Just trying to keep up...

The firm, training, working on the house -- it's all running full speed right now.


Boring "Training" Update:

Friday's WOD: Helen
3 rounds, for time, of (400m run, 21 KB swings @ 53lbs, 12 pull ups)
13:04 (Slow, but I did it rx'd, which is a first. I'd forgotten how hard it is.)

Saturday's WOD:
In teams of two, AMRAP in 20 minutes of:
10 wall ball, 10 burpees, 100 singles
14 rounds (The Wee One finished the last round with about 3 seconds to spare.)

Sunday's WOD:
Work on a brief.
Go to Lowe's.
Lame.

Monday's WOD:
Push jerks (115x3, 115x3, 135x2, 135x3, 145x2, 145x2, 145x3)
Deadlifts (4 sets of 10 @ 175lbs)
(Definitely need to do more deadlifts. Lots more. They've become a relative weak spot.)

Happy Birthday Manimal

The Manimal turns 30-something on Friday. He can out-skin, out-ski, out-ride. . . he can out- anything just about everyone I know.* He's a total stud, he's always game for a sports adventure, and he looks good in a habit. If you see him, raise your glass and say HAPPY BIRTHDAY.

Need someone to ski super-wet mank while carrying two packs? Call The Manimal.

This is what happens when you marry a girl that went to Catholic school .

And here's another update for the Jason/Scientist/Six Triumverate:

WOD: Avenues Intervals

Starting at South Temple, run up one block, walk across one block, to 11th Avenue.

Eleven all out efforts.

Ugghhh. I lost the mental game towards the end. This about sums it up:

* Angell, Esq. is in a whole other league. But he grew up in New Jersey, so he's probably a mutant. And don't get me started about Dr. Z -- he should be called Dr. Off the Couch.

Eyes on the prize...

My motivation is waning. Which is rather inconvenient, as The Steeplechase is getting closer, and my workload is growing. I need something to look forward to, something to focus on, something . . . oh yeah, there's this:

The left skyline is the Hotlum-Wintun Ridge on Mt. Shasta. 7000' of fall line corn snow. Another view from a different angle:

The red line is the descent. If all goes to plan, Dr. Z, The Hibbs, The Melton, and I will tick this off the list around May 23rd. But only if I stay fit, and only if I keep burning through the never-ending workload. Eyes on the prize...

...

And now for the boring stuff. Don't say I didn't warn you. Everyone except Jason (who really needs a nickname), The Scientist, and Six should ignore the following.

Yesterday's WOD: My legs were smoked from Tuesday's "fun," and I just wasn't feeling Helen, so I took an active rest day.

10 rounds, not for time

5 air squats

10 pushups

10 situps

10 supermans

Helen is still out there. I have a feeling she and I will collide on Saturday morning.

Yes. I know. This is boring.

El Manimalito told me, straight up, that my blog is pretty boring. He's right of course. I would make an effort to spice things up -- perhaps post some more pictures from my recent trip to Escalante, or a clever rant regarding how Facebook is evil -- but after drinking beers and margaritas at El Manimalito's house tonight, I can barely stay awake for the new episode of Rescue Me. I'll split the baby.

WOD:

21 back squats

250m row

15 back squats

250m row

9 back squats
250m row

24:34 (185lbs for the first 28 squats, 165lbs for the rest)

Sometimes it's nice to have been a climber. And to be tall.

A nice spot for a snack along Thunder Mountain. I still shake my head at how good this ride was.

Gaining on The Scientist...

Although The Scientist currently holds the gym record for the 500m row -- a blazing 1:29 -- I'm gaining on him. I have no doubt that upon reading this he, Six, and a host of others will dust off their five-hundo sprints and push the record even lower. It's the natural order of things, and it's part of what makes the gym tick.

WOD: 5 x 500m rows, 4 minutes rest between each interval
1:34.2 (PR), 1:51.9, 1:52ish,* 1:47.0, 1:44.4
Rest...then...
2 minute isometric squat (This was Jason's version of punishment for letting my times slack so much. He was kind enough to do it with me.)
Rest...then...
3 rounds of (10 GHD sit ups, 10 back extensions)

*The C2 rower is a devious machine. You set it for 4 minutes of rest, and if you're late getting back in the game -- say, if it takes you a little more than 4 minutes to peel your carcass off the floor -- it starts the clock while you're not looking. In short, I got caught with my pants down.)

The last seventy-two...

What follows is a terribly non-clever recount of my "training" over the last three days. I recommend against reading it. You will want that 43 seconds of your life back. Seriously, move along.

Friday, May 1
WOD: Turkish get-ups
5 sets of 3 on each arm
35lbs (I can manage a 53lb TGU on my right side, but not on my left. Something to work on...)
Then
Rowing: 10 rounds of 30 seconds on, 15 seconds off
1607 meters total

Saturday, May 2
WOD: In teams of two, alternating reps:
50 Medicine Ball Pass Burpees
50 Medicine Ball Slams
100 Twisting Medicine Ball Passes
100 Box Jumps
16:04 The Wee One and I teamed up. The Wee One looked strong, but I was having an off day, and it slowed us down. So did accidentally doing 200 twisting passes. Oops.
Then
A half round of the above. Dr. Z and I teamed up against The Malinator. I tried to hide my off-the-backness by using a 36" box. It didn't work.

Sunday, May 3
Inadvertent rest day. I should have run -- I intended to run -- but we were working on the yard, it started to rain, I drank a beer, blah blah blah. Bottom line: I got lazy.

Weak and slow, but less so...

Noon WOD: "Heavy" Overhead Squats

It was supposed to be 5 sets of 3, but everything went pear shaped in a hurry.

135x3/135x2/135M/135M/125x1/120x3/115x3

Not great -- I hadn't lifted over head in a while, and it showed -- but still waaaaay better than it used to be.

Evening Run: From Downtown to the top of the hill above the Bobsled four-way, down Terrace Hills, and back to Downtown. The views along the trail did not suck.

Life is just too good...

when you can run to views like these.

I gave up the ghost at the end and walked the last mile back to my office. It's better than last time, and I've still got a long way to go to survive the 18 miles of the Steeplechase.
8.5-ish miles, 1 hour 50 minutes