Show Your Best

 I have been to many boxes all over the place, and there is still no place like HOME. I recently got back from a trip to Florida, where I was super excited to go "box hopping". We stopped along the way at Crossfit Trussville, located in Alabama, to hit a WOD to try and get over our "jet lag" from driving for 7 hours. The day before I had a tangle with "Cindy", and left her sucking her thumb in the corner wanting her momma,. and me as well. So to say I was sore is a huge under-statement...but anyway back to my story. So after several calls to try and arrange to workout at Trussville, we finally get the green light to stop in and hit a WOD. We get there and the trainer is super friendly, and spot on as far as the CF personality goes. In talking with him, he shares that he called one of his top athletes to come hit the WOD  while we were there. Everyone that knows me knows how I responded to this..."Hell Yeah"! We hit the WOD, had a good time doing it with a lil' bit of non-directed competition, and made some new friends in the meantime. ( Don't worry, you'll find out Monday what the WOD was :). ) What I'm trying to say is that never meeting us before, our new found friends wanted to show their best the first time, which is admirable in my book.
The second, and last "BOX" we visited on our trip was not the case. To call yourself legit, you have to eat, sleep, and breathe what you preach 24/7... CrossFit by definition is constantly varied, FUNCTIONAL MOVEMENTS, executed at high intensity. This is what we preach day in and day out...if it is not functional(squatting, picking heavy shit off of the floor, or moving and lifting in a natural way) then what is the purpose? Is it cool to preach this, then when all of the "followers" are not looking , go do some sort of sword fighting with a pole with weights on the end of it in some orchestrated movement that had obviously been practiced, some kind of upside down pullups, and some sort of barbell carry in a half bicep curl position, where dropping it to a full hang was penalized by who knows what. I'm not trying to be one way, or a complete jerk, but I am trying to say that if your going to call yourself something, then be that something. I was told by this person that was doing this that the standards for the KB Swings at the Regionals was totally bogus and kept him and his team from qualifying...and that there was this guy who had these abdomen muscles that stuck way out, so he was obviously taking some sort of performance enhancing drugs...fail! I had learned all of this within 5 minutes of meeting this dude...Really? You introduce yourself to CrossFit right, take all the steps to learn how to do it right(go to a legit Affiliate with legit trainers who know their stuff and are passionate about doing things right) expose yourself to HEAVY loads over your head, on your back squatting, and picking things off of the floor...HEAVY things, and you too could have these so called "enhanced Abs". It's from prolonged exposure of doing shit right, i.e. core training with functional movements. There are good and bad in everything you do or participate in. I am so thankful that I am part of a CrossFit family at my box that can without a doubt, call ourselves LEGIT! We show our best every hour of everyday, and for that I thank every person that calls their home CrossFit SoMO.

A man among GIANTS

  This past weekend at the CF North Central Regionals was amazing! I was honored to be a part of such an ELITE group of athletes. The competition was second to none, the judging was stellar, the coordination of the event was spot on, and the overall atmosphere of the entire weekend could never be duplicated except at an event like that one! Humbling and gratifying all at the same time, is the only way I can describe what I felt like being among all of the people I was around. Not only the athletes, but the friends that took the time and effort out of their already busy lives to come and support me in my endeavor,  was priceless.
   This little town that we live in is GREAT, with all of the amenities of home, but you truly have to go outside of the "normal" to test yourself, and all of your hard work from time to time. I ended up in 17th place in our 11 state Region, after what has felt like an eternity of competition. Am I happy with finish?...YES! Am I satisfied that 17th is all I can do?...HELL NO! I learned that I really need to submerge myself into a competitive atmosphere more often. I learned that I will lose sometimes, and that it is okay. I learned that the only time it is not okay is if you don't try again. I learned that there are people out there that really do want to see me succeed. I learned that no matter how good you are, or think you are, there is ALWAYS someone better. Someone that has put more effort into their goal. Someone who wants it more. Someone who is willing to put up with more pain to beat you, and then come over and cheer you on to finish.
   I have to give props to a guy that I got acquainted with through CrossFit. His name is Jeremy Mhire, and he is an outstanding athlete, and overall has one of the best attitudes of anyone I have ever met. He crushed the Regionals this past weekend, but it wasn't easy sailing for him at first. He had a pretty rocky start on the first WOD, and came back with authority to advance to the Final Day of competition, where he crushed the last 2 WODS. He has had a positive influence on me ever since I met him 3 years ago. We competed in Ft. Worth, TX together at the Regionals, when you did not have to qualify to get to Regionals. Boy times have changed in 3 short years as far as evolving the sport. Anyway, back to the subject, I want to say a huge thanks to Jeremy for the attitude that he presents and puts forth always, not just when he feels like it.
    So, things to focus on next year....get good enough to make top ten in my Region....or at least place 16th! I have more positive influence than I ever thought possible, and it is because of the people I surround myself with. If anyone reading this needs some of that influence, you should come and let me introduce you to a couple of my friends.

4-19-11

WOW! Been a while since I have updated...no excuses, just being lazy. If you typed like I do, you would realize that it takes me a substantial amount of time to post anything even worth taking the time to read.
  Well, we are well into the Games season, and I feel better than I have in over a year, both physically and mentally. I think I am currently sitting in 49th place in my Region, which I am okay with at the moment, but will not be satisfied until I quit scraping the bottom of the "To Go" list that advances to the Chicago Navy Pier on Memorial Day. There have been some challenging tests put forth so far, but I have felt comfortable in the fact that they were not too far out of my "Comfort Zone", if that makes any sense at all. Today I think they are going to release the last two workouts for the "Open Sectionals", and like always I will probably sit in the corner after I find out what they are, obsess about them, and get sick to my stomach thinking about how to perfectly execute them. Your mental state affects your performance so much, and like the last WOD, I literally beat myself into not performing at the level I know I can perform at, and have proven I can perform at so many times before...your intensity must be up during the WOD, not an hour before to where it drains every ounce of energy you have.
  My focus is better now than it has been, one due to my health physically, and two due to the positive things I have going on in my life, and going on around me. I believe that if you surround yourself by "goodness", then you have no choice but to be saturated in it. I am very blessed to have two wonderful kids that absolutely make my world. They are so good for my soul, and everyday I thank God that they are mine. I have a wonderful support system that truly wants to see me do good...not say they would like for me to do good, but actually whole-heartedly without a doubt wants to see me advance to the next level. That is huge! As much as this blog is to help me vent, it is even more for me to thank every single person that is in my life right now both personally,  publicly, and even the ones that want to see me fail, for being what you are to me and giving me whatever motivation you have brought about, whether it is positive enforcement, or making me so determined to kick the living sh!+ out of you. Everyone needs a motivator and I thank everyone for both kinds! So, until next time...be strong, be diligent, and be consistent.

3-8-11

Been a while since I last posted. Training has been going mediocre, fighting fatigue and drain, but overall not bad. I have been trying to focus on intensity throughout the WOD, and really pushing through the mental barrier of pain. The Games season is quickly approaching(next week), and the thought of a years worth of training for this brief period seems a bit overwhelming at times.Thoughts roll through my head a thousand times a day; Have I trained enough Oly? Are my strength numbers where they need to be? Is my metabolic conditioning where it needs to be? Is my mind going to be strong and firmly affixed to my goal, or will I let the pain of the WOD win over my desire to qualify for Regionals? I think if you are serious enough about anything, you will have these thoughts, you just have to harness that fear and use it for positive reinforcement. I have been really careful this year in the fact that I'm trying really hard not to peak too early. I still occasionally get the PR I was looking for, or crush a WOD, but I would really like to think that my training is peaking as I am writing this blog. The next 6 weeks will tell the tale as far as approach and conditioning, and God willing I won't get injured so I can have  heal;thy Games season. 

2-26-11

The Air Force WOD has haunted me for over a year...Not anymore...here it is at 5:48

Then my good buddy Clayton made an awesome Athlete Profile for me...it is amazing...

INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION...WHAT DRIVES YOU

 The spirit of competition, elbow to elbow in a WOD, the fear of losing or failure, letting someone or everyone down...that has been my motivation for a long time. Recently I realized that not only was I putting a time limit on my progress into qualifying for the Games, but I was losing the luster that I once had for all out competition and fun.
 I have been plagued with injury after injury for about 18 months off and on, and have been feeling sorry for myself a lot along the way. I have been really focusing on taking care of myself and keeping healthy, trying not to re-injure or cause any other injuries to my body. The other day I went through a grueling WOD that involved a bunch of HEAVY lunges, which left me somewhat crippled with soreness the next day. As I was laying in the floor on the foam roller, in quite a lot of pain rolling out the knots in my ass, a man walked through the door and changed my outlook on a lot of things. Keeping an anonymous profile, I will call this guy Bob. I will start by saying that this man has had a positive influence in my life and on me ever since I met him and his wife. Though they are not related to me at all, they are a big part of my very small family, and they both train with me at the box I co-own.
  I have known the couple for over 6 years now, and started our relationship through business. In that time, my friendship with the wife became solid and un-wavered. She helped me in business decisions, morals, and gave me advice in some of my personal life as well.Bob worked on the East coast, doing stuff with computers that I don't even know where to begin to start to try and explain. He came home ever so often, visiting and making sure everything was okay, and then going back to work for months. Then it happened...RETIREMENT! He had worked all his life for this day, and it came! He moved back home with his wife, and life was good. Then one day he went for a physical, as directed by his wife, and revealed a monster. Bob was told that he was in Stage 4 Colon Cancer...devastating. Of course naturally, I would assume that one would lose hope, give up and just quit enjoying life, and worry constantly...but not Bob.Bob made a decision that day that he was going to give this thing one hell of a fight. Months of chemotherapy and being sick and weak all the time, and you ask him how he feels...the answer is always the same "I feel great!"
 Getting back to the original story, we come to present tense. I am reflecting back to last week, when this man walked into my box, and while I was complaining about being so sore, he walks up to me asks if I would mind if he just rowed that day. With me laying in the floor, facing the entrance as he walked in, all I seen was a silhouette, but knew who it was. As I rolled off of the roller, got to my feet, and my eyes adjusted, I realized that Bob had a little backpack with him. Upon further inspection and information, I realized that Bob had finished his chemotherapy treatment the day before, and was carrying his pump that continues to pump the medicine through his body for 36  hours I think. So here is this man that I have the up most respect for, asking  me if he can just row for a little bit that day because he was a little tired from his treatment.Now I ask myself, what is my inspiration and motivation...is it feeling sorry for this guy...HELL no, he would hate to think that I am...it is the will and drive of this man to not be defeated, to strive to maintain optimal health to his ability, and to not relent on his endeavors.Bob has what a lot of people want, but never claim, and that is a will to pursue his goals and achieve them. He has a heart of a champion, and that is my motivation and drive to keep up my relentless pursuit of my goals, so whether it is a 550# deadlift, a 300# clean & jerk, to make it to the Games, or to just be the best person I can be, Bob will be a huge motivator and inspiration to me.

2-12-11

My good buddy Clayton hooked me up with a sick video of a WOD I done a couple of months ago, which was 5 rounds of 3 M/U-HSPU, 10 Burpee Pullups...it was a fun WOD to do, very challenging movement and very taxing! Anyway here is the clip...Thanks again Clayton for an awesome video!

2-10-11

Had a brutal cycle this week with a lot of squats, both weighted and body weight only. Started off with the CFT, then went to 5 rounds of a bunch of CRAP, including .....10 Push-Ups, 20 Pull-Ups, 30 Sit-Ups, 40 Double-Unders, and 50 squats per round......legs were trashed! Next day was KAREN...136 of the 150 Wallball un-broken, then a max on Barbell Complex( all that was required was crease of the hip below knee with barbell in rack,a solid lock out over head, a full depth squat with barbell on back, and a solid lock out over head)....legs wouldn't hardly support me, much less the 245# I finished on the complex. Then a lung -buster little WOD of 21-18-15-12-9-6-3 reps of Burpees, Lunges, Squats..What was I thinking?  Soooo...now I believe I am suffering from a slight case of sub-clinical Rhabdo! Woohoo!
 Here is the clip of the 245# Complex...It man-handled me!

2-8-11

Today was a pretty good training day for the most part. Started off with a 3 rep max OHS...started light and made pretty big jumps to get to 225, stuck 225 for 3, put 245 on the bar and managed 2 solid reps and just lost focus and dumped it. Since I had KAREN looming in the near future, I did not try to get it for 3 again.My whole objective in KAREN was to do more than 100 Wallballs unbroken. Hindsight 20/20, I paced just a little slow at first. I reached 100 reps at about 4 minutes and 30 seconds in, and felt fresh for the most part. My buddy hollered my time and I knew I needed to hurry up if I wanted to PR, so I kicked it into high gear. Ended up getting 136 reps unbroken, then finished the last 14 unbroken. Stopped the clock at 6:13,which was a PR, but not the time I was hoping for. I attempted to video the WOD, and got about a minute and a half before my camera took a crap on me, which I noticed after the WOD....soooo after my temper tantrum, Im in the hunt for a new camera. Here is the only video I was able to salvage...

2-2-11

My strength WOD today..cleans from mid-thigh...still crash a little in the bottom, but pleased with my lifts. Here are the last 3 lifts...

2-1-11

Yesterday was a monumental day for me. I hit a goal I had set almost 3 years ago in CrossFit, which was to Snatch 200#. Then I hit a brutal little Met-Con of 7 rounds, 7 90# KB swings,7 burpees, 7 pull-ups...stopped the clock in 6:54...Holy Forearms Batman! I have decided that if you can do one 90# KB swing, you can do up to 10 unbroken so I just have to quit being a sissy and do some work!

1-29-11

Todays WOD...10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1 of thrusters and pullups.....hmmm Fran's evil big sister! My time was 5:11, which is a lil faster than I thought I could do it in. The rep scheme allows the WOD to slowly creep up behind you and kick you right square in the nuts right after the 3rd transition. Like in Fran, as soon as you stop moving, it all comes on you and suddenly you can't breathe! My whole goal in this WOD was to not stop throughout the entire thing, and to embrace the suck once it started crushing the life out of me. I held on and stopped the clock a minute faster than I had thought I could have, so I am pleased!

300...I got 300!

Since I started CrossFit almost 3 years ago, I never thought I'd see the day I got 300# over my head...I was wrong woohoo! I worked on it all day and got comfortable jerking. I tried 300 probably 10 times throughout the process of the day, got frustrated, cussed and threw a fit, but persistence paid off...when you finally feel how it's suppose to be done, it's like a light bulb coming on. Now I just need to work on that clean! Thanks to all the friends who encouraged me through the last hour of frustration!

1-21-11

Today I did a deceiving little WOD that was completely based on strength endurance. 21-15-9 reps of deadlift, where you must complete all reps unbroken for it to count. My rep scheme was 315,345,375...posterior chain is trashed! Here are the clips...

1-18-11

This past cycle has proven to be quite challenging. Started off with some 1 arm kettlebell snatches, which always effs my arms up for about a week because of bruises...then done an absolute lung buster Sunday of 3 rounds, 20 front squat(95#) ,20 pull-ups, and a 400m run. All work was done unbroken ,and the runs were really slow due to my still screwed up ankle from spraining it...stopped the clock in 10:05. Yesterday I done OHS max, and an AMRAP in 12 of 10 push ups, 10 SDHP @75#...OHS was my nemesis yesterday. I worked up to 265#, and squatted it several times, but never stabilized it at the top of the squat long enough to suit my self to call it a legit squat(I think I squatted it 4 or 5 times). Then I got pushed head first into a brutal met-con challenge. A lady at the box had gotten 14 rounds of the AMRAP in 12 WOD, whish is solid, so the gauntlet had been thrown!    THAT BEING SAID...

     Those of you who know me, know that if someone does something tough , or has a blistering time on a WOD, it is in my nature to see how I compare. Not necessarily to beat the person, but to beat the challenge I have put forth myself.. I was able to get 16 full rounds in, all of the push ups, plus 4 SDHP. That was a very deceiving little WOD , to say the least. It was one of those ones that you really wanted to take 5 seconds to just stop moving and catch your breath, but really didn't need to because you knew you could push through it and just keep moving, and the lady that got 14 rounds was coaching me through it so I couldn't be a complete puss!

1-14-11

Yesterday was a good strength day....me loves me some heavy deadlift! WOD was 5x5 deadlift, then 3 rounds of 10-185# deadlift, 20-25# wallball...Rep scheme on deads was 135,225,315,405,435...felt strong throughout all movements..I think 435 was a PR for 5 reps but not for sure. The met-con was fast, wallballs were actually easier than the deadlifts, which is crazy since they were so light, but was able to stop the clock in 3:18...lower back is officially cashed...Thank goodness it is a rest day!

1-10-11

FGB..enough said. This WOD is one of my least proficient workouts, and one of the ones I want to get better at the most! Yesterday I partook in a friendly challenge of FGB. The workout consists of  5 movements-Push Press(75#), Box Jumps (20"), SDHP(75#), WallBall(20#), and Row for calories.You spend 1 minute at each station collecting as many reps in that minute that you can, transitioning from movement to movement with no rest. When you are done with the 5th movement, you have 1 minute rest before you start the cycle all over again. You do 3 rounds of this, trying to get as many reps as possible total...your score is total number of reps completed. Yesterday I had no "GAME PLAN", just do work. I had lots of encouragement throughout the entire WOD, but none like the very last movement, which was rowing for me, when I heard these words..."You can do anything for 1 minute", and "Just close your eyes, you don't need to see the clock, I will tell you when you are done"! With every rip of the handle on the C2, my legs engorged with lactic acid, my chest cavity cramped from the repetitive gasping of air, and my stomach churned the recent eggs and toast I had ate prior to my fight. My actual time on the rower the last round was closer to 50 seconds because of transition time, and I was able to pull 22 calories on the C2...which was brutal to say the least. I roll off of my rower, on my hands and knees in the classic " just got my ass whipped in a WOD pose" trying to catch my breath. Somewhere in the midst of gasping for air, my Thorasic spine got out of whack and now I have a big ol' catch between my shoulders...uggh. Boy does it feel good to finally PR on this WOD!

FINAL TALLY- 371

1-9-11

Yesterday was supposed to be just a nice little WOD to stay mobile for my date with FGB today, but not so much the case! The WOD was a buy in of 15 Squat Cleans @ 135, then 10 rounds of 5 T2B, 10 Pushups, 5 Pullups. Due to space, or the lack there of , we partnered up on a barbell. Now that is all fine and dandy, but realize that if at any point in the buy in, you put the bar down, your partner gets to START his work where as your time is still spinning while your watching helplessly! Seth was my partner and we had planned on him going 1st. While everyone was getting ready and warmed up, my good buddy Chase starts the clock. Now at this point, Seth is dicking around on the pullup bars, and I am completely somewhere else mentally, but I was closest to the barbell. When I finally realized that the time was fixing to start in 2 seconds, I hear Seth holler at me "GO I'M NOT READY!"....Oh shit! At that point I grab the 135# barbell and start my cleans. Now the whole time, I am reflecting back just a few minutes earlier when Seth asked me if I thought I could do them all unbroken. I had replied no because I was having a really hard time even walking, thanks to the wallball/snatch WOD the day before, which is why we decided to have him go 1st...turns out a person can do a lot more than they think! My last clean came to the top at 45 seconds, and I gladly gave my position up so I could start my 10 rounds of "EASY WORK"...my ass! Pushed through 10 rounds pretty steadily and stopped the clock at 9:38. Now as for staying mobile...NEGATIVE, I am as stiff as a board this morning and sore as hell! I have 3 hours until I get my FGB going, so hot shower and foam roller here I come!

1-7-11

I tried my hand at one of the WOD's at the '09 Games today...3 rounds, 30 Wallball, 30 Hang Squat Snatch @ 75#...HOLY LUMBAR BATMAN! The worst part was making sure the bar dropped below knee height in the "hang" portion of the movement, which totally destroyed your lower back. Had my buddy Seth coaching me through it, which made me suck it up and do the work faster than if I had done it by myself. Final time was 14:52, which was a lot better than the sub 20 minute mark I was shooting for, so pretty pleased with that!

1-5-11

I did this same WOD this summer with 275 deadlift for 35 reps...I rowed a 7:30 2k. I wanted a heavy deadlift met-con so I scaled up to 315. Weight felt really good and row felt strong at 7:12...ended up with 30 reps so over all I am pleased.

1-4-11

Today was the first body weight WOD I have done in a while...neglect is not a good thing, whew! It was an AMRAP in 15 of 5 pullups, 5 HSPU, 20 double-unders. Was able to muster 15 full rounds + pullups + HSPU + 1 double-under...I guess I'm satisfied with that. Other than the deck of cards WOD where I done 99 HSPU along with 99 muscle-ups, wallball, and burpees, that is the most HSPU I have ever done in a WOD. I have been doing alot of strength work in my WOD's so I was out of my new found comfort zone with this one, but that's gotta change!