01/03/11 WOD

As part of my blogolution I said I would start posting my WODs.  Yesterday's was pretty difficult considering I've spent the past two weeks eating junk and not working out.


01/03/11 WOD
A)
AML(?)AP 10 minutes
1 - 5 Ladders of 105# Hang Squat Cleans
You had 10 minutes to do as many ladders as possible.  A 1 - 5 ladder means you do one hang squat clean and can put the bar down.  Then do two and you can put the bar down, three and put the bar down, etc.  Sounds simple, gets pretty rough.
I completed 3 ladders and set three of the fourth.


Cleans are kinda my wheelhouse.  I love cleans, even squat cleans.  I love that it's technical and I can still make my body figure it out.  I love that it's explosive and fast.  My back was really starting to get really tight as we headed towards the end of the wod.


B)
50 Toes to Bar (Mine don't look nearly this pretty)
50 GHD sit ups


Can't remember my time.


My grip started to go first on the toes to bar (as in I dropped off the bar at 49!), other than that they felt pretty good.  When I have high rep chippers like this I give myself a rep goal to reach each time.  So I'll say to myself "OK, get to 12 and you can shake your arms out and chalk up."  
Onto GHD sit ups.  I don't like to go full range of motion on these because of my back.  I go close, but my back doesn't like to hyper extend too far.  GHD sit ups are a fun movement, it's fast and aggressive, but you can get dizzy quickly and you need to build reps up so you don't get rhabdo.


This morning I'm a little sore, but not nearly as sore as I expected.  I can cough and laugh without pain.  My traps are hardly sore at all.  Maybe it's because I actually slept last night.

Make Your Own: Foam Roller

I thought I was happy with my foam roller, I thought it was fine.  That was until I tried my friend JohnnyMac's Trigger Point foam roller.  It was amazing.  It had a hard core that really helped get deep into the muscles.  My puny little foam roller (actually made of thick Styrofoam) was no longer going to cut it so I decided to try to make my own for a pretty substantial savings.

Foam rollers are used for self myofascial release.  Myofascial release is a technique in which muscle tissue is stretched and manipulated to relieve tension in the fascia, the thin tissue covering the muscle fibers.  It works by breaking up fascial adhesions and also by manipulating certain neuromuscular receptors to allow muscles to release any tightness.  A foam roller allows you to use this technique on yourself.  This video shows how to use the foam roller to target specific areas.



Materials

4x10 PVC Pipe - $15
Yoga Mat - free to me
PVC Cement - free to me
Scissors
Electrical Tape
Hacksaw

Directions
Gather your materials and find a well ventilated space.  The PVC pipe is available at any Lowe's or Home Depot.  I got the whole long piece of it, but you can get a pre-cut piece.  I used an extra yoga mat I had lying around and PVC cement the my contractor had leftover.

Cut your PVC pipe into the lengths you'd like your foam rollers to be.  I did one of about 24" and three of around 13".  If you don't happen to have a contractor at your house with a large table saw already in use like I did, wrap the pipe with electrical tape at the cutting point and use the hacksaw to cut through the pipe.

Measure the length of yoga mat you'll need to completely cover the outside of the PVC pipe.  Leave about a half inch on either side.  Sure you can use a tape measure and be precise about it or you can use my method; put the pipe on the mat and cut.

Make sure your pipe is laid out straight on the mat, swipe PVC cement onto your PVC pipe or yoga mat in about 1.5" lengths.  After some experimentation, I found putting the cement onto the mat to be the most effective method.  Don't skimp on the cement.

Apply pressure on the cemented section.  Allow the first section to dry for about 5 minutes.

I clipped the ends of the first and last sections I cemented to make sure the edges stuck and I rubber banded the middle to make sure it didn't buckle and to make sure there was a nice smooth edge.

Continue working your way around the pipe in 1.5" sections, making sure to get cement to the edges of the pipe and to the last dried section.  It dries pretty quickly so you'll only need to give those sections a few minutes to dry.  Make sure to press down on these sections while they're drying.

When you get to the last bit of mat to be glued you may have to CAREFULLY trim the free edge of the mat so it meets with the cemented end perfectly.  Swipe cement on the last bit of PVC pipe, clamp the ends, apply pressure and let it dry for a while.

You'll probably have extra yoga mat at the edges of your pipe.  Cut them off with box cutters or very sharp scissors.

Roll out those tired, sore and stiff muscles.

WOD: 1RM Squat Cleans

View Video

My 155# 1RM Squat Clean on May 11, 2010

I maxed at 155# yesterday. I think that's my existing SQUAT clean PR. Somehow I can power clean more than I can squat clean with a 1 RM of 160# power clean. I got under 160# a few times yesterday, but I couldn't get out of the stinking squat. Then I started getting tired (and getting brain farts) and couldn't even get under it. I think I lose the tightness in my core and then just can't bounce out of the bottom. I'm happy to have made 155# on the squishy mats, but still pretty frustrated by the elusive 160# squat clean.

After it was clear that I would not be getting 160#, I decided to work off the frustration (and kill the time waiting to meet up with Emily for dinner) by doing the one armed bandit WOD of the day for those of us that can only use one of our arms. So I did 5 rounds:
Lunges around the perimeter of the room (around 46)
15 35# Kettlebell Swings
20 AbMat Situps
25 Body Weight Squats