31 Aug 12 - Meet "Sweat Me"

31 Aug 12

BB Gymnastics

7 x 1 Hang Power Snatch + 1 Power Snatch + 2 OHS
@ 75# Rest=60s
Pretty good.  Could go heavier.  I liked this complex.

7 x 1 Hang Power Clean + 1 Power Clean + 2 Push Jerk
@ 135# Rest=60s
Felt really good on these.  Can for sure go heavier.  Back felt good throughout!

WOD
10 min AMRAP
10 pushups
10 Situps
15 rds + 7 pushups

I was dripping with sweat after this one.  Even did the old CF Flop.  Here's "Sweat Me"

Kind of looks like I have crab hands!  I'M A MUTANT!!!

Random Videos

I just made this one the other day.  Just some olympic lifting form stuff.  Really light weights.

A couple of ball handling drills I used to do a lot in High School and College.

Random workout I did a while back.  I used to fight MMA 

when I was in the Army and I get the itch periodically.

These are from a while ago too.

30 Aug 12 - Run but no Basketball

30 Aug 12 I tried to go play basketball this morning, but when I got there the gym was locked up. UGH! I drove all the way over there at 5 A.M. and then no ball! I even brought my camera to record some jumps and dunk attempts. CFE Run at Lunch Warmup: 5 min jog 10 x 30s on/30s off Rd 1: 5:47 min/mi Rd 2: 5:27 min/mi Rd 3: 5:34 min/mi Rd 4: 5:22 min/mi Rd 5: 5:17 min/mi Rd 6: 5:12 min/mi Rd 7: 5:49 min/mi Rd 8: 5:42 min/mi Rd 9: 5:54 min/mi Rd 10: 5:49 min/mi Warmdown: 5 min jog 2 mi (ish) total distance. Good run.

Hurricane Isaac Workout

29 Aug 12

Had the day off because of the so called hurricane.  It's been pretty weak but at least I get the day off.  Anyhow, thought I should have been able to get a good workout in and take my time.


Strength
Deadlift
10 x 1 @ 185# R=45s
Felt pretty tight.  I guess my back is still pretty sore.  Ugh, I thought I was getting better and could move on to some more plyo/impact work.

Bench
2 x 5 @ 205#
2 x 3 @ 215#
3 x 2 @ 225#
Rest=60s

My back was surprisingly tight and sore during bench, so I called it quits.  I'm getting pretty annoyed with this being hurt crap.  Especially when I feel like I should be able to just jump back into my tough workouts.  Hopefully soon.

Squat attempt

28 Aug 12

Two workouts, in two days!  Closer to 3 on 1 off.  I think that might work a little better for me.  Shorter intense workouts, more often.  That way I don't have a boat load of recovery after a workout.  Anyhow, did some more Outlaw this morning:

BB Gymnastics

High Block Snatch
5 x 2 @ 65# Rest=60s
Felt good.  Weight was a little light, but still working on the movement.  Got some on video, I'll post them after I have a look.

High Block Clean
5 x 2 @ 115# Rest=60s
Good weight.  I was really trying to catch low.  It will take some time.

Strength
4 x 5 - 135, 155, 185, 205
Felt pretty good.  My back started getting pretty tight by the 4th set so I decided to stop there.  Wanted to get to 215, but whatever.  My depth was good though.

I got some good video of my workout, I'll edit it and put it up soon.

First Workout at Home, post back injury.

27 Aug 12

First workout at home since back injury!  Decided to take it pretty easy, but I need to start picking up the pace soon.  I think the secret is going to be warming up effectively.  I used to just walk in the gym and start throwing weights around.  Those days are over!  I may have to start getting up like 10 min earlier so I can still get my whole workout in.  Anyhow, today I did Olympic Lifting.  I had plan to do some strength work as well but my back was telling me that I was done, and I got up late anyhow.

Olympic Lifting

High Hang Snatch
7 x 3 @ 65# with Rest=60s
Very explosive.  Pretty light weight, but was really focusing on getting deep into my overhead squat.  Felt pretty good once I got going.

High Hang Clean
7 x 3 + 1 Jerk @ 95# with Rest=60s
Pretty light, but it felt good anyhow.

Not a bad little workout.  Probably going to get in some Pushups and Situps at lunch too.  We'll see.

First time on the court since back injury.

22 Aug 12

I played basketball for about an hour.  Full court.  Played ok, the level of competition was pretty pathetic.  Had some pretty good jumps.  Even tried a dunk on a fast break, but I ended up timing it poorly and did the ole toss it up and grab the rim.  I was able to hang from the rim pretty consistently though.

Upper Workout

Bench - 5 x 5 - 135, 155, 185, 205, 205

Felt pretty good.  Still a little weak and loose, but getting there.

Dips - 3 x 10 @ 10#

Not bad.  Felt solid.

Bar Bell Curls - 3 x 10 @ 45#

Too easy, but starting back slow.

Hanging Leg Raise - 3 x 10

Not bad, but my shoulders are a little sore.

Pretty good workout.

21 Aug 12 - Workout

21 Aug 12

I did some jumps before my run.  I did about 10 jumps and was getting my whole hand above the rim every time.  I got to my second knuckles when I jumped with both hands.  I'll try to get some on video next time.  Anyhow, got in a good run.

CFE Run

Warmup: 5 min jog

Run: 5:00 on/2:30 off/6:00 on/3:00 off/7:00 on
I did all of them at 8.5 mi/hr so that means I got .71 mi, .85 mi, and 1 mi on the last one.  Not bad.

Cooldown: walk for a few minutes

Good workout.

First Workout - Post Back Injury

20 Aug 12

Finally back in the gym.  I'm still a little tender so I decided to take it pretty easy with the weight and intensity.  Especially since today is supposed to be my Deadlift day.  Anyhow, I cut weight and volume a bit but still got a pretty good workout in.  I also knocked out a good PU/SU routine afterward.  I am currently programming a supplemental program to help some people in my AF reserve unit to pass the PT test.  So, I'm doing the workouts to motivate them.  So, here's what I did:

Drop Step Box Jumps - 36"
3 x 5
Felt great!!!  Was getting up easy, and didn't feel like I was having to bend at the hips too much to get my feet up.

Deadlift - Dynamic Effort
3 x 45, 65, 85, 95, 115, 135, 155, 185, 205 (did 205 for 3 sets)
Felt pretty good.  I'm a little sore, but not bad.  So, I call that a win!

One Arm KB Swings
3 x 5 ea @ 30#
Felt pretty good.  Wanted to take it easy and not push it, since these are very dynamic.  If I was going to hurt myself, it would be here.  But I'm ok.

Dead Hang Chin-ups
5 x 5
Felt good.  All the way down, all the way up.

Extra Workout
3 rds of "The Chipper" for time
10 Wide Arm Pushups
10 Crunches
10 Regular Pushups
10 Legs Up Crunches
10 Diamond Pushups
10 Rocky Situps (Right arm to left knee, left arm to right knee)

4:39

Whew, after a crappy day of eating, I was smoked.  Suprisingly enough, the crunches slowed me down the most.  But I got it done.  Might try some jumps tomorrow.

Another day of rest, UGH!

Good Morning.  Normally I'd be hitting it hard in good ole Gym De Hose B (my garage actually), but today I'm sitting at my computer watching Lost reruns on Netflix.  Anyhow, I've got a few more days of this before I start back again on Monday.  I hate resting but I know that at my age it is just as, if not more, important than working out.  My body is injured and I have to let it heal.  It's not all bad I guess.  Haven't watched Lost in a while.  Also, I will be able to reset all my lifts and really concentrate on making gains with proper form.  I've always let my ego really drive me adding weight, but very few of my maxes are true maxes in my opinion.

So that's it for today, just another depressing day of no fun.

Welcome to Old Age...

Good morning.

I wanted to tell you about my latest injury.  I did SOMETHING to back on Monday that took me out of the game completely.  I'm pretty sure the significant increase in plyometric exercises, coupled with Romanian Deadlifts, followed by Box Squats was just more than I was ready for.  The weird thing is, I was working way below my normal Dead and Squat weights.  I was Deadlifting 240# and only Squatting 225# (my 3RM for both is over 300#).  Anyhow, I think all the impact from the plyos really did a number on my lower back and the weighted exercises after just finished me off.  Anyhow, by the end I was laying on the floor wondering if I would make it in the house.

I took the rest of the week off and I now feel a ton better.  However, I am not fully recovered, so I will continue resting, stretching and icing for the rest of the week and start back Monday.  For recovery I tried to focus on hip mobility; Psoas, Hamstring, and Glute flexibility; Ice; and massage.  I bought my wife a back massager when she was pregnant and I've been using that at work.  I also have been using a foam roller every morning to really hit my lower body muscles.  A great site, with tons of free info and videos is: MobilityWOD  It's run by this guy Kelly Starrett who is a mobility/stretching guru in the Crossfit community.  I used his stuff a ton when I was recovering from my ACL surgery a while back.  He has some great explanations and demonstrations.  Check it out if you have time.

I have decided also that I'm going to go back to basics on all of my lifts. I'm tired of questioning the depth of my lifts or if they were clean enough. So I'm going to use this injury as a rest button for all of my lifts and take them back to 0, and proceed up only with full range of motion and perfect form. That means full squats, bar touching chest bench, etc. If I can't get clean form, I don't go up in weight. That goes especially for my Olympic lifting. I'm tired of only doing power versions. While I do appreciate their benefit, I feel like I'm actually limiting myself by not learning proper mechanics.

Here's an old video.  I'm actually jumping a few inches higher now (or was before I jacked up my back!)

My First Blog!

OK.  My first Blog Post!

I guess I'll do my little "about me" spiel.

My name is Joe Thomas.  I am 31 yrs old, 6'1", 200#, and I am a structural engineer in Mobile, AL.  My primary job is as a bridge inspector and I get to travel around the country and climb on cool bridges to make sure they are structurally safe.  I am also in the AF Reserves, 556th RHS at Hurlburt Field, FL.  I am currently a Captain, and hopefully soon will make Major.  I was active duty Army for about 5 years and enjoyed a lovely, all expense paid trip to Baghdad for 15 months.

My wife (Ashley) and I just had our first child, Carolyn Ann Thomas, who we refer to as Squirm.  She is amazing!  It's awesome to just be around my family and have that love in my life.  My wife is now a stay at home mom, which she has taken to incredibly well.

My fitness background is pretty sordid.  I played basketball, soccer, tennis, and football in high school.  I played basketball in college at the University of South Alabama, before I had a bad ankle injury and couldn't play my freshman season.  Since I was a walk-on, the university could not keep me in the program and I was invited to come back next year.  Of course, I drank a lot and got lazy and lost a lot of confidence.  Anyhow, I played tons of intramurals and did ROTC which took me into the Army.  There I developed a great love for training and working out.  I also fought amateur MMA, 6-0.  I really enjoyed it, but the wife wasn't too happy with the black eyes and broken noses, so I had to move on.  I also was introduced to Crossfit which has really inspired me to develop myself as an adult athlete.

I am incredibly ADD when it comes to sticking with a program.  I see something cool, and say, "I bet I could do that."  Then train really hard for a while, get sidetracked, and start something else.  Along the way I have used tons of different programs and techniques.  But I'm convinced that it matters so much more HOW you do something, than WHAT you actually do.  So this blog is my attempt to stay focused on a list of goals and train to achieve them one at a time.  This list is made up of things I consistently come back to.  The first is easily the longest goal I've had.  I've wanted to dunk for as long as I can remember, and there is no time like the present to start with that one.  Anyhow, here is my list and where I'm at currently:

1. Dunk a basketball. - Currently can grab the rim with both hands and can dunk a tennis ball with ease. 2. Run a marathon under 4 hours - I have run 5 half marathons under 1:51 3. Do a full planche - I can do an advanced tuck for a few seconds 4. Do a muscle up on bar and rings - Can chest to bar/rings and do deep dips for reps 5. Do an L-sit to handstand with straight arms - I can almost hold it with bent arms and going to a tuck on the PB 6. Max my AF PT test, 60 PU in a min, 60 SU in a min, 1.5 mi in 9:30 or less - Max PU/SU, last run was 9:50 7. Bench 1RM 300# - 1rm is 265

*Side note: I pretty severely tweaked my back on Monday, so I'm taking this week off to regroup.

I have a pretty extensive workout log at Crossfit.com (http://board.crossfit.com/showthread.php?t=57890) if you want to check out what I've been doing for the past while.