3rd annual Brute Strength Open

Aug 9th, 2009:

Snatch: 65, 70, 73
C&J: 85, 90, 94

Total: 167kg

This was, as a whole, better than expected. Though my PR would have put my total at 180, I had only been expecting 160 due to my training schedule. Rather than view this as another competition, I saw this as a competition from a de-conditioned state: the training period leading up to this event had me working 80 hours per week with an average of 5 hours of sleep per night. Food intake varied, but in the last week it averaged close to 1000 calories per day, and on lift day I weighed in at approximately 72 kilos (my normal competition weight is 77kg, and my normal walking weight is closer to 80). In essence, my body had been wasting away for the previous month, so being able to perform at all can be considered satisfactory.

I trained about 6 or 7 times before the meet, and my diet played fast and loose (on the one hand Stephan brings up the fact that a carbohydrate-rich diet doesn't seem to wreak that much havoc on the body if caloric intake as a whole is already restricted, and at the same time the issue of food-as-emotional-relief vs food-for-physical-health came into constant play; I sided with emotional relief from stress) and it seems that my body was still able to more or less perform. It is difficult to say whether or not this was independent or simply a wind-down from the leftovers of bjj training.

An Aug 22nd o-lifting meet is up next (if scheduling permits). Otherwise the bjj pan-ams and worlds are upcoming (again if scheduling permits) followed by the Baltimore Open (0-lifting) in January 2010.

Aug 5th (immediately pre-comp)

Details are same as before.

Did "heavy" snatch and c&j. All lifts felt shaky, and the combination of lack of sleep, abundance of work, and lack of training are making themselves known. This weekend will be hopeful, but not overly so.

Additional competitions:

Baltimore open - January 2010.

Upcoming competitions

August 9 - Brute Strength Open

August 22 - Maryland and Potomac Valley Weightlifting Championships

September 12/13 - USA Weightlifting Club Coach Certification (kind of)

October 3/4 - Pan-American Games (BJJ)

November 8 - Worlds (BJJ)

Beginning of August

Working: 80 hours/week

Sleep: average 5 hours/night

Diet: less than 1500

Injuries: knee (both), ankle (right), foot (both) pain is not abating. No opportunities to ice, and these are likely overuse injuries from the increased hours.

Training Saturday, August 1st: Heavy snatch and clean and jerks, followed by a round of Dimel deadlifts (185lb) and explosive shoulder press (95lb). 80% of snatch attempts were missed, and jerks (right-foot split) were sloppy. Most likely a combination of lack of recovery, fatigue, and lack of practice. Strength is there, but form and coordination is not. Will be working straight doubles except for wednesday morning until the meet, so recovery and practice are limited. Upcoming meet will be a huge question mark, but hope springs eternal.

Week ending July

Currently working: 80 hours/week
Eating: Roughly Paleo, approx. 2200 calories, ad lib and throughout all waking hours. Periodic alcohol, caffeine, sugar and dairy consumption.
Energy levels: generally weak; getting on the bike for the commute is sluggish, and 4 hours of sleep per night is grinding down
Upcoming competitions: O-lifting meet Aug 9, Aug 22nd, then USAWeightlifting Coach Cert in September
Training: heavy singles with both of the lifts - only getting 4 non-working shifts per week means that I have to go big every time.

July 28 - Heavy Snatch, followed by jerk practice loaded at 40kg. Tried out both squat jerks and right-food splits. Snatches went up to 75kg - form deteriorated because of early hip rise due to wrong mental state - "I have to get up and under fast." Need to stay calm in the 1st pull so that I can be sure to set myself up correctly for the second. Afraid that too much cautiousness will lead to an extremely slow 1st pull, leaving me doing hang snatches instead of full ones.
July 29 - Heavy C&J - worked up to 95kg, had a scary dump on the jerk. Still debatable as to whether I will be using a right-foot split or squat jerk for the meet. 95kg put me in the hole and I had to struggle to get out. 100kg might actually be limited by strength rather than technique.

The End of an Era...

It's been an incredible three years watching Crossfit grow throughout the UVA and Charlottesville community.  I for one know that it's been a thrill to watch as our ranks have grown, and it's been a fulfilling journey for everyone who's been involved to share, teach, and inspire each other.  As was inevitable, a fully-fledged box has finally opened up in Charlottesville, and it's time for Crossfit in Charlottesville to take the next step.

Things will be getting much quieter here.  Looking for some workout company/instruction/inspiration?  Head over to Crossfit Charlottesville for all your exercise/health/life needs....

In the meanwhile, a few of my fondest moments:

A very very VIP makes a guest appearance on our blog (read through the comments)

The Boa...an interesting tool for training, but will people come back to it?

Another tool of the trade, retrieved at great effort, but to little use...

One of the earliest group workouts...crowded and 

under-equipped, but ingenuity and creativity meant that 

all involved were pushed as far as they could go.

An experiment in true randomization - with an unknown workout,

 an unknown location, and an unknown time of day, how would one fare?

The result: three hungover individuals at 5am Saturday morning, 

lugging a 120lb sack,  doing burpees, and answering questions.

A first muscle-up.  One among many records set and 

broken at our last location, a facility that treated 

us better than we could have expected or hoped.

Thank you to everyone who's been there along the way.  It's been a privilege to train with each and every one of you.

- Bin Lu