The Importance of Proper Fuel

Every Tuesday and Thursday I wake up and head to the gym to work out around 7am. After I work out I teach a class, and after that I go out on the trails and either do hill repeats or a longer run. My main concern is getting enough food in me before I hit the trails because I am usually not done with my "morning" until 12:30pm... which is 5 and a half hours after I started my first work out. In the morning, I usually work out on an empty stomach then have a protein shake with post work out carbs to try and get in as many calories as possible, and during the time I teach class I will usually eat a banana and a Perfect Foods Bar from Whole Foods. On my runs I bring some type of goo or cliff-blocks to take with me as a source of electrolytes and a quick little boost.
It never really hit me until today that I was not properly fueling myself prior to my runs. I was always getting light headed and tired quickly, and sometimes I would even start to see stars. My body would always fall apart and sometimes my brain would be telling myself to run, but my legs just couldn't turn anymore. I thought it was just dehydration and the high summer temperatures, but today I tried something a little different. I went to work out at 6:30am which gave me time to go out to breakfast and get a whole meal before teaching. By the time I had taught my class, my food did not feel heavy in my stomach and I felt ready to hit the trails. I wasn't cramming in snacks to try and get calories, instead I was able to have a complete, well-balanced breakfast. Today was the best I have ever felt and the best performance I have ever had on the trails. I ran 6.8 miles of single track mountain trails and I felt fantastic. The power of proper fuel is amazing.

Here is my OPT training for the day.

TRAINING:
A. Clean - build to a tough single in 10 min
B. Press - 5,5,5; rest 2 min
+
5 sets:
1 rope ascent - 20' legless
5 TnG Jerk - 155#/100#
6 x 24" box jump overs
Airdyne 20 sec @ 100%
rest 6 min actively
RESULTS:
A. 175#
B. 75#, 80#, 85#
+
:55
:56
1:02
1:01
1:01
*Rope was 14 or 15'
First time climbing a rope legless. I loved the challenge. These work outs are tough and continue to kick my ass every single day.

Gearing Up For A Race Day

In December I will be 22. I have set some goals for myself to try and get while I am still 21:
1. Squat Clean 200#
2. Power Clean 175#
3. Jerk 185#
4. Snatch 150#
These goals are all strength because I know I will have more fun "reaching my goal" if the training for it is something I enjoy. However, I have been working on my cardiovascular conditioning outside of CrossFit. Every Tuesday and Thursday I still do hill runs/sprints/long runs. Last Thursday I ran about 6.6 miles in the hills. It was a single track dirt terrain trail, with lots of hills, this past Tuesday I ran hill sprints, and today I ran about 5 miles on flat, paved road. I am running a 10k this weekend which I am pretty excited about. I usually do not enjoy running all that much, probably because I suck at it. But now that I have been working on running and have signed up for a race, I am finding myself liking running more. Once I get a feeling for a 10k, I will be able to set some goals for more of my endurance training. What's my goal for this weekend's 10k? Don't stop! It will be interesting to see how I do. When I was younger I could run forever, but now I have a lot more muscle on me and I need to learn how to carry and run with the extra weight. I also need to learn how to pace myself. I always go all out in the beginning, no matter what it is I am doing. A 10k will be awful if I blow it on the first mile. My plan is to sign up for a lot of running events to remain driven because the training I have been doing for running has really complemented my performance in CrossFit, which really is all I care about, but if I am in some sort of race I am way too competitive to not try my hardest. An all out effort in a race environment will only "up" my training and carry over more positive results to my CrossFit training.

Right now is my prime time to train. I have nothing better to do and I am on summer break, so I really have no excuses. Once school starts up again, my days will be busier, but now is the time to take advantage of my free time and get fit! I am living in a really awesome house next school year with a lot of girls so I need to stay on top of my training now, because my senior year in college is going to be a bit crazy but I am stoked for it!

Today I did somewhat of a run-thru of what the race will be for the weekend. The paved roads really beat my body up and it was hot as hell. I stopped to stretch a few times and catch my breath because I didn't want to blow my legs up too much and I wanted to keep my heart rate in Zone 1. My feet were bothering me a bit because my shoes weren't really meant for distance running (I usually wear my trail shoes but I wore light weight shoes for the pavement today) and my feet were roasting with the heat and thick socks I had on. After the run today, I bought some new shoes for the 10k that are meant for road running. The race is early in the morning so I won't have to worry about the heat, and my new shoes will hopefully make the run a bit more comfortable! And hopefully they'll make me run faster!

Hang Squat Cleans!

TRAINING:
Part 1:
Run 15 min @ Z1
Part 2:
A. Back Squat Cluster - 1.1.1.1.1 x 4; rest 5 min
B. Hang Squat CLean - 3 x 3 @ 80%; rest 90 sec
+
3rds for time @ 90%:
15 ring push ups
15 toes to bar
15 box jumps - 24/20"
RESULTS:
Part 1: Complete
Part 2:
A. 155, 165, 170, 175
B. 135, 135, 145
+
8:14
Felt strong on back squats, felt quick and powerful on hsc, but on the metcon my grip felt shot (probably from yesterday) and that push-ups were also challenging in sets 2 & 3

Weekend Training

Yesterday I did 11.5 and completed 275 reps. I was nervous when the work out was first announced. I wasn't feeling too confident about it, but I feel like I somewhat surprised myself. I did all the wall balls unbroken except 2 sets; on one set I fell forward on rep 12, and on my second to last set i broke 9/6.My legs are so sore today, especially my quads! 20 Minute AMRAPS are mentally defeating; I fell like there is no end. In other metcons I think to myself, "the sooner I finish, the sooner I can rest" whereas in an AMRAP I have to keep going for the same amount of time regardless of the work I am getting done. I feel a lot more conditioned than I felt about a month ago and I think it showed in this work out. I look forward to future training and the results I will see!

Today:
TRAINING:

part 1:
5-7 sets @ 97-100%:
4 shoulder to overhead tough
rest 0 sec
3x:
5 burpees AFAP
5 box jumps - 24/20" AFAP
rest walk 5-6 min actively

rest 4+ hours

part 2:
Run 5 min @ Z1
+
Run 45 sec uphill @ 80-90% constant pace
Run down easy x 4
+
Run1 min @ 80%
Run 1 min @ 50% x 3
+
Run 5 min @ Z1

RESULTS:
Part 1
5 sets @ 125#
1:05, 1:04, 1:13, 1:11, 1:18 (failed a push press so that added a few seconds)

part 2 Later today

I feel a bit worn out. My legs are so sore, and the rest of my body feels exhausted. Much needed rest day tomorrow.

Music While Working Out?

My work out today was a light 20 minute jog. I almost always listen to music when I run mostly because a light jog is more or less a mindless activity, and I cannot stand listening to myself breathe (I do not enjoy running). When I had my headphones in today, I thought of the numerous times my friends have asked me, "what music do you listen to when you work out? Which songs get you pumped up?" My answer: None. Josh Everett once said, "If you need music to motivate you, go find something else to do." He could not have said it any better. Half the time my work outs are done when the gym is full with classes, and yes even though there is music on in the background, I would never be able to tell you which songs had played, nor do I really care what is or is not playing. There are times I have worked out in total silence and I never even notice until someone points it out. The bottom line is, I try to push myself as hard as possible during work outs, so there are really only two things that concern me: the time on the running clock, and my performance. Most of my training is done at high intensity; I don't have the time or energy to spend worrying about music or "getting pumped up". If I am not pumped up during a work out then I am not doing my training correctly.

Here is Josh Everett in "Isabel"

OPT Saturday Tester

Saturday Tester:

http://optimumtraining.ca/

For time:

10 unbroken double unders

50 unbroken wall balls (14#/10ft)

20 unbroken double unders

40 unbroken wall balls (14#10ft)

30 unbroken double unders

30 unbroken wall balls (14#10ft)

40 unbroken double unders

20 unbroken wall balls (14#10ft)

50 unbroken double unders

10 unbroken wall balls (14#10ft)

18:19

Part 2:
Run 15 min @ Z1
5 x 30 sec hill sprint @ 90%
Run 15 min @ Z1

Hill Sprints from Chelsea Ryan on Vimeo.

5 Rounds for Time:

5 rounds:
3 x Front squats @135#
7 x Ring Dips
30 x Double Unders
400m Run

19:56

Front Squats were completed from the ground and double unders were all unbroken. My initial thoughts were that this would take me 25:00, but as I started going and saw the time, my goal was to finish sub 20. I completed all five rounds in 19:56. Hopefully the consistent sets of 30 double unders will carry over to the first work out in the Open which is an AMRAP 10 min 30 Double unders, 15 power snatch @ 55#. I plan to do this work out on Saturday. I did this wod to work on a weakness of mine (longer workouts). My ultimate goal is to be prepared for regionals without worrying too much about the sectional wods. Of course I want to be well prepared and perform well, but my programming/training will not be affected by the weekly sectional workouts.

Training my weakness from Chelsea Ryan on Vimeo.

Squat Cleans!

PR:170#
Today I did a 1RM squat clean. I never maxed out on a squat clean before so I was not sure what to expect. I was hoping to get around 155# but I surprised myself with 170#! I caught 175# at the bottom and bounced up but I could not stand up to complete the rep. I have been working on not raising my butt in the first pull and keeping the bar close to my body with a powerful hip extension. I plan to keep working on this, and hopefully next time I will set another PR.



Squat Clean PR from Chelsea Ryan on Vimeo.
Part 2 of my work out:
5 rounds
-15 burpees
-400m run


15:16


 I do not like to run and I do not like to do burpees but I forced myself to keep a consistent pace the entire work out. I did the whole work out unbroken. It was a huge accomplishment for myself to not stop once on 5 sets of 15 burpees.

Here is another video of WODS from the last year and a half.
Clips from training from Chelsea Ryan on Vimeo.