Brawl-petta

Workout date: 7/9/17

Prior to Thursday, power cleans had been absent from my workout routine for a long time.  The only absence that might have superseded that one would be how long I've stayed out of the annex on weekends.  I guess this was just the week where I ended some of these random streaks.  My Brawl teammates were interested in testing out one of the workouts from next month's competition and the only place we'd be able to practice it was in the annex since there was a seminar being held in the main gym over the weekend.  The problem with the annex is you're never sure you'll have enough room to work out, even when you're doing something on your own.  The event we would be practicing was designed for 4 people and involved 6 different stations.  Not exactly the ideal workout to be doing in the annex.  The WOD was named "Polpetta", in honor of Giulz's dog.  Here's what we had 15 minutes to complete:

"Polpetta"
2,000 meter row
250 double unders
Four station chipper consisting of:
100 wall balls (14#/10# to 10'/9')
100 knee raises
100 burpees to a plate (25#)
100 shoulder-to-overheads (115/75)
*Time cap: 15 minutes
**Only one person can work on the chipper at a time.  While the chipper is being completed, one teammate can be rowing, while another can be completing the double unders.

Of the four events we would be taking on at the Brawl, this one far and away required the most strategy.  And you know how much I love to overthink workouts!  Our team had a group text on Facebook messenger and we discussed how we wanted to attack this WOD.  You won't be surprised to learn that I had a strong opinion on how it should be done.  Nor will you be shocked to learn that my initial strategy turned out to be a resounding failure.

Here's how I originally looked at this workout:

• The row wouldn't take 15 minutes.  The double unders wouldn't take 15 minutes.  So the time cap really only came into the play with the chipper.
• There was a lot of work that needed to be done in that chipper, so you wanted to have as many bodies working on it as possible.  The work would get split up more and you'd be providing your teammates with additional rest.
• The fastest way to get everyone to the chipper was to have two people rip through the double unders.  Then you could have two people push through the row, with two people working on the chipper (one active, one resting).
• Once the row was done, all four athletes could plow through the remaining elements of the chipper.
• Using this strategy, I expected us to be behind other teams in terms of the chipper, but ahead of them in completing the double unders and the row.  We'd be the first team to have all 4 athletes working on the chipper, allowing us to make up the ground we lost early on.  And because we'd be getting more rest, we would be able to pass those other teams in the latter stages of the chipper.

When I laid out this strategy to my teammates, it was well received.  That was a good feeling.  I had put a decent amount of thought into this, but there was still a chance that they would have completely gone against the vision I had for this workout.  (Turns out such a revolt would have been justified!)  It was nice knowing that my teammates had faith in my strategy.

Kris and Raj showed up on Sunday, but Cline was battling the flu, so we ended up being one teammate short.  LC was supervising Open Strength and because we were the only ones in the annex (aside from Bryan, who was hanging out after taking the 10am class), she agreed to fill in for Cline in this workout.  I was a little worried about Raj because she had also done the WOD at 10am and the workout she and Bryan had done looked spectacularly awful.  She insisted that she was good to go though.  We got our stations set up and laid out who was doing what.  I would be starting on the chipper, Kris would start on the rower, while Raj and LC would try to complete the double unders as fast as possible.  The plan with the double unders was to have each teammate complete 50 reps before switching.  Since Raj would be doing the last 50 double unders, LC could relieve Kris at the rower at the end of her 2nd round of 50 dubs.  We wanted things set up this way because Cline is a strong rower and LC was acting in his stead today.  Kris would come over to relieve me on the chipper.  I would rotate over to the rower with LC (Cline) and Raj would relieve Kris on the chipper once she completed the double unders.  Got all that?

How did that play out?  Not so well.  The ladies working on the double unders did fine.  I'm not sure if they strung their sets of 50, but it looked like they were moving through them pretty quickly.  LC went over to take Kris's spot on the rower.  Kris had completed about 800 meters of the row, I believe.  Kris came over and took my spot doing wall balls.  I had 70 reps done when she stepped in for me, going 35-15-10-10 over four sets.  I tried to keep my breaks very small.  I came over to the rower and told LC that we should switch when she got to 1,000 meters.  From there, we were both going to do a couple of 250 meter sprints to complete the row.

Does it sound like we were doing a lot of transitioning?  Yeah, a bit too much it turns out.  LC was fast on the rower and I was no slouch either, but the time we gained by sprinting every 250 meters was probably canceled out by the time it took to get in and out of the foot straps on the rower.  So we weren't improving our overall time, but we were exhausting ourselves more because we were sprinting instead of rowing at a steady pace.  Not a recipe for success!

I wasn't focused on Kris and Raj as they did knee raises, so I couldn't tell whether they were struggling or not.  All I knew was they got to the burpees at about the same time that we completed the row.  The four of us were finally together!  This is where we were going to put it into overdrive, right?  Not so much.  I don't know why we decided to do 10 burpees at a time (I'm assuming it was another strategic blunder on my part), but that was tougher than we bargained for.  Mooney was at the 10am class and had told me that his team did the burpees 5 at a time before tagging in a teammate.  That seemed like the magic number once I got to witness (and participate in) this segment of the workout.  All of us could get through 5-7 burpees in speedy fashion, but we all moved noticeably slower on the last few burpees.

We made sure Raj didn't do burpees at the very end of our 100 reps because we wanted her to go first on the shoulder-to-overheads.  We were confident that she was going to make short work of the 75 pound barbell and she did.  The only problem was that we didn't leave ourselves very much time.  There were only 45 seconds left before the time cap when we completed our 100 burpees.  Raj rattled out 20 shoulder-to-overheads and Kris did 15 more before time was called.  35 reps in 45 seconds was fast.  Imagine what we could have done with 2-3 minutes!  Final score: 16:05 (15 minute time cap plus one second for each of the 65 shoulder-to-overheads we did not complete).

The best thing about practicing a workout like this one is that you learn what works and what doesn't work very quickly.  Here's what we figured out:

• There was almost nothing to be gained from switching on the rower.  We should just have one person complete the entire 2,000 meters.  It didn't need to be done at breakneck speed.  Because Cline is the best rower on our team, he should probably take care of this aspect of the workout.
• Kris definitely did not enjoy rowing, but she is the queen of wall balls and knee raises.  She did the last 30 wall balls unbroken after tagging in for me.  And while the rest of us seem to struggle keeping ourselves from swinging during knee raises, she is able to calmly perform large sets.  She should be on the chipper from start to finish.
• Raj is strong with double unders and shoulder-to-overheads.  She also would have had little problem with the wall balls.  So she should start at either the double unders or as Kris's partner on the chipper.  We also needed to make sure to get her out of the burpee rotation earlier so that she would be as fresh as possible for the shoulder-to-overheads.
• That leaves me.  My wall balls were ok.  I'm decent at knee raises.  I think I could handle the shoulder-to-overheads if given the chance.  But I've been working devotedly on double unders and feel that I could contribute most at that station.  Like Raj, I would be best utilized starting with a jump rope in my hands or as Kris's partner on the chipper.
• Burpees suck.  Doing sets of 5 burpees sucks slightly less than doing sets of 10 burpees.
• The burpees are going to take about 5 minutes to finish.  If we have 3 minutes left when we get to the shoulder-to-overheads, we should complete this event under the time cap.  So that means we need to have the knee raises completed by the 7 minute mark.  With two people working on the wall balls, that should be done in three and a half minutes, giving us three and a half minutes for the knee raises themselves.  We should be able to make that happen.

My plan turned out to be a huge failure, but I think our team will be in good shape for this event when we take it on in the Brawl at the end of August.

LC was sticking around to do some snatch work and some squats, so I lingered around as well.  The first thing I wanted to work on was double unders.  There was a good chance that I might be doing double unders to start off Polpetta, so I needed to get some extra practice in.  Maybe the fire drill I had just participated in took more out of me than I realized, but I completely sucked at double unders on this day.  Couldn't put any truly big sets together.  Wasn't even hitting sets of 20 consistently.  Sometimes it just doesn't feel like your day, so I moved on to something else.

My recent nightmare of an experience with Fran made me realize that I needed more practice on my pull-ups, so I decided to challenge myself to doing small sets with really good form.  I wanted to do five sets of 3, but the set didn't count if my form was lousy.  I know I can easily do two reps in a row with good form, but that third rep seems to be where I lose my rhythm.  I think knowing that I could drop off of the bar after three reps helped me as I got through all five sets without a blemish.  I'd be increasing the number in each set to four the next time I practiced pull-ups.

The accessory work I was doing was all well and good, but the one thing I really wanted to take on was the clean and jerk.  I had convinced myself that if I could power clean more than 225 pounds that I'd be able to jerk that weight as well.  (My jerk has always been better than my clean.)  According to my Crossfit spreadsheets, my top clean and jerk had been stuck at 225 pounds since October 6, 2015. The worst part was that I had cleaned 235 pounds and jerked 240 pounds, so it wasn't as if I didn't have the ability to go heavier than 225.  I simply hadn't put the two lifts together, usually because I was too tired from the heavy squat clean to jerk the weight properly.  A successful heavy power clean would save me some energy and give me a better shot at finally going beyond 225 pounds.

LC was finishing up her snatches when I started going through my progression.  It was the same progression that I used on Thursday because my intention was to power clean everything.  The only difference was that I couldn't drop the barbell right after the power clean.  Today I had to follow up each power clean with a jerk.  My lifts at 135 and 165 didn't feel heavy, but it seemed like my form wasn't wonderful.  It was the same feeling I had during the double under practice.  I didn't feel like I was operating at 100% capacity.  About 45 minutes had passed since we wrapped up Polpetta, but I suspected I hadn't fully recovered yet.

That suspicion didn't go away when the power clean at 185 felt heavier than it had on Thursday.  The jerk wasn't wonderful either.  I couldn't help but think that today wasn't the day to go after a clean and jerk PR.  I wouldn't be surprised if I wasn't able to get 220 today despite power cleaning 230 just three days earlier.  I had a lot of negative thoughts in my head when I walked up to my next lift at 205 pounds.

They say in golf that if you hit just one good shot during your round, you'll come back and play again.  The lift at 205 was my one solid golf shot.  I can't explain why it worked out that way, but I did my best power clean of the day and then followed it up with a very strong jerk.  The clean and jerk at 205 might have been better than the ones I did at 135 and 165.  Suddenly I was feeling good about my chances again.  The power clean at 220 was difficult, but that was the way it was supposed to be.  As long as it didn't feel heavier than it usually did, I was okay.  I got the jerk overhead and it was on to a PR attempt at 230.

I tend to give myself three tries at a weight.  If I'm really close, I might give myself a 4th try.  I have to have a really compelling reason to go beyond a 4th try because at a certain point you just get tired out, dejected, or both.  Or maybe you're just sick and tired of not being able to PR for the better part of two years.  On my first two attempts at 230 pounds, I failed on the power clean.  LC had moved over to the squat rack near me and was watching each of my attempts.  She pointed out that I wasn't getting low enough to meet the barbell.  With the power clean, you are allowed to squat, you just can't break parallel.  If you break parallel, you're now performing a squat clean.  I was desperately trying to avoid squat cleans here, so I stood pretty upright during these two failed attempts.  On attempt #3, I did a partial squat and caught the barbell properly.  I stood it up and immediately got excited.  This is it!  You power cleaned 230.  You know you can jerk this weight.  PR city!!!

Only that's not what happened.  I'm not sure whether my dip was too shallow or if I lost my concentration as I went to do the jerk.  All I know was that it was a pathetic excuse for a jerk, one that barely cleared my head.  I dumped it to the floor.  What the hell was that?  You did the tough part and then botched the easy part?  Come on!  My conscience was right.  I had things just where I wanted them.  I just failed to execute.  I was taking a 4th shot at my PR.

On attempt #4, I was able to power clean 230 again.  I had that part figured out now.  All I needed to do was jerk 230 pounds.  I had jerked 240 pounds before, so this shouldn't have been a problem.  Only it was.  This attempt was much better than the prior one and I nearly got my arms fully extended.  For some reason, I wasn't able to lock it out though.  The barbell crashed to the floor as I tried my best not to be frustrated.  LC was watching and told me that I wasn't jerking the barbell straight up.  In a jerk, the barbell starts under your chin and then goes overhead.  If you do it efficiently, you'll go straight overhead, tipping your head back during the jerk so that your chin gets out of the way.  I wasn't moving my chin and because I didn't want to crash 230 pounds directly into my jaw, I was driving the barbell through a roundabout before taking the first exit.  If I moved my chin and went straight up, I'd get the jerk.

I was convinced that I could clean and jerk 230 pounds.  My execution had sucked on my first 4 attempts, but I could fix that.  I was giving myself a fifth and final try before putting the barbell away.  LC took a break from her squats and cheered me on.  For the third straight time, I did a partial squat and caught the power clean where I was supposed to.  After standing up, I got myself composed.  I reminded myself to push the barbell straight up.  I took in a breath and went for it.  The first sense of relief I had came when the barbell didn't hit my chin.  Then I realized I had the barbell overhead.  I brought my feet back together and took a quick glance over at LC.  She gave me a "yes!" and I knew that I had finally done it.  It took 21 months, but at long last, I had a new clean and jerk PR.

I thanked LC for all of her help during this session, then I headed home feeling good about life.  I still had a long way to go to reach my goal of a 245 pound clean and jerk, but at least progress had finally been made.

Monday preview: If you ain't cheatin', you ain't tryin'!

Tiny Bubbles

Workout date: 7/6/17

My closet is usually a mess.  About every 6 months, the built up clutter gets to me and I go on a purge.  I spend a day going through all of my clothing, determining what I still wear and what can be donated to Goodwill.  I think I'm probably due for one of those "spring cleanings" again soon.  When I do take the time to take inventory of my closet, I'm always amazed at how many t-shirts I find that have somehow gotten lost in the bottom of a drawer or the back of a shelf when they used to be staples of my wardrobe.  How the heck did I forget about these gems?  I need to get them back into the rotation ASAP!

On Thursday, I rediscovered a Crossfit movement that I had forgotten about in recent months.  Let's go back in time a bit.  I used to always end up in class with Matt B whenever WODs with clean and jerks were programmed.  The two of us always approached our cleans the same way: use a power clean until the barbells got really heavy, then switch at the last moment to a squat clean and pray that it all worked out.  It rarely did.  You can't just start squat cleaning at some super heavy weight.  You need to get a few squat cleans in along the way to prepare yourself for that heavier weight.

My top clean and jerk has been 225 pounds for quite some time.  The problem lies in my clean as I've always been able to jerk more.  At some point, I got sick and tired of always failing when me and Matt got to the squat clean portion of the WOD.  So I decided that I was going to squat clean more.  Eventually "more" became "all of the time".  Even during my warmup reps, I would squat clean my barbell.  All of those extra reps made me feel more at ease when I had to squat clean a heavy barbell. Did it give me over the hump with regards to my 225 pound clean and jerk?  Well no.  I've squat cleaned as much as 235 pounds, but even though I've been able to handle these heavier weights, standing up with those barbells has taken so much out of me that I've failed on the jerk.

When I saw Thursday's WOD, my initial reaction was "oh yeah".  Not the way the Kool-Aid Man says it.  More like the way your grandfather would react if he went to leave the house and you reminded him he was still in his robe.  The first part of the WOD had us trying to find our 1RM power clean.  Power cleans?  I almost forgot they existed!  After we were done working on power cleans, we would have a familiar sounding cash-out with a Dave Castro-esque twist.  Here's Thursday's WOD:

Thursday's WOD:
Find a 1RM power clean
Cash-out: "Dumbbell DT"
5 rounds
12 deadlifts
9 hang power cleans
6 push jerks
*RX weight of DBs is 50 for men, 35 for women
**Time cap: 12 minutes

DT is a common WOD that we perform at the gym, but this would be the 1st time I'd be doing it with DBs.  In this year's Open, Dave Castro seemed fascinated with using DBs instead of barbells in the workouts.  And what weights were those DBs?  50 pounds for the men, 35 pounds for the women.  I can't recall DB workouts showing up all that often in KOP's programming prior to this year's open, but we've had quite a few DB workouts since March where the RX weights were 50/35.  Guess we're being trained for the return of DBs in 2018.

Coach Giulz had a huge turnout for her 6:30 class with 15 people showing up to participate.  She asked us all to grab a rower for our warmup.  I politely waved my classmates in front of me to grab a rower from the back.  As the supply began to dwindle, I joked that there might not be a rower left for me by the time all of my classmates had grabbed one.  I didn't think that would really be the case, but the joke ended up being on me.  There were two rowers left when the crowd in front of me had disappeared, but each of them had a note on them saying that the monitor was broken.  Oops.  My 14 classmates got their rowers set up, while I asked Giulz what I should do instead.  She told me the ski erg was an appropriate substitute for the warmup.

Giulz gave us some target numbers for the warmup.  She wanted us to try our best to hit 372 meters on our first row/ski.  Usually we'll be asked how close we came to that number, with the difference being the number of reps we'll need to do of the next movement in the warmup.  The meters on my monitor came to rest at 384, so I figured I'd have 12 reps of something awaiting me (please don't let it be burpees), but Giulz wasn't doling out punishment today.  Trying to hit the target was more of a lighthearted game to break up the dynamic stretches in the warmup.  There would be a shorter second round where we were supposed to hit 112 meters and I was on the high side yet again by nearly the same margin (123 meters, missed by 11).

The ski ergs are located against the wall at the far end of the gym just to the left of the locker room doors.  I started class all the way back there and I would remain in that location for the entirety of this WOD.  Before we got into the power cleans, Giulz went over both that lift and the movements involved in the cash-out.  She wanted us to have our DBs nearby so that we could transition right into the cash-out once the power clean segment was over.  With regard to "Dumbbell DT", she wanted us to really focus on the hang power clean piece of it.  When we use a barbell and perform hang power cleans, we're told not to do "reverse curls".  With the DB, we were told to avoid simply swinging the DBs up to our shoulders.  The principle was the same: keep the object close to your body rather than looping it to its destination.  We all tested out a round of DT with light DBs before settling on a weight for the cash-out.  Neil was my neighbor at the far end of the gym and the two of us both decided to go with the RX weight of 50 pounds.

You might think that Neil and I were coordinating during the power clean portion of this WOD as well, but we actually weren't.  I guess it's possible that Neil was keeping an eye on what I was putting on my barbell (I doubt he was), but I wasn't paying attention to what was on his.  Well at least not after his warmup lift.  Being a big, strong guy, I was expecting Neil to put up a very big number on his power clean.  That is why it was so surprising to see him start with 75 pounds on his barbell.  (For context, I was starting with 135 pounds on my barbell.)  I gave him some grief about his conservative starting weight.  Giulz came over and looked at Neil like he was crazy.  She let him know 75 pounds was way too light for him.  Neil did one absurdly easy power clean with the 75 pound barbell before ditching his 15 pound plates for 45 pound replacements (135 pounds total).

My plan was to try and reach a PR of 230 pounds on my power clean.  I realized that it was unlikely I would do so given that I hadn't focused on power cleans for such a long time, but if I somehow was able to power clean that much weight, it would give me a lot of confidence that I could finally break past 225 pounds on my clean and jerk.  My progression was going to be 135-165-185-205-220-230.  We weren't given a specific amount of time for our power cleans, but I figured I could easily complete 6 lifts before we'd have to get ready for the cash-out.  I would probably have enough time to make an additional attempt or two at 220 and 230 if I missed those heavier lifts.

I didn't have any problems with the power cleans at 135, 165, and 185.  Between lifts, I was chatting mostly with Esra, Raj, Alan, and Neil.  I didn't think I was spending a lot of time gabbing though.  I spoke with Alan the most out of that quartet.  I usually see Alan working out on his own, so it was good to see him in our class.  I asked him what his top power clean was and he said he didn't know, but it looked like he was moving his barbell rather easily during his first few attempts.  I told him that he needed to put some weight on his barbell, but I quickly changed my tune when he told me his shoulder was starting to bother him.  Definitely didn't want him getting injured because some idiot was telling him to go heavier.

The lift at 205 was where things began to get heavy for me, but my form still felt good and I successfully hit my power clean.  I added 15 pounds to my barbell and waited for a few of my neighbors to make their lifts before giving 220 a try.  My form was not nearly as good as it had been on the previous lift.  My "waterbed" technique (the one where the barbell hits some portion of my torso than rolls through my cellulite up to my shoulders) was back on display.  I only rolled the barbell a little bit during my attempt at 220, so I didn't think 230 was impossible.  All I knew was that it wasn't going to be pretty.

Between attempts, I had been chalking my hands like crazy.  It was extremely warm in the gym (surprise!) and I couldn't afford to lose my hook grip during the power clean.  As I made my way through my lifts, the chalk helped less and less.  I was trying to get a nice layer of it on my hands, but the sweat on my hands was preventing that from happening.  Between the lifts at 220 and 230, my hands felt extra slimy.  I looked down and saw a bunch of tiny bubbles in the palm of my hand.  It was almost as though the combination of my body temperature and the warm barbell had boiled the chalk during the lift.  I would need to wipe off my hands completely before the attempt at 230.

I had added 10 pounds to my barbell when Giulz yelled something at the front of the class.  I couldn't make out what she said because I was really far away from her and because the music in the gym was blaring.  I walked up to Raj and asked her if she knew what Giulz had said.  She told me that Giulz was telling everyone that they needed to be working on their final attempts.  I thought I had time for a couple of shots at 230, but apparently I was only getting one (maybe two if I really hurried!).  Neil was directly in front of me and he was ready to try what I later learned was 235 pounds.  He might have rushed it a little as he wasn't able to hang on to that attempt.  He moved out of the way so that I could make my attempt.  I was genuinely surprised at how similar this attempt felt compared to the one I had done at 220 pounds.  There was definitely some waterbed action going on, but not as much as I've had to do on some lifts in the past.  I stood up with my barbell and had a new PR.  I even felt like 235 could have been possible if I had more time.  For now though, I'd have to be happy with 230.

Neil made two more quick attempts at 235 and each of them ended the same way his first attempt did.  It looked like he got the barbell high enough and he certainly has the strength to stand it up from where he caught it, but he was leaning forward every time.  That lean forward left his elbows under the barbell.  During cleans, you're always told to have "fast elbows", meaning that you move your elbows fast enough during the lift that they come under and out in front of the barbell, creating a rack for it to land on.  If you don't move your elbows fast enough, you end up trying to hold the barbell with just your arms.  Even someone as strong as Neil is going to have a hard time holding up 235 pounds that way.  Despite failing three times at 235 pounds, Neil did get a PR with his earlier power clean of 225 pounds.

We all got our barbells out of the way and moved on to the cash-out.  Neil hadn't beaten me on the power cleans, but there was zero chance I'd complete dumbbell DT before he did.  My grip strength is weaker and I tend to be clumsy when it comes to workouts using DBs.  I will say that I hung with him longer than I thought I would.  And when I got to review the top times of the day on the cash-out, he was among the best, so I couldn't feel too bad about the large gap he would eventually put between us in the latter stages of the cash-out.

The time cap for the cash-out was 12 minutes, but Giulz wanted us to try and keep it under 10 minutes.  Things looked good for me at the end of round 1, which I completed in just under 60 seconds.  You should never estimate your final time based on what you do in round one though and I knew I was still going to have to work hard to keep it under 10 minutes.  I took breaks like one normally does in DT: after the first 11 deadlifts, after the first 8 hang power cleans, and after the last of the push jerks was completed.  In rounds 2 through 5, I broke up those 8 hang power cleans into two sets of 4.  (I strung all 8 in that speedy first round.)  Neil started to extend his lead on me during round three and he would wind up lapping me at the very end, completing his final round just before I got done with round 4.  (I hate getting lapped!)  There was just over 8 minutes on the clock when I started round 5, meaning I had averaged about 2:20 per round in rounds 2-4.  I needed to go faster if I was going to stay under 10 minutes.  The key was taking shorter breaks.  I wanted to rest after the first 11 deadlifts, but I didn't wait too long before picking my DBs up, completing my last deadlift and 1st four hang power cleans.  My classmates who were done began yelling at me to keep going, so I got the DBs back in my hands for four more hang power cleans.  During my last break, I blew out the air in my lungs, told myself this last part was going to suck, and braced myself for the finish.  I picked up the DBs, did my last hang power clean, then knocked out 6 push jerks.  Final time: 9:35.

As I mentioned earlier, I didn't really appreciate how good of a time that was until I looked at the scores from home later on.  At that moment, I was just happy that I stayed under 10 minutes.  Did I swing the DBs during the hang power cleans even though Giulz asked us not to?  Guilty.  Although to be fair, everyone else I talked to did the same thing.  Let's just go back to using barbells and make everyone happy again.

Sunday preview: It's time to practice for the Brawl!  LC joins Kris, Raj, and myself as we work through one of the Brawl events.  My master plan for the event turns out to be pretty lousy.  I stick around after Brawl practice to try and get beyond 225 pounds on my clean and jerk.

The F Word

Workout date: 7/5/17

Late night attendance on Wednesday has increased in recent weeks.  Not because more folks are joining me at Coach Jenna's 7:30 class.  It's because the Bridgeport Barbell Club is in the middle of their eight-week Olympic lifting program.  And while I've enjoyed getting to see the progress being made by folks who I don't work out with all that often (Ellie, Anne B, Donna, and Chris S to name a few), I'm not so sure I've done much to return the favor.  Wednesday night's encounter with Fran was supposed to be an example of me showing off my progress with thrusters and pull-ups.  I wasn't going to wear out my arms on the thrusters because I was going to keep the barbell on my body between reps.  I wasn't going to exhaust myself on the pull-ups doing singles because I was patiently going to work through small sets of 2-3 at a time.  The end result would be a new PR for me on a workout I didn't care for very much.  My plan was to stop the clock with less than 8 minutes showing on it.  It all sounded good in my head.  If only things had gone to plan...

There were only three of us at the 7:30 class.  It was Conn (the pull-up king), Bryan (strong at pull-ups), and me (shivers every time he types the word pull-up).  It would be my 3rd time this year taking on this benchmark WOD and it was programmed exactly the same way it had been written in January and April.  Just to refresh your memory:

Wednesday's WOD:
EMOM for 4 minutes - 4 strict pull-ups

"Fran"
21-15-9
Thrusters (95/65)
Pull-ups

Fran is hard enough on its own, but those 16 strict pull-ups were thrown in there at the beginning just to make life a little bit worse.  I have gotten better at strict pull-ups (though I've still never done more than 5 in a row), but excelling at the EMOM which began this workout didn't pay any dividends when it came to taking on the main attraction.  I strung all 4 pull-ups in the first two minutes, went 3 and 1 in minute three, then went 2, 1, and 1 in the last minute of the EMOM.  EMOM complete.  Arms tired.

Whenever we've done Fran this year, we've worked in pairs.  No one wants to be bothered with having to count while going through the misery that is Fran, so your partner takes on that responsibility for you.  With only three of us in this class, there would be one heat with someone working solo and one heat with two people in it.  Conn and Bryan partnered up (Conn would go first and Bryan would go second).  That made Jenna my de facto partner.  She wasn't going to do Fran again (she had done it earlier in the 5:30 class), so I got my choice of which heat I wanted to go in.  I've always been a heat two kind of guy and that didn't change on this night.  Usually I choose heat two to procrastinate, but my decision this time around was based more on my fear of doing this workout with Conn.  In my 4 years at KOP, there isn't anyone I've seen work on pull-ups more devotedly than Conn.  He was probably going to be really good at a sprint workout heavy on pull-ups.  I felt like I had a better chance (think 5% vs 1%) of keeping up with Bryan than Conn, so I chose heat two.

Conn got to work on his thrusters and heat one of Fran was officially underway.  I always try to do a large set of thrusters (even did all 21 in a row on one ill-fated attempt at Fran) because I feel much more comfortable with thrusters than I do with pull-ups.  Conn was the opposite.  He's excellent at pull-ups, so he was very deliberate in breaking up his thrusters.  When he was done with 21 of them, he moved over to his comfort zone.  Conn is a tall guy, so when you look at him, "body weight ninja" doesn't exactly spring to mind.  That designation usually goes to the smaller athletes in the gym.  But there aren't very many athletes in our gym who look as smooth on the pull-up bar as Conn does.  He didn't move through his reps at breakneck speed.  He just calmly cycled through one pull-up after another.  It was the epitome of what I'd like my pull-ups to look like one day.

Conn went through the other two rounds of Fran the same way.  The thrusters looked like they were strategically broken up, while his form on the pull-up bar never wavered.  He did smaller sets of pull-ups as he got tired, but even his last pull-up looked better than any of mine would in heat two.  His time wouldn't be blazing fast (6:22), but if the coaches ever need someone to demo this workout, I would point them in his direction.

After Conn got a few minutes to catch his breath, it was time for me and Bryan to go.  The game plan for staying with Bryan was simple: Get ahead on the thrusters, try not to fall too far behind on the pull-ups.  I wanted to do sets of 3 pull-ups at a time each time I jumped up to the high bar.  I also wanted to push harder through the thrusters in rounds two and three.  On prior attempts, I've gotten to the round of 15 and had to break up the thrusters into three sets of 5 with a lot of rest in between.  If I could at least whittle that down to two sets, I might stay under 8 minutes for the first time.

Conn and Jenna were ready to start counting, so Bryan and I began thrusting.  (Wait, that doesn't right.)  One by one, we moved through our first 21 thrusters.  After watching Conn, it dawned on me that my pull-up prowess might improve if I didn't go crazy on that first set of thrusters.  So after 12 reps, I dropped my barbell.  I took a breath, shook out my arms, and then got to work on my remaining 9 thrusters.  Bryan was in front of me, but I wasn't paying much attention to him.  At least not until my 20th rep.  I still had one thruster to go when I saw Bryan drop his barbell and head to the pull-up rig.  So much for getting ahead on the thrusters!

I'm not sure if Bryan beating me on the thrusters threw me off.  I haven't even mentioned how brutally warm it was in the gym and how that never helps me when I'm trying to do pull-ups.  Whatever the reason may have been, I fell apart almost immediately on my first visit to the pull-up rig.  I did a set of three pull-ups to begin like I planned.  Then my next set was only two.  I might have gotten another set of two after that, but if I did, that was the last one of the day.  I couldn't keep my breathing calm as I swung on the bar and if you can't keep your core tight, you can't string together efficient pull-ups.  I got to a point where I didn't want to jump up to the high bar, much less hang on to it for multiple reps.  I was in a bad way early on and I knew it.

It seemed like it took me forever to complete those 21 pull-ups.  Jenna was encouraging me to keep jumping up to the bar and I tried to comply.  The problem was that once all of that was done, I had to come back to my barbell.  And the game plan was to push harder on this middle set of thrusters.  When I picked up the barbell, I told myself to do 9 reps, but I was lucky just to get through 6.  This was going to take three sets like it always does.  I went 5 and 4 over my last two sets and then went back for more pull-up pain.

I slowly moved through 15 singles on the high bar.  Jenna kept after me as I took one break after another.  I heard several people from the Barbell Club class cheering me on.  I just didn't have it though.  I knew I wasn't breaking 8 minutes.  I knew I wasn't getting a PR.  And my attitude got worse and worse the more that I struggled.  I was still working through those 15 pull-ups when Bryan finished up.  (His time?  6:27.  Guess my chances of staying with him were almost exactly as good as my chances of staying with Conn!)  It's never fun getting lapped, but having it happen in a workout that is only three rounds long is extra embarrassing.  I was in a very foul mood once that round of 15 was complete.

Anger doesn't work so well with gymnastics.  But with a barbell, it can be magic.  I dragged my surly self back over to the barbell with the intention of completing the final 9 thrusters unbroken.  It was unpleasant, but I made it happen.  It would have been cool if I followed that up with 9 fast pull-ups, but that wasn't in the cards for me.  I tried to keep jumping up to that bar without taking a rest, but I needed at least two breaks during those final 9 pull-ups.  Final time: 9:10.

Fran wasn't the only F-word that I was muttering once I was done.  I was aggravated that I had succumbed to another summertime workout.  And after I cooled off, I became upset about how I was really to blame for my lousy Fran times.  I've put in a lot of time practicing various things at the gym, but I hadn't put in the time on pull-ups.  They are a basic movement and they show up frequently in WODs, yet I wasn't devoting time to getting better at them.  I was kinda just hoping I got better.  It doesn't work like that and each poor attempt at Fran was reinforcing that truth.  I headed home Wednesday night resolving to work on my pull-ups more.

Thursday preview: Speaking of neglecting movements, when was the last time I spent some time on power cleans?  I'd get the chance on Thursday.  The WOD ends with a cash-out that may or may not have been designed by Dave Castro.

Beers For Tears

Workout date: 7/4/17

There aren't a lot of categories where I would rank amongst the upper tier in the gym, but when it comes to decking out in festive gear, I hold my own.  My Halloween outfits have been pretty strong.  We used to have a neon WOD once a year at the gym and I happen to own some outfits that would blind most people.  I've had my fair share of colorful outfits and accessories ready for the Open, where each of the teams has their own color.  The only time of the year where I've struggled to come up with a themed outfit has been on Independence Day.  I don't have a lot of patriotic-looking gear.  In fact, the only two red, white, and blue items I own are two gaudy tank tops that I bought in years past for the 4th of July WOD at KOP.  Those were my two choices on Tuesday WOD: go with the USA Drinking Team tank or the 'Merica tank.  I thought I had worn the 'Merica tank more recently, so I went with the always classy USA Drinking Team alternative.

The 4th of July WOD is always a team affair involving groups of 4 or more.  The reason that the teams are so large is because this is one of the rare workouts that we do where tire flips are involved.  There were plenty of other obstacles for the teams to conquer.  Here's how we were all celebrating the nation's birthday:

4th of July WOD:
Teams of 4 (or more)
30 minute AMRAP
400 meter run
4 tire flips (small or large tire)
30 burpees
40 box jumps (24"/20")
50 air squats
60 KB swings (53/35)
*All teammates must complete the 400 meter run
**Two athletes may work at a time on the burpees, box jumps, air squats, and KB swings

I can't remember the last time I showed up to a holiday workout that called for partners or teams and had pre-established plans of who I was going to work out with.  I walked into a packed gym on Tuesday morning with little clue of who I'd be sweating with for a half-hour.  Based on how folks were huddled up, it seemed like a lot of teams had already been formed.  Neil was there along with his girlfriend, Kim, and they didn't appear to have teammates yet, so I asked them if they'd take on a straggler.  Even though Neil wasn't a fan of my garb, he was okay with being teammates.  We needed one more person and that slot would get filled when Sarmad joined our group.

Coach Aimee had a ton of assistants on hand to help organize the large group of athletes taking part in this WOD.  Apparently an impromptu Competitors Class was held before we all arrived, so the members of that class stuck around to play coach.  There were so many coaches that the members of the demo team were able to substitute in and out as they showed us the different movements we'd be performing in this workout.  We even had a set of indoor coaches and a set of outdoor coaches.

The outdoor crew keeping an eye on the teams as they flipped tires

Everyone went on a large group run to ensure that all participants were familiar with the location of the turnaround point for the 400 meter run.  Then we came back inside to go over the four traditional Crossfit movements in the workout.  Aimee asked each team to get 2 boxes and 2 KBs and to stake out some space for the WOD.  My team ended up on the magic platform, near the whiteboard in the front of class.  The four of us began to discuss how we were going to split up the box jumps, but it became clear that Kim wanted no part of them.  We had brought over a 24" box for the guys and a 20" box for her, but the prospect of having to jump to that height was causing her a lot of distress.  We told her that we'd get her a smaller box, but that didn't seem to calm her nerves.  Giulz had a talk with Kim to try and put her at ease.  She set up a plate for her to jump on, but Kim had no interest in jumping on an object of any height.  It really wasn't a big deal though, because there wasn't some requirement that she had to do box jumps.  The three guys agreed that we would handle all 40 of the box jumps each round.

We then went over the KB swings.  We had the 53 pound version for the guys.  Kim stated there was no way that she was swinging a 35 pound KB.  We brought out a 26 pounder and an 18 pounder, but it was still no dice with Kim.  She really didn't want to participate in this workout at all.  She let Neil know that she wanted to leave, but he talked her into staying.  As was the case with the box jumps, we assured Kim that she didn't have to do any of the work.  60 KB swings was 20 apiece for the guys and we felt comfortable handling that amount.  There wasn't anything to fear with the burpees and the air squats, so maybe Kim could help us with those.

Because there were only four tires (two big, two small) available for flipping, Aimee designated different starting points for the teams.  If we all went on the 400 meter run together, there would be a logjam at the tires when we got back.  So some teams started on the run, some started at the tires, and the rest started with the work inside the gym.  Our team was selected to begin with the run.  Among the teams who started on the run, I think we were the 3rd team back to the tires.  I led our team over to one of the small tires.  Neil and I were two of the bigger athletes taking part in this workout, so it wasn't like we couldn't handle the big tire.  My main concern now was how Kim would react.  She seemed traumatized by the box jumps and the KB swings, so I wasn't going to make the situation worse by forcing her to flip the big tire.  The four of us lined up behind one of the small tires.  Immediately we were yelled at by the coaching crew that we were at the wrong tire.  To be honest, it felt like we were.  So we checked with Kim to make sure she was cool with flipping the big tire.  She said that she was.  We moved over to a big tire and began flipping it.  That first round was all about getting the feel for picking the tire up off of the ground as a team.  We didn't struggle too much, but things went a lot smoother in later rounds.

The USA Drinking Team practicing for "Giant Flip Cup"

Our first task once we were inside the gym was to belt out 30 burpees.  Two of us could work at a time, so me and Neil began a set of 5 burpees each.  Once we had finished 10 burpees combined, we tagged in our teammates.  Sarmad began to do burpees, but Kim did not.  We knew she wasn't doing box jumps or KB swings, but she apparently had second thoughts about doing burpees.  It didn't make sense to have only one of us working at a time, so I dropped to the floor and knocked out some additional burpees.  When I got tired, Neil came in for me and then I jumped in when Sarmad was tired.  This continued on during the box jumps.  We had to adjust to it on the fly, but the three of us worked out a system to try and make sure we were getting adequate rest while also completing the work as efficiently as possible.  Neil and Sarmad were finishing off the last few box jumps, so I went over to ask Kim if she was okay doing the air squats with me.  She was in tears at the time (she really did not want to do this workout!), but she agreed to do the air squats.  I synchronized my movement with hers and we completed 10 air squats each before Neil and Sarmad took our spots.  They both did 10 more and then Kim and I finished 5 each to bring the team's total to 50.  The last element of the round was the KB swings.  We still had a 53 pound KB and a 35 pound KB in our area, so the three of us not only rotated through work and rest, we also rotated through the heavier and lighter KBs.

That first round took about 8 minutes to complete, so it seemed pretty clear that we'd only be doing 3 rounds of this workout.  I wasn't sure how far we'd get into round four, but I thought it would be nice if we could make it back from the run at least.  The next two rounds were similar to the 1st round.  The run was probably a bit slower, but we were less hesitant about flipping the tire and might have made up the time there that we lost on the run.  Kim still had no desire to do the box jumps or the KB swings, but she did eventually join us on the burpees and I'm always grateful when someone helps me do less burpees.  There was less than 3 minutes to go when we completed the third round, so it seemed safe that we would complete the 4th run.  (Yay, we ran a mile!)  As we got back to the tires, we heard that there was 15 seconds remaining.  We lined up and quickly flipped the tire.  I just wanted to get one flip in before time was called, but we did that first flip so fast that we had time to sneak in a second one as well.  Final score: 3 full rounds, a 400 meter run, and 2 tire flips.

We all deserved a treat after a tough 30 minute workout.  Plus, it was a holiday, so it was appropriate to celebrate.  After cleaning up our equipment and changing into drier shirts, a bunch of us headed over to the Bridgeport Brew Pub.  Kim was much happier in that environment.  The anxieties that had bothered her earlier in the day were replaced by a smile at lunch.  Box jumps and KB swings might not bring people together, but burgers and beers certainly do.

Wednesday preview: Just when I thought I had a handle on Fran, I am reminded in no uncertain terms that I do not.

Urchin Care

Workout date: 7/3/17

After Thursday's debacle, I stayed away from the gym for three days as planned.  I mean, I rarely come into the gym on the weekends anymore, so my absence on Saturday and Sunday was expected. Friday was simply the rest day that I should have taken on Thursday.  You would think with three days away that I'd be raring to go come Monday, but I still wasn't feeling 100% physically.  When I was in St. Lucia, we went on a boat tour that included a stop for snorkeling.  I'm not good at snorkeling, nor am I a fan of snorkeling.  (I'm happy to swim all day long though!)  At one point during the snorkeling stop, I let my feet drop down under the water and received an unpleasant surprise.  My right heel pressed down on to a sea urchin.  When the boat tour ended and we were dropped off at our hotel, I discovered that there were 5 visible needles in my right heel.  I made a visit to the nurse on site and she told me to keep applying alcohol to the wounded area.  Eventually the needles would fall out on their own, she claimed.  That didn't stop me from trying to pluck them out with tweezers, although those efforts would prove to be futile.  When we got back to Philly, I picked up some vinegar from the store as that was mentioned to be a remedy for ridding yourself of sea urchin needles.  That didn't work either.  Two weeks had passed since I stepped on the sea urchin and the needles were still in my heel.  I was also starting to notice some minor pain in my heel.  It was time to hit up the Minute Clinic.

I stopped by a local CVS around lunchtime on Monday.  I was concerned that there might be a long wait, but I lucked out and didn't have to wait more than a few minutes before getting in to see the two nurses staffed at this location.  Unfortunately for those who showed up after me, their wait would be considerably longer.  I felt bad that these two ladies would have to stare at my foot for close to an hour, but they seemed really entertained by their newest patient's predicament.  They likened the needle removal to performing minor surgery.  (I guess they don't typically get the opportunity to remove a lot of things from patient's bodies at the Minute Clinic.)  Not only did they work together to remove the 5 needles I had seen in my heel, they also removed 3 other needles from the side of my foot that I didn't realize were there.  I was very appreciative for the amount of time they spent on me.  And when I left, I was apologetic to the group of people wondering what the hold up was.  My foot was going to be tender for a few days, but at least my souvenirs from St. Lucia were finally gone.

I had dinner plans on Monday night, but I didn't want to miss a 4th consecutive day at the gym, so I came in earlier than I normally do.  I dropped in to work out with the 4:30 crew.  Coach Aimee had 10 people in her class all lined up to take on the following WOD:

Monday's WOD:
5 rounds:
30 wall balls (20#/14# to 10'/9')
5 squat snatches (155/105)
*Rest 2 minutes between rounds

Mandatory rest again?  Yup, this was gonna be a bad one.  I had two reactions to this WOD.  Let's call the first reaction "Crazy Dave" and the second reaction "Sane Dave":

• Crazy Dave: You handled the 135 pound squat snatches in Open Workout 17.3 well, so why not give 155 pounds a shot?  You're only doing 5 reps per round.  Don't be a wimp!  Go RX!
• Sane Dave: My crazy counterpart clearly glossed over that bit about doing 30 wall balls prior to those 5 squat snatches.  Don't you think those are going to have an impact on how those squat snatches go?  Stick with 135 pounds.

Sane Dave is such a buzzkill.  However, he usually has a point.  Those wall balls were probably going to be much worse than I imagined.  5 rounds of 30 equaled 150 wall balls total, which is the Crossfit WOD known as Karen.  And Karen is the worst!  If this had been written up as "Karen with 25 heavy squat snatches", I probably would have taken that 4th consecutive rest day.  Toss in the fact that it was yet another massively humid day in the gym and Sane Dave's argument became a clearcut winner.

I spent the warmup in the bald guy section alongside of Mooney.  We were next to each other over at the wall when we practiced wall balls.  He was also lined up next to me with his barbell.  Mooney is in much better shape than I am, so I knew he would destroy me on the wall balls in this workout.  However, when I saw Mooney load up his barbell with 135 pounds for his squat snatches, I thought there was an opportunity for me to catch up to him in this workout.  I tend to lift more than Mooney, mainly because I weigh about 50 pounds more than him.  And the squat snatch is half-overhead squat, so it's a movement that I'm more comfortable with than most people at my gym.  I suspected that he had chosen Crazy Mooney over Sane Mooney.  Or he could just be better at squat snatches than I realized.  (It was probably the latter.)

Aimee came around and made sure we could comfortably squat snatch the weights that we had chosen.  I did two reps with 135 pounds on my barbell and didn't have much of a problem.  For each rep, I caught the lift in the bottom of my squat and didn't rush before standing it up.  Aimee seemed satisfied that I had picked the right weight for this workout.  She then announced that we should try to average 4 minutes or less per round for this WOD, which worked out to 28 minutes (5 rounds at 4 minutes equaled 20 minutes.  4 mandatory rest periods at 2 minutes equaled 8 minutes.  Combine them together and you get 28 minutes.)  That sounded reasonable to me.  Especially since I envisioned myself completing round 1 in under 3 minutes.  I could buy myself some cushion for the later rounds when I'd be exhausted.

Working your way up to the proper squat snatch weight took some time, so by the time we got started, there was only a half-hour left in class.  If you went beyond Aimee's suggested time domain, you were likely going to bleed into the 5:30 class's time (foreshadowing).  In round 1, I could have opted to do all 30 wall balls in a row, but I felt like this was a workout where proper pacing could provide big benefits later on.  After 20 reps, I let the ball drop to the floor.  I took about 5 seconds, then picked it up and completed the last 10 reps.  I wasn't very far behind Mooney getting to the barbell and overall I was still with the majority of the class.  Now all I needed to do was take care of these 5 simple squat snatches and I could enjoy my two minutes of rest.  Let's see how that 1st round of squat snatches went:

• 1st rep - missed
• 2nd rep - missed
• 3rd rep - missed

What.  The.  Hell.  It was one thing to come over from the wall balls and miss an attempt.  That wasn't totally unexpected.  I likened it to doing a leg-focused movement and then missing your 1st box jump.  Those things happen.  You don't appreciate the effect that the previous movement had on you until you do that 1st rep.  Missing my 2nd and 3rd attempts made no sense at all.  It was like I completely forgot how to squat snatch.  After the 3rd failure in a row, I didn't need rest.  I needed my head examined.  I briefly pondered switching the weight on my barbell, dropping down to 115 pounds.  I wasn't certain that would solve my problem (if my form was crap, there was no guarantee I'd be able to handle 115 pounds), so I stuck with 135 and made a fourth attempt.  At long last, I got one.  I got a second and a third as well.  I messed up one more time after that, but then I was able to complete my 4th and 5th squat snatches.  So much for finishing round one in under 3 minutes!  1st round time: 4:06.

You won't be surprised to learn that I was the last person in class to get to their rest period.  I was already behind Aimee's requested pace after round one.  While I was aggravated, I did see plenty of room for improvement in the next round.  If I didn't miss so many lifts, I would have been well under 4 minute pace.  I just needed to clean that up and I would be fine.  I also gave myself a reminder to chalk up before I tried to squat snatch.  My hands were sweaty and I could feel them slide on those last two successful lifts.  No reason to make this any harder than it already was.  The chalk would keep my hands on the drier side which would stop them from sliding in on future attempts.

I didn't have a lot of faith that I could handle the next round of 30 wall balls in two sets, so I went 12-10-8 instead.  Before approaching my barbell, I made a quick detour to the chalk bucket.  I was going to be smarter this time around.  I was setting myself up for success in round two.  I chalked up my hands, grabbed the barbell, and...failed.  Not just once, but twice.  I guess I should have been happy that I didn't miss on three straight attempts like I did in round one.  Attempt #3 would be my first successful squat snatch of round two.  I hit back-to-back lifts before screwing up again.  Worried that I was headed back down the trail of failure, I took a break after my 3rd miss of the round.  It helped out.  I was able to get each of my next three squat snatches.  2nd round time: 5:06.

This was brutal.  I had no chance of completing this in 28 minutes.  I started wondering how far behind the rest of the class I was going to end up.  I was the only one resting at the moment as everyone else had moved on to round three.  When my mandatory two minute rest period was over, I came back to the wall balls and completed them like I had in round two with sets of 12, 10, and 8.  Know what else was just like round 2?  My failures snatching!  Attempt #1: Fail.  Attempt #2 was a success, but I went right back to failing on my 3rd attempt.  I couldn't figure out what I was doing wrong.  Wall balls were turning out to be some strange version of snatch kryptonite.  Maybe I didn't have the necessary power in my legs for the squat snatch after completing the wall balls.  Maybe my weakened legs couldn't provide the balance I needed.  It was a mystery I couldn't seem to solve.  I completed a 2nd squat snatch.  Followed that up with yet another miss.  I was officially pissed off.  I'm sure Aimee could see it on my face because she came over to help me out.  I walked away from my barbell and over towards where she was standing to try and soak in all the advice she could give me.  One of the things she was noticing was that my barbell was not staying close to my body as I slung it overhead.  She told me to pull in a bit more.  Keeping the barbell close to me was going to make it an easier lift.  I chalked up my hands and tried to make my coach proud.  Then I failed again. I definitely uttered a profanity at that point.  Aimee told me to stick with it as she moved on to check on some of my classmates who weren't as hopeless.

There was only one avenue I hadn't gone down yet to try and change my luck.  It was time to head down that lane.  I was already enraged about how poorly I was doing in the workout.  Why not put that into the lift?  Yes, the snatch is a very technical lift, but clearly I wasn't grasping the finer points of it.  I decided I should just grip it and rip it.  It was angry barbell time!  I stomped up to my barbell, took hold of it, and ripped it off the floor.  I caught it in a squat and completed rep #3.  I dropped it to the floor and then immediately stepped up for my next rep.  In my rage, I think I forgot that I was doing a snatch rather than a clean and jerk.  My hands were much closer than they should have been, but I proceeded with the lift anyway.  It kind of felt like a clean and jerk as I did it, but I was able to drop under the barbell completely.  That was a snatch.  All I had to do was stand up with it.  I did that.  I was so pumped by this run I was on that I slammed the barbell down to the floor.  Then I got right back over it and went for rep #5.  Success!  I wasn't sure if I could maintain this anger for two more rounds, but it seemed to be working.  3rd round time: 6:20.

As strange as it sounds, the last thing I needed at that point was a break.  The mandatory two minute rest period put a halt to the adrenaline that was pumping through my body.  If anything, it made me feel a bit more tired.  As I was resting, I decided that I was going to try a new strategy with the wall balls: sets of 5 with shorter breaks in between.  Sounded like a good plan in my mind.  Wasn't so much in practice.  The problem with this plan is that someone like me will take longer breaks than intended.  After two sets of 5, I decided to change it up.  I went 7-8-5 over three sets to finish off my last 20 wall balls of round four.

I spent my time at the chalk bucket trying to get amped up again.  I thought about how I kept failing at the beginning of each of my sets at the barbell.  I thought about how dumb I would feel if I missed my initial lift for the 4th round in a row.  When it comes to self-deprecation, I have a lot of tools in my arsenal.  Those tools worked.  For the first time all day, I had a successful lift right after I was done with the wall balls.  I tried to ride the momentum by going right into rep #2.  I stood that one up as well.  Nothing lasts forever though and eventually lousy form will overcome brute strength.  I couldn't make three in a row happen.  After my first miss of the round, I walked away from the barbell and took a break.  Several of my classmates were done, while some others (like Mooney) were wrapping up their final round of squat snatches.  I was in the process of being lapped or that process had already happened.  As I took my break, Keithie came over to me.  He had been in the 3:30 class and had hung around while the 4:30 class was in session.  He saw that I was struggling and offered up some simple, but wise advice.  He told me that I was rushing to stand up with my barbell.  All I had to do was catch it in the squat, take my time, and stand up with it.  "You can overhead squat 135 all day", he told me.  That was true.  In the warmup, I was treating this like a two-part movement: catch it in the squat, <pause>, stand up with it.  I'm not sure why I had deviated from what was working, but it was clear that I had.

I went back to the barbell and focused only on getting underneath it and catching it in the squat.  When I did that, the mission felt complete.  I could sit there for a second or two, compose myself, and stand up with it.  Keithie gave me a "there ya go" and suddenly I felt like I had remembered how to do this.  I didn't rush back to the barbell for my next rep.  I stopped worrying about the clock.  I got into my setup when I was ready and repeated what I had just done two more times.  For the third consecutive round, I finished up with three successful lifts.  4th round time: 5:27.

I have no idea during which round this picture was taken, but it looks 

like the type of form I had at the end of round four.

Not only did I improve on my 3rd round time, I had also improved my mindset going into round five. I didn't need to find a way to get anger and adrenaline coursing through my veins.  I needed the opposite.  I had been searching for a substitute way to get through the squat snatches because I had forgotten the basics.  Keithie reminded me what the basics were.  I was ready for round five, assuming I would be allowed to do it.

(After the WOD was over, I heard that Aimee was thinking about time capping me, but was worried that I'd be mad if she did.  I can completely understand that, since I spent a fair amount of this workout looking like a volatile individual who had been stuck at the DMV for three hours.  I also tend to be very stubborn about finishing what I've started.  Also, Aimee had told all of us to try and finish in 28 minutes.  I wasn't beginning round 5 until the clock hit 28:59.  So as I sat there and rested, I was somewhat expecting her to tell me that 4 rounds was enough.  To be honest, this was the rare occasion where I would have been ok with it.  I hadn't stuck to the time domain she gave us and I was kind of sick of this workout at that point.  I would have understood if she pulled the plug on me.  But since she didn't...)

I got ready to take on round five, hoping to make it my fastest round of the day.  It was wishful thinking (I was fresh for round one, duh), but exhaustion may have led to some hallucinating.  The wall balls were much more painful than they had been in prior rounds.  I wanted to try and complete them in three sets, but after dropping the ball 10 reps in, I knew I'd need four sets.  I also needed a decent breather between sets.  I went 6-8-6 the rest of the way.

By the time I got to my barbell, I was the only one still working.  The 5:30 class had actually gone for a 400 meter run and was back already.  They joined the rest of the 4:30 crew in helping me get through those five squat snatches.  I did each one just as I had done the final three in the previous round.  And because I stuck to the basics, I went 5 for 5 in the last round.  5th round time: 5:11.  Overall time: 34:10.

I wanted to just lay on the floor for a while once I was done, but there was that whole thing about the 5:30 class needing the gym.  Sorry about that guys!  I don't remember whether I put my wall ball and barbell away or if I ended up leaving it for Neil (he used the same weights as me in the 5:30 class).  All I know is that I took up a spot on one of the benches and sat there for a solid 15 minutes recovering and rehydrating.  I was there long enough that the 5:30 class began their workout while I was sitting there.  And since I'm a better cheerleader than an athlete, I stuck around till they were done.  It made things tight in terms of getting to dinner on time, but it was the least I could do since they cheered me on at the end of my workout.

Tuesday preview: It's the 4th of July!  Patriotic gear!  Teams flipping tires!  Teammates arguing with one another!  (Okay, that might have only been my team.  Everything gets worked out at the brew pub afterwards.)

Too Soon

Workout date: 6/29/17

What would be the worst thing for me to see programmed in the Thursday WOD, the day after getting agonizingly close to making the 100 double unders board?  Answer: burpees and pull-ups.  Those two things are always the worst.  But double unders had emerged as a very close third choice on that list.  So when the Thursday WOD was released at 10pm Wednesday night, I was disheartened to see that it included a considerable amount of double unders.  I sent a two-word text message to Kris about how I felt about doing double unders on Thursday: "Too soon!"

As much as I didn't want to do double unders, they were only a small part of the difficult 19 minute WOD that awaited KOP's athletes.  The WOD had three segments with mandatory rest in between each of them.  And by now you should know that mandatory rest means trouble.  Here's a look at what was programmed for Thursday:

Thursday's WOD:
First 4 minutes
4 rounds:
Shuttle sprint of 5-10-15-20 feet
30 double unders
Rest 2 minutes
Next 5 minutes
3 rounds:
20/15 calories on the assault bike
20 hang power cleans (95/65)
Rest 2 minutes
Next 6 minutes
50 GHD sit-ups
750 meter row

That was a lot to process, so I thought about how I would handle each of the segments:

• Sprints and double unders: 4 minutes, 4 rounds, so I had to average 1 minute per round to get through the sprints and the double unders.  If I strung the 30 double unders, that would probably take about 20 seconds.  If I was off, more like 30-35 seconds.  I didn't think the sprint would take more than 30 seconds, so overall I felt good about completing this segment before my four minutes were up.
• Assault bike/hang power cleans: An extra minute for this round, but that didn't seem like nearly enough time to complete all of this work.  I could see the first round on the assault bike going okay, but 20 hang power cleans per round was a lot.  And once I tired myself out with the hang power cleans, the later rounds on the assault bike were going to be slower.  My goal here was to complete 2 of the 3 rounds and get a little bit of work done during round 3 on the assault bike.
• GHD/rowing: Another extra minute was provided, but this segment actually seemed feasible to finish.  The 750 meter row should take about 3 minutes (2:00 per 500 meters is a reasonable pace), leaving 3 minutes for the 50 GHD sit-ups.  My best time for 50 GHD sit-ups last year was 2:01.  If the assault bike and hang power clean segment didn't wreck me, I could complete the GHD sit-ups and rowing in less than 6 minutes.

I decided to go to the 7:30 class with Coach Giulz.  I mean that literally.  It was just me and Giulz.  No one else was around to go through this agony with me.  Some of the guys from the 6:30 class warned me that this workout was going to be horrible.  Their advice: turn around and go home.  In retrospect, I wish I listened to them.  My legs were a little sore from the 40 back squats and the set of "not quite 100" double unders that I had done the night before.  I thought I could overcome that though.  The way I was looking at it was if I could get through this workout, I'd recover by taking the next three days off from the gym.  That was good enough motivation to make me do this WOD on my own.

With only 1 student in her class, Giulz was able to run through the warmup very quickly.  She let me know that the first segment would take place outside.  Across the street from the gym, there were chalk lines designating a starting line as well as distances that were 5 feet, 10 feet, 15 feet, and 20 feet away.  Each round, I would have to get both feet past the line and touch the ground with one of my hands before coming back to the start.  Once I had completed the four sprints, it was on to the jump rope for 30 double unders.  Giulz had me do some single unders and some double unders before making sure I was comfortable with the amount of double unders I'd have to do in this first segment.  Given that I had done 99 consecutive reps last night, I wasn't going to be scared off by 120 double unders that could be broken up into smaller sets.  I probably wasn't gonna enjoy them, but I'd get through them.

There wasn't anything technical to go over in terms of the assault bike or the rower, so the rest of the warmup would cover the hang power cleans and the GHD sit-ups.  Giulz noted that the weight for the hang power cleans was light, so she was expecting me to cycle through reps quickly and hold on for big sets.  Hang power cleans are probably the most difficult test of grip strength in the gym (at least they are for me), so my concern was that I might not be able to hang on for really large sets.  If I had to put the barbell down, it would likely be because my grip gave way.  The weight of the barbell didn't concern me as much.  Giulz asked me to do a quick set of 10 and I complied.  I didn't think I could do much more than 10 in a row, so I was hoping to go 12-8 or something like that when I got to my barbell later on.  Over at the GHD, Giulz made sure that my machine was set to the proper length.  She also reminded me that I needed to snap my legs on each sit-up.  I would be doing 50 of these and I'd be in a world of hurt if I tried to use my back and abs only.  Good form = less pain.

I think less than 15 minutes of class had elapsed when Giulz and I headed outside to get things started.  We were going to be done much earlier than normal and both Giulz and I were happy about that development.  Giulz brought out an iPad with her to keep time for this first segment.  I put my jump rope down off to the right side of the starting line, then I came over to start the sprints.  Giulz gave me a countdown and I was on my way.  I'm not sure I would say I was sprinting as much as I was running at a controlled, yet fast pace.  I didn't want to fall down as I scampered back and forth.  I also didn't want to burn out early on in this segment.  4 minutes wasn't a lot of time for four rounds, but if I kept my composure, I figured it would be plenty of time to complete the segment.  On the first round, I made it through the sprints quickly, then got through over 20 double unders before messing up.  I immediately started to twirl the rope again, completing the remaining reps in my next set.  Giulz said I was ahead of schedule, indicating that I had completed that round in under a minute.

Things didn't go so well the next two rounds.  I'm sure my sprints were somewhat slower.  My double unders were the bigger problem.  Maybe my legs were more sore than I realized, but jumping over and over again was becoming unpleasant.  I hit myself with the rope repeatedly, with my sets tending to be in the 5-7 rep range.  As I was finishing up round three, Giulz told me I had less than a minute left.  Uh oh.

I tried to hurry on the next sprint, but it took me nearly 30 seconds to complete it.  Giulz told me I had 30 seconds left as I bent over to pick up my jump rope.  I told myself that I couldn't afford to mess up on this round if I wanted to stay under 4 minutes.  I jumped higher than I typically do, but I was extra motivated to keep the rope from hitting me.  After not getting a set of more than 10 in rounds two and three, I hung on for 30 in a row to close out round four.  Final time for the first segment: 3:47.

On the bright side, I had finally come through in a pressure situation.  Usually when time is running out like that and I need to be perfect, I find a way to mess up.  All of that double under practice seemed to be paying off.  If this was the end of the workout, I would have left the gym feeling wonderful.  Unfortunately, I was a long way from being done.  I was also pretty exhausted.  Giulz and I walked into the gym together as my two minutes of mandatory rest began.  My legs felt very heavy now, so I spent most of the break sitting on the floor.  No point wasting energy standing.  I wouldn't say those two minutes flew by, but as I stared at the clock that Giulz started as we came into the gym, I dreaded how close it was drawing to 2:00.  This next segment was going to be the worst part of the WOD and I was already feeling spent.

A few seconds before the clock hit 2:00, I climbed on to my assault bike.  The next segment began and I tried to peddle as hard as I could to get the number on my monitor rolling towards 20.  Usually if I can get some speed at the beginning, the momentum of the bike will buy me some easy calories.  That did not happen here.  I might have been working hard, but my legs were not supplying the power they normally do.  I'm not sure I was even at 10 calories when I was forced to slow down.  It was deflating to feel like I was pushing as hard as I could but not making much progress on the bike.  I slowed down to an even pace, which meant it took me much longer than usual to accumulate 20 calories.  As I got off the bike, I noticed that my legs were super tight.  Almost like they had cramped up, only there wasn't the sharp pain you would associate with cramping.  My knees were barely bending as I walked over to my barbell.

Not being able to use your legs is kind of a big problem when you're trying to do hang power cleans, even when the weight is light.  I did more of a muscle clean than a power clean to get through my reps.  After 5 reps, I had to drop the barbell.  That wasn't what Giulz had requested in the warmup, but it was all I could manage at this point.  I took a decent-sized break and tried to shake out my legs. I also needed to get some air back into my lungs because I was breathing pretty heavily.  When I got back to the barbell, I held on for 8 reps before requiring another break.  I completed the last 7 hang power cleans the next time I picked up the barbell, but I had used up a significant portion of my time in this segment already.  I wasn't sure I'd even get back to the hang power cleans a second time.

My first spin on the bike felt like wasted effort.  I was pushing with everything I had, but the monitor told a different story.  The calories weren't accumulating as fast as I had hoped.  It was like pumping gas into your car at a station where the handles are very sensitive.  You squeeze the handle hard hoping to fill your gas tank quickly, but instead the pump keeps starting and stopping and it ends up taking twice as long to fill the tank as you would have liked.  I didn't bother trying to sprint when I got on the bike the second time.  I kept churning my legs, trying to keep a steady pace, but it became clear that I wasn't going to reach 20 calories a second time.  I made it to 16 calories before mandatory rest #2 began.  Final time for the second segment: 6:04 (5:00 plus 1 second for the 24 calories and 40 hang power cleans I did not complete).

Despite feeling really tired, I still believed I could finish segment three.  In my mind, it was all about the GHD sit-ups.  If I pushed through those, there was going to enough time for me to get through the row.  I couldn't imagine a scenario where I wouldn't be able to complete 750 meters in 3:00-3:15.  (Don't worry, less than 5 minutes later, I didn't have to imagine it.  I got to experience it!)  So I convinced myself that the finish line was at the end of the 50 GHD sit-ups.  If I could stay focused on that, I could complete the 3rd segment and get a bit of redemption for how poorly I had done on the assault bike and hang power cleans.

The two minute rest helped me considerably and I was eager to rifle through some GHD sit-ups once the clock told me I could go.  I did a set of 20 reps to begin and I knew I was well ahead of the pace I needed to finish in 3 minutes.  The only problem was that my legs were now calling it a day.  I was unable to bend and extend my legs very much at all while I tried to complete the remaining 30 sit-ups.  So I did what I had to do to get to 50 reps.  I used mostly back and abs to reach back, tap the floor, then swing myself up to the top of the GHD.  It was lousy form and you shouldn't follow my example.  This was just a case of desperate times calling for desperate measures.  Since performing GHD sit-ups this way doesn't feel good, I had to do very small sets and stop over and over again.  I went from being well ahead of the pace I needed to behind the pace I needed as I crept towards 50 reps.  When I finally got off of the GHD machine, there was about 2:30 remaining in the last segment.

That was okay.  I still believed I could make it through 600-650 meters on the rower with that much time left.  That wouldn't be such an awful score.  Of course, that was assuming that I could extend my legs, which I soon discovered I could not.  I had to bend my legs to get my feet in the straps of the rower, but when I went to do my first full pull, I found that I couldn't go back all the way.  My legs refused to extend.  I tried once early on to get full extension and it was very painful.  I was not doing that for two and a half minutes straight.  So once again I improvised.  I basically stayed in the position I was in when I got into the rower.  My body was mostly upright and my knees were bent in front of me.  Instead of taking long, powerful strokes, I did a bunch of short strokes as quickly as I could.  It felt goofy.  I'm sure it looked goofy.  It was all I could do though.  As you might imagine, I did not reach 600-650 calories.  When Giulz called time, the monitor showed a mere 453 calories completed.  Final time for the third segment: 10:57 (6:00 plus 1 second for each of the 297 meters I did not complete).

I slid off the side of my rower and spent a good 5-10 minutes trying to get my legs to work properly again.  I had underestimated how sore they were after Wednesday night and I paid the price in this workout.  Thursday should have been a rest day, but I pushed my limits so that I could enjoy a three-day respite from the gym.  It was a poor decision.  I'm usually good about listening to my body, but I think I intentionally turned a deaf ear to it on this occasion.  This WOD was a stark reminder of why it is a bad idea to do that.

Monday preview: I lose some souvenirs that I brought home from St. Lucia.  I learn that squat snatches are really hard to do after a large set of wall balls.  Angry barbells make a return, but it is patience that helps me finish the WOD.

Hole In One...Short

Workout date: 6/28/17

I started off the year thinking that handstand push-ups would be my obsession.  Somehow that changed before springtime came around.  I think it may have been because one of my goals was to get 5 consecutive handstand push-ups without any ab-mats and I was able to pull that off in early February.  The combination of reaching my handstand push-up goal early in the year along with the fact that handstand push-ups aren't programmed frequently led to me slowly losing interest in them.  Double unders took their place.  There is almost no chance that I'll ever get on the main whiteboard in the gym, but off to the side there is a smaller whiteboard which lists all of the people in the gym who have managed to string together 100 double unders in a row.  That seemed realistic to me.  I also had visions of one day finishing the Flight Simulator workout.  To reach both of those goals, I needed to keep practicing my double unders.  It wasn't long ago that I was excited about reliably doing sets of 12-15 dubs.  Now I can reliably do sets of 25 reps.  I've gotten used to staying calm as I work through larger sets.  I don't jump as high as I used to during double unders, which saves me energy and allows me to complete bigger sets.  Everything was heading in the right direction, so it felt like only a matter of time before I had a breakthrough.  Would it finally happen for me on Wednesday night?

I would get my chance as the cash-out for Wednesday evening called for each athlete to make 3 attempts at as many consecutive double unders as they could do.  But before we took that on, we had a 20 minute EMOM to go through first.  Ugh!  I hate EMOMs so much.  And 20 minutes was quite long for an EMOM.  At least this one didn't require burpees or KB swings.  Here's what Wednesday's EMOM looked like:

Wednesday's EMOM:
20 minutes long
Odd minutes: 4 back squats (about 70-80% of max)
Even minutes: 4 DB shoulder press (as heavy as possible)

Just as had been the case in my last two visits to Coach Jenna's Wednesday 7:30 class, me and Bryan were the only partakers.  I did run into some of the guys from the 6:30 class (Neil and Matt B) and their advice to me was to use 50 pound DBs for the shoulder press.  As I scanned the board to see what the guys in the 6:30 class used, I saw almost all of them went with 45 pound DBs.  When I brought this up, they assured me I could handle 50 pounds.  I had a hard time believing that one.  If this was a push press (where I get to use my legs), then maybe.  But this was a shoulder press, so I could only use my upper body.  Guys like Neil and Matt had much more upper body strength than me.  I'd try out the 50 pound DBs in the warmup, but I didn't think there was much chance I'd be using them in the actual workout.

Before we warmed up on the DB shoulder press, we were going to grab a rack and do some warmup sets of back squats.  My 1RM on the back squat is 330 pounds, so my range for this workout was going to be 231-264 pounds.  I pared that down to a choice between 245 pounds and 255 pounds.  Initially I was leaning towards 255 pounds, so I went through a progression of 135-185-225 on my barbell before testing out how 4 reps at 255 felt.  I made it through those 4 reps okay, but I didn't get the impression I could do 10 sets like that.  Maybe 5 or 6.  I didn't want to have to bail the barbell during this workout since you only had a limited amount of time, so I played it safe and went back to 245 pounds instead.

When it came to the DB shoulder press, I did my practice reps with 35 pounds as I didn't see any point in wearing out my arms with the weight I would be using in the workout.  I did want to see how the 50 pound DBs felt though before I committed to doing 10 sets with them.  So right before we were about to begin, I brought over the 50's and did a set of four reps.  It was definitely difficult.  More difficult than those back squats at 255 pounds.  I brought the 50 pound DBs back and replaced them with with a set of 45's.  I wasn't 100% sure that I could do 10 sets with these either, but the workout description did say "as heavy as possible" and this seemed to be the heaviest I had a shot with for all 10 rounds.

I typically give a detailed explanation of how my workouts go round by round, but there was really not much difference in any of the rounds we did over the course of this 20 minute EMOM.  On every odd minute, Bryan and I would take our barbells from the rack, do 4 back squats, and put the barbell back on the rack with a solid 40 seconds to spare.  We got even more rest than that after the DB shoulder presses.  I would say we were done with all four reps of that about 12-15 seconds into every even minute.  There were no shaky moments that I noted along the way.  About halfway through the back squats, I began regretting not going with 255 pounds.  That practice set was tough, but I started moving more fluidly through my sets at 245 as I got further into the EMOM.  I probably wasn't completely loose when I tried 255.  If I had it to do over again, I would have gone with the extra 10 pounds.  As for the DB shoulder press, I think I chose the proper weight there.  I had this weird habit of bringing my arms out and then back in as I did the first press of each set.  From there on out, I'd keep my arms pretty close to my ears.  My shaky form at the beginning of each set probably indicated how hard it was for me to get that 1st rep going, so going up to 50 pound DBs might not have worked out for me.

With the grunt work out of the way, it was time to put my double unders to the test.  The most consecutive double unders I had ever done was 81.  That might sound like it is close to 100, but the truth is that I started wearing out at around 60 reps and I fought as hard as I could to hold on through 81 reps.  If I was going to reach 100, I felt like I needed to get through 75 reps before fatigue set in.  If I got that far, I might be able to hold on for 25 more at the end.  More than anything, I wanted to make sure I got at least a score of 50 in this cash-out.  I was a little nervous about only having 3 tries at this.  I was going to be really disappointed if I couldn't put together at least 50 in a row during one of those attempts.

The barbell club was taking up most of the front part of the gym with their Olympic lifting class, so Bryan and I headed back towards the rings area to do the cash-out.  I did a couple of warmup sets of 10 without a problem, so I wasted little time in declaring that I was about to make my 1st attempt.  It ended quickly.  I only got 5 reps before the rope clipped my foot.  That was a waste.  I took a couple of minutes to put that out of my mind before making it known I was officially starting attempt #2.  Not much better.  I doubled my first attempt, but 10 was a sorry score for me.  I had wasted two attempts.  I had one chance left to put up a decent score.

Bryan looked like he was still practicing, so I took my time before going into my final attempt.  I dropped my rope on the floor and just walked around.  I was trying my best not to think about how much pressure I had inadvertently put on myself when I screwed up the first two sets.  It was all about staying calm.  You can get to 50.  Just get in a rhythm and block everything else out.  After a few more minutes, I was ready to go.  I let Jenna know this was attempt #3.

I began twirling the rope and was relieved that it didn't hit me during the first 10 reps.  By the time I reached 20 reps, I was feeling less tense.  There was no reason the rope couldn't have hit me on rep #21, but I had this confident feeling I was getting to 50.  I got past thirty, then forty reps.  I was still going strong when I made it to 50 reps.  I'd say the pressure came off when I was 20 reps into this set, but it had completely vanished once I got to 50.

It was time to be greedy.  50 was in the rear view mirror and 100 in a row was in my sights.  Whenever I make it to 50 reps, I give myself the same pep talk.  You've reached the downhill portion. You've done the hard work.  Remain calm and you can get there.  Fatigue hadn't set in yet, so that was good.  It seemed like there was a real chance that I might to get to 75 reps before tiring out like I thought I needed to in order to make it to 100.

Perhaps that was wishful thinking in the afterglow of making it to 50 reps on my last set.  Less than 10 seconds later, I had passed 60 reps, but a tidal wave of fatigue was washing over me.  I was trying to stay calm, but I kinda knew the end was near.  My goal was to try and hold on until I passed my best score of 81 in a row.  It started to get ugly when I got to the 70's.  I definitely clipped my foot on one of my reps, but the rope made it under my feet somehow.  I was almost there.  I'm not sure how I did it, but eventually rep #82 passed below my feet.

I had been in the "hold on as long as you can phase" for a while now, but the rope had still not come to a stop.  I was starting to jump in every direction: side to side, frontwards and backwards.  My rope speed had slowed significantly, so I was forcing myself to jump much higher to ensure that the rope would travel under my feet twice before they came back down to the floor.  I had another instance where the rope hit my foot, but the set continued on.  I'm not sure why I remember this precisely, but when I got to 91 reps, I remember thinking "I'm getting to 100!"  It seemed like I was destined to at this point.

My form had gotten spectacularly ugly.  My rope speed was slow.  I looked like I was doing a max height box jump rather than double unders.  I was hopping all over the place.  Towards the end, I was doubled over rather than upright.  I hit my shoe for at least the third time during this super-long set.  Yet the rope kept moving.  95...96...97...98...99.  I was about to do it.  Just one more rep.  It was definitely going to go under my feet.  The last 25-30 reps had no chance of making it, yet they did.  Rep #100 wasn't going to be any different.

Except it was.

I was on the verge of one of my biggest accomplishments in the gym.  My name was finally going up on that 100 double under board.  And then the rope stopped.  I had dodged bullets for the last 30 seconds, but when it came to the rep that mattered most, I was unable to get out of my own way.  The rope hit the top of my feet, finishing me off after 99 in a row.  I collapsed forward on to the floor.  I desperately needed some cooler air, so I crawled over to the open garage door.  While I knelt next to the railing, I felt like puking.  I managed not to.  Jenna, Bryan, and Kris were all watching but had no idea what my score was.  Jenna came over to check on me and jokingly said "tell me that wasn't 99 you got".  That nauseous feeling returned.  When I told her it was exactly 99, she let out an "oh no!" before making sure I felt okay.  I let her know I'd be fine, but I was a mix of emotions at that point.  I was tired.  I was happy.  I was disappointed.  I kinda didn't want to do double unders ever again.

After I laid by the open door for a bit, I got up and retrieved my jump rope.  I fought the urge to throw it in the trash can I passed on the way to my bag.  I was so close to getting my name on that board and now it felt so far away.  Technically I was only one rep away, but the set I had just done felt very fluky and I had little faith that I could surpass it (never mind replicate it) any time soon.  Those last 25-30 reps were miracles.  And from January to early June, my best set had only gone up from 78 to 81.  This set of 99 was definitely an outlier.  The whole thing felt like a missed opportunity.  I had once again snatched defeat from the jaws of victory.

Kris tried to cheer me up by putting a post-it note with "Dave N - 99" on the bottom of the double unders board, but I knew that it would be taken off of there by the next day.  There was really only one way I was going to feel better about this situation: ice cream.  Jenna couldn't go to Frosty Falls that night and ice cream doesn't agree with Bryan, so I headed over with Kris and Jim C.  I tried to put a positive spin on what I had just done by equating the 99 double unders to a hole in one in golf.  It is customary for a person who has gotten a hole in one to buy drinks in the clubhouse, so I was ponying up for ice cream this evening.  As disappointed as I was in falling 1 rep short, I needed to recognize that set of 99 as an accomplishment, not as a failure.

Thursday preview: I end up in class by myself.  A very difficult WOD includes double unders (oh no, not again!), the assault bike, and the GHD machine among other things.  By the end, I row like I've never rowed before.