Whoa, HS pushups! It's the influence of that Chris, isn't it? Next thing you know you'll be a Crossfitter, too.
Very impressive work, Mel.
__________________ The trick is in what one emphasizes. We either make ourselves miserable, or we make ourselves happy. The amount of work is the same. -- Carlos Castaneda
Thanks Deb. You are always so good about encouraging me! I really appreciate it.
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I am still waiting to have the same epiphany.
T, I still am struggling with it, even though I know it is true. But just think about how much more dense muscle is than fat....and when you have a lot of muscle, your are just going to weigh more, even though you'll be smaller than if you had fat instead. I am going to drive this point home to me if it kills me, but the bottom line to me is if I'm all ripped up and carrying muscle around on my frame, how on earth could I weigh a tiny amount? It's just not possible.
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I would say go with the 25s and push-press the remainder of the set.
Cynic, that wouldn't be cheating the exercise? I thought that would just be changing the exercise. Yesterday I split set my first set with 20s and 25s and felt like I did a ton of work, so that was good. I think I might be too lazy for the plate mates.
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Handstand push-ups??? Wow, girl, you rock!!! I 'm still not mastering the regular push-ups...
Thanks Climban. I was there once too. Just keep going, and you'll be writing about your handstand pushups before you know it.
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How flipp'n cool is that?!!! A handstand pushup. I wonder if....... OMG I am totally going to work towards this one.
K, you should totally work towards it, but you and I both are going to have to do it as an extra, as Lisa notes below. It works the shoulders and not the chest.
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In Never Gymless, Ross Enamait shows the progression of how to do just that.
Awesome link, Tom, thanks!
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handstand pushups rock! - I love seeing the xfit vids that feature them -
but i was thinking that they aren't really a horizontal push at that point are they - more a vertical push - so if you are really trying to increase difficulty of pushups in the program I think you have to go another way. just my opinion of course.
You are, as usual, totally right. I just got so excited when working with my feet higher, that I had to try them. I guess I'll do them as extras here and there just to get better at them. Ever since I saw that girl on xfit doing them from the ground, I've wanted them really badly.
I will probably start subbing the T-push ups with a weight that are in the book.
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Whoa, HS pushups! It's the influence of that Chris, isn't it? Next thing you know you'll be a Crossfitter, too.
Very impressive work, Mel.
Thanks Bill! He is definitely trying to infect me....and there is a lot of it that is very appealing. I did a tabatas section the other day...
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AWESOME! I wanna do those someday, too.
Thanks Karen....give it a try. And check out that great link Tom gave below.
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HANDSTAND PUSHUPS !!!!
Thats *&^%$*@ Impressive. Nice job Mel sorry about the foul mouth.
Thanks...and I don't mind as long as you are cursing with me and not at me
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Hope you're having a good time out of town.
I want to request that you put that handstand push-up on the short list for your next avatar.
Thanks Diva, we had a very nice time. And I am going to work on that avi today. I really wanted to change it, but couldn't think of what to change to, so I'll play with that today. Thanks for the idea.
Okay, now to post the workout I did Friday before we went out of town.
I thought back to backing it with A from Thursday would kill me, but it didn't.
Here's the numbers:
This Was Stage one, Workout B #6.
All exercises are 3 sets of 10 with 60 seconds rest in between, and all except for the deadlifts were alternating supersets.
A) Deadlift
130
135
135
B1) Dumbbell Shoulder Press
5/25s and 5/20s
5/25s and 4/20s
8/20s
B2)Wide grip lat pulldown
14 plate
14 plate plus
14 plate
C1) Lunges
5/30s and 5/25s
25s
25s
C2 Swiss ball crunch
17/4 plate plus on cable tower
5 plate on cable tower
5 plate on cable tower
Finished with HIIT on the treddy. Used the second intervals workout from the book.
Thoughts:
* deads were exciting. feeling strong. can't wait to do 8 reps and push the weight. Definitely going for 140 next time.
*split setting the shoulder presses. it was brutal. I feel like a wimp on those, lol.
*pushed lunges too....wow did my heart start racing. Form was crappy with the 30s, so only did that for half a set
*True HIIT is a cool, cool thing. Thanks to a thread by Natalia in NROLW forum, I figured out what I was not doing, and now I'm having a blast with the real thing.
Yesterday I spent the day stuffing my face at the inlaws, so today I will do some HIIT. Thinking of trying a body weight program posted in that same thread.
Thanks Ladies! The avi was DanceDiva's idea. I used the shot where my hair is hanging down on the step so you could see that I actually was up in the air, LOL. One of these days I'll get that step out of there and be able to do them from the ground.
So this afternoon I decided to try the bodyweight HIIT workout posted over in the NROLW thread.
This is what I did:
Bodyweight Interval Workout
• Go through the circuit up to 3 times without resting between exercises.
• Rest 30 seconds between circuits.
o Prisoner Squat (15 reps) (hands behind head)
o Decline Pushup (15 reps)
o Underhand-grip Inverted Row (12 reps) (on the squat bar) and ball, like a backwards push up
o Plank with Elbows on Ball (30 seconds)
o Bulgarian Split Squat (12 reps per side)
o Jumping Jacks (60 to 100 reps)
It was hard, fast, a real challenge. Glad I did it.
Hi! Thanks for visiting my log! The handstand pushups are so impressive. I hope I'll be able to do those eventually. I've just recently mastered regular pushups and am really excited about that!
those HS pushups look awesome! How did you learn em?
Your work looks great. The HIT stuff is good stuff, I love it!
Keep up the great work.
Thanks Deb! I learned by first trying them and not being able to do them at all. Then, I started doing decline push ups. Then, I started doing decline push ups on the squat rack with my feet on the bar. Each time, I just moved the bar up a peg. Eventually, I was almost vertical, so Chris said just get against the wall. I'm doing them now with the aerobic step under my head until I'm strong enough to do them from the floor. I also watched Chris do them and the girl on the xfit videos.
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Great avi with a very impressive hand stand pushup! You can be very proud of yourself.
Also,wonderful physique. Your abs are showing
Thanks Espi! I've got one of those pear shapes I guess....all the extra weight in the thighs not on the tummy.
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The avi brings back horrible memories for me from phys ed in elementary school. I couldn't even do a handstand! But nice work!
Thanks LT. I wasn't so good at them myself. It's funny to look back and think about where I was athletically as a child, which was pretty much nowhere, LOL.
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I'm reading the results of your workouts and I'm thinking this girl is a MACHINE!!!
Awesome job!
Aww, thanks R! Appreciate you stopping by.
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Mel,
You've been playing while I've been away. When you say you're going to do something .... you do SOMETHING! Avi is great.
You had a great idea, so I went with it! I don't think I would have had the guts to do it if you hadn't suggested it.
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Hi! Thanks for visiting my log! The handstand pushups are so impressive. I hope I'll be able to do those eventually. I've just recently mastered regular pushups and am really excited about that!
Thanks for stopping by MG. Isn't mastering a new skill amazing. One thing I'm finally starting to learn is that I can do a lot more things than I think. Even when something seems impossible at first, I'll usually try it. What's the worst that can happen, failure? That only lasts for a minute.
Thoughts:
*first time for the T push ups with weight...that's a good exercise! will be doing that again!
*seated row...was feeling good until Chris saw me and said I was cheating again. Good think he watches me sometimes..I'm sneaky. I'll have to drop those down next time.
*Good news on the step up front. I think I've finally got it figured out, at least mentally, if not mechanically. The trick to increasing the workload on the first leg is loading/centering body weight over the glute/hip of the first leg and then driving through the heel of that same leg, mentally concentrating on pushing through the hip and glute of the first leg. At least this is how I thought about it, and I felt like I was doing much more work with that part of my body this way. Does that sound right to any of you body mechanic types?
*on the swiss pikes, I decided to change two things...first, not to stop at 8 reps, just do them amrap, and second, to stay on my tippy toes through the movement. Freaking difficult! wow! The ball wobbled all around.
Finished with HIIT today, driving to the gym in the sleet. Joy.
I forgot to look at the third interval from the book, so I just modified the last one by throwing in some 10s. This was fun, and with the drastic speed changes, the time just flies by.
I was on the treddy as always
speeds are mph.
Warm up: 1@3, 2@ 5
1@8
2@3
1@9
2@3
1@10
2@3
1@8
2@3
1@9
2@3
1@10
2@3
Total of 21 mins and 1.74 miles. Definitely made me work. Good stuffs! The 10s really challenged my stride and my breathing.
Nutrition Highlights:
none. food is boring me today. That's good. still need more eats somewhere.
Those deadlifts and handstand pushups are impressive!
Thanks Greg! I'm getting there. The DLs are getting better, but I'm approaching the weight that starts to mess with my mind. I hope I can keep form and keep going up.
I'm walking 60 miles for a breast cancer cure, September 11-13, 2009! Please support my walk and help me raise funds for cancer research by donating to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer 3-Day: http://www.the3day.org/site/TR/Walk/...nal&fr_id=1300
Just ambled over to check out your log and my jaw just about hit the floor--you are so freakin' strong! Totally inspiring, mel! Wow. I will DEFINITELY be reading your log for inspiration! Handstand pushups, here I come.....(ha--not fer a while).
Just ambled over to check out your log and my jaw just about hit the floor--you are so freakin' strong! Totally inspiring, mel! Wow. I will DEFINITELY be reading your log for inspiration! Handstand pushups, here I come.....(ha--not fer a while).
THanks for stopping by Kirijava! Just get started working towards them, and you'll get them! Time really doesn't matter.
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Nice work Mel, dang you are getting S T R O N G!!!
Thanks Julie. You are so busy, I really appreciate you stopping in! Did a xfit today that made me feel like a weakling, so I'll keep working to get stronger.
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I agree with the consensus...you're a hoss! And I mean that in the most loving way!
i would concur with your thought process on the step ups.
And I am so loving doing HIIT the CB way!! It's fun to run FAST even if it's only for a short time!
Rock on, Sistah!
LOL,Thanks, I think, Redwifey! No seriously, that's a compliment for sure, and not something that I hear every day.
Glad to hear that I'm not the only one thinking this way on the step ups.
And, I totally agree on the running fast...makes me feel so cool to be pounding it out. I was annoying a girl walking on the treddy next to me, lol. Loud Feet!
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Nice work, Mel!!!
Awesome HIIT workout on the tready! 10 mph ROCKS!
Thanks Dilly! You have the BEST emoticons! I love dem!
Well, today was a non lifting day. I planned to do another HIIT bodyweight circuit, but as I was getting ready, Chris suggested I do today's cross fit with them today since it was pretty much a body weight circuit. So I did.
This was the workout:
"Nate"
Complete as many rounds in twenty minutes as you can of:
2 Muscle-ups
4 Handstand Push-ups
8 2-Pood Kettlebell swings
Post rounds completed to comments.
Here were my numbers. We scaled dem a bit. Mel (scaled)
8 Pullups
8 Dips
4 Handstand Push-ups
8 35lb DB swings Rounds: 5 + 8pu/8dp/4hspu
I was by far the wimp in the group. Chris did 8 plus rounds and Zach did 7 rounds, all be it scaled for his size. I felt so lame, seriously. I have some work to do. It was exciting and challenging, though. I'm starting to think that crossfit will be my main workout after this challenge. I can't believe I'm even saying that, lol.
Nutrition Highlights:
*had a snow day today, so I cooked three meals. I'm pretty excited about trying them out. My fav is the chicken sausage and mushroom soup with whole wheat corkscrew pasta. Probably having that in a few minutes!