Friday, February 26, 2010
Warm-up 3x 10 each:
Wall squats
Push-ups (knees)
Sit-ups

Workout 7x:
30 step-ups (1st stair)
15 KB Swings
15 Leg Drops
Time:  16:50 (all KB swings unbroken sets!)

I have never been a creature of habit.  I always made an effort to take different routes to work each day, eat different foods and keep random schedules. A few things by necessity remained constant, including my CF training days.  Otherwise, it became too simple to skip a day, which turned into a week, which turned into a month, which turned directly into fat. 

An oddity of being retired is that one loses a sense of what day it is – Monday is the same as Saturday.  Here in Belize it’s even tougher, because some of the events that would let me know what day of the week it is (trash pickup day, no mail delivery day) don’t happen (no trash pickup, no mail delivery and the electrical outages are completely unplanned).  Each day is the same, defined only by what flavor smoothie I have.  While it might seem simple to plan workouts on Papaya-Banana-Pineapple Smoothie days, the fact that I also can’t predict what food I will be able to find on a given day makes that equally impossible.  Papaya-Banana-Pineapple might turn unexpectedly into Mango-Guava-Pitaya because that’s what was in the market.

So, one of my resolutions for this year (yes, I’m making my resolutions at the end of February – you see what I mean?) is to schedule my workouts better.  Perhaps that will be the ultimate definition of my days – it’s “Barbara Day”, “Cindy Day”, “Murph Day” and so on… there are worse ways to live one’s life!

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

“Barbara on Roids”
5 rounds for time of:
5 shoulder press
10 front squat
15 hang power clean
20 deadlift

3 min rest between rounds

1-1:28
2-1:27
3-1:23
4-1:22
5-1:20

I haven’t posted in a long time (hanging head in shame).  Quick highlights to catch up:

I had my last doctor’s appointment in December.  After bouncing up the stairs, walking around his office and letting him yank my foot around in all directions, he not only declared me healed, but also told me that he was really worried about me and didn’t think I’d be able to walk again without surgery.  Seriously.

I asked when he thought I could start jogging and jumping again, and he said that it wouldn’t be for a while, because I needed to be stable enough to balance,  and strong enough hold myself on my toes.  Balancing on one foot, I demonstrated the former, then raised up on my toes to show him the latter.  He then waved his hand weakly in my direction, rolled his eyes and said, “Go.  Run.  Jump. “

At the beginning of February, my physical therapist decided that he couldn’t help me anymore, since I was getting too strong for him.

So, I find myself abandoned by my medical experts and am embarking upon the quest to eke out the remaining bit of flexibility entirely on my own.  No problem, right?

Well, it’s not that easy.  Most importantly, I need to make sure that I don’t lose the flexibility that I’ve gained through PT.  (I am going back in a month for a check, to make sure that I’m still improving on my own.)  I still have a way to go – I’m not at my full range of motion on my ankle (darned overly flexible feet! If I were “normal”, I’d almost be at 100%.  Since I’m freaky-flexible in my ankles, I have another 20 degrees.  *sigh*).  My Achilles tendon is weak and inflexible and my plantar muscles are too weak to support a good arch under weight.  For the first time since I’ve retired (oh, who am I kidding? For the first time in YEARS), I wish I had a pair of high heels.  That would be perfect to walk around in, to help my calf and feet.  Instead, I tiptoe around the house, brush my teeth on my toes, watch birds on my toes… and then work the other direction, to stretch the Achilles that I’ve just shortened. 

It’s gonna be a long rehabilitation…

(Skipping a bunch of workouts to catch up, but I’m proud of this one!)
Monday, February 15, 2010

Warm-up:
3x:
5 pull-ups
10 mountain climbers (2 count)

Workout 10x:
30 second max work, 30 seconds rest
Power Cleans 45#
Anchored weighted sit-ups (jodo book in bag)

1-15,16
2-15,15
3-15,15
4-15,14
5-15,14
6-15,14
7-16,14
8-15,13
9-16,13
10-17,13
Total:  154,141

Last time:
1- 13,15
2- 14,13
3- 13,13
4- 14,12
5- 14,11
6- 14,10
7- 14,11
8- 14,10
9- 15,11
10-15,11
Total: 140,117

A nice improvement - and the original #‘s were pre-broken ankle!

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

5x:
Pull-ups (Recon Ron 6,5,5,4,3)
10 sit-ups
10 good mornings

Workout:
21-15-9
SDLHP (45#) (added 10 more pounds and the ankle is still holding up!)
Kettlebell swings (16kg)

Friday, November 13, 2009
10 SDLHP (kettlebell)
6 swings

Thursday, November 5, 2009
10 SDLHP (kettlebell)
5 swings

I am not a timid person.  In deciding whether I *should* do something, the idea of whether I *could* do it – whether I am capable of it – never enters my mind.  (And, in all honesty, whether I *should* often doesn’t, either.  Ah well…)  Hesitation and uncertainty are not familiar feelings.  Many things that normally slow people down at CF (box jumps, rope climbs, heavy lifts, etc.) never bothered me mentally.  While I might have been unable to perform them physically at first, I knew that I could learn it.

Until now. 

I picked up a kettlebell for the first time since my injury.  A kettlebell, of course, allows for no uncertainty.  You can’t swing a kettlebell in slow motion.  You cannot be cautious.  You must simply grab the creature and go.

And yet I found myself hesitating.  This sort of test of strength and balance was more than I had done on my injured ankle.  Would it support it?  Would I topple over?  Most importantly, would I reinjure myself?

The kettlebell crouched malevolently on the ground.  I approached it cautiously.  Hefting it briefly, it seemed much heavier than I remembered.  Setting it down again, I backed up slightly and gazed at it.  It was taunting me.  I was convinced that it felt secure in its gravitational superiority – I could never generate the force necessary to have it swing freely through the air above my head. At that point, it became a challenge between the squat rounded beast and me.  I was going to beat it.  I swung it experimentally.

Mental fortitude won.  I did 10 rounds of 10 SDLHP and 5 swings.  My right leg and ankle were weak and weary, but they held up.

As I lay on the ground beside the kettlebell, sweating, panting and gasping for air, I swear I heard it chuckle.

Monday, October 26, 2009

Pull-ups:
6,5,5,4,3

40-30-20-10:
Push-ups
Hollow rocks
Arch rocks
Sit-ups

Time:  16:39

Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Leg workout, Tabata-style

10 rounds of 20 seconds each:
Quad holds (purple band)
Calf raise holds
Hip flexor holds

Pull-ups:
6,5,5,4,3

When I had the cast on, I remember distinctly telling people that I was actually looking forward to physical therapy.  When they regaled me with horror stories of the pain they endured, I figured it couldn’t be any worse than a CrossFit workout.

I was wrong.

What I hadn’t counted on was the mental aspect – the abject horror of having a random stranger yank, twist, squeeze, manipulate, torque and otherwise torture my ankle… the recently broken ankle that had already failed once in a spectacular fashion.  The dread of the almost-certain snapping sound that must SURELY result from such vicious movement makes the entire workout an exercise in mental fortitude that far outweighs the physical.  In one of those ironies in life, the more I tense up, the more likely I am to be injured – the continual admonitions of “Relax!” from my PT as he’s attempting to reach deep into my damaged leg and forcibly break up the scar tissue on my tendons borders on the ludicrous.  Can ANYONE really “relax” during that time?  Zen masters would be hard pressed not to respond with “HEY, JERK!  CUT IT OUT!”  Mother Theresa would probably let out a stream of epithets that would make a Marine blush.  Even I, one of the calmest, most patient, gentle and kind people around (*crossly* Stop that, Jonesy! I can hear you giggling from here), have been known to think extremely bad thoughts about my PT.  Fortunately, I now carry a cane.

All those years of Eskrima will soon come in handy.

Saturday, October 24, 2009

500 leg drops (right side only)
4 x 30 minutes stretching, right ankle
5x WALKING laps around the kitchen table (using dining room chairs for support if necessary)
6 pull-ups

Yes, WALKING!  I took my FIRST STEPS today!  Unassisted!  Whee!  Can box jumps be far behind?

Well, yes.

As I begin to take inventory of the effects of my enforced immobility, I find that I have extreme cases of the following issues:

1.  Right side - weak leg muscles (calf, quad, hamstrings, adductor, abductor, etc.)
2.  Right side - flexible hamstring , left side – inflexible hamstring
3.  Lower back inflexibility
4.  Strong triceps, weak biceps
5.  Strong left glutes,  weak right glutes

And the list goes on…  I plan to work extra reps of things on the right side for a while, so my workouts will not be even.  I also do a number of things strictly for the right side daily, which should help.

I also plan to start the Recon Ron pull-up progression on Monday.  If anyone has any suggestions on a rehab program, please let me know!  All advice gratefully accepted…

Monday, October 19, 2009

I now know where the members of the Inquisition are in modern society – they are physical therapists.  Masquerading as “health care professionals” who are “there to help you”, these vicious people delight in yanking your body into unnatural positions that are “good for you”.

Yeah, right.

Let’s just say that having your Achilles tendon massaged, your ankle fully flexed and your ligament scar tissue “broken up” is an experience that you can miss.

However, my physical therapist is doing a lot of good, as much as it pains me (literally) to say.  Like a CF coach, he pushes me much harder that I would myself.  I am proud to say that I even added to his repertoire by telling him about Tabata workouts.

In the “no good deed goes unpunished” fashion, I now have my own set of Tabata exercises to do.  During my convalescence, my muscles atrophied badly, and I am now attempting to find them again.  Doing pelvic lift holds is astonishingly hard on the right side, whereas on the left I can do them with ease.  I can really feel the magnitude of the delta between the two sides.  (As well as seeing the obvious size differential, which is still pretty scary.  You really CAN be too thin.)

I am proud to say that I did all 8 rounds, Tabata-style, of my exercises for the full 20-seconds of hold.  We’ll see just how sore I am tomorrow.

Wednesday, October 15, 2009

The Broken Ankle – the saga of the arduous journey to convert a leg that looks like a skinny high-fashion model into one that belongs on a CrossFitter.  It’s gonna take a while.

On August 4, a near-catastrophic event occurred.

My housekeeper did not show up.

Having always had a housekeeper, I am fairly helpless around the house.  After spending several minutes staring blankly at the mop, I determined that the shaggy side went *down* and was to be rubbed briskly across the floor.  Fairly confident in my analysis, I started mopping.  I neglected to account for the fact that mopping makes things *wet*, and, on one of the stairs, I slipped and took a very nasty fall, resulting in a badly broken ankle.

Testing the unknown medical system in a third world country is probably a blog in itself, but suffice it to say that I was well cared for.  I was fortunate to have an orthopedic surgeon who gave me the choice of surgery (a plate and screw-type installation in my leg) or just casting it and letting it heal.  I opted for the latter.  (This meant that he had to manipulate the bones back into place, which was just as much fun as it sounds.  Although I turned white and squeaked softly a few times, I am proud to say that I neither screamed nor passed out.  Here’s a hint – when I doctor says something is going to “really hurt”, he isn’t kidding.)

Seven weeks in a cast.  Cutting it off revealed an incredibly ugly sight – picture an emaciated pipe cleaner, covered with a bad furry toupee and streaked with green, yellow and red.  This was followed by three weeks in a light brace brings me to today – when the doctor told me to take my first step!

It is NOT like riding a bicycle.

I rather wish that I had my parents here this time, taking a video, as I’m sure that the sight was hysterical.  I couldn’t figure out when to bend my knee, how to flex my toes, or when to swing my leg forward.  This was exacerbated by the fact that I can’t bend my ankle to 90 degrees yet, so I have to contort my body into a v-shape in order to maintain my center of mass over my hips to stay upright. 

Fortunately, I have a pool.  So, for today:

10 laps walking in the pool (replete with many “Whoops!” followed by a huge splash
50 water squats

It’s a start.

Sunday, August 02, 2009
Warm-up:
600m run
3x:
20 walking lunges
5 shoulder dislocates

21-15-9 reps of:
Handstand push-ups
Ring dips
Push-ups

Time:  13:07 + 9 push-ups (I forgot to do the last set of push-ups, then, after a minute of rest, I remembered and did them .  ARGH!)

Like any third world country, Belizeans do not “exercise” in the sense of setting out to do something called a “workout”.  The men do sufficient manual labor that they stay in shape naturally; the women lack the time (or knowledge) to do so.  As such, I am absolutely an anomaly here – and a source of continuing amusement and interest.

When I was helping with the Aikido class (which we started for the village), one of the young boys showed up late.  He was told to run around the soccer field once.  When he balked, he was given the choice to either run, or warm-up with me.  He chose me.

Bad decision.

To the great delight of the villagers, I proceeded to completely outdo him in push-ups (including the clapping variety, which he had never seen and was unable to do at all).  We then moved to squats… mercifully, I’ll draw a curtain over the rest of this and let your imaginations work for you.

I am now the undisputed champion of push-ups in the village.  Even better, the next time, when the boys clustered around me to try them, I asked why none of the girls was giving it a try – and, to my great pleasure, several of them actually joined me!  It’s a start…

Ontario Village will be the toughest, fittest village in all of Belize!

Thursday, July 30, 2009
Warm-up:
Burgener warm-up

Workout:
4x:
7x
5 jump shrugs (45#) +  2 front squats (45#)

20 step-ups
15 pushups

Time:  11:47
Last time I did this:  19:09 (and that was with 32#!)

Monday, July 27, 2009
Warm-up:
Pistols, wall squats, push-ups
Workout:
100 back squats (45#)
Time: 4:27

(easy workout, because my shoulder is bothering me)

I have always considered myself an intellectual person.  Not prone to emotional outbursts, I handle crises calmly and rationally.  I tend not to get distressed over trivialities; many have said that I don’t get distressed over anything.  However, I find that even in this paradise in which I live, in the beautiful, lush jungle with bounteous fruits and vegetables, perfect weather and no pressing issues to attend, there is a point of stress that far outweighs those I have previously encountered. 

I speak, of course, of the parrots.

The local parrots have banded together.  While my bird book assures me that they fly in “small to mid-sized flocks”, I have counted no less than 200 of them landing in the trees outside my window.  Their raucous screeching makes the testing of jet engines sound like a quiet, pleasant humming.  (This is not metaphorical; as a rocket scientist, I speak from experience.)  Drowning out even my hard rock workout music, their cacophony makes it impossible to concentrate, much focus on any of the more difficult movements (such as a snatch, OHS, etc.).  Their coordinated departure in the morning is nigh unbearable, particularly as they are exceedingly early risers.  200+ parrots all screaming “Good morning!” at the top of their little parrot lungs is something that is guaranteed to get you wide awake instantly with all your hairs bristling and your heart rate doubled.  It takes several minutes, in fact, to pry myself off of the ceiling after one of these rude awakenings.

I am an animal lover and would normally never consider harming any creature, but if anyone has any recipes for BBQ parrot, parrot au vin, or even a simple parrot stew, please let me know.

Saturday, July 25, 2009
Warm-up:
800m run
3x:
10 push-ups
10 sit-ups
10 ring dips

AMRAP 12:
15 Box Jumps
15 KB Swings
15 Leg Drops

Rounds:  6 + 14 step jumps

(For the record, step jumps - onto tiled stairs - are a little scary…)

Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Workout:
3 rounds for time of:
5 Turkish get-ups (1 pood kettlebell)
10 Walking lunges (single arm kb at side)
15 Good Mornings (45# bar)
20 Thrusters (single arm kb)

Since my last 1RM TGU was 40#, I was THRILLED to do 15 @ 35#!!

Monday, July 20, 2009
Warm-up:
800m run
3x:
10 walking lunges
10 push-ups

Workout:
21-15-9-3 rep rounds of:
45# front squat
Sit-up

Time: 4:06

+ 3x: 15 shoulder press (45#)

Friday, July 17, 2009
Warm-up:
Workout:
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1
Do one air squat and take one breath, (you can breathe all you want while you do the squat or squats) do 2 and take 2 breaths etc…up to 10, and then come back down to one.
+ good mornings + calf raises (45#)

Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Warm-up:
2x:
5 push-ups
10 wall squats
15 sit-ups

Workout:
AMRAP 20:
5 thrusters
7 hang power cleans
10 sumo dead lift high pulls

Rounds: 11 + 5 thrusters

Friday, July 10, 2009
Workout 6x:
20 pushups
20 squats
10 heaving snatch balance (45#)

Time: 11:22

Thursday, July 09, 2009
Workout:
Complete 50-40-30-20-10 rep rounds for time of:
Push Ups
Hollow Rocks
Arch Rocks
Sit Ups

Time:  23:40

Monday, July 06, 2009
Warm-up:

Workout:
5x:
20 seated shoulder press
15” flexed arm hang
10 DH pull-ups
5 K2E

Time: 17:33

Thursday, July 2, 2009
Warm-up:
800m run
3x:
10” Chair sit
10” Handstand
10 Wall squats

Workout:
21-15-9
Jumping lunges
Arch rocks
Hollow rocks
Deadlifts
Back squats
Good mornings

Time:  9:35

The last time I did this, my time was 13:36.  YEAH!