Let's do this....

So, in determining my goals (and having an amazing boyfriend who has helped me figure them out), we have come to the conclusion that I need to get stronger. To do this, I will have to work at it. That means strength only for a little while. No Metcon's for a few months bc that means not enough recovery time. Although I fall into the "advanced" category for my total numbers, that's not enough. This is a foreign concept to me, because I have seen some really great results with the traditional programming. And I don't want to get chunky. But Glenn tells me this is what I have to do...so here goes nothing! And here's why taken from The Athletic Journal, corroborated by many other studies:

 “Contrary to most commonly held beliefs on the subject of strength training, the training also significantly improved the cardiovascular condition of the subjects. By maintaining the intensity of the workouts at a high level and by limiting the amount of rest between exercises, the training resulted in improvement on each of 60 separate measures of cardiovascular fitness. Contrary to widespread opinion, not only will a properly conducted program of strength training produce increases in muscular strength but will also significantly improve an individual’s level of cardiovascular condition. The data suggests that some of these cardiovascular benefits apparently cannot be achieved by any other type of training.”


So good bye Metcon's. I will miss you a ton. But don't worry, I will crush you once I am stronger. In the mean time, you will be replaced every other day by (taken from the Starting Strength program):

Workout A
Back Squats 3 x 5
Bench Press 3 x 5
Pull Ups 3 x 5
Dead Lift 1 x 5
GHD's 3 x 5
Weighted back extension 3 x 8 (too short for the reverse Hyper)

Workout B
Power Cleans 5 x 3
Squat 3 x5
Press 3 x 5
Ring Rows 3 x 5
GHD's 3 x 5
Weighted back extension 3 x8

This will be the 1st 6 weeks. In addition, since these are only every other day, I will be heading to yoga once or twice a week to work on my crappy flexibility. I have a training partner which will make this significantly less painful! Looking forward to working with Gina P on this!

So, let's do this. And if I start looking the hulk....please, please, tell me! :=)

Crossfit Total

CFT total: 7/25/2011= 404!!!!!
I love CFT total days! Who would have ever thought I would have liked strength work!!! ha!

Back Squat: 146 (Previous PR 140)
Progression: 110-130-145 (as 130 felt heavy). 145 felt easy. Then 155 (f), 150 (f x 2).
Need to learn to control the weight going down.
I really like to squat. Like a lot. I want to keep squatting a lot. I just love it and want to perfect my form!

Press: 73 (Previous PR 70), 75 (f)
Progression: 55 x5, 65 x 3, 73 x 1, 75 f
With the press, if I don't get it on the first try or choose the wrong weight, game over! So I went conservative and was glad I did. I feel like small gains on the press are actually quite large.

DL: 185 (Previous PR 170)
Progression: 110x5, 130x3, 160 x 1, 180 (PR), 190 (f), 185 (PR)
Learned from the other exercises and took just a couple of pounds off when I failed sooner rather than later to get the highest number possible. I have been working on my glutes and hammies a lot, so I was glad to see this. I couldn't even get 180 off the floor last time!

I weighed in last night at 105.

So total PR of 23#'s. 1 month strength cycle=23 #'s!!!
More please!!!!


Oh and PS: found my lifting shoes! So happy. Donna and I got those together, and they are my 1st and only pair! They hold special sentimental value! :=)

Impossible?

That's Oscar Pistorius. He was born such that he needed to have both of his legs amptutated by the age of 1.

He just qualified for the Olympics and ran 400m in 44 seconds!

Some wondered whether his prosthetics gave him an undue advantage. Haters! Having just one knee amputation raises your energy expenditure by almost 25-50%, much less both of them. He's probably in better shape than Lance Armstrong and Chris Spealler combined! What an amazing accomplishment! His goal was to qualify for the Olympics against able bodies. And after a long struggle, he's on the cusp of doing it!

To be honest, this is what I needed to see today. I had a long conversation with Rudy and Elisabeth yesterday about goals. Elisabeth asked me "Don't you just want to be good at everything Anj?" I said of course, but until that moment, I didn't believe in my heart that I could actually accomplish that. I mean, the thought of lifting as much as the big girls seems like an insurmountable feat. I've always said that I'm strong for my size. But Rudy yesterday said...SO WHAT? And he's right. I want to be absolutely strong. I want to be a badass.

And I didn't believe I could do it until Rudy and Elisabeth asked me why not? Because it'll be hard? Because it's going to seem uphill? Because some girl that weighs 140 will come in and already be stronger? Because I may fail?

I don't know yet exactly how I will get there. But I got Rudy and Elisabeth and a whole community of support. In the next week or two I will post my goals. They are gonna be big. And I might fail. But if Oscar could do it, and he doesn't have his own legs, well then so can I. I do have both of my legs....