I. Was. Running

Not that I've been running a ton, but definitely more lately than I had been for a while there.. It's interesting to me that, with running, it seems like a little focus and work can go a long way in a pretty short time. As I mentioned before, I've been doing my 'CrossFit to 5k' work..which has included sprints from 100-400m.. I don't think I've done 800's, though that would be a lovely addition! I've done a baseline 5k, mile repeats, 4x400's.. Not a ton, but a regular thing, and I think it's helping already. A few weeks ago, my 4x400's were all at around 1:24, but the last couple times I have done them, I'm able to hold somewhere between 1:15-1:19. That may not sound like much, but almost :10 in a 400 is kind of a lot. Especially since I remember when I ran those 1:24's and it felt like all I had at the time.. I ran a mile at the start of a workout yesterday and was comfortable at a 6:30 pace, where a few weeks ago I had to fight to come in under an 8 min pace. I wish I could see those kinds of improvements in my rowing.. Why is that, I wonder.. Just is what it is? I think all I can do for my row is to build a better capacity so that I can hold my upper level pace longer and recover faster from it.. I know that sounds pretty basic, but I feel like I try to work on improving my row..and any time I feel like it's improving, I'm quickly reminded that no..you still suck at rowing.. I will say I think I know my paces a little better on it and die a little less from it? Ah.. Baby steps, there, for sure..
Yesterday wasa pretty tough day for working out. I knew it would be tough to fit everything into my morning session, which is only about an hr and 15 min.. But I also knew that fitting it all into that time frame would work to make me better.. Push me harder than splitting it up.. So I did it.. And it was rough! Wednesdays workout stuff looked like:
Hang cleans: sets of 3 @95/115/135 and 2 sets of 2 @145#
Front squats: sets of 3 @155/175 and 3 sets of 3 @185#
Jerks from the rack: sets of 3 @125/155/165/175#
Clean high pulls: 4 sets of 4 @175#
Full clean + hang clean every :30s x 8 min @135#.. Whew! This is tough, but definitely felt good to be able to complete.. Long 8 min, though, when you're watching the clock just wishing it would somehow slow down so you could have a second to get a drink before the next round.. But it was either time to breathe, or time to drink.. Not time for both.. And breathing wins..
Quick..recover while you set up for the workout!

30 fat bar thrusters(110#)
30 bar facing burpees
30 MU
30 HSPU (4" deficit)

We could break this up into rounds however we wanted.. I just broke mine into 2 rounds of 15, which was ok for the first round, but I was pretty spent after that and somehow, that thruster bar felt a ton heavier in the second set of 15! I probably should have done 15/8/7.. Or maybe broken it up even more.. When I spoke with Mike later about the workout, he said he would have done sets of 5 or 6.. Which seems like a lot of transitioning around? But probably would have kept me moving faster and not gotten so fatigued in each movement. Muscle ups went ok.. Not my best sets ever, but not bad. Sets of 4 and 3 come pretty naturally and it helps me when I remember to get a strong back swing and vigorous kip. I seem to default to smooth and easy with things..which is good for some things, but sometimes aggressive works, too.. It's not my 'go to' behavior, so I have to keep reminding myself of that.. It took me 21:30 to finish and I was spent! I went home to gather myself and get ready for the next thing.. I wanted to do something 'cardio-ish' and was thinking about rowing.. But the gym's workout for the day included a mile run, so I thought that would be a good thing for me to do. It was actually a good one and I enjoyed it. It was:
1 mi run
50 kettle bell swings (35#)
40 alternating lunge jumps
30 TTB's
20 burpees
10 bar MU
I mention above that the mile took me about 6:30.. All told, this workout took 14:06. Not bad.. I also wanted to get some work in on my unbroken double unders, which I need for a granite games workout.. So I did 'unbroken Annie' (50/40/30/20/10 du and abmats). And that was it for Wednesday..
Today was 'active recovery', which is always welcomed, and I certainly did 'less' stuff today..but I'm not sure it would qualify as recovery.. But I do plan on an easy day on Sunday (as prescribed by coach Mike!.. I had some other plans in mind, but I agree that it's probably best that I take it a lil easier..), so fear not, friends.. I shall rest up a bit for the big event! Just not yet.. So today I did:
Snatch singles to 145#. I hit 145 easily, but 155# just wasn't there today. I was lacking the 'pep' and 'pop' that I needed.. Which is why I will take an easy day or 2 before next weekend and make sure to get my sleep in!
After some snatching, it was time for sprints.. We did 4x400's with 200m easy jog in between each set. I started a little slow with my first 2 400's at 1:19, but picked it up a bit with my 3rd and 4th runs being 1:17 and 1:15. Not too bad.. I'd like to get to where I can hold around 1:10-1:15, but we will see if I can get there!
Finally, I wanted to run through a workout for the competition.. It's called 'unbroken' and includes 3 sets of 50 unbroken double unders..and 80 chest to bar pull-ups..among other things.. It goes:
50 ub du
20 STO (110#)
30 box jumps
40 CTB
50 ub du
40 CTB
30 box jumps
20 STO
50 ub du
16 min time cap

Whew! This was a good one.. I actually moved through it pretty well, though I had my stuff spaced out all over the gym, making transitions longer.. But I found that I could move through the different skills in fairly big sets.. STO went 12/8 in the first round and 14/6 in the second.. Box jumps I just kept moving until 30 was done.. CTB went well with sets of 10 throughout.. I found that I needed to take a minute to breathe and prep for the unbroken double unders, but overall, I think this workout can go pretty well for me. It took me 14:30 to finish today, but I know I can move faster than that.. So I think it went alright, as far as tester workouts go. And that was it for today.
Miles and I took a lazy day of reading, snuggling and just hanging out. Mason has been a little testy in the evenings, making doing homework with him super fun! He did get 100% on his spelling test today, though, and there were some words on there that he had struggled with in studying, so I know he worked hard for it and I'm proud of him. It's a constant roller coaster with that kid, but I know it's all part of the deal. School takes a lot out of him and I try to give him some 'unwind time' after school, but maybe we need to just dive right in and play after? Who knows.. By graduation, maybe we will figure it out..