WODs & Well-Being

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 ...

February 25, 2013 I couldnt let this one go without noting it. This past weekend The UFC made history for having their first womens fight! The fight was the headliner for the title and was between Ronda Rousey and Liz Carmouche. Rousey too the win in the final seconds of the first round... but I feel it was so much more than just a title win for her. Made strides for all women! I love it!     WARMUP: 3 Rounds - 2 X Gym Shuttle Run - 10 Spiderman - 10 Shoulder Dislocate - 10 Toy Soldiers - 10 Pushups SKILL:  Max Effort Toes to Bar (10) OLY: Clean and Jerk EMOTM for 10 Min 3 @ 70% - 145lb 3 @ 80% - 155lb 2 @ 90% - 165lb WOD: Shake Up 12 Minute AMRAP - 5 Ring Dip - 10 Jerk (95) - 15 Air Squats (6+5 Rx) .

January 26, 2013 Today was an amazing day. I feel like I have been saying that a lot lately... which I cant imagine is a BAD thing... ever. For the last few months Saturdays at the gym have become a Oly session for me. I have been working on my clean and jerk and snatch as much as possible than using the rest of the time I am at the gym for other skills that I need to work on; toes to bar, butterfly pullups, handstand pushups, dips... and the list goes on... but really my Oly technique has been on the top of my list. Thursday nights and Saturdays have been dedicated to slow first pull, back on my heels, good bar path, quick elbows, dropping quick below the bar, keeping my core tight... I was told (promised almost) that it would be a very frustrating process, but it would be worth it in the end. Having been told that, I knew I would get annoyed, have struggles and get really pissed, but I also knew that that is how I "roll" that I would push through and work hard and get whe...

November 13, 2012 22 Days of Thanks 2012 - Day 13 I am thankful for my boss. I do realize how lucky I am that I can say that. I have an amazing job, an amazing boss and some really great amazing co-workers... WARMUP: Row 500m 3 Rounds - 5 Pushups - 10 Spiderman - 15 Abmat Situps - 10 Shoulder Dislocates - 5 Wall Balls Row 250m WOD: Troth 15-12-9 for time - Chest to Bar Pullups - Clean (105) - Ring Dips (red band) (10:39) SKILL/STRENGTH Push Press 5 X 1 105, 125, 135, 145, 155 (PR), 165 (fail) .

October 25, 2012 WARMUP: 1K Row 2  X 25 Double Unders SKILL/STRENGTH 10 Unassisted Ring Dips 3 X 5 Snatch Balance (75) .

**Had to post some of the few dates I missed back in June/July for my archive** July 13, 2012 WARMUP: 4 Rounds - Row 250m - 10 Ring Rows - 10 Wall Balls - 10 Grasshoppers - 10 Pushups Group: Pigeon, Frog and Squat Sit WOD: Loose Change 3-5 minute AMRAP with 1 Min Rest Between - 10 Burpees - 10 Lunges - 10 Ring Dips (used GHD) (3-3-3 = 9) SKILL/STRENGTH Squat 3-3-3+ 150, 160, 170 (7) .

October 3, 2010 WARMUP: 4 Rounds - Row 250m - 10 Man Makers - 10 Back Extensions - 10 Ring Rows - 10 Med Ball Cleans WOD: Elizabeth 21-15-9 - Power Cleans (95) - Ring Dips (GHD Dips) (8:28) STRENGTH/SKILL: - Rope Climbs 3X3 - 50 Hollow Rocks (day 24) .

September 11, 2012 WARMUP: 3 Rounds - 250m Row - 10 Lunges - 10 Back Extensions - 10 Shoulder Dislocates - 10 Grasshoppers Group: Kipping Instruction WOD: "Tie Break" 12 Minute AMRAP - 10 Alternating Pistols - 10 Pullups - 10 KB Swings (35lbs/1pd) (6 +13 Rx) SKILL/STRENGTH: - Partner Death By Ring Dips (Red Band) W/JM, Made it to 10 - 50 Hollow Rocks (day 2) .

June 13, 2012 FINALLY... my double unders have returned!! What a frustrating turn of events with them over the last few months. I had them I really did... that suddenly it was like they just disappeared! I spent the last 3+ months agonizing every week for my skill sessions working on my double unders it was almost like there were two things I worked on, pullups and double unders. It seemed I just couldnt connect my head to my hands than to my feet. We laughed and joked and pretty much tried EVERYTHING to get them to come back. When its all said and done it goes back to the same old same old... practice, practice, practice... This is one of the nights where R tried to "tame" the velociraptor... as he liked to call me! I usually get all stressed out when a double under WOD comes up... and today I went into the gym focused on being positive. The WOD included both double unders AND pullups! Yippie! To my very own surprise, it was a good day for double unders. I finally w...

May 22, 2012 Ever since I was a little kid I have been adventurous. I would do the things my parents told me not to do, not to disobey them… but because I wanted to see why I was told not to do it. What the consequence would be if I did do it. Almost like it was a challenge that I chose to accept at any chance. “Sarah, don’t touch that” turned quickly into my burning my hand, cutting myself or whatever because I had this horrible urge to touch whatever it was that I was told not to touch simply because I was told NOT to. If no one mentioned it, I wouldn’t have ever wanted to touch it in the first place more than likely. Don’t get me wrong, my parents watched me because they knew this about me… but there was a time and a place for me to learn lessons… they would never put me in danger. I have carried that urge to accept a challenge through my whole life and still, to this day I have a hard time when faced with these types of situations. I have it ingrained in my head that I...

April 28, 2012 WARMUP: 3 Rounds - Row 250m - 10 Hollow Rocks - 10 Leg Swings 2 Min Squat Sit 2 X 9 Fundamentals WOD: "Chop" 400m Run 21-15-9 - Front Squat (95) - Ring Dips (small blue band) 400m Run (My Time 10:10) .

February 28, 2012 You know the moment when you are trying to accomplish something and all of a sudden you realize that you are almost done... just a few more steps, minutes, reps.... whatever it may be (in our out of the gym)... in that moment whether you know it or not, you make a decision. The decision to go on, push yourself to stay up for just a few more hours to finish the paper due tomorrow, work a few more hours to meet the deadline you promised a client, run the last quarter of a mile without walking a step, struggle through the last rep of a 10 minute AMRAP of an exercise that might not be your "favorite", or even spend time thinking about whether a relationship is worth saving when it is on the rocks... you either decide to push to go on, or you decide to give up. The choice is yours.  In that moment its determination that comes into play. If you want it, you can have it... Sometimes you have to learn to push yourself for the smaller things first... ...

February 21, 2012 "I cant" "Maybe Later" "I didnt sleep enough last night" "I didnt eat enough this morning" "Its too heavy" "Its going to take to long" "It hurts" Did I miss any? Excuses. We have all used them, we have all said them... and sadly we have all been victim of them. The same saying keeps coming back to me full circle through my writing. "You can not fail unless you try." Failure is healthy, failure teaches us what we need to do to improve, failure makes us better in the end. We are humbled by it, we are strengthened by it and we become better people with it. So why are "we" programmed to be scared of it? I dont have an answer to that. Maybe we are suppose to be scared of it and thats what makes it so thrilling and exciting when the attempt becomes a success not a failure... I have no idea. Its hard to apply the "dont be afraid to fail" motto to everything in l...

February 14, 2012 Dear Crossfit, You are the burn to my hamstrings, the ache in my back, But somehow I can never allow myself to slack. Youre the reason my alarm goes off at 4 every day, Thats when the 5:30am crew comes out to play! Your warmups make me hot, your WODS makes me sweat. Even when "Murphs" on the board I dont fret. Whether with Annie, Christina, Grace or Nicole, I will never stop... even after my goals. I love your wall balls, burpees and kettle bell swings, I might even love doing toes through rings. Sometimes its an AMRAP and sometimes for time, sometimes they even involve rope climbs. Each time I chalk up my hands and tie my shoes I know you are behind me, I have nothing to lose. When I am with you I feel so fast and strong, you make me feel like I could do no wrong. At the end of the WOD we post on the board, and later we see how everyone scored. Whether its strength, enduran...

February 7, 2012 Ego [ee-goh] noun, plural e-gos 1. the "I" or self of any person; a person as thinking, feeling and willing, and distinguishing itself from the selves of others and from objects of its thought. 2. Psychoanalysis. the part of the psychic apparatus that experiences and reacts to the outside world and this mediates between the primitive drives of the if and the demands of the social and physical environment. 3. egotism; conceit; self-importance 4. self esteem or self image; feelings. This sign is PERFECT for any CrossFit box, and really should be thought about before every workout. Its message is the point I have been trying to get across to myself (and through this blog) all along. Sometimes its harder to digest than others, sometimes it only feels natural to be upset if you dont finish "first" or at the top of the list. As an athlete you always have to remember to just put your best foot forward, push as hard as you can and be damn proud t...

January 11, 2012 I am not sure how many people "follow" my blog... I dont get lots of comments on here, occasionally I get them when I link a post to FB. I am not going to stop posting to FB, so I am sorry to those I am annoying (if that is even the case), I have been asked by some to keep linking. But, having said that, if you click "join this site" at the bottom of my blog and I think all you have to do is write in the little code, you can get an automatic update when I post. I also have "buttons" to link to me on the CFW page, and you can always just make me a "favorite" on your browser. Please feel free to comment on here!! I would love to hear from you!! Now that I have said that, I can get back on track. "We can only be what we give ourselves the power to be." What an AWESOME statement. So true in so many ways. So honest and really a great motivator. If you dont believe in yourself and put yourself into whatever it is you ar...

December 12, 2011  "Nothing can stop the man/woman with the right mental attitude from achieving his/her goal; nothing on earth can help the man/woman with the wrong mental attitude." -Thomas Jefferson A quick post to let you know I am going to attempt to get back into my daily blog posts this week. The last 7 days my life has been a little upside down, its still rocking quite a bit, but a am sailing straight ahead at least. I have been inspired by what has happened to truly understand that physical boundaries are not set in stone. I thought I understood how much your mental toughness had to do with success and strength, but now I can say that I have seen it with my own two eyes. There are so many things in life that can inspire us for different things. If you like to cook, you might be inspired by a cooking show, if you like to paint, maybe a museum or a book might do the trick... for me, right now, inspiration is coming from what I consider to be a miracle I witness...

December 3, 2011 Oh Saturday, how do I love the... let me count the ways. ONE: I get to sleep past 4:45am. TWO: I get to have a cup of coffee before the gym. THREE: I get to go to the gym with Hubs FOUR: I know in advance what my make-up workout is FIVE: Lots of our CrossFit Family goes to gym at the same time SIX: We can take our time SEVEN: We have people cheering each other on during their WOD's EIGHT: We can enjoy each other's successes and PR's NINE: We usually get BOTH our coaches that we love! TEN: Yummy yummy breakfast!! Is that good enough? Do I need to go on? Nah, you get the point. I love my Saturday morning time at CrossFit Wachusett! Its so nice to be there with everyone. I dont get that often in the AM. Its nice to put faces to some of the new names I have started to see on the board. It is great to cheer on others and have them cheer me on while WODing. Its nice to catch up and see how others have reached goals and milestones and help when othe...

November 18, 2011 24 DAYS OF THANKS #18 - I am thankful for my faith. That I have an understanding (whether its "right" or not, its my own understanding) of life and death. Not that I have it all figured out, and I dont question it every not and again. Unfortunately I have been tested over and over in my short 31 years with the question of why someone was taken to soon in life, while on the other side reminded of the blessing of new life as my friends and family have babies. Why things happen the way they do and who determines the outcome. I am thankful that I was raised with a strong faith and hold my beliefs close to my heart. It must be 12:00am, for some reason between 12:00 and 1:00am I have the hardest time sleeping. Up and down, awake asleep... than it throws my whole night off. Happened again last night. Not sure whats causing it, but once I am up... thats it for the night. I toss and turn until the alarm goes off at 4:45. Today... I just didnt fight it, got right...

October 29, 2011 I certainly was feeling the filthy fifty when I woke up this morning. My hamstrings, quads and back appreciated the 8 hours of sleep I was luck enough to get for the THIRD night in a row! I am getting spoiled with this. Better not get used to it... I know it wont last long! I will however take what I can get when I can get it! Originally I had planned to get up a little later and hit the 9:00 class, things went a little differently last night and I wound up waking up early and getting to the gym for 8:00. I knew I was going to face the "chief" this morning, I saw the workout on Thursdays web posting and knew that was my workout! I love when I see one like that so I know I can attack it on a Saturday with full force! When I got to the gym M was there and ready for me to get going. I worked through the warmup and got myself going. Really using every warmup movement to get stretched out and my sore muscles moving. All of the exercises I did yesterday affec...