Wednesday's Workout

It feels like it's been forever since I last worked out. Sure, it was only a week and a half ago, and I've been engaged in a fair amount of strenuous physical activity (namely, carrying small children around Disneyland and the CrossFit Games in the sweltering heat). And I'm still dutifully cranking out push-ups every day as part of our 100-day push-up challenge. But it wasn't the same as pushing through a workout at CrossFit Palo Alto with the rest of the 5 a.m. crew.

I was particularly excited to get to the gym to check out the new Rogue pull-up rig that Tim and others installed last week. Would we get to do pull-ups today?

I hoped so. Pull-ups are infinitely preferable to box jumps or double-unders right now. Unfortunately, my left Achilles tendon and calf continue to bug me. Until further notice, I'm going to have to refrain from jumping off my left leg, and generally take it easier on myself. (For me, sadly, that's easier said than done.)

Strength Skill:

• Kettlebell Cleans & Presses (5-5-5-5-5)

This has quickly become one of my favorite movements. Before we left for SoCal, I'd practiced cleans and presses at home, and found myself missing my kettlebells while we were traveling. So I was happy that we kicked off our homecoming workout with KB cleans and presses -- even though I was sweating profusely by the time I wrapped up my final set. Twenty-five reps per side doesn't sound like much, but I certainly felt toasty afterwards.

Metcon:

No pull-ups!

For time:

3 rounds of:

• 20 medicine ball snatches (20lb / 14lb)
• 10 medicine ball V-ups

Then, 3 rounds of:

• 20 wall balls
• 20 Russian twists

Yeesh. The last time we did something similar, I wrote that the "wall balls continue to magically suck the energy out of my body," and today was no different. Tim noticed that my knees were collapsing inward during the squat portion of the wall balls, though, which may explain why I continue to be terrible at this movement. I tried keeping an image of Tommy Hackenbruck's Karen performance in my head for inspiration, but it didn't take.

Result: 10:52 as RXed. We'll get 'em next time.

2012 CrossFit Games - Day 1 in Photos

The 2012 CrossFit Games are exponentially bigger and slicker than last year's edition. To soak it all in, I brought the entire clan with me this time. Here's a quick photo recap of Day 1...

Taking in the sights

Paleo grub! 

...and not-so-Paleo grub.

Demon bells

A visit with Liz (a.k.a. CaveGirl Eats)

Camille is all smiles

Bar muscle-ups

Split snatches 

Kristan Clever

Tired

Julie Foucher

Jenny Labaw doesn't give up

Jeremy Meredith & Brian Quinlan in Heat 1

Aja Barto towers over everyone

Spealler and Holmberg, neck and neck

Kenneth Leverich

Froning & Chan

Big-O puts on a show

He can do it with his eyes closed. (Photo: Bill Staley)

Hanging with George, Hayley, Bill, & Diane

New ropes!

Teamwork

Heavy lifting

Uh, oh. Jenny got stuck on the parallette HSPUs...

Foucher & Fortunato - ready to go

Hendel is wondering why Spealler stole his look

Numi Katrinarson

Those are some huge balls

Graham Holmberg

Rich Froning

Spectating can work up a big appetite 

More soon...

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.

CrossFit Games - NorCal Regionals

The boys and I drove down to the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds this morning for the third and final day of the CrossFit Games NorCal Regionals.

We arrived as the women were finishing the snatch ladder / double-under event.

The teams went next, and just like last year, we watched Danny Nichols of TJ's Gym lift an insane amount of weight. This time, it was a 295-pound snatch(!).

The individual men were next.

In the end, it came down to Neal Maddox and Jason Khalipa, with Maddox finishing first (with a 275-pound snatch) and Khalipa second (at 265).

Inspired by what he saw...

...Big-O decided to whip up his own WOD, running up and down and around the bleachers until he was red as a beet and drenched with sweat.

Lil-O didn't bother.

But after roasting in the hot sun for a spell, both of the boys demanded an icy treat. After downing bowls of (decidedly non-Paleo) ice cream in the shade...

We got back to the action.

The final team competition was insane:

• 20 muscle-ups while partner holds 225 pounds
• 60 wall balls (20 lb. ball to 10') while partner holds chin over bar
• 100' partner carry with 100 lb. dumbbell
• 40 box jumps, alternating on 24" box
• 100' partner carry with 100 lb. dumbbell
• 2 muscle-ups
• 20 muscle-ups while partner holds 135 pounds
• 60 wall balls (14 lb. ball to 10') while partner holds chin over bar
• 100' partner carry with 70 lb. dumbbell
• 40 box jumps, alternating on 20" box
• 100' partner carry with 70 lb. dumbbell
• 2 muscle-ups

I was exhausted just watching the athletes compete.

Diablo CrossFit gutted out the victory in front of a sea of screaming supporters.

And with that, we had to depart. I wish I could've stayed to watch the individuals' final event, but the boys were turning into pumpkins, and I needed a nap. (Not that I actually got one, but still.)