Monday 20 Feb 12

Balance Gym

CFWU (subbed 15 second hollow-position hold for GHD sit-ups)

False-grip ring pull-ups 4 x 5 (perform 3 GHRs between each set)

Metcon: Every minute on the minute, perform:

10 ball slams (40#)

Score: 10 minutes (time cap)

Notes: This turned out to be a great session. I subbed hollow-position holds for GHD sit-up on the warm-up because my hollow position is major weakness. At this point, I feel much better served with hollow-position holds, hollow rocks, and plank holds, than by sit-ups. I need to hone in on the deeper core strength in order to improve my gymnastics and power movements. I find that sit-ups have very little translation to anything else. I also did chest-to-bar pull-ups in the warm-up because I was so off rhythm on them yesterday. These have always been, and must continue to be, my biggest strength. Key for me is remembering to keep the legs straight and to generate the additional power from the hips, not from a bigger horizontal swing.

Ring pull-ups were an interesting addition to the programming. Maintaining the false-grip was challenging, but I think I did a pretty good job. Chris had prescribed weighted ring pull-ups, but he also wanted me to pull the rings all the way to my chest. I was barely able to do this unweighted, so I opted not to add weight. GHRs were also a great addition. I'm glad Chris limited these to three reps per set, but they are something I want to incorporate more often. I set the machine at 10 to ensure that my knees reaching the flat pad. Lastly, the metcon was killer. Each round took me about 30 seconds, but each round was brutal, particularly after about half-way mark. My heart rate was through the roof, but I really wanted to reach the time cap. I did so, and am glad I gutted through the workout. Most difficult part for me was getting the ball back overhead. I was more like a clean and press/ball slam than just a ball slam. 40# can get really heavy. I had planed a 2K row, but that wasn't happening after this beatdown. I rowed 500 meters without my feet in the straps just to focus on form and as a cool-down.