Taking it outside at last

With the intention of back-packing both ways to school today, I decided to try a short and intense workout today. It was surprisingly gorgeous out, so I was able to stay outdoors.

I recycled this old faithful, but scaled for pregnancy:

Five rounds:
40 squats
400 m run
= 19:25 minutes.

Normally this workout takes more like 14 minutes, and involves sets of 50 squats. I ran as fast as I could, which was about a brisk-ish jog. (Maybe a 7 - 7.5 on the treadmill? Runs took about 2:15 min rather than the typical 1:40.) It was as hard as the usual non-pregnant version, which tells me the scaling was about right for today. :-)

And I did follow up with a second (decaf) latté.

I promise I will do some push-uppy and pull-uppy things at the park today!

Chatting at the gym

French gym dude: 'Ow many weeks?
H: 35 weeks.
FGD: [calculating in his head]...
H: In two or three weeks, I'll be ready to go!
FGD: [looks pregnant lady up and down, raises eyebrows] You do vay-ray well!
H: [sheepish] Well, I'm trying...

Here is what I was doing:

1000 m row/5:18

21-15-12 reps:

"Kettlebell" (db) deadlift - 40 lb*
Incline chest press - 20 lb dbs
Step ups - Did reps per leg
Lat pulls - 70 (reality: 21-10-10)

* Using a db instead of kb meant I didn't have to bend very low for these, but the height was pretty much perfect for what I could handle. It's a good alternative to the RDLs I've been relying on lately.

Back extensions - 8, 8, 8 (This was risky because my back is already under a lot of strain, but I stopped each rep before it began to hurt.)

1000 m row/5:22

Big legs

It's been awhile since I left the gym and felt all wobbly on the first set of stairs I hit. Today was one of those days. I planned to follow Ken's example and do yesterday's regular crossfit, but ended up subbing in thrusters for kettlebell swings. It looked like this:

5 rounds:
12 thrusters, 40 lb
12 walking lunges, 30 lb

Finished with:
12 presses, 35 lb
15 squats, 45 lb

Treadmill to loosen up - an easy mile (about 12 minutes @ 5.3 mph, 1% grade). Walked some of it at the beginning, because I got a cramp (the regular kind). Otherwise it felt great - normal. Slow's the way to go!

Hitting all the (body) bases

A hk custom CF-style circuit again.

4 rounds:

500 m row
15 DB (aka kettlebell) swings 25#
12 bench dips
15 16" step-ups (per leg)

Phewf. That's it. It took about 40 minutes. It was hard. I sweated a lot. I loved it.

The DB swing is my new answer to deadlifts. (Which are awkward at best without the proper sized plates.) The drive of the legs/hips and stabilization of the back required really seems to work the same muscles in similar ways. Just saying.

Note on the step-ups: This doesn't sound very high considering box jumps are typically done on a 20" box (not that I've ever used a box that high, but anyway). But when I step up to this level, my hip flexes my thigh beyond parallel to the floor - that is, it's as high as I can possibly step up before I have to twist my hips or hop. Next time I do this, I suspect I'll have to lower the step, because my belly is beginning to interfere with my leg when I raise it this high. Hmph.

This is more like it

Despite delaying my workout until the afternoon out of sheer laziness (and a lack of hot water for a shower this morning), I felt great today. Strong. XFM workout today, with the addition of good mornings because the bar was already there on my shoulders. How handy is that?

4 rounds:

500 m row*
15 squats - 45
15 good mornings - 45
12 push press - 45

* The row takes between 2:20-2:30 min per 500 m. That's seriously as hard as I can go for that distance/length of time.

Then just one set of the "chin-up" pull down: 105 x 5. I figure I should throw this down every so often so I can ramp back up to regular chin-ups asap once the spring hits. (I could almost do a 120 pull-down, but not quite. Maybe at the beginning of the workout?)

When I do these circuits, I try to not take breaks between exercises; however, I do end up grabbing small breathers as necessary (to avoid the fainting). Usually just a few breaths. The treadmill and erg are upstairs, so I always get a built-in break before and after a run or row. I try to run the stairs. :-)

I did spend the morning reading one of the labour preparation books I've got, and it got me really psyched. I feel like I'm training for a big athletic event. Which I suppose is true enough. (Or possibly more true than I can imagine!)

In which I feel like a$$, but forge ahead

Today's workout was based on today's Crossfit WOD. I used the word "based" loosely, as I subbed and scaled with abandon:

5 rounds:

Run 400 m - 6.7 mph
15 sumo deadlift highpulls - 40 lb
30 v-sit ball tosses

Finished with an easy 10 minute jog @ 5.5 mph.

The SDHP's were subbed for deadlifts (the sumo stance seriously helps navigate the belly). The v-sits were subbed for glute-ham extensions which are impossible to do pregnant. I actually attempted to do crunches on the ball, but these have become really uncomfortable, so I switched to v-sits.

I shoveled the driveway again.

I was SO tired today, I could barely drag my butt out of bed, and I was terribly unfocused all day. Going to the gym gave me something concrete to focus on. But I felt like total ass the whole time. Running sucks: my belly cramps here and there, my boobs are uncontainable (sport bra issues another issue entirely), my adductors and hip flexors hurt... My shorts don't fit properly over the new curves, so I get fat-lady-bunch when I run. SUCKS.

Today, anyway.

Of my own invention

My workotus have officially taken on a regular pattern. I made up a circuit today in the spirit of the XFM ones I've been doing lately. I like the shorter, more intense workouts with the "cardio" portion broken into shorter portions (because running is harder and rowing is kind of boring). Each circuit tends to contain a push, a pull, and a hip/leg exercise. Perfect proportions.

Here's what I did:

4 rounds
500 m row
15 sumo deadlift high-pulls #35
15 (each leg) split squats #25
15 push presses #40

I made some adjustments as I went along. Set 1 of row was actually a 400m run, because the erg was occupied. I used 40 lbs on set 4 of the SDHP's because the 35 lb didn't get as heavy over the sets as I expected. (I think I can do these at 45 no problem if I'm doing fewer reps/sets.) I only managed 12 reps on set 3 of the split squats. Push presses went as planned - I did them with slow eccentrics. It seemed light for push presses at first, by by the 3rd and 4th set, I was needing to pause to catch my wind around rep 10.

Tried an easy run for a cool down and to shake out the legs (those split squats were torture!), but aborted after a few minutes when I was beset by abdominal cramps.

Weigh-in: 145 lb (late afternoon)

Swingin'

Today's XFM* workout called for kettlebell swings. I've never done them before, but Ken just happened to try them earlier in the week and encouraged me to give it a try. Despite the one-hand prescription of the workout, I decided to try them two-handed first, and I had to use a dumbbell. But our dbs have a handy configuration - easy to grip by the plate. My workout looked like this:

18-14-10-10 reps
kettlebell swings - 2 hands #25
lunges (per leg - 36, 28, 20, 20 total)
push-ups (actually did 20, 15, 15, 15)*

"Easy" run - 1.5 miles/15 minutes

I can't really do more than a few regular push-ups now, but knees-down are still fairly easy (but an extra 15 lbs is nothing to scoff at!) I probably could've done 4 x 20 here, but my heart-rate was crazy after the kb's and lunges, so I took this set as a "break".

The run wasn't actually that easy. I ran at mainly 6 mph and eventually 5.5 mph when things started cramping and aching. Turns out that 6 mph is now about as fast as I can go if I want to cruise for longer than a few minutes. Running is growing increasingly difficult. I hit my target heartrate at a fairly slow speed, and things begin to ache in the lower belly, hip region after a while -- the fast I go, the more quickly it happens. I'll keep it up, but judiciously.

The kettlebell swings are AWESOME. I loved it. It seemed easy for the first few reps, but everything got difficult pretty quickly - heartrate and breathing gets crazy, and if you're really focusing on driving with your hips and legs, you begin to feel it. The momentum of the swinging weight means you're work much more than the 25 lbs of the db. Back is dramatically engaged when you reach the top of the swing, keeping everything straight while you brake the weight. Abs work all the way through. The movement in general feel quite natural - not awkward. I'm in love with this exercise.

Weigh-in: 143. Morning, go figure.

Tidbit: Extra progesterone during pregnancy relaxes smooth muscle tissue. One of the results of this is that digestive processes slow down. Also, intestines get pushed/scrunched up near the rib cage, also slowing things down. My interpretation -- there is some serious build-up by the end of the day!

* XFM = Crossfit Mom. Clever, huh?

Baby Angie

I've been lacking ideas, and the WOD's from Crossfit Mom have been emjoyable lately, so I think I'll stick to it for a bit. Today called for a Baby Angie.

Now, the last time I tried "Angie", I called her Baby Angie, because the full grown gal is, quite frankly, insane. So today's workout was more like "Itty Bitty Preemie Angie".

40 pull-ups - 15+8+8+9 (70 lb lat pulls with a close-ish pull-up grip)
40 push-ups - 25+10+5 (knees down)
40 squats (easy to do in one shot)
40 knee raises* - 20+12+8

Most sets I had to break up because I died before finishing. I took short, 15-20 second breaks between "sets".

It didn't take very long, so I added a few things:

Shoulder rotations - 8 lb db x 8, 5, 5 (like this, only laying down)
V-sit ball tosses - 4 kg x 40, 40
40 more squats. Did I mention I like squats?

* Knee raises. According to Crossfit Mom, this exercise was supposed to be "knees-to-elbows". Um, right. Aren't we supposed to be pregnant? I'd never tried these before, I'm pretty skeptical I could've done it even pre-pregnancy. Also, we have a serious lack of an accessible chin-up bar, so I couldn't even try doing partials. So I used the roman chair and did something more like this, which was difficult enough... though it missed out on half the exercise (the shoulder part). Ah well. Next summer.

Back in action

Last week, everything seemed to pile on at once, and a fourth workout got buried in the rubble. And not just the reporting thereof -- the whole thing. So, here we begin week 21 with another circuit, inspired by last Friday's WOD.

4 rounds
Row 500m
12 thrusters #45 bar
15 good mornings #45 bar*
15 step ups **

Finished with:
15 squats #55
1500m easy row (8 min)

* Five pounds more than last week!
** I was going to do these with weight, but even 15 lb dbs were nearly impossible. Stepping up this high (at least 20") is harder than jumping - it's almost too high for my foot to reach while still keeping my hips aligned. (And I don't think I'm supposed to be jumping any more...) I'll remember for next time that if I want to do weight, I'll need to lower the step (we have a sort of stool thingy which is great, but a pain to adjust.)

Weigh-in: 144!! I hope it's the little guy who's packing on the pounds. I know it's not that: according to my inside sources, he doesn't even weigh a pound yet! I'll blame the big weekend of near-beer and card-playing... (And an afternoon rather than morning weigh-in.)

Circuitous

I had more success running through a circuit today -- no thwartation at all.

Based on a Crossfit Mom WOD (Tanner), I did this:

4 rounds
Row 500m*
15 presses #30 bar
15 squats #30 bar
15 good mornings #40 bar

*Had to switch to "Run 400m" after 2nd set because someone snagged the erg. A round of 400m at 6.7 mph took the same time as 500m row (2:20 min), and entailed a similar aerobic effort.

Finished off with two sets each of
30 v-sit ball tosses
20 push-ups (all but the first 4 were knees-down)

Pregnant crossfit isn't quite the same as regular crossfit. Whereas in the original you push push push until you are pretty much ready to drop or puke, that sort of strain is not advisable for knocked-up types. Instead, we are supposed to go for steady work for maintenance. So I figure this means "sweaty and red-faced, but not on the verge of fainting" (noting too that the verge of fainting comes more easily when one is hosting a parasite).

Starting the week out right

I tried another crossfit mom workout today:

"Noah" (with some adjustments)
5 rounds
200m run (I did 1/5 mile, which is 323m at 7.5, 7.5, 8, 8, 8 mph)
10 push ups (5 regular + 7 knees-down per set)*
10 good mornings #45 bar (1st two sets I did 40 lb, then upped it)
10 pull ups (85 lb standing with lat pull cable; 2 sets pull-up grip, 3 sets chin-up grip)

I managed to navigate through the gym fairly seamlessly -- and ran up and down the stairs to keep up momentum. :-)

Finished with 1/2 mile easy jog and then 60 v-sit ball tosses (with a slightly bigger ball - 4-5 kg?)

Heartrate: I took my heartrate on the treadmill after the 5th interval of running and clocked in at about 140 bpm. I did it again after my five minutes of jogging at 5.5 mph and clocked 150 bpm. Wtf? I think it was because the first time through it took awhile -- the treadmill asked me a bunch of questions in French before it would take the reading. At any rate, it took three minutes for my HR to go from 150 to -120... Is that good or bad?

Note on HR in pregnancy. In the olden days, the guidelines from the American Association of Obstetricians and Gynecologist prescribed that a pregnant woman's HR should not exceed 140 bpm during exercise. This has been modified, and now it's suggested that a pregnant woman should be able to pass the "talk test" during exercise, or stay with in the 12-14 ("somewhat hard") level of perceived exertion.

My 150 bpm felt well within those guidelines. :-)

Speaking of guidelines, I found some great info on exercise in pregnancy in a newsletter from the Sport InformationResource Centre (SIRC).

I think I squished the baby :-)

Okay, I probably didn't actually squish it while rowing or during crunches -- I think I'm starting to feel movement in there, and it kept giving me pause during today's workout. (It feels like intermittent pressure, or sometimes like a muscle twinge, but right in the the spot where the wee offspring resides...)

So, I've been looking at but not really doing crossfit for pregnancy workouts. Most of the WODs (workout of the day) involve circuits between rowing/treadmill and weights. At my gym, the cardio equipment is on a whole separate floor from the weights, so it's not that convenient for circuits.

Today, though, the prescription was better suited, so I used it as my starting point. The prescribed WOD:

Row 500m then:
21-15-9
Lunges
Good mornings #45

Here is what *I* did:

Row 1000m (4:50 min), then:
22-16-12
Lunges #25
Good mornings #30 (first set), #35 (next 2 sets)*

And then:
21-15-12
Lat pulls #60
Crunches on the ball

Followed by:
V-sit ball toss (3 or 4 kg ball) x 60
750m row (3:40 min)

* I'd never done good mornings before, so I started light. I think I would be able to do 45 lb easily next time. Fun exercise!

Weigh-in: 138!

I meant to go for a run yesterday afternoon, but after a long afternoon walking around the market, I was pooped when I got home, and ended up spending more than 2 hours lying down! (reading for a bit; mostly sleeping). I've been sleeping like crap lately, so the extra rest felt good.

Starting in November, I'm going to try to get to the gym or out for a run 4 times a week instead of three. Now that I've written it down, I'll have no choice!