December 31, 2008
January 4, 2009
Happy New Year!
The Zone Challenge is on!
It was great to get 18 people up early on New Years Day for a combination Zone planning workshop and workout. First we did bodyfat % measurements (standard 3 site protocol), which were used to calculate lean bodyweight. This was multiplied by an activity level to determine protein requirements. That was the basis for how any blocks per day. With everyone having this info, its time to crack down. Here are a few helpful points:
Weigh and measure exactly for at least the first 2 weeks. (really important)
Plan ahead.
Learn the Glycemic Index (GI), and choose low GI foods.
Don’t give up! Stick with it!
The workout began with a review of the hang clean. From there, we got two people to a bar for:
7 rounds for time
5 Hang Squat Cleans
10 clapping pushups
We ended up with a 10 minute finisher, as many rounds as possible of:
5 knees to elbows
10 KB swings
15 situps
Post weights and results to comments!
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0 Comments
Let’s see: Tom A. and I — in the CFDC Masters category — did 135# for the squat cleans.
My squat cleans were…horrible. I couldn’t get the weight up on numerous occasions (that was the worst form I had since I started performing cleans on a regular basis) and got frustrated. Looking back, I believe that the combination of little sleep (yes, I partied my *ahem* off for New Year’s Eve), no breakfast (I usually have a meal before I come to CrossFit), and not properly checking my ego (i.e., dropping the poundage) contributed to my downfall. (Clapping push-ups were, however, not a problem for me.) Live and learn…and do better next time. 🙂
I did manage to get six rounds in the second part. I used a 24kg kettlebell for the swings, and I did my knees-to-elbows (K2E) on the recently-installed pull-up bars at Balance. I do like those bars for K2Es, but for the time being I will stick with the squat rack as much as I can for pull-ups. 🙂
I mentioned this on my Facebook page, but I will repeat it here: I am starting my Zone eating plan (I hate to use the word “diet”) *now*. Even though Coach did a great job in computing my blocks, I still need to plan, purchase, measure, and prepare the foods.
Additionally, I want to keep a log (or diary) of my daily life with respect to the Zone and exercise. This is something that I have never done before, but I feel that it is important for me.
I don’t wish to be a “comment hog,” but I will report my progress on this blog if anyone is interested.
CFDC’s own ODB is…going to make some scrambled eggs with cheddar cheese.
I don’t see anything wrong with posting your progress with Zone here Reggie. I would be surprised if someone else felt differently!
Skipped out on Thursday’s class to be with family since that’s my New Year’s tradition (never done the NYE party and such, don’t have much of an interest to do so). As a result I won’t be able to get my measurements and block requirements until Sunday. I’ll plan on starting the diet on Monday.
Teamed up with Ami for the hang cleans, used 70lbs. They felt pretty good actually 🙂 Did regular push-ups instead of clapping.
Got 6 rounds in the finisher. Used 16kg for the kb swings.
It was a great way to start the new year. Stayed after class to have Coach show me and Salty how many blocks of food we need per day. Tried the diet at breakfast today just to see how I’d feel, and man, after my 3 blocks I was still starving. I think Chris and I will start the diet officially on Sunday (the new week) since we need some time to plan our meals.
Who’s a comment hog now?
John F and I did 95# on the cleans. My form went downhill fast…Maybe bit off too much with 95. Much improved though, since the last time I did cleans in class.A PT sssion a couple weeks back with Tom on cleans, snatch, etc. helped a lot. Started out clapping and went to a non-clapping plyo after rnd one. 6 rnds on part 2.
Started zoning today: doing a 16-block day. I realized I’m not sure about my activity level and whether it crosses 4 h. of intense activity a week— so many wods I do outside CFDC class are relatively short, so I need to look more closely at whether it adds up…
(With 13.8 % bf and LBM of 150, I’m at 15 blocks if I’m doing under 4hrs per week, and 17 if over)Anyway, I’ll start at 16 and if that’s off, I think I’ll figure it out quickly.
I won’t break it all down for the whole day, but I had one meal today that included 4 oz ham,12 cups(!) of raw spinach (3 carb blocks- and that was still a block short), 1.25 cups broccoli (one more carb block), and a little over a tsp (4 fat blocks) of olive oil-based dressing I made. Tasted better than it sounds.
Glad I didn’t choose iceberg lettuce: 1 block = a whole head. If anyone eats a meal that includes multiple heads of lettuce or 30 cups of sprouts (4 blocks), let me know.
Chris W – if you don’t want to eat soo much lettuce you might be able to add more different kinds of veggies to get your carb blocks. My least favorite part of a salad is the lettuce so I typically try to load up on various veggies.
I haven’t started my zone yet since I was not in class on thursday. I did take my measurements today, plugged them into the zonediet.com blocks calculator. Now I have to plan some meals and shop. I hope I get to the store by sunday with a plan for the week so I can start on Monday.
Chris W. and I got the clean/pushup combo done in 10:41. Chris was able to stick with plyo pushups, I broke down fast to standard pushups.
Based on the people who got 6 rounds in the finisher, I’m now convinced I only got 5 complete rounds, right at the buzzer. Extra credit for accidentally doing 13-15 KB swings (@45#) on the last couple rounds. (My New Year’s Resolution: Learn to count past four.)
I’m in on the Zone at 19 blocks with 2X fat (the hardgainer zone). Spent part of yesterday afternoon rereading Performance Menu back issues. Made their jambalaya (issue #21) for dinner last night–pretty darn good, though my “dash” of cayenne got out of hand and I felt as if I’d been pepper sprayed.
Already slipped a couple times on the diet:
1. Forgot that whole eggs have 2 fat blocks each, so accidentally went 4x fat on yesterday’s breakfast.
2. Somehow misremembered something from Greg Amundson’s “Tupperware” article and ate 1-1/4 cups of cottage cheese for a 2-block afternoon snack. Easy correction — less jambalaya for dinner.
Worked with Henry for the main workout – 135# cleans, and I believe we finished in 8:16. Made 8 rounds in the finisher using a 32Kg KB. Al I could see during the workout were Tom’s fat-% calipers.
Still working on getting our Zone menus in order. Steph and I started by looking at our usual breakfasts, and then readjusting them. So far, so good. I will put my full zone requirements in a comment after Sunday, when I think we are going to be going full-tilt on the zone.
(Brose, and everyone else – sorry for the lack of pics, but the camera was apparently set on a super-ridiculous high-pixel rate, and sending even one pic was tough)
I guess zipping the pics is out of the question. I use my old photoshop for manipulating pics but I know there’s a free program out there that works just as well. Pretty sure it’s GIMP:
http://www.gimp.org/
Pretty sure you can resize in your standard Paint program that comes with most computers.
You guys are inspiring! I’m so happy you guys are taking up the Zone Challenge! I’ll be joining soon! ^o^
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