I know I was supposed to start the Crossfit stuff a few weeks ago, but I managed to make up some excuses for skipping it. PTO meetings in the way of the schedule, the outdoor pool is open, I got a cold…all the while continuing to work out at home by playing a little roulette with the P90X dvds. I think to be honest what kept me away was a bit of fear. I had heard through the grapevine that some instructors are pretty mean (think Marine Corps DI) and I wasn’t looking forward to someone yelling at me to do more push-ups. I also heard from many folks that it can be pretty tough to move the next day. I’m happy to report that the instructor is not nearly as mean as expected. However, it did take a full 3 days before I could move around without wincing.
The most pleasant surprise is learning how to fit a good, intense workout into an hour. It starts off with some challenging warm-up moves like lunges, squats, & sit-ups with a medicine ball, and everyone’s favorite: dive-bomber push-ups. If you haven’t tried these yet, you have no idea what you’re missing. (Lucky you!)
Then you move onto the fun & games portion that may include jumping rope for 4 minutes (a lot harder than it sounds), squat-lifting more weight than you thought you could, or revisiting that old-school shuttle run. Following this is the W.O.D. – Workout Of the Day. This can include just about anything so the only thing you can count on here is to be completely wiped out within the next 15 minutes. Last week’s was a cycle of 200 meter run *(see note), 15 medicine ball sit-ups, then 15 medicine ball squat-jumpy things. Repeat 5 times, as fast as you can.
By the end one round one I realized I probably should have paced myself better. At round two I happily obliged when the instructor called out for anyone with a ball 14lbs or more to drop to 10 squats. (Mental note here: always grab at least the 14-pounder.) By round three I believe “Jello” is too solid a substance to describe how my legs felt. Towards the end of round five the horrifying thought went through my head that I might actually vomit. At a playground – with preschoolers as an audience. Last week’s post-workout effects started within 12 hours. Began in the shoulders and worked quickly through to the quads where the soreness stuck around for a few days.
Today’s WOD was only (ONLY!) 4 rounds: 25 jump-squats, 200-meter run, and 25 sit-ups. Round one started off as a bitch with just the jump-squats and didn’t get much better after that. I was told pick up the pace a couple of times, but to me simply continuing to move forward was picking up the pace enough. Let me tell you, those 200 meter sprints are just a tease for the real thing – and it would have been so much easier to keep skip the other stuff and just run for an hour. It’s taking a little longer to hit with the effects this time, but that really just scares me all the more. I’m thinking an ibuprofen smoothie might be just the call for dessert.
Keep on moving!
*** SIDE NOTE: After explaining my “year off” situation and taking a poll at the Crossfit class, I have made the executive decision that sprinting (Hah! Not by round 2.) 200 meters in the course of an interval workout does not count as going for a run. I was a marathoner for crying out loud. Two hundred meters is less than the final “kick-in” at most of my races. Thanks for understanding. ***