Another Rest Week of Sorts

I didn't make it to class Monday. After spending some time in the ER over the weekend making sure my appendix wasn't about to blow up and coming home with other issues, I opted out. I returned to class Wednesday and took it a little easy. I am feeling better today.

Here is Wednesday's workout:

9 presses - two 12kg bells
9 squats - two 12kg bells
9 swings - two 12kg bells
9 cleans - two 12kg bells
9 snatches - two 12kg bells
9 overhead squats - two 12kg bells
55 squats - 24kg bell

And yes, that was 'easy' for me. In fact, it wasn't even a complete workout. I also finished off with an hour of karate. Hoping to get to class tonight too!

On another note, we got a new puppy. She is a Puggle named Zoey. She is very sweet and quite well-mannered. It's only been a few days and she is adjusting very well!

Rest/PR Week

I missed out on Monday's class because I had to go to the doctor. The plague was not avoided. But I made it to the kids karate class early and was able to do a few minutes of kettlebells. And of course Wednesday class. I didn't try to PR on as much as I did last time, but I am proud of what I did accomplish!

*I can do a solid press with 16kg with both arms. Last time, I had to push press on the left to get it up there.

*I pressed 18kg with my right arm, push pressed it with my left. Definite increase in strength!!!

*I did 100 snatches in 5 minutes with 12kg. Not really a PR, but I still did it!

*I dead lifted The Beast! It's 48kg, about 106lbs. I had never dead lifted before and it was pretty easy. Next time, I will dead lift two 28kg bells, around 120lbs.

*I did 5 swings with The Beast! My first try wasn't good, but the second time, I knew what to expect and got in 5!

That's all I did this week (other than karate). It doesn't look like a lot, but for me, it was a big accomplishment. It's cool to actually see the increase in strength like this, to be able to compare it every nine weeks!

On Monday, I finally start pressing two 12kg bells. Even though I was sick of the 10s, I see now how much they did for me. Next PR Week in approximately two and a half months!

Approaching Swimsuit Season with Caution

I am hoping to lose more weight before our annual trip to the beach. I have 17lbs to go to hit weight goal #1. Ever since the flu came to visit our house, I haven't had much of an appetite. I blame the massive amounts of vomit I had to clean up. Because of the lack of appetite, I have been really careful with what and how much I eat. Some days it's a little harder than others. I admit I am a comfort/boredom eater. I have been trying to ask myself whether I am actually hungry when I want to snack or eat a second helping.

The other day, I tried on a swimsuit for the beach. Even though I weigh the same as last year's trip, I was able to go down a size in my bottoms because I have lost inches. And have I mentioned my jeans are looser? I find that I keep having to pull them up. I don't think it's time to size down in that department quite yet though. Maybe by next winter.

I would like to be at weight goal #1 by the end of this year, I am ok with not being there by summer time. I worry that if I lose it too quickly, it will just come back. I want to concentrate on changing my eating habits, continue with kettlebells, karate, and running, and I figure the pounds will drop on their own. 

Wednesday

I was a teensy weensy bit sore after running on Monday. I forgot to stretch since I went straight to kettlebells and my calves hurt!!! I'm glad no one saw me getting out of bed the last two mornings, I have no doubt it was comical!

This morning, I met up with my friend to run on the indoor track at the Y before kettlebells. I definitely slowed down my pace since I was a little stiff. We are doing the 5k101 program and started with Week 2. It's a 5 minute warm up, (2.5 minute run,2.5 minute walk- repeating so that you have 5 "runs"), then a cool down.We got in about 2.25 miles and I made sure to stretch before and after this time. We aren't always able to run together, but we are going to stay on the same week. And I think we are going to plan a 5k so we have a goal!

Kettlebells was good. I got in my whole workout with a little extra. I admit that I am glad next week is Rest Week. Even though it's not really resting. It will be interesting to see how much my strength has increased since the last one 9 weeks ago! Here is today's workout:

55 squats - 24kg

Complex 1
9 cleans - two 10kg
9 presses - two 10kg
9 swings - 24kg
9 squats - 24kg

Complex 2
9 snatches - two 10kg
9 overhead squats - two 10kg

Complex 3
3 TGUs - 12kg
6 snatches - 12kg
6 windmills - 12kg

30 pullovers - 18lb

I honestly think kettlebells has been enough cardio maintenance that getting back into running isn't a big deal. And my core is stronger, that is a big help. I can definitely run longer than 2.5 minutes with no problem. Why don't I? Two reasons. First, I have a running partner to think about, we are in this together and I won't leave her behind. Second, I am a minimal kind of girl. Running with minimalist shoes requires gradual training to build up strength in my ankles and feet. And obviously in my calves too! Since I took time off (I have only ran a couple times in 6+ months), I need to take it slow so that I don't injure myself. 

One hour of karate down, one more to go tonight!

Monday

I finished this round of nine weeks and next week is PR/Rest Week! Woohoo! I am finally done with pressing the 10kg bells (a few to go on Wednesday though)/ Moving on to the 12kg bells in two weeks! Here is my workout today:

140 snatches - 12kg bell
60 presses - two 10kg bells
45 squats - two 10kg bells
75 swings - two 10kg bells

I didn't get in my push presses or double jerks today, I was exhausted. I should have done my presses on Sunday.

I went to the Y early and ran/walked 2.25 miles on the track before class. That's probably why I was so tired during kettlebell class! I went pretty fast during my running segments, I can honestly say I missed it. Meeting my friend before class on Wednesday to run again. Her ankle has healed and her schedule calmed down.

An hour of karate after kettlebells, I cleaned my kitchen floor when I got home, did homework with this kids, dinner, and another hour of kids karate. This week will be busy too as I am volunteering at school 3 days this week on top of my normal chaos! Karate tournament on Saturday, celebrate birthdays of my oldest 2 with my parents afterwards, karate stripe/belt test on Sunday. When can I take my nap????

Karate Kids

The kid's karate class made our local paper! My oldest was interviewed, but they spelled her name wrong. That's ok, I know who she is!

YMCA Offers Karate, Kettlebell

Last Wednesday

Here is last week's recap:

2 cases of the stomach flu
1 case of strep throat
1 day off school due to some random holiday
1 day off school due to weather

Needless to say, I was running a little ragged and didn't have much time to blog Wednesday's workout. Here it is:

64 squats - 24kg bell
15 swings - 24kg bell
9 cleans - two 10kg bells
9 presses - two 10kg bells
9 snatches - two 12kg bells
9 overhead squats - two 12kg bells
3 TGUs - 12kg bell
6 snatches - 12kg bell
6 windmills - 12kg bells

I also decided to do a 10 minute swing test. I did 120 swings in that time period with a 32kg bell. That's 70.5lbs!

Hanging in there

Still a lot of sickness going around my house and so far I have managed to avoid it. Doesn't give me much time to work out at home, but that's ok.

On Monday, I lifted 10,490 lbs! Sounds pretty cool, doesn't it? Anyway, that's what it said when I logged my workout online. Here's what I did:

140 snatches - 12kg bell
40 presses - two 10kg bells
30 squats - two 10kg bells
50 swings - two 10kg bells
10 push presses - two 12kg bells
10 double jerks - two 12kg bells

And an hour of karate afterward. We didn't make it to karate that night due to our own Germ Fest 2013. No class today because it's old people day at the Y, but the kids will hopefully make it to karate tonight. Making up my classes tomorrow!

Back with a Vengeance

Stomach flu.

I have been up since 1:30 this morning with my son. He has been throwing up about every 10 minutes since. It finally seems to be calming down a bit, thank goodness! Poor guy is completely miserable, I don't think he has ever been this sick before. And he is missing his Valentine's Day party at school. Shaun dropped off his Valentine cards at school and his teacher will send them home with my oldest. At least he can have something to look forward to this afternoon. Hopefully his tummy will calm down by then.

I am completely exhausted. Since I got up with him, I am now contaminated and have full responsibility. (Just wait until the next one gets sick, it's all on Shaun!) I have cleaned the carpet 4 times, cleaned a mattress, cleaned the couch, done full 2 loads of laundry, given at least 3 baths, and cleaned the bathroom countless times in the last 9 hours. Not fun since I have only had about 2 hours of sleep since yesterday morning. I just hope I don't catch this next!

On a brighter note, our sick family member should be released from the hospital. I was supposed to go and help out, but I can't now. So Shaun is going instead.

Well, I better get back to watching the 1980s version of Transformers with my sick little boy!

Busy as a Bee!

After last week's "issues", we did in fact make it through the weekend unscathed. However on Monday, a whole new round of medical drama ensued and has kept all of us pretty stressed and bury. Fortunately, it's no one in our household, but it's still a close family member. Lots of traveling going on and probably some long term changes, for the patient and for us as well.

Despite everything going on, I still managed to get to class on Monday and today. My shoulders were a little sore after Monday, but I did push myself pretty hard. I guess I will see if I am sore tomorrow too. Two and a half weeks to go until Rest/PR week! I am excited to see how I have progressed since last time!

Monday's Workout

140 snatches - 12kg bell (this is where I pushed myself, did only 100 last week)
15 presses - two 10kg bells
15 squats - two 10kg bells
25 swings - two 10kg bells
10 push presses - two 12kg bells
10 double jerks - two 12kg bells
30 pullovers - 18lb bell

Wednesday's Workout

55 squats - 24kg bell (equivalent to 53lbs)
9 cleans - two 10kg bells
9 presses - two 10kg bells
9 squats - two 10kg bells
9 swings - two 10kg bells
9 (snatch + overhead squat) - two 10kg bells
3 TGUs, 6 snatches, 6 windmills - 12kg bell


Funny story about the overhead squats today. It's a double snatch, squat, rack the bells, and repeat. One my second set of three, when I stood up out of the squat, my sweaty feet started to slide out from under me! Luckily, I was able to catch myself. I don't think doing an accidental split with a total of 44lbs over my head would be very fun! So for future reference, do the overhead squats on a yoga mat or wear my minimalist shoes!

Keep in mind that I do an hour of karate immediately following kettlebell class and another hour of karate in the evenings helping in the kids class. I refer to Mondays and Wednesdays as my sleepy days because it takes a lot out of me. I do love it though! And watch the Mansfield News Journal over the next few days, they are doing a story on the karate and ketllebell classes! I will post a link to the actual story once it's published.
 
Also, I went to the Y early today, fully intending to run before class. It's didn't happen. Iended helping another classmate who also arrived early with a few things and then ran into an old friend I haven't seen in months, so we chatted for a bit. I will get back to it though!

What a week!!!

This week started out with my youngest getting the stomach flu. That night, she stubbed her toe. The next day, my cold decided to make its appearance. And that night, the bruising on Emily's toe got bad pretty fast so we took a trip to the ER where we learned that her toe was actually broken! They taped it up and mentioned that she needed a special shoe to walk in for a few weeks but they didn't have one to fit her tiny little feet.

So yesterday morning, I spent a good hour on the phone calling local medical supply stores and doctors trying to find one of these shoes. No one had it and doctors wanted to actually see her in order to give her one. I finally found someone to see her that same day. Then I wanted to take a nap, that was exhausting.

I brought a copy of one of her xrays from the ER with me to the doctor and he didn't think it was actually broken, rather just severely bruised. So he took a couple of his own and decided her toe IS broken, just not in the same spot the ER doctor thought. He taped it up with different tape and gave her a new shoe.No gym class for three weeks, keep the shoe on for that long as well, then another trip to the doctor to see how she's doing.

Now it's Friday. I still have my cold, but I am hoping for an uneventful weekend!

Blah

I feel blah today. I am congested and my ears feel funky again. I went to kettlebells and karate this morning, but am skipping out on the kids class tonight, I just feel yucky.

I worked on the heavy bag yesterday, six 2-minute rounds with one minute of rest in between. I got some frustration out with that and my upper back was a little sore this morning on top of the yuck.

Kettlebell Workout:

55 squats - 22kg bell
9 cleans - two 10kg bells
9 presses - two 10kg bells
9 squats - two 10kg bells
9 swings - two 10kg bells
9 snatches - two 10kg bells
9 overhead squats - two 10kg bells
3 TGUs - 12kg bell
6 windmills - 12kg bell
6 snatches - 12kg bell

I am getting bored with the 10kg bells. I will move up to the 12kg soon, just a couple more weeks, then rest week, then the 12s!

Karate was good, worked on the basic katas, and did some heavy bag work for a good 20 minutes. I got to practice some kicks. It's so much easier to practice kicks on a stationary bag versus my hanging one. Tomorrow, I am going to rest. My sinuses are strongly encouraging me to do so, and I have a feeling I will be more sore tomorrow. That's ok though. Except the sinus part, that's yucky.

Monday

Not much to say about Monday's workout.

100 snatches in 10 minutes with 12kg
20 push presses with two 12kg bells
20 double jerks with two 12kg bells

Then my hour of karate. Kids class was canceled due to weather. Hopefully there won't be too many cancelled in the next month because they have their second tournament coming up at the beginning of March! It's against another local school. I am excited for them!

Introductions

On Sunday, I got to introduce a friend to kettlebells! I had been telling her about it the last few months and she wanted to check it out. We put her straight to work doing naked TGUs (naked meaning no weights, NOT no clothes). She did a lot of those! My instructor let me work with her but kept her eye on us. After my friend got the hang of it, I did my workout: 3x4 ladder of presses, squats, and swings with two 10kg bells.

After I finished, my friend took a break and I showed her swings, snatches, overhead squats, etc. Pretty much all of my mad moves! Then I showed her a TGU with a 10kg bell and the instructor came over and had my friend try a few TGUs with a 10lb bell while I spotted her. It's a whole new experience even with a little bit of weight!

I think she really liked it. I hope she decides to join the class!

Wednesday Workout

55 squats with 24kg

My hip popped during the first one, but there wasn't any pain, so I finished up. I'm still not going quite as deep, but I am ok with that. Also, the 24kg is starting to feel easy, so I may try the next bell next week and see how I do.

9 cleans, 9 presses

I used two 10kg bell for this. I am looking forward to moving on the the 12kg bells, the 10s are getting boring. And easy.

9 more squats, 9 swings

I switched bells and used the 24kg for this. It's harder to swing lighter and awkward with two bells versus just one.

1 snatch plus 1 overhead squat. Three sets of three, total of nine.

Two 10kg bells. I should move up to the 12kg, since that is what I am snatching on Mondays, but I am a little nervous about snatching two 12s. I guess I should quit thinking about it and just do it!

TGU, windmill, snatch. Total of 3 TGUs, 6 windmills, 6 snatches.

I have been using a 12kg for this. It's a little challenging, but I am managing. As long as people refrain from making me laugh while I have a 26lb cannonball dangling over my head, I'm good!

I also did 6 push-ups this morning in karate and will do another 18 at tonight's class.

I got some good tips today that will help me with my strength training. I'm happy about that. I want to step up my cardio though, my friend is still out with her ankle. I need to figure up a plan. 

Burning off a long weekend

The stomach flu has hit our house. Shaun is the lucky first victim. So far, no one else has caught it. Fingers crossed!

This morning's classes were a welcome respite from Germ Fest 2013. I combined Sunday's and Monday workouts and felt good.

100 snatched in 10 minutes with 12kg
10 push presses with two 14kg bells
10 double jerks with two 14kg bells
Total of 32 presses with two 10kg bells
Total of 20 squats with two 10kg bells
Total of 20 swings with two 10kg bells

Karate was fun, as usual. I am working towards my blue belt and learning the kata I will need for my green belt. We tend to work ahead, I'm good with that! The kids have a test this Saturday, several of them will be testing for their next belt, most will just get stripes. Three stripes are required to test for a belt. My kids will be earning their second stripe on their orange belt. I am so proud of them!

Strength

A year ago, I could barely do a single push-up. Oh sure, I could do a few girl-style, but those are for girls! A few months ago, my karate teacher decided that push-ups will be required for stripe and belt tests. Only 5 for white and yellow belts, 10 for orange and blue belts, 15 for green belts and above. It makes sense, after all, a punch is basically a push-up position and to hit hard, you need upper body strength. But my first thought was "oh crap"!

So I forced myself to do push-ups with the kids during warm-ups. Stretch, 5 push-ups, repeat. We end up doing 15 total, including the white belts! After a couple months of doing this twice a week and maybe a third day a handful of times, it's getting easier! In fact, the other day, I did the whole 15 push-ups in a row! And then did a second set of 15!

Now, after my own little blunder, the kids now do three sets of 6 push-ups. Last night I was asked when we could go back to 5. Um, we're not. Push-ups make you strong, I am proof of that!

So here is another goal for the end of 2013, I want to do 50 push-ups in a single set. I don't think that is unreasonable. And anyone who knows me, knows that I am stubborn and determined!

Improvising

Today was 55 squats day. Apparently, my hip is not better. I tried my normal squat with a single 24kg bell and it hurt. I had a sharp, pinching feeling in my hip and felt like my leg would give out every time I stood up. I quit after only 3 squats. I stretched, tried 1 more and failed. I was seriously bummed, but after my instructor hurt herself by pushing beyond her limit, I knew I needed to back off.

I moved on to Complex 1 with two 10kg bells, 3 sets of 3 cleans, 3 presses, 3 squats, and 3 swings. During the first set, I found the squats were easy. Granted, it was about 8lbs lighter, but it wasn't painful at all. I had pointed my toes out slightly and not gone quite as deep, but I think that by holding two bells instead of one distributed the weight differently and made it easier. Whatever works!

So I grabbed two 12kg bells (equal to one 24kg) and tried squatting again. And I was fine! My instructor stopped me for a lecture, but I told her I was good and promised to stop if I felt any pain or weakness. I finished my 55!

After that, I finished Complex 1 and moved on to Complex 2. Double snatch, overhead squat (these were actually easier, surprisingly), repeat 2 more times for a single set with a total of 3 sets. I finished out with Complex 3: three TGUs with some snatches and windmills thrown in there.

My morning karate class went well. I did 15 push-ups in a row as part of my warm-up. Can you tell I am proud of that? We did some katas and practiced kicks. Evening class, I warmed the class up (another 18 push-ups!) and worked on the first basic kata with the low ranking students. Higher ranks worked on their katas with the instructor. Then we spent the last 30 minutes sparring. That was a blast! I was absolutely dripping with sweat afterwards, but I loved every second of it!

So that was my day, how was yours?

Sunday + Monday

I didn't make it to class yesterday. My dad called, wanting Shaun to hook up his new stereo under the guise of inviting us for dinner. Insert eye roll. But we actually enjoy spending time with my dad (as long as he is in a decent mood, lol), so we headed down to his house and had a nice time.

So this morning, I combined today's and yesterday's workouts. Not unusual for me, but I am moving away from that as I increase weight, it can be hard! So here is what I did today:

100 snatches in 10 minutes with the 12kg, I am really concentrating on my form, especially since I increased the weight today.

1x4 ladder of double presses, squats with 1 press at the top, and 5 swings, with two 10kg bells.

10 double jerks, two 14kg bells

10 push presses, two 14kg bells

30 pullovers, 18lbs

A ladder can be confusing, the 1 is how many sets, the 4 is where you start the reps. Today, I did 4 presses, 4 squats + 1 press, and 5 swings, rest, 3 presses, 3 squats + 1 press, 5 swings, rest, 2 presses, 2 squats + 1 press, 5 swings, rest, and finally 1 press, 1 squat + 1 press, 5 swings. All of that is 1 set. Next week, I will do a 2x4 ladder, so I will do 2 sets.

My friend told me today that she can't believe how far I have come with kettlebells. I don't really see it. But I can see a couple things. When I first learned to press, I could barely get the 12kg bell up on my right and not at all with my left. During rest week, I got a PR pressing with the 16kg bells. I can swing 32kg, roughly 71lbs. That is no easy feat! And since I have only been doing it since August, that is pretty good. I just wish my body with catch up a little faster!

A Little Late on Thursday....

I met up with my friend Thursday morning to lift. I love it, we just chat and laugh and lift. Although, I did have her promise not to make my laugh while I am actually lifting! Not a good combination!

We did 30 pullovers (18lb), 15 push presses (2 14kg bells), 15 double jerks (2 14kg bells), and a 10 minute swing test. I did 100 swings with the 32kg in that 10 minutes. Last time I did that, it wasn't timed. I admit, it was a little tougher and my hip hurt that final minute, but I did it! I also managed to get my 15 push-ups too, regular style, not girly!

Speaking of push-ups....I run the kids karate class through their warm-ups: we stretch a bit, 5 push-ups, repeat a couple more times. The kids end up doing 15 push-ups total. So last Wednesday, we were doing the first set of 5 and I wasn't really paying much attention and we did 6. The kids (of course) called me out on it, so to save face, I informed them that we had been doing 3 sets of 5 for quite a while and we were moving on to 3 sets of 6! So we did 18 push-ups instead of 15 that night! I just hope I can remember to do that from now on!!!

Wednesday Workout

55 squats with 24kg (that's about 53lbs)

3x3 (no ladder) of double cleans, double presses, squats, and swings. I used 2 10kg bells for this. I usually switch and go with something heavier for swings and squats, but my hip is still a little sore.

3x3 (no ladder) of double snatch plus overhead squat, also with 2 10kg bells.

And 3 TGUs with some snatches and windmills thrown in there with a 10kg bell.

Then an hour of karate and tonight another hour of karate with the kids.

I look forward to next week when I start snatching the 12kg bell. And in about 6 weeks, I start pressing the 12kg.

My hip is actually a lot better than it was. Still pretty sore though. I may go back to the chiropractor one more time, just to be safe. And I won't let these things go anymore!

Weight Loss

I did gain a couple pounds, not during the holidays, but after. It may be muscle gain, but I'm not sure. So I am back to being extra careful with what I eat (and snack on) during the day. And I have already lost those couple pounds. A little less than 20 to go to reach weight goal number 1.

Smoothies are my new best friend. My typical breakfast consists of a banana, some frozen fruit, plain greek yogurt, 2 tbsp of PB2, and 1 tbsp of ground flax seed all thrown in a blender and blended. I may add some almond milk if it's too think.

Lunch sometimes is another smoothie with half an avocado instead of a banana and also a handful of spinach. That may sound nasty, but even Shaun loves them and he hates avocados. On other days, I may have sushi or Shaun and I might go out to lunch. Or just plain leftovers from the night before.

I plan dinners a week or two in advance. Last night was pasta with italian sausage, sun dried tomatoes, and broccoli. Throw in some sauteed onions and garlic and white wine, and we have ourselves a meal that everyone likes! I always try to have veggies and protein, but some nights it doesn't happen. And I am ok with that. My biggest difficulty is finding meals that at least 4 out of 5 of us like!

Snatch Test Part 2

I got another 200 snatches in 10 minutes! Next week I will start snatching with the 12kg! I need to adjust my form slightly and stand up straighter at the top of the snatch. I'm either tired or it could be my right hip is very very out. I also managed to do 10 push presses and 10 double jerks today.

Yesterday, I did in fact make it to kettlebells and did a 3x3 ladder of double presses, swings, and squats. I may have possibly attempted a couple pull-ups, but that's not a pretty sight, so I'm not mentioning it. I want to do 1 unassisted pull-up by the end of 2013 though.

Karate was easy today, except for my darn hip. Absolutely NO kicks today! We practiced kata and talked about form and how to practice. Looking forward to tonight's class with the kids!

My hip. It's been out for a couple months. I keep putting off going to the chiropractor because it was very slight and would come and go. Last week, it got bad. Fast. I could hardly walk or get out of bed. I have been stretching like crazy, which has helped, but it still hurts. I finally called and made myself an appointment for this afternoon. I can't wait!

Making rounds

Whatever this bug is, it is making its rounds slowly.

Shaun has been sick for 5-6 weeks now, he is on an antibiotic.

My ears and head still hurt. I went ahead and started an antibiotic in hope that it goes away sooner than Shaun's!

Jack is just getting started. Poor kid is full of snot and constantly sneezing.

Who's next? Emily or Caitlin?

I am going to try to head to the Y later today and get hard press day out of the way. With finishing the snatch test tomorrow, there is no way I can combine the two days into one workout.

Make-up

Since I didn't get to do complex 3 yesterday (tgu with a couple windmills and snatches thrown in there), I made it up today. Completed 3 sets with a 10kg bell. Then I went on to do 100 swings with a 32kg bell (slightly over 70lbs). I did an easy 10 sets of 10, no timer. It was my second time swinging that bell, first time doing that many! Last, I did 30 pullovers with the 18lb bell.

It doesn't seem like I did much, but it was definitely a full body workout and I have no doubt that I will be feeling it tomorrow!

My husband straightened up the house while I was gone and took me on a sushi lunch date after my workout! He is awesome! Unfortunately, I forgot to take my meds and I feel like total crap this afternoon. I have a sinus thing that has settled in my ears. While my ears aren't infected yet, they are full of fluid. If I don't feel better in a couple days, it's antibiotic time. Now I must go in search of more advil.....

Busy day!

55 squats today with a 24kg bell. I bumped it up a bit. It wasn't as hard as I thought.

Then a 3x3 (3 sets of 3 reps each) of double cleans, presses, squats, and swings. I used two 10kg bells for cleans and presses and the 24kg bell for squats and swings. Note to self: Use heavier bell for swings! I got a little over enthusiastic with that!

On to a 3x3 with a double snatch and overhead squat. Again, I used a 10kg bell for this.

I didn't get to my TGUs today, hopefully I can do that tomorrow. Instead, I did 3 sets of 10 pullovers. I think my stomach muscles will be unhappy with me tomorrow!

After kettlebells and karate, I rushed home, showered, ate a quick lunch, and got ready to meet a friend for coffee. Then off to the store and picking up the rugrats from school. Then I get to make dinner and do another round of karate tonight when I help with the kids' class. And hopefully after the post-karate chaos of showers and bedtime, I can relax!

On a pretty awesome note, I hadn't seen my friend for a couple months and the first thing she said was how good I looked and had I lost weight? Actually, I have gained a tiny bit, but I am pretty sure it's muscle. It made me feel pretty good!

The Strut

That's what I am going to call it anyway. On my kettlebell/karate days, I realized that I carry myself differently. I walk taller, square my shoulders, and suck in my post-baby belly. Ten foot tall and bulletproof!

I am trying to merge this confidence into the other days of the week. I feel strong, I am strong, and there is no reason why I shouldn't look strong too!





And yes, I am guilty of flexing my arms in front of the bathroom mirror. I just like seeing that new bicep muscle peeking out!

Snatch Test Part 1

My legs are finally back to normal as of yesterday! But my shoulders were sore most of the weekend, I think that was from the heavy bag workout I did on Friday. I have also been sleeping funny due to my newest tattoo and that didn't help either.

By the time I made it to kettlebell class this morning, my advil had kicked in and I went straight to snatching. The goal of a snatch test is 200 snatches in 10 minutes, if you can manage that 2 weeks in a row, you get to move up to the next weight. I had been doing 140 snatches with a 10kg the last several weeks. I decided to go for 200 today, I had been stagnant long enough.

The first few rounds weren't too bad, then by the fourth or fifth I was beat. I was only getting about 15 seconds to rest between each set and that wasn't quite long enough! I pushed and got a couple more sets in. By round 8, I figured it would be stupid to give up on 200 now since I was so close. And then I finally finished and collapsed on my mat. One more week of this and I get to move up to a 12 kg bell!

Snatching and running have a lot in common. Both are physically hard, they get your heart rate going, you get sweaty, out of breath, and your body feels like it's just going to give out. And that's where your head comes in. You are either going to finish running or snatching or you aren't. When I would run, I would tell myself, just to that third mail box and I can walk. I get to that mailbox and think, just to that big tree, etc. Before I know it, I've made my goal. With snatching, it's the same. Just another round, one more. Before I know it, I am so close to the end, I may as well finish. Because if I give up, it will be that much harder next time!

After my collapse, I went on to do a 2x3 ladder of double presses, squats, and swings with the 10kg bells. Then I did push presses and double jerks with two 14kg bells. I only managed five of each, which was disappointing after doing 15 last week. But I have a feeling that's what killed my legs last week and snatching took a lot out of me.

Six rounds and then some

Six 2-minute rounds on a heavy bag doesn't seem like much, but it is tough! I will work up to more though. I can be stubborn like that. And at least I wore gloves this time....

Running is put off another 2 weeks. My friend has doctors orders. That's ok though, my legs are still really sore. I think that's on its way out, hopefully.

Looking forward to snatching and pressing next week! Squatting? Not so much.

Ouch!

Did I mention I was a little sore in my last post? I am hurting today for sure!

I have no idea what made me sore. Yes, I increased my weight for hard press day, but only by a total of 8lbs. And I did significantly increase my weight for push presses and double jerks, but only because I did so well with my PR. I double-checked with my instructor to make sure I wasn't overdoing it. Or maybe it was rest week #2 that did it. I don't know.

I walked into class yesterday pretty sore. My workout consisted of 55 squats, 9 double presses, cleans, more squats, swings, double snatch with an overhead squats, and 3 TGUs with some windmills and snatches thrown in there.

I did not want to do those 55 squats. So I got those over with first with a 22kg bell. Then on to the press, clean, squat, swing complex. I finished that with 2 10kg bells. More squats. Overhead this time. Got a few pointers so they don't pull in my lower back as much.

At this point, I had about 10 minutes left in class and was ready to call it quits. But I still had those TGUs left. So I did it. I used a 12kg bell, but may go down to a 10kg next time. My wrist wasn't quite strong enough to stay straight. And I was tired.

My legs hurt today.