Give It Up To Rocco

Workout date: 5/3/16

The WOD for Tuesday was one that I knew I would struggle with, so my expectations were pretty low when I arrived for the noon express class.  My expectations for the room temperature were pretty low too, but I quickly discovered that they needed to be adjusted much higher.  The infamous broilers were on in the gym and I wasn't sure why because it wasn't particularly cold in there.  Apparently this varies depending on what gender you are as the females claimed it was cold in the gym, while the sweat glands of the gentlemen in class were about to work overtime.  Guess it was time to train for the summer heat.

I was familiar with the WOD we were doing because it is the one I watched Gordy take on when he was attempting to qualify for the Crossfit Games in the Masters 60+ division.  (Note: Gordy ended up finishing 24th in the world, with only the top 20 advancing to the Crossfit Games.  24th in the entire world.  I told you he was a machine.)  Here's the workout:

AMRAP in 15 minutes:
55 double unders
15 chest-to-bar pull-ups
5 hang power cleans (155/105)
(Note: Men in the 60+ division only had to do regular pull-ups for this qualifying event.  To be honest, they could have scaled it to "walk by and glance at the bar 15 times" and I wouldn't have been able to match Gordy's score.)

With wildly inconsistent form on my double unders and only the ability to do chest-to-bar pull-ups one at a time, my only saving grace during this workout would be the hang power cleans.  Unfortunately, they constituted a measly 5 out of the 75 reps in each round.  And you had to get to the end of the round to even do them.  Like I said, low expectations here.  I gave some consideration to scaling the chest-to-bar pull-ups, but that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me.  For starters, I need to practice doing chest-to-bar pull-ups.  Coaches often say you don't get better at double unders by doing single unders.  Guessing you don't get better at chest-to-bar pull-ups by doing regular pull-ups.

Coach Aimee put us through a typical Aimee-style warmup, meaning that it was a borderline workout in advance of the actual workout.  We did some double under practice, including that game where you do as many double unders as you can in 45 seconds so that you'll have an idea of how fast you will do them in a workout.  Except you are totally fresh when you play this game and you'll be winded when round two of double unders comes around, so it ends up not being the most reliable barometer for future double under performance.  Yeah, we played that game twice.  We went through some drills with the hang power cleans.  And then we spent more time hanging on the bar than I would like, mainly because I have soft, baby hands.  The warmup concluded with us holding hollow rocks and supermans, rolling back and forth from one position to the other.  As I got up from the floor, I noticed that Tim H had left a huge sweat angel on the floor.  That made me turn around and look where I had been laying.  Yet another huge sweat angel.  And the WOD hadn't even begun!

We got ready to do a bunch of double unders and I did my best to remain calm.  There was no need to feel rushed in this workout.  It was going to be difficult for me.  But if I could stay calm and get through the double unders in a reasonable amount of time, then maybe I could post a better score than I was expecting.  The first round began and even though I wasn't stringing together huge sets of double unders, I was doing a decent job of completing some medium-sized sets and taking very little time before beginning the next set.  Did I complete my 55 reps as quickly as Pam and Dana?  Nope.  But I wasn't totally dejected about that first round when I headed over to the bar.

My form was better than this early on.  I swear!

My goal for the chest-to-bar pull-ups was modest and yet after one rep, I knew I wouldn't be able to achieve it.  I was hoping to do two sets where I strung together two chest-to-bar pull-ups.  Except it was such an effort to get the very first one that I quickly ditched that goal for a new one.  New goal: don't stand around all day in between chest-to-bar pull-ups.  Much more reasonable.  I tried to do mini-sets of 3 singles before taking a break, but those sets would end up dwindling down to two.  The warmup had left me sweaty, but I was officially drenched as I edged nearer to finishing the 15 chest-to-bar pull-ups.  With the 15th rep complete, I walked over to my barbell, did 5 quick hang power cleans and picked up my rope to begin round two.  Just over five minutes had already elapsed, meaning there was zero chance of me finishing three rounds.  Even two might be a stretch depending on how this next set of double unders went.

As you might guess, being sweaty and tired did not lend itself to pristine double under form in round two.  My sets went from the 8-12 range in round one to the 3-7 range in round two.  And it was a little more difficult getting myself motivated to go right into the next set once the previous set had ended.  It was slow going and I could see other members of the class lapping me.  Typically that really aggravates me, but getting lapped in this workout was not a matter of if, but when.  And the answer to that question was at about the 8 minute mark.

Soon after, I made my way back over to the bar, revising my goals once again as I was simply trying to do two quick singles before needing a break at this point.  It took a lot of energy to hurl my chest up to the high bar and my gas tank was trending towards empty.  Aimee came over to watch me on a rep and I managed to completely miss the bar with my chest for my only no rep of the day.  You can always count on me to mess up when the pressure is on!  No one would ever describe my progress through this set of chest-to-bar pull-ups as fast, but I was at least moving well enough that I knew I would finish the second round.  And it seemed pretty certain that when I finished my 15th chest-to-bar pull-up of this round that I was unlikely to make it back to the bar.  So I managed to find one little push towards the end of this set to get me back over to my barbell.

I trudged over there, wishing this workout was over and feeling a little bit concerned that I might not be able to hold on for all five hang power cleans.  Once I got through the first two reps, that doubt went away and I hung on for the final three cleans.  There was about two minutes remaining in the WOD and it seemed unlikely that I would finish all 55 double unders awaiting me, but I've been known to find a little double under magic once I'm exhausted and can't overthink the movement any more.  I did manage one larger set of about 12 reps during the last round of double unders, but I needed more than one medium-sized set to get me to 55 before time ran out.  Final score: 2+37 (187 reps).

If you had asked me to predict a score prior to the workout, it wouldn't have been far off from what I ended up with.  It would have been nice to finish off three rounds of double unders and get a few extra chest-to-bar pull-ups in, but completing three full rounds would have been a stretch for me.  So while I wasn't thrilled with my score, it was hard for me to feel disappointed when it was over with.  Especially because I could go and change into a dry shirt.

Did I mention I was promised lunch too?  Pam, Dana, and Erika L headed over to the Taphouse for lunch and an adult beverage.  Possibly two.  Someone may have talked us into a third.  It was a lot of fun and I got to hang out with some cool folks from the gym that I normally don't get to spend much time with.  We got to share gym stories.  We talked about kids (even though Dana called me out for not having any).  We debated what a Becky was.  And I made a promise that the next time I was part of a team at the gym, I would dub that team "Give It Up To Rocco".  Oh, the fun things you hear while day drinking...

Wednesday preview: My final heavy front squat day before testing as I do 2x2 at 265 (my current 1RM).  Also, some snatch tips from Clay and some clean tips from Jim C.

Your Score Is Terrible

Workout date: 5/2/16

Back before I wandered over to Crossfit KOP, I would watch episodes of the Crossfit Games on ESPN.  They had all sorts of crazy events during this fitness spectacle.  And despite the fact that every competitor looked like they had chiseled physiques, it was clear that each of the competitors was good at certain things and not so good at other things.  Someone might finish first in the event held in the afternoon, then follow that up with a 29th place finish in the evening workout.  You didn't have to destroy the competition in every event in order to win the Crossfit Games.  It was a war of attrition.  If you could consistently perform well in all of these events, you could end up on top at the conclusion of the weekend, even if you didn't win a single event.

That idea resonated with me.  There have been very few things in this life where I could claim excellence.  I was always good with numbers, so math became one of those rare things that people gave me credit for being great at.  Beyond that?  Not a whole lot.  When it came to sports, I tended to be pretty good at a lot of different sports, but I never had a breakthrough in one sport in particular.  So this idea that there was this new hybrid sport (for lack of a better term) where you could succeed by being okay but not great at a variety of things definitely sparked my interest.  As I began my Crossfit career, I was always interested in the WODs where a bunch of movements were being tested.  Testing three things in this workout?  Great!  Need to be able to do 5-6 movements to finish the WOD?  Even better!

I think that explains why I've always gotten excited when Fight Gone Bad has been programmed.  Fight Gone Bad tests 5 different Crossfit movements and you take that test 3 times before you are done.  One minute at each station, with one minute of rest at the end of every round.  Those five stations are:

Wall Balls (20#/14# to 10'/9')
Sumo Deadlift High Pull (75/55)
Box Jumps (20")
Push Press (75/55)
Calories Rowed

Great at box jumps, but suck at everything else?  Then your score is probably going to be lower than someone else who is pretty good at all of these movements.  This WOD was like a mini-Crossfit Games for those of us who will never make it there without paid admission.  It was my chance to see whether my perception (that I'm moderately good at a bunch of things) matched reality.

Before going into how I did on Fight Gone Bad, let me begin with a bit of a reality check.  Reality check #1: Being moderately good at sports does not mean you will automatically be moderately good at things you have never done before.  When I first attempted Fight Gone Bad, I think the only movements I felt comfortable with were the box jumps (no rebounding) and the rowing (lousy form). The rest of it was a disaster, especially the wall balls.  Reality check #2: Despite my love of WODs including many different movements, I've never shown any Crossfit aptitude in chippers.  In fact, you could probably make an argument that I do worse on average in such workouts.  So my results don't justify getting all excited about Fight Gone Bad.  Perhaps I simply need variety in my workouts to keep me motivated.

The Monday 6:30 was a BAC (actual acronym for Big Ass Class) consisting of 16 people.  The on-ramp program was semi-complete in that the folks who were in that group could now join regular classes if they were interested.  If they were not, they could continue on with on-ramp instruction.  Only two members of the program joined us for Fight Gone Bad (brave souls!), so a portion of the gym was needed for the on-ramp program still.  That left enough space for seven lanes, meaning two groups would need to share a lane.  They would do the workout concurrently, but start at different stations.

Before we even headed out to warm up, we were told to get a partner for this workout as it is traditionally run in two heats, with one person keeping score while their partner is working.  I was standing right next to Ryan A and I knew he wasn't going to need to scale any part of this workout, so I asked him if I could be his partner.  He was cool with that arrangement and we were all set.  Most of the remaining members of the class began to search for a partner as well, but there was one team that knew they were working together before they even showed up to class: Dana and Pam.  These two are always teaming up on partner workouts when they are not competing against each other at the noon express class.  They were at the 6:30 class this evening due to unfortunate circumstances.  Dana's father had passed away a few days earlier.  She wanted to do Fight Gone Bad, but the only time she could make it was at 6:30 at night.  Pam, being the awesome friend she is, agreed to come in at that time to do the workout with her.

Needing at least 35 minutes to get through the two heats, the warmup had to move quickly, as there were 5 movements to go over.  Each partner needed to get some practice in, plus the barbells had to be set up with the proper weights.  As we were doing all of this, Ryan asked me if I wanted to go first.  I told him that it didn't matter to me, which was only a tiny lie.  Typically, I'm a procrastinator and go second when we do this workout, but it seemed like Ryan might be the same way.  That was confirmed when he flat out told me "I'd rather go second".  No big deal.  In fact, it would probably be good for me to stop putting things off and go first more often in workouts like this.

I was standing over near my wall ball when Coach Steph announced that we were going to get started.  A few other people needed to run over to the wall as Steph began the countdown to the start of this 17-minute burner.  Wall balls were the first station and I held on to the ball the entire minute.  I tend to average one shot every 2 seconds and I was close to that pace, getting 29 reps in before the buzzer sounded, letting me know it was time to move on to the sumo deadlift high pull.  This is easily my least favorite aspect of this workout (now that I know how to do wall balls properly).  I tried to put together a couple of bigger sets during this minute, but 6-7 reps was about as big of a set that I could muster.  After 23 reps, it was on to the box jumps.  The normal box height for guys is 24", although there are some workouts where we must use a 30" box.  So it was a nice change to only have to jump on a 20" box.  I kept one thought running through my head: It's a small box, you don't have to jump that high.  Typically I'm terrified of getting tired and tripping, but it was going to be hard to trip on the 20" box.  I rebounded as long as I could to quickly get through reps.  Towards the end I lost some steam, but it wasn't a bad first round, as I added another 23 reps to my score.

Up next was my favorite part of this workout: the push press.  With the barbell only weighing 75 pounds, I could move it quickly and typically didn't need to put it down until I completed a very big set.  Except that wasn't the case on this day.  I'm not sure whether my shaky cardio caught up with me or not, but I felt the need to drop the barbell after every 10 reps.  With time winding down, I grabbed the barbell a 3rd time and got 6 more reps for a score of 26 before going to my rower.  You never get a full minute on the rower because you have to get situated and strap your feet in before you start rowing, so that always ends up being the lowest score.  I tried to row steadily but with big pulls.  That got me 12 calories.  Round 1 total score: 113 reps.

I have to admit that I was a little disappointed in that score.  Before the workout, my goal was 300 reps, despite the fact that my PR was 262 reps.  How did I figure I was going to make that leap?  Well, when I got 262 reps, it was in early February and I had done that workout after flying home from Vegas a little earlier in the day.  And I was a bit hungover.  If I could get 262 like that, then I could certainly get much more than that if I didn't abuse my body with alcohol for five days straight.  In fact, I thought I could do 15% more!  (Admittedly, this wasn't my strongest week when it came to logic.)  The problem was that my scores in rounds two and three of Fight Gone Bad have always been much lower than round one.  So if I was getting a score of 300 in this workout, I needed a first round score in the 120-130 range.  113 wasn't going to cut it.

I took a swig of water and tried to mentally prepare myself for round two.  That one minute break goes by awfully fast though and we were back doing wall balls before any of us had fully recovered.  I started doing sets of 5 wall balls before dropping, unable to hold on the entire time like I had done to kick things off in this workout.  I got 17 wall balls in round two.  At the sumo deadlift high pull, it was now sets of 4 reps, with a score of 14 for round two.  At the box jump, I did some rebounding, but also worked in some single jumps from the floor when I needed a bit of a breather.  I got 18 reps at that station.  The push press remained more of a struggle than I had anticipated and I could only get 21 reps in before trudging to my rower.  Once there, I got 10 calories before my second minute of rest began.  Second round score: 80.  Score through two rounds: 193.

Any delusions of getting 300 were now completely gone.  I wasn't entirely sure I'd beat my hungover score of 262 as that required a solid total of 70 reps in round three.  I did my best to control my breathing, but before I knew it, round three was beginning.  There was very little difference between how I felt during round two and round three.  I was exhausted, but I tried my best to keep knocking out reps at each station that I went to.  I only got 16 wall balls in round three, while my sumo deadlift high pulls remained at 14.  The box jump was much more difficult and I was lucky to get 15 reps completed.  I tried to put everything I had into the push press as it was my last chance to drive up my score.  After getting 20 reps there, I got on the rower, emptied the tank and managed 12 calories before the WOD was over.  Third round score: 77.  Final score: 270.

It wasn't exactly what I wanted, but it was a PR.  Right next to me, Danielle had caught me late and put up a score of 273.  And two rows over, Pam had nearly gotten herself on the gym whiteboard with a score of 332, just missing Aimee's third-place score of 334.  (Note: The top score of 360 on the whiteboard was done under easier circumstances.  I think Pam's performance was comparable to that score as well.)

After a few minutes of recovery, I got ready to keep score for Ryan.  His first round was similar to mine in every respect except for the box jumps, where I don't think he felt as comfortable rebounding as much as I did.  And just like me, his second and third rounds were considerably lower than his first round.  It really is brutal trying to maintain the intensity of round one in the final two rounds.  Ryan's final score: 228.

Tic-tac-FGB

As I reported Ryan's score and the rest of the class gave Steph their partner's score, I heard Dana remark that her score was terrible.  I walked over to her and saw the small white board her and Pam had used to keep score.  In the bottom corner, Dana's score was circled: 270.  Like me, Dana had visions of 300 reps in her head prior to the workout.  I pretended to be very upset with her declaration, letting her know that I had gotten the same score as her.  Her reply?  "Your score is terrible too!"  Her face remained angry for a second before she gave me a smile letting me know she was only joking.  I thought back to the workout I did after grieving Indy's death and how quickly I mentally checked out during it.  For Dana to put up a score of 270 after the loss she suffered spoke volumes about her resilience.

Pam and Dana were going to attend the noon class on Tuesday and told me that I should come too as they were going out to lunch afterwards.  The promise of a meal after the WOD?  Count me in!  They took off, while I stuck around to do my 6x2 session of front squats at 215.  I had just done the 3x3 session the day before, but I felt good enough to do the light session about 36 hours later.  Plus, I was trying to accelerate the schedule for completing my squat program for reasons I'll lay out in future blog posts.  Having rested up from my heat of Fight Gone Bad, I had no trouble getting through the 6x2 session.  Only one more heavy session and one more light session before I could finally test my front squat!

Tuesday preview: It is really, really, really warm in the gym at the Tuesday noon express class.  And my chest-to-bar pull-ups leave a lot to be desired.  But at least there is day drinking afterwards!

Consistently, Redundantly Good

Workout date: 5/1/16

It didn't click in my head that Sunday was May 1 and that because it was the first Sunday of the month, that Open Gym would be scheduled that day.  There really isn't that much difference between Open Strength on Sunday and Open Gym, other than having an extra half-hour to work on whatever you want.  The other difference with Open Gym is who shows up.  Open Strength is typically attended by a handful of people, most of whom are there to work on their Olympic lifts or to squat.  Open Gym tends to have more people that I see during the week when I come in for WODs.  There were close to a dozen people at this Open Gym, with many people working together to practice events in the upcoming 3rd edition of Brawl In The Burbs.

My intention wasn't to do anything metcon-related.  First and foremost, I was there to complete my 3x3 front squat session.  Having done a set of 3 reps at 255 previously, I felt confident that I could get through this session unscathed.  I probably put more pressure on myself than I should at this point in the program, but when you come this far, you don't want to mess things up at the end.  All I needed to do was go through my routine, stay focused during the reps, and I'd be fine.

As I got ready to warm up, I looked over and saw Danielle, Kris, and EJ testing out a Brawl event.  This was the WOD I had done with Giulz at a recent Competitors Class.  That day, I did the event as it is written for the RX teams.  Danielle, Kris, and EJ were practicing the Scaled version.  They were one guy short and I wasn't sure how they planned on doing the event with only 3 people.  Since I didn't think it would take me very long to get through my squats, I offered to join them once I was done.  So much for not doing any metcons!

If I was going to take part in that workout with them, I needed to get going with my front squats.  I did my set of 5 reps at 135, followed by my set of 4 reps at 185.   Everything felt fine through those sets.  I was going to use 215 for my next set like usual, but I was going to add in an additional set at 235 rather than making some huge jump to 255 for my working sets.  I thought about only doing one set at 225 in between the warmup set at 185 and the first working set at 255, but I wasn't doing a lot of volume on this day and I figured doing an extra set in the progression wasn't going to kill me, especially since it was only two more reps.  The set of 2 reps at 215 was just like the ones I had grown accustomed to on my light days and the set of 2 reps at 235 wasn't bad either.  I was ready for the 3 sets at 255.

There isn't too much detail to go into about those 3 sets, which is always a positive sign for me.  If I can go into detail about why set #2 was different than set #1, then I probably lost my focus along the way or I simply had lousy form.  If I can't differentiate between the sets, then I probably did it right.  For each of the three sets, I took my time and if I hit my sticking point along the way, the time I spent there was extremely brief.  Never ended up on my toes or stumbled forward.  It was just a nice, solid session.  The only negative was that my right palm continued to hurt due to the hyperextension of my hand as I held the barbell.  Keeping your elbows up during heavy front squats is crucial and this was the only way I could make that happen.  My right hand will be very pleased with me when this program is done!

As I put my weights away, I looked over and saw that Danielle and Kris were already in the middle of their Brawl practice.  EJ was not.  I went over and asked what had happened and he said that he injured his back while doing the wall balls portion of the event.  I don't think I had taken a long time with my squats, but they were probably ready to go and decided to move forward with three people.  I felt bad for EJ because I know how annoying tweaking your back can be, but hopefully he will heal quickly (Brawl is still more than 2 months away).

Having been liberated from doing a metcon, I decided that I would next work on my clean and jerks.  That was a short-lived experiment.  I did a few reps at 135 pounds and almost immediately felt pain in my right hand each time I cleaned the barbell.  At first, I thought that I could ignore the pain and keep going.  Part of me was hoping that the pain might go away as I progressed higher in weight (don't ask me how that logic makes any sense).  I added 30 pounds to the barbell and did a clean with 165 pounds.  I didn't even bother attempting the jerk when I got it to my shoulders.  I dumped the barbell and shook out my right hand, finally realizing what a bad idea doing cleans was with a tender hand.  I put my plates and barbell away and scanned the gym for something else to work on.

The pain in my hand eliminated pull-up and toes-to-bar practice from consideration.  Eventually I settled on doing heavy KB swings and double unders to finish off the day.  The last time I did KB swings was in the "27's" workout two weeks prior.  I tend to struggle with KB swings (having timid hips and all), but I actually did well with them in that workout, even though they appeared about midway through it.  Those KB swings were done using 53 pounds.  I wanted some practice with a heavier KB as the 70 pound variety often appears in workouts.  On a good day, I can string together 10-12 in a workout.  If I'm tired and sweaty, it ends up being more like 6-8 reps.  Being relatively fresh, the goal for this day was sets of 15 reps, with the thought being that if I could do 12 reps, I could hang on for 3 more reps even if I wanted to stop.  And it worked out.  In the first set, I got to 15 reps without grunting or hurting too much.  For my second set, I needed to push a little more towards the end in order to get through all 15 reps.  For my third and final set, some grunting was required as I got to about 11 reps before my body lost interest in swinging the 70 pounder.  But knowing this was my last set helped and I held on for the final 4 reps.

The plan after that was to work on double unders, but I got to talk to Rachel for the first time in a long time and ended up skipping them.  I see Rachel at Dudes After Dark, but I rarely work out with her any more because she does a lot of programming outside of Crossfit and I greatly prefer sleep to Competitors Class on Saturday mornings.  Yes, I could use all the double under practice I can get, but catching up with a friend seemed like a better use of my time.

Monday preview: Fight Gone Bad.  A workout I always look forward to.  Until I actually do it.

Analysis of Kentucky Derby 142

(Analysis of Kentucky Derby 142?  That's not Crossfit-related!  Yeah, I know, but since this is the one time each year that I can reliably expect my non-gambling friends to gamble, I thought I'd share my analysis of the big race.  It also gives you the opportunity to mock me after the race is over, since I rarely get the Derby right.)

It’s time for Kentucky Derby 142!  And this is the place to get way too much analysis on the race, along with some faulty prognostication that will leave your wallet considerably lighter.  Don’t say you weren’t warned!

Before getting to the pros and cons of the horses in this year’s field, allow me to give you some background on this year’s race.  Last year, American Pharoah had a historic year, becoming the first racehorse in 37 years to win the Triple Crown.  Will we have the same buzz this year?  Probably not.  This year’s crop of male horses leaves a lot to be desired.  I said male horses because there are a few 3 year old females that would have been contenders in this year’s Derby.  In fact, one of them would have been the favorite had her connections pointed her to the race.  (That filly’s name is Songbird.  Unfortunately, she recently spiked a fever and will be unable to run in the Kentucky Oaks where she would have been a huge favorite.) 

Most of the Derby preps followed a similar pattern: very fast early, very slow late.  That explains why the field has an unusually high number of closers in it.  One other factor to consider: 3 of the major Derby preps (Florida Derby, Wood Memorial, and Santa Anita Derby) were contested on wet tracks.  The forecast for Saturday does not include much of a chance for rain, meaning the race will likely be run on a fast track.

There is one horse in this year’s field who could be a potential superstar and his name is Nyquist.  He is undefeated and he was the 2 year old champion.  So why isn’t he getting the buzz that American Pharoah did?  Because he’s only been slightly better than the rest of his slow generation.  Most Derby winners come into the race sporting speed figures in the 100-110 range.  Nyquist’s best speed figure in a route race is 94.  Because of that, folks are looking for alternatives to the undefeated champ.  I’ll lay out who I like below.  In total, I’ll be using six horses for exactas, trifectas, and superfectas.  Most of the horses in the race are toss outs for me.  And there are a couple of horses who may win, but I’ll try and beat them to cash in on horses with higher odds.

Without further ado, your field for the 142^nd Kentucky Derby:

#1 – Trojan Nation (ML Odds: 50-1)

Pros: Ummm….value?  Even that might not be true as you’re probably not going to get 81-1 on him like he went off at in the Wood Memorial.  It’s possible that this deep closer will like running 10 furlongs as his big improvement in the Wood (where he lost by a head) came in a race where he ran farther than he had ever run in the past.

Cons: This horse is a maiden.  That means he has never won a race in his life.  The Derby is a tough place to get win #1.  Plus, there is no post position trainers dread in the Derby more than post #1.  A win by this horse would be more shocking than Mine That Bird’s victory (and that horse should have been about 150-1 in that race).

Verdict: Complete Toss

#2 – Suddenbreakingnews (ML Odds: 20-1)

Pros: Won the Southwest Stakes and was second in the Arkansas Derby despite a very wide trip.  His speed figure of 94 in that race matches Nyquist’s best speed figure in a route race.  Has been training well this week at Churchill Downs.

Cons: Lost to the horse right next to him in his last two races.  There is unlikely to be a lot of speed in the Derby and this is horse is a deep closer.  The #2 post is not a lot better than the #1 post in the Derby.

Verdict: Toss, but you may want to use him on the bottom of trifectas/superfectas

#3 - Creator (ML Odds: 10-1)

Pros: Upset winner of the Arkansas Derby seems to be getting better at the right time.  As the races have gotten longer, his results have improved.  His latest speed figure is competitive with the top contenders in the race.  Another who has made a strong impression while training at Churchill Downs this week.

Cons: He may be the deepest of the deep closers in this race.  He had a perfect trip in the Arkansas Derby, allowing him to weave past 13 other horses in a race with a blazing pace up front.  Can he do the same thing and pass 19 other horses in a race that looks like it will only have moderate speed up front?

Verdict: Toss, but you may want to use him on the bottom of trifectas/superfectas

#4 - Mo Tom (ML Odds: 20-1)

Pros: The hard luck horse of this year's 3 year old crop.  In the Risen Star, this deep closer was charging up the rail, but had to take up when the hole on the rail closed.  In the Louisiana Derby, he came charging up the rail again, only to meet the same fate, having to pull up in mid-stretch.  He might have won both of those races with better trips.  He may be the best closer in the field.

Cons: In those two races, he faced a combined 19 opponents and found a ton of trouble.  On Saturday, he will have 19 opponents in one race.  If he couldn't avoid trouble in shorter fields, how does he do it in this huge field?  He has yet to post a speed figure in the 90's, much less one in the 100's, so maybe he's not as good of a closer as people originally thought.

Verdict: Toss, but you may want to use him on the bottom of trifectas/superfectas

#5 - Gun Runner (ML Odds: 10-1)

Pros: The beneficiary of Mo Tom's troubles, Gun Runner won both of the Louisiana prep races.  He has 4 wins in 5 races.  Nobody did better in the post position draw than this horse as he has four closers to his inside and three closers to his outside.  Should be able to easily get a good position early in the race.  His ability to lay close to the pace will be a plus in a race that is not expected to have a lot of early speed.

Cons: Despite perfect trips in those prep races (and not so perfect trips for his competition), he could only muster speed figures of 90 and 91.  Even with another perfect trip, he will need to run considerably faster to wear the roses on Saturday night.

Verdict: Toss, think he'll fade in the stretch

#6 - My Man Sam (ML Odds: 20-1)

Pros: Lightly raced with only 4 races so far, but has two speed figures in the 90's (top of 95).  Ran 2nd in the Blue Grass after starting from the outside post and trailing the field of 14 in the early stages of the race.  Draws a much better post today.  Has never gone off at more than 5-1, yet sits at 20-1 in the ML.

Cons: Moved from 14th to 2nd...why that sounds like another deep closer!  The Blue Grass was not a particularly fast race, yet he still couldn't catch Brody's Cause (who also closed from the back of the field).  As with all of the other deep closers, may not get the pace setup he enjoyed in the prep races.

Verdict: Live longshot, will use in my bets

#7 - Oscar Nominated (ML Odds: 50-1)

Pros: He wasn't nominated to the Triple Crown, but after winning the Spiral, his owners supplemented him into the Derby for $200,000.  That shows a lot of faith!  He's more of a mid-pack stalker than a deep closer, so a slower pace up front won't harm him as much as some of the others in here.

Cons: Having a horse in the Derby who has never won before may have seemed strange to you.  How about entering a horse who has never run on dirt before?  Probably not the best way to get ready for the most important dirt race of the year.  His best speed figure?  82.  This guy and Trojan Nation are two of the three horses most likely to finish last in this race.  The other?  The guy next door.

Verdict: Complete Toss

#8 - Lani (ML Odds: 30-1)

Pros: Only horse in the field to have already run 10 furlongs.  Breeding suggests he is one of the few that will appreciate the length of this race.  2 for 2 on dirt tracks.

Cons: Japanese horse got in by winning the slow UAE Derby.  Has been the talk all week at Churchill Downs because some days the horse refuses to train.  Seems to be a complete head case.  Trainer says the horse can contend if he "decides to run", meaning there is a chance the gates will open on Saturday and this horse may just cantor on out instead of running.  Make sure you get much more than 30-1 odds if you decide to bet him.

Verdict: Complete Toss

#9 - Destin (ML Odds: 15-1)

Pros: Won both Derby preps in Tampa with a couple of the top speed figures in this field.  His last speed figure of 100 is tied for the best figure in the field for a fast route race.  Defeated Outwork (Wood winner) and Brody's Cause (Blue Grass winner) in that race.  He is a pure stalker, which is the perfect running style for this year's race.  He has the best trainer in the country (Todd Pletcher).  And you may get 15-1 on him.

Cons: Hasn't run in 9 weeks (typical Derby layoff: 4-5 weeks).  The last time he ran after a long layoff was the worst race of his career.  Has yet to run a big race outside of Tampa.  Can he duplicate the races he ran there?

Verdict: Will be using, but probably underneath rather than on top

#10 - Whitmore (ML Odds: 20-1)

Pros: Closer made menacing moves in each of the three Arkansas preps, ending up with two seconds and a third in those races.  His jockey (Victor Espinoza) will be looking to make history by becoming the first jockey to win three consecutive Derbies.

Cons: Only wins have been sprints.  Flattened out in all three Arkansas preps after looking like he might win.  Was unable to close as well as Creator and Suddenbreakingnews last time out and there are even more closers in this field.  Serious distance concerns.

Verdict: Complete Toss

#11 - Exaggerator (ML Odds: 8-1)

Pros: The highest speed figure (103) in the field courtesy of his win in the slop in the Santa Anita Derby.  His other speed figures this year (98 and 96) were on dry tracks, so it isn't like he needs it to rain.  Has taken on the best and hung with them, as his last 7 races were all graded stakes and he has finished no further than 3 lengths behind the winner.  Has a Grade 3, a Grade 2, and a Grade 1 victory on his resume.

Cons: Say it with me everybody: he's a closer!  He will likely go off as the second choice, so the value may not be there for this one.  In his races on fast tracks this year, he has given the appearance that he does not want to go longer.  Certainly loves the slop, but looks like there will be no rain on Saturday.

Verdict: Contender, but I will try and beat him, so I won't have him in my bets

#12 - Tom's Ready (ML Odds: 30-1)

Pros: His trainer (Dallas Stewart) specializes in getting longshots to hit the board in the Derby, as Golden Soul and Commanding Curve each finished 2nd in this race at huge odds in recent years.  Typically is a closer, but like Oscar Nominated, will probably be more of a mid-pack stalker in this race.  Churchill Downs is his home track.

Cons: Only made the field when Mo Tom got shut off in the Louisiana Derby.  Had lost to that one three straight times before that.  Highest speed figure is 85.  His one victory came in a sprint where he led the whole way, something that is not going to happen here.

Verdict: Complete Toss

#13 - Nyquist (ML Odds: 3-1)

Pros: He's the undefeated champ.  He has beaten a lot of these horses already.  Wasn't afraid to fly from California to Florida to take on the early Derby favorite, Mohaymen, whom he trounced in the Florida Derby.  He likes to stalk the pace, so he will get the perfect setup in here.  Proved in the Breeders Cup Juvenile last year that even if things don't go his way (hung very wide and had to close from far back), he can still get the job done.  Very professional horse.  Did get a speed figure of 101 to begin the year when sprinting.

Cons: Taking 3-1 in the Derby is an easy way to lose money in the long run.  There are distance concerns here as his fastest route speed figure is only 94.  In the Florida Derby, he started wandering out towards the middle of the track at the end of the race.  Might struggle in the final furlong of this race.

Verdict: A must use, but will try and play horses with more value over him on my tickets

#14 - Mohaymen (ML Odds: 10-1)

Pros: Was the early Derby favorite after impressively winning four consecutive Grade 2 races.  Another stalk the pace type, so he should also get a perfect trip on Saturday.  Had he won the Florida Derby (where he was favored over Nyquist), he would have been around 3-1 in this race.  Now you may be getting double-digit odds on this horse.  His only loss was in the Florida Derby, where he raced wide over a wet track.

Cons: What was that last race?  Did he blink the first time another horse actually challenged him?  If so, he's in big trouble here.  Critics don't like the fact that his speed figures haven't improved this year as he put up one 95 after another in those Grade 2 victories.  Has to find a way to turn the tables on Nyquist among others.

Verdict: Will be using, but like Nyquist, probably underneath rather than on top

#15 - Outwork (ML Odds: 15-1)

Pros: Got a big speed figure in Tampa when running second to Destin, then held on to win the Wood Memorial in the slop.  He was the only speed horse in the Wood that didn't back up badly in that race and he set a pretty blistering pace in there.  Will be very prominent in the early pace of this Derby as either the leader of the race or running a close second.  Appears to be getting better at the perfect time.  Was one of the two horses (along with Shagaf) that people have raved about in training this week at Churchill Downs.

Cons: Barely held off an 81-1 maiden in the Wood.  Destin stalked him, then went right by him at the top of the stretch in Tampa after he set a slow pace in that race.  What makes you think horses like Nyquist and Mohaymen won't do the exact same thing, especially since he won't be allowed to get a soft lead in here?

Verdict: Like Exaggerator, I will be trying to beat this contender and will not be using him in my bets

#16 - Shagaf (ML Odds: 20-1)

Pros: Like Mohaymen, he was undefeated until struggling on a wet track in his final Derby prep.  Ran into some trouble while launching his run in the Wood, possibly costing him the race.  He has trained lights out since he has arrived at Churchill Downs.  While he might not be stalking the pace, he will likely work out a very nice position mid-pack in this race.

Cons: Think of him as Mohaymen-lite.  Similar resume, a little less buzz, and certainly slower speed figures than Mohaymen.  His best figure is 88 and that was in his first race ever.  He has yet to match it since.  Like Mohaymen, will have to make amends for the clunker he just had in his final tuneup for the Derby.

Verdict: Toss, just don't think he is fast enough to keep up with the best horses in here

#17 - Mor Spirit (ML Odds: 12-1)

Pros: Has never finished worse than second in 7 career starts.  His trainer, Bob Baffert, knows a thing or two about winning the Derby.  Has consistently run speed figures in the 90's, with his best a 97 two starts back.  Looked like he was struggling to handle the sloppy track in the Santa Anita Derby, but still managed to fight on to get second in that race.  Has been very eager while training at Churchill Downs, giving the impression that this mid-pack stalker may be closer to the pace than usual on Saturday.

Cons: May not have a killer instinct.  During his training, he has not blown away his maiden training partner, almost like he doesn't want to leave him behind.  You can see a similar tendency in the stretch run of his races, which may explain his 4 second place finishes in 7 starts.  Certainly talented enough to win this race, but will he gallop along with his buddies at the end of this race or can he go by them all?

Verdict: My original pick to win the Derby is a must use, but I suspect he might finish second again

#18 - Majesto (ML Odds: 30-1)

Pros: Like Creator, this late bloomer has seen a noticeable bump in his speed figures in his last two races.  Looked like a credible threat to Nyquist at the top of the stretch of the Florida Derby before finishing second and punching his ticket to the Derby.  Should be a big price.

Cons: It's been a while since we've gotten to say hello to another closer in the race, but here we are.  This one isn't as deep of a closer as some others in here, but he's likely going to be well back off the pace.  Only got in here because Mohaymen faltered in the slop.  Top speed figure of 89 won't cut it in this race.

Verdict: Toss, but you may want to use him on the bottom of trifectas/superfectas

#19 - Brody's Cause (ML Odds: 12-1)

Pros: Winner of the Blue Grass has already won two Grade 1 events in his career, while also finishing 3rd in last year's Breeders Cup Juvenile.  He has beaten Exaggerator both times those two horses have faced off.  This is his 3rd start off of a layoff, which is typically when a horse gives his best performance.

Cons: If Gun Runner got the best of the draw, this horse got the worst of it.  He is a deep closer who ended up in post 19.  I've already laid out all of the other closers in this race, so he will either have a very wide trip or he will need to duck in behind a wall of slow horses.  His best speed figure is a 91, so he will need a major improvement to win here.

Verdict: Talented horse, but seems like everything is working against him here, so I will try to beat him

#20 - Danzing Candy (ML Odds: 15-1)

Pros: He is the speed of the speed in a race that doesn't contain very much of it.  Likely only has to worry about Outwork and Nyquist on the front end.  Fended off both Exaggerator and Mor Spirit after setting the pace in the San Felipe.  His speed figure from that race was 100, tied with Destin for the best in this field for a fast route race.  May not have liked the sloppy going when running 4th in the Santa Anita Derby.  He will be the last one loaded into the gate, which may help this horse who has acted up in the gate in the past.

Cons: Post 20 is hard to overcome.  May have to be pushed along early so that he is not wide into the first turn.  Went super fast in the Santa Anita Derby as Smith could not control his speed and faded to fourth, which raised concerns about his stamina.  Will he be able to avoid a wide trip without using too much speed early on?  And can he handle 10 furlongs?

Verdict: My pick to win the Derby.  Love the odds I'm getting.  If he repeats the race he ran in the San Felipe, don't see why he can't go the whole way on Saturday.

#21 - Laoban (Scratched)

#22 - Cherry Wine (Scratched)

Horses I'm using on top: Danzing Candy, Mor Spirit, and My Man Sam

Horses I'm using underneath: Destin, Nyquist, and Mohaymen

One confession on Danzing Candy: I've been following him since his first start, which I loved.  Where did he finish in that race?  8th.  (Hey, American Pharaoh finished 6th in his first start!)  In that race, he had the #1 post (first-time starters are generally freaked out by the rail).  The gates opened, all the other horses left, and Danzing Candy was flat-footed, spotting his opponents 5 lengths.  As they went down the backstretch, Danzing Candy zoomed up the rail, moving from 12th to 6th before running out of room as he approached the lead group.  He checked (pulled up) as he ran up on those horses before his jockey guided him four-wide on the turn.  From there, he moved all the way up to 3rd before running out of juice in the stretch.  His jockey didn't push him once it was clear he wasn't going to win and a few other horses passed him just before the wire.  It was clear that this was a talented horse that needed the experience.  I've been high on him ever since watching that race.  Hopefully he'll run even more impressively on Saturday.

Good luck with your wagers!

Shut Up Meg

Workout date: 4/29/16

It has been some time since I worked out on a Friday.  In fact, my last Friday workout came at the conclusion of the Open.  Maybe 16.5 was a little more scarring than I first thought!  The more likely explanation for my Friday absences from the gym is that I've settled into a little bit of a routine.  Monday has become WOD followed by light front squat session day.  Tuesday is Dudes After Dark.  Wednesday morning is heavy front squat session time, usually followed by a return visit in the evening to do the WOD.  Thursday gets me away from the gym as I switch things up with Endurance class.  After four days of doing a variety of workouts, it makes sense to use Friday as a rest day.  That is, unless there are things going on outside of the gym that make coming to the gym on Friday seem like a good idea.  That was the case this week.

Megs was turning 30 and had sent out an invite for her birthday party the following Saturday.  The problem: I had friends coming in from out of town that day and I knew I wouldn't be able to make the party.  I was bummed, especially since your 30th birthday is generally a big deal, meaning I was almost certainly missing a good party.  I got a hold of Megs, let her know I couldn't make it, but asked her if she was interested in a plan B.  Her boyfriend, Neil, was completing the on-ramp program on Friday.  I thought it might be fun to go out for a drink after the class was over to celebrate his graduation from the program and to welcome Megs into her thirties a week early.  They both agreed.  It would have been weird just meeting them at the gym after they had worked out, so I signed up for the 6:30 class at KOP.

Know who else was making a rare Friday night appearance at the gym?  Coach Rachel.  She was filling in at the 6:30, so the class became Friday Night Fellas!  (Note: There were actually more girls in class than guys.  Did that stop me from coming up with an alliterative Friday night counterpart to Dudes After Dark?  Absolutely not!)  The WOD was focused on finding a 1RM snatch, followed by a short cash out where we'd be doing 50 GHD sit-ups for time.  First we warmed up, then we spread out to work on our lifts, with me and Luis ending up on the "magic platform".  Luis was completely immersing himself in the experience, even using kilo plates.  Maybe I'm old-fashioned, but I still haven't gotten to the point where I'm interested in using those fancy colored kilo plates.  Perhaps my insistence on using black plates with weights listed in pounds is due to a bit of American stubbornness on my part.  I think this clip captures my reaction to kilo plates accurately:

The worst part about watching people lift with kilo plates?  Those plates morph into a giant flashing neon sign saying "convert me!" and I end up going from casually watching someone lift to frantically calculating how much weight is on their barbell.  You know I can't resist you, math.  Why must you tease me?!?!

We were supposed to be making 7 lifts as we worked our way to a 1RM.  I planned out what weights I wanted to use in my progression, although I might need to work a little more on my time management during these sessions.  I'm either going too fast (with a coach coming over to tell me to take my time between lifts) or I'm going too slow (needing to rush at the end to finish all of my lifts). There doesn't seem to be any middle ground with me.  Guess there's always something to work on.  As for the weights I wanted to use, I settled on 95-115-135-150-160-170-180.  How did I come up with those?  175 is my 1RM and I wanted to have a shot at a new PR if I happened to be "on" this evening, so 180 was going to be my final lift assuming all went swimmingly up to that point.  The real goal was 170.  I had recently gotten 165, one of a handful of times that I had gotten that weight.  I've hit 175 once, but that was at the end of the 8 week Barbell Club program (translation: when I was at peak form with my Olympic lifts because I was practicing them religiously).  Hitting 170 would feel like a PR to me because it would come at a time when I wasn't focused almost exclusively on Olympic lifts.  What was I truly expecting?  That I would miss 1 or 2 lifts along the way, with success at 160 and failure at 170.

Both the clean and jerk and the snatch are lifts where you take a barbell from the ground to overhead. The difference is that the clean and jerk is a two-part lift (the clean gets the barbell from the ground to your shoulders, the jerk moves the barbell from your shoulders to overhead), while the snatch eliminates the middleman, as you go from the ground to overhead in one quick motion.  The clean and jerk is the local train, while the snatch is the express.  However, I can't make anything easy.  I've started treating the snatch like a two-part lift as well.  The reason I have done this is because I am more confident in my overhead squat than anything else I do in the gym.  So when I snatch, part one is all about getting under the barbell, catching it in a full squat.  While others might get panicked in this position, for me, it's my happy place.  I can hang out there with the barbell overhead and stand up with it when I'm ready.  Since my overhead squat 1RM is 225 pounds and I've never snatched more than 175 pounds, there should never be a point where the weight I'm holding overhead should be too much for me.  I can be patient while in my squat.  So now the lift is all about getting to that point rather than the finished position.

Rather than power snatch the lighter weights, I've begun to practice the full squat with the lighter weights I use.  Did it for 95 pounds.  Did it for 115 pounds.  When I went for my lift at 135 pounds, I caught it in the full squat but didn't feel completely balanced.  So I took an extra second to get my balance right.  A couple others in class were yelling at me to stand up, but I wasn't worried about not being able to stand it up.  I was more worried about stumbling forward if my balance was off.  I hadn't taken on the more difficult lifts yet, but I was feeling good about how I was approaching each of my lifts.  That was short-lived.

Luis was lifting behind me on the platform and he pointed out after my lift at 135 that I wasn't centered on the barbell when I lifted it.  One of my hands was wider than the other, causing the barbell to tilt when I held it overhead.  This further contributed to the mountain of evidence that I'm lopsided.  Rachel came over and let me know that I wasn't fully extending upward before going into my squat.  I had no doubt that this was true as my focus is on quickly getting underneath the barbell.  Best way to do that?  Don't stand all the way up on the lift!  I've always told people that the reason I drop under the barbell so quickly is because I can't lift it that high.  But I might be able to get the barbell higher if I fully extended when I stood up with it.  Duh.

I made my attempt at 150 and was successful with it.  My hands were more symmetrically placed during this attempt.  I looked over at Rachel after the lift and she gave me a "better, but you could still extend more at the top".  I always find it difficult to make adjustments in the middle of a workout and it's even more problematic when you're adding weight to the barbell.  Perhaps it would have been wiser to stay at a lower weight and work on my form, but I felt like I was having a good day, despite my crappy form.  I hadn't missed a lift yet and I was about to try 160.  I wanted to keep moving up if possible.  As I got ready to make my attempt at 160, I told myself to extend fully at the top.  I might mess up something else during this snatch, but I was going to stand up all the way this time.  A couple seconds later, the rest of the class was cheering.  I did it right!  (Well, sort of.)

I was so focused on standing straight up that I forgot to go into a full squat like I had on all of my previous attempts.  Instead I got it overhead in a partial squat and stood right up with it.  I felt like I had short-changed the rep, even though coaches would probably tell me that there really is no need for the full squat if you have the ability to do a power snatch.  For once, I wasn't going to overthink it.  Rachel came over and confirmed what I knew from the cheering: that I had fully extended at the top and snatched with proper form.  The cheering also led to this fun exchange with Samson:

Samson: Was that a PR?

Me: No, that was 15 pounds less than my PR.

Samson: I thought I've seen you lift more than that, but then everyone started cheering, so I wasn't sure.

Me: Oh, that's because I had shitty form on all of my previous lifts and I finally did this one right.

If my form was improving, there was reason for optimism with my next lift at 170.  I had reached that  weight range where I needed to be nearly perfect to complete the lift.  That included not letting doubt creep into my head.  If you think you're not going to make the lift before you touch the barbell, then you won't make the lift.  I kept positive thoughts in my head as I walked up and got ready to lift.  Did I extend fully this time?  I'm not sure, but I was probably close at the very least.  Unlike the lift at 160, I was quick to land in the full squat.  And before I knew it, I was back in my happy place.  The yells began again when I didn't immediately stand up, but I knew I had it.  I rose from the squat with a big smile on my face.  It wasn't a PR, but it sure felt like one.  I may have had better form at 160, but this felt like the best lift of the day to me.

What was I saying about time management?  Rachel told us to start cleaning up so that we could do the cash out.  But I wanted to try 180!  As everyone began putting plates away, I loaded 10 more pounds to my barbell.  I took less time than I had in between my previous lifts.  And there was a ton of doubt in my mind as I rushed up to get one last lift in.  The result was, as Rachel put it, "a very good snatch deadlift".  Today was not the day where I set a new snatch 1RM, but with some practice, that day might not be that far off.

The cash out was one that I had done at the end of Competitors Class a few weeks earlier.  I was likely a little more tired that day, breaking up the 50 GHD sit-ups into four sets, finishing in 3:06.  The goal today was to complete the cash out by doing no more than three sets.  Since I was a little behind the class, I decided to go in heat two, as each of us were going to do the cash out with a partner who would count for us.  Cline was my partner and he let me know that he might only be able to do 40 GHD sit-ups.  Who's believing that nonsense?  Cline's a fighter.  Unless he was in pain after 20 reps, there was no way I was believing that he was stopping early.  Sure enough, he hit 40 reps and kept on going.  We switched places and now it was my turn to go.  I wasn't super excited about this cash out.  As I mentioned at the end of my last blog post, I had spent some time on the GHD at the end of Open Strength.  I had a bad feeling my body wasn't going to be receptive to more GHD work.  But maybe Friday was just my day.  My plan was to try and go 20-15-15, but I actually made it through 30 reps before needing a break.  (As Cline pointed out, the last 5 reps of that set were not so good.  And he was being generous putting it that way.)  I got through 10 more reps before needing another brief respite.  The last 10 reps were not pleasant, but I gritted my teeth and got through them.  Final time: 2:01.

Wow!  That was much better than I was expecting.  Between shaving a minute off of my time for the cash out and hitting a snatch of 170, I felt like I had earned a beer (or two).  Megs, Neil, and I headed over to the Taphouse to grab dinner and some adult beverages.  We got into a conversation about various beers with our waitress who had a wealth of knowledge on the subject.  And then Neil told me that he had read some of my blog posts and had recently bought a beer called "Shut Up Meg" due to the nickname I have given his girlfriend.  Since I don't know Neil that well yet, I wasn't sure whether he was okay with the fact that I call Amanda by a completely different name, but this story was a cool way of finding out that he was on board with it.

Sunday preview: 3x3 front squat day along with some sets of heavy KB swings at Open Gym.

April Showers

Workout dates: 4/27/16 and 4/28/16

My original plan for Wednesday was to do my 4x4 front squat session in the morning and then come back later on at 7:30pm to do the WOD.  This has been my routine for the last several weeks.  However, when I saw that the WOD was Chelsea (an excruciating 30 minutes of pull-ups, push-ups, and air squats), I had second thoughts.  I mentioned in a recent blog post that I've had soreness in my right hand and Chelsea seemed like the worst possible workout that I could do with a bad hand.  (Note: Chelsea seems like the worst possible workout I could do while completely healthy as well.)  So I ended up only doing the front squat session in the morning, taking an unexpected semi-rest day.

How did the front squats go?  Well, I may be jinxing myself by writing this, but I viewed this session as the last major hurdle in the program.  This was my second 15 pound jump in weight (the jump in weight for the next two heavy days will only be 10 pounds).  This was also my last venture into unknown territory (not counting the final test day).  My 3x3 session will be with 255 pounds, which happens to be my 3RM.  My 2x2 session will be with 265 pounds, which happens to be my 2RM.  Could I handle 4 reps at 245?  I figured I could, but you never know until you try it.

My warmup was the same as last time: 5 reps at 135, 4 reps at 185, and 2 reps at 215.  I wasn't too concerned about making a 30 pound jump from the final warmup set.  I might change my mind after the first set at 245, but this progression in weight made more sense to me than doing an additional warmup set would have.  How was that first set?  Slow, but solid.  We've reached the weight where banging out multiple reps without resetting at the top is a bad idea.  I stayed in my heels on each rep.  I made brief visits to the sticking point on two of the reps, but I pushed through each time.  The set was difficult, but they are supposed to be at this stage of the program.

Having only 4 sets to do, I took my time between sets.  Definitely no need to rush.  I tried to do my best impression of a lifter and went and sat on the kilo plates when I wasn't front squatting.  Getting a chair at 7 in the morning seemed like overkill.  My second set was similar in nature to the first.  I probably began to assume that the third set would be no different as well, but it's funny what happens when you lose your focus.  I did the first two reps, then inexplicably came way up on to my toes as I tried to stand up with the third rep.  I stumbled forward before regaining control and completing the rep.  I stood there for a few seconds, really mad at myself, before doing the fourth rep and placing the barbell back on the rack.  It didn't seem like I had lost any focus when I began the set, but clearly I became complacent and almost messed everything up.

After that incident, there was no way that I was going to be anything but locked in as I completed set #4.  I probably still had some anger in me as I was adamant about having good form for each of my final reps.  When the set was done, I placed the barbell back on the rack, ripped off my weight belt, and felt a sense of relief.  There are still about two weeks left to go in the program, but the finish line is in sight.  And for me, that final day of testing is the fun part.  Unless I can't do more than 265 that day.  In that case, I might kick the wall and feel like this was all for nothing.  But I'm feeling positive that there is a front squat PR in the near future for me.

With only four working sets to complete, I had some time left over in class to try some other things.  I decided that I'd like to work on my toes to bar, specifically making sure that I look down as I swing through in front of the bar and look up as I swing back behind the bar.  I also wanted to work on efficient reps, using that stomping method which helps rebound your feet back up towards the bar.  I tried out a set and did six reps before dropping from the bar.  As the set had progressed, I began to lose control of the kip and ended up getting to the point where my body was too far in front of the bar for me to continue.  That's when Clay came over and offered some help.  And the tips he gave me were very beneficial.

Clay broke down the toes-to-bar for me by talking about the two power sources I could use: the shoulders and the hips.  Then he showed me what toes-to-bar look like when you use almost all shoulders and no hips, followed by a demonstration using almost all hips and barely any shoulders.  It was clear which version I was guilty of using: option #2.  Clay pointed out that by not using my shoulders, the movement had become very midline-centric.  That made total sense to me.  Whenever I use that efficient kip, my midline becomes exhausted and I need to take longer breaks.  The problem wasn't the kip itself, it was that I was only using my hips as a source of power in the kip.  This was also what had led me to losing control of my swing as I progressed through reps.  We worked on some progressions where I only used my shoulders (no hips), just so I could get the feel of what the movement was like using my shoulders as my power source.  And when my shoulders are the only power source, my toes do not come very close to the bar.  So I need to work on using both my shoulders and hips in conjunction with one another.  Perhaps then I can handle some of the longer WODs that include 30+ toes-to-bar in them.

A light day on Wednesday was followed by another light day on Thursday.  I mentioned in my last blog post about Endurance class that it was going to be difficult coming up with enough material to write an entire post on those workouts.  It would have been pretty much impossible this week.  Weather was a major factor on Thursday.  It wasn't raining hard, but there was a consistent shower throughout the afternoon.  Add in a little wind and that it was pretty cold outside and you can understand why the turnout for Endurance was lighter than it had been in previous weeks.  Hell, even Coach Tim didn't show up!  (He was at the Penn Relays.  His wife and fellow coach, Laura P, was there to coach us, along with their son, Miles.)

There were still eight of us there to brave the elements: Laura A, Alona, John McHugh, Matt E, Borden, Kris, Jill H, and myself.  We began by doing two laps of jogging, followed by some drills and stretching.  Then we did two striders of 150 meters, where you go about 80% of your top speed during the middle portion of the run, bookended by a jog at about 50% for the first and last portions of the run.  We huddled under a dry spot to learn what the workout for the day would be and Laura explained that it would include a 400 meter time trial.  And here I was thinking that we'd get out of doing any time trails due to the weather.  No such luck.  Afterwards, we would be doing something called "endless relays" (in honor of the Penn relays), where we would divide into two teams of four and sprint 100 meters each before passing a baton to a teammate.

Before the time trial, we did two more striders with Coach Laura telling us to pick up the pace in the middle to about 90%.  Once those were done, we met her at the starting line for the 400 meters.  I wasn't sure how fast Matt and Borden could run a 400, but I expected them to be close to me, along with Alona.  And I expected Laura A and John McHugh to be out in front of me.  Me and John have a bit of a rivalry on these runs, but I can only beat him at shorter distances (100 meters or less).  Last year, he beat me by about 4 seconds during a 400 meter time trial and I had no reason to believe the outcome would be any different this day.  Matt asked me what my goal was before we began and I told him 1:15.  I thought my time a year ago was 1:13, but that was in good weather and didn't take place early in the Endurance season.  Staying close to that would be a victory for me.

We took off and I decided to duck in behind Laura and John on the first turn.  My only chance of beating them would be outsprinting them in the final 100 meters.  I knew they were going to be faster at the start, so there was no point in trying to go with them by gunning it out in lane 3.  As we headed down the backstretch, I kept in close contact with them.  At this point, I was trying to gauge how much I would have left for the last 200 meters.  I had to push it to stay with them, but I figured they were going to pick it up even more on the back half of the run.  As we rounded the final turn, John began to accelerate and went past Laura on the outside of her.  But I was still hanging with them.  In fact, as we came into the final stretch, I began to think I might be able to pass both of them.

Drafting the leaders on the first turn

Then, like an indecisive jockey on a horse that I would bet on, I became boxed in behind the two of them.  As we hit the final 100 meters, Laura picked it up again and seemed to be surging past John.  I thought I could follow her, pass John, and then maybe catch her.  But John was very stubborn and wouldn't let her get away.  As we neared the last 50 meters, I had no choice but to duck out to lane 3 and try to run them down from the outside.  Laura was edging away from John slightly and I began to gain on him, but I ran out of time.  Laura and John finished in 1:13, while I came in a second behind them at 1:14.  Not bad for my first 400 meters of the year on the track.  I got the sense that breaking 1:10 might be possible by the end of the summer.

After some recovery time, we did the "endless relays", with each team having a person stationed at each of the 100 meter marks around the track.  I asked Coach Laura if we needed five people to make this work (not that we had 5 people for each team), but she originally thought it would work with 4 people.  Turned out we did need 5 people as there was no one to pass the baton to at the end of the first lap.  It was still a fun change from the norm though.  We ended up doing 3 laps of relays, with the last person jogging 100 meters after completing their sprint to get the baton to the teammate kicking off the next lap.

Since Wednesday and Thursday were kinda light, I decided to head over to the gym for Open Strength.  With my right hand hurting, I'm at the point where I'd like to be done with the front squat program sooner rather than later.  So I took this opportunity to go in and take care of my light day (6x2 at 215).  Afterwards, I got on the GHD machine and did 3 reps of 20 hip extensions.  This is always an exercise that works my hamstrings and I should be doing it more often.  Again, just an opportunity to get some extra work done with Wednesday and Thursday not being as exhausting as they typically are.  Besides, what were the chances of the GHD showing up in Friday's WOD?

Friday preview: 1RM snatch day.  And 50 GHD sit-ups for time.  Of course.