WODs & Well-Being

January 3, 2012 I thought this was a pretty appropriate phrase for today. As I have talked about the last two days, I am really pushing myself towards my goals this year... not that I really started to slack, but its time to amp it up. A few weeks ago I talked to M and K about the things that I really need to work on and how I could go about fitting everything in with my training... AND continue to do he daily workouts. Basically we wound up talking about the things that I can work on at the same time as continuing with the programming... and just a few extra things post WOD and on my skill days. A few Saturdays have past now and I have been working a lot on my oly technique. I have the strength, but as M said, I am going to get stuck at a certain weight and go nowhere with it if I dont fix my technique. So, the time is here to slow down... reduce the weight a bit and really break down every lift I am doing, to get the max power I am capable of. In addition to that, I know I have...

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 ...

**Had to post some of the few dates I missed back in June/July for my archive** July 10, 2012 WARMUP: 2 Rounds - 20 Double Unders - 15 Hollow Rocks - 10 Back Extensions - 5 HR Pushups - 10 Shoulder Dislocates - 20 Lunges 2 Minute Pigeon Stretch Group: Deadlift WOD: Helen 3 Rounds for Time - 400m Run - 21 KB Swings (1 pd) - 12 Pullups (13:49 Rx) SKILL/STRENGTH Deadlift 3-3-3+ 180, 190, 200 (7) .

**Had to post some of the few dates I missed back in June/July for my archive** June 23, 2012 Everyday Heros was a comeptition held at CrossFit Route 1. "EveryDay Heroes is a local nonprofit organization founded by Kendra, Mark and Francine Cecieta in honor of their father and husband William Cecieta, a fallen firefighter from Saugus.  EDH provides resources and educational programs for civil servants that actively serve their communities as police, fire, EMTs, and military personnel. The EDH emergency fund’s goal is to provide financial assistance programs to support families and individuals in times of crisis, who have experienced financial turmoil due to the loss of life or a life-changing disabling injury that was sustained in the line of duty while serving their community. Financial assistance ranges from helping with basic living expenses to covering unanticipated expenses due to the loss or injury." Seeing as how my family has been directly a...

July 31, 2012 What would life be like if it was "fair?" I can clearly remember asking my parents if it was ok if I could go for a ride in my friends boyfriends car when he got his license and we were only 15. When the response was "absolutely not," my witty teenage whine "but Dad, thats not fair" came out without a second thought. I knew he was doing what was right for me... and keeping himself and my mom sane in the mean time... but I didnt understand it, it just didnt seem fair that someone else's parents didnt have the same rules as mine. When I was a senior in high school, I qualified for the State Championship for throwing the discus. My coach decided to have a Junior, who also qualified, fill the spot because she was "more consistent" than I was. I thought it was totally unfair that I was a senior and this was my last chance, and I got shafted for someone who would have another chance the next year. I had been so excited that I qu...

April 3, 2012 Ahhh, Springtime. The time for rain, the time for sunshine, blossoms, bon fires, cooking on the grill, bees... and of course sniffles, sneezes, coughs and lots and lots of tissues. You first contemplate (like I was all weekend) if what you are coming down with is an actual "cold" or... maybe it could just be allergies! Hoping for the best, you convince yourself its just that and you will be fine. I woke up this morning after barely sleeping, tossing and turning... and (insert horror music here) I was sick. The throat was burning, the nose was running and I was still exhausted, despite going to bed at 8:30 last night. So, what do to... what to do... well.. get your ass out of bed and go to crossfit!! What else would I do!! I have to admit, the best I felt ALL DAY was at the gym. Yeah, you feel like hell when you wake up, you have been laying on your back all night and your tired. I mean, there are times I dont want to get out of bed on a "normal" ...

March 21, 2012 Mornings like this make me very happy and motivate me to start the day off with a smile. I had a great nights sleep last night, woke up and was geared up and ready to tackle whatever it was that was going to be on the board at CFW. To my surprise I was greeted with deadlifts (yay!), rowing and KB swings!! This was going to be a good one!! It was also a great morning to have a run in the warmup and as always there was a great 5:30am crew, JM, L, G, and T!!  My goal… to use all the motivation that I have learned in the last few weeks to really kill this WOD. I enjoy deadlifting (so that helps), and I have been working on my speed a lot… yesterday even. We have also been focused a lot lately on proper form while rowing, making sure to have long pulls and straight backs, which is also a huge benefit for this WOD.   I started adjusting my foot straps to the highest setting as well upon recommendation of one of our CF Family members who was a crew member in coll...

March 15, 2012 When I grow up I want to be like (fill in the blank)... When I become a parent I want to be like (fill in the blank)... I wish I could be as smart as (fill in the blank)... I wish I could do (fill in profession here) as a profession just like (fill in the blank)... Too bad I dont have as much money as (fill in the blank)... I want to go on vacation like (fill in the blank)... I wish I could lift as much as (fill in the blank)... I want to be as fast as (fill in the blank)... I think I can safely say that I have said every one of those statements and I am sure most people at one time or another wish or aspire to be like someone or look like someone. The pisser is, that what "you" dont think about is the path that that person went on to become that person that "you" want to be/look like... I am sure in most cases it wasnt smooth sailing... I am sure that 99% of the time there were snags, suffering, trip ups and what not along their path to ...

March 7, 2012 Take a minute to think about this... "You may think the grass is greener on the other side. But if you take the time to water our own grass it would be just as green." Again another phrase I could easily apply to both life in general as well as exercise and CrossFit. Its so common to want to be/have/do something you feel is so far out of reach. When in reality there are very few things (within reason) that you cant be/have/do without giving it your best shot. Of course... if you wish for a million dollars to land in your lap that's one thing... but if you aspire to be a person that you are not and there is a path that can get you to that goal, its never too late. If you want to change your life, do it. If you have a dream or a goal, whats the harm in shooting for the stars. I have been through quite a bit in my short 31 years on this planet. I know there are other people out there who have been through worse, and the things that I have ...

February 22, 2012 I heard K say yesterday as she was talking to someone "oh, its going to be warm on Wednesday, I'm thinking an outside WOD." Right away I knew we would be running. Yes, I "ran" track in high school... and yes, I have done WOD's with running before, and yes, I did the Turkey Trot... but none of these things has changed my mind about running. I still do not enjoy it. I think the only thing that I "liked" is that it changes things up a bit, its nice to get outside, and its nice to do something other than rowing... but uggg, running. What I have to remember is how far I have come. The first few weeks of CF when I had to run a 400 it was horrible! Now I just do it without thinking about it. Like I said, I dont "like" it, but I dont dread it and I dont question it, it will make me better. I know in the long run, (hehehe, no pun intended) its "me against myself." Crossfit has made me learn to be patient (ok, so ...

February 21, 2012 Well, its another Monday holiday. Its nice to work for a company that actually gives more than Christmas and Thanksgiving off! We were closed today, so even though I took some work home I was looking forward to a day off and a 4 day week to follow. I still (no shock here) was signed up and ready to go for the 5:30am session at the gym. I had talked to T previously and he was still heading in for 5:30am as well... and we had a little "project" planned for after the WOD. We arrived and J joined us. We all talked with K about our "post paleo hangover" which was actually more from the overdose on food than it was on beer (though the beers didnt help with the situation). As I started warming up I could feel Saturdays workout coming back to bite me in the ass. Literally... my hamstrings, glutes and quads were killing. How was I going to do MORE kettle bell swings for todays WOD? Not sure. All I could do was warm up a lot and stretch really really wel...

February 18, 2012 The WOD on Thursday was titled "Show Stopper." I was in on Thursday night for my skill session and while I was there I had the pleasure of watching some of my fellow CFWers push through what looked to be a pretty intense workout... I actually made a comment to P while I was there, she was also skilling, "that does not look very fun at all!" I decided after giving it a little thought, that I wanted to do that WOD as my Saturday WOD, rather than a skill session. I really enjoy my skill sessions, but there was something in me that really wanted to do that one and when I talked to Hubs he felt the same. It sort of put itself out there as a challenge, it involved KB swings, toes to bar and wall balls... all things I should be working on anyway. There we had it, we were going to attack it this morning. I will not lie, this was a hard one. Typically we see 21-15-9 as the ladder for WODs, this one was a 21-18-15-12-9-6-3... my main goal, do as many t...

February 1, 2012 January went by with a blink of an eye. Time is flying... We sort of have this superstition joke at the gym. When any one of us happens to notice, or bring up the fact that we havent "done something" in a while we know that it is all of a sudden going to appear on the board the next week. This happened this weekend. We were talking about box jumps and bang... box jumps on Monday... and we also talked about wall balls... we knew it was only a matter of time!! Today was the day. Here are two older pics of Hubs and I from back in October while doing the wall balls in " The Count ." What do you have to do? Get that med ball, either a 14lb or 20lb ball up to that red line on the wall. Easy right?! Suuuurreee!! Anyway, today was an AMRAP. I love that in crossfit there are days that we do As Many Rounds As Possible (AMRAP) and there are other days that we do a set number of rounds for time. It gives a great balance to the way you fight and push...

January 27, 2012 Oh no is right!! This is exactly what I was thinking when I looked at todays WOD. Last weekend one of my skills that I wanted to work on were double unders... but... I didnt. I started to, but instead I decided to work on some things I "suck less" at! Yes, more enjoyable... but no... I didnt get "better" at anything. K warned me and I realize that I need to work more at those things that I dont enjoy so much so that maybe I will begin to enjoy them! I cant participate in the opens if I cant perform the skills I am lacking. No surprisingly today was really really hard. Not hard because it was heavy weight, not hard because there was lots of cardio... hard because there were 3 rounds including 75 double unders AND 12 pullups! Yikes...Unfortunately/fortunately T and I have the same issues with the dreaded double unders, but we both pushed through and did our best... I did attempt all 3 rounds of 75 double unders (it was a sad sad sight) and I also ...

January 2, 2012 I have seen this done before, so I wanted to see if I could come up with my very own A-Z for me in 2012... here goes... A ct on your own impulse. B elieve in yourself. C hange is good. D ont give up. E ver. F ix whats broken. G row with every challenge. H unger for your own success. I mprovement is inevitable. J ust say YES. K now yourself. L augh, often... M ake it happen. N ever underestimate yourself. O ne day at a time. P ush your limits. Q uestions make you stronger. R each for the stars. S mile every day. T rust your instincts. U nderstand your body. V ictory is sweet. W ork hard. X marks the spot. Y ou are in control. Z ero excuses. Todays WOD was fantastic. Hubs had to work unfortunately, so he couldnt come to the "holiday" edition of CFW this week. I on the other hand got the chance to sleep in a little bit and still be at CF for 8:30 to get my day off right. This was one of those "feels like it ...

December 2, 2011 When I was 9 I thought I was "never" going get to high school. When I was in 13 and looked up to the girls who got picked for kick line at my dance studio I "never" though I would be lucky enough to be chosen. When I was lonely and getting picked on in high school I "never" thought I would bring one of the most popular boys in school to the prom (twice). When I started college I "never" thought I would be in charge of the largest club on campus. When I went out for my 21 birthday I "never" thought I would meet the man I was to marry. When I started my graduate studies I "never" thought I would ever finish and walk across the stage with my Masters of Architecture. When I was miserable in my job I "never" through I would find a fantastic place to work. Six months ago when I looked in the mirror I "never" thought I would be able to look at myself and think... damn I worked hard for this body...

November 30, 2011 Today was a tough one. One of those "what doesnt kill you makes you stronger" days!! We have learned that when the WOD is posted and its for a certain amount of rounds, if there are 3 its heavier weight (usually) and if its 5, its lighter weight (usually). Today the WOD on paper even looked difficult, as most thrusters are never a good time! But, when that alarm went off I was ready to head to the gym and face the challenge! I was pleased to have company for this mornings WOD. J and T were both there. We are starting to be the "steady" Wednesday morning crew! We all got right into the warmup and got our bars set for the WOD. I knew I was going to do the thrusters prescribed. So, 80lbs right onto the bar. I also got the Rx kettle bell, 1 pood (36lbs) ready... and my silly green pull up band. There we have it, I was ready. Talk about insanity. It was hard, I was sweating, I was grunting and I was loving every second of it! The guys working with...

November 14, 2011 24 DAYS OF THANKS #14 - I am thankful for the generosity and kindness of the people in my life. I am overwhelmed by the amount of "Happy Birthdays" and well wishes from my family, friends, co-workers and acquaintances today. Thank you all, seriously. I wish I could thank every person individually! This morning at 1:45am I officially aged into the "over thirty" club. Funny because last year when I turned 30, while I had the most kick ass surprise party planned by Hubs, I was in the worst shape and not really happy where I was with much in life. In the last year everything has taken a complete 180. I decided at that point, pretty much on this exact day a year ago that I was going to take control and change my life. I wanted to be happy. I wanted to do everything that I said I was going to do and I wanted to stop complaining about things that if I actually took control of they would change. ...

November 4, 2011 24 DAYS OF THANKS #4 - I am thankful for my morning cup of coffee. I know it seems so simple, but when I get to work after a Crossfit Workout, or when I make my way downstairs to the couch on Saturday or Sunday morning, or when I grab one to go on the way out the door. It makes me so happy, starts my day off right and gets me ready to face the next 8 hours. I have started drinking it black, as I mentioned and I am really appreciating my coffee "au natural" more than I expected! Today was a challenging WOD. Not to mention, even more challenging when you get to the gym and realize you left your sneakers at your house... oops. So I remembered, as I usually do, to wear a second pair of sneakers so I dont track crap into the gym however, as I pulled up I realized, CRAP... I forgot my sneakers! The sneakers I was wearing were not going to cut it, but thankfully K wears the same size shoe as me and was kind enough to let me borrow them for the WOD... yeah, Hubs...

November 2, 2011 24 DAYS OF THANKS #2 - I am thankful my job. I am lucky enough to have one that I love. That I chose a career that is both exciting and challenging. That I dont dread getting up in the morning because I have to go to work. That I followed my dream and landed in a spot I am happy with. I am just going to start by saying when I got dressed for work this morning (since we finally have power) I dug into the "pants that havent fit in years" box under the bed... I was able to put on THREE pairs of pants that I havent worn in 5 years!! Whoot Whoot!! Anyway, even though I thought it was "cruel" I started the warmup with a 250m row. I actually laughed when I saw it on the board. Geeze, as if the 2000m we rowed yesterday wasnt enough! In reality though, it actually really gets me warmed up, I just like to give K a hard time! The rest of the warmup was pretty business as usual, but what I was looking forward to most was the shoulder mobility with the la...