Rough One

I had planned on going to the morning Crossfit class today. With it being Remembrance Day, there are only 2 classes being held today and I really wanted to go to the morning one. This being said, Ben had scheduled himself a lesson at around the same time and I made the decision to take the girls with me to Crossfit. I told them they had to stay in the play area, that there was going to be a lot of people and that it would be dangerous if they moved. I got them toys and snacks and got to warming up. The girls were total little angels during the long WOD and I was glad I didn’t have to discipline them at all. The WOD was brutal, even with me scaling it the way I did. I probably scaled a little too much seeing as I was in the first few to finish it. You know there’s something wrong when I finish first! Lol! The WOD was one they had done last year (I was probably at work and unable to do it last year)

Here’s what we did and how I modified it.

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I managed 2 TTB during my personal warm-up and I was pretty happy with that. I didn’t go for a 3rd, maybe I should have!?!

Warm-up: As per my PT’s recommendations, I modified the KBS to RKBS. We are diligently trying to avoid any strain on my lower back, hence the RKBS instead of the American ones.

WOD: CSOR

After discussing this with my PT (she also does Crossfit with me, so that is very convenient when I need to ask her advice!), we came up with these modifications:

• 30 hang power clean @55#
• 800m run
• 21-15-9 push jerks @55#
  • pull-ups with blue and purple bands
• 800m run
• 30 burpee box jumps
• 800m run

I felt good during the power cleans and was the first one out for the run (!) which, in my head, was a good indicator that maybe I should have gone heavier, but at the same time, I really didn’t want to irritate my sciatic, so I played it on the safer side. I was soon joined by all the others outside and we worked on getting our specific mileages in. I had chosen to do 800m and I managed to do that non-stop.

I came back inside and got to working on the push jerks. I broke my 21 into 11-5-2-3. Onto the rig for the pull-ups. I broke all my pull-up sets into 3s and that worked well for me. The 15 push jerks were done in 8-7 and the last round was done unbroken.

Back outside for another 800m run. I lost some time on towards the end as I noticed someone in crutches waiting to cross the street. Our box is right across from City Hall and they were having celebrations for Remembrance Day. These people were trying to make their way to City Hall and I asked them if they needed help to cross the street. When they said yes, I slowly made my way into the boulevard and stopped traffic to let them go through. I ran back inside once I was done and got started on the burpee box jumps. I managed all 30, but they were all very slow.

I went back out again for my last 800m run and I was so slow. My left hip flexor was so sore and I finished with a slight limp of my left leg. I couldn’t get over the fact that Mark was doing all this with a weighted vest. He really inspired me to finish strong (at least, as strong as I could). I came back inside and was probably in the first 10 to finish. You know I scaled too much when I finish in the first batch. I’m usually dead last. Like I said, I was just careful and didn’t want to make things worst with my sciatic. I finished in 38:12 and I was just glad I had kept on working with minimal breather breaks pretty much for the whole duration of my time!

After we were done, Michelle (my PT) told me I probably shouldn’t have done the box jumps. I should have done just regular burpees. I didn’t think about it either at the time, but she was right. Since we do step-downs and my dominant leg is my right, I got down on my right a lot which meant a hyper flexion of my left hip and it’s probably why my hip flexor was so bad on the last run.

As soon as I was done, the girls stated to let loose  and started running around and shrieking. Brett and Kim had brought their dog (gorgeous Sherman) inside and both girls and the dog were playing together. I then went to run some errands downtown.

On the way downtown, Béa banged her head on the car door and she then proceeded to fall on the sidewalk while holding my hand, which resulted in me inadvertently stepping on her other hand. She got a good scrape on a few fingers and was inconsolable so I called it a day and brought everybody back home for lunch. Rough day for the little one!

Once lunch was over, I was finally able to go clean myself up. Good thing too because the WOD had left me with some crazy hairdo!

Crazy hair, don’t care!

Now that laundry is folded, I was finally able to finish my morning coffee. Sometimes, I like to drink my coffee in a mug I took from my parents when I moved out. These mugs were purchased at a gas station at some point in the 80’s and it somehow brings me closer to my parents when I stop to think about my mom drinking her coffee from that same mug, a few decades ago! It is pretty ugly, but I love that it says “Mom” in french on it! 🙂

My “mom” mug!

 

Shoulda, Woulda, Coulda

I came home late from a long day at work. I stayed a few hours extra to help out a co-worker who had some family business to attend (don’t worry, she’ll come in early for me next week, so I’ll have a short day!), but that meant I did 14hrs at work yesterday. I managed to squeeze my ROMWOD in during a short break and it felt good to be stretching at the end of the day!

Pigeon pose in my scrubs!

I got home after Ben did and we hung out a bit on the couch before I headed to bed. I fell asleep around midnight and the night seemed very short when Rina came to wake me up at 0600 this morning. I got up, made her lunch, got breakfast going, started with my weekly cleaning and had to leave it unfinished because it was time to head into the Box.

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I felt like quitting and heading back home during the warm-up so I knew I would struggle today to get it all done!

Skill: 3RM Front Squat (12 mins)

We had 12 minutes to find out our 3RM on the front squat and although I had planned on reaching 120#, I stopped after I did crappy reps at 115#. Energy was low, I was stripping my butt on the up and I knew the WOD would be brutal (for me) so I saved what little I had left in the tank for the WOD.

WOD: Nancy

I decided to do FG1+ yet again today. That’s what I had done the last time I did this one and considering I felt drained of life, I knew it would be a definite challenge. To add to all that, it was also raining. Perfect weather for my crappy mood and to go running outside!

3-2-1- Go!

There was no way I would keep up with Linda today: she’s a faster runner and I’m pretty sure she managed her OHS non-stop for all her rounds as I had to break mine mostly into sets of 5 (with the occasional 7 in there).

I knew I was in trouble when I started bawling on my 1st round of OHS. I tried to regulate my breathing as best I could on the run and finally got things somewhat under control, but mentally, I had already checked out. You know it’s bad when I get it into my head that “I’ll recover in the run!” Ha! Yep! That thought actually crossed my mind quite a few times during the WOD. Everybody was done by the time I reached my 4th round of OHS, so I kept going and went out by myself for my last run. I came back in with everyone cheering me on I finished at 24:53 and crumpled to the floor to get a good cry. Who knew I was this tired? After I left a puddle of tears on the floor, I got up and put my stuff away, all the while thinking I should have listened to myself and gone home after the warm-up. I. AM. SPENT! It took me 1:36 longer this time around to finish Nancy at the same weight I had done previously. However, apparently our 400m run isn’t 400m. It’s somewhere between 440-460m, depending on who you talk to. Therefore, I guess I PR’d today even though I really didn’t!

Well, maybe I’d done better if Ryan had actually been there for me today! 😉

I came back home to finish my cleaning, had a quick bath, made lunch and roasted pumpkin seeds (’tis the season!) Béatrice refuses to play nicely upstairs so I’ll try to fit in my ROMWOD for today and will relax a bit before going for a nap before my night at work tonight.

When You PR Your Bad Day!

Got woken up by Rina slapping me in the face at 0500! Slept in until 0600, feeling exhausted after two challenging days at work. I am currently transitioning into a new position and assuming my new role has proven to be testing. I think I’m doing ok though, it’s just different to step from bedside nursing after 10 years to assume a more managerial position.

Got the little ones ready for school and got ready for the Box. On my way downstairs with the empty laundry baskets, I was telling Béa to be careful in the staircase and missed the last step myself. Baskets went flying, I caught myself just in time and only have a small bruise on my wrist. Seriously universe? I also got a speeding ticket on the way in to Crossfit so that was awesome… NOT. The officer was a bit of a douche so I stopped talking when he told me I wasn’t driving safely after I told him I had seen my speedometer at 60km/h. Seriously, Dude…

I didn’t have time to warm up as well as I wanted to, but I figured the anger from the speeding ticket and adrenaline rushing through my body would do the rest. Plus, Rob was there, so I felt obliged to work on my TTB. I got 2! New PR!

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Skill: 1 Hang Clean + 2 front squats x 5 E90s

I was thinking of going up to 90# on those. I know I can squat that weight, but the hang clean would be challenging. Here’s what my reps looked like:

70#-75#-80#-85#-95#

That’s right! I thought, screw it! Get all the anger out and try at 95#. I knew I could do 90#, but I wanted to try to push myself. The hang clean wasn’t pretty at all, but I managed to catch it and then, it was all a matter of doing my 2 squats. Heck yeah! I felt good after that.

WOD: Helen

I had done this one back in April and had used the blue and purple bands for the pull-ups, but the 26#KB. I was a little confused today. I thought we had to do 4 rounds so I used the 35#KB, but the red and blue bands for the pull-ups. My runs felt really slow and I couldn’t believe it when I came back in from my 3rd run and everyone was done. I thought I still had one more round to do. Coach AJ was cheering me on and I mentioned I still had another round to go. She corrected me and confirmed it was only 3 rounds, not 4, and apparently, my face lit up like Christmas had come early!

I finished in 16:38 with a new PR (to me). Looking back, I should have used the blue and purple bands today as well because I was doing C2B. Oh well! I did increase the KB and I really wanted to break them into 11-10 for all sets, but  I just didn’t have it in me on the second round. I did 11-5-5  and on my 3rd round I did 11-6-4.

That’s it for me, I have to go cuddle with Béa before I head in to work for the night!

 

I Did It!

I woke up yesterday with a stuffy nose and a swollen ankle from my last Crossfit endeavour (remember when I slammed the barbell in my shin? Fun times!) and I was NOT in the mood to go out and run a 5km. However, I pledged I was going to do it, so out I went and drove to UVic to get my butt going. The sooner I would start, the sooner I would finish, right?

I got lost on the campus and couldn’t pinpoint the exact parking lot where the Run for the Cure was starting from so I parked in the one in front of the student council and got on my way. It took me a while to figure out that I wasn’t going the right way, I fiddled with my phone to start MapMyRun and finally knew where I was supposed to go (or closer to). I started my music and got going for the second time around. Once I was warm enough, I removed a layer of clothing and slowly settled into my rhythm. I always find it takes me 10-15 minutes to breathe easier when I start running. I don’t know why, but it’s something that I was reminded of today. Before Rina was born, I used to run a little and I remember having to deal with the same issues then.

It was a beautiful autumn morning with just a little bit of sun, the air was cool and that’s my favorite weather to run in. I settled into the music, trying to focus on the scenery around me as much as I could in order to get out of my head and the feat ahead of me.

The lady on MapMyRun announced I had already done 1km and that meant only 4 more to go. I got a little confused about my running route and decided to just stick to the university circle and repeat that in loops until I reached 5km. That was my plan and I felt better about knowing where I was going, sort of. I kept going for a bit, still struggling with finding my rhythm and taking minimal walking breaks. I didn’t have any goal in mind other than finishing the 5km before my parking ticket expired. I had 1hr to do that and I was fairly confident I could finish somewhere between 30-40 minutes. 2km were announced and I kept going.

I was taking little walking breaks here and there throughout and I decided to see if I could run my next split without stopping. The lady said I had reached 3km and I kept going. It was tough for me to keep going, but I made it 1km without any pauses! I was definitely out of breath though and my hip flexors were getting sore so I took a small walking break afterwards and kept going. When the next split was announced, I couldn’t contain my joy! I was so happy I had managed to run a 5km without having trained for it and I did so in an ok time (for me). I kept going for a little bit since I wasn’t quite back to my car yet and I did so running! All in all, I was happy I got to do this in order to raise funds for the Canadian Breast Cancer Society ($300 total), but that doesn’t mean I enjoy running any more than I did before. I know my form needs some work because my shins are a bit sore today and I feel like I may have bruised the sole of my right foot. No big issues, but just little things I noticed during my run.

There it is! 5km done!

 

Details of my splits

 

These legs are made for… running?!?

The Return Of The Klutz!

I saw the WOD last night and I knew it looked harmless, but would be a tough one. I just didn’t know how tough I would really make things on myself! I thought, if the WOD is going to suck, at least, I’ll have fun with my outfit!

Calling on my inner cheetah, not cougar! Lol! I love how they make my quads look big! 

I showed up for the 0930 class and Coach AJ welcomed us. I warmed up my hips, posterior chain and my wrists because I knew we would be working them and those are my weak spots. For once, I felt I warmed-up properly for the skill and WOD. I didn’t know it would be downhill from there.

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Skill: Hang Snatch 6×2 E90s

My plan was to work up to 65# on my last rep. While I was warming up with an empty bar, I lost my balance at the bottom of the squat and because I was wanting to save the empty bar and not let it drop to the floor, I fell on my butt, pulling the bar towards me and ramming it into my shin. Yep! That made me see stars and my foot got numb and tingly. I took off my lifting shoe while Coach AJ brought me an ice pack and I slowly made sure nothing was broken. The pain was real and I was breathing through it. I managed to move my toes, then my ankle. It was sore, but after a few minutes, I took off the ice pack, put my lifting shoe back on and the sensation came back in my foot. I had missed the warm-up and the first 2 sets of the skill, but I picked up the bar and worked my way up.

35#-40#-45#-50#

My first few reps were pretty broken down and I admit I was scared and guarding my shin, but then it got a little bit better. I didn’t quite make it to the weight I had in mind, but it’s ok. It wasn’t my worst set and it wasn’t my best either. Somewhere nice in the middle.

WOD: Thrundle

After I hit my shin with the bar, my super cute leggings were clinging to the part where the skin got ripped off and the friction was not fun, but I was pretty confident about doing the WOD. Plus, I figured, the running would increase the blood flow to the area and help bringing on the healing, oxygenated blood. See? Who knew I could use nursing in Crossfit?!? LOL!

I chose to do FG2 with my thrusters at 65#. I knew it would be challenging, but it is time I start increasing the weights on these during the WODs. There were only 4 of us actually running outside and I was the only girl. The guys took off like little gazelles and I stayed behind. My goal was to break the thrusters into 4s and hopefully finish under 12mins. I came back in from the run dead last and took 4 deep breaths before getting onto the thrusters. I did 2, held on to the bar and regulated my breathing before doing 2 more and putting the bar down. I took 4 more breaths and picked it up again, only to do a wonderful power clean! Space cadet! I finished up the movement by doing a push press and then did proper thrusters.

The second run wasn’t any worst or better than the first one and I repeated my strategy for the second set of thruster, minus the power clean 😉 !

Back out for the 3rd run. Everybody was inside by the time I reached about 100m out and my shin was throbbing a little. I took a walking break for 8 deep breaths and picked it up again. Only a short few minutes left to suffer before I would be done, I could do this.

I came back in, took 5 deep breaths and picked up the bar for 2 thrusters, caught a few more deep breaths and finished off 2 more reps before putting the bar down. I was looking at the timer and it was already 11:28, so I knew I had to pick it back up and finish those last 4 reps if I wanted to reach my goal. I made it just in time, finishing last at 11:58.  I’d say it wasn’t too bad, considering how clumsy I’d been!

I put my bar away and was pretty proud of my time. I came back home to shower and then iced my shin once more. I will repeat that a few more times today and make sure to mobilize my foot a bit to prevent stiffness from setting in.

I will leave you with my very own little fierce Crossfitter. I took Rina to her 2nd Crossfit Kids class yesterday and she had a blast, all while surprising me. I didn’t think she could row to accumulate distance, but she actually managed about 100m/2min!

Love that determined / fierce look in her eye!

Pulling the little sled (empty, obviously)

Running For Love…

…and not, the love of running. There is a major difference between the two.

I think it’s safe to say I have made it widely known on this little blog of mine that I am not a runner. I don’t like running and I’m not efficient at it. I have short little legs and wide hips, which means I get shin splints almost every time I take to the pavement. I still do it though. During the workouts, I will run all my stretches as best I can and, lately, I have managed some pretty long distances (for me, anyway) without having to take walking breaks.

On October 4, yet another instalment of the Run For The Cure will be held in Victoria. Unfortunately, I will be at work all day on that day. I did, however register as a participant and I have pledged to run the same 5km course as all the other participants, just two days later, on October 6, starting at 9am,  all by my lonesome self.

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Will it be fun? Heeeeeeellllllllllllllll no! Do I really care about it being fun? Not one bit. You know why? Because having breast cancer sure as heck isn’t fun, yet millions of women are affected by the disease and it is about time we raise enough money to find a cure for this beast.

My mom has been through 2 rounds in the ring with this monster and she has come back wearing the winning belt both times. That woman has undergone 50 rounds of chemo and 20 rounds of radiotherapy since she was first diagnosed. She is not cured, but she is learning to live with the disease and it is now under control. She will, however, need to get chemotherapy for the rest of her life on a regular basis. You tell me if that sounds like fun?

Through it all, she has held her head high and has focused on the positive in her life, never complaining about the frequency or the side effects of the treatments she had to receive. I can tell you that, although we are separated by 5000km, I know for a fact it hasn’t always been easy for her (or my dad for that matter) and for our family, but Mamie has kept a strong front and it has made it a tiny bit easier for us to swallow that ugly pill.

Since the beginning of her disease, I always felt like doing something to show her just how much I admire her strength, courage and attitude in the face of adversity. Being so far away, it is hard to demonstrate my sentiments over the phone. That’s why, this year, I pledge to RUN THE 5KM course. I will try my best to run the full thing without walking breaks, I can promise you that. It will probably be close to my version of hell on earth, but yet again, so far from what cancer patients have to go through. I feel like this will be a testament of my love and support to my Mom!

I would love to see you on the sidewalks of the course, cheering me along or if you could spare $5, you could even donate to my fundraising page! It would be even better if you could do both! I know it’s on a Tuesday morning and people have to work, but seeing familiar faces showing their love and support will mean the world to me and will give me the extra push to finish strong.

So, click the link below to donate to my fundraising page before October 4 and I’ll see you, struggling and sweaty on the sidewalk of the course, mmkay? K!

Donate by clicking HERE!

Mamie and Rina, having a blast! Please donate so that I get to witness more happy moments like that. Thanks a bunch!

Body Weight, I’m Coming For You!

Béatrice is finally on the mend which means, I have had a solid, uninterrupted night of sleep until 0600, when Rina came to ask me if she was still grounded… She had been without iPad privileges yesterday for not listening and giving me attitude and she was anxious for the sanctions to be lifted. I told her it was too early to discuss that and that she needed to go back to bed. I half expected her to stay in her room for a short while and then go downstairs, but she fell back asleep until I woke up at 0715! Last night, I was debating going to the 0600 class, but I kind of wanted to sleep in this morning since Rina has a Pr0-D day. That meant attempting to sleep in was something fathomable and I chose to do just that! Hurray for sneaking in extra rest!

I got up, made the girls pancakes while I made myself an egg, 1/3 sweet potato, with salsa and 1/4 avocado! Yum! Topped it off with a coffee and got ready for Crossfit.

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Skill: Back Squats 5×3 E90S

I’ve been chasing my goal of squatting my body weight on the back squat and I was wanting to try to get up to 135# today. I’m usually cautious with any squat and deadlift since my sciatic has a tendency to get angry with them, so I wasn’t feeling too hot for these this morning. I remembered the last time I had tried 130#, I was seeing stars and had to back out of a lift, so I wasn’t hopeful that I could get to 135# today, but I made it my goal.

I warmed up to 115# and we got going. At 125#, Coach AJ came over to tell me I was “stripping” my lift (not keeping my shoulders up on the up of the squat and leading with my butt instead of my shoulder). She reminded me to keep the shoulders back and the core tights, all the while, pressing my shoulders into the bar.

I loaded up my bar with 130# and tried as best I could to do everything Coach AJ had just told me. Yes! 3 reps done! One set to go.

I loaded up my bar with 135# and shared my plates with Marika. We had a nice system going and it worked out well. I managed 2 reps with some effort, but I think I managed to keep my form proper. The 3rd rep was a little stripper-ish, but I dug deep, pulling the bar into my shoulders and managed to get back up for my 3rd rep! OH YEAH! Heaviest squat I’ve ever done in my life! That means I am officially 10# away from back squatting my body weight! Gainz and weights going up! Woot! Woot!

WOD: Hung Up

After celebrating the high of my back squat, I had shaky legs and was very apprehensive about the WOD. Coach AJ had said we should aim for a time of 10:00 try to break our snatches into two for each rounds. Ha! Here I was aiming for 3 reps before putting the bar down! I scaled down the weight to 40# and was planning to do all the reps. For my pull-ups, I scaled it with the red and blue bands. I tried with the red and purple, but I was struggling way too much.

3-2-1-Go! The snatches were hard, but then again, they are my weakest lift I feel. I’m still not able to snatch a decent weight (in my opinion) and I struggle with these. I made sure to have perfect form on most of my reps though and I think I managed to do so. I broke the pull-ups into sets of 3s, then 2s. 21 was a lot and I was drained.

I got to the bar for my set of 15s and I wanted to quit sooooo bad! I was really trying to break them into 8-7, but I had to do 4-4-5-2. My forearms were done and the thought of 15 pull-ups was crushing my spirit, let alone another full round of 9s. I broke all the pull-ups into sets of 2 and made my way back to the bar.

I managed to break the last snatches into 5-4, then onto the rig for my last pull-ups where I broke them up into 2, except for the last 3 that I somehow managed in-a-row.

That WOD looked all innocent and cute, but it was a monster in disguise. I’m so proud of myself for not quitting on the round of 15, though because, once again, it means I am stronger than I think I am physically and I just need to keep pushing through the mental barrier in order to succeed.

That was me today, and pretty much everyday at the gym!

It gives me hope for my upcoming 5k that I plan to run on October 5th. I’ll talk more about that in a separate post… That run will be all mental and I’m going to need to dig deep into my mental fortitude in order to finish, I just know it! I left the Box with shaky legs from the squats and shaky arms and hands from all the grip of the snatch and pull-ups!

On my way home, I saw a biker that had been hit by a car, so I stopped and asked if he was ok. He was bloody and couldn’t move one of his shoulders, but I didn’t have to intervene since the ambulance and cops arrived just shortly after I did.

I am now planning to take the girls to Hotel Transylvania 2 this afternoon. It will be their very first time watching a movie on a big screen! I’m not sure that Béatrice will tolerate the noise and length of the movie, but I plan on going with my sister-in-law, who would then say with Rina at the theatre while I take Béatrice home if she’s too bored. Keeping my fingers crossed it will be a successful outing! Who knows, maybe I’ll even be able to sneak in a nap in the dark! 😉

 

Beasting Out!

I have had a few busy days at work and have been forced to take tonight off (I have yet another eye infection and my superiors don’t want me at work 😦 ).

I got up this morning, got the little one ready for school, made sure the other one wasn’t still running a fever (she had one last night) and then got myself ready to go to Crossfit for this:

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I managed a perfect Rowl on my 2nd attempt at the warm-up and, already, I was off to a good start. Nic managed to have 2 or 3 perfect row at 100m even! That guy is unbelievable!

Skill: Trap Bar or Axle Bar Deadlift 6×3 E90S

I have missed all of these lately due to work, so I really didn’t know what weight to use. I still felt strong in the second to last set so I decided to bump my final weight by 10# instead of my usual 5# and Coach Caileigh agreed with my decision. Here is my progression:

125#-130#-135#-140#-145#-155#

WOD: Taranis 2012 Run Burpee Run

I had done this WOD RX back in 2014 and had finished with a time of 14:09,I had taken a few walking breaks and had done all my burpees granny-style, broken into sets of 10. Today, I was determined to repeat it without any walking breaks and try to do all my burpees Rx. We set out for the 1st run and  Nicole was a good rabbit for me. She ended up getting further ahead of me on the second 400m (we do an out-and-back of 400m and just repeat if the mileage is higher), but I was ok with that. I didn’t want to push too hard on the first 400m and tank out at the end.

I came in last for the burpees, but not by much. We had 5 stations of 10 burpees to go through so I set out to work. I broke my burpees into sets of 5, rested for 3 deep breaths in-between and just kept chipping at it. I was surprised to arrive at my last set not that much behind everyone else and I was still doing all my burpees Rx!

I set out for the last 400m run and I felt good, taking advantage of the downhills and slowing down significantly on the uphills, but trying to lengthen my stride as best I could. I came in last and looked at the clock and was so pumped to see my time: 12:58! I had just shaved off 1:21 from my previous PR and that was for an Rx WOD! Heck yeah!

 

New PR!

I felt so good to have not only done all the runs non-stop, but the burpees Rx as well! It made me feel like I was a real bad ass!

PR face! Happy and sweaty!

 

Am I becoming a beast?!? I sure hope so!

I came back home and was very energized by the entire workout today. Just one of those days when everything goes well in the gym and it makes me feel good about myself! I love when I push myself and gauge a WOD perfectly that it is challenging very challenging, but I still have enough in the tank to finish strong!

I went back to the walk-in clinic to get confirmation that I had yet another stye in my eye and to just keep using the antibiotic drops I had been using. Ugh. I went out and bought all new makeup to se once the infection will have cleared up as I’m suspecting that is the culprit for spreading it from eye to eye…

I came back home to a sleeping Béa and I went to pick-up Rina at the bus stop. Everybody is tired from their week and I can’t wait to relax on the couch this evening after the girls have gone to bed. Ben will be home late and it will be the perfect evening for me to catch up on my TV shows!

 

Our New Normal

So, I have two kids in school as of today! Rina is in kindergarten full-time and Béatrice has started preschool 2 mornings a week yesterday.

When it was time for us to leave Béatrice in her classroom yesterday, Rina burst into tears. She didn’t want to leave her little sister! That almost broke my heart, but she soon forgot about her heartache once I took her to the playground! 😉

These are the best pictures I could take of Béatrice on her first day of pre-school! Typical Béa!

This morning, we had to wake up much earlier than our usual. Rina was starting school and the bus comes by really early to pick her up.

Rina is now in kindergarten!

She did really well getting on the bus, sat next to another little girl and forgot all about us! She’s so freakin’ independent that one!

With her starting school early, that also means that I won’t be able to go to the 0600 WOD anymore because Ben isn’t an early riser and I need to pitch in to get the girls ready to go in time when I’m not at work. I’m hoping to still be able to go to the Olympic lifting class at 0600 though, but I’ll have to negotiate that with my other half! We do things very give and take and since he’s not an early riser, I’ll pitch in A LOT when I’m not working. When I’m at work, he’ll have to do it all by himself, so I feel it’s only fair! Parenting is a 2-person job in this household!

After we dropped her off on the bus, I went to get some groceries, came back home and rested a bit before I headed out for the 0930 WOD. I was not excited because to me, it’s a new class, which means, new people who I don’t know and also, the WOD was crazy. I looked at it last night and thought: “I may need 45-60 mins to finish this one.” And there you have it: my goal was to finish sub 45:00!

 

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WOD: The Pyramid Effect

We all got ready outside and we took off for the 1st mile (1600m, broken into 4x400m out and back). That was brutal, but I managed to do it without rest. Of course, everybody was done before me, but I didn’t care!

I was really hoping to do my pull-ups strict with the blue and purple bands, but even in the warm-up to the WOD, I knew I would struggle. On my 1st round of pull-ups, I asked advice from Coach France as to how to exactly DO a strict pull-up! I have never been really good at doing them and she told me I was kipping them. I paused at the bottom to really stop the swing and plowed through doing that for the rest of the reps. I broke up the pull-ups into sets of 3, the push-ups, I did Rx and broke them up into sets of 5.

Then, I was onto the 100 lunges that I broke into sets of 10. I was much more effective at doing them almost without pause and they were the easy part of this WOD for me.

Back to the push-ups (again, broken into sets of 5 mostly and Rx) and banded pull-ups. I was the last one out on the mile run and I took a lot of little walking breaks. I really was trying to not walk, but my legs were toast! I kept pushing and finished my 3rd and did all of my 4th running round by myself. I tried to pick up the pace on the 4th round and came back inside with a time of 42:19. Goal crushed!I was done though! That was a tough one!

Sweaty mess!

I rushed home to shower quickly before Ben left for work and I’m now waiting for Rina to come back home from school. I can’t wait to hear how her first morning went! Now, I just need to figure out when I’ll have time to do all my cleaning since I was out for most of the morning and I need to nap before tonight’s night shift!

 

 

 

 

 

From Rhino To Rabbit

I went to bed early and had a hard time falling asleep last night. I was then woken up at 2330 by our new tenants moving in. SERIOUSLY!!! I was up until 0130, reading in bed and had just fallen back asleep when the husband walked into the bedroom. No way was he reading in bed, I’d had enough already!

I got woken up again at 0330 by people scavenging the recycling bins that were left out for pickup today (yes, that’s a thing in Victoria, people look for “empties” in other people’s recycling, and they don’t do so quietly).

My alarm went off at 0500 and my first thought was: “Oh, Hell no!” I got up anyway and got ready for some hard work.

It’s dark outside at 0540, but Man, do I love this place!

 

 

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Skill: 3RM Strick Press

Before the 12 mins were on the clock, we were only allowed to warm up with an empty bar. Once the 12 minutes started, my strategy was to go E2M and increase by 5# every set. My previous 3RM was 62# and my goal was 65#. I teamed up with Telsey and we got going.

40#-45#-50#-55#-60#-65#

My last rep at 65# was probably the wonkiest, ugliest rep, but I got the bar up and that was a new 3# PR for me! I had my doubts that I would be able to do it, but I pushed through (literally) and was super happy to get the bar overhead!

Telsey managed 1 rep at 65# and she totally had the 2nd one as well, but I think her head said no. We dropped the weight down to 62# and she managed 3 reps! She will be passing me in no time, she’s so strong!

WOD: Run to the Bar

I did the FG for this one and set my heart out on 5 rounds of:

• 400m run
• 20 lunges
• 10 double crunches

It was chilly this morning and my hip flexors were screaming at me on the 1st run (from the squats on Monday) so I took it easy and made sure to warm-up before I pushed it on the runs. The lunges didn’t help, but I felt good during the double crunches.

Rounds 1 and 2 were uneventful. I felt gassed on round 3. Coach Caleb told me not to pause the lunges and, whaddyaknow, I could do them with a full extension at the top without pausing! I made up some time by doing that! Thanks Coach!

On round 4, Tracey passed me during the run and as she did so, she said: “It’s getting harder and harder to catch up to you!” Uhm, I couldn’t speak (Come on, I was barely breathing and was really focusing on keeping Pukie the Clown at bay during this round), but I was determined to become the fastest rabbit she’d ever have to chase. I finished round 4 and set out on my last round.

Instead of picturing myself as  rhino charging out, I kept reminding myself of Kathleen’s cues: Lengthen the stride, stay loose and bend a bit forward. It was hard on the uphill, but Tracey didn’t catch up to me so that was something to me. Mind you, Tracey is a beast and she was doing the Comp Prep version (aka athlete version) while I was scaling it, but still, a goal is a goal!

I came back inside to finish up my lunges and my double crunches and clocked in at 21:01. Not too far behind all the Rxs and the Comp Prep, so I know I worked hard!

Hopefully, I’ll get a nap at some point today, because, guess what? There’s more cleaning to do upstairs! Ugh!