Warning! Boring Post Ahead

Not much to say tonight. I've had a long day of talking - 5 hours worth of lecturing. I'm officially talked out. I'm not witty, creative, philosophical, or anything. Just the facts, ma'am.

Here's my training for the day:

Circuit #1
Box Jumps - 10
High Pulls w/ 16 kg - 10 L, R
4 rounds - 30 secs between rounds

Rest - 1:30

Circuit #2
Push Press w/16 kg - 6 L, R
Tricep Dips - 10
3 rounds - 30 secs between rounds

Rest - 1:30

Circuit #3
Step Ups onto box w/ 2 12 kgs - 8 L, R
Squats - w/ 16 kg
3 rounds - 45 secs between rounds

Rest - 1:30

Circuit #4
Rows w/16 kg - 8 L, R
Pushups - 6
3 rounds - 45 secs between rounds

If you've been following my squat drama, you'll be happy to know that the squats went quite well today. I went deep, paused, pressurized, and shot up. I watched my form and am pleased with it. I just have to keep that focus on all of my squat practice. Soon I'll be squatting with a respectable size bell.

Look at Me!

This past weekend I finally did something I've been wanting to do for years - parasailing. My friend Tim wanted to do it as well. Beings neither of our spouses was up for the height, Tim and I flew together. Jerry and Tim's wife Angie rode in the boat and took pictures.

The experience was not at all like I expected. I expected a big whoosh and then soaring quickly to great heights. Actually, it was quiet and slow and peaceful. I could have stayed up there for hours.

What made the experience more special was that many of our friends from our condo unit went out on boats to watch. There were four boatloads of people in all. Pat and Susan took all the kids (6 of them) on our boat so they could witness the high-flying adventure. You can see our boat in the picture above. Tim and I just floated over top of them and could yell down to the kids. Good times.

Back to work today and back to training. Both felt great. Here's how my training went:

TGU to Squat and Push Press (2 times at the top of each getup)
15 L, R alternating arms

Last week I only made it to 11 each side because of my foot. This week I made all 15 with very little pain. Brad told me to just go slow, which I did. I think it took me about one minute per rep, so the entire getup session took about 30 minutes. After that it was time for snatches.

Snatch - 35 lb. KB - 8 L, R
Snatch 26 lb. KB - 12 L, R

No rest between weight changes, one minute rest between rounds, 4 rounds.

I feel more focused and mentally ready for the challenge of making myself stronger and healthier. I guess a little coasting can prepare a person for the next hill.

Left to My Own Devices

Brad's training for today looked like this:

Burpee to Clean - 16 kg - 7 L, R
Swings - 20 kg - 15
Clean & Press - 12 kg - 8 L, R
Walking Lunges - 10 L, R
Hindu Pushups - 8

Since I had no specifics on rounds or rest, I did what felt right.

I did four rounds of the drills. I rested 10 seconds between drills and 1 minute between rounds. That felt good to my body. I am working on listening to my body. This week has been hectic, so I need to be still and let my body tell me what it needs.

I'm still having foot issues. Now that I'm back to work, I have to wear shoes. They are giving me a lot of pain in my bunion. Just the pressure from shoes on the bunion makes them hurt. I can't wear my vibrams or flip flops to work, for crying out loud. I am at a loss. Maybe the all-black vibrams would work. People will just think they are ballet flats. Hmmmmmmmmm

Training today consisted of four mini circuits. This was fun and appealed to my love of changing it up. I would go from drill one to drill two without a pause. I rested about a minute between rounds.

Circuit #1
Box Jumps - 10
High Pulls w/ 16 kg - 10 L, R
4 rounds

Circuit #2
Clean & Push Press w/16 kg - 6 L, R alternating arms
Tricep Dips - 10
4 rounds

Circuit #3
Step Ups onto box w/ 2 12 kgs - 8 L, R
Squats - w/ 16 kg
4 rounds

Circuit #4
Rows w/16 kg - 8 L, R
Pushups - 6
4 rounds

Apparently the greasing the groove I did this summer helped with pushups. I was able to do 6 strict military after rowing my butt off. Yeah me! The squats with a measly 35 lbs did not go well. I can't figure out why I suck at squats. I always have.

Today was the first day of my fall semester. I teach 5 classes on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and have no classes on Tuesday or Thursday. Oh, and my first class is at 7 a.m. Lovely!

The kids had their first day of school as well. Here's some pics from this morning. Gotta love the first day of school pictures!!

Better Days Are Coming

I know they are. My training was disappointing. It has been months since I did TGUs, so I am not surprised by the outcome - feeling just plain pooped.

TGU w/ 2 Squats to Push Press
12 kg bell
5 x 3 L,R

I did 11 each side. (I was supposed to do 15 each side.) I didn't realize that my bunion still isn't healed from my little accident. Pushing up to stand sent a jolt up my foot. YeeOuch! I also felt weak and awkward, probably since I haven't done them for awhile. I also did some snatches.

Snatch w/ 16 kg - 8 L,R
Snatch w/ 12 kg - 12 L,R
4 rounds

I did the sets nonstop: 8 L, 8 R, 12 L, 12 R. Then I rested. Those actually felt pretty good. It was awesome to smoke my lungs. I'm definitely ready to head to bed tonight! Too bad I can't for four hours.

I just made up my batch of "cabbage salad" for the week. This time I used olive oil, vinegar, lime, onion, pepper, and honey for my dressing. I have to get back on track with my nutrition. That's my main focus this week. My head is making some adjustments, but my stomach doesn't like the sound of it! I will keep the following quote by RKC Franz Snideman in sight this week:

"Nothing tastes as good as being thin feels!"

Shifting

I'm ready to shift out of neutral. All summer I've been coasting.

1. Coasting on a lot of my training - skipping days, skipping drills

2. Coasting on my nutrition - eating a good breakfast (Advocare shake), an excellent lunch (veggies and eggs), and an acceptable dinner (buffalo, grass-fed beef, salmon, chicken on the grill + a veggie or two) but then having ice cream or chocolate or a whiskey and water. I haven't lost any weight, but I haven't gained any either. Neutral.

3. Coasting on promoting myself as an RKC - I've just been too consumed with other roles I play to add one more (trainer) to the list.

Maybe "coasting" is not the most accurate term to describe my behaviors. Perhaps "resting" or "transitioning" are better terms. Perhaps I shouldn't spin everything in my life to the negative. I am who I am. Sometimes I need to back off, ponder, rejuvenate, then rejoin. Shift.

Monday marks my official shifting of gears. Back to work. New training regimen. Focused nutrition. Determination.

Vroom! Vroom!

Variations on a Theme

Coleslaw - or as Tracy calls it "Cabbage Salad"

This week's batch of coleslaw is a bit different. I used broccoli, carrots, cabbage, green onion, and for a twist, Chinese pea pods and fresh pineapple. For dressing, I used about 1/2 cup of organic poppyseed dressing, soy sauce, sesame oil, and the pineapple juice. That's not much dressing for a ginormous bowl of slaw. All I need is some chicken to mix in and Voila! Yummy lunch for the entire week.

This morning I did my 18 minutes of Clean & Press EDT w/ the 12 kg. I did 100 reps on each arm. That's the same as last week. I think I've maxed out on the C & P. Onto the next EDT drill! I still need to do 18 minute EDT of double swings with double squats (2 12 kg bells). That will be loads of fun!!

Thursday, Friday

Thursday I did my EDT clean and presses that were left over from Wednesday and I did my zippy circuit for Friday since my Friday is - surprise, surprise - busy with no time for training.

So for the Clean & Press EDT, I did 18 minutes. I am extremely happy with my results, especially since I took a back off week last week. Two weeks ago I did 95 C & P on each arm. This week...............




100 each arm

Oh yeah, baby! In fact, the last five minutes I went nonstop. I just kept changing arms every three reps. It felt great to be able to do that many presses nonstop.

Unfortunately, I have an injury to report. It didn't even happen while training. It happened while bounding up the stairs. My sandal caught the step stopping me from moving upward. As a result, my big toe on the right foot slid ahead and jammed against the step. I don't think it's broken; however, it kept me awake all night and it's swollen. Actually what hurts is my bunion. THE VERY JOINT I HAVE BEEN WORKING SO DILIGENTLY TO ELIMINATE PAIN FROM!!!!!!

From the moment I jammed it, I have been doing my Z drills. I even did my training yesterday with the injury. The pain is better today, so I'm hopeful that by day's end I will be pain free.

Okay, I've got to go get packed for the lake. I'm also playing in a golf tournament Saturday called the Win, Place, and Show. There are 10 teams - man/woman - who all tee off on hole one and alternate shots between man/woman. Whichever team has the highest score on the hole is eliminated. That continues until there is one team left after hole nine. People can buy tickets on who they think will win it, who will place, and who will show, just like horse racing. It's a lot of fun (unless you're playing, like I am; then it's nerve-wracking having 100 people watching you play golf). And, it raises money for the golf course since the course keeps a percentage of the proceeds.

Wish me luck!!!!

Wednesday, Wednesday

Another busy day at chez Amy. First thing this morning I put in a round of EDT:

15 minutes of
Double Swings - 26 lb. bells
Double Suitcase Squats - 26 lb. bells

I did 200 double swings and 85 squats.

Holding the bells like suitcases allowed me a much better ROM and allowed me to go deeper into my squat than when I hold them in the rack position. Two weeks ago I did the squats in rack position and only got in 75 in 18 minutes. After my back off week last week, I felt I needed to be kind to my back this week. I'll see how next week goes.


I still need to get in my 18 minute EDT of Clean and Press with the 26 lb. bell, but I'll have to do it tomorrow. Today was too jam packed. After my training, I had to register the kids for school. Then, some friends of ours from the lake - Tim and Angie - stopped in for a visit with their kids. Here's a picture.

After that, I had to trek over to the middle school to give Senator Tom Harkin, Iowa, a tour of the upgrades we made to that building thanks to the half million dollar Harkin Grant our school district received. He was genuinely interested and interesting.

By then, it was supper time. The kids were running around in their swimsuits, so I had to take some pics. Check out Lauren's hair. If you look at Monday's post, you'll see her hair was pretty long. Well, yesterday, she decided it was time to go short. I almost cried when the first 8 inch snip took place. Now I'm glad she did it. It is adorable on her.

It's hard to believe in two weeks I'll be back in the classroom. That also means back to hardcore training. I have not been focused this summer. I guess it's to be expected with all the activity going on at home!

Monday, Monday

What can I say about Monday? The day did not go at all like I planned. But that's okay. My day was productive and I feel ready to call it a night.

I didn't even do my planned training. I feel lucky that I was able to train at all since I was looking for every excuse NOT to. I almost convinced myself that I should take more time off from training. Then I kicked myself in the rear end, drove to the gym, put on my new tunes (Sugarland's "Love on the Inside") and got down (literally).

Instead of the planned 20 minute snatch EDT, I did my fun circuit of mountain climbers, walking lunges, curls, tricep extensions, bear crawls, and crab walks. Before the circuit, I tried my hand at pressing the 16 kg (35 lb) bell. No problem on the right. That puppy went right up. The left needed a little push press, but I did a very slow negative. I did 10 each side. Oh, yeah baby! I was pumped after that.

In my previous post I said I was hoping to go waterskiing this weekend. Well, that didn't happen. Why? The bleepin wind! Who can ski with three foot swells? Seriously! The boat didn't even get out of the lift. Conner had a good time on his boogey board though!

Lauren was a beach bunny as usual. Check out the attitude with the shades. I'm really going to have trouble with her when she gets older.

Yes, she really is as skinny as she looks. She's worn the same swimsuits for three summers. Get a fat cell kid! To top it off, she LOVES vegetables. What kind of mutant child is this?? At least she'll stay thin if she keeps eating the veggies as she grows.

Let the Weekend Begin!

I'm off to a golf tournament and then to the lake. It is hot, hot, hot. Iowa finally got summer! I'll be in the lake for sure. I'll probably even waterski for the first time this year. Maybe I'll get Jerry to go on the tube so I can tip him. I do that every summer. It brings me such joy to torture my husband!





I've really enjoyed my week without training. My brain needed a break so I could regroup. Next week I'll be burning up the iron. It's gonna be fun!