Last month we started a new Spring Leaning Challenge at the box. I don't win these challenges, but I play along and try my best. This year the challenge was much shorter, and in a lot of ways, much more difficult.
So on February 15 we did a workout called Angie, which I had done a few times before. It consists of:
100 pull-ups
100 push-ups
100 sit-ups
100 squats
And this has to be done consecutively, so you do 100 pull-ups, then you do 100 push-ups... It's brutal. The push-ups are especially difficult after the pull-ups. Last month when I did it, I finished in 24:26 using a red band for pull-ups and 50 real/50 knee push-ups. It wasn't awesome, but that workout rarely is.
Today I did the workout again, and along with losing 2 pounds, I took 2 minutes off my time. Not bad for a month.
But the workout was completely different today. When I did it in February, I worked out with a bunch of my Crossfit buddies. It was a decent-sized class that day and we cheered each other on. Today, I couldn't make it into the night classes (work seems to get in the way of Crossfit sometimes), but I still wanted to do the workout. I could have come in at 7:30 am, but didn't we just have a time change and isn't that awfully early to be working out? I could have come to the 8:30am class, but that class is kind of intimidating and really, really good. So what do I do? I arrange to come in and do it alone. Just me and the clock and the Lady Gaga Pandora station. I didn't even have a coach to cheer me on (he was doing an intro). I knew what time I needed to beat, and I did it.
Many of us are creatures of habit. We like schedules and consistency. I don't think I'm that way (especially for work. 9-5=torture). But I do tend to show up for Crossfit at the same time on generally the same days. I could go to other classes, but I never do. Why? I like my workout buddies. I like seeing a lot of the same people every time. Some I've become close to; some I don't know anything about besides how awesome they are at pull-ups. But I like seeing them. I could try to change it up and go to earlier or later classes, but for now, I'm good. And I'm still improving. That's good enough for now.
This week is benchmark week at Eugene Crossfit. That means we get to do really hard workouts all week. Yay! Monday was the hardest one on the list - Angie. 100 pull-ups, followed by 100 push-ups, followed by 100 sit-ups, followed by 100 squats. It's a bitch! I had done Angie twice before. Scaling back means a lot of things with Angie. You can use bands and do push-ups on your knees, and you can do fewer reps. The first time I did Angie, in October, I did 50 pull-ups and push-ups and 70 sit-ups and squats. After I finished, I knew I could have done more of the last two. The next time we did Angie, I did 75 of everything. Even then I knew I could have done 100 of the last two. This time, I did 100 for everything. I used the blue band for pull-ups. They were awful, but not as bad as I thought they would be. I used bands to assist me with push-ups - blue and tan - and then I started doing them on my knees after about 20 because my arms were burning. Push-ups are one of my biggest goats. They hold me back so much. But I finished the workout and felt pretty good about life.
Then Karen, my buddy, was still doing sit-ups and said something about quitting. There's no quitting in Crossfit! So I got down on the mat and finished the last 25 sit ups with her. So did the rest of the women there. It was awesome! Then we took turns doing squats with her. Those squats can burn after a while, so doing 10 at a time was fine with us. Here's me and Karen taking care of business.
Hell yeah. She finished under 30 minutes! That's a tough workout!
What does this have to do with movement? Yeah, I'm having a tough time moving my arms today. Straightening them doesn't feel too good. Lifting anything overhead seems impossible. Still, I managed to do Grace today, which is 30 clean and jerks. I definitely could have done more weight on any other day, but just showing up was an accomplishment for me, so I was happy with just doing it. Later this week we have wall balls and thrusters and pull-ups, oh my! I'm pretty sure doing anything on Saturday is out of the question.
Oh, and my friends and I had an impromptu Lady Gaga dance party the other night. I haven't danced in a while. I used to all the time. I need to incorporate dancing into my workouts. We all do.
