Lower body injury? I've got ya covered.

I currently have a severe ankle sprain. This makes my normal workout routines not only less than ideal, but frankly impossible.

How I got the sprain is not relevant to the topic of this post, but I'm going to tell you anyway:

I took my 7-year-old niece (who is the funniest kid on the planet) to the indoor trampoline park. She jumped for 30 minutes while I laughed with her on the side lines. Every 3 minutes or so, she'd run over to me and BEG me to jump with her. After approximately 10 "no's", I finally gave in and bought myself a pass for the second 30 minutes of jumping. I jumped 3 times and landed wrong--really wrong--on my right foot. Yep, that's right--3 jumps is all it took.

So anyway, it's a severe sprain and I have to wear this giant boot at all times, even when I sleep. It took several days to be able to put any weight on it but I've progressed to a fast limp. I call it my pimp walk. Go ahead and re-purpose that term.

How have I continued to workout while being incapable of putting weight on one leg? 

I worked with my awesome 7-year-old niece to develop a circuit training workout that doesn't require any weight on my injured leg!

Before I share this workout with you, please allow me to entertain you by sharing my niece's documentation. Keep in mind she writes her 2's, 3's, 4's, and 7's backwards. She also writes some letters the wrong way and is super awesome at spelling. By awesome, I mean funny. And by funny, I mean bad.

Now, let me translate. 

1. Ab Mat Situps (20)

*I use my CrossFit ab mat at home for this. you can get them on amazon for $15 or so and they are awesome. 

Do 20 situps.

2. Push-ups (10)

Do 10 chest-to-floor push-ups...on your knees of course. Doing full push-ups with a sprained ankle is not the best idea.

3. Candlesticks (20)

*This is apparently what they call these in gymnastics according to my niece. 

Lay on your back with your legs straight into the air. Thrust your butt straight up to get your abs going. Do 20 of these.

4. Bicep Curls (20)

Grab some 5 lb. dumbbells or some other weighted object you can hold in your hands and do 20 bicep curls slowly and controlled.

5. Bicycles (20)

Lay on your back with both legs hovering a few inches off the ground and hands behind your head. Engage your abs. Bend one leg to meet the knee with the opposite elbow. Do 10 each side. So 20 total.

*Side note, when I tried to tell her she spelled this one very wrong, she told me I was the one who was wrong. Mmmmk Kid.

6. Shoulder Tries (10)

Alright, this one is a little bit my fault because I just pulled the name for it out of thin air.

Grab those dumbbells again (or weighted object) and do a shoulder press. Immediately move into a tricep extension. Do that combo 10 times.

**This is where my niece wanted to make up a move. "Arm Uppers", although cute to watch a niece do, are not beneficial in any way so I eliminated them from this workout.

Then I added more to get to 10 moves.

7. Can-Cans (10 each leg)

Lay on 1 side and hover the top leg above the bottom. Lift the top leg toward the ceiling and back down. Then bring your knee toward your chest and straighten. Do that combo 10 times with each leg.

8. Leg circles (20 each leg)

Same starting position as #7. Circle the top leg forward 10 times and then backward 10 times. Repeat with the other leg.

9. Leg lifts (10)

Lay on your back with both legs straight in the air. Keep them straight and lower them to the ground and then back up. Do this 10 times.

10. Scissors (20)

Same starting position as #9. Keep your legs straight and scissor them 20 times.

Repeat the sequence 3 times all the way through. The workout takes 20-25 minutes to complete depending on your speed. It does get your heart rate up to around 120, and you do sweat if you go quickly enough.

The most important thing to remember is if you are severely injured, always put your healing first. It doesn't help to injure it more so be very careful!

Did you say Olympic Lifting? Yea. Sure.

This post took some talking into to write...I mean I had to talk myself into it. I was being selfish and didn't want to share my discovery this week.

Have you heard of the CRCF* Olympic Lifting Class? When I first read that title, I was scared...really scared. I thought, I'm 5 ft 2.5 inches (the half matters) and you want me to lift weight like an Olympian? mmhmm sure. okay.

This week, I had no choice. It was really the only class that worked for my schedule. Busy busy bee. So I sucked it up, grew some proverbial balls, and attended. 

People, it was by far one of my favorite classes. Why, you ask? Because I was able to focus only on technique and form for one of the most common lifts we do at the gym. It was my first class with Da Boss as my coach. Da Boss is so informed, clear, and thorough in his explanations. He is focused and safe and motivating. There's a reason he's gotten the nickname Da Boss, and it's not just because he runs the show. He's so money.

Side note: he makes it on to my list of people I want on my side in a bar fight, along with Batman, Liam Neeson, Thor, and Tom Hardy.

I think the Olympic Lifting class has made it on to my most frequently attended classes list. I love being able to learn so much in such a small amount of time.

So why did I not want to share? Oh only because I didn't want the class to get too many attendees :)

All good things come after hard work :)

Personal Record Madness

Last week was a big week for me. I got a PR (which means Personal Record for all my non-weight lifting readers). 

Do you guys remember approximately 2 months ago when I hurt my back due to bad form? If not, click here to read "It's a Pain in the 'Back'". Well, if you didn't click the link, the move I was doing was a back squat. And I was supporting a whopping 65 lbs. I know, impressive, right? Nope, especially considering my monstrous thighs. I should be able to lift up houses with these babies.

So last week, we had a test on back squats. I surprised myself and I think everyone else around me when I had maxed out at 120 lbs. Yes, you read that correctly. I successfully back squatted almost twice as much weight as I did when I hurt myself. And, it was only 2 months after I injured myself! Say, what?! Yea, I was shocked too--my thighs finally showed up.

That just goes to show what good form can do for you. Some day I hope to be able to back squat my body weight. It won't take too long if my body weight comes down to meet my squatting weight in the middle :)

Now I can't wait for my next PR. What's next? Snatches, perhaps? Still workin' on those push-ups too...

Just don't forget people: Form trumps weight. Quality trumps quantity. The importance of that should never go unnoticed. 

Endorphins: My Happy Pill

Maslow's hierarchy of needs

Do you remember that from college psych class? 

Here's a quick refresher: 
Physiological needs are the most basic followed by safety, love, esteem, and lastly self-actualization. They build up in that order like a pyramid. So the base of it all starts with satisfying physiological needs and you add on the others until you get to the least basic need of self-actualization. 

But listen, I'm not trying to give you a psych lesson here. The purpose of all this is that I genuinely believe that a key factor to add to the bunch is endorphins. I know, it sounds silly. But hear me out.

This week, I strayed away from my typical active lifestyle. I only walked and did my situps twice. That's right, twice. And that is all I did when it comes to physical activity. Much difference from my typical schedule. What's my excuse? Well it's a lame one. Life is really busy right now so I couldn't make CrossFit. Then, I got lazy at home and become a couch potato. I know, lame. Not only unhealthy for my body; it was also unhealthy for my mind. And I'm supposed to be AntiUnhealthy! 

On Thursday, I noticed myself feeling a little down...a little blue, if you will. This shade of blue I attributed to stress. There are many things going on in life--all good things, but things nonetheless. Then Friday led to even a darker shade of blue. My man-friend noticed I wasn't feeling well and tried to help. But how can anyone help if you don't even know what was wrong? Nothing bad happened. By Saturday evening, the man-friend was finally able to help me get to a happy place and past the self-diagnosed situational depression.

Here's the thing: Depression is a real thing that affects wonderful people every day. However, I am innately too optimistic and "glass-half-ful" to truly suffer from depression. We are all human and we all feel sadness sometimes when life gets a little rough. But one thing I realized through this short course of blue was that I definitely had some sort of situational depression, if that is a real thing. It was uncomfortable and lonely there. 

So, I started to analyze the last several days to see what was different that could have sent me down this blue spiral. Nothing bad happened--in fact, only good things happened. However, there was one thing lacking from the previous weeks:

Physical Activity

We all know that physical activity leads to a release of endorphins and these little buggers are basically naturally occurring happy pills. It's basically scientifically impossible for a person with a natural balance of chemicals to not be happy after a surge of endorphins. True story.

In case you ever encounter a situation like this, here are some tips and tricks to help:

1. Go for a short jog
2. Hop on the treadmill
3. Jumprope at home
4. Do some situps and pushups
5. Walk your dog at a brisk pace
6. Go dancing (i'm biased on this one :) )
7. Go to yoga
8. Do some squats and lunges in front of your tv
9. Throw on that old infomerical-bought workout video you haven't used in 5 years
10. Go to your gym of choice (for me, that's CrossFit)

The elation, pride, and satisfaction I feel after something as intense as CrossFit definitely contribute to my success of fulfilling those 5 needs named by Maslow. Dancing and yoga also get me to those 5 needs every single time. Never fails. Those are my "Fix It" workouts. 

I challenge you to find that "fix it" workout--that workout that can raise you up out of a visit from situational depression. Also don't forget that watching a funny show or funny videos of cats and dogs on youtube will always succeed at making you smile. Works for me!



**If you are feeling sad for an extended period of time or feel as though you are unable to pick yourself up from that heavy feeling, please ask for help. Ask your best friend, your Mom, your doctor, or whomever you feel closest to. They will not be anything but happy that you reached out. Depression is real and there are many ways to win the battle.

Back to the Grind of being AntiUnhealthy

Lessons Learned This Week:

1. Vacations are awesome when you're gone and horrible when you come back.

Being on vacay is amazing in every way. I just went on my first real vacation, with no other motivation other than to be on vacation, in probably close to 10 years. Preparing to leave for vacation and returning from vacation are really stressful...and although you might be beach body ready when you leave for vacay, you come back, well, in not so much of a beach body.

When I went on vacation, I brought my jump rope with the intention of doing some SotCF* workouts each day. It's the though that counts, right? I sure hope so cause I didn't do a single one, other than sit-ups on the beach. For serious--I did sit-ups on the beach. You should be proud. Other than that, I hiked a lot, walked a lot, snorkeled a lot, laid on the beach a lot, took pictures a lot, and ran away from a cow once. Long story: ask and you shall receive. Oh, I also drank Mai Tai's a lot (because Hawaii) and ate food a lot. Oops.

Anyway, try to reserve 10-20 minutes each day to do an exercise or two from your regular workout...whatever that might be. For me, it's CrossFit (ps it should be for you too because it's too legit to quit). Believe me, it will save you a ton of pain after your first day back. Take me for example, we did back squats, front squats, and pull-ups on my first day back with DJ Jazzy Jeff, the squat master. My quads are STILL screaming, and that was 4 days ago. QUADRACEPPPPPPS!! The hammies hurt too, but they weren't as angry at me.


2. The Hulk is actually a "Macho Man" and was quite possibly a torturer in a former life.

If you go to Charles River CrossFit, you know what I'm talking about. If you haven't, the Hulk is an awesome coach. Read here to find out a bit more about him. He also gets a certain type of smile, an evil smirk, every time he is making you do something insanely hard, like crab walks. I HATE CRAB WALKS. My T-Rex arms don't work that way. Seriously, my ape index is -3. It's ridiculous. Hulk, I will change your nickname to Macho Man if you stop making me do crab walks. 

Anyone else hate crab walks as much as I do?

Quote of the day:
*Talking with Hulk about why none of us were doing the post-WOD (that's the cool down/stretch/exercise to help us recover after the ZOMG WOD).

All of us sweaty students: ...sitting and staring...
Hulk: "What are you doing? Do the Bullet-Proof Shoulders post-WOD."
All of us sweaty students: ...still sitting and staring...and then laughing
Hulk: "We are trying to help you. When you tear your rotator cuff, you're going to say 'you guys didn't help us'."
Me: "We know you are trying to help us, but we still aren't going to do it."
Fellow student: "I think you are trying to kill us." 

3. Double Unders are so fickle.

One day they love you. 
One day they hate you. 

The days when I cruise through them make me feel like a professional jump roper (is that a real thing?). The days when they keep slapping me on the legs (the rope that is) make me turn into Angry Me and then Sad Face Me. Hulk and T-dawg experienced both of those versions of me today. Ask me for my sad face--it's impressive and will hurt your heart.

They were my mortal enemy today. But next time, I shall conquer them!

Alright, AntiUnhealthy out. Don't forget to send me topics you'd like me to write about! 

*SotCF=Sign-of-the-CrossFit

Rock, Paper, Sacrum...wait, what?!

Paper beats Rock, right? 

The rules of Rock, Paper, Scissors are:

Scissors beats paper. Paper beats rock. Rock beats scissors.

Well Rock not only beats Scissors, but it definitely also beats Sacrum. Read on to find out why...

So I was hiking this weekend after my back healed from my silly back squat injury. (my fault...click here to read about what I did wrong.) 

Naturally, it started raining during the hike down. Now let me make something very clear--I'm not a hardcore hiker. I know, surprising (not). A hike for me is 4 miles...max. 

First, it was muddy...everywhere. I ended up just surrendering and stepping in the mud on purpose. That was kinda fun--not gonna lie.

Then there was THE ROCK. It was shaped perfectly to create a large amount of pain for someone or something. I thought my awesome anti-skid hiking boots could handle that slippery rock. 

Well remember the rules at the beginning? Rock beats sacrum. I stepped my left foot on one side of the perfect triangle. Then, I stepped my right foot on the other side of the perfect tri...

...then BAM!!!

Before anyone could warn me, both feet slipped right out from under me at the same time and my rump battled with the rock of all that is evil. I landed right on my sacrum. 

It was one of those things that was so perfectly played out that it was funny. But, I assure you, it hurt. But, I walked it off with just a nasty bruise, some necessary whining, and sacrum intact.

So remember earlier when I said Rock beats Sacrum?! Ha! I got ya. My sacrum is a beast and beat that rock. Bring it Rock. 

What can you learn from this? 

Have a strong sacrum. Duh. Just do it.

And be careful where you step when hiking. KNOW your limits and don't move faster and step in places you shouldn't to try to keep up with the long-legged folks ahead of you. They'll wait.

*PS, your sacrum is your tailbone.

Sign of the CrossFit: It's a Pain in the "Back"

I have sad news...

My first month general experiment has been thrown off course slightly because I was only able to get one SotCF class in this week. Why, you ask? Come on, stop making excuses, you say?

Well I legit got injured at my first (and only) class this week. It's my back y'all. It's such a pain in the "back"..haha. get it? "back" instead of "neck" or ***. Yes I just censored myself.  

So long story short:

I was chillin' with my homies crankin' out some back squats when I made a bad decision. I tried to keep up with my partner with the amount of weight being squated. We had to do 8 sets of 5 squats in which each set increased by whatever amount of weight we could handle. On the 4th set, something went wrong and my lower left back did that stabbing pain thing. Like the pulled muscle pain thing. 

Did I stop? Of course not. This was definitely not one of those things I could just work through and make it better--I made it worse. Dummy 

I finished the entire workout (like a champ) including two 400m runs...that's 800m for those of you who don't like math, and THIRTY ground to overheads (GTOs). Guys. Thirty GTOs is a LOT!! I'll explain those in more detail in a later post after I master them.  

So I've spent the last several days taking it easy, treating the injury, and layin low. It's tough for me to not move so this was not an easy task. Except for when I took my Flexeril. That makes it really easy to NOT move. Just to put the pain in perspective: Apparently when I was a baby, my leg got broken or something and I didn't cry. True story. Ask my Ma.

Long story short (listen, I know that was just a long story...I can't tell short stories...it's impossible for me), I'm recovering slowly but surely. I will definitely be able to be back next week. In the mean time, I've been walking very slowly to at least get a little activity.  

So...what can you learn from this long-winded story? Two things:

1. Always be aware of your form and your limits.
You have to make sure you push yourself but only to the point of maintaining good form and within your capabilities. If you don't, you'll get injured and there's no one to blame but yourself (that's me in this scenario. There is no one to blame but myself. womp womp.)

2. The importance of core strength.
I talked to my coaches at Charles River CrossFit (the most awesome CrossFit gym evah!), J-Snizzle and DJ Jazzy Jeff (his name's not really Jeff, but this is now his nickname), and they were soooooo helpful. Just like my coaches always are. The suspicion is that my core was not engaged like it should be when you lift. Squats are my base--they're what I excel at (dancer legs). My legs are way stronger than any other part of my body (other than my brain. bam!...actually, that's a lie but let's pretend), so I was probably relying solely on my two stems and not on my core. I'll be the first to admit that my core is nowhere where I want it to be. 

Do I hear another challenge approaching??

Challenge accepted.

So my second mission is to improve my core strength dramatically. My goal is not appearance-related, but instead is awareness and strength-related. I want to be as familiar with and engaged with my core as possible to prevent further back injuries, and I want to develop my core muscles more so it is easier to rely on them.

How:
I will be doing 50 ab mat sit-ups every single day moving forward. So this is my second little experiment. Can I get more "in touch" with my core? ya know...give it a little more love?

Stay tuned to find out!

AntiUnhealthy's first fitness experiment...join the party!

Alright folks, I'm doing something nuts. Like caaarrrrrrrrrrrrrazy-nuts. 

I'm starting a series of mini experiments with Sign-of-the-CrossFit, ya know that insane thing I talked about last time? Read it here. 

So yea, my first month is going to be a general experiment...a litmus test if you will. I only have a question--no hypothesis (get off my back scientists). 

How much will my body change by going to the SotCF gym twice a week? 

Step 1: Get a starting point (Complete)

My pre-experiment measurements are transcribed. I'm not going to share them with you because I am a woman and reserve the right to either lie about anything body-related or withhold an answer. It's just the way things are. BUT I will take the same measurements post-experiment and provide you with the delta (for non-math and science folks, that means change). 

If you have any other suggestions for future experiments or anything you'd like me to try before you try it, leave me a comment! 

Step 2: Go to SotCF twice a week (In Progress) 

Alright, here's the deal-io: 

The WOD for class 1 (remember WOD="incredibly difficult Workout Of the Day". "Incredibly" and "difficult" are both silent.) 

AMRAP 10 

• 500m row 
• 8 overhead squats 
• 8 pull-ups 

...AND THEN... 

AMRAP 10

• 400m run
• 8 power snatches
• 8 burpees 

AMRAP=As Many Reps As Possible in the time they give you. So 10 = 10 minutes. I like "AMRAPs" better than "For Times", which I'll explain when a WOD with "For Time" comes up. 

People, I'm short. I mean not THAT short. But noticeably short. Rowing HATES me. I HATE rowing. No matter how fast I go, I still finish last. @#$(*@%@&#$). That's how I feel about that. And in case you were wondering 500m is a lonnnnnnnnng distance when you aren't actually going anywhere. 

Overhead squats are pretty self explanatory. You put a bar with weight on it over your head and then squat and then stand up and then squat and then stand up...etcetera. Dancer legs have made me pick up SotCF squats fairly quickly though (thank you life-long dancing). However, after rowing 500m, they ain't so simple. 

**During the warm-up, our coaches made us do warm-up squats-from-hell every time a particular song said "down", and stand back up every time the song said "up". People...this was evil. But a good evil. That makes sense, right? 

Power snatches are...well...I'm still mastering those. I'll get back to you when I get good at them. 

I'm not going to explain burpees. They basically suck the life out of you and make you wish for anything else. But believe it or not, they weren't my least favorite in this WOD. 

Any idea what my least favorite part was? Take a guess... 

In conclusion, my favorite memory of this class will be the moment the song started playing for the warm-up squats-from-hell. "Bring daddy up. Bring daddy down." The song makes no sense, and it took me a while to stop laughing and realize how much the squats-from-hell were starting to hurt. 

P.S. I just googled this song and apparently the lyrics are "Green Sally Up. Green Sally down." ...which I don't understand. I like my version better. They should re-write the song. Just sayin'

Sign-of-the-CrossFit: WODs, pain, and a whole lot of curse words

You know how in movies, when someone is about to do something terrifying or crazy, that person does the sign of the cross first? It's almost like a quick, mini prayer, saying, "God, if you're listening right now, HELP!"

Well, CrossFit is one of those things. It's nuts folks. Crazy, Intense, Amazing, oh-god-i've-never-been-so-sore-in-my-life nuts.

So I know you've all heard of it. It's been called cult-like, addicting, and many other things. I can tell you from experience that it's all of the above, but in a good way. CrossFit uses strength training, high intensity movements, and stretching to create the highest potential for fitness. The great thing about this program is that it is designed for anyone to be able to participate. "Scaling" allows people who have not mastered the moves to still get a maximum workout while practicing the moves or working toward mastering them. Want to know more? Google "What is CrossFit". Google knows everything.

I started Sign-of-the-CrossFit because I wanted to get a kick start to getting bathing suit ready for the summer. I got more like a kick in the buttocks (as Forest Gump would say). People, if you are looking for something that pushes you to your limits, encourages you to go further than you ever thought you could, takes care of you when you are almost at your breaking point, and provides you with a workout family, try Sign-of-the-CrossFit. If you are in the Boston area, I highly recommend Charles River CrossFit because I've tried it and know how awesome it is.

So let's go through the major Pros and Cons:

Pros:
1. The Coaches. 
Let me introduce you to my coaches: 
J-snizzle
T-dawg
The Hulk

J-snizzle always joked around with me and kept me in a light-hearted state. Even at the very end of a workout when I could barely breathe, he found a way to make me laugh. Sarcasm and smiles: that's what this guy did. Plus he is a technique freak, which is my term for myself as a dance teacher. My students have heard me say that soooooooo many times. One technique freak to another--I appreciated it. It made me feel safe. 

T-dawg was my trusted motivator. My most vivid memory of T-dawg was a workout that was not made for me at all. It was heavy on the rowing, which is a short person's worst nightmare, and pushups, which is an at-least-my-legs-are-strong person's worst nightmare. I was the last one in my class to finish and was so close to giving up. T-dawg kneeled down on the floor right next to me and counted down for me. He was a true coach. He didn't let me quit. 

The Hulk is totally B-A. He is quite possibly the strongest man on the planet and has ginormous muscles. I saw him do a push-up with T-dawg sitting on his back once. The Hulk helped me get half-way up a rope in a rope climb. PEOPLE-I'VE NEVER CLIMBED A ROPE IN MY LIFE. Just getting half-way was a huge success for me. He doesn't let you give up. He just helps you find a way to finish.

2. The Community.
It's really like a mini-family. People don't necessarily know your name, but they know your face. If they finish early, they scream "come on guys! keep going!" in between the gasps for air. I know from experience.

The day I got to be the motivator was actually one of my favorite days. It was a huge class, and I was in the middle of the pack time-wise (definitely not strength-wise). It was quite possibly one of the most difficult workouts of my life. I actually looked forward to the push-ups in this workout...yes me, an at-least-my-legs-are-strong person. And after I finished, I immediately felt the need to help those who were still going. I helped count down the end of the push-ups for my neighbor. I cheered on those who were far from being finished. I couldn't let them keep going without letting them know they weren't alone. 

3. The Results.
My goal was to lose a few pounds and tone up. I'll be very honest--I actually gained 4 lbs. But I'm confident it is pure muscle gain. My upper body is stronger. My legs look more like they did when I danced ballet 5 days a week than they have in years. My energy is higher. If I had another month or 2, I would bet money that I would end up losing weight. Gotta gain that muscle before you lose that fat.

Cons:
1. It's quite pricey. 
Like too expensive for me to do it more than one month. The price is higher than normal gyms because you don't just get equipment. You get coaches who care and know your name before you know theirs. Also, you get nutrition counseling. Sign-of-the-CrossFit preaches Paleo. Paleo is not for me because I am already borderline vegetarian (I REALLY like animals and get sad when I think about them getting hurt--for real), but if it's for you, they give you nutrition counseling. And you get a community--a family--of people who are working toward the same goal. 

2. Technique is difficult to master.
As I mentioned earlier, I've never met a set of gym employees who care so much about your technique and safety. The moves are not easy, and the terms all sound similar. I cheated a lot--I would start 2 seconds after everyone else so I knew what the move was first. It's important to get good technique, but it's not easy. With that said, the coaches work with you and make sure you are being safe. They never give up on you.

As a fitness experimenter and researcher, I HIGHLY recommend Charles River CrossFit. Just give it a shot. It's worth a try. 

As for me, I'm buying a jump rope, kettle bell, and ab mat to do my WODs* at home (or on my lunch break). 

*WOD=incredibly difficult Workout Of the Day ("incredibly" and "difficult" are both silent)