Stay positive... Even when things don't go your way!

Today was a bit of a mental challenge for me. This morning I tried several times to get a muscle up before the WOD, NADA! 

I got to the 9AM WOD and felt pretty good as I was able to finish my Deadlifts 5x3 at 375. Now I did have to do singles to finish the last 2 sets, but it was 15 lbs over last week , kept all my 500m rows under 2 minutes, and completed 15 (3 each round) rope climbs. I was still going when Jen turned off. The music. I think I was the last one working out (DFL) no biggie.

But all day mind mind kept telling me " you couldn't get a single muscle up this morning."

" I need to go back film what I was doing wrong and fix it." I returned to the box and worked with a band on the progression. 

 Set up my iPad to film exactly what I was doing wrong, and despite about 25 attempts ....

I COULD NOT GET A F****Ing Muscle Up!

I was (A) pissed at myself, (B) wondering why a skill I can do most of the time , I couldn't today.

I decided after many attempts to just accept that it wasn't gonna happen.

I decide to move to working on the Push Jerk.

Now my shoulder has been bad for over a year. As a male of 193 lbs, I should be able to Push Jerk about 250. Because of my past injuries, my PP, and PJ suck. I have been unable to even Jerk 200lbs.......

Until today. Now I was only able to get 210 lbs, but that was a milestone once again.

So I guess the moral of the story is everyone feels like they have failed on a workout or WOD or lift (something), Coaches included. 

Stay positive, even if something doesn't go the way you want it. Work hard and you WILL IMPROVE!!

The joy of coaching.

I have been a certified personal trainer and Spinning instructor since the mid 1990's. I enjoy helping people meet their fitness goals.

Fast forward to a couple years ago. I discovered CrossFit. I was first introduced to a few different CF WODs by friends at work. They were addictive. I sought out Jen Cereghino at CFOC. And got into a modified on ramp. I say that because she taught me ( a class of one). I started, and quickly fell in love with both the post-WOD feeling, but especially the camaraderie, everyone cheering for the last person to finish ( sometimes me).

Six months later I'm in a level 1 certification, and excited to hopefully get to do a little coaching.

I have been regularly coaching for about 6 months. I love it! I look forward to my days off from the Firestation to coach and perform the WODs .

It is really inspirational to me to see somebody get a lift or a movement they couldn't before. Every first or PR really is important, not only to the athlete, but also to your coach. Seeing athletes progress from new to experienced to seasoned is really awesome.

Sometimes the joy is due to a group after hearing me yell " one more minute give me all you've got" Or "finish hard!".I see them all pick up their pace and really give there all.

Thanks for letting me coach you. CFOC athletes you are all amazing.

To compete in the CF open or not!?!

Many of the athletes in our box at Crossfit Oregon City are excited about this years Crossfit Games Open. Several athletes signed up quickly after the registration opened. A few of these athletes have competed in local CF competitions, many have not.

The last few days I have seen many athletes posting questions on Facebook asking questions like what if they have exercise A? ( Insert any movement you cannot do, or do well). Well they most certainly will have it. This is not a reason not to try.

I realize that while I can do most WODs Rx, I am no where near competitive with some of the athletes that will go on to Regionals or the "Big" games. This is also not a reason to try.

Last year, I competed in the open for the first time. The first weeks WOD was max Burpees in 7 minutes. I figured I might be able to get 90. I did 104 because of the encouragement of my coach Jen Cole Cereghino. As I lay there on my back barely able to breathe she said to me" You really picked it up in the last minute and a half. Great Job"

I was personally proud that I was able to beat my goal.

In the weeks that followed we did a snatch ladder to which I was able to do only 21 of the needed 30 at 135lbs. Then a Wall Ball / Double Under / MuscleUp combo. I finished the150 wall balls ( barely) and because I was still learning them finished only 60 of the 90 DU's. I didn't have to worry about not being able to do a Muscle Up because I never even got that far.

After a couple of weeks, I looked forward to the fact that each week 1 of my WODs score would be posted on the Internet for all to see. That is a great motivator to WORK HARD!

There were some WODs which I did what I considered good (for me) at, and WODs which I felt like I sucked at. Even these left me with a great feeling of satisfaction and self accomplishment.

If your not sure you can do it, TRY. You will be glad you did !

My First Muscle-Up!!

There's a lot of movements in CrossFit, that are difficult to master. For me, being a big guy many of the gymnastics movements are a challenge. I have practiced and improved my Pull Ups, Handstand Push Ups, and regularly practice on the rings doing dips and *Attempting* Muscle Ups.

Last March while attending My CrossFit Level 1 course I was attempting a muscle up, and my right hand slipped off the ring and I was left hanging in a one sided ring dip. Needless to say I injured my right shoulder. For months I rehabbed and finally regained enough strength to try anew.

I think part of the problem was A) I didn't want to re injure the shoulder and B) I was afraid! I tried for a few months, unsuccessfully to perform just one.

About a week ago, after our Saturday WOD, I saw one of our athlete's Bri, practicing toes to rings. I jokingly said to her " Do a Muscle-Up" to which she replied "I can't." Bri is a gymnast ( you know the girl that has flexibility like Gumby) . SO I said " Show me your false grip", she didn't know what that was. I showed her and began a hard kip, up went my body above the rings. I pressed out at the top and screamed. By not thinking hard about it beforehand I was able to do it. I came down and everyone yelled "do it again. "

I was sure it was a total fluke, and I was about to make a fool of myself, by not being able to do another one, but I did! Next Jen our box owner said " We need to get this on video." Yes we do I thought. my next thought was I'm gonna fail this on video... I did it. To which she replied "I didn't catch it go again." There is no way I'll be able to do another one. The video above is my 4th ever Muscle-Up.
A while later I did one more for a total of 5 single muscle ups.

I have to say, I felt on top of the world that day.

I still can't get them every time I try, especially after a hard shoulder workout, but I will continue to work on this until I CAN!

Sometimes the little things matter!

Before I could only do a HSPU down to the Abmat.

     For me when I come into do a WOD at CFOC I strive to always do the WOD RX. This means doing all movements as prescribed. If it calls for a specific weight, prescribed is that weight. After injuring my shoulder several months ago,  I finally feel like I am getting back to my former abilities.
    By the way, if you do injure yourself don't do like I did and try to "baby it" back to health. Go see a professional. I am totally sold on a great chiropractor now. But thats for another blog.
    Because of my shoulder being less than 100%, I have struggled with many overhead movements, My press/push press weight dropped significantly.  HSPU's were almost unheard of after the injury. I continued to work them increasing the range of motion.
   With the excuse that I could not do the HSPU RX (because of my shoulder) I chose to always use an Abmat instead of going all the way down to the ground with my head. I also had trouble using a "kip" to assist in the movement as every time i would try my body would come away from the wall. So every few days I would spend 3-5 minutes to practice.


   Today, after we finished a fun little girls vs. boys WOD, I noticed a couple of girls practicing HSPU's. They started with 45lb plates on either side of the Abmat, essentially making it flush. I tried and was able to do 3 this way. I then tried to repeat using a body "kip". Guess what I did it!
   Then they added 2 more plates on top of the others to make it a negative starting position. I muscled one out!!! I jokingly said" It would probably take me til Tuesday to get to 3." After a few minutes I tried the negative with the "kip". I GOT 3 IN A ROW!!! To which a friend said" It's not Tuesday yet!"

  Remember, little accomplishments can mean as much as having a fast time, or finishing RX.

  SOMETIMES THE LITTLE THINGS REALLY DO MATTER!!

This stuff really works!

Ever since I "drank the kool-aid" of CrossFit and Paleo lifestyle I have seen great results. I have lost pounds and inches off my body. I have more energy and feel much better on a daily basis. People always ask me if I think it was just the CF or the diet? I say neither, its a lifestyle change. The word diet to me means....Temporary plan. I have changed to eating "clean" not for a month or six weeks, but hopefully forever. I view CrossFit the same way. I hope to be CF'ing til I'm old and gray.

I know my results have been more than I would have even imagined 6 months ago, but it's left me wondering... Is it just me....

Well yesterday morning my beautiful wife Tina walked in with a huge smile on her face and said" Another five lbs, and look". She was holding her "old" skinny jeans up  with a 2-3 " gap in the front. Now my wife is pretty petite anyway (around 135#) so 5 pounds is SIGNIFICANT for her. She started out eating some of my Paleo dishes, and now eats most of them. She is CF'ing 3-4 days a week and loves it. That doesn't mean she doesn't come home after a WOD and say" WOW today's really sucked" but she gets through them.

She has a small group of gals that text or FB each other what time they'll be there. If she responds that she'll be there at 6 PM, she is sort of committed. She has good friends there suffering with her and they do it. They share each others successes and failures. That keeps all of them involved and committed.

So it seems it is working for 2 of the 3 people in our house. My 14 year old is excited to do some CF while on summer break from school. Now getting a 14 y/o to eat anything he doesn't want is a challenge, but I bet even eating cleaner part-time and CF'ing he'll see results too.

I want to personally thank Jen and Scott Cereghino of CrossFit Oregon City for improving my life. Come on down and check it out. I might even be coaching that day.

Brad

An update on me!

Well I guess I haven't updated my blog in quite a while. I have still been CrossFitting religiously and making great progress. Since the first on January I have gone from 223 lbs to 196 lbs. this morning. My goal weight is 195, so I am right there. During this time we did a "Whole 30 " challenge in which we did a very strict Paleo diet with NO sugar or alcohol.

Last month I attended the CrossFit level 1 trainer certification course, and am happy to say "I PASSED!!"
I hope to start training athletes or at least assist in training classes at CFOC.

Also and this fact I am very proud of my beautiful wife Tina started going to CF. I finally convinced her to come in and try it out on a Saturday, and she was hooked. She finished her On-Ramp program last month and is attending 3-4 classes per week. I am so proud of her.