2012 Resolutions

I’ve been silent here on the blog – I think Twitter killed it. That, and a lack of time outside of work to sit in front of the computer. Oh, and getting an iPhone. That’ll suck up your time, I tell you (hello Instagram and Tiny Wings!)

At any rate, I’ve decided to make some resolutions for the new year and thought I’d post them here for all to see (accountability!) They are totally related to my health/fitness. As it turns out, when I’m not healthy or taking care of my body, I’m unhappy. I like being happy. So without further ado, in 2012 I will:

• Make it to CFNE minimum of 3x/week, no matter how crazy the other parts of my life are.
• Eat Paleo 90% of the time and make the 10% non-Paleo REALLY worthwhile.
• Snatch 135# (my biggest goal in terms of fitness)
• Run a 7:30 mile (and run at least 1 road race, either a 5k or 10k)
• Row a sub-8:00 2K
• Find my double-unders again (%$!^%#&# DUs – had them, lost them, found them, lost them, and will find them again!)
• Avoid the avoidable injuries, and treat the unavoidable ones (even if it means stopping mid-WOD – and oh, what a metaphor for life this particular goal is…)
• Bring mindfulness to my Crossfit practice (some days, the PR is in the attempt, not in the results)

I’ll also add in:

• Maintain a healthy sense of humor and of the absurd
• Keep work and life in balance
• Visit my massage therapist 6 times
• Continue reading like a fiend (this year I hit 66…)
• Knit a few items and GIVE THEM AWAY (I have a problem with that second part)
• Be more social – go out with friends more often.

That should do. We’ll see how I do. I’m looking forward to this year like you can’t believe – it’s GOT to be better than 2011!

3. Compete in a Crossfit event

Yesterday I teamed up with Brian Stark and Ali LeBlanc as Team BAM! and we took on 25 other teams at CFNE in the In-House Throwdown. While we weren’t one of the top 3 teams at the end of the day, we had a total blast and were definitely the best-dressed team there!

There were 3 events that we competed in.

Event 1: Get It Done

2000 meter row
7 x 200 meter KB carry (single KB: 53, 35)
75 burpee box jumps, 20″
100 pullups

All team members will work at the same time to finish the above tasks.  Each team can split the movements and reps up as they see fit.

This was the event that I enjoyed the most. Our team strategized a ton beforehand, since we each wanted to work on the things we were best at. In the end, I ended up doing 15 pullups, 35 burpee box jumps, rowed 1500m, and did 1 KB carry.

I liked the row the most; one of the 6pm gals coached another 6pm-er and me. With her pushing, I was able to keep a decent pace the entire time. The KB carry was awful, and I was so happy that Ali and Brian ended up doing the other 6 of them. We ended up coming in close to last on this one, mostly because we had some technical difficulties with counting on the pullups. Ali took the brunt of the extra pullups on that – sorry girl!

Event 2: Barbell Ladder Up

10 minute up ladder of:
Athlete 1:  deadift
Athlete 2:  power clean
Athete 3:  ground to overhead

Each team will have one 75# barbell.  Athlete one will complete 1 DL, Athlete two will complete 1 PC and athlete three will complete 1 GTO.  The team will then repeat the same order, but will do 2 reps each, then 3 reps, and continue as high as possible in 10 minutes.  Once the team starts the bar is not allowed to rest on the ground till the wod is over (all reps are touch and go and you must pass the bar from athlete to athlete when transitioning).  If the bar rests on the ground there is a 2 burpee penalty for all team members.

Ali did our deadlifts, I did the power cleans, and Brian did the ground to overheads. As a team, we ended up getting up to 12 reps – Brian finished his 12th rep right at 10 minutes!

Ali and Brian were both so strong on this one; I really struggled with my grip, but never did set the bar down (it did rest in my lap several times…) In the end, we each did 78 reps of our movements. CRAZY!

Event 3: Relay Race

9 x 200 meter run

The start of the “Relay Race” is the end of the “Barbell Up Ladder” event (when the 10 minute mark of event 2 sounds, that is the “GO” for this wod).  One team member will run 200 meters and then tag the next team member.  Continue relay-style until all team members have run three 200 meter sprints.

Ouch. This one hurt. My first run was dreadful, and then the second and third got a little better. It’s funny though – on the second and third runs it was like 25-year-old muscle memory kicked in and I blew through the first 100m of the run, accelerating the entire way. And then I had to turn around, and just like 25 years ago, I decelerated on the second 100m… Once a sprinter who doesn’t like corners, always a sprinter who doesn’t like corners. Both Ali and Brian did a great job on these as well. All of us got faster each time. And all of us have the tight hamstrings today to prove it!

What a fun day!

Crossfit 5/10-5/17

May 10

• 3 sets of 5 deadlifts @ 165#
• Christine was 3 rounds of 500m row, 12 bodyweight deadlifts, 21 box jumps. Finished in 14:15 with #135 deadlifts. Compare to March 15 (15:48 using 120#).
• Ended the day with 39 birthday burpees (so only 14 more than I have been doing all month after WODs).

May 15

• Big JT Runs was 5 rounds for time of 9 HSPU, 200m run, 15 ring dips, 200m run, 21 pushups, 200m run. Finished in 48:53.
• Scaled HSPU 3 rounds to 25# plate, 1 round to 25# + 10# plate, 1 round to 25# plate + abmat. Scaled dips to GHD dips.
• Ended the day with 25 post-WOD burpees because I hate them and they make me angry.

May 17

• 3 sets of 5 back squats @ 130#
• 5 rounds for time of 10 chest-to-bar pullups and 10 front squats (95# Rx). Finished in 11:17 with kipping pullups and 75# front squats.
• Ended the day with 25 post-WOD burpees because I hate them and they make me angry.

Elevator Pitch

I love Melissa and Dallas over at Whole9. Such smart stuff. I need to remember these two things the next time someone asks me, “What is Crossfit and why are you eating the way you do?”

The Crossfit elevator pitch:

“CrossFit is a fitness program designed around the things you do in the real world. Every day, you bend down and pick things up, you put things over your head, you squat down, you stand up, you run after your kids or jump over a puddle. CrossFit prepares you for all that and then some by performing those exact movements in our workouts. We borrow exercises from things like weightlifting, gymnastics, and track and field, and we mix it up a lot, so your body is always adapting, getting stronger, faster, better conditioned. And the key to the whole program is that you work really, really hard… so you get fit really, really fast.”

and from the comments, add this: “we try to get everyone from the level they’re at to the next higher level. If that means a grandmother regaining her confidence in picking up her grandchild, awesome. If it means a strong athlete becoming an elite athlete, fantastic. This is for everyone.”

The Paleo elevator pitch:

“I eat “real” food – fresh, natural food like meat, vegetables and fruit.  I choose foods that are nutrient dense, with lots of naturally-occurring vitamins and minerals, over foods that have more calories but less nutrition.  And food quality is important – I’m careful about where my meat comes from, and buy produce locally and organically as often as possible.

It’s not a low calorie “diet” – I eat as much as I need to maintain strength, energy and a healthy weight.  In fact, my diet is probably much higher in fat than you’d imagine.  Fat isn’t the enemy – it’s a great energy source when it comes from high quality foods like avocado, coconut and nuts. And I’m not trying to do a “low carb” thing, but since I’m eating vegetables and fruits instead of bread, cereal and pasta, it just happens to work out that way.

Eating like this is good for maintaining a healthy metabolism, and reducing inflammation within the body.  It’s been doing great things for my energy levels, body composition and performance in the gym.  It also helps to minimize my risk for a whole host of lifestyle diseases and conditions, like diabetes, heart attack and stroke.”

Brilliant, and so easy to remember. There’s a whole lot more in both of those posts, so you should definitely go read both of them. Thanks Melissa and Dallas!

Happy New Year, 2010 edition

How did I do on last year’s resolutions? If you’ll remember, they were to read at least 50 books, find at least 20 geocaches, score 2 points in hockey, bike more, and move/lift. Well, I read. Some. And then apparently stopped once August came rolling around. Fortunately I was able to read a few more books over vacation (thus far) and finished the year with 46 under my belt. As for geocaching – nope, not even close. I think I’m going to have to take caching off my resolution list, as it doesn’t seem like I’m doing it for fun, but rather out of obligation. In hockey, I had 6 goals and 19 assists – 2 of those assists in Nationals! – so I definitely accomplished that resolution. I biked some this year. It definitely helps to have a decent bike! And I more than “moved” because as you’ll recall, I joined CrossFit New England and have been kicking some serious butt.

This year’s numerical summary:

• Books read: 46
• States visited: 6 (NH, VT, ME, NY, MN, CO)
• Countries visited: 1 (Mexico)
• Hockey games played: 86 (being on 3 summer teams will do that…)
• New gadgets: 1 (a Droid Eris)
• Dogs: 2, still.

This coming year, I again have some modest resolutions.

• Continue with Crossfit and achieve the goals I set there each month.
• Knit more: 3 hats in January, finish the Janda sweater, Bruins gloves, and the fingerless gloves I started in Maine.
• Keep my weight under my magical number all year long.
• Play more games! Bananagrams is at the top of that list, for sure.
• Read more books in 2010 than I read in 2009.
• Learn to can fruits and veggies.
• Travel to more places in 2010 than I did in 2009. (Already on the calendar: Mexico, New Hampshire, Maine, Vermont, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and potentially California for a work conference – would like to get to Florida and Michigan this year too.)

Should be easy to do, right? Well, check back NEXT January 1 (that’d be in 2011, y’all) and see how I do!

Happy New Year to you and yours in 2010.

Megan and Amy, New Year's 2010