finding dysfunctions and learning mobility

So I am six months into this crazy thing called CrossFit and I can honestly say I feel amazing! Now it doesn't mean it's not without some pain and discomfort. Sure in every class there is something that I may not be great or good at, so it only makes me want to push harder, try harder. The thing I have been learning along the way though, is that you learn very quickly the dysfunctions of your body. All the things you've been doing wrong will come into light as you begin to learn how to do correct movements. In the beginning its not so obvious, these dysfunction, and depending on how often or hard you workout you may never discover them. I've gone from a 2-3 time a week person to a 4-5 time a week person, as soon as that became consistent I started to feel many dysfunctions. First one popped up on my left elbow with some tendonitis. At first I believed it was from an old injury from several years back, was sure to ice it after lifting heavy and stretching it out. But the pain and inflammation never went away. This is when a coach brought to my attention that it's more than the joint, it's the muscles that attach to the area. A lightbulb went off, my triceps and pecs were exceptionally tight on that side. As soon as I started getting regular massage work and chiropractic adjustments done to the areas, things started to change. Don't get me wrong, it didn't magically go away and it is not likely to be gone anytime soon. My joints and muscles are having to learn whats right and whats wrong, I'm having to watch my movements as I lift heavy weights above my head. I can always tell when I used bad form, the area around my elbow will begin to hurt. It's better though, and I'm still learning.

The second dysfunction that popped up was my knees, primarily the right one. Now I explained this one away with having had torn ligaments in my right ankle 3 or so years ago. Figuring things are tight and that is probably why I am feeling it in my knee. But as time progressed and the left knee began to bother me as well, I sought out help. The collective minds have given me an array of things to work on, but each one have come to the same conclusion. I have a lot strengthening to do for adductors, gluteus, and hamstrings, as well as a lot of tight fascia that needs to be worked out. But the biggest thing that has come into play is learning that I need to start all over with my squats. Because from the get go I was unable to do a squat with my feet facing forward, I had started to do them with my toes slightly facing outward. It didn't become a problem until I began doing heavier back squats. Now doing a simple air squat or lunge is absolutely painful. 

One of my coaches brought up a book to Aaron and I to look into. Aaron had heard about this book a while back and read up on it. But after much conversation with Joon, we decided to purchase the book, "Becoming a Supple Leopard" by Dr. Kelly Starrett. It's highly recommended for anyone who is heavy into working out and/or sports activity. It teaches you proper mobility. We've only just started reading it but have already put much of it to good use. Tonight I began the process of properly doing squats with the assistance of a resistance band to hold onto. I have a lot of work to do with my legs, as they get more toned and stronger, they'll need more rehab. But I am certain that all my hard work now will pay off later down the road. 

What is something you do for mobility?

the gorilla takeover wod experience

So as you may have read previously, I volunteered over the weekend at the Gorilla Takeover that my box and another box hosted at the Portland Expo Center. During my time there I was able to watch all the WODs that the athletes had to compete in. Let's just say I did not envy them, but somewhere in the back of my head a thought popped up that maybe our coaches would torture the rest of us with the same WODs. Come Monday things at my box went back to normal and our WOD for the day was Cindy, AMRAP in 20 minutes of 5 pull-ups, 10 push-ups, and 15 air squats. I breathed a sigh of relief, and busted out 11 rounds, 5 pull-ups and 3 push-ups (I progressed since the last time I did it). My relief was short lived though, coming in Tuesday evening I found that we were going to experience WOD #1 from the Takeover. And it didn't end there, Wednesday we also experienced WOD #3. Needless to say, between these two days, my body is sore and I believe I'm feeling new muscles again!

The Gorilla Takeover WOD #1
500 meter row then...
21-15-9
Thrusters 95/65
Box Jumps 24/20
(TC 10:00)

The Gorilla Takeover WOD #3
4RFT
10 Alt KB Snatches 53/35
25 Yard Farmers Carry 140/100
2 Rope Climbs 15'
25 Yard Farmers Carry 140/100
(TC 10:00)

Scaled Version of WOD #3
4RFT
10 KB Swings 53/35
25 Yard Farmers Carry 100/80
2 Rope Climbs 15' or 8 Mod Rope Climbs
25 Yard Farmers Carry 100/80
(TC 10:00)

For the first WOD, I modified the thrusters and did push presses at 55# instead due to knee pain. And I did step ups instead of jumping. I finished in 10:30. For the third WOD I did the scaled version with the modified rope climbs and for the first time did my KB swings with 35#. I finished in 14:12. I am unable to raise my arms over my head. I feel wimpy and like a beast all in one! Unfortunately because my arms feel pretty worthless, I will not be attending today's class. And I'll be completely honest, I'm ok with missing WOD #4!

The Gorilla Takeover WOD #4
60 Double Unders
50 Wall Balls (10'/9') 20/14
40 Burpees
30 Weighted Sit-ups 20/14
20 Alt Pistol Squats
10 Handstand Push-ups
20 Alt Pistol Squats
30 Weighted Sit-ups 20/14
40 Burpees
50 Wall Balls (10'/9') 20/14
60 Double Unders
(TC 25:00)

So now having the opportunity to experience what the athletes did this past weekend gives me a whole new appreciation for what some people can do. Our bodies are so capable of amazing things, with the right training, nutrition, and mental preparedness... we can achieve anything. This whole experience solidifies my effort in my sugar challenge. Because if I want to be able to do what these athletes did by next year, I have to be on top of my game.

This photo was found on Pinterest.

whoa! these muscles are getting stronger...

Last night's WOD wasn't anything spectacular. We've certainly done harder and more intense WOD's before. But it was one of those nights where we'd get through it quickly and capable of doing the majority of it with minimal modifications. What was unexpected was how much I'd be able to notice how much I have improved. I would have never imagined the simplicity of this WOD would help me gauge where I am after 3+ months of grinding it out. So you understand what I mean, we had to do this: Strength first, Tuesday nights are dedicated to the Press. I am happy to announce that I was able to Press more #'s than last week! And then the WOD was AMRAP (as many rounds as possible) in 12 minutes of 12 T2B (toes to bar), 12 HRPU (hand release push-ups), and 12 Air Squats. That is all. It's something just about anyone can do.

I haven't got the core strength quite yet to do a true T2B, my modification is facing a wall and raising my feet as high as I can. I typically pick a spot (or hole) on the wall and aim my feet at that. I try to do this particular exercise at the same bar each time so that I can gauge how much higher I am getting than the previous time. Last night I was feeling a tad bit under the weather, and as I arrived to class I contemplated turning around and heading home instead. But I decided to grind it out, and my coach, Tony, said to just take it easy- so I intended to. The problem with CF WOD's are, no matter how much you try to just focus on yourself and do what you can do, you always look to your neighbor or someone else near by and want to stay pace or go faster then them. I don't know if this is necessarily true with everyone, but it is for me. Maybe it's my competitive nature. Anyway, I tried to keep pace with the girl next to me (which so happens she and I have a mutual friend outside of CF). When doing the T2B I found that the spot I kept hitting on the wall was about an inch higher than the last spot I hit the previous time we'd done T2B. You don't understand what a big deal this is for me. My feet are literally reaching above my waist, no longer parallel. I almost jumped off and did a victory lap over this! And to add to my excitement, I was able to do 6 or more at a time before stopping for a rest. Another feat!

Moving on to the HRPU, I found myself being one of the first people moving on to this move. Don't be fooled, I'm in no way stronger and faster then my CF companions. Having done a MOD for my T2B allowed me to move forward quicker. The rest soon caught up and either stayed paced or passed me. I am unable to do a proper push-up. It's something I have been working on for some time now and it's slow going. I do what they call "girl" push-ups, where instead of being on my toes, I am on my knees. Doing HRPU this way is still fairly hard though. To do a proper push-up you keep your back straight, not allowing any sway in your back or you butt to lift higher. I can do this without going all the way down to the floor, as I am still not strong enough to lift myself completely back up. But with HRPU, you are required to go all the way down to the floor, release your hands off the floor, and then lift yourself back up. Eek! Unfortunately for me, there is some slight sway back in my movement. I'm working on it.

And then on to the last movement, the lovely Air Squats. When I first started CF, my squats were extremely weak. A true squat would have your thighs going below parallel with the floor, I was doing above parallel. In CF you'll quickly learn that in many of the exercises you do, there is some form of squatting almost always. Seriously. In the beginning I hated this, my Quads were always sore and my knees constantly hurt. (Later I learned I need to stretch more afterwards, and now the Foam Roller and I have become best friends.) Anyway, I noticed my squats were improving when we worked on our Back Squats. And most recently when I did a 140# Back Squat and found that I went below parallel I was shocked (and wanted to do backflips... and if I knew how to, I would've). So last night, when it was time to grind out the Air Squats, I found that I busted out all 12 squats without stopping for a rest (like I had in previous WOD's) and I was doing them pretty quickly. When I was back to my T2B, I again was one of the first ones to be up there.

I find that I am beginning to keep pace with some of the stronger CrossFitters, even the ones that do the WOD's RX (prescription, opposed to MOD, which is modified). My movements are becoming more fluid and stronger. I feel stronger. And all this in a little over 3 months. :) So for those who are curious, I finished my WOD in 6 rounds + 5 T2B in 12 minutes. I had one round more than the average round! Now just to master the PU and T2B...