Thursday

For our first strength move we did bench presses. I got to 70 lbs which I think is a record for me.

Our workout for the day was rowing. We only have 7 rowing machines so we needed to do it in waves. I like being in the first wave so I don’t see everyone else dying. We had to row for 3000 m on a resistance setting of 10. That’s the most resistance. That’s just mean. I did it in 15:06.

Then while the second wave of rowers was going my group had to finish up the other little activity they had for us. We had to do as many burpees as possible in a minute. That’s do a pushup, stand up, and jump up with your hands above your head – after a 3K row. I couldn’t even feel my hamstrings after the row. Then we got to rest for a minute and do it again. And again. I did 13-11-14.

Tuesday

On your first day at CrossFit you go and have a one on one session where you learn about the philosophy of the system and stuff like that. At the end you do a trial workout. Today we repeated that workout.

  • 500 m row
  • 40 squats
  • 30 situps
  • 20 push ups
  • 10 pull ups

    • They compared us to our first day work out. Mine was in the beginning of May. Back then they only had me do half the reps listed in the workout. I guess I looked terribly out of shape. I did it in around 5 minutes. Today I did the whole thing in 5:38. Not bad for 4 months work!

    The Whole Life Challenge starts on Saturday. I’m glad. I feel like I’ve been mentally preparing for it for so long that I just want to get going with it. This is a nutrition and exercise challenge that lasts for two months. They just loosened up some of the dietary restrictions for vegetarians. It isn’t much added and the things that are added aren’t things that I normally eat a lot but I was so excited when I saw it that I felt like I won the lottery.

    I’m going to start posting recipes of the things that I’m making. The Challenge blog suggested getting 2 lunch and 2 dinner ideas ready and repeating them. Whatever. I hate repeating meals especially if I’m cooking for someone else. I’ve been researching what I can make so this should be interesting.

    The Nutrition Guidelines briefly are:

  • No grains – vegetarian exceptions quinoa, amaranth, buckwheat, and wild rice
  • No starches except sweet potatoes and plantains
  • No dairy except some butter is allowed.
  • No sugar or artificial sweeteners. Stevia is allowed in moderation
  • No soy – vegetarian exception for fermented soy like tempeh, miso, and natto (I don’t even know what that is.)
  • Fruit is allowed but no fruit juices
  • No processed food. Canned food is ok but if there are any chemicals in the making of it, it is not allowed. Basically, if it isn’t something that your grandma could have made and canned in her kitchen, it isn’t allowed.

    • For every food violation you lose a point. You have 3 points each day. You can’t get negative points.

    For the rest of the challenge you get 1 point for 10 minutes of activity, 1 point for 10 minutes of stretching, and 1 point for taking an Omega-3 supplement. You log your points daily and then there are weekly challenges that give you bonus points. I don’t know what those are yet.