I woke up on a better side of the bed today, BlogLand. I managed to get my head in a better space, held myself accountable, and got my ass out of bed this morning. Off to Crossfit I went, in the dark, rainy morning. It's true. Getting the sneakers on and out the door is always the worst part.
Got to Crossfit and did the
Warm Up:
- Confluence Warm-Up, x2
I can't quite remember all 10 exercises, but there were push ups and mountain climbers, jumping jacks, superman's, air squats, "dancing crabs"... basically 10-20 of each exercise, getting your body warmed up for the WOD ahead...
Then, it was onto:
Workout: Strength Day: Power Snatch......
- 12-8-5 (to start, having never gone heavy with this move before: 40#)
- 3-3 (50#)
- 1-1 (60#, 70#)
That was interesting. Power snatch is a tricky move. I struggle more with anything I have to put over my head. I don't have the strength/flexibility/mobility in my shoulders yet to make these easy moves to do correctly. Correctly being key, as it is easy to injure oneself if you are lifting too heavy, or doing it incorrectly. While I absolutely know I could've done more than 70# here, I elected to keep the weight here and learn the move more intuitively. I don't have the time, nor desire to be injured! Plus, this particular instructor remains on the cautious side with me, because I'm "new" still. He clearly does not yet recognize my inner beast. I am not as delicate as I look?! LOL.
THEN came the real fun.
- After Party: Death By Pull-Ups......
- 1st Min, Perform 1 Pull-Up
- 2nd Min, 2 Pull-Ups
- 3rd Min, 3 Pull-Ups
- And So On Until Clock Catches You (or 20 min)
UHM. YEAH. We've discussed my T-rex arms. I can't do pull ups. And I confess, I HATE using the bands to do assisted pull ups. I constantly feel like I'm going to slingshot myself into oblivion, or snap myself in the face or something. Totally undermining my badassery. However, You just can't do Jumping pull ups for a challenge like this. I had to at least give it a go and figure out where I could get to. A benchmark for improvement.
I got to the realization that I have TOO much body, still, for my tiny sad arms to pull up. They tried. I used the damn bands. I got through 7 minutes following the formula, using the bands. Then, from minute 8-11, I think I got 7 reps each, and then only managed 3 reps/min for each minute remaining.
It was a good effort. I'm just not there yet. Did I see it to the end? YES.
... and then my shoulders and back began to cry. I swear.
I went to put on my heavy Spartan Race sweatshirt to leave the gym, and I swear that thing weighed 400#. I struggled to get it over my head. My arms were shaking. Got out to my car and attempted to drink from my mostly-full nalgene bottle.... YEAH. FAIL. I totally had to use two hands. Went home to shower... washing my hair, with both arms over my head, was an exercise in Will, for sure.
The Most Tragic Moment: I went to pick up my fresh coffee to start the work day, and couldn't carry it safely with one hand. Hello, total muscle failure.
Luckily, this has improved as the day has gone on, and moved into general muscle ache and OW.... But, I take it as a bit of a badge of honor. I worked that hard. Plus, it means that I'm growing new muscle. YEAH. SOMEday, I'm going to be able to do *one* pull up, unassisted. SOMEday. One day at a time.
Incidentally, today was the last day of my 20th week of training. 20 WEEKS. Holy shit. It continues to amaze me. What I am capable of, continues to amaze me.
Never let your outsides keep the real you inside. Never.
Not choosing to change IS a choice.
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