Testing, 1-2-3, Testing...

I have officially passed my pre testing dead lift weight!!!! Take that negative Dana.  On Wednesday I dead lifted 95 lbs so my husband-coach (kinda like a sister-wife, you know because he has dual roles just like Kody Brown's ladies on TLC...ok maybe not the best analogy...fine bad analogy...) has agreed to get the ball rolling and do some "testing" tomorrow morning.  This makes me think about all the kinds of tests that we go through as we pass through life, most are a rite of passage; diploma exams, drivers test, eye exams , pregnancy tests and now I can add testing my Cross Total with bench press as well to this list (see below).  Like all the tests, testing my strength makes me nervous as I am not sure what to except or how well it will go, I have prepared the best I could and the results will influence where I go from here.  Stay tuned for my results and a detailed workout plan based on my results.    
Cross Fit Total
Back Squat
Press
Deadlift
Pull ups (hahahaha)
+ Bench Press

Inspiration

Searching "Nasty Girls" on you tube and searching "Nasty Girls-Crossfit" on you tube will get you two very DIFFERENT results.  Here is three hard core but G-rated CF ladies being "nasty" and living by the Crossfit Woman's Creed (thanks for the inspiration Bree!)

Nasty Girls

3 rounds for time of:

50 Squats

7 Muscle-ups

135 lb Hang power cleans, 10 reps

Crossfit Woman's Creed

I am a CrossFit Woman.

I do not wear makeup to the gym, I wear chalk.
I do not get manicures, I scrub the calluses off my hands.
I do not glisten or smile while I am working out. I sweat, grunt and curse.

I am a CrossFit woman.
I am as proud of my muscles as I am my scars.
They are evidence of my work and dedication.

I am a CrossFit woman.
Student, Trainer, Coach.
Increased work capacity is my mission.
Elite fitness is my goal.

I am a CrossFit woman.
I may scale a WOD, BUT will never quit or give up.
I do what others won't and excel where others can't.
I am stronger mentally and physically because of it.

I am a CrossFit woman.
I am invincible and you can be too!







You want me to eat what?

The discussion began innocently enough, he meant well, he really always does but sometimes...jeesh. It went down like many do, He SAYS "you should really embrace the whole Crossfit lifestyle and become more 'primal" maybe just start by trying to eat Paleo for a while....I think you will really find that it makes a difference and you will really see some changes".  I HEAR "I don't really think you are taking this seriously cause if you were you would go on a diet besides I would love you more if you were skinny." As a side note you should know that this conversation was while I was finishing off the third super yummy red lobster cheese biscuit so a lot of what I heard was influenced by a carb induced craze but of course that didn't stop me from taking what he said to heart. 

Just shortly after Crossfit came into our lives we did make a switch in the way we ate.  We followed very closely with the ZONE meal plan and my husband has just recently dabbled with eating Paleo.  So once we were back at home I spent the evening "researching" (I did it all online so I use the term loosely) the primal lifestyle specifically the idea of eating food found in nature: game meat, fish, vegetables, wild fruits, eggs and nuts. The theory behind this paleolithic/cavemen diet is that the human race was thriving on this diet high in animal fat and proteins and low in carbohydrates, and things changed when we introduced unnatural foods to our bodies. The human body evolved for more than 2 million years with the food found in nature so naturally wouldn't that be the best way to help achieve great health and a perfect physique?

My google search was not limited to just paleo eating and I read about the different aspects of primal living including examining your modern sleeping habits and working out sans shoes. Marks Daily Apple is a great place to find lots of info about all things primal.   Of course there is more to living in this way but I didn't have to look very far to know that maybe this isn't for me.  But now that I am armed with the knowledge of how 'dangerous'  foods considered unnatural can be I will make better choices for not just me but for my whole family when it comes to Sunday morning grocery shopping.  

I get it, it does make sense and I plan on continuing eating in the zone during my journey and maybe just maybe if I can find a recipe for the perfect paleo chocolate chip cookie I will change my new age ways but until then for this carb loving, shoe wearing, mattress sleeping chick to go primal well that is just one nutty idea. 

Well that was interesting

A sneak preview of my next goal!
First FRAN then tryouts.

So week one is technically sort of over...well for me it is..is it a bad thing that I need a break already?  We are heading to the Oilers game so I won't be able to gym it up this weekend but considering how last night I had to 'gingerly' raise my aching body out the bed I am thinking that I probably could use a rest day....or two....hell lets make it 3, its seems like multiples of 3 have been haunting me all week anyways.  A sign of things to come? 

While stretching before this mornings workout I let negative, angry Dana (W's favourite Dana) get the better of me and I let the little devil on my shoulder get in my head and say "Really Dana? Really? Is this necessary? Could you survive without ever doing FRAN?"  My enthusiasm and spirit were temporarily broken, and if I am not careful the score could quickly become lopsided, and before I know it it will be Crossfit-1 Dana-0. 

Its only been three days.  You scoff BUT they were in a row, which for some of you doesn't seem like much, ask around and you will find out... for me three days  in one month is considered ALOT. Because I am still a little nervous to jump rope or try my version of a pull up, I had to modify all of the WODs this week and its making me a little anxious.  Today we did dumbbell thrusters and I could barely put 10lbs over my head.  A little bit concerning considering I will have to lift 65lbs in a similar fashion. 

Something I am learning about the art of Crossfit is that the mental game is just as important as the physical.  These first couple of days have been an eye opener about how much work I will need to put in and how much of a long way I still have to to go. But I am lucky though a strong support system has started to form around me and I appreciate how the Crossfit Red Deer community has reached out to me because this last couple of days has proved to me that I will need all the help and motivation that I can get. 


Like Ethan Tremblay says "Its all uphill from here..."





So I guess this means I have to do it?

Picture it, 4 am, both children crying out, me in a half catatonic state rolling over and spitting  in my husbands general direction.  " How the ________ am I going to do FRAN if I don't sleep?".  So its sinking in, I am really going to have to do this but lucky for me the man in my life has agreed to help me come up with a plan.  To be completely honest though the more he talks Olympic lifting, cardiorespiratory fitness and vertical vs horizontal growth of skills the more I hear Charlie Brown's teacher droning on.   I know deep in my heart the guy knows what he is talking about but this is starting to sound less like working out and more like a blitzkrieg on my body.

My approach will be simple and I look to Stephen Covey for some inspiration and decide that it would be best to 'begin with an end in mind'.   Working backwards from my long term goal we have developed a schedule: 

Workout of the Day at the gym-Tuesday and Thursday
Strength Training at the gym-Wednesday and Saturday
Hot Yoga-Friday
Skill Day-Sunday
Rest Day-Monday

Since I am still technically rehabbing my c section, my 'trainer' has required me to dead lift 95lbs before we move forward and test my basic strength. I have been regularly going to Crossfit Mommas at the gym on Tuesday and Thursday morning for the last couple of weeks and  by Tuesday March 29th, I will have achieved this first short term goal.  Ya me! 

From here I plan on setting a series of short term goals that involve Rippetoe's strength standards as well as some basic Level 1 Crossfit Skills.  I will post more about the details of my training plan once it has been worked out (target date is April 1st). 

As for the part I really like...I plan to blog about my training progress at least once a week BUT I will probably rant and rave a little more often.  I can imagine the training stuff will be a bit drier but the rants will be worth coming back for ...trust me you don't have to ask too many people, I can rant. 

and it really begins...

Inspiration

I found this story while my man was stalking the Open's leader board and obsessing over his ranking.    

A Story of Transformation

Maura Brown joined CrossFit Santa Clara a little over a year ago, and since then she has lost 120-lbs. and has chosen to compete in the Open*.

*Note: The CrossFit Games Open Qualifiers is a six week, worldwide competition in the sport of fitness. The Open is the first step in the CrossFit Games season and takes place from March 15 until April 24. There is one workout per week for six weeks, and athletes compete to qualify for the CrossFit Games.

Who the hell is FRAN?

In the world of Crossfit, the name FRAN is synonymous with pain, agony and torture.  It is one of the "girls"; workouts designed by Crossfit to measure your performance and the overall improvement of your fitness level. These ladies are not friendly.  FRAN is one of these 'benchmark' workouts that is designed to capture the essence of Crossfit; a whole body workout with an element of weightlifting tossed in for good measure.  To say the least FRAN and her girlfriends are designed to humble the athlete who attempts them. 

Take a look at the following video that shows what FRAN should look like!

In our house there are two distinct periods in time; BC (Before Crossfit) and AC (After Crossfit).  Just over a year and a half ago, my husband took his Crossfit Level 1 Certification. After he got out of his session he called and was barely audible.  Struggling to string two words together before letting out a phlegm filled cough that rattled from his chest, he recounted the day.... "to finish we had to do a workout named FRAN?!?! 21 Pull ups, 21 Thrusters, 15 Pull ups, 15 Thrusters, 9 Pull ups, 9 Thrusters as quickly as you can!"  He didn't finish the workout that day but his love affair with the CF ladies and all things Crossfit began.  That night he resolved to start working out at home using his new found knowledge and the home page then shortly after he became involved with Crossfit Red Deer.  Here he took his love of Crossfit to the next level and subsequently I had lost my man to something much worse than a mistress!!! To gain back his attention, I followed suit and started to casually Crossfit without much success or improvement and if you are a regular CF'er you know there is no such thing as being a casual CF'er.  So here I am, a 29 year old, mother of two willing to commit to taking a serious run at this stuff and work towards a common Crossfit goal, COMPLETE FRAN AS PRESCRIBED!!!!! and I will give myself ONE calendar year to do it. 

This blog will serve as my 'journal' to track this wild journey, my ups and downs, my success and my failures and a place to rant and rave about this crazy stuff.   And by putting it out there for the cyber world to see I am hoping that there will be an element of accountability to keep me on the right path. 

A small disclaimer: I cannot do a pull up (even with a band) chin to bar nor can I do a thruster of more than a 35lbs, never mind a total of 45 pull ups and 45 65lbs Thrusters!

Stayed tuned for the 'game plan'