Not Fast Enough

My wrist is improving, but not fast enough.

During our warmups in class this morning, I managed to do a few push-ups from my palms for the first time in months (huzzah!), which made me think I could join the rest of the class in practicing barbell cleans.

No dice. A single rep with an empty bar was all I managed before my wrist started screaming bloody murder at me. (On the plus side: It's not screaming quite as loudly as it did just a couple of weeks ago.)

So: I practiced kettlebell cleans instead. Again. (I'm tired of kettlebell cleans. Can you tell?)

I had to lay off the barbell for today's metcon, too, which consisted of 7 rounds of:

• 7 thrusters (75lbs / 55lbs)
• 7 sumo deadlift high pulls (75lbs / 55lbs)
• 7 burpees

I used dumbbells and did the push-up portion of the burpees from my fists. Happily, I still got my butt kicked.

Result: 11:38.

I'm not happy that this wrist is taking forever to heal. But I recognize that my recovery's taking longer than expected because I've been stupidly trying to do more than I should. I only have myself to blame. Argh. Self-knowledge drives me crazy.

Crazed

It's been more than a little crazy lately.

The holidays are a busy time for all of us, but things are especially hectic in our household. Both of our kids have December birthdays, as do both of my parents. And my nonagenarian grandmother, too. There's a lot of celebrating (and gift-wrapping) to do.

Also: I'm taking on a new role at work, which means a lot of learning and juggling -- and prepping for international travel. (Hello, New Delhi, Mumbai, and Hong Kong. I'll be seeing you soon.) And I'm interviewing and hiring someone new for my team at work.

Oh, and we're in the thick of working with our developers to prep a new update to the Nom Nom Paleo iPad app in time for Christmas.

And the kids are sick. As is Michelle.

So it's kind of nice to enjoy the luxury of an extra hour of sleep on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Our class is full to bursting, but working out at 6 a.m. instead of 5 a.m. has made me feel a little more human lately. Here's what we've been up to at the gym:


Result: 4 rounds + 10 reps.

Result: 6 rounds + 2 reps.

Result: 1 round + reps.

 

Unfortunately, my right wrist is still -- STILL!!! -- giving me fits, so I'm nowhere near back to RX form. I have to be honest: My patience had been wearing thin, but now, it's completely gone. It pains me to watch my classmates crank out snatches and cleans while I sulk in the corner with a couple of kettlebells. I know I should just relax, chill out, and recover, but I'm going stir-crazy over here.

Whine, Whine, Whine

So when the doc said it would take "six to eight" weeks for my wrist sprain to heal, I chalked that up to him being a pessimist. Despite having zero medical knowledge or training, I was confident that I'd recover much more quickly. (See? I'm all about positive thinking!) It'll take four weeks tops, I told myself.

Not so much.

It's been over four weeks since my sprain (though it feels like four months), and I still can't put pressure or weight on my flexed wrist. Olympic lifts, push-ups, handstands, wall balls are all still on my no-go list. Consequently, I've had to modify most all of the gym's programmed workouts to accommodate my stupid, stupid wrist.

Here are our most recent workouts:



No snatches for me. I did kettlebell cleans and presses instead. Result: 10:29.

"Holleyman" looked like a fun one (well, except the wall balls). But I wasn't able to do any of the movements in this workout. I subbed out dumbbell thrusters for the wall balls, ring rows for the HSPUs, and a 70-pound kettlebell clean for the power clean. Result: 27:27.

On Monday, I attempted this run / ring dip / overhead reverse lunge workout as RXed, but after the first round, my wrist was aching. For the final two-thirds of the workout, I did ring rows (again) in place of the ring dips, and for the reverse lunges, I held a light kettlebell up overhead instead of a barbell. Result: 12:13.

I recognize that I'm overly impatient, and that in my eagerness to get back into the swing of things, I often bite off more than I can chew. (Also: I'm an annoying whiner. Obviously.)

But is it really going to take another two to four weeks for my wrist to heal? Really? Because I'm going to be totally insufferable until then.

Change-Up

I still can't put any weight on my flexed wrist, which has put me in a sour mood. It's been more than a little frustrating; I can't even lift the strap of my work bag over my shoulder without discomfort, let alone clean a barbell up to my shoulders. I've done what I can to keep pressure off my wrist -- recovery requires rest -- but I'm also determined to keep going to the gym. After all, just because I can't perform certain movements right now doesn't mean there aren't a host of other things I can still do to stay active.

For example, last Friday, while the rest of the class at CrossFit Palo Alto practiced barbell cleans, I worked on bottoms-up kettlebell cleans. I had to modify the metcon, too. Here's what everyone else did:

• 21 chest-to-bar pull-ups
• 15 dumbbell thrusters (45lbs / 30lbs)
• Run 400 meters
• 15 chest-to-bar pull-ups
• 12 dumbbell thrusters (45lbs / 30lbs)
• Run 400 meters
• 12 chest-to-bar pull-ups
• 9 dumbbell thrusters (45lbs / 30lbs)
• Run 400 meters

No chest-to-bar pull-ups for me -- too much wrist flexion. Instead, I did chest-to-ring pull-ups, using a set of Olympic rings set high. I didn't have to twist my wrists to get all the way up, though generating any sort of momentum was a challenge. (You can't push off the rings horizontally like you can with a bar to start a big kip.)

Result: 11:36.

I rested on Monday (mostly because I didn't have a babysitter to watch the kids in the morning, but also because everyone at the gym did "Nutts," and I was too damned tired to attempt it in my garage).

On Wednesday, the strength skill was weighted pull-ups. My doctor said that pull-ups are a good exercise for my wrist, so I did 'em, though I didn't load up with as much weight as I did in previous sessions. Better safe than sorry.

The metcon: 

• 4 rounds: 
• 10 overhead squats (95lbs / 65lbs)
• 12 hang power cleans
• 14 lateral bar jumps

No barbell for me. In place of the overhead squats and hang power cleans, I did single-arm overhead squats with a kettlebell, and double-kettlebell cleans. It bugs me that I can't do the same workout as my fellow 5 a.m. nutjobs. It's weird how much I miss being able to just grab a barbell and clean it. Yet at the same time, I was happy to be able to join the gang in doing something -- and feeling just as exhausted and sweaty as I normally do after one of our workouts. The kettlebell OHSs and cleans were surprisingly good approximations of their barbell analogs, and I enjoyed a fine, ass-kicking workout without exacerbating my wrist injury. Win-win, right?

Result: 7:15.

Survey Says...

...Grade 2 wrist sprain!

Or so says the doc. 

The bad news? The recovery time's approximately six to eight weeks -- during which I won't be able to put weight, strain, or pressure on a flexed wrist. (That means no explosive barbell movements, handstand push-ups, wall balls, etc.)

The plus side? Provided my wrist remains in a neutral position, I can continue exercising. 

I suppose this is a good time to work on my running.

I'm Hating My Wrist Right Now

I don't know what I did to my right wrist, but for over a week now, it's felt like crap every time I flex it. On Friday, we were supposed to work on touch-and-go cleans at the gym (five sets of five, one set every three minutes), but when I attempted to warm up with just an unloaded barbell, my wrist started screaming at me to stop.

Tim suggested that I ditch the barbell cleans and work instead on bottoms-up kettlebell cleans to help rehab my wrist. I kept the weights light -- this was the first time I'd attempted bottoms-up cleans, and the last thing I wanted was to exacerbate my mysterious injury. It was a bummer that I wasn't able to practice touch-and-go barbell cleans, but on the plus side: New skill!

Next up: The metcon.

3 rounds:

• 1 minute max effort calorie row
• 1 minute max effort toes through rings
• 1 minute max effort wall balls (20lbs / 14lbs)
• 1 minute rest

The calorie row and toes through rings weren't a problem. With my right wrist wrapped tightly with a wrist strap, the calorie row and toes-through-rings weren't a problem. Neither required much wrist flexion. I actually had a fantastic time with the toes-through-rings -- I found 'em to be much easier on the hands than toes-to-bars, and it was pretty easy to maintain a good kipping rhythm throughout.

The wall balls, on the other hand, were murder. I plodded along slowly, relying on my left (weaker) arm to toss and catch the medicine ball. Note to self: One-armed wall balls are not a good idea. Each minute yielded fewer than 10 wall ball shots.

Result: 123 as RXed.

I was hoping a weekend of R&R (and a mind-blowing meal) would fix what ails me, but alas: No dice. My wrist isn't any better. When my alarm clock started buzzing at 4:20 a.m., I briefly considered turning over and going back to sleep. But I thought better of it: There would be something I could do at the gym that involves no wrist flexion. And after a sedentary weekend, I was ready to get off my butt again.

The strength skill was front squats. To save my wrists, I did back squats (five sets of three, one set every three minutes) instead. Again, I took it easy, going only up to 185 pounds. I focused instead on maintaining proper form -- in particular, keeping my knees from collapsing inward during my ascent from the bottom.

More good news: The metcon didn't involve a whole lotta wrist action.

For time:

• 10 dumbbell burpees (45lbs / 30lbs)
• Run 240 meters
• 20 dumbbell burpees (45lbs / 30lbs)
• Run 400 meters
• 30 dumbbell burpees (45lbs / 30lbs)
• Run 800 meters

Before the workout, I'd planned to go with the women's RXed weight, but Tim gave me a skeptical look. "Way too light," he said. He was right. I went with a pair of 40 pound dumbbells, but I probably would've done fine with the 45s. In fact, the dumbbell burpees were more fun than I'd anticipated, though my quads were burning by the third round.

Even all that running felt good in the cool, misty darkness.

Result: 13:23.

Wednesday's Workout

In the five days since my last workout, the pain in my right wrist has persisted. It's more than just sore, and I'm beginning to suspect that I may have mildly (or not-so-mildly) sprained it. I can't do push-ups with my right hand flat against the floor -- though I can do 'em fine with my hands balled into fists. It hurts to clean a barbell right now, and I can't throw or catch a medicine ball worth a damn. Still, I was itching to get in the gym and get sweaty, and figured there was other stuff I could do.

Like pull-ups. And renegade rows. And dumbbell snatches. And double-unders.

It turns out I could do all of today's movements (though I scaled down the weight of the dumbbells in the metcon). We did one set of 5 weighted pull-ups every three minutes, which was a great way to keep us moving and in the groove. And the metcon was nice and fast; I got through everything without pausing (except to disentangle myself from the jump rope a few times). 

Result: 8:09. Or 8:15. I think. Oh, hell. I think my brain's melting.

You Know You're Too Flexible When You Can Kick Yourself In The Face

I'm pretty sure when the Sports Concussion Institute warned of head injuries in cheerleading, this wasn't what they had in mind.

Monday's Workout

For a good ten minutes after I woke up yesterday morning, I lay snug under the covers, contemplating whether to play hooky. But after missing Friday's class, there was no way I was going to skip another workout -- especially now that the fog of the past couple of weeks is finally starting to lift from my head.

By the time I pulled into CrossFit Palo Alto's parking lot, I was ready to dive into whatever WOD awaited us. The bracing chill of the pre-dawn air made me want to move. After our warmup, Tim wrote the workout on the board.

AMRAP in 20 minutes:

• 15 wallballs (20lbs / 14lbs)
• 30 kettlebell snatches (24kg / 16kg)
• 60 double-unders

I can do these movements, and I can handle the RXed weights. So now that I've been injury-free for a few weeks, there's really no reason not to tackle this WOD with gusto, right?

Unfortunately, I hadn't considered:

1. How exhausting it might be to try to string all these gut-busting exercises together for 20 minutes straight;
2. How damned heavy a kettlebell can get after dozens and dozens of snatches; or
3. Whether my back might seize up in the middle of launching a big iron ball above my head.

It took me 10 minutes to get through the first two rounds, but they were decent. I felt fresh at the wallball station, and the double-unders didn't give me too much trouble. The kettlebell snatches were more challenging -- especially when I used my weaker left arm -- and they took forever, but I managed to slog through them. 

The third round, however, was hell. After a sluggish set of wallball shots, I picked up the kettlebell and pounded out more snatches. The reps came slowly, and by the end, I found myself struggling to crank out more than a couple at a time. With four left reps remaining in the set, I decided to push hard and finish them all at once. But as I snatched the kettlebell up and over my head for the last rep, I felt an all-too-familiar twinge in my lower back. 

Did I re-tear my back muscle? Or was it just fatigue?

I shook it off. The double-unders didn't bother me, so I kept going. I started my fourth round at the wallball station, and felt better. But as I finished my wallball reps, the twinge came back. Uh, oh.

Tim saw the concern on my face, and asked what was up. "My back again," I mumbled as I bent down to pick up the kettlebell. 

"Then don't be an idiot," Tim cautioned.

He was right. (Obviously.) After 90 kettlebell snatches, I was done. There was still a minute-and-a-half left on the clock, but I wasn't about to risk re-injuring my back just to post a few more reps, so I stopped. Raising a white flag can be an ego blow, but sometimes, it's the only reasonable thing to do.

Result: 3 rounds + 15 reps as RXed -- but I DNFed.

Today, I feel absolutely fine. My back is sore, but so is the rest of my body -- and there's none of the telltale pain that accompanied my previous injury. Normally, I'm not a big fan of quitting, but there's no doubt in my mind that it was the best thing I could have done for myself.

Good Morning

When on vacation, I'm all about sitting around the pool, reading a good book and watching the kids splash around. These days, our travels usually involve minimal sightseeing and maximal R&R. Still, too much lazing around gets me antsy; being inactive for more than a couple of days is torture.

Thankfully, this morning was a particularly active one. On the agenda? CrossFit, outrigger canoe paddling, and snorkeling -- all before lunchtime.

Using a bit of reverse psychology ("Fine by me if you want to sleep in and miss CrossFit"), I managed to get M out of bed and down to Lahaina CrossFit for the 7 a.m. class.

Our workout consisted of three separate components:

1. Interval Sprints

Class started with some self-directed stretching, and then some group warm-up exercises. Once the blood was pumping, Anthony instructed us to perform 10 interval sprints. We ran like our hair was on fire for about 100 meters, and then jogged back -- 10 times. By the time I was done with my third sprint, I was dog-tired. My shirt was already soaked from the humidity and my own perspiration -- and the sun wasn't even bearing down on us yet.

There's something to be said about working out in the chilly pre-dawn darkness, y'all.

2. Twelve Rounds of Cindy (5 Pull-Ups, 10 Push-Ups, 15 Squats)

You know I'm head over heels about Cindy. Bodyweight workouts are my favorite, and Cindy is the queen of bodyweight WODs. I've loved every variation of Cindy I've tried: half-Cindy, three-quarter Cindy, full Cindy, task-priority Cindy, double-under Cindy, Murph, you name it. When I saw Cindy on the whiteboard today, a huge grin broke out on my face.

In fact, I'm sure I was practically drooling.

Still, it's not like a dozen rounds of Cindy is a walk in the park. In particular, the pull-ups gave me some grief after the first half-dozen rounds. After Round 6, I had to pause a couple of times during each set of pull-ups to wheeze and shake the sweat off my face. Nonetheless, the pull-ups and squats felt fast and smooth, and I managed to finish fairly quickly.

Result: 10:42 as RXed.

(The worst part of the workout was afterwards, when M made me stop taking pictures of her as she did push-ups. Note to self: Do not piss off the person who makes your food.)

3. Cleans (5-5-3-3-1-1)

After Tuesday's running-push-ups-burpees-squats-pull-ups workout and today's running-and-Cindy WOD, I was happy to see some barbell work on the board. The strength workout was optional, but a good number of us stuck around to practice cleans. It's been a week since I lifted an object heavier than my three-year-old kid, so I was in the mood for some squat cleans.



"Be careful with your back," M warned as I went to grab plates. It was a good reminder; even though my back feels infinitely better than it did a few weeks ago, going heavy would be a mistake. I kept it light, and well below my 1-rep max. But  by that point, I was exhausted anyway, so I doubt I would've been able to hoist a fully-loaded barbell up even if I'd tried.

Going light does have its disadvantages, though; judging from the bruise on my neck, I was cleaning the bar a bit too aggressively. Either that, or I passed out and someone gave me a hickey while I was unconscious.

After class, M and I drove back to meet up with the rest of the family, and we hit the ocean for an hour of outrigger canoe paddling with Maui Paddle Sports. My cousin and his wife are experienced, competitive, kick-ass paddlers, but M and I are total newbies. Secretly, I was hoping to be seated in one of their canoes so I could just coast and let them do all the heavy paddling.

Alas, M and I -- along with our boys -- were put in a separate canoe, so we actually had to work. It turned out to be incredibly fun and challenging, especially with our three-year-old dragging his paddle in the ocean and our six-year-old using his to giddily slap at the water. Paddling in unison, switching sides, thrusting with arms and back and core, bracing with legs -- all of it made for an excellent full-body workout.

"Regularly learn and play new sports," right?

Last but not least: Snorkeling. There's no better way to cool down than to float around in the warm ocean, casually following the fluorescent fish as they dart through coral.

I sorta don't want to go home.

Wednesday's Workout: Don't Be An Idiot

Another good one today.

5 rounds for time:

• 400-meter run
• 5 deadlifts (225lbs / 155lbs)
• 7 burpees
• 9 pull-ups

I love deadlifts, so when they show up in a metcon, it's a real struggle to keep myself from going RXed. But ultimately, the risk of exacerbating the muscle tear in my back keeps me scared straight. As a result, I went super-light -- 135 pounds (my bodyweight) -- and focused instead on maintaining smooth movements through all the exercises. With another 90 pounds on the bar, I'm sure I would've gassed out quickly on the burpees and pull-ups, but today, I managed to get through the entire workout with unbroken sets. In particular, the pull-ups felt crisp and tight. 

Result: 16:35.

Monday's Workout: Hallow-Bata

To kick off Halloween in style, the 5 a.m. crew at CrossFit Palo Alto threw ourselves into a devilishly challenging Tabata-style workout.

"Hallow-Bata"

• 8 rounds of Tabata "green, slimy" grasshoppers
• Rest 30 seconds
• 8 rounds of Tabata "headless horsemen" (a variation on kettlebell palm presses) (24kg / 16kg)
• Rest 30 seconds
• 8 rounds of Tabata "cauldron jumps" (jump over a plyo box and land on the floor on the other side for each rep)
• Rest 30 seconds
• 8 rounds of Tabata "deadly" double-unders

Score = Total reps.

With a lucky 13 of us in class this morning, we had to begin at different stations. I decided to start with double-unders, figuring I'd save my favorite -- the box jumps -- for last. Besides, I knew I had a better chance of cranking out more double-unders early in the workout, before I ran out of gas.

I was right. In the first 20-second set of Tabata double-unders, I ripped out 34. In the second set, I managed 28. But by the time the third set was done, I'd managed only 18. It wasn't exactly a shocker that my drop-off in movement efficiency, energy, and number of reps was exponential. I was pleased, though, that I was able to bust out almost 2 double-unders per second -- albeit only for the first 20 seconds of the workout.

• Double-under results: 34 / 28 / 18 / 18 / 17 / 17 / 16 / 15

As soon as I saw grasshoppers pop up on a CrossFit.com workout last week, I had a feeling we'd see it at the gym one day. That day came sooner than expected. Grasshoppers look simple enough: You start in a push-up position, and then kick a leg forward until your shin hits your opposite arm. That's half a rep. Repeat with the other leg for a full rep. In practice, though, grasshoppers are anything but easy -- especially with a lower back injury. But while I'd like to blame it all on my boo-boo and current lack of flexibility, the truth is that these are just plain hard.

• Grasshopper results: 15 / 10 / 8 / 8 / 8 / 7 / 6 / 6 / 

Next up were the "headless horsemen" -- a modified kettlebell palm press. Starting with the kettlebell on the floor, we lifted it up with one arm, palmed it with the other hand at chest level, and then pressed the weight overhead. To keep from straining my recovering back, I didn't even attempt the RXed 24kg -- but let's be frank: Even if I was 100 percent, there's no way I would've been able to get through 8 Tabata rounds of these presses at that weight.

• Headless horsemen results: 5 / 6 / 6 / 6 / 6 / 6 / 5 / 4

Last but not least: "Cauldron jumps." "Get over the box whichever way you can," Tim had instructed. "You can jump all the way over the box, or do a regular box jump and then jump to the floor on the other side. You can do sideways box jumps. Or step up and over."

Before the workout, I had planned on hopping like crazy over the box, but I thought better of it after two things happened: (1) One of my 5 a.m. pals took a nasty tumble off his box soon after the WOD started, and whacked his elbow something fierce; and (2) the double-unders, grasshoppers and headless horsemen left me too tuckered out to go nuts. Plus, I reminded myself of my current goal: Recovery, not PRs. There would be no attempt to jump clear over the box.

I did, however, start with lateral box jumps, which saved me a bit of time. I didn't have to turn around to jump back the way I came; instead, I just hopped sideways to change directions. But after three rounds, my lower back gave me a warning twinge, and I knew I had to dial it down some more. For the remainder of the workout, I stepped up and over the box -- which, oddly enough, allowed me to rack up more reps than I would've completed had I kept jumping.

• Cauldron jump results: 10 / 8 / 7 / 9 / 8 / 6 / 6

Total: 335

Happy Halloween, boys and girls. And take it easy on the candy tonight.

Friday's Workout

Resting for a few days did me a world of good. My achy back still has a way to go before it's 100 percent again, but it's significantly looser than it was just a few days ago. I woke up this morning feeling better than I have in over two weeks. "Stay active," the doctor had said. So I headed back to the gym at 5 a.m.

Strength Skill:

• Weighted Ring Dips (3-3-3-1-1)

I worked my way up to a 28kg (62lb) kettlebell on the weight belt before calling it quits. For a moment, I considered trying to match my previous PR of 80 pounds...and then I realized I was just being a greedy idiot.

Metcon:

• Run 400 meters
• 21 sumo deadlift high pulls (95lbs / 65lbs)
• Run 400 meters
• 21 push-presses (95lbs / 65lbs)
• Run 400 meters
• 21 thrusters (95lbs / 65lbs)

We last did this workout almost exactly one year ago. Back then, I did it with the RXed weight of 95 pounds, and it took 12:39 for me to finish. (According to my blog post, I was dead last in my class.)

I struggled with the temptation to go RXed today so that I could compare my performance against last year's. But this was just more idiocy on my part. I'm injured; recovery is the name of the game. Besides, even if I went RXed, my results wouldn't be comparable because I wasn't hurt last October.

In any event, I scaled the weight down to 75 pounds, and as a result, the barbell lifts weren't too bad. My SDHPs were unbroken. I took one quick break halfway through the push-presses, and two breaks during the thrusters. My running was slow as molasses, but I still managed to finish the WOD relatively quickly.

Result: 10:23.

Pitstop

No workout today.

Before scuttling off to bed last night, I already knew I wouldn't me making it to this morning's CrossFit class. My back is still giving me fits, and as a result, my sleep has been terrible these past few nights. I'm beat, and in no condition to get up in the middle of the night to practice deadlifts.

Yes, I think it's important to stay active while recuperating from an injury. And yes, I've been borderline fanatical about not missing the 5 a.m. class. But lately, I've been sloooowly coming to the realization that sometimes, my body simply needs a break.

Trish posted an excellent article today about overtraining and the need to prioritize rest and recovery. Do I think I'm overtraining? It's possible. I don't exhibit many of the classic symptoms of overtraining (like elevated resting heart rate, declining performance, compromised immunity, and constant crankiness), but I've clearly been hampered lately by a series of injuries. If my body's screaming "no mas," I guess I ought to listen.

So I took today off. By the time Friday rolls around, I'll have had four consecutive days of rest. And during my time away from the gym, I'm going to heed Trish's sage advice:

If you're antsy between workouts, consider using time to improve your mobility instead. Cook a good meal. Go to bed early. Play with your kids. Play with your wife... The answer to faster times and better performance often has more to do with turning the lights out, computer off and getting some good shut-eye than adding an extra run. 

She's absolutely right. Our engines run better after a pitstop.

Monday's Workout: "Jackie"

I spent a good chunk of yesterday afternoon mashed into an uncomfortable chair in an auditorium, watching my six-year-old (and dozens of others) perform at his martial arts studio's annual black belt show. My kid was onstage for two short segments, each lasting about a minute. Those couple of minutes were fantastic; I love watching my little man confidently punch and kick his way across a stage. But for the remaining 118 minutes of the kung fu recital, my mind was focused on the fact that the ache in my injured lower back was worsening. The longer I was scrunched in that chair (with my three-year-old squirming on my lap), the more miserable I got.

Interestingly, my back didn't feel better until 5 a.m. this morning, when I staggered into the gym, rubbed the sleep out of my eyes, and started foam-rollering the hell out of my back muscles. Finally, I felt the tension ease, and after joining the rest of the class for a low-impact warm-up (no awkward cartwheels today!), my back started to feel a whole lot looser.

Strength Skill:

• Turkish Get-Ups (1-2-3-1-2-3)

No point in (further) destroying myself today. I stuck with a 1 pood kettlebell for my TGUs. They felt pretty solid, and even with a few minutes of rest between sets, I finished relatively quickly.

Metcon:

"Jackie" - For time:

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

I've done Jackie twice before, but the last time was over a year ago, and frankly, I have no recollection of these previous attempts. Tim asked me my PR on Jackie, and I shrugged.

This didn't look too bad, I thought as I scrutinized the whiteboard. The rowing would be miserable, but if I paced myself, I'd be fine. Doing thrusters with an empty bar seemed easy enough. And pull-ups are fun! If I pulled a leisurely 4-minute 1K row, I figured I'd need just another 4 minutes -- tops! -- to get through the light thrusters and pull-ups.

I was wrong. As usual. The only one of us at 5 a.m. who finished in less than 8 minutes was the Terminator (of course).

If I'd consulted my blog archives (see? they come in handy!), I would have seen that in July of last year, I finished Jackie in 10:03, and in September, I finished in 9:28. And perhaps I would have remembered how my legs turned to jelly right after stumbling off the erg, and how even 45-pound thrusters feel horrible when my thighs are on fire. Or, for that matter, how the thrusters were more than enough to fry my arms and make 30 unbroken pull-ups nothing more than a pipe dream.

On the plus side:

• I managed a new PR (I finished in 9:07 as RXed), and
• During the workout -- and for about two hours afterwards -- my back felt awesome. I didn't even need to spray Old School Horse Rub on it.

Sadly, once I came home and got the kids dressed, fed, and off to school, my back turned back into a pumpkin and started aching again.

Friday's Workout: Taking It Easy

I was thisclose to staying in bed this morning. I'm scheduled to attend Patton Gleason's Flow Running Seminar at CrossFit Palo Alto tomorrow afternoon, so for a brief moment, I contemplated playing hooky today. But I'd seen the doctor at the sports clinic again yesterday, and he'd encouraged me to keep mobile, so I pulled myself out of bed. I figured I'd join my fellow 5 a.m. nutjobs and see what I could do in the gym.

Strength Skill:

• Weighted Ring Dips (5-3-3-1-1)

To make sure I didn't aggravate my back, I didn't add any weight today, performing only bodyweight dips. And I didn't follow the rep scheme; I settled for just three solid sets of three. The slow reps felt good and clean, and I'm glad I resisted the urge to throw on some weight just to appease my ego.

Believe it or not, I'm doing my damnedest to focus on active recovery rather than the usual all-out RXed craziness.

Metcon:

For time:

• 22 kettlebell swings (32kg / 24kg)
• 500-meter row
• 22 burpees
• 100 double-unders
• 22 kettlebell swings (32kg / 24kg)

As soon as I saw the kettlebell swings, I knew I had to scale this one way, way down. In recent months, I've worked my way up to 32kg (70lb) overhead kettlebell swings in metcons, but I knew going anywhere near RXed today would result in a disaster of epic proportions. Heavy swings would surely exacerbate my back problem.

"What can I sub in place of the heavy swings?" I asked Tim.

"Light swings," he said. Right. Duh.

I picked up a 16kg kettlebell and cranked out a couple of practice swings. They felt light -- too light, I thought. But then again, maybe "too light" was exactly what I needed. It would get my back muscles moving without unduly straining them.

Even with a light weight, I wanted to be careful. "Am I going to wreck my back even more with the kettlebell swings?" I asked XFitMama.

"Don't go overhead. Stop at chest level," she advised. XFitMama is usually the first to go balls-out on WODs (remember when she did Kelly in her eighth month of pregnancy?), so when she suggests scaling down, I listen.

As a result, the kettlebell swings were easy and fast. I also rowed conservatively, bracing my core, making sure not to overdo the pull, and aiming for a slow 'n steady 2:00 time. The burpees and the double-unders were the movements I could do without worrying about my back, so I dove into those; I quickly learned, though, that burpees are no picnic after rowing, and the double-unders aren't easy after burpees. Nonetheless, I managed to consistently string together a couple dozen double-unders at a time, and got through the rope-jumping pretty quickly. And with a super-light kettlebell, the final set of swings were over in a flash.

Result: 8:14.

Admittedly, I felt a twinge of envy when I spotted Mark and the Terminator ripping out 70-pound kettlebell swings. But I didn't feel an ounce of regret.

Wednesday's Workout: 50% Off

Believe it or not, I managed to rein in my appetite this morning. It was a "50% off" kind of day.

My back felt okay as I stepped into the gym at 5 a.m., but I reminded myself to fight the usual urge to push myself. My goal over the course of the next month is simple: To recover. I'm going to focus on mobility, and resist the temptation to go heavy on strength work and metcons. Think I can do it?

Strength Skill:

• Deadlifts (5-3-3-1-1)

Instead of loading up the barbell, I cut my normal weight in half and did bodyweight deadlifts. And instead of five sets, I just did three sets of three. In other words: Super-light, super-short. It was just enough to get me moving a little bit, but not nearly enough to strain anything.

Metcon:

"Half-Cindy" -- in 10 minutes, as many rounds as possible of:

• 5 pull-ups
• 10 push-ups
• 15 squats

I'm a huge fan of bodyweight workouts, and Cindy's the queen of 'em all. We've done a number of different variations on Cindy -- including Murph -- and I've loved all of them. And today, with doctor's orders not to go heavy, a short 10-minute bodyweight metcon couldn't have been more perfect. Before the clock started, I gingerly tested out each of the movements. None of them bothered me in the slightest, so I happily joined the rest of the class.

The workout was fun -- my pull-ups were strong and smooth, and the push-ups felt good and fast, too -- at least for the first five rounds or so. Towards the end, I had to take brief pauses after every 4 or 5 push-ups and squats, but my pull-ups never slowed.

And best of all, my back felt looser afterwards than it has in days.

Result: 11 rounds + 16 reps as RXed.

Flesh, Not Bone

There's a sports medicine facility across the street from my office. I've passed it a million times, but I've never once peered inside or made any inquiries about the services it provides. Who needs it? I thought.

Turns out I do. 

I'd hoped that my lower back stiffness would've dissipated by now, but no dice. Lingering muscle soreness and occasional twinges of pain made me think twice before attempting to twist my torso or bend over. This was not good.

So I picked up the phone and made an appointment at the place across the street. Luckily, there was an opening today, so after a long day behind a desk and a computer, I walked over to the clinic. The facility was bigger than it appeared from the exterior, and housed specialists in sports medicine, physical therapy, medical neurology, chiropractic care, and medical massage. 

The doctor who examined me poked and prodded at my back while asking questions about my exercise regimen ("CrossFit"), pain levels ("low"), type of discomfort ("extreme soreness, occasional pinching or shooting pain"). As part of the exam, my spine and pelvis got x-rayed and ultrasounded (is that a word?) to rule out certain possible conditions that I couldn't pronounce, like "ankylosing spondylitis."

And then, as the x-rays were being developed and reports were being prepared, I was escorted into a room where I lay on my stomach and got hooked up to some wires that delivered an electric current to my back muscles. It's called "electric stimulation therapy," and for the most part, it was pleasant -- like sitting in one of those massage chairs at the Brookstone store in the mall. Of course, once in a while, the electricity did some weird things to my back muscles, causing my right lat to seize up involuntarily a few times. I'd like to think it was akin to getting very, very mildly tased by a cop.

After my back muscles were sufficiently tenderized by electricity, the doctor returned and told me that my spine looked A-OK. "You have a very healthy spine, with just some osteoarthritis developing. Normal for a guy your age who exercises a lot." (My age? Damn, I'm feeling old.)

He explained that my vertebrae were just peachy, and my discs looked fine, too. "So the good news is that there's no damage to your spine. You're just suffering from a muscle tear. Do some mobility work as it heals to make sure you don't build up too much scar tissue, and take it easy for the next month or so. And we'll do an adjustment to make sure your spine is in alignment."

All I heard were the words: 

• "OSTEOARTHRITIS"
• "MUSCLE TEAR"
• "TAKE IT EASY FOR THE NEXT MONTH"

None of which were particularly awesome-sounding.

On the other hand, the spine adjustment felt fantastic. After a chiropractor contorted me into various pretzel shapes ("I'm gonna get all up in your area," he warned me beforehand), he suddenly yanked and twisted me until loud popping sounds exploded from my back. "That's supposed to happen," the chiropractor assured me. "I'm not breaking your back." Good to know.

I have to admit that I felt significantly better after the spinal adjustment, and so I made an appointment for another adjustment later this week.

Before I left, I had a very important question for the doc: "So does this mean I can't work out until this heals?"

"No, you can work out," he said. "You're a healthy, fit guy, and I'm sure you'll go work out even if I told you to take a break. But start with light weights, don't overdo it, and listen to your body. Stop if your back doesn't like what you're doing. And remember to do plenty of stretching and mobility work."

He had me at "No, you can work out." 

(But I promise I won't be an idiot.)

Monday's Workout: Shin vs. Barbell

This blog is quickly turning into a catalog of my injuries.

For a couple of months now, my body's been in a perpetual state of disrepair. Some of my injuries have been relatively minor (e.g., a bee sting on the bottom of my foot, a gash on the back of my calf, torn hands from Mary), while others have been more of a pain in the ass (e.g., an ankle sprain, a groin pull). Finally, after many slow and frustrating weeks on the mend, I started feeling pretty damned good again. I woke up last Monday with renewed energy, and had a blast tearing through Annie.

But just when I thought I was in the clear, my body decided to revolt once again. A day or two after last Wednesday's session of deadlifts, my lower back stiffened up. I figured the soreness would go away after a couple of days, but even now, the discomfort remains.

Given my decrepitude, I decided to take it easy today. The strength skill today was Turkish Get-Ups, and I chose to stick with the 1-pood kettlebell for all but the final set -- and even then, I went only a few pounds heavier.

And then Tim wrote today's metcon on the board:

"DT" -- 5 rounds for time of:

• 12 deadlifts (155lbs / 115lbs)
• 9 hang power cleans (155lbs / 115lbs)
• 6 push jerks (155lbs / 115lbs)

"Go lighter than normal," Tim instructed. "I don't want any dropped weights." At five a.m., he reminded the class, we need to be quiet as mice, or risk incurring the wrath of the neighbors.

Frankly, I was relieved to have an (additional) excuse to go light today. I'd hoped that my back would loosen up during warm-ups, but the soreness lingered. Ninety-five pounds sounded good to me.

As the workout began, I actually felt fine. I raced through the first round unbroken, and quickly moved on to the deadlifts again. The weight was light -- even numerous reps of power cleans weren't super-difficult at 95 pounds. But I started to flag midway through the workout, and had to put down the bar (quietly) several times for mid-set breathers.

And then, at the end of the fourth round, as I lowered the weight from overhead, I lost my grip on the barbell. To keep it from clanging on the floor, I instinctively stuck out my leg. That's right: MY LEG. TO CATCH A FALLING BARBELL.

Needless to say, the barbell won, and my shin lost. (Wanna see?)

After a brief visit to the Pain Cave in my head, I finished up the final round.

Result: 8:56.

At this rate, I swear I'm going to be in a full-body cast soon unless I invest in a full-body protective suit.

Snazzy!

Monday's Workout: Annie

Despite not getting enough sleep last night (as usual), it’s been weeks since I last walked into the gym feeling as good as I did this morning. As much as I hated missing class (and Nicole!) on Friday, taking a breather was just what I needed to recharge my batteries.

Strength Skill:

• Turkish Get-Ups (1-2-3 on each side)

It’s been a year since we last practiced kettlebell TGUs in class, and I have to admit that this movement’s more challenging than I remembered. I stuck with a light weight today (1 pood), and focused on re-familiarizing myself with the proper form. For the most part, I did fine -- but I do need to work on resisting the impulse to plant my hand behind me when I’m on my way back down to the floor.

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

For once, I was excited to see a double-under workout on the whiteboard. It’s been over a month since I was last able to crank out a double-under WOD, and I’ve been antsy to get back on the horse. And while we’d done Annie in class a couple of times before, this was my first opportunity to try it again after watching the WOD’s namesake, Annie Sakamoto, kick some ass at this year’s NorCal Regionals and the CrossFit Games. My previous Annie time was 12:12, and I knew I could do better.

Ironically, my nagging ankle issues ended up improving my double-under form. Normally, I tend to jump high and stomp down forcefully during double-unders, needlessly expending exhausting myself in my efforts to clear the rope. But with a tender left ankle that can’t sustain hard impacts, I was forced to keep my jumps small and controlled. Using less energy meant that I could settle into a more consistent rhythm, and I was able to get through the rope-jumping fairly quickly (for me, anyway).

Visualization also helped. In my mind, I replayed videos of CrossFit Games athletes doing double-unders with their feet barely leaving the ground. And thirty feet in front of me at the gym, I could also see Kyle -- our resident double-under fiend -- lightly bouncing up and down as his rope whipped around him. I did my best to keep up with him, and though I didn't succeed, I PR'ed by three minutes. Not a bad way to start the week!

Result: 9:11 as RXed.