Early Morning Rush

I wanted to go to the gym yesterday morning.  I knew I had to be at work by 8:00, so I wanted to be at the gym before 6:30.

Being ambitious, I set my alarm for 5:00 and then again for 5:30 (don't ask me why, but I have to set two alarms like that in order to function throughout the day).  I rolled out of bed, regretting the fact that I had woken up so early.  I kept telling myself that I was a dummy and that I should have stayed in bed.

The funny thing is that I used to get up early like that to go running and/or go to the gym all the time.  Now, it's labor to me.

Once I got to the gym however, my mind quickly changed.  The gym was busy.  The people and the energy quickly took my mind of my seemingly regret.  50 minutes of cardio later, I felt great!

Early morning crazies, I salute you.

What is it about Running?

After completing the Moab Half

So I left my house this morning at 7:30 and it was damp and cold outside.  On my drive to work, I always see people running.  Often times, I see the same people on the same route.

As I drove past the morning runners, I thought to myself, "That's a little too cold and damp for my enjoyment."

I started thinking (usually not a good thing).  What is it about running that get's people out so often?  I confess that I'm not an avid runner.  I completed a half marathon (notice how I say that I completed it and not "ran" it), but don't profess to be a runner.  What amazes me about running however, is how dedicated some people are.

I live in Orem, UT and used to live in Provo.  One of the fascinating things about the area (especially Provo), is that no matter what time you go out, what the weather is like, and what time of the year, you will see people running.  Seriously...whenever you got out you'll see people running.

I admire that dedication.  To run in the pouring rain, blustering snow, scorching heat, and at any time of the day...that's dedication.

I had considered taking a break from the gym today.  The dedication of the individuals running this morning in the damp cold motivated me to not take that break.

Thank you crazy dedicated runners.

The Burn

Today was a hard day at the gym.  We did the same workout as last week, however I added a bit more weight to the squats.  I don't know if it was the additional weight, or if I'm still a bit tired from last week's workouts (especially doing the metcon Friday and Saturday), but I was completely exhausted at the end of the workout.

That feeling.  That burn.  It's exhilarating.

It's not too often that we put ourselves there.  I think sometimes it's because we don't want to and sometimes it's because we don't know how to.  I know that there weren't many workouts that I put together myself that put me there and exhaust me like that, but a workout that someone else thought up that is meant to stretch me...that'll put me there.  This new workout program and CrossFit definitely put me there.

As much as it hurt, I can't wait until tomorrow.

Progess, Planning and Pals

Those are the three things that motivate me today.  Here's the gist:

As most of you know, I workout with a group of friends from work.  We do an array of different things.  However for the last few weeks we've been doing a workout plan that was developed by another friend of ours.  It's a 5-day a week plan.  Each workout for the first four days includes lifts, super sets, workouts with high-reps, core exercises and full body exercises.  The 5th day of each week is as follows:

5 rounds as fast as you can of:
15 squat jumps
20 push-ups
20 crunches
8 lunges (each leg)
7 pull-ups

One of the purposes of this workout is to gauge progress.  Ideally, you should be improving your time and ability to complete the workout.  The individual pieces of it should become easier as you build strength and endurance.  Here is what my times looked like for the past few weeks:

Week 1:
We actually decided to do this workout once prior to starting the new plan so that we could have a baseline to compare against.  I did the workout in a little over 15 minutes.  I wasn't set up to well (I needed to run to and from a location to do the pull-ups), however, endurance was a large issue.

Week 2:
About 12:30, a pretty good improvement.  I was set up a bit better so that I didn't have to run back and forth to do pull-ups.  If you've read previous posts, you'll know that pull-ups are difficult for me, but they got a lot easier this time around.

Week 3:  This week.
I actually did it twice this week.  I ended up going at it alone Friday night and we all met up Saturday morning (today) to do it together.  I learned something interesting from these last two days.  Here are my times:
Friday: 11:34 - I chalk up the improvement from Week 2 to building up strength and endurance.  As I get more and more active, my stamina in this type of a workout has gotten much greater.  Interestingly enough, I've also learned that paying attention to your breathing patterns plays a large role as well.
Saturday: 10:27 - I chalk the overnight improvement to the fact that I was with three other guys who were going faster than me.  I was anticipating a slower time (because my body was tired from the previous night's workout).  My pride set in however, and despite being absolutely gassed at the end of the workout, simply having them around made me go faster.

I realize that eventually, my times will plateau and I'll get to a point where beating my PR won't happen weekly.  However, I am interested and fascinated by the different factors that have led to the improvement.

The Plan has helped with strength and endurance.
My Pals pushed me to do better than I thought I could do.
My Progress makes me pumped to get back in the gym on Monday for another great week of workouts.

Just Watch. It'll Speak for Itself

Just watch this story.  It'll inspire you for sure.

Enough said?

I Gotta Build Me One of These

This is motivation for me to workout and make money so I can fund this...

Here's Part Two:

I love the tongue-and-cheek conversation as well.  Pretty entertaining.

Goals Motivate Me Today

So my weight loss has been at a halt.  I've definitely been thinning up and my size is moving away from my midsection and towards my shoulders and legs, but I'm not losing a ton of poundage at the moment.  I think the guilty party is my diet.

To kick start, I'm setting a goal to get down to 250 by April 25.  That's about 8-10 lbs over the next two weeks.  The key is that I've got to do it in a healthy manner.  My wife is going to be gone for a good portion of the time period, so I've got someone at work keeping me in check.

Wish me luck.

Week Wrap-Up | Starting a New Circuit

So I'm kind of torn this week.  We started a new workout routine at the gym this week.  It's been a great week, and the workouts are pretty awesome, but I miss doing the CrossFit WODs.  However I'm sure that we'll be working and mixing them in over the next couple of weeks.

The workouts started on Monday, but I wasn't able to make it to the gym to do them, so I started Wednesday with the guys from work.  Here's what my workouts looked like this week.

Monday: Home Workout
On my way to the gym, my son freaked out and didn't want me to leave.  I ended up doing the following workout in my drive way:

Four rounds for time:
15 double-unders
15 squats
10 burpees
10 squat jumps

I wasn't feeling too hot that day and it ended up taking me 18 minutes to complete.  I hate burpees.

Wednesday: New Circuit Day 3
It consisted of:
- Warm-up with high knees, push-ups and star-jumps
- One-legged straight dead lifts
- Straight-legged dead lifts
- Bent-over Rows super-setted with Good Mornings
- Pull-Ups
- A Core Workout

Thursday: New Circuit Day 4
It consisted off:
- Warming up by jump roping for 5 minutes
- Clean and Jerks
- Bench Press super-setted with Dips
- Skull-crushers
- Wide and narrow push-ups super-setted
- Kettle bells swings
- A Core Workout

Friday: New Circuit Day 5
It consisted of 5 rounds for time of the following:

15 squat jumps
20 push-ups
20 crunches
8 lunges (each leg)
7 pull-ups

I completed it in 12:27.  I did that workout last week in 15 minutes (I didn't fuel up before, and had to run between locations to do pull-ups).  I'm interested to see how my times progress over the coming weeks.

Saturday: Cardio
3.15 miles in 30:30 + 15 minutes of jump roping.  It was a great way to end the week.

It's been a great week.  One thing that I've loved about doing this blog is that it serves as a sort of fitness journal.  Seeing what workouts I've done and being able to think through some of the progress that I feel I've made is a good mental exercise for me.

My wife is headed out of town at the end of this week, so I think that I'm going to gear up for a pretty strict diet while she's gone (it's hard to ask your family to follow a strict diet just cause you want to).  We'll see how that goes!  Wish me luck.

Gymnastics to Rugby to Skiing to Soccer to... ...to CrossFit

So I gained a new respect for Gymnastics when I married my wife.  She was a gymnast growing up and has two nieces who were/are avid gymnasts.  We've got a niece who is 10 and is a freakishly strong little gymnast.  I've been to their gyms as an observer, photographer and was even challenged once to try a couple of the movements and workouts (rings, rope climbs, trying to take two steps on the balance beam, etc.).  Through that time, I've gained an appreciation for the strength that it required in gymnastic motion and moves.

In CrossFit, gymnastic type movements and workouts are an important part and test in fitness and strength.  Often times, the workouts call for things like handstand push-ups, walking handstands, ring dips, and rope climbs.  Now, I don't attend a CrossFit gym...yet... so, I don't have a lot of access to rings and ropes to climb, however I've grown a major appreciation for the strength that it requires to succeed and excel.

Check out this video about Camille Leblanc-Bazinet, a CrossFit competitor, and her journey from gymnastics, to all sorts of other sports and how she's landed at home in CrossFit.

Freakishly Strong and Fit

This guy is awesome.  I've posted videos about him before, but I keep getting introduced to other videos that amaze me.  The video below are some highlights of when he won the CrossFit games in 2008.  I watched another video about Khalipa today that I wanted to post, but there's a bit of cussing (gotta keep the blog family friendly you know).  If you're interested though, click here.

In the video (included in the link), one of the judges of the 2008 games mentions that when he was briefing the finalists, his first thought about Khalipa was, "I don't think he should be in this competition."  And he won.  I love when people defy odds and expectations.  I hope you enjoy this little video for motivation.  These guys are freakishly fit.