First day back in a while because of a septoplasty that I got a few weeks ago. So, I decided to tackle a crossfit workout I've never done: Barbara.
Barbara consists of:
5 rounds for time of -
20 pullups
30 pushups
40 situps
50 squats
I finished in 26:15. My rounds went like this:
1 - 3:04
2 - 3:33
3 - 5:32
4 - 6:44
5 - 7:21
I felt pretty awful while doing this. I have clearly not worked out very hard in too long. However, as I've told my girlfriend countless times, "It's time to get back on my horse." Today's workout has set me back up and I'm now ready to go. Some bad news is that the AF marathon filled up before I got a chance to register. I didn't even consider that possibility which has turned out to be a big mistake. The good news is that there's another marathon that's actually the following day and it's local. Since that's so convenient it's time to start running again.
With my next task ahead of me along with Tough Mudder following it I'm going to needs some words to compel me.
Monday, September 5, 2011
Monday, August 15, 2011
GORUCK Challenge Review - Class 052
Raleigh, North Carolina on Friday, 12 August 2011 I joined 26 others who enlisted to challenge themselves to become GORUCK TOUGH. This is my review of the challenge:
Preparation
I ensured to work my legs and turn them into steel. That was my main priority because my legs have always been weak. Priority number two was as simple as full body strength and conditioning. I did workouts to improve my endurance, strength, metcon, and agility. For more information on workouts that I did just review all prior blog postings here.
Arrival
My two friends Nick and Matt joined me on this trip to Raleigh. We arrived after the pre-ruckoff which is simply a trip to the bar with everyone the night before the challenge. We didn't mind really because that meant we could go to bed after a 13 hour drive. The day leading up to the challenge was pure anxiety. All of us were prepared (or so we thought) and just wanted the clock to hit 1800 so we could start. Then it did...
The Challenge
As a disclaimer, I honestly don't remember a lot of the challenge so the summary will be short. We dedicated our challenge to the 31 who had fallen in the recent Taliban attack on a NATO helicopter. When we arrived at the start point everyone put a name of one of the fallen on a beer can and placed it in their bag. At the end of the challenge we would dump the cans out in remembrance. We ended up starting at about 1830 after signing our death waivers and loading up our rucks. The three of us were just pumped to finally have these bags that we've waited so long to even see. But, it was no longer about the three of us, it was about the 27 of us. Lou, our "tour guide" joined us and we started off.
We started off doing a whole lot of calisthenics in memory of those who have fallen. We took a few very brief breaks to run over to the closest fountain and jump in it. This ended up being a win/lose situation but that will be reviewed in the "Scars" section. After that we ran a lot, did a lot of tiring movements, and watched the sun go down. I also acquired a 5th brick because someone couldn't fit all 4 of theirs into their smaller ruck. I quickly realized it would be a long night...
Skipping a lot of the monotony I'll jump to the log. She was a good sized log but apparently Lou wasn't that impressed with her because he continually told us that we should have seen a log in a prior challenge. It was big and heavy though. We carried it around a lake. However, it felt like we carried it around the lake 10 times. Eventually, the log actually broke so we had two teams carrying the sections. The only plus to it breaking was that it was easier to maneuver through the woods. We finally got it to our destination which luckily wasn't the starting point that was a hellish 5 miles away. This log brought us together and when we were done boosted the overall morale a little bit but it was at this point quite low.
After we finished with the log we were told we were almost done. Turns out, we still had 4 hours to go. When we finally reached the end we had worked for 14+ hours. Overall, it was seemingly hellish but I also realized that although it was incredibly physically exhausting, it was actually all mental like GORUCK claims.
Scars
As I finished up I felt like I wanted to die. My shoulders felt raw, my feet were raw, my back just hurt so badly, and my legs in entirety were rubberized. However, after inspection I seemed to be okay. My feet had some blisters on them because of the fountain in the very beginning, although it probably saved us all from heat exhaustion. Getting my feet wet right off the bat really set them up for pain. I would like to say though, I changed my socks after we carried the log and it was the happiest moment through the entire event. My shoulders hurt from the ruck and the log. The extra brick did some work on me. Not only the extra weight but the way that it sat in my bag created some problems for my shoulders and back. The worst pain however was in my knees. Also, my calves were so tight they were pulling on my knees and I couldn't straighten my legs. Continuing up my legs, my hips and hip flexors were just shot. Good news is that my quads felt good. I succeeded in making them steel.
Now that it's been a little over 48 hours since I finished I feel really good. I don't have a limp at all and I can actually wear a backpack. I could probably hit the gym if I wanted to but I really would love to not workout for a week.
Closing
In closing, I'd like to say that this challenge is amazing. It gives you a taste of hell which really helps you be more realistic with life. I define pain in a whole new way now. I will most likely do another one but more importantly I'd like to step it up and do some of the events that only GORUCK Challenge alumni can do. I suggest doing it and earning that Tough Patch, it looks good.
Bonus
http://www.mapmyrun.com/workout/61651664 - a rough map of where we ran, although I'm quite sure I'm missing quite a bit.
Preparation
I ensured to work my legs and turn them into steel. That was my main priority because my legs have always been weak. Priority number two was as simple as full body strength and conditioning. I did workouts to improve my endurance, strength, metcon, and agility. For more information on workouts that I did just review all prior blog postings here.
Arrival
My two friends Nick and Matt joined me on this trip to Raleigh. We arrived after the pre-ruckoff which is simply a trip to the bar with everyone the night before the challenge. We didn't mind really because that meant we could go to bed after a 13 hour drive. The day leading up to the challenge was pure anxiety. All of us were prepared (or so we thought) and just wanted the clock to hit 1800 so we could start. Then it did...
The Challenge
As a disclaimer, I honestly don't remember a lot of the challenge so the summary will be short. We dedicated our challenge to the 31 who had fallen in the recent Taliban attack on a NATO helicopter. When we arrived at the start point everyone put a name of one of the fallen on a beer can and placed it in their bag. At the end of the challenge we would dump the cans out in remembrance. We ended up starting at about 1830 after signing our death waivers and loading up our rucks. The three of us were just pumped to finally have these bags that we've waited so long to even see. But, it was no longer about the three of us, it was about the 27 of us. Lou, our "tour guide" joined us and we started off.
We started off doing a whole lot of calisthenics in memory of those who have fallen. We took a few very brief breaks to run over to the closest fountain and jump in it. This ended up being a win/lose situation but that will be reviewed in the "Scars" section. After that we ran a lot, did a lot of tiring movements, and watched the sun go down. I also acquired a 5th brick because someone couldn't fit all 4 of theirs into their smaller ruck. I quickly realized it would be a long night...
Skipping a lot of the monotony I'll jump to the log. She was a good sized log but apparently Lou wasn't that impressed with her because he continually told us that we should have seen a log in a prior challenge. It was big and heavy though. We carried it around a lake. However, it felt like we carried it around the lake 10 times. Eventually, the log actually broke so we had two teams carrying the sections. The only plus to it breaking was that it was easier to maneuver through the woods. We finally got it to our destination which luckily wasn't the starting point that was a hellish 5 miles away. This log brought us together and when we were done boosted the overall morale a little bit but it was at this point quite low.
After we finished with the log we were told we were almost done. Turns out, we still had 4 hours to go. When we finally reached the end we had worked for 14+ hours. Overall, it was seemingly hellish but I also realized that although it was incredibly physically exhausting, it was actually all mental like GORUCK claims.
Scars
As I finished up I felt like I wanted to die. My shoulders felt raw, my feet were raw, my back just hurt so badly, and my legs in entirety were rubberized. However, after inspection I seemed to be okay. My feet had some blisters on them because of the fountain in the very beginning, although it probably saved us all from heat exhaustion. Getting my feet wet right off the bat really set them up for pain. I would like to say though, I changed my socks after we carried the log and it was the happiest moment through the entire event. My shoulders hurt from the ruck and the log. The extra brick did some work on me. Not only the extra weight but the way that it sat in my bag created some problems for my shoulders and back. The worst pain however was in my knees. Also, my calves were so tight they were pulling on my knees and I couldn't straighten my legs. Continuing up my legs, my hips and hip flexors were just shot. Good news is that my quads felt good. I succeeded in making them steel.
Now that it's been a little over 48 hours since I finished I feel really good. I don't have a limp at all and I can actually wear a backpack. I could probably hit the gym if I wanted to but I really would love to not workout for a week.
Closing
In closing, I'd like to say that this challenge is amazing. It gives you a taste of hell which really helps you be more realistic with life. I define pain in a whole new way now. I will most likely do another one but more importantly I'd like to step it up and do some of the events that only GORUCK Challenge alumni can do. I suggest doing it and earning that Tough Patch, it looks good.
Bonus
http://www.mapmyrun.com/workout/61651664 - a rough map of where we ran, although I'm quite sure I'm missing quite a bit.
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Re-Murph
The other day I did the Murph workout again. I didn't do it weighted because I wanted to compare it to my previous non-weighted time. I shaved a solid minute and a half off of my time. What excites me the most is that I kept my form up through all of the calisthenics. When I did it last time my pullups really started to slack, but this time it was much better.
Today, my plan is to do weighted Murph again. Just typing that I dread what the afternoon holds in store for me. But, I also can't wait to get started. This time I'm going to pack my bag with either bricks or the 20 lb dumbbell. I'll likely use the bricks so that I can wrap them up. I just ate a big sandwich so while I digest I'll prepare the bricks for not just this run but next weekend's run which is the GoRuck Challenge.
Well, with that being said, this is going to be one of the last posts until I start briefly training for a possible marathon I have in my future then Tough Mudder. My brother told me I was doing everything backwards. He said I should be running a marathon, doing TM, then GoRuck followed by a second TM. But, I just want to get a GRC under my belt...
Today, my plan is to do weighted Murph again. Just typing that I dread what the afternoon holds in store for me. But, I also can't wait to get started. This time I'm going to pack my bag with either bricks or the 20 lb dumbbell. I'll likely use the bricks so that I can wrap them up. I just ate a big sandwich so while I digest I'll prepare the bricks for not just this run but next weekend's run which is the GoRuck Challenge.
Well, with that being said, this is going to be one of the last posts until I start briefly training for a possible marathon I have in my future then Tough Mudder. My brother told me I was doing everything backwards. He said I should be running a marathon, doing TM, then GoRuck followed by a second TM. But, I just want to get a GRC under my belt...
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Gym Time
I finally got back into the gym today. I haven't squatted or benched since school let out until today. I went with 3 other guys from work and we had varying levels of fitness which was honestly pretty cool. It felt great getting in the gym for a real weighted workout. After the gym I also got into the boxing room with a few guys and we did a little bit of circuit training. However, the workout was cut short in both places due to the fact that we all needed to get to work.
Whenever I go to the weight room I typically follow a Starting Strength program. I've made some variations to it by now but it's pretty much the same deal. First, we started out on squats. Since there was nobody in the gym we split up into teams of two and had our own squat station. I was with a kid that squatted for the first time yesterday, so I was pretty excited. We did this:
115 lbs - 5x
135 lbs - 5x
155 lbs - 5x
175 lbs - 5x
185 lbs - 5x
195 lbs - 5x
We decided instead of doing a predetermined number of sets we would just go until he couldn't anymore. He thought he was maxing out at about 155, but by the end he realized that 195 wasn't even at his max. We stopped there because the other pair was ready to bench so we moved on.
Benching was similar but shorter. We did this:
95 lbs - 10x (He went first and I didn't do this weight)
115 lbs -10x
135 lbs - 8x
155 lbs - 6x
185 lbs - 1x (My max and I failed)
We were going to go dead lift but we realized we were short on time and it was either dead lift or go box and get some cardio in. We chose the cardio. Since we had 4 people, we had a 4 station boxing/cardio circuit. We would be at each station for a minute putting out as much effort as possible (except at the rest station) and it went like this:
Jump Rope
Shadow Box
Rest
Heavy Bag
It was intended to go through these stations 4 times each taking 16 minutes. However, we had to end after 2 rounds because it was time to go to work. In the end it was a solid workout, but I may go after work too just so that I can finish off with some core and more cardio.
Whenever I go to the weight room I typically follow a Starting Strength program. I've made some variations to it by now but it's pretty much the same deal. First, we started out on squats. Since there was nobody in the gym we split up into teams of two and had our own squat station. I was with a kid that squatted for the first time yesterday, so I was pretty excited. We did this:
115 lbs - 5x
135 lbs - 5x
155 lbs - 5x
175 lbs - 5x
185 lbs - 5x
195 lbs - 5x
We decided instead of doing a predetermined number of sets we would just go until he couldn't anymore. He thought he was maxing out at about 155, but by the end he realized that 195 wasn't even at his max. We stopped there because the other pair was ready to bench so we moved on.
Benching was similar but shorter. We did this:
95 lbs - 10x (He went first and I didn't do this weight)
115 lbs -10x
135 lbs - 8x
155 lbs - 6x
185 lbs - 1x (My max and I failed)
We were going to go dead lift but we realized we were short on time and it was either dead lift or go box and get some cardio in. We chose the cardio. Since we had 4 people, we had a 4 station boxing/cardio circuit. We would be at each station for a minute putting out as much effort as possible (except at the rest station) and it went like this:
Jump Rope
Shadow Box
Rest
Heavy Bag
It was intended to go through these stations 4 times each taking 16 minutes. However, we had to end after 2 rounds because it was time to go to work. In the end it was a solid workout, but I may go after work too just so that I can finish off with some core and more cardio.
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Matt n Nick
Yesterday I worked out with Matt and Nick. Matt's the same one that took me mountain biking a week ago. The three of us are doing the GoRuck challenge together in 2 weeks and had our first team workout yesterday. This isn't a big deal because the three of us are already very team oriented so team bonding isn't really priority number one.
As for the workout, we ran 4 miles and did 300 pushups, situps/flutter kicks, and squats. We did this with our camelbaks on so I decided right away that we should do flutter kicks instead of situps because we could just move the bag up and do flutter kicks relatively normally. Nick and Matt did some situps anyway and mixed flutter kicks in, I did just straight flutter kicks. It went like this:
1-mile
100 : pushups, flutter kicks, squats (No Partitioning)
1-mile
20 : pushups, flutter kicks, squats 5x
1-mile
20 : pushups, flutter kicks, squats 5x
1-mile
I finished in 1 hour and 3 seconds. When I finished I thought that my watch said 1 hour and 3 100ths of a second which pumped me up because my goal was an hour. However, I then realized the milliseconds changed to seconds when an hour was reached. Oh well, I still feel good about the workout.
Overall, I worked really hard and loved the entire workout but I really had to push myself on the last mile. I had 8 minutes to finish the mile and I didn't think I could do it. Turns out it was 8 minutes and 3 seconds. Matt and Nick worked hard too and I think the three of us had a great workout.
As for the workout, we ran 4 miles and did 300 pushups, situps/flutter kicks, and squats. We did this with our camelbaks on so I decided right away that we should do flutter kicks instead of situps because we could just move the bag up and do flutter kicks relatively normally. Nick and Matt did some situps anyway and mixed flutter kicks in, I did just straight flutter kicks. It went like this:
1-mile
100 : pushups, flutter kicks, squats (No Partitioning)
1-mile
20 : pushups, flutter kicks, squats 5x
1-mile
20 : pushups, flutter kicks, squats 5x
1-mile
I finished in 1 hour and 3 seconds. When I finished I thought that my watch said 1 hour and 3 100ths of a second which pumped me up because my goal was an hour. However, I then realized the milliseconds changed to seconds when an hour was reached. Oh well, I still feel good about the workout.
Overall, I worked really hard and loved the entire workout but I really had to push myself on the last mile. I had 8 minutes to finish the mile and I didn't think I could do it. Turns out it was 8 minutes and 3 seconds. Matt and Nick worked hard too and I think the three of us had a great workout.
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Running Tabata Something Else
Tabata Something Else is a workout that you do 4 consecutive rounds of tabata with different workouts. If you don't know what tabata is look here. The workout works like this:
1 round - pullups
1 round - pushups
1 round - situps
1 round - squats
In other words you do a full tabata set then move on to the next without pausing more than your given ten seconds. What I did was the running supplemented version of this workout. It works like this:
Pullups
1 Mile - 7:57
Pushups
1 Mile - 9:02
Situps
1 Mile - 8:31
Squats
1 Mile - 8:34
Clearly those calisthenics are the tabata form of their already exciting selves. You can also see my times for my miles on the above chart. As you can see, I really struggled on mile two then I evened out afterwards. I think a big problem is that I started the workout with minor dehydration. Then it was supplemented by the temperature, which is currently about 86 degrees Fahrenheit with high levels of humidity.
Overall, I felt good. I felt like I was going to die at first but then I got used to the heat and started sucking down the water. In the end, I finished and was ready to continue if I had to. However, I did not.
GoRuck - 23 days... Compel me.
1 round - pullups
1 round - pushups
1 round - situps
1 round - squats
In other words you do a full tabata set then move on to the next without pausing more than your given ten seconds. What I did was the running supplemented version of this workout. It works like this:
Pullups
1 Mile - 7:57
Pushups
1 Mile - 9:02
Situps
1 Mile - 8:31
Squats
1 Mile - 8:34
Clearly those calisthenics are the tabata form of their already exciting selves. You can also see my times for my miles on the above chart. As you can see, I really struggled on mile two then I evened out afterwards. I think a big problem is that I started the workout with minor dehydration. Then it was supplemented by the temperature, which is currently about 86 degrees Fahrenheit with high levels of humidity.
Overall, I felt good. I felt like I was going to die at first but then I got used to the heat and started sucking down the water. In the end, I finished and was ready to continue if I had to. However, I did not.
GoRuck - 23 days... Compel me.
Monday, July 18, 2011
Mountain Biking
I went mountain biking with my good friend Matt this past weekend. I had never been before so I was a little tentative to try it. However, I manned up and went for it. Matt is pretty good and goes a lot so I was happy to be going with someone that has some experience.
First, we went on a little obstacle course to warm up and I did horribly. I fell off of a board really quickly and hurt something that no man ever wants hurt. However, the good news is that was really the only "injury" I sustained during the trip.
Once we got onto the real trails the workout really started. Riding up hill over roots and rocks was difficult. But, I soon started having fun so I forgot I was working out. After riding for a few hours we were both pretty tired and it was time to go home.
However, we got lost on the wrong side of the mountain. After figuring it out we rode a few miles back to the parking lot. I shouldn't speak for him but I know my legs were fried.
Good news, I recovered quickly and the next day I was only a little sore. I really enjoyed the right and look forward to biking again.
First, we went on a little obstacle course to warm up and I did horribly. I fell off of a board really quickly and hurt something that no man ever wants hurt. However, the good news is that was really the only "injury" I sustained during the trip.
Once we got onto the real trails the workout really started. Riding up hill over roots and rocks was difficult. But, I soon started having fun so I forgot I was working out. After riding for a few hours we were both pretty tired and it was time to go home.
However, we got lost on the wrong side of the mountain. After figuring it out we rode a few miles back to the parking lot. I shouldn't speak for him but I know my legs were fried.
Good news, I recovered quickly and the next day I was only a little sore. I really enjoyed the right and look forward to biking again.
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