The only pair of running shoes that I own are a pair of Kayano 21’s and my other shoes are for CrossFit. Since I don’t have an old pair of shoes that I would be okay with ruining, I decided to buy a pair of trail shoes for the Konqer OCR. I read a lot of good things about Inov-8’s trail running/mud shoes and I found a good deal online for the Trailroc 245’s.
During the mud section, the bottom of the shoe was covered in mud. I felt like I was running in cement shoes. After jogging on dry dirt/gravel, the mud would fall off and my shoes would feel light again. The water also drained quickly leaving only my socks feeling full of water. The shoe also handles rocks and other sharp obstacles well. I could still feel the ground but I wasn’t worried about injuring my feet.
*This model may have been discontinued which is why it was on sale for a low price.
Lift Heavy and Level Up!
This was a fun workout since I did this workout with one of my gaming friends. He’s been looking for a way to lose weight and I recommended my gym, CrossFit Gof Metgot. He likes the gym and has been consistent with workouts. He’s been doing great and I hope he sticks with it. Another friend has just finished the on ramp and will be starting regular classes soon.The run was broken up into 100 m shuttle runs. We each did five runs and then started on the rest of the movements. We broke up the reps in half. I felt like 10 reps a round would be okay, and would have a good enough time to recover for the next movement. I was able to do the workout Rx and my partner had to scale the handstand push ups and pistols.
The run was different since it was a shuttle and not a straight run. I was able to keep the same pace throughout and recovered just in time for the rest of the workout. I was able to keep a constant pace on the handstand push ups. I did the reps unbroken except for the last set. I took a bit longer on the pistol squats however. I’m not as strong on pistols which caused me to take more time. The row was great. I was able to actively recover and not lose intensity. Our score was 3 rounds + 20 hspu’s + 20 pistol squats.
I’m starting to like snatch complexes. My wrist has been limiting a lot of my overhead work but today it wasn’t too bad. I warmed up light and worked up to a 135 lb. rep. I was limited on time so I didn’t add more weight. Also, 135 lb. is my 1RM for power snatches so I’m not sure if I could have went heavier.
WOD – EMOM for 8 Minutes
5 power snatches at 60% 1RM (85 lb.)
5 lateral burpees over barbell
This workout was going to be tough. I just finished a heavy snatch complex and it had burpees. My main goal was to sustain a high intensity, so I decided to try and finish all the reps before 30 seconds. I didn’t want to go with heavier snatches since I would have rested longer. I was doing well for the first few minutes, finishing the round around 20 seconds. I hit the wall around the fifth minute. I could feel myself slowing down finishing the reps around 25 – 30 seconds. I tried to push through it but I wasn’t able to finish the last round under 30 seconds. I finished at 40 seconds which is not too bad. I was able to sustain a high intensity for most of the workout. I’m happy with my performance.
WOD
3×3:00 AMRAP
10 toes-to-bar
10 one arm dumbbell snatch (50 lb.)
30 double unders
Rest 1 minute between each AMRAP
The Rx weight for one arm dumbbell snatch was 70 lb. but I can only do a few reps at that weight. I wish the box had a 60 lb. dumbbell but I settled for 50 lb. I was able to at least finish one round per set. The hardest part of this workout was the toes-to-bar since I’m still weak in gymnastics movements. The snatches were good, wanted a bit more weight but I’ll take what I can get. The double unders were not too bad. I would mess up every 10 or so reps during the second and third sets. That was mainly due to fatigue. I was able to complete a total of 4.067 rounds, when you count partial reps.
Back Squat – 8×2 at 80% (285 lb.)
Since we’re maxing out this Friday, today was a maintenance day. The weight felt a lot lighter and I was able to move faster during the reps. I was ready to set a new PR.
Partner WOD – Time Cap, 15 Minutes
Helen Meets Grace
3 Rounds
Run (400 m)
21 kettlebell swings (53 lb.)
12 pull ups
-then-
30 clean and jerks (135 lb.)
I partnered with my fiance for this workout. The hardest part of this workout was the run. If you have read these posts for awhile, you know I hate running. I would be winded by the time we would get to the kettlebell swings. The kettlebell swings were not too difficult and the pull ups were easy to finish. We were only able to finish 10 clean and jerks when time was called.
WOD 2 – Time Cap, 7 Minutes
3 Rounds
15 hang power clean (135 lb.)
15 burpees
We had a few minutes to rest before starting this workout. I was still exhausted when we started. I was so tired that I forgot how to hang clean. I took a few seconds for me to snap out of it. 15 hang power cleans is not easy especially at 63% of your max. I wasn’t able to string many together but I got through it. My speed bump was the burpees. It would take me more time to finish burpees than cleans. I was only able to finish two rounds when time was called.
After six weeks of back squats, I was eager to test my new 1RM. My goal weight was 375 lb. which is 20 lb. over my last 1RM. I warmed up and attempted my first lift at 365 lb. I successfully completed the lift but not without a lot of effort. I wasn’t confident in attempting 375 lb. but I decided to do it anyway.I learned a lot from that attempt. I didn’t complete it, but it was a great learning experience. I was a bit fast on the decent. Not sure if it was nerves or if the weight was too heavy. I hit the bottom and I deflated. My breathing needs some work. I tried my best to stand it up but my spotter had to step in and help. After that attempt I know I have to work on a few things. I need to stay tight throughout the lift especially at the bottom. I also need to work on tempo. Even though the cycle is over, I’m going to start incorporating more squats.
Lift Heavy and Level Up!
335 lb. is a little lower than my 85%. I’m trying to be a bit conservative on the deadlift, making sure I have better form on my lifts. My form has improved a lot, and my lower back doesn’t tighten up as much.
Partner WOD – 4 RFT: 25 cal row, 20 chest to bar, 15 handstand push ups
This WOD was challenging, but thankfully my partner was able to push me. We split most of the work evenly except for the row. I rowed 10 cals and he did 15 since he was a better rower. The chest to bar was done in 5 rep sets which allowed some rest and we split the handstand push ups 7 – 8 with me taking the 7 reps.
The hardest part of this WOD was the chest to bar pull ups. I’m still working on my strength and kip. I was able to do five straight and broke up the rest into smaller sets of two or three. At round three and four I was doing singles. My hands were starting to become raw and I was trying to avoid a tear at all costs. Thankfully I was able to finish the workout with no tears. On the last round, I was able to do 15 straight handstand push ups to make up for my slow rowing. We finished the workout out at 13:01.
The double unders were a breeze, breaking them down into sets of 50 was a smart choice. The hardest part of the workout was the back squat. The weight becomes heavy, very fast. The first few rounds were not too bad but after set six it takes a toll on your quads. After the row was finished we focused on the remaining squats and finished in 28:46.
WOD 2 – AMRAP 6 minutes: 25 double unders, 15 thrusters (45 lb.)
We had a two minute rest in between workouts which helped me catch my breath. I was hoping my legs would recover in time but I wasn’t too sure. The double unders were not too difficult but the thrusters were hard on my legs. Most of my muscles were fatigued after the last workout making the thrusters harder after each round. I managed to finish one round under a minute but it took two minutes to finish the second one. I managed to finish the workout with three rounds and 25 double unders.
I was able to breeze through the snatches. I finished the 21 reps under 50 seconds but the run really slowed me down. I wasn’t able to run as fast since I my lower back was very tight. Was able to go unbroken on the overhead squats and hang snatches but the 200 m run rough. Finished this part of the WOD under 10 minutes. I was only able to finish 3 rounds in the second half.
Weighted Plank Hold – 3×60 seconds, 30 seconds rest. 35 lb.
Decided to go up 10 lb., third round was the hardest, dropped to my knees for about 5 seconds.
Run – 1000 m, for time (5:59)
Not sure if the KB swing from the warm up tired me out but my lower back was on fire. I ran considerably slower than normal on this run. Finished this run in 5:59, 29 seconds slower than my last record. Need to test this when we’re not on a deadlift cycle.
Deadlift – 6×6 at 80% (315 lb.)
6×6 is a lot, especially at that weight! I decided to lower my weight just to complete this strength workout in time. It’s about 75% of my 1RM. I like the structure of this class. The strength portion was at the end, giving us the rest of the class period all the time to finish. I didn’t really feel rushed and finished in time with a good amount of rest between sets.
After improving my form over the week, my lower felt better after Wednesday which made this deadlift workout easier to complete. Two reps are manageable at 80%. I think the cycle is going to pick up next week, probably going up to 85% – 90%. I hope the rep scheme is low.
WOD 1 – Every 2 minutes for 10 minutes: 10 toes to bar, 15 air squats, 1 clean and jerk complex. Clean and jerk complex – 3 Power cleans + Jerk, 70% 1RM (145 lb.).
This workout was fun, except around minute 8 when fatigue started to set in. I thought I did well in the toes to bar, I could feel my lats engage and my form stayed consistent. The clean and jerks were not too bad either, I still need to work on my oly lifts. I slowed down around the fourth round. Fatigue set in and I wasn’t able to complete my toes to bar quickly.
WOD 2 – AMRAP 7 minutes: 30 push press (95 lb.), max row.
The RX weight for this workout was 135 lb. but after the previous workout, I wasn’t sure if I could have handled that weight. I decided to scale down to 95 lb. which I thought would have been manageable. During the workout I could feel my quads tightening up. Not sure how long I could have gone with the weight at 135 lb. Finished the 30 push press before 3 minutes and hopped on the rower. If I could have kept a 2:00 per 500 m pace I would have been able to hit at least a 1k row. The row was difficult and I wasn’t pulling as hard as I usually do. My pace was about 2:15 per 500 m, but I picked it up at a minute left in the workout. I was able to finish with 920 m, rowed.
8-Bit Barbell 