Burn of the Day 7/10/13

AMRAP {As Many Rounds As Possible}

5 minutes

15 Overhead Lunges {20 lbs}

15 Kettlebell Swings {20+ lbs}

Image courtesy of www.crossfitblackhawk66mil.com

Burn of the Day {BOD} 7/8/13

"Faith"

3 Rounds of:
Burpees
Power snatch, 20 lbs
Box jump, 18" box
Thrusters, 20 lbs
Pull-ups

Same format as CrossFit's Fight Gone Bad workout.  In this workout, you move from each of 5 stations after a minute.  This is a five-minute round from which a one-minute break is allowed before repeating.  The clock does not reset of stop between exercises.  The athlete must move to next station at the end of each minute.  One point is given for each rep.  Post score to comments!

Lots of love, Dawn

Workout courtesy of cfmamas.blogspot.com
Image courtesy of CrossFit East Sacramento

Burn of the Day {BOD} 7/6/13

5 minutes:

Handstand hold against wall till failure, then...

Air squats till failure

Repeat until 5 minutes are up

2 minute rest

5 minutes:

Plank till failure, then...

Tuck jumps till failure

Repeat until 5 minutes are up

Wall Handstand variations...

Tuck jumps...

Burn of the Day {BOD} 7/4/13

100 Lunges {50 each side}

100 Push-ups

100 Sit-ups

100 Squats

cfmamas.blogspot.com

Lots of love, Dawn

Burn of the Day {BOD} 7/3/14

For Time:

100 Burpees

Take your time. Breathe. You're welcome :)

Lots of love,

Dawn

Burn of the Day {BOD} 7/2/13

4 Rounds For Time:

30 Squats

20 Push-ups

1:00 Plank

Partition...partition...partition...

If you can't do 30 squats straight through or hold a plank for a minute, partition if out. Do 15 squats, take a teeny quick breather, then do the remaining 15 squats. Hold a plank for 30 seconds, release for just a few seconds, then hold for the remaining 30 seconds. You can do it!

Lots of love, Dawn

Burn of the Day {BOD} 6/30/13

Every Minute On The Minute

1 Squat

1 Push-up

1 Burpee

Add 1 rep to each movement with each successive minute until failure.

Post time to comments!

Lots of love,

Dawn

Burn of the Day {BOD} 6/29/13

 

7 Rounds For Time:

7 Burpees {more info on burpees here!}

7 Squats

7 Sit-ups

Post time to comments!

Burn of the Day {BOD} 6/28/13

CrossFit posts their Workout of the Day {WOD} each day on their website...we're going to start posting our Burn of the Day {BOD} for all you lovely ladies! Do the BOD, and work your bod!

For Time:

25 Squats, 5 Push-ups

20 Squats, 10 Push-ups

15 Squats, 15 Push-ups

10 Squats, 20 Push-ups

5 Squats, 25 Push-ups

Squats: Thighs should drop past parallel. In other words, you should feel the back of the thighs touch the back of your calves.

Push-ups: Modify as needed. Hands can go against a wall, on a desk or chair, or on the floor for strict push-ups. You can also do push-ups on your knees instead.

Post your time to comments!

Bodyweight Series: Burpees

We'll be starting a series on the cheapest, most convenient, and most effective piece of exercise equipment ever...your own body weight!

No gym membership required.

No fancy schmancy equipment.

All you need is a floor...and you!

It's freer than free!

Can literally be done any place, any time, while wearing {or not wearing!} anything.

Let's first look at burpees...

Burpees may just be the single best exercise that you can possibly do.  And yet, burpees are one of those exercises that people absolutely love to hate. It's hard not to hate something that kicks your butt, leaves you a millimeter from passing out, and burns the besqueezus out of every muscle in your body. This will burn crazy calories, shed fat all over, and make you stronger while working your arms, abs, glutes, hamstrings, quads, and chest.

I think there's something wrong with my neurological wiring because I just love doing burpees {strangely enough} for the same reason people want to give them the middle finger.

If you search the web, you'll find a whole heck of a lot of burpee variations, depending on how hard you want to get knocked on your tush. But the idea is that you go from a vertical position to horizontal then back up to vertical as quickly as you can. Like this...

4-Point Burpee

Start standing.

Squat.

Kick feet back to plank/push-up position.

Pull feet back in to squat.

Back up to standing or jump up.

6-point/Push-Up Burpee: For an extra challenge, there's the 6-point burpee which adds a push-up {chest to touch the ground} from the plank position.

Burpee Box Jumps: Instead of standing up or jumping straight up, jump on to a plyometric box.

There's some burpees that exhibit poor form and good form. For example, CrossFit's version of burpees are the perfect example of the former. It goes a little something like this:

Squat. Kick out {more like flop down} to touch chest and thighs to the ground. Back to squat. Jump up to touch a target 6" above your max reach.

And I have a confession...my sorry butt has been doing this version of burpees, thinking I'm all hardcore knocking burpees out faster than you can say "onomatopoeia." In the back of my mind I keep thinking, "Why do people hate burpees so much? They're easy!" Well, no wonder! I've been cheating!

I really have no idea why CrossFit has its athletes do burpees like this. To be able to do more in less time? Doing this version of burpees causes the athlete to hyper extend the lumbar when getting up, which can cause injury.

Ready to do it?  Let's go!

30 Day Burpee Challenge: This is a great way to slowly get into the swing of your new favorite exercise. Modify any way you want, take your time, and try to keep your back as straight as possible.

The Prisoner Workout: What do you do when you're a prisoner...meaning, you have no agenda, no equipment, and limited space? You work out, of course!  You do burpees!  Lots and lots of burpees!  Here's how this one goes...do 20 reps of burpees {straight through without stopping, if possible}. Rest and catch your breath.  Now do 19 reps of burpees. Catch your breath.  Keep descending the number of reps you do until you get all the way down to 1.  See how long it takes you to complete this workout.  I have done this once {doing cheater/CrossFit burps} and it took me 26:33.  I'll have to try it again by doing 4-point or 6-point burpees. You can modify by starting at a different number other than 20, like 10 or 5, depending on your fitness level and how much time you've got.

Let us know how it goes!  Keep an eye out for the next Bodyweight Series exercise...

Lots of love, Dawn





REFERENCES:
New York Times article "What's the Best Exercise?": http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/17/magazine/mag-17exercise-t.html
Burpee T-shirt: http://skreened.com/superdoubleextreme/burpees-not-a-fan
4-Point Burpee Image: http://joshuaspodek.com/burpees-the-one-year-review
6-Point Burpee Image: http://workitoutchicago.blogspot.com/2013/01/1000-burpees-in-february.html
Burpee Box Jumps Image: http://www.crossfitmemorialhouston.com/2012/06/
Burpees and proper form: http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/rossboxing2.htm

Women Don't Have Boy Parts: Why You Should Put Down the Pink Dumbbells

Women really should not be weightlifting or lifting anything even remotely heavy, for that matter.

Heaven forbid that just laying eyes on a non-pink dumbbell weighing more than her purse could instantaneously cause her to bust out of her blouse like a bulky, bulging, bodybuilding She-Hulk.

So ladies, please be careful.

Don't pick up a double-digit dumbbell.

Don't even think of touching a barbell.

And don't you dare do anything less than 50 reps of bicep curls with that 2-lb pink Barbie dumbbell.  I would hate for any of you to lose fat, get stronger, decrease your risk for osteoporosis, or fit better into your skinny jeans.

That would be straight-up tragic.

Okay....so I'm being a pretty overdramatic and sarcastic. Who doesn't love that?!
I can only take it this offensively far because I was in the same boat as a lot of women just a few months ago.  That group of whiny, prudish women that cry "I don't want to lift weights!  I'm afraid I'll get bulky!"

Please.

If you've ever uttered this whine out loud or to the voices in your head, please don't take offense that I'm pointing out how ridiculous this statement is...because I've said the same exact thing too!  Mel likes to tease me about it on multiple occasions. And then I chuckle and we all have a good time at my expense.  Whatevs. 

First of all, what exactly do you think "bulky" is?

Is it this?

 

Or this?

My question is why do they bother even wearing a bikini top?!  It's not like they have breasts to hide anymore!  Why is this chick's face pale white while her body is a sweaty old prune?

What about these ladies?  Are they what you would call "bulky"?

I can't tell you how many times I've heard a woman say she wants Kelly Ripa's arms.  And apparently plastic surgeons are saying that last year, women wanted Michelle Obama's arms so badly, they were undergoing plastic surgery for an upper-arm lift {brachioplasty}.  What the what?!

The last pic is of Julie Foucher, 2nd place woman in the CrossFit Games in 2012.  She's just adorable, and only 24 years old!  She didn't participate in this year's CrossFit Games because she's focusing on medical school.

But for the sake of argument, let's just say we're all on the same page here...

Bulky? Yes.

Bulky? No.

This is Camille Leblanc-Bazinet, she's currently ranked 1st in her region in the CrossFit Regionals, finishing 1st in 6 of the 7 events.

Can I just humbly clarify something for all my lady friends?  You do not (do NOT) have the physical capacity for looking like Arnold Schwarzenegger in his prime bodybuilding days {thank God, right?}.  And the ones who DO end up looking like the Governator {see above}, well, I'm pretty sure they have a little bottle and needle they can thank for that.  Women have 10 to 30 times less of the hormones responsible for muscular hypertrophy, meaning a woman's muscles won't gain size but definition and tone.  You can't possibly be afraid of looking like a man because...well, you aren't one!  How about that?  Huh, who knew?

I strongly believe God designed women for incredibly strong feats.  We are designed to carry heavy weight on our bodies when pregnant with a baby.  We are blessed with incredible strength to push the sucker out 9 months later.  We're physically capable of constantly picking up and putting down children and groceries that weigh more than our pink dumbbell.  If you have children, do you realize that you're already "lifting heavy" on a daily basis?  Are your arms heaving out of your cap sleeves from that?  Probably not, I reckon.

So why weight train or "lift heavy"?  Besides making it easier to carry your laundry around the house and not tucker out so quickly when your child reaches up to you to be picked up squealing "Again! Again!"...

Lose Body Fat/You'll Look Awesome

Oh Lordy, don't we all want to do that! Understand that losing body does not necessarily mean the number on your scale will automatically plummet. It depends on how "sizeable" you are to begin with.  Since weight training in March, my weight has actually gone up at least 3 pounds.  And yet my clothes fit better.  Since muscle is much more dense than fat, a pound of muscle takes up much less space than a pound of fat.

At the end of the day, the number on the scale is just a number.  The better way to measure your progress is by how your clothes fit and or by looking for muscle definition in the mirror.  Also, muscle burns more calories at rest by raising your resting metabolism.  For every muscle you gain, you burn 35 to 50 more calories per day (a pound of fat burns 2-5 calories per day). The flat-out myth that lighter reps should be used for better muscle tone.

Improve Cardiovascular Health:

"But can't I just set the incline to zero and speed to 3 mph on the treadmill and just go?" While it certainly is better than sitting on a couch, the answer is a big fat N-O, Sissy Lalapants.  You're better than that, I know you are!  Weight training lowers LDL cholesterol, increases HDL cholesterol, and lowers blood pressure (*). Some day soon I'll write about how irritated I get when people only do aerobic training {treadmill, elliptical, Zumba, Spin, etc.}, but that's a whole other post for a whole other day.

Reduced Risk of Diabetes

The beneficial effect on diabetes comes from weight training's impact on insulin receptors.  Building muscle mass improves the sensitivity of insulin receptors, making it easier for muscle cells to absorb glucose.

Reduced Risk of Osteoporosis 

Wouldn't you just love to be that little old lady screaming "Help, I've fallen and I can't get up!"?  If you would rather sign up for the LifeAlert button for when you fall and broke a hip, then don't lift. Otherwise, increase your bone mineral density through weight training.  A study on postmenopausal women participating in a strength training program for a year underwent a significant increase in spine and hip bone density {those areas most affected by osteoporosis in older women}. 

You: "Okay, Dawn, sign me up! I've got some squish I can afford to lose.  I want some muscle definition.  I want to get stronger!"

Me: "Awesome!" {high fives you}

You: "Uh, how exactly do I lift heavy?"

Easy peasy, friend.  First of all, look at everything that claims it will "tone" you...and run the opposite direction.  Lose the mindset that you are wanting to get "toned"..."toning" is simply another word for "waste of your time and muscle."

Think more like an athlete and how they train.  Would you ever see an Olympic gymnast doing so-called "toning" exercises? Heck to the no. 

You want to pick a weight that you can barely knock out 10 reps, and definitely not 11 reps.  Don't rest for long periods of time, ideally less than 60 seconds between exercises.  Pick compound movements {as opposed to isolating exercise} that will work multiple muscle groups, several joints, and give you the most bang for your buck without taking up a lot of your time.

Some of my humble suggestions...

Pull-ups: I use an assisted pull-up machine for 2 or 3 sets of 8 reps since I can only do one strict body weight pull-up.

Push-ups: Make it easier by getting on hands and knees.  Make it harder by doing handstand push-ups.  I actually do push-ups at work when no one's looking.  I won't tell you when or where because it's a really big secret.

Squats: Either body weight {also called "air squats"} or with barbell {I like to do front and back squats at the squat rack}, kettlebells, or dumbbells.

Thrusters: This has become one of my favorite moves because it hits so many muscles.  I usually use a 45-lb barbell.  You squat while holding your weight and then push press it above your head.

Tricep Dips: On a chair or couch to make it easier, or full body weight to make it harder.

Lunges: Hold a weight overhead and keep your arms locked and straight for an awesome challenge.

{Upright} Rows: While standing, hold your weight with arms straight down, then "pull" your weight up towards your face with elbows bent and up above your shoulders.  I like to use a weight plate for these.  There's lots of other variations on rows that are good.

Well, my friend...I hope that you have been inspired, encouraged, and educated about how great weightlifting can be for you.  Please e-mail us at burnandfuelwomen@gmail.com and let us hear your story!

Lots of love, Dawn

CrossFit Regionals, "Jackie", and "Murph"

Happy Memorial Day!

Watching the Women's CrossFit Regionals these past few days has been such a kick in the pants!  I say "kick in the pants" because 1) it's a lot of fun, and 2) it's inspiring and motivating, as in kicking my saggy butt into gear.  There's something about watching someone's hard work, dedication, and unbridled determination come to fruition... especially in athletes.  I just have a huge respect and admiration for athletes, and it's probably because I never was one.  I was in ballet lessons for 13 years!  I competed in speech events and Mock Trial!  I was a total dweeb!  Athletics?  What is that?
Last night I watched the NorCal Women's Event 1 competition {you should watch it too, just click here!}.  The event was CrossFit's "Jackie" workout:

Jackie
1000m row
50 reps of 45-lb thrusters
30 pull-ups 

Dude, what's a thruster?  

Thruster: Squat while holding a 45-lb barbell, stand up, press the bar overhead.



Dude, that's a pull-up?

Kipping Pull-ups: In the video, the ladies are performing kipping pull-ups as opposed to doing strict dead hang pull-ups.  While it may look easier, it's a skill involving more muscles and coordination. I didn't realize this until recently, but any time a CrossFit workout says to do pull-ups, it means kipping pull-ups...

The first woman off the rowing machine started her thrusters with the clock reading 3:50.  That is just insane to me considering the best time I've gotten on a 1000m row is 4:31!  Seriously amazing!

It was so much fun watching Annie Sakamoto {she's in the thrusters pic above} do this event...a 5-foot, 37-year-old firecracker who knocked out those thrusters like it was sweet potato pie.  She's 37?  She started CrossFit when she was 33?  And she's got two kids?! If that's not inspiring, I really don't know what is! 

The top 3 women finished this event in like, 6 minutes.  I never even thought you could do that many reps of anything in 6 minutes! 

With today being Memorial Day, many CrossFit affiliates choose the "Murph" workout for their workout of the day {WOD}.  The "Murph" workout was created in memory of Navy Lieutenant Michael Murphy, 29, of Patchogue, N.Y., who was killed in Afghanistan on June 28th, 2005.  Murphy originally called this workout "Body Armor" and it was one of his favorites.  I absolutely love the fact that CrossFit has come up with multiple workouts named after servicemen {and servicewomen too? I'm not sure...I've only seen men's names thus far} who have died while serving our country and protecting our freedom.

Murph
1 mile run
100 pull-ups
200 push-ups
300 squats
1 mile run


The thought crossed my mind to try and do this at Gb3 before work today but I only had 30 minutes and there was no way I could physically do the "Murph" workout in 30 minutes!  So I did the "Jackie" instead.  Obviously, I didn't knock it out in no 6 minutes, and no way was I doing any kipping pull-ups...never done 'em in my life!  I hit up the rowing machine and rowed out 1000m in 4:38. Then I walked to the squat rack, grabbed the barbell, and partitioned out 50 reps {12, then 11, then 7, 10, and 10}.  That was so exhausting!  More exhausting than I had anticipated.  Last, I was able to do 3 sets of 10 reps on the assisted pull-up machine, since I can't do a kipping or strict pull-up.  Total time: 15:21 {including walking in between machines}.

So I've basically got a 9-minute difference to work on! {big cheesy smile!}  While I'll probably never be able to get anywhere near the 6- or 7-minute mark for the "Jackie" workout, it's kind of cool to be able to see how I stack up to the world's fittest women.  Plus, it's just nice to have a goal to shoot for.

Oy, definitely going to feel this one tomorrow...

Your homework for this week, ladies {and dudes, if you're out there!}...
*Go here and watch a CrossFit Regionals event!

*Try something you've never done before! 
If you've never used a rowing machine, do it. 
If you've never done a thruster, grab any weight you're comfortable with {hand weights, kettlebells, or a barbell} and do it. 
If you've never tried to do a pull-up on the pull-up machine, do it. 
If you've never done any of those three things, well then get to it...you've got a busy week ahead of you!

*Know that you can partition out your reps, meaning, you don't have to bust out ALL 50 thrusters straight through.  Very few super well-conditioned folks can do something like that. 

*Try "Jackie" or "Murph" {if you have the time and access to the equipment}. Don't worry about trying to get a certain time, just finish!

*Breathe.  Take your time.  And smile!

A Saturday Sister Workout

My sister Summer and I have been meeting up to go to the gym once every couple of weeks or so.  I'm not sure how we're able to get in such a great workout when it seems like all we're doing is laughing and making stupid Simpsons or Friends jokes. This past Saturday we got to the gym, and by reading the blank look on Summer's face when I asked, "What do you want to work on today?", I knew I had to take charge.

 

"Okay, Tabata sprints or rowing machine?" I asked.

 

"I don't want to do Tabata sprints!" she giggled.

 

"Perfect." I wanted to row today anyways! AND, I love being the one to come up with our workouts.  I'm hoping to get a certification in personal training {this year? next year?} so I love having Summer as my guinea pig. She's great at letting me boss her around and pick apart her form! Okay, that just makes me sound evil...

We started with 1000m row at a 7 resistance.  I beat my previous time for 1000m {4:38} by only a few seconds.  I ended up rowing 1019m and my time said 4:36 so I don't know what time I got at exactly 1000m, but I think I calculated it out to about 4:31. 

 

I swear Summer looked like Mary freakin' Poppins perfectly perched on the rowing machine, just as giddy and gay as can be, and it was cracking me up.  She definitely makes going to the gym a lot more fun than when I'm by myself!

 

After catching our breaths, we alternated doing assisted pull-ups and upright rows with a 35- pound weight plate. {3 sets of 8 reps for each}.

 

Then, one of my favorite parts of a workout...the squat rack.  I love working at the squat rack because there's usually no one using it and it freaks the living daylights out of the muscleheads to see a woman lifting.  

We started with front squats {45 lb x 8 reps, 65 lb x 5, 95 lb x 3, 115 lb x 1}. The trick is to try to keep your weight on your heels instead of the balls of your feet, and you want to drop your butt down far enough so that your thighs go past parallel with the floor. And elbows up!

Then back squats {45 lb x 8 reps, 65 lb x 5, 95 lb, x 3, 115 lb x 3, 125 lb x 1}.  Widen your grip on the bar than your grip for front squats. I was super stoked because 125 lbs is the highest weight I've ever done for back squats...my first time lifting more than my bodyweight! Another personal record!  We started to do deadlifts but our legs were pretty tuckered out so we moved on.

 

Tricep dips and oblique side bends with 35 lb weight plates were next.  For the first time, I was able to do full bodyweight tricep dips for 3 sets of 8 instead of using the assistance from the machine.  We did 2 sets of 15 side bends for each side. 

 

We finished up with me challenging Summer to a plank {on elbows} contest, and giving her a forewarning that the longest plank I've held was for 5:20.  She made it to 2:45 and I stopped at 3:00.

 

Here's the day's workout:

1000m row

Alternate assisted pull-ups with 35lb upright row {you can use a weight plate, resistance band, dumbbells, kettlebell, or a barbell} for 3 sets of 8

Front squats {45 lb x 8 reps, 65 lb x 5, 95 lb x 3, 115 x 1}

Back squats {45 lb x 8 reps, 65 lb x 5, 95 lb x 3, 115 lb x 3, 125 lb x 1}

Tricep dips {3 sets of 8}

Oblique side bends with 35 lb weight plate {you can also use dumbbells or kettlebells} for 3 sets of 8

Plank hold on elbows

 

Let me know how you do if you do this for your workout!