Nice Catch

A great demonstration of speed, coordination, agility, balance, and accuracy -- not to mention mental quickness:



I'll even look past the fact that he ate a gigantic tub of popcorn. (And the fact that he's a Dodgers fan.)

The Secret Weapon In The Fight Against Diabetes Is America's Love for Cheap Ice Cream

Has it already been a year since I wrote about how KFC gave $1 to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) for every half-gallon Mega Jug of soda purchased by customers?

This year, it's Wendy's turn. Donate a dollar to the JDRF, and the fast food chain'll give you coupons for four small "Frostys" -- Wendy's sugary ice cream treat. Because hey: One can never have enough Frostys, especially when diabetes research is on the line.

[Source: HuffPo]

Wednesday's Workout

I woke up achy and cranky. After spending two days moving back into our house, I probably should've slept in, but didn't.

Strength Skill:

• Kettlebell Clean & Press (5-5-5-5-5)

Wow. I think I'm in love. From what I can tell, kettlebell cleans and presses -- done correctly -- are incredibly efficient (and effective) at developing power, strength, and coordination. Starting with your feet about hip-width apart and a kettlebell on the floor, you grip the handle with one hand, flexing your hips, knees, and ankles, and then use your legs to drive the kettlebell up to rack position in a straight line. "It's like zipping up your jacket," Tim cued us. With our core and lats engaged and elbows down and in, we were able to quickly and forcefully transfer the kettlebell up to a rack position before pressing it up into the sky.

Twenty-five reps with each arm were enough to get me toasty this morning, but I'd like to work this movement into my home workouts. They were fun, and deliver huge bang for the buck.

Metcon:

3 rounds for time:

• 10 hang power snatches (135lbs / 95lbs)
• 15 chest-to-bar pull-ups
• 20 box jumps (24" / 20")

I scaled today's workout way down, snatching just 75 pounds and -- in light of my problematic left Achilles -- doing step-ups instead of box jumps. I could do the chest-to-bar pull-ups as RXed, but by the tail end of the workout, I had to bust them out one at a time. I can't imagine how long it would've taken me to finish the WOD if I'd gone heavier with the snatches and/or actually did some jumping.

Result: 10:11. 

On another note: As of today, the Nom Nom Paleo app has been available in the App Store for two months -- and it remains one of the top paid Lifestyle iPad apps! As of this moment, it's in the number 10 spot:

You can read more about the app here (and you can download it here), but for those of you who are interested in the backstory, I'm working on a series of blog posts about how Michelle and I created the app, from the inception of the idea and recipe development to working with a team of programmers and all the unexpected post-launch drama. Stay tuned...

Monday's Workout

The pros of being back home after two and a half months of living in an extended-stay hotel due to a flood-damage:

• New floors that give our abode a "new house" smell!
• The joy of sleeping in our own bed and cooking in our own kitchen.
• The relief of being back home in time for our seven-year-old to recuperate from surgery.
• The fact that the WiFi connection is a bazillion times stronger here than in the hotel.
• Being reminded that bathroom towels aren't crispy like the ones at our hotel.
• No overpowering odor of powdered "eggs"in the morning, and no industrial cleaner smell in the hallways.
• No surly desk clerks!
• No de-magnetized hotel key cards that bar your entry to your room when you have two kids and three heavy bags of groceries with you.
• The dishwasher in my house actually works.

The cons of being back home:

• The sawdust.
• Having to devote two solid days moving everything -- clothing, electronics, kitchen supplies, food, books, etc. -- back into the house after it had all been thrown haphazardly into storage.
• The sudden realization that we are pack rats, and that we accumulated an embarrassingly vast amount of utterly useless crap over the past six years -- all of which needs to be donated or thrown away.
• Not remembering how to hook up the speakers to the receiver to the TV to the cable box to the wireless router to the phone jack to the whatever.
• Paranoia about scratching the new floor.
• No more daily housekeeping.
• No free breakfast in the morning. (Of course it was crap, but IT WAS STILL FREE.)
• Being so exhausted from moving that I can barely type, let alone remember yesterday morning's workout.

(See what I did there? Nice transition, right?)

Strength Skill:

• Pistols (5-5-3-3-3)

I was happy to see pistols in this cycle -- I need the practice. When I'm doing 'em with my right leg planted, I can crank out pistols like no tomorrow, but I've always had trouble with my left (weaker) leg. Like a lot of other folks, I need to clutch a counterweight (like a kettlebell) to keep my balance when doing pistols from my left left. I suspect it's an ankle mobility issue for me, and it didn't help that I had -- and still have -- a left Achilles tendon that's been bothering me for a couple of weeks. That said, after massaging it with a lacrosse ball, I felt good enough to push through the sets.

Here's how I know I did 'em right: My butt cheeks are sore.

Metcon:

For time:

• 400-meter run with a medicine ball (20lbs / 14lbs)
• 45 medicine ball sit-ups (20lbs / 14lbs)
• 45 medicine ball overhead squats(20lbs / 14lbs)
• 400-meter run
• 45 Abmat sit-ups
• 45 PVC pipe overhead squats

The most challenging movement? Hands down, the med ball OHS. With your hands on either side of the ball, your shoulders and arms are in a much narrower position than with a barbell OHS, and you're pressing in on the ball instead of punching up on a bar. It's crazy-awkward, and I kept having to fight the tendency to bend my arms and let the medicine ball rebound off the top of my head.

The Terminator and I kept pace with one another until the very end. Although I started the final movement (PVC OHS) before him, he turned on the afterburners and zoomed ahead right at the end of the workout. He beat me by one measly second.

Dammit.

Result: 11:22 as RXed.

Shake Weights: They Never Get Old

There's nothing wrong with exercising in public.

Friday's Workout

With Tim on vacation, Trish led us through the workout yesterday. Afterwards, she remarked that the 5 a.m. class was extremely "coachable" -- i.e., we follow instructions well.

"It's 'cause we're not awake enough to fight back," I told her.

Strength Skill:

• Strict Presses (3-3-1-1-1)

Despite a couple of attempts at setting a new PR, I failed. It appears my max is holding firm at 120 pounds for a little while longer.

Metcon:

AMRAP in 15 minutes:

• 9 deadlifts (155lbs / 100lbs)
• 12 Games push-ups
• 15 box jumps (24" / 20")

This was a reprise of the second workout of last year's CrossFit Games Open, and I did nowhere near as well as some of the firebreathers who tackled 11.2. The deadlifts were fine -- I made sure to tap 'n go to keep momentum on my side. The box jumps weren't too bad, either. But the push-ups? Not so much.  I cruised through the first few rounds, but early in the fifth round, I suddenly hit a wall and couldn't muster more than two or three push-ups at a time.

At coffee after class with Trish and XFitMama, I griped about my strict presses and push-ups. "Do a 100 push-up challenge," Trish suggested. It was a great idea, and we all signed on. The rules are simple: Do one push-up on Day One, two push-ups on Day Two, three on Day Three, and so on. One more wrinkle: I'm going to try to do 'em all at once rather than spacing out the push-ups throughout the day. This shouldn't get hard until Day 50 or so, but I'm fine with starting at 1 for now. I need a few weeks to get my stress levels down anyway.

Wednesday's Workout

Why did I hold off on posting about yesterday's workout?

(a) I was busy

(b) It kind of slipped my mind

(c) I was embarrassed by a subpar performance at the gym

(d) All of the above

(p) :ɹǝʍsuɐ

Yes, it's been crazy busy around these parts lately. There's been a flurry of activity at our house this week, with all of our furniture and belongings moved into storage and the floors sanded and finished. Work has been insane, with multiple projects and lawsuits exploding. Big-O's going into surgery in a few days. I'm assisting Michelle with the Nom Nom Paleo side of things. And we're still stuck in a hotel.

It was a relief to escape to CrossFit Palo Alto at the break of dawn yesterday for some me-time.

Strength Skill:

• Front Squats (3-3-1-1-1)

I went for a PR...and failed. What's funny is that my first four sets of front squats felt almost too easy. My penultimate set was at 195 -- 10 pounds below my PR of 205 -- and it didn't feel like much of a struggle. So for my final rep, I thought I'd shoot for 210. 

And I had to dump the barbell.

For a split second, I contemplated giving it another shot, but by then, Tim had written the day's metcon on the board.

Metcon:

"Jackie" - for time:

• Row 1,000 meters
• 50 thrusters (45lbs / 35lbs)
• 30 pull-ups

I was first off the erg, but I had two knots in my quads, and spent too long rubbing my thighs and staring at the barbell before I got started with the thrusters. Then, instead of just powering through the lifts, I kept setting the bar down to catch my breath. Although the pull-ups went (relatively) smoothly, I'd already wasted a ton of time standing around, doing nothing.

Result: 9:51 as RXed. Utterly shameful, considering that I did Jackie 45 seconds faster last time. Ugh.

Every Home Needs a Coffee Faucet

Am I right or am I right?

Also? It can be controlled with an iPhone or iPad.



I'm having a coffeegasm over here.

[Source: Buzzfeed]

Friday's Workout

Hoo-boy. I was supposed to sit out today's 5 a.m. class due to lack of babysitting, but my in-laws graciously volunteered to host the boys for an overnight stay at their house so I could join the rest of the early-morning nutjobs at CrossFit Palo Alto. Good thing, too, because today's was a very, very good one.

As many reps as possible in 20 minutes of:

• 400 meter run
• Max rep shoulder-to-overheads (115lbs / 75 lbs)

In other words, every time the barbell hits the floor, run 400 meters. Total score = total number of shoulder-to-overheads completed.

I went with 95 pounds, figuring it was going to sufficiently challenge me without utterly wrecking me. There've been times when I've vastly overestimated or underestimated what I can do, but judging by how exhausted I felt at the end of this workout, I'm pretty sure I picked the right weight today. 

In the first round, I completed 17 reps before having to set down the barbell. But the presses and running wore me out; by the fifth and final round, I had only 11 reps in me before time ran out.

Result: 68. I'm going to do better (or at least go heavier) next time.

Did I mention how glad I am that I didn't miss this one?

Wednesday's Workout

A good day at the gym.

Strength Skill:

• Front Squats (3-3-3-1-1)

For the life of me, I couldn't remember my max front squat. It wasn't until after I was done with my sets that I found my previous PR: 205 pounds. Today, I failed to squat even 185. Not good. It goes without saying, but I need to squat more.

Thankfully, the second half of this morning's class went a little better.

Metcon:

"Annie" - for time:

• 50 double-unders
• 50 Abmat sit-ups
• 40 double-unders
• 40 Abmat sit-ups
• 30 double-unders
• 30 Abmat sit-ups
• 20 double-unders
• 20 Abmat sit-ups
• 10 double-unders
• 10 Abmat sit-ups

What's not to like about Annie -- especially given what a kick-ass athlete her namesake is?

My previous Annie times have ranged from 9:11 (October 10, 2011) to 12:30 (March 14, 2011), and the last time I did this workout, I took 10:20 to finish. I was determined to match or beat my previous time -- I didn't want to lose more ground today.

At the very beginning of the first round, I landed awkwardly on my left ankle and felt a twinge in my Achilles tendon. But aside from that (and a couple of rope snags), the double-unders gave me no trouble today. The sit-ups were another matter; I'm used to flying through them, but this morning, I felt unusually heavy and sluggish as I struggled to finish each set.

Despite my crappy sit-ups, I somehow managed to set a new PR on Annie today: 8:25 as RXed. I'm happy with my progress, though I suppose I should work on my sit-ups some more.

In fact, I'm eyeing my Abmat right now.

Monday's Workout

Strength Skill:

• Snatches (3-3-3-1-1) 

Ever have one of those days when you just kind of feel...off? That was me today.

I've been absent quite a bit from the gym lately, so I was excited to return this morning. Plus, I knew it was snatch day, and my snatch technique had been steadily improving since early this year. But for whatever reason, I JUST COULDN'T STOP SUCKING TODAY.

Instead of just emptying my brain and just lifting with aggression, I over-thought EVERY. SINGLE. THING. And as a result, I froze up. My movements were disjointed rather than fluid, and my arms and legs were all over the place. I bungled more reps than I stuck. Thankfully, with some helpful cueing from Tim, I managed a few half-decent reps towards the end, but I didn't come anywhere close to snatching what I know I'm capable of lifting.

I hate starting the day with frustration.

Metcon:

5 rounds for time:

• 10 kettlebell snatches (5 per arm) (24kg / 16kg)
• 10 goblet squats (24kg / 16kg)
• 10 burpees

Lessons from this workout:

1. Goblet squats are no joke.
2. I didn't end up with big, purple bruises on my forearms, so I must have done something right. 
3. Carl Paoli's burpee technique is a lifesaver.

Result: 10:27 as RXed.

Bear Complex!

What's a bear complex, you ask?

It's a barbell complex that consists of 5 rounds of 7 sets of the following sequence:

• Power Clean
• Front Squat
• Push-Press
• Back Squat
• Push-Press

You can't set the barbell down until each round is complete. Rest as needed between rounds, but keep increasing the load on the barbell until you find your max. Your score is the max weight with which you were able to complete a full round.

It sounds easy until you realize that this complex consists of 175 lifts in total.

Or until you watch others struggle through it.



Or until you try it yourself.

I tried it once before in my garage, but had forgotten how much I sucked at it, so I was excited to try it again with the rest of the 5 a.m. class at CrossFit Palo Alto. I was feeling giddy, and blazed through the first three rounds (at 65 pounds, 75 pounds, and 85 pounds). My plan was to lift 95 pounds during the fourth round and then jump to 115 for my final round, but Tim convinced me I was being a dummy. "Do the jump now, before you're too tired. Go for 105."

I finished (albeit just barely) the fourth round at 105. Good thing, too, because after I loaded the barbell up to 115, I crapped out before I could finish the final two sets of the fifth round. Was it disappointing? Yes. But I also enjoyed every second of this barbell complex, even as sweat poured off me in sheets.

I can't wait to attempt this one again. (And I will -- just as soon as I can move back into my house. I miss my garage gym.)

Link Dump

I've been laying low this week.

It's not by choice. The house is still wrecked, which means we're well into the second month of living in a hotel. Which means the grandparents don't have room to crash overnight when Michelle's working. Which means I have no babysitters at 5 a.m. Which means no gym. Which means I'm cranky and restless.

Maybe it's a good thing that I'm forced into taking a few days off. My right shoulder has been bothering me for over a week now, and I might as well give it some extra time to recover.

Plus, I've been slammed with work, kid stuff, and the Nom Nom Paleo iPad App. (Yes, still. We're feverishly working on a new update to fix the update that was supposed to fix the previous update, but didn't. Got that?) So getting a few extra hours of sleep is a good thing. 

I'm hitting the sack, but if you're looking for something to read, check out these links:

• The New York Times wrote up a nice piece about CrossFit and Memorial Day Murph.

• "The Paleo Diet Moves From The Gym To The Doctor's Office" (NPR)

• Our friend Stacy Toth from Paleo Parents is the "Face of Paleo" in Women's World!

• Holy crap. Tickets for this year's CrossFit Games are sold out. The Home Depot Center is at capacity. I fully expect that it'll be a bazillion times crazier than last year. (And it was already pretty insane last year.) To whet your appetite for the competition, check out the Regional summary videos here.

• The Wirecutter recently researched and wrote a lengthy piece on the best standing desks. Check it out, because your office chair is killing you.

• Last but not least: Glazed-donut-flavored vodka exists. Be afraid.

Reebok CrossFit Nano 2.0 Shoes

I almost forgot until Tim reminded me: The brand new Reebok CrossFit Nano 2.0 shoes are available starting today! I just picked up a pair of red ones...



...and a pair of gray ones, too.

I know I just got some new inov-8s a couple of weeks ago, but I couldn't resist. Besides: (1) I miss my trashed Game of Death shoes, (2) some sizes are already selling out, and (3) I am a shoe whore.

Don't you worry, my brand new f-Lite 195s. I still love you. Stop looking at me like that.

(By the way, Reebok.com has free shipping, and offers a color that CrossFit's online shop doesn't carry: Orange. However, Reebok's site doesn't carry the men's blue shoes with the red laces, so you Captain America types -- hello, Terminator -- will just have to pay a few extra bucks for shipping.)