CrossFit Total and Angie

Day 3 and 4 of four days in a row! 

Yesterday I did the CrossFit Total.  It is a great test of overall strength.  You perform a max weight backsquat, then a max weight overhead press, then a max weight deadlift.  You add up all of your max weight and get a total score.  There are standards of ranking based on your body weight.

I lifted:
Backsquat: 225
Press: 110
Deadlift: 285
Total: 620

This puts me in between novice and intermediate based on my weight.  I think that is right.  I've never been strong being that I haven't really trained strength except for the past 2 years or so.  It was 10 pounds more than what I did last time in November of last year. 

I cashed out with a bench press to fatigue pyramid:
75 lbs x 21
95lbs x 10
115lbs x 4
95 lbs x 10
75 lbs x 10

Today I did "Angie" which is:
100 pullups
100 pushups
100 situps
100 squats
Time: 23:51

I am going to start to do as many WOD's as prescribed as long as I can do the weight.  The only thing I will scale is the weight, the reps and distance will stay the same. 

Day 7 Death by Pullups

Today's workout is supposed to be 10 rounds of:
3 reps of 45# pullups
5 strict pullups
7 kipping pullups

Even scaled to a moderate level, it remains 10 rounds and only down to 35#.  WOW!!

I know that I significantly lack in upper body strength, but that is a huge amount of weight to lift, even if it supposedly a medium level.  So, being the weakling I am, I dropped the weighted pullups to 20#.  I got through 4 rounds at that weight and then hit a wall.  I dropped it down to 10# and continued on another round and a half.  I was hoping to get 7 rounds in, but my hands were 5 more pullups away from breaking open blisters, so I decided to stop at 6 rounds.

I was pretty dissapointed.

In light of my lack of upper body strength, I have decided to start "cashing out" my workouts a couple of times a weak with some extra upper body strengthening.  Depending on what body parts I cover in my CF workout, I'll hit another body part to help increase strength.  Mainly: bench press, shoulder press and weighted pullups. 

An effective way to increase strength and size is do perform drop sets or pyramids.  Drop sets start heavy, you do reps to fatigue, then drop the weight and continue 5 or so sets.
A pyramid you start light, perform 10 reps, add weight, perform 8 reps, add weight perform 6 reps, then work your way back down.  You can also do the reverse of heavy + less reps up to light and high reps and back down.

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Todays workout:

Cash In:
Dynamic warmup
Burgener warmup
Barbbell complex warmup
2x8 air squats and pushups

6 rounds for time:
20# weighted pullups x3 (last two rounds 10#)
Strict pullups x 5
Kipping pullups x 7
11:39.  23 sets (number of times I dropped to the floor)

Cash out
Bench press
65# x 10
85# x 8
105# x 6
85# x 8
65# x 10

Energy: 8

Stress: 1
Shoes: racing flats
Location: Fitness Factory 2:20pm
Bad Boy: Nothing yet
Good Boy: Zone meals and snacks