Open Fitness Journal: October 11 & 12

#ACTIVERESTDAYS

Can anyone relate?

As athletes, we slam our muscles day in and day out.

On a good week- I can accumulate up to 20 hours in the gym and even more when you count the recovery runs I take in the mornings to get my blood flowing.  Weather these box hours be lifting weights, pushing myself through heart-pounding WOD’s, or working on my mobility all of these things add up.

When Saturday and Sunday come along I never want to acknowledge it but in order for me to get stronger, I need to rest.  YOU NEED TO REST.  Our muscles need this rest time to rebuild themselves so that next week we can get back at it and continue PR’ing the crap out of our lifts.

Yesterday- I took a four hour walk through the North and Southeast parts of Portland.  I have been living in the Northeast division so I took roads that I don’t usually walk on and found myself appreciating the fall scenery in the Laurelhurst Suburbs.

I saw everything from flowers with last night’s rain drops still hanging around to stoner street art (I’m always impressed.) to cute young families loving the sunshine to huge ice cream cones… that I might have eaten…

………..

………….

………………

okay…

A huge ice cream cone that I did eat. #TreatDay

Cinnamon Snickerdoodle (Cinnamon ice cream with chunks of snickerdoodle cookies) & Coconut with Salted Caramel Bars (Made with a coconut milk base this one was vegan!)

Let me clarify: Just because you are taking a rest day does not mean stay in bed all day and binge watch Netflix.

Get up and do something that is going to enrich your soul!

Need some ideas?

-Take your puppy for a walk in the woods and soak up the fall colors.

-Take a trip to your nearest weekend farmer’s market on Saturday and stock up on apples for the fresh Paleo Apple Pie (recipe coming soon!) that you’re going to bake on Sunday.

-Plan a pumpkin patch date with your man and spend the afternoon carving spooky faces (and baking delicious pumpkin seeds!)

-Take a walk to a new part of your city that you’ve never explored before (& eat a huge ice cream cone;)

One last thing!  Don’t forget to take pictures and Tweet Me! or Tag me on Instagram and add #ActiveRestDay so I can see what awesome things you’re doing this fall outside of the gym.

Open Fitness Journal: October 8, 2014

After attending a PR party at CrossFit Stumptown last night I find myself with so much motivation I can barely wait until 4 to get to the gym!

I am all sorts of excited to get back into it tonight and work, work, WORK.

It’s an awesome feeling to PR lifts and to get stronger– but I also know that this means that I probably won’t be PR’ing anything anytime soon after the lifts I made last night.  This just means that it’s time for me to work even harder and push myself more than I think I can.

Have you gotten up and gotten sweaty yet today?

-if yes… YOU’RE AWESOME

-if no… (You mean NOT YET) and YOU’RE AWESOME, TOO  

Tweet me what you did to workout your gorgeous bod today!

Or maybe you snapped an awesome post-workout selfie?  Instagram it and tag me so I can cheer you on!

Warm-Up

1000 M Row (Slow)

Dynamic Stretching

5 x :35 Second Hand Stand Hold

Foam Roll (5 minutes)

5 x 30 Second

Strength

Back Squat

5 x 60# (x2)

5 x 70#

3 x 85#

—————————-

5 x 100#

3 x 115#

3 x 130#

(The weights that I am using in these lifts come from a % of my one-rep training max.  They begin at 40% and build up by 10% increments until a max effort at 90%)

Pull-Up Complex  

3 x 8-12 strict green-banded pull-ups

3 x 10 ring rows

3 x 10 strict push ups 3

Warm-Up Rope Climbs

WOD:

3 Rounds For Time:

30 Overhead Walking Lunge Steps (35#)

13 Plyo-Push-Ups on Plates (say that 10 times fast;)

3 Rope Climbs

Time: 12:20

Ca$h Out:

1000 M Row

+ IT Band Mobility Roll

Self Love: October 5th, 2014

“I am mine.

before I am ever anybody else’s.”

-nayyirah wahee