TUESDAY
"KELLY"
5 rounds for time
400 meter run
30 box jumps @24"
30 wall ball @20#
(31:52)

ANTELOPE ISLAND BUFFALO RUN

The race went well but not as expected. I intended to run the 50K, and the course is a 25k loop run twice. I was running well and on pace for a PR, but as I approached the end of the first loop, the tightness in my right knee got tight enough to prevent flexion and to some extent, extension. It wasn't enough alone to make me stop, but that coupled with the fact that I just wasn't feeling the mojo helped me make my decision. I'm pleased with the 25K experience and I live to run another day. No excuses, just results.

Tara had a strange but good day. Her 50 miler starts an hour and a half before the sun comes up. This is not good for a girl who can barely see with glasses on. She got off course early on and lost a ton of time. After losing more time to a big detour around some aggressive buffalo, she decided to drop around the 50 K mark. A 50K PR for her. I'm proud. She's tougher than me.

This is now one of my favorite races. It was put together flawlessly, and the race director and volunteers were really awesome. I highly recommend it to everyone.

TUESDAY
Rest, foam roller and stretching

WEDNESDAY
5 rounds for time
10 KB swings @53#
10 kipping pull-ups
400 meter run
(16:26)

I'm feeling really confident about Saturday. I'll run easy and short tomorrow, rest Friday and by Saturday I should be ready to go.

MONDAY
Taper week
3 sets of 5
Back Squat
225#, 225#, 225#

10 sets of 1
Power clean
all @185#

SUNDAY
What an awesome day. Coffee with friends, sunshine and a perfect trail run with my beautiful wife. We headed out to Antelope Island and got in 3 hours and 37 minutes of good running on some of the trails we'll be running next weekend. 50K for me and 50 miles for Tara. I'm really excited about this one. My best 50K time is 7 hours 12 minutes. My goal this time is less than 6 hours 30 minutes. It feels possible, because for the first time, I think my training has been smart. We'll find out.

FRIDAY
10 rounds not for time
20 seated russian twists @20#
10 overhead squats @95#
5 strict pull-ups

Max rep deadlifts @bodyweight / 195#
25 reps

THURSDAY
8 mile run.
I made the initial climb on my normal run longer and higher today and I paid for it. I also headed up to an area that I should have known would not be even close to snow free. The snow was hard enough to walk on for a moment and then, BAM, thigh deep posthole. I probably sounded like a wounded moose up there, yelling and grunting at the snow. This junk show took 2 hours. On a different note, I saw what I believe to be two storks on the ridge at about 6000 feet. Weird.

TUESDAY
10 rounds for time
10 burpees
30 double unders
(18:10)

Man, I felt slow today. Like one of those dreams where you're trying to fight, but no matter what you do you can't hit the beast with any force at all. Today that beast was burpees.

MONDAY
A.M.
5.2 mile trail run. 1 hour 2 minutes 48 seconds.

P.M.
3 sets of 5
Back squats
225#, 235#, 240#

AMRAP in 15 minutes
200 meter run
3 squat cleans @135#
3 thrusters @135#
(6 rounds + run)

FRIDAY
4 rounds
2 minute rest between rounds
500 meter row
30 double unders
20 sit-ups
10 box jumps @18"
200 meter run

THURSDAY
Recovery workout
10 rounds
1 weighted pull-up @53#
1 bench press @205#
3 glute ham raises
5 glute ham sit ups

WEDNESDAY
8.2 mile trail/road run. Ran some trails and connected to the roads to run to work. I'm feeling pretty strong and a little bit faster. The first part of this run, I do all the time. It starts at my house and begins climbing immediately. It climbs continuously for two miles and gains over 1000 feet before leveling off. At least I'm getting in my hill work. Lots and lots of heavy mud today.
(1 hour 36 minutes)

TUESDAY

10 minute jump rope warm up

1) 6 rounds for time

• 50 step ups @18" box w/ 45# pack
• 400 meter run
• (34:25)

2) Do one power clean and jerk @155#, every 30 seconds for 10 minutes.

MONDAY
10 minute KB warm up

1) 3 sets of 5 front squats
(205#, 205#, 205#)

2) Karen
150 wall ball shots for time
(9:39)

3)1-20 KB swing breathing ladder @53#
(16:53)

SUNDAY
I headed out for a long run with Tara and Murray, but I ended up turning back early. My stomach was angry and I was sweating way more than normal. Even at a walk there were rivers of sweat running down my back and legs. I like to think that whatever was wrong with me got sweated out. I feel better now, but the run was pure torture. All in all, I got some time on my feet and hopefully got well in the process.
(2 hours)

I've been thinking about breath control and it's relationship to athletic performance lately. I'm fairly familiar with meditative breathing exercises, but for some reason I just recently started trying to really connect this conscious control of breath and my own athletic pursuits. I've been encouraged by my recent experiments with breathing ladders, so I've been poking around the interwebs and found a couple of interesting articles. I'd love to know more if any of you have some knowledge here. Check it.

Mouth breathing vs. nose breathing.

Doing sprints while holding your breath. Sounds real uncomfortable.

Syncing footsteps with the breathing cycle.

I was thinking about buying one of these, but then I realized I could just force myself to breathe through my nose during exertion. I'm a sucker for gadgets.

FRIDAY
10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1
Power cleans @95#
Box jumps @24"
(5:18)
Thursday was a bit much and I'm surprised I could even jump the box.

THURSDAY

Warm up with 10 minutes of sandbag drills
1) 5 sets of 3 handstand push ups. Strict range of motion.
2) 5 sets of 20 second lock offs. A lock off is an isometric hold, usually at the top of the pull-up.
3) 500 lunges for time (21:03)
4) 30 power clean and jerks @155# for time (7:22)
5) Spend 3 cumulative minutes in an L-hold. This quickly fell apart, but I did my best.
6) 50 GHD sit-ups

It's this sort of thing that makes Crossfit look really stupid. I don't even know where to begin. I won't be able to contain the mockery if anyone rolls into my place of work wearing this garbage.

TUESDAY
8.1 mile trail run
1 hour 37 minutes
Nice and hilly. Running the day after back squats is painful. Lots of mud on the trails today, and that meant lots of sliding and unintentional splits.

MONDAY
Warm up with 10 minutes of medicine ball drills

1) 100 back squats @155# (14:39)

2) 10 rounds
5 strict pull ups
5 ring dips