Saturday, 29 June

Training (12p)

We had a coaches BBQ today so I threw together a team WOD for all of us to hit together. My calf is actually still pretty sore which is frustrating. Could barely do double-unders and had to be careful dropping off the rings or the bar. 

Part 1:
In teams of 3, run as a gauntlet, time stops when last person completes the chipper
650m Row
60 DU's
50 KBS (2)
40 T2B
30 Ring Dips
20 HSPU
10 Burpee Over The Box (30")
5 Muscle-Ups
*Not sure what my time was but the ring dips and HSPU crushed me for the Muscle-Ups at the end. Felt decent going through it and recovered fairly quickly. 

Rest 15m

Part 2: 
In teams of 3, one team member must complete entire round before next person starts. 
9 DL (225)
15 Pullups
21 Thrusters (95)
*Finished 2 rounds, same time for both. Went U/B on all.

This was a fun day, felt good to do some team stuff. I won't sub barely anything at all when it comes to my programming but every once in a while, days like this feel pretty good. I will hit the DB Rows today along with my normal program. 

28 June

Training (2p)

A. Squat snatch; build to a tough single
*135/165/185/205xx/205/220/235/245x
*First time snatching in just about 2 months. Went a little better than I expected. Felt really fast and solid through about 220 or so and then started to get a little sloppy. Stopped at 245 after I missed once, figured I could probably hit it but would miss about 5 more times in order to get it. 

B. 2 squat snatch on the min for 10 min @75% of A
*175
*No misses, tried to hold in the bottom for a few seconds. This has always been a problem for me, as the weight gets heavier, I rush out of the bottom. I think if I can get more confident and solid with the catch in the bottom, alot of the misses I would normally have, I can hit by just stabilizing in the hole. 

C. 50 back squat for time 225#
*3:51
*I will have to look back and see what I did this in last time but I was really happy with how this felt. Thought it was going to be much worse. My sets were 20-10-12-8. 


Training Video
https://vimeo.com/69345146

26 June

Training (830a)

Row sprint 30 seconds @100%
rest 3 min
x3
*Meters/Pace
1. 197/1:16.1
2. 198/1:15.7
3. 198/1:15.7
*These felt much better than I thought. Was able to hang on to about a 1:13 for the first 20 seconds and then started to fall off. 

+
Run 400m @85%
rest 2 min
x5
*1:32/1:30/1:31
*Tweaked my R Calf on the 4th run, it was my own fault, I should have foam rolled my calves since I hadn't run any in about 3 months and didn't do it. Felt it stretch a little and kept going and then felt it give and hobbled me. Similar to what happened with the box jumps, should be fine in about 2 days. Works out well with a rest day tomorrow and then no running until next week. No worries. 

+
Airdyne 5 min @85%
rest 2 min
x4
*wow, you can tell I haven't been on here in a while. It's amazing how I went from being really good at AD to turning into a 12 year old schoolgirl on that damn thing. 
1st - 350 Avg Watts/121 Cals
2nd - 297 Avg Watts/114 Cals
3rd - 283 Avg Watts/103 Cals
4th - 277 Avg Watts/104 Cals

I would be lying if I told you I was looking forward to the amount of work it will take to get my Aerobic Base back but that's life, I guess everyone would do this if they got to only lift heavy shit all the time and never had to do the dirty work...

25 June

Training (2p)

A1. Weighted strict CTB chin ups; 2-3x5; rest 2 min
*20# For All, Triples each set

A2. Strict press clusters 1.1.1x5; rest 15 seconds/rest 2 min*185/185/185/185/190
+
On the min for 12 min:
Odd- 4 muscle ups
even- 30 double unders*Complete, took a few sets for the Muscle-Ups to start feeling normal again. 

+
On the min for 12 min:
Odd- 10 hspu
Even- 10 toes to bar*Complete
*HR got pretty elevated here and breathing was rough about halfway through but the movements weren't challenging muscularly. 
+
B. 20 sets of 3 unbroken CTB for time
*5:44
*Ripped at 45 which slowed me down a bit.

*Going to take a few days to get back into the swing of things, crazy how lazy your body gets after it thinks it doesn't have to workout anymore. Mentally a little weak the last few days but it will come back quick. 

24 June Training

Training (2p)

After a 2 week break and a 5-day fast, started the training back up today. Body feels pretty good, not very strong or mobile but feel good. I have already gained about half the weight I lost back but it will take a few weeks before the strength returns. Felt like I was breathing through a straw today for the workout but that was to be expected. 

A. Front squat @22x1; 6-8x5; rest 3 min
*225x6, 225x6, 235x6, 235x6, 235x6
*Lots more here, just wanted to ease back into the swing of things. Breathing was rough here, had to laugh, haven't felt like this in over a year, don't want to feel like it again for a while:)

B. Power snatch; 3 reps on the min for 10 min 145-175#
*155 for all, felt alright, no misses, but not great. 

+
3 rounds for cumulative time:
15 deadlift 225#
rest 30 seconds
15 OHS 135#
rest 1 min
*7:13
*This went better than expected. Everything was unbroken and fairly fast. Missed the first snatch into my OHS on my last round but other than that, OH position felt really solid. 

*It will take a few weeks to get back in the training mentality, amazing how quickly your body adapts to not training. It is so obvious as to why people stop working out and can't start again. The first few days is such a mental grind. 

Training Video
https://vimeo.com/69041641

Wrapping Up Day 5 Cleanse

Shit that was miserable. One of the biggest decisions next year when deciding to continue to compete will be, "Do I want to have to do the Neera again?"

Here is a recap of how things went. Will add measurements this afternoon. 

Cleanse was fine, didn’t really know what to expect as I had blocked out the previous time I did this 18 months ago.  For me, the main purpose of this was to reset the system. I have consumed nearly 5,500 cals a day for the past 5-7 months as well as lots of supplements so I figured my liver and GI tract could use the break. Honestly the toughest part for me was emotional stress of losing weight. Hunger was bad but to see your body shrink before your eyes was rough on my psyche. I am confident this was necessary and I will have taken 1 or 2 steps backwards but will be able to now take 5 steps forward. If you want the ability to compete at high level, you better be ready to take the necessary steps to remain healthy while you do it. If not, you WILL NOT be able to compete at the level needed in this sport...in my opinion. 

My thoughts on my 2^nd Neera Cleanse.

• Day 1, hunger was pretty noticeable and was not fun.
• Day 2, hunger was still the biggest presence. No other issues, no headaches. Did the salt water flush with almost double the salt and actually didn’t have a BM entire day. Very hungry all day.
• Energy levels were low, cognition not great, mood was not great.
• Nights are definitely the hardest part of the day.
• Day 3, as above, no salt flush, no bowel movement.  Consuming roughly 70oz of cocktail each day.  I went light on the cayenne as that was what prompted me to stop drinking this shit last time I did this.  Also using Max Fiber + Greens First in the am and I had the Tea each night.
• 3^rd Day Hunger was probably the worst, but really, all 3 days were pretty miserable. It was almost just the process of eating that I miss.
• Day 4, hunger started to get a little more controllable but not great. Was pretty weak all day and had a hard time focusing on any type of work. 4^th night of sleep had a hard time getting to sleep, wasn’t tired, I guess this is when my energy kicked in.
• Day 5, Was like a kid at Christmas, was super excited to get up and start the day as I get to break the fast at 4pm today. Hunger is much more under control today. Mood is better, energy is ok. I think this is all in relation to the fact that I know and my body knows this shit is coming to an end today. My wife thought that this was a sign I should keep going with the cleanse…I quickly informed her she is fing out of her mind.

Will have vegetable soup and boiled soft potatoes for dinner tonite. Probably the same for breakfast tomorrow and then start to ease back into normal meals lunchtime tomorrow.

Took naps almost daily and slept a ton during the cleanse.

Supplements in addition to Neera:

-Peak Bio Max Liver 2x/Day

-Synergistics L-k x6/day

-Chlorella x5/midday

-Max Fibre+Greens First in AM Daily

Before and After Measurements And Weight

Before: 243#                                    After: 230#

Waist – 38.5                                    Waist- 37.5

Thigh – 27.5                                    Thigh - 27.0

R Arm – 17                                      R Arm - 17.0

Neck – 18.25                                    Neck - 18.25

Neera Day 1

Started the Cleanse last night at 5pm. I am just over the 12 hour mark and already pretty annoyed with not eating. I realize that it is mostly the process of eating that I miss, making food and always eating something. Food really does run your life and everything you do on a daily basis revolves around what/when you are going to eat. 

I also realize that the amount of food that I put through my body puts a pretty big strain on my GI health along with a number of other factors from competing/training as hard as we have over the past 12 months. I am fine with the one step back that I will take from this because I am confident we will be able to take 4 steps forward once we reset things. I also don't really have that hunger to train yet and this was a perfect time to do this as mentally it won't be as challenging since I don't have the desire to train. 

Weight Today was 240#

Friday, June 14th

Felt fine after Regionals, felt recovered Thursday morning but just didn't feel like doing a whole lot. Decided to hit the group class on Friday just to get moving again. 

Training (4p)

3 Rounds For Time
20 Burpee Pullups
20 Front Squats (155)
20 Box Jumps (24")
*13:25

*Felt good, wasn't sure how hard I would want to push but body was fine going pretty hard. 

Regional Recap

Another year of training and falling just short of my goal to make it out to the Games. I am encouraged at how I felt this year and feel as though I was as prepared as I could have been to make my run. As always, one bad score kept me from the podium and that was the Muscle-Ups. The frustrating part was I felt REALLY confident about these going into it but didn't manage the score I needed. One thing for sure is that when I finished the last workout, I wasn't ready to be done. My body was sore but no where near broken. I looked around and saw people crushed and mentally beaten. That wasn't me. I can almost gurantee that many of those faces I saw this year will not be back next year. You could see it in their eyes, they saw all the work they had done and without the payout, they didn't look like they had any desire to do it again. For me, yet again, I fully understand what is necessary to prepare for Regionals next year and I am perfectly fine with doing that. Jess is due in October with our second child which will make things a little interesting but I will have the time to put into the training. With my old ass, there is going to be more of an emphasis on quality over quantity and that will be perfect for me. Max and I will develop a plan of attack and we will be ready to go next year. I am hoping next year the workouts/movements will be a little bit closer to my strengths. Here is a quick recap of the events:

Event 1: "Jackie"
*5:16
Rowed a 3:12 exactly and was first off the rower as I anticipated. Pushed hard on the thrusters and was first to the pullup bar. Had to use a high bar which I jumped too and ended up grabbing a little wider than I would have liked. For the first time ever, dropped off the bar at 25...luckily, still ended up finishing 1st in the heat and 2nd overall. Right where I wanted to be. 

Event 2: "3RM OHS"
*285x3
Nothing really felt solid warming up and I was actually pretty nervous as we were getting ready for this one. I knew I couldn't stumble here. No mistakes and climbed to 285 for a triple and then rested about 2m before heading over to the muscle-ups. 4th Place 

Event 3: "30 Burpee-Muscleups"
*6:58
Executed my plan exactly the way I wanted to through about 22 reps. Triceps starting to get really tired at 22 and slowed the pace down a little bit. Failed 30th rep 2x before finally getting it. This cost me my trip to the games, I didn't know it at the time, but this was too many points to make-up. Finished 26th

Event 4: "100s"
*25:23
First time ever in a competition where I didn't finish a workout. WB were u/b and felt the easiest they ever had. C2B were on pace just under 8m. I was last off the bar which I was fine with. Pistols felt pretty good also, fastest I had ever completed them. I got to the snatches with 7.5 minutes to go and felt like I was pushing the pace pretty good but obviously not fast enough. 

Event 5: "DL/BJ"
*4:26
Had no idea how this was going to feel. Of course, warming up 315 felt like 400# but knew I would have to do well on this if I wanted to stay in the hunt. Came out and executed my gameplan perfectly. Went 15/6 - 9/6 - 9 and P'rd by over 20 seconds. Lost two box jumps but no other missed reps. 

Event 6: "Axle"
*11:48
HSPU went better than anticipated, right at 3m. T2B were shitty on that low bar but didn't lose too much time. Axle slowed me up, went 10 - 5/5 - 5/5 but must have taken too many breaks as I lost some time there. Dropped once with the lunges and finished 12th. 

Event 7: "RC/SC"
*4:05
Nothing about this felt hard. I was only going to do the first and last sets u/b but I just coasted the run and was able to recover easily before the next set of cleans. This just goes to show how great my training plan was leading up to this because I felt fully recovered minutes after finishing this. I wish there was one more event after this because I know my body felt better than everyone else's. I just kept thinking about how bad I wanted this to mean more for me. I wish that I could have been in the win/your in situation instead of the win and hope other suck situation. 

Overall, confident that I am doing things right. Pissed that I didn't make it but its alright. I am training smarter than most people out there and that will pay off. When they put 50 Snatches instead of 50 HSPU next year, shit will be different:)

2 June

Training (12p)

For time:
100 double unders
50 hspu
40 toes to bar
15 shoulder to OH with axle
*8:51

Splits were: 
DU's - U/B at around 55 seconds
HSPU - 20-26-32-38-43-47-50 (3:20)
T2B - 20-27-33-40 (1:41)
15 S20 - 1:25

Axle still felt really heavy, just need to move faster than this and will have to on Sunday if I want a chance to stand on the podium. 

1 June

Training (1145a)

For time:
30 wall balls
30 CTB chin ups
30 pistols
30 DB snatch
*5:46
*This felt alright, C2B still feel a little off, not sure what the deal is with them but need to be smoother on these. Pistols are starting to feel pretty solid, a few more touches with these and I will be great. I went 30 straight on the snatches and they are feeling better as well. I will have something to say about some of those folks ahead of me when I get to the snatches. 


PM (530p)
11-7-3
Deadlift 315#
Box jumps 30"
*1:38
*This was tough, set of 7 was brutal. I didn't bound the box jumps, took it a little careful. My calf feels fine, just didn't want to chance it. I know the touches on the DL will pay dividends on Saturday, they just felt heavy today.