AM
16.2 movement prep
PM
16.2 redo
AM
complete
PM
258 (1 rep less than Friday)
Well. That was the worst.
I went into my redo today with a lot of confidence. I had a new plan for the toes to bar and I was going to move faster through the cleans so I could have a shot at the 175 bar. I knew if I could get to the bar, I could clean it.
WRONG.
This started hurting almost immediately. Toes to bar were broken up 5/5/3/3/3/3 and then maybe singles after that? I tripped up twice on the first set of double unders. The cleans at 85 were okay but I think they were a bit slower than Friday. When I got back to the second set of toes to bar I was already done. My grip was completely shot, I got about ten reps in and my forearms were blown up. I felt like I could barely hang on to the bar. I tripped up AGAIN on the double unders and the 115 cleans felt like absolute garbage. These were so much harder than they were on Friday, it was shocking. Again, I wasn't sure if I was going to even make it through these cleans before time ran out. Somehow I did and I went back for another set of toes to bar. These were awful. My grip was so done at this point, I was doing singles but they were slow and I felt like I was going to slip off the bar. This was terrible. I did the 50 double unders unbroken (finally) but I failed my first clean at 145. This completely shook my confidence and I was mentally out of it at that point. I somehow managed to get five cleans before time ran out but they were all a struggle. Heather told me she had never seen me do so many ugly cleans before.
Everything about this redo felt so much worse than it did on Friday. My grip was shot, I could barely stand up the cleans, and I kept tripping up on my double unders. I was so sure I was going to make it to the 175 bar, but even if I did there's no way I would have been able to clean it. Not today.
This was me after my redo today:
This was so disappointing. I cried for a solid ten minutes after this was over (sorry Heather). I really wanted to make it to the next round, and I was trying. I could hear the urgency in Stephen and Heather's voices but I just couldn't do it. This is the second week in a row I've disappointed myself.
I'm trying to stay positive. I know this is only the second week, and a lot of my bad movements are already out of the way. Handstand push ups and muscle ups have to be coming. I also have to remind myself the Open does not define me as an athlete or a person. I am putting a lot of pressure on myself since I did well last year and I feel like I am supposed to contribute every week. I don't have any control over the workouts so I just have to learn what I can from this Open and use it for my training over the next year.
30:00 assault bike @Z1
+
15:00 mobility
complete
A. Snatch pull, 6x1 @1RM snatch; begin a rep every :90
B. Handstand push ups, 1x max unbroken (-5)
+
Partner work w/class @80% effort- keep everything very aerobic
+
10:00 mobility work of choice
A. complete @165
B. 35
+
subbed 3 rounds:
1000m row
15 KB swings, 35
10 hand-release push ups
+
complete
Snatch pulls were very easy.
35 is definitely the biggest set of unbroken handstand push ups I've ever done. They were fast too, I wish I would have timed them but the first 30 were flying. I slowed down a bit on the last five and then I was starting to rest on my head so I figured I should just come off the wall since I was supposed to stop five reps from possible failure. I really hope these come up in the Open because if I'm being honest I'm fucking crushing these lately.
I ended up not doing the class workout since so many people were doing 16.2 and I wanted to watch. I just did some rowing, KB swings and hand-release ups to get in some aerobic work.
AM
16.2 movement prep
PM
16.2
AM
complete
PM
259
I wasn't sure how 16.2 was going to go for me. I'm not good at large sets of toes to bar and my core fatigues quickly on those but I'm very good at heavy squat cleans. I broke up the first set of toes to bar in sets of 5. I tripped up a few times on the double unders which was annoying. The cleans at 85 were no problem but I was definitely breathing hard by the time I got back to the bar. I started with a set of 5 and then it was down to twos and threes, and they were slow. I was resting a lot between sets. The cleans at 115 were surprisingly tough, at one point I actually wasn't sure if I was going to finish them in time. I was definitely resting too much here. When I got back to the bar for the next set of toes to bar I was so tired. I was doing singles and each one was at a snail's pace. I would do one single, take my hands off the bar, bend over, and wait for Heather to tell me to go. This was way too slow and way too much time wasted. When I got to the cleans at 145 I only had a little over a minute. I somehow managed to get six cleans before time ran out but they were shockingly hard. When I redo this I'm going to break up the toes to bar earlier and move faster on the cleans at 85 and 115.
10:00 bike @Z1
+
10 sets:
:30 bike @high aerobic effort
:30 bike easy
+
10:00 bike @Z1
complete
+
complete
+
complete
AM
30:00 airdyne @Z1
+
15:00 mobility
PM
A. Snatch, build quickly to a tough single
B. Back squat, build quickly to a moderate single
+
For time @95%
30 handstand push ups
20 deadlifts, 155
10 assault bike calories
+
10:00 rest
+
For time @95%
500m row
+
10:00 assault bike @Z1
AM
complete
PM
A. 160
B. 245
+
2:35
+
1:49.4
+
complete
Snatches were not the best today, I basically have no idea what I'm doing with my set up anymore. Every snatch felt different. After the Open is over I'm going to schedule a session with Chelsea Kyle to work on snatch set up, I know I'm starting with my butt way too high and I need a fix a few other things. I wasn't sure how high I would get today on snatches, the warm up sets felt heavy. I worked through 125 and 135 relatively easily but failed the first rep at 145 and 155 (both out in front). The second attempt at 155 was actually pretty crisp so I decided to go for 160 and hit it very easily. I took a few steps forward but it was fast overhead and I was fast out of the bottom. Just waiting for that 170 snatch any day now...
Back squats felt really tough today, 245 was slow so I called it there. My legs were toast.
The HSPU piece was too slow. My handstand push ups started out really fast but I could tell the cycle speed was slowing down so I came off the wall at 20. When I kicked back up on the wall my arms were really fatigued so I had to break up the last 10 reps 6/4. Ugh. Deadlifts were surprisingly hard, my hamstrings were blown up (I'm guessing from 16.1?) and I had to break these up 12/8. This is lame, I should be able to do 20 deadlifts at 155 unbroken. Assault bike calories were as fast as I could go. This time was definitely too slow.
The 500m row SUCKED. I wasn't fully recovered from the first part so this was really tough. I tried my best to keep it under 1:50, I was running on fumes by the end. Yeeeeesh. I was lactic as hell when this was over.
Today was tough but I enjoyed it.
AM
5 sets of:
3:00 bike @high aerobic effort
:60 rest
3:00 Balza/Drew rehab pieces of choice
:60 rest
PM
A. Bear crawl, 5x10' forward + 10' backward, very slow and deliberate w/10 pound bumper plate on hips; :60 rest
+
For 10:00
Evens: 3 touch and go power cleans-you pick the weight
Odds: 45 double unders
+
For 10:00
Evens: :30 row @90% aerobic
Odds: :30 assault bike @90% aerobic
+
3 rounds not for time:
9-12 light/moderate reverse hypers
+
Crossover Symmetry recovery
AM
complete
PM
A. complete
+
complete w/145
+
complete
+
complete, 45#/side
+
complete
Today was much better than yesterday.
145 was super easy for the touch and go cleans, I definitely should have gone heavier. All double unders were unbroken.
I enjoyed the row/bike EMOM, breathing felt good (my congestion is FINALLY starting to go away).
Overall a nice, chill day.
Also, I feel like I need to vent a little bit about what's currently happening with HQ vs OPEX.
In defense of OPEX and Small Plate Gate
I just have a few thoughts on this.
First of all, it actually made me sad to read through the comments people were making about OPEX. It really bothered me, and it made me sad for the athletes of OPEX. Those guys are the last people you would find cheating. You can tell from the detailed and extensive life coaching/nutrition/program design courses OPEX offers, they do things thoroughly and the right way. They are constantly posting videos of their athletes and I don't think I've ever seen a bad rep or a squat that wasn't legit. They train quality athletes and several of those athletes have made it to the Games and were also drafted for the NPGL. You can't cheat your way through regionals or the Games and you certainly can't cheat your way through an NPGL match that's being broadcast to thousands of people.
Second, after what happened with 15.1A last year, I'm honestly surprised that HQ isn't over-explaining everything. This is why, at every competition, there is a standards briefing before the competition starts. Athletes always have questions about the standards and if it was such a huge deal to HQ, they should have specifically listed the EXACT equipment necessary. You can't assume the athletes are all going to think the same way and use the same things. What if a female was doing this in her garage and she only had a men's bar and two metal 10 pound plates? HQ needs to be thinking of everything at this point. You can't say one thing and then do another. It's like when you and your friend have a crush on the same guy and you ask your friend if it's cool that you and this guy go out, and your friend says yes but secretly she means no, and then you go out with this guy and your friend gets mad at you because she didn't think you would actually do it and you should have KNOWN it would upset her! HQ needs to stop laying down the law AFTER the fact. Be ready with all the possible scenarios before you explain the workout, and give people time to rectify their mistakes.
It is really too bad how this whole situation was handled by HQ. OPEX does not deserve to have their name tarnished like this, it's a shame. Hopefully this type of situation doesn't happen again, I really hope HQ learns from this (ehhhh) and starts over-preparing with their standards and expectations.
