The Sandbag Chipper

Workout of the Day:

Using a 35 kg sandbag, do the following for time:

200 meter carry

30 bear hug squats

30 chest to overhead

200 meter carry

30 ground to shoulder

30 overhead lunges

200 meter carry

30 thrusters

30 wrap arounds

100 meter throw

I had a lot of fun today. Was feeling a bit tight still from Tuesday’s session in my hamstrings and shoulders, but a good dynamic warmup saw most everything working right. Niels and I headed over to Worcester College’s cricket field where we’d have a ton of space and no one to bother us. For the sandbag, we used the bag John and I made a few weeks ago, but stuffed the trash bags inside an old punching bag that I picked up at the farmers market for 6 lbs. Talk about a bargain. Now my sandbag was practically impenetrable to the beating I intended to give it.

The first 200 meters felt great. The bag didn’t bother me much at all, but I knew better than to push things too hard out of the gate from my previous bouts with bag sprinting in Paris. I got right into the squats, doing them unbroken, and followed immediately with the overheads, breaking only temporarily with the weight rest on my chest. The second 200 meters felt good as well. My heartrate was starting to elevate but I still felt under control. The ground to shoulders I did by swinging the bag between my legs so that it struck the ground on the way back then cleaning it up to my shoulder directly from the back position. This worked great—I was able to do all 30 without breaking rhythm. The OH lunges were awkward because of the shiftiness of the bag, but the weight felt fine. I did 15 out and 15 back, stopping at the halfway point to shake the arms out.

The final 200 meters were tough. By this point I was out of breath and starting to dread the thrusters coming up. They didn’t disappoint. I ended up having to do 6 sets of 5 because I couldn’t catch my breath and my arms were staring to go. They sucked the whole way but got done in the end. The wrap-arounds were much more difficult than I anticipated, and I think a very valuable exercise for people dissatisfied with CrossFit’s lack of transverse plane movement. You have to slingshot it with one arm around your back and catch it with the other while trying to maintain the momentum to carry forward to the next repetition. By the time I was finished I could barely hang on to the bag, making the last 100 meters of throws a lot more challenging. I elected to swing the bag forward like the cleans but releasing it on the way up. Not sure how many throws it took me, but the final time was 16:40.

I loved this sequence and am anxious to hear what others think if they try it. The video link is below.

Rest Day

Get Strong

Workout of the Day:

Strict Press 5, 5, 5+ @ 65/75/85% 1RM

Deadlift 5, 5, 5+ @ 65/75/85% 1RM (dead stop between reps)

Weighted chin ups 10, 10, 10, 10, 10

Good Mornings 10, 10, 10

Dips 15, 15, 15, 15

Strict toes to bar 15, 15, 15

Sent mom home today so a little bummed. Won't see family again until the end of June... time to get focused for the home stretch.

No ill effects from yesterday apart from the soreness in the left ankle, so it seems my body was able to handle the workload. Good sign so far. This afternoon’s session brought me back a couple years to my days of hard core strength training, and I liked it. Tore a page from Wendler’s 5/3/1 scheme but just combined 2 of the days so I’ll be able to rest later in the week. The percentages were based on 90% of a 1RM, not an actual 1RM, as instructed by the 5/3/1 plan. This calculated my weights to be 50 kg, 57.5 kg, and 65 kg for the strict press, and 115 kg, 135 kg, and 155 kg for the deadlift. If I felt weak yesterday, I felt STRONG today. My third set of presses I got 9 repetitions, and my third set of deadlifts I got 10. I was especially happy with the deadlifts. 10 with a dead stop between at 155 kg is definitely a record for me. I felt evenly distributed fatigue and I think I could’ve maybe even gotten 1 or 2 more if I’d been willing to let the form slide a bit at the end.

The assistance work was pretty tough. A lot of sets and repetitions that my body isn’t used to so it was good. I did the first set of weighted chins with 10 kg, quickly realized that wouldn’t keep up, and switched town to 5 kg for the remaining 4 sets. For the good mornings I used 60 kg for all sets and felt great. Looking to bump this up each week going forward.

Tomorrow is a rest day, followed by the sandbag chipper on Thursday. Perhaps the most ambitious thing I’ve programmed in awhile, so we’ll see how it goes.

3 for 1

WOD 1 - 7:30 am:

Run 5k

WOD 2 - 4:00 pm:

Snatch - 3, 3, 3

Front Squat to Split Jerk - 3, 3, 3, 2, 2

WOD 3 – 11:00 pm:

Alternate Progression Ladder

Chest to Bar pullups and Burpees

Day 1 of my new program began early and with my mom in town things felt extra special. We got up just before 7, made a smoothie, then headed over to University Park for a run around the grounds. I was hoping that my ankles would feel like new, but alas, such was not the case. My left side was still giving me problems so I never pushed my speed much beyond 50%. But I still felt like this was productive since it’s been over a month since I’ve run that far. Hopefully this thing will continue to heal little by little. Mom did 2.5 km and then did pushups, squats, and burpees until I finished. What a machine.

After going to class and grabbing a quick nap, I met Niels over at Linacre College to try out their weightroom. It had been rumored that of all the colleges at Oxford this place had the best gym. As I have come to expect on this journey, “best” is a relative term. The positives: bumper plates, barbells, not crowded. The negatives: no dropping bars, low ceilings, small space. Overall, I’m ecstatic about this place because it at least gives me a place to go find some heavy weights consistently.

This afternoon was Niels’s first foray into Olympic weightlifting and my first with proper footwear. That’s right people, I have Oly shoes! Thanks to my boy Richard from Brussels, I have my very own pair of hand-me-down platforms and I’m ready to start breaking records. We took our time, getting Niels comfortable with the Snatch motion while I worked up in weight slowly. My first triple was at 80 kg. I felt a little wobbly, not real strong, and unfocused, but I got all three and decided a jump to 85 kg was the ticket. Not the ticket. I got the first, then missed the next two. I dropped to 80 kg, checked myself and adjusted a few things before getting back on the bar for the last set. These went up like butter. All three were dead solid perfect. The big improvement was my use of an audible cue between the first and second pull—something I learned in Holland and have recently forgotten about entirely. Finishing strong here was a lift heading into the front squats.

I began with 80 kg, wanting to start low enough to get all my sets. 90 kg felt fine as well. 100 kg was clean, but I could feel my wrists starting to fatigue. Not being able to drop the bar from overhead after the third repetition was bothering me. 110 kg I only got 2, fearing the 3^rd wouldn’t make it up. I stayed here and got 2 again for the last set. Walked out feeling decent, but a little weaker than I’d hoped. Chalking it up to being the first day back and setting myself up for big gains.

The final piece of the puzzle today came on our way home from the pub. I’d hoped to get this in beforehand, but time just ran away from mom and I as we walked around town this evening. After grabbing a beer with Niels at the Red Lion and chatting for a few hours, we headed towards the bus stop. Along the sidewalk there was one of Oxford’s many scaffolding setups just begging to be utilized. The plan had been to do an alternate progression with chest to bar pullups and burpees (odd minutes pullups/even minutes burpees), and the thick corrugated aluminum piping was the perfect height. Minus a few innocent bystanders this was incredible. So much fun. The night was cool, the bar was ROTATING, and I felt unstoppable on burpees. My mom was cheering me on and Niels was taking video like a monkey, climbing up and down the scaffolding. I finished 16 rounds plus 12 pullups before failing. I was clicking along unbroken until set 14, then the thick bar and its slight rotating tendencies caught up to me. I started doing singles and doubles, losing time every repetition. Still not a bad total.

First day in the books and I feel pretty good. A little stiff in the ankles and lower legs, but overall I’m optimistic. Also, I just received the video clips from the Regionals last weekend and will be working on those as well. Thanks again Mike!

9 weeks and counting

Not long until the Games in LA, and my rest week is over. Starting tomorrow I am taking on a very aggressive program that I have written over the past week which I will do my best to share each day. I intend to work hard for 3, then back off for 1, then repeat. It features an 8 day training week, of which 5 days are work and 3 days are rest. In those 5 days, I intend to do 2 endurance sessions, 3 strength sessions, and 4 metabolic conditioning sessions. To do this, I intend to train 3 x on Day 1, 1 x on Day 2, rest Day 3, 1 x on Day 4, rest Day 5, 2 x Day 6, 2 x Day 7, and rest Day 8. Every week will feature 3 sessions of 5/3/1, at least 2 outdoor WODs, a distance run, and a distance swim. This program is ambitious so I'm proceeding with cautious optimism. Plans are just plans until they go into effect, so we'll see how this experiment plays out.

European Regional WOD 5

5 round for time:

5 deadlifts @ 120 kg

20 burpees with lateral jump

How I dreaded this workout. 100 burpees with a jump over the bar to start each repetition just sounds long, unrhythmic, and not fun. Then throw in the deadlifts for your brief reprieve and you have something that nobody wants to do. Thankfully, my spot in the Games was not riding on this WOD so there was no real pressure to perform. Still, there was the bid for the top spot that Sven and I had been jockeying for all weekend and I’d be lying if I said that it didn’t matter who won. Additionally, this workout felt like the type of WOD that I wouldn’t do on my own, meaning it was a challenge I would have to overcome mentally—always a good thing.

Sven and I took our places at the end of the track right alongside each other. It’s exciting to compete against your friends, especially when you know exactly where you stand. Having him next to me pushed me harder, didn’t let me quit, and ultimately made me better.

My strategy was to find a pace that I could maintain throughout the burpees. No sense in racing through them then taking 10 seconds between sets of deadlifts. The lateral jumping was awkward though, and it made it hard to find the right rhythm. The first set we were on the exact same tempo in fact. Our bars hit at the same time, our jumps were synchronous, and things looked like they’d stay that way all the way through. Somewhere in the middle of the second set of burpees I took a slight lead that I carried through to the 3^rd set of deadlifts. As I was finishing my 5^th he was midway through his 2^nd and I saw this as my opportunity to take control. I got straight into the burpees, hoping to send the message that I wasn’t tired... even though I was, in fact, very tired. I could hear a few guys down the row a few repetitions ahead of me as well, so I knew everyone else had juice to spare.

Towards the end of the 3^rd set I was starting to hate life. Here the crowd was crucial. People were screaming like maniacs and yelling at us to just keep moving. It helps, I'm telling you. During the 4^th set I wanted to do anything but keep throwing myself on the floor. I started to linger a little longer between repetitions, felt that sneaking feeling of self-loathing, and started wishing my way towards the finish. Then I sensed Sven picking up his pace and got a shot of fear-based adrenaline. The thought of crashing down the stretch in a WOD that boiled down to mental toughness was not something I wanted on my conscience. It reminded me of the final event back in Copenhagen. Not a happy memory.

Thinking about doing just one rep at a time got me through to my final set, and once the end was in sight I was able to close the door. I finished in 7:46, 4^th in the event behind a best time of 7:20. Sven came in :30 or so behind me to round out an amazing weekend where he finished every event 6^th or better. I found out soon after that Richard had gone gorilla and taken 2^nd with a smoldering time of 7:21. This performance allowed him to edge Mikko by a point for the final qualification spot. Major respect to him for showing up in crunch time.

So we were set. An American, an Icelander, and a Belgian representing Europe in LA; in addition to the Mr. Salo from Finland of course. Standing on the platform at the end I couldn’t have been more proud of the result, the experience, and the road I had taken to get there. More on that in the general wrap up later this weekend. Thanks again to Mads and the volunteer crew that made the event possible. Won’t soon forget it.

European Regional WOD 4

Day 2 began with the 4^th event of the competition, consisting of the following:

400 meter run

3 rounds of 15 power snatch (40 kg) and 35 double unders

400 meter run

The standings being as they were, a good performance in this event would really go a long way towards securing one of the 3 spots. A bad showing would put all the pressure on the final event later that afternoon. To make things even more exciting, the heats had been re-shuffled so that those of us in the top spots were competing alongside one another.

The first few heats went off and it was readily apparent that people were underestimating the effect 45 x 40 kg snatches would have on their lungs. Everyone came bolting in from the run and tried to rip the sets unbroken. This worked okay the first round, but the rest of the way you could see the fatigue in their double unders as people started missing, losing their breath, and wasting time.

Watching this I decided the best plan was to break the snatches into sets of 5, taking a short interval between to prevent my body from hitting total failure. This was much the same strategy I adopted during event 5 of the Games last year (3 rounds of 30 snatch and 30 wall ball) to great success so I felt confident.

The initial 400 meters felt wonky on my left ankle. The previous day’s activities had caused some swelling and discomfort that would take a little time to work out. Thankfully, for this event it didn’t matter how fast your first running leg was. I kept things under control and entered the weightroom 3^rd or 4^th. I got on my bar immediately and started pulled 5 fast repetitions. Behind me I could hear everyone else banging away at a consistent pace. I took 2 breaths and did another 5. Still banging. As I began my last set of 5 I could hear a few guys start their first round of double unders. I hit 15, picked up my rope and eased a nice tempo to make sure I wouldn’t miss any jumps. When I got back to my bar for the second round, I was only a few repetitions behind the leaders and I felt totally fresh. I kept the same pattern as before, except this time when I finished my 15 I did so at the same time as Sven and the other early leaders. My breath was still with me and I was able to complete the 35 double unders without missing and took the lead outright. The final round was where I saw the biggest impact of my strategy. As I continued to do 5’s with 2 breaths between, I could hear bars dropping in singles and doubles behind me. The early unbroken sets were catching up with everyone else.

When I picked up my rope nobody was even close. I strung them all together again and was so amped up that I booked it straight down the lane, out the door, and onto the course at a pace much faster than the one I kept during the first 400 meters. Making the turn for home I only saw one other guy on the run and he looked like he was struggling. The last 150 meters were exhilarating as I sprinted past the crowd of people cheering us on. My time was 6:52, the best of the day by close to :40. Man, did this feel good. Sven took 4^th in the event and Mikko 3^rd, putting the point totals to 8, 11, and 22 for the three of us. Richard Vanmeerbeek was in fourth at 28, so still very much alive. This meant that regardless of the final event, both Sven and I had qualified for the Games in LA, but the 3^rd spot remained uncertain.

We had a few hours before the final event so Frederick Krarup and I headed back to hotel to relax and put our feet up in the interim. We grabbed some lunch and chatted about the event and how things had gone thus far. I knew the last WOD was going to be awful and just didn’t want to think about it. Eventually, though, you have to finish things off...

European Regional WOD 3

Event 3:

20 chest to bar pullups

20 box jumps (24”)

20 toes to bar

10 x 10 meter overhead carry (80kg)

20 toes to bar

20 box jumps (24”)

20 chest to bar pullups

I think, to a man, this was the favorite event of the weekend. It combined skill, strength, and a super creative element that few people could have practiced beforehand. The weather conditions were a little wet, making the bars cold and slippery, adding more variables to contend with. For me, this workout jumped off the page as being in perfect keeping with the non-linear style of training I had been doing for the last 6 months, so although I wasn’t so confident with the toe to bar kipping, everything else felt like home.

Frederick Aegidus set the bar high early with a time of 10:18, giving the rest of us something to shoot for. My heat featured some friendly faces, including Martin Moller from Butchers Lab in Copenhagen and the now mustache-less Jason Mulligan. My plan of attack was to try to stay as loose as possible during the chest to bars and toes to bars in an effort to save my grip for the OH carry and home stretch bar work. The pullups went smoothly, didn’t feel the need to break at all. The box jumps were a little iffy with the ankle on the first few, but things settled in quickly and adrenaline did the rest. The toes to bar were not so slick. After the C2B kip, I couldn’t regain the right rhythm for kipping this exercise. I wound up doing them all in singles or doubles, opting to make sure every one counted rather than starting to swing wildly and getting no-go’d by my judge. This was difficult because everyone around me seemed to have no problem banging them out. At this point, I will admit to doubting myself, experiencing a moment of panic, and predicting a ignominious end in my head. However, even though it was taking forever, I was still getting the reps done without exerting much effort, and that would prove crucial in the end.

I transitioned to the OH carries last or next to last in my heat. The 80 kg felt light coming up, I locked it in, and ran the 10 meters without wavering. The WOD required all athletes to drop the weight after each of the 10 meter carries, so being able to clean and jerk heavier weight repeatedly without being taxed proved the optimal skill to own. I felt strong throughout and finished my 10^th carry first. Back on the bar for the second round of toes to bar I took my time and kept repping out singles and doubles, fighting off a little bit of fatigue in my grip but feeling calm and comfortable for the most part. Jason and Martin reached the bars just as I was transitioning over to the box jumps. These went just as before, in good rhythm, and I was back to the bar for the final 20 pullups with a sizeable lead. The clock was around 8 minutes at this point so I knew that if I could just string a few together then start doing singles I would have the best time. I got 5 the first set, then 4, then 2, putting me at 11 total. From there I just slammed my chest to the bar and dropped to the stack of plates beneath over and over until I hit 20. This was much easier and faster than attempting to do doubles and risking a miss.

In the end, I finished in 9:21. It was such a great feeling to have come through a slow start to finish so well that I almost forgot that Sven and Richard were still to come. I figured that if they could match my OH’s with better toe to bar technique a time of close to 8:30 was possible. But it was not to be. Both struggled with the toes to bar and had a little trouble getting going on the OH’s, coming in at 9:40 and 9:46 for the 2^nd and 3^rd best times respectively. That meant that Sven and I were now tied for first place at 7 points apiece, with Richard and Mikko 12 points behind at 19 points each. Things were shaping up for an exciting final day and everyone seemed ready to enjoy it.

European Regional WOD 1 and 2

The first 2 events at this year’s Regional were really a single event with a split scoring system. WOD 1 was a 2.2 km run around the Eleiko Center, after which WOD 2 commenced immediately with AMRAP 70 kg ground to overheads. The clock started when the run began and didn’t stop until it hit 15 minutes, meaning the faster runners would score points for placement based on their 2.2 km time, but also have more time to lift the weight upon arriving. That is, if they had any breath/strength left.

The fact that this event had no set recovery time made it an absolute bear physically and mentally. My heat featured two very strong runners, which wound up working to my advantage since they pushed the pace hard from the start. Turned out we were running just over a 5 minute mile pace the entire time. Eeker for a guy nursing bad ankles... Coming around the final turn I was sitting in 3^rd position and considered making a push to overtake 2^nd, but as I did he turned on the jets and began doing the same to the guy in 1^st. As they exploded the last 400 meters I instead maintained my pace and finished 10 seconds behind their photo finish at 7:07--the 3^rd best time of the heat and the day. Sveinbjorn came in at 7:08 a few heats later.

Entering the Eleiko Center after this was not fun. I wasn’t quite hypoglycemic, but my head was far from clear. Knowing that I had just under 8 minutes of max effort remaining was not comforting either. My first few repetitions went okay and I think I made it to 10 within 90 seconds or so. My strategy was to do a single repetition, take a breath, then do it again, and try to find a rhythm I could maintain ad nosium. It was a decent plan that I kept up until the mid-20’s. Then my ass and hamstrings started to light up big time. I don't remember getting this feeling during Olympic lifts ever so I'm assuming it had something to do with the pre-fatigue of the run. I was still completely out of breath and getting more and more mentally defeated with each repetition. I literally could not wait to be finished. I know the feeling well, but it never gets comfortable. Asking the question, “Why am I doing this?” is the first indicator that you’re there.

The crowd was ablaze and honestly carried me the last 3-4 minutes. I'd love to say I finished strong, but that just wasn't the case and it wound up costing me a few points when all was said and done. I struggled the last few minutes with total exhaustion where others like Sven, Richard Vanmeerbeek, and Mikko Aronpaa picked it up down the stretch. I was dizzy and blurred, and I couldn’t control my breathing so my technique got rougher and rougher as I went along. Luckily, I still wound up finishing 39 repetitions when we hit 15 minutes, good enough for first in my heat and 3^rd overall behind Sven and Mikko (41, 40).

Kudos to Mads for programming an absolute beast of a WOD right out of the gates. This thing set the tone and tested everyone’s toughness more than any other event in my opinion. It was maximum effort the whole way, no possibility of strategizing around any element. Raw, difficult, perfect.

So after 2 events I was in second place with 6 total points, 1 back of Sveinbjorn of Iceland and 1 ahead of Mikko from Finland. This meant that the 3^rd event of the day was going to be vitally important to set myself up to have a chance of winning it on day 2.

Thanks to my buddy Mike from RAF Mildenhall, I’m going to have access to video footage of this and other events from the weekend. I will do my best to edit them quickly into a series of videos showing everyone exactly what it was like to do these WODs. Depending on the UK’s mail services, you can probably expect those to be done later this week.

Qualified!

What a weekend!!! Couldn’t be happier or more excited to qualify. There is much to tell, which I will do my best to do over the next few days. I intend to recap each event from my perspective and the Regional itself overall. Currently I am sore, exhausted, and hungover from a big night out with friends and competitors in Copenhagen, so rather than writing a half assed synopsis now, I will wait until tomorrow to begin. For now, I just want to say thank you so much to everyone who sent notes and supported me, it really does mean a lot to hear from you. And congratulations to everyone who competed, the staff who organized the event, and to the 5 others who will make the trip to Carson in July! Good tekkers.

Tapering

Tapering for a competition is a tricky thing. If you ask 10 guys their thoughts, you might get 10 different trains. Lately, many questions have been directed my way leading up to the European Regional and, at best, I am capable of answering but a few. These answers are hardly scientific and are rooted more in lessons learned from past experience than anything else.

First, the most discussed issue by far: How much time to take off?

Many coaches instruct their athletes to begin tapering their training up to 2 weeks in advance of competition. Others train up to the day of competition, arguing that the body needs to be peaking in order to perform. Undoubtedly, these different philosophies align most adeptly with the different sports/competitions from which they were born. Necessarily, then, borrowing a scheme from a track and field guru or an Olympic lifter isn’t necessarily going to be the best approach to prepping for a CrossFit event. Ideally, I’d like to be peaking but rested.

How to do that… My programming runs in 6-week cycles (1 week of rest to follow each), during which I tend to feel best during the 3^rd to 4^th weeks. This would be the time when I feel most ready to compete. Additionally, I’ve noticed that during my rest week, I find that after 3 days I start feeling stiff, a little less mobile, and tend to have less energy. When I have nothing else to do, this is fine—I can just work out of it during the first week of training. With a competition coming up, however, this is not ideal. With these facts in mind, then, my optimum tapering program would see me train hard for 3-4 weeks, take 3 days of complete rest, then hit the competition with high energy, high confidence, and fresh muscles. So, that’s what I try to do. I missed the mark a little this time, due largely to the unexpected ankle fiasco 2 weeks ago, but overall I still feel pretty decent. Nothing is too sore, I don’t feel too tired or stiff, and I’m starting to build up nervous energy for the weekend. All good things.

Another big question is what to eat during a tapering period. Some will say that the lower training volume necessitates a lower calorie intake. I’m not convinced of this. For the most part, I eat the same way I normally would. If anything, I eat more. 3 days of high calories is not going to weigh you down. It might actually jack up your metabolism and speed the recovery process. I try to eat more of the things I know my body needs in the days leading up to competition, including supplemental multi-vitamins and protein. “Carbo-loading” is a thing of the past and hasn’t really held up to heavy scrutiny, but I think nutrient loading is hugely beneficial. Knowing that my body is going to be shouldering intense demands without optimal recovery between, it only makes sense to top up every reserve.

Last thing is the sleep/stress relationship. In my experience, the 3 days before a competition should be spent as horizontal as possible. I may throw in a few bodyweight squats, pushups, or good mornings to generate some circulation, but for the most part, getting off my feet is the name of the game. Take naps if you can, go to bed early, and get quality sleep. When you are awake, working, or doing other things, try to keep your mind off the event. This is hard to do, and I say this with severe self-criticism. Nobody won a competition 3 days before it happened, but many wind themselves up so much that they nearly lose it. Over-analyzing minutia does not help you do any better, trust me. Establish a subtle strategy for each event, visualize how it’s going to feel to do the movements, imagine concentrating on the workout rather than the other competitors, then leave it alone. Letting go and getting quality rest will help the body be in top form when you need it.

I’m really looking forward to this weekend, both for the competitive atmosphere and to see a whole host of friends in the process. I doubt I will be able to post much while there, but I’ll try.

Best of luck to everyone competing here in Europe and back home in the States. Go get it!

Scottish Highlands

Workout of the Day:

Climb 4000 feet

Along the way...

Trail run intervals

Handstand pushups

Turkish getups

L-sit holds

Spider climbs

We arrived late Saturday night and had a couple drinks with Magnus's family and the rest of the crowd still mingling around the hotel bar. After some good conversation and a bit of planning for the following day, we headed to bed to get some rest. It had been a long few days of traveling and everyone was wiped out.

I awoke to a view I recognized. The bay window of the hotel looked out on Loch Leven as it stretched towards the North Atlantic, the same view consistently shown in the Harry Potter movies. Pretty cool to see it in real life. We were met with 4 full Scottish breakfasts (consisting of 2 eggs, 2 pieces of ham, 2 sausages, baked beans, black pudding, potato bread, and a grilled tomato), and some hot coffee. After enjoying this warm hospitality, we prepped for the day, one that would include a hike along one of North Scotland's many picturesque ridges to a peak just under 4000 feet above the valley.

The initial part of the climb was tame, slowly gaining altitude as we wove our way through creeks, trees, and small climbs. Jason and I did a series of interval runs through this portion, running about a minute at a time then walking a minute or so. The idea here was to spike the heartrate without killing ourselves before the real work began. After about a mile or so, Magnus took an abrupt right turn and started heading directly up the side of the mountain. This meant we were hiking through a minefield of prickly heather brush and soggy algae pockets. After a few hundred yards, everyone had swamp foot, but no one seemed to care.

During this part of the climb I started to get into a Tabata-like rhythm. The grade was getting steeper, to the point that every step was practically a full range single leg squat. I would go 20 steps hard right up the face, the rest 10 seconds. As we approached the lower crest, the workload had built up, I was getting hungry, and everyone needed a break.

When we reached the lower ridge, I lost my breath. Suddenly we were faced with a 360 degree panorama of some of the best country there is anywhere. I was transported back in time, imagining every highlander who had hiked the ridges that connect Scotland’s many lakes, seas, and oceans. At this point the sky couldn’t have been bluer, the breeze was calm, and everyone took a moment to appreciate the experience. We continued the climb up beyond the grass-line, over some loose rock and steep grade until we reached the summit. When we arrived there were only 2 others resting at the top. Everything was visible from here, including the highest peak in the UK, not far from us to the North. We enjoyed the moment, did some handstands, L-sits, and fireman squats, took some water down and killed as much time as we thought prudent before heading back down the climb.

I felt much worse on this part, my ankles starting to fatigue and wear out after the long day of activity. Coming down the heather actually felt like a nice cushion. We stopped for air where an old foot bridge stood guard along the main trail. The undercarriage was lined with steel I-beams set roughly 3 feet apart, a perfect distance for doing connected spider climbs. Magnus led the way, being the avid climber that he is, and the rest of us followed. It was good to see him do it first just so that we understood how important using your feet can be. He finished all four braces where John, Jay, and I each failed somewhere after 2.

The remainder of the hike was just about getting back. We rolled into town exhausted but fulfilled, and had time for a quick meal before heading to catch the train back to Edinburgh. This was a whirlwind adventure, too short by years it seems, but it’s one I can’t imagine living without. Magnus’s family is a collection of incredible people that I feel privileged to have met, and I’m hoping to return for another visit while writing my thesis next month. Cannot thank them enough.

The video of the hike is below.

Edinburgh

Workout of the Day:

5 rounds for completion

10 meter rope climb

50 air squats

We got in to Edinburgh Friday night around 10:30 and met Jay and his Clark Gabel mustaches about the same time. Great seeing him again. The three of us stumbled our way to a hotel for the night, popping our heads in to a couple of pubs and restaurants before crashing hard.

Saturday morning came early, and the plan was to fill it with as much as possible. John came through with a huge connection from the fire department back in Sacramento, hooking us up with his friend’s brother Magnus—physics student and rock climber extraordinaire. We jumped over to Magnus’s place (just a few blocks from our hotel it turned out) with all our gear and a lot of energy. He lived on the top floor of an old townhouse that featured a weathered spiral staircase connecting all levels. John turned to me immediately and said, “Rope climb?” Magnus was down, so we checked the top banister for strength and began tying things off. Save a few abrasions and an ill-advised barefoot climb (Mulligan), this came off really well.

We staggered our starts and didn’t keep a running clock, figuring just finishing 5 rounds of this sequence would be a victory in itself. Technique was key, and we quickly learned that avoiding the ledges of each floor was the most important factor in saving strength. After doing 50 meters of this kind of climbing, a simple straight rope will feel like a walk in the park.

Everyone finished, though different periods of rest and recovery were utilized for safety purposes. Personally I felt pretty good throughout. Pacing on long climbs is important so you don’t hit total failure before you get your feet on the top ledge, so I tried not to blow things out at any point. We hit a big brunch upstairs after we finished before heading over to Edinburgh castle for some sightseeing.

This castle is legit. The huge block of stone it sits upon rises up like a cliff, making the castle look literally impenetrable. Just getting up to the thing from the cliff side is a workout in itself. We saw the crown jewels (unreal sword, sheath, and crown), the great hall filled with weapons and old execution re-enactments, and spent some time in the memorial to fallen Scottish soldiers. This last bit was especially impressive. No pictures allowed, but the central shrine featured a beautiful green marble tomb, on top of which sat a chest that has been unopened since it was first placed there. Hanging above in chandelier like manner is an enormous statue of Saint Michael, the archangel. Needless to say, this was a moving atmosphere.

After the castle, we hustled back to Magnus’s house where we learned of our next adventure…the highlands. His parents own and operate a hotel just on the edge of Loch Leven, famous for its spectacular hiking and location at the mouth of North Atlantic Ocean. Magnus was needing to grab some stuff from his folks anyways and thought we might enjoy the experience. To say this was agreed upon quickly is an understatement. We gathered up our things and got on the earliest possible train from Edinburgh, fully prepared for what was turned out to be one of the best 24 hour adventures I have ever had.

Newcastle

Workout of the Day:

12 minute AMRAP

2 power snatch (60 kg)

4 chest to bar pullup

6 ground to overhead (60 kg)

8 pushup

5 x 3 front squat

1 x max repetitions @ 80 kg

Friday night John and I joined Chris Kemp and the crew at CrosFit Northeast England for a few hours up in Newcastle. Their facility is part of the multi-dimensional Faktory gym, home to professional MMA fighters and badass CrossFitters alike. Also joining us in the workout were the new affiliate owners from Carlisle, England, from all indications what sounds like an incredible new place up in the Lake District.

12 minutes sounded like a long time when Kempie wrote it on the board, and it wound up feeling just as long. I burned through the first few sets, wondering why I was so far ahead of the group. Then I realized, to my embarrassment, I had been doing 4 ground to overheads instead of 6. Crushing mentally. I continued on doing the prescribed number but without the fire I started with. Ended up finishing just shy of 9 rounds. This was a great sequence that balanced simplicity with difficulty. Kudos to Kempie for the programming.

Moving to the front squats after the metabolic conditioning was a change of pace. Typically strength sets are done beforehand so I loved this twist. I failed on my last set at 130 kg, literally just a hair’s breath away from getting the 3^rd up. Not bad, but not great. The single set at 80 kg brought me back to our super squat days in high school football. I’d never done a max rep set with front squats before at any weight, but this didn’t feel too awkward. I got to 21 before racking the weight, more because of my elbows slipping lower and lower than anything else.

Afterwards we enjoyed a few beers with the guys before grabbing the train up to Edinburgh. My impressions from this gym were tremendous. It has the feel of an old school boxing gym, but with more variety and better music. The guys are great and they demand a lot of their clientele. After leaving I was definitely a bit bummed I hadn’t planned for a longer stay.

Thankfully, Scotland was on the horizon.

Core Strength

Workout of the Day:

5 rounds of:

20 sandbag situps

20 band pull throughs

Today was a quasi-rest day, as John and I just focused on core conditioning in anticipation of a big training weekend. We headed back to University Park and found some suitable dirt to make a heavy sandbag (35 kg or so) and carved a spot under the trees to stay out of the rain for out workout. The sandbag situps are more like rolling situps, as you must use your legs to help swing your body upright. The key thing here is to keep the bag on top of your shoulder during the motion and not let it slip too far onto your chest. We did 10 on the right and 10 on the left before transitioning to the pull throughs. These were done using a pullup assistance band of average thickness wrapped around a narrow tree trunk. This is one of Louis Simmons’ favorite exercises for glute and lower back strength, and it works. The idea is to be dynamic and really thrust the hips forward while pulling the band from between your legs to hip height. By the 5^th set my low back was fried and really felt like I had done the job.

All told, this took us no more than 20 minutes to do, sandbag creation and all. A great circuit for core conditioning if you’re getting tired of toes to bar, back extensions, and ghd situps. Scotland tomorrow. Hum-yee.

RAF Mildenhall

Workout of the Day:

Snatch 3, 3, 2, 2, 1, 1, 1

50 double under

3 rounds of:

30 box jump

30 wall ball

30 pullup

50 double under

John and I got out early and headed east towards Cambridge for our appointment with the guys at Royal Air Force Mildenhall. Arriving in Cambridge a few hours before we were set to meet up with Mike, we decided to rent a pair of bikes and cruise around town. Awesome idea. For 8 pounds we were side by side on purple street cruisers weaving in and out of traffic through downtown Cambridge, which is, incidentally, beautiful. We grabbed lunch, walked around, and largely just relaxed before heading back to the station.

We met Mike at the Newmarket train stop a little after 3 pm and drove over to the base where Rob, Justice, Matt, and the rest of the crew were waiting for us. We got everything set up at one end of the base’s enormous basketball court where a 25 foot wall mounted pullup bar made its home. There were targets for the wall balls and boxes with 45 lb weights on top. Things were dialed in.

To start it off we worked some Olympic lifts in the adjacent globo-style base gym. Hexagonal plates aside, it felt good to lift some heavy weights. We worked through some technical aspects of the movements and made a couple of tries at big numbers. I missed 3 attempts at 215 before calling it a day. Rob practically power snatched 185 for a PR, and John got 135 in his 3^rd snatch session ever. But the metcon was still the main item on the agenda so that’s where our primary focus was.

Testing my ankles out on the double unders and box jumps was not promising. The down portion of the box jump was especially uncomfortable as the joint tried to absorb and rebound all in one motion. Luckily, Rob located some athletic tape that I used for an impromptu tape job that helped a ton confidence-wise. I figured I would just take it as it came and be careful with the box jumps.

There were 6 of us going for it, making the atmosphere competition like. The double unders went fast, without breaks for both John and I. The box jumps were awkward and I could feel my right leg taking most of the force on the way down. I wasn’t bouncing directly back up in an effort to limit the jamming action, but I think this just made things worse. Heading to the wall balls I felt okay and knocked out the 30 without dropping the ball at all. I had opened a little space between John and I by this point but not much. I did 20 pullups unbroken, rested a few, then did the last 10. Really felt good on these. I’ve been just feeling better and better when it comes to pullups in WODs, which I couldn’t be happier about. The second round felt better on the jumps as things had started to warm up, worse on the wall balls, and by the pullups I was sucking gas. After 10 butterflies I transitioned to standard kipping and felt much stronger. This was the way I went for the remainder. The 3 round was strictly mental. Physically I was tired, but not crushed—I just had to keep going. I did, getting to the 18^th pullup before ripping a callas on my left hand. PISSED. Really hate when this happens and so close to the end. I finished the repetitions and went through the double unders in 2 sets, stopping the clock at 12:59.

This was a great workout with some great guys. Afterwards, John and I joined Rob and Mike for some great grub at a local spot off base before grabbing the train back home. Being on the base was a ton of fun and I can’t thank everyone enough for being so welcoming. I’m looking forward to seeing them again in a few weeks in Sweden.

Tomorrow is for schoolwork, maybe a swim, then off to Newcastle and Scotland on Friday. Coming for you J Mull.

Rest Day

Back at CrossFit Thames

Workout of the Day:

30 handstand pushups

40 pullups

50 kb swings (1.5 pd)

60 situps

70 burpees

John and I shot into London this afternoon just as soon as I had finished my first class in Oxford. We did a little sightseeing, some walking around, then made our way down to CrossFit Thames to meet up with Jami for another round of near-life experiences. The workout was one pulled from the main site in an effort to simulate the competitive atmosphere of the regional in two weeks.

My gameplan heading in was to split sets judiciously to avoid reaching total exhaustion—hspu’s 3 x 10, pullups 2 x 20, etc. My resolve didn’t hold long however, as the first set of handstands I found myself trucking through til number 15 without stopping. The next set was 8, then 5, then 2. Needless to say, could’ve done better there. I got to 20 on the pullups without much trouble. The second set I hit 12, the third 8. Overall not bad, but I think could’ve gone 25 and 15 here instead. At this point I was behind Jami by 15 seconds or so and John about the same distance behind me. The kb swings I did unbroken until 37, when my grip started to go. I dropped for a few seconds then finished the last 13 before getting straight to the situps. Never had to stop on these. My pace was steady, but in comparison with John’s, not so fast. The burpees were hell. I was hoping to do sets of 10 the whole way with short breaks between, but my hips and quads were pretty weak after the situps. I got to 20 according to plan, but then had to slow down before hitting 30. 40 felt a little better, but from 50 on it was groups of 2 fast, 2 slow. Finally I finished in a time of 10:36, about 50 seconds ahead of Jami.

I felt great about the effort, but weak on the strategy. For me, I think this workout can be done closer to 9:30. Still, a great routine in a great atmosphere at CF Thames. Thanks to Jami for setting it up.

University Park

Workout of the Day:

5 rounds for time:

25 foot rope climb

10 fireman squats (85 kg)

20 ring dips

My boy John got here yesterday afternoon, much to my delight. Not only is he a badass firefighter, a ton of fun to be around, and an seriously high quality guy, but he is as “down for whatever” as you could ever want in a workout partner. It’s a nice bit of timing that he’s coming to visit now with just 2 weeks left until the regional qualifiers.

Today we went to over the University Park and brought the rope and rings in hopes of finding a tree big enough to support the both. No problem there. There are some of the most beautiful and accessible trees I’ve seen in Europe scattered around this park, and, even though we eventually were instructed that they were protected from climbing, hanging things, etc, we found a couple to support the WOD quite nicely. I went first and felt great on the climbs and the squats all the way through. The biggest killer were the dips, surprisingly. Squatting with someone on your back requires a lot more from your shoulders than squatting with a bar and I think this took its toll when I got to the rings. The first set was unbroken, the second took 3 sets, and from there on it was 5 or more to get all 20 done. I finished in 13 minutes.

John took his shot at it next and shot up the rope without using his legs at all the first set. This would prove a little costly, as his arms gassed quickly by set #2. I tried to coach him on the art of using your feet as you climb, but doing so in the middle of the workout was pretty tough. He muscled his way through and pounded the squats and dips in the same pattern as I did, finishing in 17 minutes when all was said and done.

This is likely just the first in a line of great workouts we will be doing over the next 10 days so I’m really excited. Getting to London once more, out to Royal Air Force MIldenhall on Wednesday, and then up to Scotland next weekend. Come on!

Rest Day

3 for 1 in London

Workout of the Day:

Part I…

10 minute AMRAP

Box Jump up

Bear Crawl down

12 x 18” stairs

Part II…

30 Muscle Ups for time

Part III…

Back Squat 5, 3, 1, 1, 1

15 minutes Chest to Bar technique

BIG day today. Was up and out of Oxford by 9:15 this morning, heading east on the train to Paddington Station in London. After a few unsuccessful ventures into sporting goods stores looking for Olympic weightlifting shoes, I met up with Dellus, Rob, and Jami (Owner of CrossFit Thames) at London Bridge Station. We headed toward the tower bridge and settled ourselves in a new age amphitheater just in front of the mayor’s office along the river. The four of us had plenty of spectators during the lunch hour WOD, even competing with an impromptu 3-man theater performance for crowd attention at one point. The workout itself was grueling. Jami and I went first while Rob and Dell filmed/stretched. Because the elements were so short and light, this turned out to be a real burner. We flew out of the gates and had 3 rounds done in the first minute. That pace didn’t hold up, but I did manage to finish with 21 ½ rounds (262 steps jumped/252 stairs crawled). My ankles were fatigued but not in pain, and the main area of exhaustion was my hips and my lungs. Jami finished with 18 ½ rounds, Rob with 17, and Del with 15. The video is below.

From there we walked across the Tower Bridge where we each did a ceremonial muscle up (pictured above) then along the river past London Tower Prison. We crashed at Starbucks for 30 minutes or so before continuing on to a park near Del’s house. We hung up the rings in a friendly tree and, 1 at a time, took our best shot at a post-bearcrawl 30 MU’s for time. I don’t remember everyone’s times exactly, but I think Rob was just under 7, Jami just over 6, Del just under 6, and I was 5:18. I tried to strategize, doing 5 at a time then resting 30 seconds before going on. This worked until 18, when I started to lose the false grip between reps. I got to 20 at around 3 minutes and just started doing singles from there. I missed 2 in the last 10 and ended with a time that I think could be better.

After the park, Rob headed home and Jami, Del, and I grabbed some food at the market to eat before heading over to CrossFit Thames for the evening. The space is nestled in London's financial district of Canary Wharf, just around the corner from a beautiful row of waterfront pubs and restaurants. It's young, spartan, and ready to boom. I wouldn't be surprised if Thames outgrows its current space by the end of the summer.

We got in just before 6, so Jami had to start coaching right away. Del and I hit the squat rack, hoping for anything positive after all the jumping and crawling earlier in the day (not to mention car pulls yesterday...)—both of our legs were starting to feel it by this point. For me, this was a good thing because having to lift heavy when tired is going to happen at the regionals so I need to train for it. We both cleared 170 kg before missing 180. Not really a huge surprise being weak here, so I was happy I got what I did.

Afterwards I practiced finding my rhythm on chest to bar pullups using a gymnastic kip. I probably did 10 sets or so, trying different swings, grips, and tempos. Overall things felt pretty decent, but not perfect. Really glad I did it and need to work more in the next 2 weeks to keep it fresh.

I’m resting tomorrow before my boy John comes in from Sacramento. In fact, he might already be on the plane. He’s a firefighter and loves to work, so it’ll be a big couple weeks with him around.

Out in the Country

Workout of the Day:

4 rounds for time, rest as needed between rounds:

100 meter car push

25 shoulder to overhead (30 kg)

Additional core/balance work:

Headstand with repeated extensions

I took the train from Oxford to Charlbury today to visit my friends from DC, Robin and Taryn. Robin’s family still lives here in England and they were nice enough to have me over for the day. We went hiking through the valley, ate lunch at a pub/hotel that’s been around for 900 years, and enjoyed the still inexplicably gorgeous English weather.

Round about 3:30 we decided it was time to sweat. Robin’s dad had a new Mercedes Benz wagon that looked tasty enough, so we wheeled it down the driveway, around the corner, and onto the stretch of unused road that bordered the pasture. It was flat, straight, and long, read: must be used to push cars. I walked off a distance of 100 meters (looking for a nice round number to sprint), putting a bag at one end and the log we would use for the shoulder to overheads at the other. The first round was a little hesitant, wanting to check the ankles, the potholes, and the degree of difficulty. The sprint didn’t feel too tough, but the overheads required a lot more air than I thought. By the end I was out of breath and the clock read 1:32. Robin went next, using an open hatch technique for his sprint to get lower and finished in 1:32 as well. My second set I was moving the car much faster. The ankles felt good and I was confident in the footing so I let it out, finishing the circuit in 1:25. The aftermath was worse, obviously, as I could feel my lungs burning and my mouth really drying out. My third round time was 1:29 and finished with wobbly legs and a burning stomach. The lunch we ate at the pub was threatening to come up (ham, eggs, fries, and soup wanted their revenge). The last round felt different. I definitely didn’t have the same juice as the first 3, meaning I had reached a point physically where I could no longer fully recover in the time it took Robin to do his turn. Still, I went with what I had and busted ass down the road. I had trouble getting the log up to my chest, wasting a handful of seconds struggling with it. Wound up finishing in 1:36 and was spent, dizzy, and jellied. Great work.

We made our way back up to the house and chilled for 30 minutes or so before going to the lawn to play around with hand balancing and core control. Robin showed me an exercise he learned from Jim Bathurst (our mutual good buddy from DC who runs Beastskills.com) where you raise into a headstand with hands as supports, then lower your knees back to your elbows before fully extending again at the top. The object is to do several in a row and control the movement fully and slowly. Definitely a challenge and so much fun. We were getting them, missing them, stringing a few together, then falling over in heaps. Taryn got some great pictures that I will hopefully have my hands on by the weekend.

I forgot my camera so no video from today unfortunately. Tomorrow I head into London to meet up with Dell for a WOD on the Tower Bridge, then swinging to CrossFit Thames in the evening. Hopefully with Oly shoes in tow.

Rest Day

Use Your Bike

Workout of the Day:

Partner WOD, 5 rounds…

800 meter bike sprint

AMRAP strict toes to bar

I woke up this morning feeling very sore from yesterday. My chest, shoulders, and hamstrings were all tight and talking to me. The ankle continues to improve and I think I’ll be able to do some lifting on it by the end of this week, assuming all goes smoothly until then.

This morning’s WOD was a bit of a ramshackle production, just because of the limitations I’ve placed on myself the past week or so. Niels and I found a spot at the bottom of what appears to be the only hill in Oxford where we could hang and do toes to bar. The hill was long and gradual and it set up for a decent climb for a bike. Since I recently purchased a used hybrid to move myself around town, this was perfect. We dropped it into the largest gear to maximize the resistance and took turns sprinting to the top while the other did toes to bar. Definitely harder than I thought, and waaay more fun. Sprinting on a bike is a different sensation and boy do you get moving. Definitely use yours for more than long rides if you have one.

At the bottom, my sets were: 23, 23, 20, 21, 19. It took us exactly 20 minutes to finish. This wasn’t the most strenuous or challenging session by any stretch, but it was fun and different, and probably was about right following yesterday’s high volume workload.

Will rest tomorrow, then head to the country to visit some friends from DC in town for a week. Excited about that. Then, to London on Friday for what should be an interesting AM/PM split.