Don't Write That On Your F'ing Blog!

Workout date: 1/20/15

Day 2 of the Nutrition Challenge.  19 more blocks consumed.  Quickly losing interest in vegetables.

Made it to the gym for the 7:30 class tonight for what might be my last WOD before the Vegas trip.  Most of the hour was spent on trying to find a 2 rep max hang power clean.  I used to struggle with lifts from the hang.  I don't have it totally figured out (as you soon shall see), but I have gotten better with my setup and making sure to activate my hamstrings.  It has made a big difference in my confidence in performing lifts from the hang.  What I have not gotten good at is the partial squat.  My lifts tend to be one of two varieties: either no squat or a full squat.

Coach Keith was back in class tonight and made a point of getting us to feel comfortable at various depths of a partial squat.  Of course, doing it with an empty bar is one thing, while doing it with some heavy weight is another.  My solutions all seemed wrong.  At lighter weights, I would yank the weight up and drop under it, letting the weight crash on to me.  Wrong!  I had started at 95 and 125 and made this mistake at both weights.  I did manage to do 2 cleans at 145 where I did a good job with meeting the bar.  As I progressed up to 165 though, the partial squat would be more important.  When things get heavy and I'm doing multiple reps, you can count on me to perform the first rep correctly and then the reps after that horrendously.  For 165, that was the case.  For 185, that was the case.  And when I made my attempts at 205, that was the case.

The issue was that I was leaning back to receive the bar instead of partial squatting under it.  Keith decided to give me a little rhyme to try and help me remember to squat which went "REDACTED" (sorry - see the subject of the blog).  I tried to keep the same form for both reps at each attempt, but there was no getting that back lean out of my second reps.  Still, I was successful at 165 and 185.  When I got to 205, that bar sure got heavy.  The first rep wasn't too pretty, and as I set up for the pull on rep two, the bar came out of my hands.  The second attempt was a mirror image of the first: sloppy first rep, slight panic about how I was going to manage a second rep when I barely got the first, and then the bar slipping out of my hands.

With time running out, I thought about dropping to 195, but deep down I felt like I could do 205.  I psyched myself up, went back to the bar, and did a solid first rep, much better than in my previous two attempts.  As I lowered the bar for the second rep though, I knew I was going to need a huge pull.  I dug deep, but the bar just barely made it on to my chest.  My man boobs actually do benefit me in times like this, as I was able to control the bar and rolled it up to my shoulders from there.  Technically, it counted and I got 205, but it was very, very ugly.

The cash out was a rowing sprint.  3 rounds of 500 meters, with a 2 minute rest between rounds.  I knew it was gonna be a burner, but I tried like hell to sprint all 3 rounds.  The first round was rough, but I finished in 1:42, and was surprised to find that the rest period didn't fly by.  Rather, it seemed a bit slow, and I felt re-grouped for round two.  Seemed like I gave a strong effort in the second round, but my time was 5 seconds slower, and the rest period wouldn't have seemed long if you gave me 5 minutes.  I worked on calming my breathing, shook out my arms, and got ready for round three.  The third round was all about hanging on.  I was breathing heavy, not getting nearly as much on each of my strokes, but I knew there wasn't much left to go.  When I hit the finish, I had done the last 500M in 1:55, giving me a total time of 9:24 (including rest periods).

Not sure if I'll make it in to the gym tomorrow, but if not, the next few workouts will be from Treasure Island in Las Vegas!  Hopefully I can find some good WODs to do on the road.