Um, hi....

Hey, would you look at that - it's been 6 months since my last post. How did that happen? Oh, I know, it's because I'm not really much of a writer. So, how have I been? Good, can't complain, really. It's not like I haven't been busy in the last 6 months. Ever since I joined Crossfit in April 2012, it's been like a whirlwind of busyness. Well, not really, but I'm definitely busier than before I joined. I still go twice a week most weeks, sometimes more. I've been gaining strength - I can now clean 105 lbs, snatch 75 lbs & deadlift 205 lbs, so I'm definitely improving. I need to work on my mobility, my cardio &, well, everything but weightlifting, really. Not that my weightlifting doesn't have room for improvement. It totally does. I've made so many friends at my gym, though, so even though I'm still as lazy as ever, my friends keep me coming back.

So, what else has been happening? Andrew & I travelled to the UK again, in May. That was a blast! Andrew had to go for work again, so we were in London for the first 3 days. We stayed in a pretty ritzy area this time - Mayfair. It was still within walking distance of the cafe I worked at when I lived in London during the summer of 1992, so I walked up there a couple of times for lunch (once with Andrew, once without). I love exploring that part of London, lots & lots of money there! On my way from the hotel to the cafe I passed 4 luxury car dealerships (shopfronts, really) - Porsche, Jaguar, Rolls Royce & Bentley (where I saw a Bugatti Veyron, for reals - when I told Andrew that he had to go check it out for himself!), several antique galleries (really ancient Roman, Greek, oriental antiques - very very cool), fashion boutiques, a yacht "store" (just models in that one, but even the yacht models were gorgeous - and that's coming from someone who is NOT a fan of watercraft). Of course I had the same crepe I've always had at "my" cafe - chopped bacon, cheese & sour cream, folded up into a parcel of yummy, yummy goodness. I had the same thing both times I went to the cafe this time, and I was so happy to be able to finally, FINALLY bring Andrew to the cafe for a crepe (chicken & asparagus, in case you're wondering), after 22 years! After London we rented a car & drove to Birmingham for the day, so I could check out the huge security show they hold in the UK every year. It was a chance to meet my European customers & salesguys, plus it was free & had free wi-fi, so it was a chance I couldn't pass up! I hadn't told my Toronto co-workers that I was attending, so they were very confused & surprised to see me. That alone was worth the trip! From Birmingham we headed to Shitterton, to stay again at the 500 year old farmhouse that we stayed at the last time we were in the UK 4 years ago. We were able to spend lots & lots of time at Monkey World this time (last time we arrived 1 hour before closing, so we really had to rush past all of the apes & primates), it is such a wonderful place! One of my favourite places ever. It's right next to a tank proving ground (you know, army tanks, not storage tanks), so after Monkey World we headed to the tank museum next door. Had a lovely lunch, then checked out hundreds upon hundreds of tanks. Well, Andrew did - my feet gave out after the main hall. The next day we headed for Cardiff, to the Doctor Who Experience, which was totally geek-tastic! Well worth the drive! We had lots of yummy, yummy food, including a great lunch at Jamie Oliver's Italian (we'd eaten there in London too, for a "work" dinner). Really really good food! We also checked out the local Crossfit box to get some shirts for our Crossfit friends. From there we headed back to London for our flight home. It really was a wonderful trip, and I can't wait to go back.

Since we got back it's been a whirlwind of family visits, Crossfit parties & get-togethers, BBQs with friends & just general living. Andrew's mum has been here for a visit for the past 2 weeks, she heads home tomorrow. One free weekend, then I'm off to the Ladies Fall Fit weekend, which I'm pretty nervous about. I'm not fit at home, let alone in the wilderness, camping & such. Plus the current forecast calls for buckets of rain that weekend. Figures, doesn't it?

Adoption-wise, there's been no news. The program continues to evolve, which will impact us, of course, but we're not sure in what ways. It's still open, though, so there's that. Still we wait, 5 years & 4 months since we started the process. Not sure how much waiting I have left in me. We met with the agency director in July, which was a good meeting, and very informative, program-wise. He couldn't say how long we would be waiting, though, which didn't surprise us. So we continue to wait.

Well, I think you're caught up now. I can't promise that I'll write more often, but I'll try. Maybe my next post will be a really, really good one?

Huzzah!

Did I tell y'all that I've lost an inch each off my chest, waist & hips since I started Crossfit 3.5 months ago? Well, I have. Huzzah! I've also done things I never thought I'd do, like flip a tractor tire about 50 times (with help, I'm not that big of a badass yet!), lift more than 100 lbs (at once), do 110 back squats (with a 45 lb bar on my back) in one workout, row for 2 km in one workout, etc. I am empowered. Don't make me angry, I just might flip your car over (but give me another year of Crossfit before I attempt that!).

Yes, I guess it's been a while....

Hello, my faithful readers (though, by now, perhaps I have lost my audience)! It has been ever so long since I graced my blog with my presence. Not much has been happening, really, just life in general, but I'll try to catch you up as best I can.

May
May is my birthday month, and we celebrated with another trip to Buffalo, this time with my parents. A very good time was had by all, and much shopping was done. Turns out Walmart is a great place to get a deal on protein powder & Gatorade pre- & post- workout drinks (even though I think the post-workout drink tastes like lemon/lime & barnyard, Andrew seems to like it - but I think he will pretty much eat anything). We spent half a day in East Aurora again, and had a FABULOUS lunch at a place called Tantalus. I had a to-die-for stuffed burger (with no bun, as is my custom). It was stuffed with sundried tomatoes, feta & black olives, and the beef was just so beefy-tasting. It was the best burger I've had so far this year. I'm itching to go back & have another one! We celebrated my Dad's birthday at the end of the month (we got him a luxury car test drive, which he & Andrew will partake in in August. Dad's driving a Ferrari & Andrew's driving a Lamborghini - sweet!!!).

June
June is bit of a blur (being so long ago & all). We spent a weekend in Prescott again, stopping for cheese curds at Maple Dale on the way there & the way back. Sooooo many curds. I think I'm curd-ed out for a while (but the roasted garlic curds are sooooo good). During that trip we had a lovely day in Westport, where much shopping (window & actual) was done. My work team also moved from the factory location to the airport location, so my commute was cut in half, which is awesome! Being near the airport, we see lots of planes (arriving & departing), though some sitings are pretty scarily close! Part of my route home includes Airport Rd, and the runway where several planes land runs perpendicular to Airport Rd (and starts at Airport Rd). Wow, are those planes LOW when they land! It seems like they're going to land on your car sometimes. Scary, but exhilarating!

July
July's been pretty quiet so far.

Adoption
No news here, unless you consider our needing to update some of our paperwork (AGAIN) news. We've been advised that it can wait until the whole dossier needs updating at the end of the year, unless we get a referral between now & then. That doesn't look likely, as paperwork requirements in Ethiopia have changed yet again, which has slowed referrals down. It has speeded up processing post-court date, though, so that is a very good thing for those who have referrals. We continue to wait & hope. We are considering opening up our request to a boy (which Andrew was always in favour of, but I resisted because I really wanted a girl). Now that we've met our friends' little guy, home since November of last year, I am no longer resistant to the idea of having a little boy!

Crossfit
Yep, I'm still doing Crossfit, usually about twice a week. It's still challenging, which I think it will be for quite some time, but I'm enjoying it, and I really enjoy the supportive, family atmosphere at the gym. Lots of people have told me that they are seeing results on me, which is nice. My core is definitely tighter, and I am definitely getting stronger. I can deadlift 105 lbs, power clean & push press 65 lbs & back squat 45 lbs. I'm getting there. I enjoy going with Andrew, though we don't really work out together, because he's at a different level, fitness-wise, than me. I'm wishing I'd started in the winter, though, cuz this hot weather is killing me when I work out. I must lose about a pound every workout, just from sweat. Good times! And sometimes, it's just too hot to work out (like when it's over 32). There's no A/C in the gym, just ceiling fans & roller doors. It's brutal sometimes.

Well, I think you're all caught up now. I'll try to start posting more often, especially in the lead up to HAWAII CRUISE 2012!!!

Janna's Crossfit Challenge - The Crossfittening, Part 5

So here we are – the end of my Crossfit training classes, and the beginning of my proper Crossfit journey. I’ve got to say, I am pleased that I have made it this far, but I’m still really nervous about starting the WODs (Workout Of the Day). I plan to do my first WOD tonight, provided the weather allows us to get home in time to change & get to the gym in time. Tonight’s coach is Mitch, who did 4 of my 5 Foundations classes. Not sure how I feel about that – I am kind of looking forward to the anonymity of being in a class with other people, but then again, I know Mitch will push me, which is actually a good thing. I’ve taken a look at the WOD, and it’s mostly weightlifting moves, which I’ve done, so I should be able to do it. Let’s see.

Anyway, on to my last Foundations class. I had originally agreed to meet with Mitch at 5pm on Wednesday, which suited me because I like to get my workouts over & done with so I can enjoy the rest of my evening, but then he emailed me on Tuesday & asked if we could do the class at 8pm instead. In the spirit of just finishing my last class already, I agreed to the time switch. There weren’t any WODs on at that time, so Andrew decided to come along & join my class (it’s always good to get a refresher on your technique). The last class worked on the snatch, which is a variation of the clean, which we worked on in Monday’s class. The warm up was 500m of rowing (with a clean “dismount”, again, hooray me!), then practicing the snatch technique. As a special treat, Mitch used his smartphone to video a bunch of my lifts, to show me what it looked like when I was doing it wrong, vs when I was doing it right. As with the other lifts, I get the technique, but my co-ordination is still lacking. Practice makes perfect, I guess. Once again I was using the 20lbs bar. That night’s workout was 250m rowing, 15 power snatch lifts, 25 burpees, 15 power snatch lifts and 250m rowing. It turns out burpees are the devil’s work (for those of you not familiar with the terms a burpee is sort of like a push up where you start from a standing position, into a pushup position, touching your chest completely to the floor, then stand up, jump in the air & clap your hands – if that doesn’t make any sense, look it up on YouTube). Let’s just say my burpees are decidedly slower & more visually awkward than the average burpee. By my tenth burpee my hands were KILLING ME, OMG, so I negotiated the 25 burpees down to 15 burpees (thank doG, that was the worst part of the workout!), but otherwise I finished my workout. Hooray!

From what Andrew tells me, the gym peeps are looking forward to me starting the WODs. I’m pretty stoked that they are all rooting for me, but at the same time, I’m really nervous about letting everyone down. I’ve never been an active, athletic person, and I’m nervous about making a fool of myself, and, truth be told, ashamed of how I look (though I never feel like that when I’m actually working out, for some reason). Everyone there seems really nice, and they even threw a joint birthday party/euchre night last weekend to celebrate a bunch of birthdays (Andrew’s included). I didn’t go (I was feeling too shy, until it was too late to get tickets, then I wanted to go – story of my life) but Andrew did. If I can encourage myself to keep going at least 2-3 times a week, hopefully the gym will become an important part of my life, as it is for Andrew. I just don’t know, though. We shall see.

Janna's Crossfit Challenge - The Crossfittening Part 4

Class 4 was on Monday, the same day I wrote the Part 3 post. As you may remember, I was running on little sleep & felt barely coherent. I managed to get my butt in gear & get to the gym for my 5pm class, but my heart really wasn't in it. The warm-up, a 500m row, was uneventful, and I managed to get off of & away from the rowing machine without killing myself or messing up my knee, so that's a plus right there. Class 4 was all about the "clean" weighlifting move (squat, shrug, lift, etc), and the class itself didn't go badly. I was the only student in the class, which is both good & bad. Good, because you get the trainer's undivided attention, and bad, because you get the trainer's undivided attention, meaning you don't get a little break while the rest of your classmates are showing of their moves. We mostly worked with the 20 lb bar, but about two-third of the way through the class he had me move up to the 35 lb bar, which just about killed me. Had I lifted the 35 lb bar a bit earlier in the night, I think I would have coped okay, but by that time I was buggered. It was downhill from there, and my workout - 2 rounds of 20 lifts (20 lb bar) & 20 step ups (12 inch box), then 1 round of 10 each - took all of what little strength & confidence I had left. That workout took me 11min 23sec to finish, and I was SOAKED with sweat (ewwwww) afterwards. Of course, it was Andrew's birthday that day, so there was no rest for the (very) weary. I zoomed home, freshened up, and headed out again to dinner with our adoption/crossfit friends & their son. It was a long day, and probably not the special 40th birthday celebration Andrew had been hoping for (but I'm going to make it up to him!).

Janna's Crossfit Challenge - The Crossfittening, Part 3

I did NOT sleep well last night, so if this latest post doesn't make sense, you'll know why! Last Wednesday was my 3rd Crossfit class, and my first class with a different instructor - Dan R. It was also my first class with girls as my classmates, so that was interesting - even more so because they were friends, which made me feel like a fifth wheel. Andrew & I had been running a bit late, so by the time I got to the gym, it was straight into the warmup - 3 minutes of rowing. Easy peasy, I thinks, I love rowing. And it was easy - until I tried to get off the machine. I swear I had both feet out of the footholders, so I'm guessing I tripped over the machine itself, and went for a less-than-graceful almost-faceplant. I have a wicked dark bruise on my right knee, and I came within 1 inch of actually planting my face on the floor. SO EMBARRASSING! Clearly my clutziness knows no bounds. Anyhoo, a couple of ladies doing the WOD (workout of the day) came running over to me to see if I was hurt - nope, just my pride! Then I caught up with the rest of the class for pushups & situps. The class itself was about deadlifting. Deadlifting is where you keep the bar very close to your body, go into a squat with straight arms & a straight back, look straight ahead & lift to your waist. We did quite a few practice lifts - some with the PVC pipe, some with just the bar (35 lbs), some with 10 lbs on each end (55 lbs) and a few with 5 more lbs on each end (65 lbs). All in all, not too bad! Then it was into that night's workout - 3 deadlifts (55 lbs), 6 pushups & 9 ball slams (15 lbs medicine ball lifted above your head, then slammed into the ground at your feet), as many rounds as possible in 6 minutes. I was allowed to use a bench for the pushups, due to my "injured" knee (it hurt to much to be getting up & down over & over again). I managed to do 4 rounds, but I was EXHAUSTED by the end of it all. The aftermath was painful - sore lower back muscles, hip muscles, inner thigh muscles & the muscles on the back of my arm. I had recovered by Saturday, though. Next class is tonight (Monday) with Mitch from 5-6, then it's out to dinner for Andrew's 40th birthday dinner with some friends.

I continue to feel a little apprehensive about Crossfit, but I think that's because with the Foundations classes, I don't know what's coming, what we'll be working on, and I'm afraid I won't be able to do it, or that I'll do too much & hurt myself (though, so far, I've only hurt myself during warm up!). I do enjoy going, though (who knew I'd ever say that!) and I kind of miss it if I haven't been for 3 days or so. I'm really hoping I can stick with it, and lose weight & get fit.

Janna's Crossfit Challenge - the Crossfittening, Part 2

This past Monday I had my second Crossfit Foundations class. I had been hoping that Andrew would accompany me, for moral support more than anything, but as it turned out it was not to be. He had to go to Ottawa for the day for a mediation, and short of a miracle, there was no way he was going to get home by the time I had to leave. So I sucked it up, put on my big-girl panties, and went by myself! This week's class was all about proper weight-lifting technique - push, push press & press jerk (I could have those names completely wrong, but that's what I'm calling them in my head). I was the only person in this class, so I got all the attention of the instructor (Mitch, again). I'm not sure if this was a good thing or a bad thing. Anyway, we started with arm stretches, using a gigantic rubber band (I'm sure it has an actual proper name, but I have no idea what that name is). I made it through the first 3 stretches okay, but that last one, which was to open up my left arm area, gave me a wicked charley horse in the muscle under my armpit. Yeouch! After a fair bit of gentle but firm rubbing, I managed to make the pain die down (mostly). Next we started with the weightlifting technique, using a PVC pipe. Then I "graduated" to a proper metal bar (20 lbs) for the push & push press moves. For the press jerk move, I moved up the 35 lbs bar. The press jerk move involves having the bar at shoulder height, taking a deep breath, dropping into a partial squat, standing back up while pushing the bar halfway up, then dropping back into a squat but keeping the bar stationary (so, straightening your arms to they are fully supporting the bar). It's difficult to describe the move, and it's even more difficult to master the co-ordination to do it properly! At least, it was for me, but I'm pretty unco-ordinated. About halfway through that I got really dizzy, then nauseous. I went to the bathroom & sat down & put my head between my knees until it passed, but apparently if I puke I'm a bad-ass. I hate puking, so it looks like I'm not a bad-ass. Anyhow, I was able to continue, so we moved on to that night's workout - 9 push press (20 lbs bar), 50m run, 7 push press, 50 m run, 5 push press, 50 m run. I did it in 6 min, 49 sec (I think). Mitch says I'm doing really well, and according to one of the girls I was talking to, he would tell me if I'm not doing well, so I guess I'm doing well! Tonight's class is with a different instructor, and 2 other girls, so hopefully I'll have another good experience. Tune in later this week for The Crossfittening, Part 3!

Janna's Crossfit Challenge - The Crossfittening, Part 1

I suppose I could also title this post “An Exercise in Pain”, because, boy oh boy, do I hurt! Because of the possibility that I will have to chase a toddler around some day, and because I’ve been far too lazy for far too long, I have decided to join Crossfit. If you know anything about me, and anything about Crossfit, you might be thinking OMG, WTF? I’ve got to admit, I’m thinking that too! There is a method to my madness, though. You see, Andrew goes to Crossfit (I’d go so far as to call him a Crossfit junkie), and 2 of our close friends also belong to the same “box” (gym). If I’m going to do any sort of proper training, I believe the best thing for me is to have friends doing the same sort of thing so that it encourages me to stick with the program. If I do something by myself, I can pretty much guarantee you that I won’t stick with it.

Here’s a run-down of last night’s class. Keep in mind that there are a couple of classes (workout of the day/ boxing) going on at the same time as our starter class.
- Started at 7pm, talking about Crossfit & the mentality behind it, and what each of us are hoping to get out of it. Apparently, as Mrs Aussie (Andrew is known at the gym as Drew, or Aussie), it was expected that I would join Crossfit & love it. I’m still on the fence about that.
- The first move we learn is squats. There are 5 types of squats I think, but I can’t remember what they are called. My very first squat saw me on my back on the floor (you’re supposed to keep your weight on your heels, and I just kept on tipping backwards. I owned it, though!) Between the 5 different squats, I must have done about 40 squats total. That’s a lot for legs that haven’t done that many squats for the past 39 years combined. By the time we were done my legs were like jelly. Apparently I squat well, which is nice to know. Not sure how I’ll apply it to my daily life, though.
- Next thing we work on is the benchmark workout (well, the elements of it). We start by working on the individual elements of the workout – rowing, squats (again with the squats!), push-ups (which I am absolutely crap at – turns out my butt weighs A LOT & I can’t do a proper sit-up, at least not yet), sit-ups (soles of feet together, you can use your arms to propel yourself forward) & something called “ring rows” (I think). Ring rows are where you have your feet on the ground, your knees at a 90 degree angle, back parallel to the floor, and your hands holding onto rings hanging from the chin-up bar. Then you pull yourself up so your chest is level with your hands. It’s kind of like a pull up from a lying down position. Between all the squats & then this, I’m feeling like a rag-doll, and walking like I’m a puppet on a string.
- We’ve come to the last part of the class – the benchmark workout. It’s meant to be 500m of rowing, 40 squats, 30 sit-ups, 20 push-ups & 10 ring rows, but the coach cuts it in half for me. I love rowing, so I did that pretty quick. My thighs & knees were pretty much done by that point, so the squats took a bit longer than they would have if I was “fresh”. Sit-ups went well, push-ups were okay (we modified it so I keep my stomach/hips on the ground & push the rest of my body up). Then came the ring rows. I managed to do all 5, but I could only pull myself up 4-5 inches. All up, I took 7min35sec to do half of the benchmark workout.

And, then, just like that, I was done! All in all, I’d say it was a successful first class, but I am SOOO SORE today (knees & thighs, mostly). I find that I grunt when I get up or walk. I do the next class next Monday, so look for The Crossfittening, Part 2, next week!