Jesters* Crossfit Journey

[Jester*]

Back to training today. Thought I was good to go, but my quads were very much unhappy in the second workout!

5 x 5 Hook Grip Tempo Deadlift (5 seconds up/1 second down) - @50%
2:00

First 2 sets at 90Kg then the final 3 at 95Kg. Hard one to work out the weight as I was a decent bit above my 1RM and still felt like I could have gone heavier.

WOD 21:00
3 Rounds

10 x Squat Clean @60%
200m Sprint

3:00 Rest

It became very apparent during the first set of 10 that my legs were still feeling quite ropey after the competition but kept up quick singles on the cleans, did 65Kg for all sets. The sprint was really as fast a ran as your legs have in you. Kept it just below 2:00 rounds and finished in 11:54.

12:00 EMOM

1. 20sec L Sit Dead hang
2. 16 Cal Row
3. 30 sec Handstand hold

This was good, I cannot maintain the 90 degree L sit at the moment. My legs are straight at about 45 degrees! Row and handstand hold were all fine.

After the session hit a set of 3 ring muscle ups. Happy with how these are progressing, feel like I will start moving to focus on getting handstand walks shortly.

Good first session back, nice to get back in the box with fresh motivation!

 

[Jester*]

Some good bodyweight work done today.

WOD1 15:00
4 Rounds

400m Run
15 x Strict Handstand Pressups

This was very tough, scaled it back from the RX which was hands on 20Kg plates to hands on floor. Managed to get into the third round and hit 8 HSPU before hitting cap. Shoulders were quite toasted.

WOD2 15:00
4 Rounds

400m Run
10 x Bar Muscle Up

Finally some muscle up WODs! Been wanting these to be programmed so I can practice while under fatigue. First round went well and quite quick, but on the run I found that I had torn my right hand. Quickly grabbed my jaw grips on the way back to the rig and got back to it. Managed to get to the third round of muscle ups and hit 6 reps of 10 before hitting cap.

4 x 6 Overhead Squat @75%
Every 2:30

Coach wanted everyone to bring their grips narrower, shoulder mobility depending. So I used my clean grip for the first time and felt really stable! First 2 sets at 70Kg, third at 75Kg then gave 80Kg a shot for the last set. Dropped the bar on rep 6, coach gave me 2 mins then said go again and get it this time. Dropped it on rep 6 again, hugely frustrating but great improvement overhead so still very happy.

 

[Jester*]

Been lazy and haven't updated this! Got 3 workouts to update!

WOD1 6:00

30 - 20 - 10

Alt DB Snatch (22.5Kg)
Over DB Burpees

We didn't have enough DB's at 22.5Kg so I had to go 24Kg Kettlebell. Fun workout, you have to move so fast. Hit cap +23 remaining.

WOD2 18:00
3 Rounds

5 Front Squats (100Kg)
10 Front Rack Lunges (100Kg)
5 Front Squats

20 x Sprint Box Overs

3:00 Rest

Coach said this workout is going to destroy your soul. He wasn't wrong, had to scale back the weight to 90Kg as 100Kg was just slightly too much. I was hating life, was doing the lunges in 2's. It seemed to go on forever and the "sprint" box overs were basically throw yourself over however you can. Had 1 round remaining at cap.

8:00 EMOM

1. 25 x Hollow Rocks
2. 50 x Double Unders

Completed all of these with no issues.

 

[Jester*]

Team Workout Friday was a sprint.

Teams of 2
20:00 Cap

50 x Handstand Pressups (20's)
50 x Pullups
50 x Wallballs
50 x Box Jumps
50 x Toes to Bar
50 x Ring Dips
50 x Cleans (60Kg)
50 x Deadlift (60Kg)
50 x Shoulders to Overhead (60Kg)
50 x Snatch (60Kg)
100 x Double Unders

The fun part about this workout is that you could do the movements in whatever order you wanted. My partner and I completed 491 reps, we had 9 Deadlifts remaining then the Ring dips and snatch left to complete. We were going flat out, with only a few mistakes, so a truely conservative time cap!

 

[Jester*]

Today was a fun workout. That tested me nicely!

12:00 EMOM

1. 10 x Weighted Step Ups (24Kg KB Each Hand - 24" Box)
2. 25 x Double Unders + 5 x Strict L-Sit Pullups
3. 50 x Plate Jumps (20Kg Plate)

A hard start, the step ups were extremely testy, coach was making sure we fully extended the leg before placing the other leg down on the box. Double unders weren't as smooth as I would have liked which was an annoyance for me, L-Sits were just brutal and definitely hard movement. Plate jumps were fine and just had to keep moving to finish those in the minute. Only managed 8 step ups per min and 1/2 L-Sits each round.

Bench Press

5 x 3 @90%
Every 2:30

This was good, my new found confidence with the movement keeps growing. I did 4 sets at 85Kg so at about 95% of 1RM then hit 87.5Kg for the final set which is about 97.5%. Very happy and hoping when we finally test the 1RM again I am much closer to that elusive 100kg bench I would like to hit.

WOD 10:00
Get as far as you can.

800m Run
50 x Wallballs
25 x Pullups
50 x Burpees

This was going to be fun, running then straight into wallballs is never good! Managed to run one of my best 800m's in 3:30 keeping relatively close to some of the stronger runners. I knew I would make back some time on the pullups, went through the wallballs in sets of 10, then did the pullups in 10/8/7 straight to the floor to hit the burpees. Managed to get 30 done before hitting cap. so Run + 105 reps. Very happy with how I went through this workout.

Finished off with todays ROMWOD to get my stretching in.

 

[Jester*]

With temperatures rising it is starting to make training a lovely place to be!

WOD1 6:00

75 x Situps
25 x Toes to Bar
Max reps Double Unders

A good "warmup" trying to do toes to bar after all the situps was comical, as had no core left, quick singles were order of the day. Finished by hitting 67 Double unders before time ran out.

WOD2 15:00

21 - 18 - 15 - 12 - 9 - 6 - 3

Front Squats (50Kg)
Shoulders to Overhead (50Kg)

Yea this was bad, before we started I thought this was doable but as the reps came and went it started to really hurt. Frustratingly I hit cap with just 10 reps left, 30 more seconds would have done it. Lower back was pumping and general hating of life happened.

4 x 6 Tempo Deadlift (Hook Grip / Touch and Go / 3 Sec Up, 3 Sec Down)

Always a favourite! Stuck 70Kg on the bar and kept a good smooth pace. Really started to feel the forearms towards the end.

Handstand Hold Ninja Challenge

15 sec on - 15 sec off
15 sec on - 15 sec off
30 sec on - 30 sec off
45 sec on - 15 sec off
60 sec on

I completed this last time it was programmed so had to uphold the previous score. Completed it again, shoulders were pretty sore at the end.

 

[Jester*]

Coach is really kicking us at the moment. The bar is being moved higher and higher.

40:00 EMOM (8 Rounds)

1. 200m Run
2. 12 x Pullups + 10 x Wallballs (20lb)
3. 5 x Full Snatch (60Kg)
4. 4 x Man Makers (22.5Kg)
5. Rest

This was a soul crushing workout, felt like it would never end. The run was a 50-55 second every round, leaving so little time to get to the rig. I managed to get through 5 rounds of the pullups and wallballs before my pullups fell off. Before the workout I asked coach if I should scale the weight to get the reps in each round or go for the weight and hit as many reps as possible, to work on moving it as efficiently as possible. He said at my stage of training its time to hit the weight and work on that rather than scale it back. I got 3 snatch each round and 2 man makers.

The last 3 rounds were so so bad I wanted to quit so much. Plus it was so warm down south it was quite a trip down pain lane.

 

[Jester*]

Got my session in this morning. Another enjoyable one

5 x 5 Front Squat 1 1/2 Reps @ 70%
Every 2:30

This was a little different, instead of fully standing up after hitting the bottom of the rep, you came back up until you were just above parallel then back down before standing it back up. The burn was pretty good, mostly felt it on the wrists which was unusual. First set was done at 80Kg then popped the weight up to 85Kg where I finished the remaining 4 sets.

WOD 10:00

1 - 10

Handstand Pressups (20Kg Plates)
Kettlebell Swings (32Kg)
Down Ups

I thought this was going to be relatively straight forward to complete but as usual it was a tough one on the shoulders. An ascending ladder so 1/1/1 2/2/2 3/3/3, I was moving well and started break the handstands up in the round of 7. But I hit cap and completed 2 of the 9 Handstands.

E2MOM 6:00

Maximum Unbroken Strict Pullups

So 3 rounds, unbroken set started as soon as you got on the rig and ended when you dropped off, then you rested until the next round. I managed to go 11/8/6 so 25 reps total. Happy with that after all the work we had done.

 

[Jester*]

In a fun twist, coach released the invites to the Athlete team and I have missed out. Based on the Open performances and consistency in the box.

But....

As I was ill for 18.1 / 18.2 I have been given a shot.

Complete 18.1 - With a total of 288 Reps minimum - 9 Rounds
Complete 18.2 - In sub 7:45

If I get these 2 I will get the invite I have been working for. 18.1 I am feeling confident about as I was on for hitting 9/10 rounds before I started being sick mid workout. 18.2 I am much much less confident about, I have to take nearly 2 minutes off my time.

 

[Jester*]

So went in to redo 18.2 today. Wanted to get it out of the way to see if I had a shot.

18.2

1 - 10

Front Rack Dumbell Squats (22.5Kg)
Bar Facing Over Bar Burpees

Although this workout has a 12 minute cap and also includes the 1RM clean, coach was more than happy with the weight I slung up the first time. So I had a time of 9:37 to slaughter and go below 7:45.

Managed to hit 7:32. 100% over the moon and taking 2:05 off my previous time. The pain was so worth it. With one down, only 18.1 to redo, I am feeling much more confident about that one.

But now I will have a few days rest, will be moving to night shifts Sat night and Sunday night so will attempt my last redo on my days off next week.

 

[Jester*]

Mondays session post night shift was a good one. Just wanted to move and tire myself out for a good nights sleep.

5 x 3 Push Press @ 90%
Every 2:30

Hit all sets at 85Kg. Felt good and a nice push, could have gone a little heavier but not going all out today.

Running Intervals 400m
15:00 - 3:00 Rounds

1. Best effort
2. 5K pace
3. 5k pace
4. 5K pace
5. Best effort

So this was proper sucky. First best effort was a 1:46 run and then my 5K pace runs were about 2:10 rounds and the final best effort was only a 2:00. Definitely a lack of sleep and energy is always going to hold this back but I was happy I survived. Running is my main weakness so any work on it is good.

3 x 12 Deadlift @ 50% (Hook Grip/Touch and Go)
Every 2:30

Went for 85Kg for all my sets. All 3 felt good and felt good.

18.1 Redo on Tuesday. Wanted to sleep well and get myself ready for it.

 

[Jester*]

Big day today. 18.1 redo and feeling really nervous as if I nail this I will get my invite to the Athlete team.

18.1 20:00 AMRAP

8 x Toes to Bar
10 x Hang Bumbell Clean + Jerk (5 x each arm - 22.5Kg)
14 x Cal Row

My target was 288 reps which is 9 complete rounds in the 20:00 time cap.

I managed to bust out 295 reps, 9 rounds plus 7 toes to bar. The relief is huge and I am so glad it is all done and I can breathe again, really hope to not redo either of these workouts for a very long time.

Athlete team training should hopefully push me even harder and further than ever before. Really looking forward to seeing what is in store.

 

[booyaka]

Great stuff - congrats. We have a similar thing at our place - Dymanic Athlete program.

As a seperate thing - you a Nano or Metcon footwear guy?

 

[Jester*]

I have a pair of nano 7s and 2 pairs of Nobulls and they are what I mainly train in. I do have a pair of metcon 2s and Nano 4s that I don't wear much anymore.

I do prefer my Nanos and Nobulls but I haven't tried the newest metcons either, but I have heard they are a really good shoe also.

 

[Jester*]

Worked hard today!

5 x 3 Front Squat 1 1/2 Reps @ 80%
Every 2:30

Almost the same as we did last week but 2 less reps per set. I managed to get out all reps at 95Kg.

20:00 AMRAP

1. 200m Run
2. 20 x Alternating Dumbell Clean and Jerks (22.5Kg)
3. 6 x Pistol Squats / 9 x Toes to Bar
4. 16 x Pushups

A good AMRAP that pushed us all hard. Managed to get the run done each round in 50-55 seconds, the dumbell clean and jerks were horrible, especially as I did 90 of them yesterday. Only managed 10 reps dropping to 6 by the last round so if anyone manages to do 20 for the full 5 rounds they have my huge respect. My pistols are still slow and steady but managed to get all 6 and 3 toes to bar in each round. Comfortable in my pushups and got them done easily in the minute each round.

Feeling really really sore at the moment. All I want to do is sleep!

 

[Jester*]

Finally some heavy barbell to chuck around. Barbell I've missed you.

WOD1 9:00 AMRAP

15 x Situp
12 x Over head Plate Lunge (20kg)
9 x Hollow Rocks
6 x Box Jump (24")

I must admit I took this one at quite a casual warm up pace, my body has been feeling a little battered this week and my lower pack is definitely sore. Just want to warm up safely and keep moving for the whole 9:00. Hit 4 rounds + 38 reps.

Finally the fun part....Barbell complex!

15:00 Lifting every 1:30 - 10 Lifts

Deadlift - Hang Squat Clean - Front Squat - Push Jerk - Split Jerk

I was really looking forward to this, the idea was to build up slowly until you hit a max around rounds 9/10. I went up in rounds of 2 until 9/10. So :

1-2 50Kg
3-4 60Kg
5-6 70Kg
7-8 80Kg
9 90 Kg
10 95Kg

The last round felt super strong and I am kind of sad I did not attempt that 100Kg but some good lifts were done so always happy.

WOD2 6:00 AMRAP

9 x Thrusters (40Kg)
30 x Double Unders

The aim of this workout was to go all out. Set myself the challenge of going all unbroken and apart from tripping once on my first set of double unders I managed to do this. Set 5 rounds + 3 reps. A good days training.

 

[Jester*]

My first barbell club since before the open if I remember correctly. It was snatch work day!

5 x 3 Snatch Grip - Deficit Deadlift @ 100% of 1RM
Every 2:00

I wanted to go slightly heavier than my current 1RM weight of 85Kg and did 90Kg. The reps felt good and strong even with the deficit added in there.

10 Rounds
Every 00:45

1 x Snatch Pull @ 110%

So did all my snatch pulls at 95Kg. Tough, getting to the point where the shrug doesn't propel the bar very high after contact at the waist!

Snatch Complex 8 Rounds @ 60/70%
Every 1:30

1 x Snatch
3 x Hang Snatch
1 x Power Snatch

Again a fun complex, always a challenge to move well through the reps. Did all my rounds at 50Kg and happy with how I was moving. Endless practice to make the movement feel more comfortable.

Finished with some ring and bar muscle up practice. Helped a friend with her technique on butterfly pullups. Now looking forward to the weeks training!

 

[Jester*]

Due to the horrible weather today the 5K has been postponed. But instead the programming was harsh!

Rolling Clock 40:00

"Grace" 00:00 - 10:00

30 x Clean and Jerks (60Kg)

"Karen" 10:00 - 20:00

150 x Wallballs

"Fran" 20:00 - 30:00

21 - 15 - 9

Thrusters (42.5Kg)
Pullups

"Isabel" 30:00 - 40:00

30 x Snatch (60Kg)

Big test of engine, none of the workouts were going to be PB's. Completed "Grace" in 3:36 which gave me some recovery before "Karen", had to stay consistent and was at rep 125 with 90 seconds left and did the last 25 unbroken to finish that section in 9:36. Straight into "Fran" and the legs were a jelly mess, took the first minute to recover then got to work and finished in 9:06. Finally "Isabel", and the wall had been hit I managed 21 reps before hitting cap.

Really happy as it shows me that my engine is improving but what a set of workouts to put 1 after the other!

 

[Jester*]

Bench day today. Making improvements there and then testing the engine again.

3 x 3 Bench Press @ 90% Every 2:30
4 x 20 Bench Press @ 50% Every 3:00

Some mixed bench work, with strength and endurance being tested. First set of 3 was done at 85Kg, then did the last 2 sets at 90Kg which is my 1RM. So when we test this soon, pretty sure I could be on for the 100Kg bench! Coach upped the weight from 50% and got me to do 47.5Kg of which I managed 2 whole rounds of 20 reps and the third round was 16 reps before failure. Dropped it down to 40Kg for the last set.

WOD 20:00

27 - 24 - 21 - 18 - 15 - 12 - 9 - 6 - 3

Hang Power Clean Push Press (42.5Kg)
Down Ups

Not entirely sure this workout is possible to finish in 20 minutes! For us mere mortals anyway. This was quite a slog, the push press after the bench press was really tough. Got through and completed the round of 18 and got 5 reps into the round of 15. So 185 reps total.

Feel like I am making progress but always want more from myself. Especially when it comes to the longer gassy workouts.

 

[booyaka]

yuck - that 20min WOD looks disgusting!