecutive count of reps at each, final score is total reps for all three rounds) (206 Rx) .