Anywherefit 2013 Teaser

10K row

Workout of the Day

WOD 1 – in the morning…
Golf 18 holes
WOD 2 – in the afternoon…
90 minutes gymnastics class

WOD 3 – in the evening…
10K row for completion

I’ll admit, the rowing portion of today’s workout was a bit sadistic.  During gymnastics class I tweaked my wrist and left frustrated.  Thus, I needed an outlet.  I’ve never rowed 10K until tonight, and I have to say it’s a pretty mindless exercise.  At no point was I out of breath, nor was my heart rate elevated.  It was more of a mental challenge to find a way to continue repeating the same movements over and over again.  My back fatigued early on and I was battling it the entire distance, trying to invent new ways to take the pressure off of it.  I had hoped this would feel similar to a long run, but it became more of a muscle endurance workout than an aerobic one.  The only enjoyable part of the whole experience was doing it out front of the gym in the sun.  40+ minutes of vitamin D is hard to argue with.  I finished in 42:40. 

In gymnastics I learned a new ring skill: back roll to support.  It’ll take some practice to perfect it, but just getting the confidence to even attempt it was a victory.  Putting this into a ring complex or series of skills is the next goal.  

Olympic Qualifier

My dad told me about this story after seeing it aired on HBO Real Sports.  This is only a clip, but definitely captures the gist of it.  Very cool.

Deficit Deadlifts and Games athletes on Hermosa Pier

Workout of the Day

WOD 1 – in the morning…
Ring Swings with full extension
(approximately 100 reps)

WOD 2 – later in the morning…
Deficit deadlifts 5, 5, 5, 10 x 1
5 x :20 hanging tuck holds

WOD 3 – in the afternoon…
For time:
5 handstand pushups
10 muscle ups
15 clean and jerks (135#)
20 pistol squats
30 kettlebell swings (24 kg)

I found myself in Hermosa Beach today with a collection of CrossFit’s finest in a “beat the streets” type event sponsored by Reebok.  The idea was to put on a series of workouts that the public and local affiliates could participate in while trying to spread the word about fitness and the sport.  This turned out to be a total blast and a huge success.  During the course of the day, somewhere upwards of 150 people took part in the team workouts that we prepared and easily another 1000 were onhand to watch.  Big thanks to Reebok for putting it on and to the people of Hermosa Pier for being so welcoming.

In between events I was able to do some work of my own with the other coaches.  The ring swings are getting smoother every time I practice them, so I’m expecting to be able to progress this skill into something a little more substantial soon.  The deficit deadlifts were pretty brutal.  Jared Davis and I tackled 365# while standing on a 45# bumper plate, about 4 inches of lift.  I loved how quickly the body adapted to it’s new required range of motion.  After the first few sets I was barely noticing the difference between the new distance and the old.  That is, until I walked away and started to cool down.  Holy shit did it tax everything on the back side of my body.  Jared and I were walking around smoked for the next 2 hours.

Finally, as the day wrapped up a big group of us including me, Jared and Joe, Becca Voight, and Libby Dibiase did the above chipper as a sort of exhibition of additional movements for the crowd.  Nothing was terribly difficult about it, but my grip was definitely giving out by the kettlebell swings.  I finished it in 3:23, only having to break once (during the c & j). 

All in all today was a blast.  Looking forward to more events like this in the future.  Also, I attached the video from the horizontal rope climb and submersion burpee WOD earlier this week.  Check it out below.

Golf and Back Flips

Workout of the Day

WOD 1 – in the morning…

Golf 18 holes

WOD 2 – in the afternoon…
90 minute gymnastics class

If you’re reading WOD 1 and scratching your head, let me explain.  I’ve written at length about the need to re-design the parameters we put on “working out.”  I’ve also tried to push the element of sport in those parameters.  What I realized was that I wasn’t including any of the sports I play in my own training log.  I play golf, volleyball, frisbee, basketball, etc. perhaps not regularly, but often enough to be of note, yet I never write about them here.  It occurred to me that this might appear hypocritical so I’ve decided to start posting tidbits about these activities any time I take part in them. 

Beyond these updates, I’m going to begin a video blog series that will attempt to explore some other modes of fitness that are being overlooked or forgotten by the average crossfitter.  Because we fail at the margins of our experience, stretching those margins is an integral piece in achieving our strongest state of being. 

Highlights from today include an 11 over back 9 using only a 4, 6, and 8 iron, big time parallel bar work at the gymnastics studio, and more tumbling.  I even got started working on my standing back tuck.  Check the video, courtesy of Charlie Zamora below.

Back Flippin with the Homies

Submersion Burpee to Muscle Up

Workout of the Day

WOD 1 – in the morning…
Hang Snatch 2, 2, 2, 2, 2
Back Squat 5, 5, 5, 5
Bent Row 5, 5, 5, 5

WOD 2 – in the afternoon…
3 rounds for completion:
20 foot lateral rope climb
5 submersion burpee muscle ups

WOD 3 – in the evening…
7 minute AMRAP:
50 double unders
10 toes to bar

Got a little excited to train yesterday and might have gone a bit overboard, but it was fun all the same.  The highlight of the day was definitely the afternoon workout down by the river.  Clint and I tied a long climbing rope between 2 piers on the Sunrise walking bridge and did some suspended commando climbs across the span.  Then we hung some rings above the shallow edge of the river and did submersion burpees into muscle ups.  This was a cool twist on 2 very normal movements.  The burpee became more like a water boarding exercise, and the muscle ups were nearly impossible because of the slippery grip.  And when I say slippery I mean full on socks on tile slippery.  I had to jump, set a false grip with my hands in front of my face and do the kip from that position.  Any sort of arm straightening was not happening.  While this makes these muscle ups less than competition standards as they are written now, they were extremely “real world.”  If you’re looking for a new challenge for an old hat, this is it. 

We got some video footage of this fiasco that I will try to get up later this week.  Today was a big time rest day, complete with an ice bath upstream in the American River.  Might need another one tonight.

Double WOD with Subry and company

Workout of the Day

WOD 1 – in the morning…
Complete as much as possible of the following in 7 minutes:
20 deadlifts (315#)
20 handstand pushups
20 overhead squats (135#)
5 legless rope climbs (18 feet)

WOD 2 – in the afternoon…

¼ mile open water swim
¼ mile run
20 rounds of:
5 burpees
10 situps
15 walking lunges
¼ mile open water swim
¼ mile run

Gabe and the crew were up from Stockton on what turned out to be the hottest weekend of the year so far.  We also had Ben Alderman from CrossFit Gold and Clint Milusnic from Village Fitness.  Not to say that 106 feels much different than 99, but it’s still 106. 

The first workout was a short effort, the goal being to move heavy weight quickly and without stopping.  I knew the legless rope climbs at the end would be a bitch, and they were.  Gabe and I both went through the first 3 exercises unbroken and headed to the ropes just under 3 minutes into the workout.  But after all the grip and shoulder exertion that preceded it, the rope felt like it was 50 feet long rather than 20.  Giving yourself enough rest to make it all the way to the top is the key point here… burning out halfway up doesn’t do you any good.  But it’s a much different feeling trying to do these without the help of your legs, something I don’t practice that regularly anymore.  It took me until 6:28 to finish my last climb, and it took every ounce of energy I had. 

Afterwards we refueled quickly and started hiking out to the lake for WOD #2.  On the walk out we could definitely feel the heat bearing down on us.  But the promise of lake water and a small breeze kept us marching.  The WOD itself was interesting.  We knew going in that it would be a long effort, but the part between the swims ended up being done at a fairly high pace.  At no point was muscle failure an issue: 5 burpees, 10 situps, 15 lunges isn’t going to slow most people down from there set pace.  But the heat was definitely a factor.  By the end of the 20 rounds I wasn’t sure it would be a good idea to get back in the water, to be honest.  My head was spinning a little bit and I could definitely feel myself light on hydration.  As soon as I hit the lake, however, I felt instantly better.  The cooling effect of the water made me feel almost immediately recovered and I was able to swim the final ¼ mile without much difficulty.  My final time on this WOD was 37:15. 

Discussing the feel of this workout afterwards with everyone, we agreed that doing something this long and repetitive is an area of crossfit that is largely ignored in most boxes either due to time constraints or the simple fact of being too daunting for most members.  I submit that programming these types of WODs should not be reserved for SEALfit or bootcamp style classes, but I find myself guilty of avoiding it as well.  We need to feel what it’s like to push ourselves for longer than 20 minutes at a time.  Members at CrossFit Anywhere can expect some more of this in the near future…

Atlas Stone/Swim WOD

Here is the footage from Tuesday evening's workout.

Fitness Is...

Disappointment.

Stomach-turning, ego-crushing, tear-jerking disappointment. 

It certainly isn’t the most pleasant part of life, but it’s a part we can all relate to and learn from. 

Like anything, disappointment is measured in degrees and I want to be clear that the purpose of this article isn’t to dwell on the lesser forms.  When your favorite team loses a playoff game or your favorite TV show gets cancelled, disappointment is fleeting and easily recovered from.  When your friend forgets your birthday or your parents miss a soccer game, you can bounce back on the car ride home.  I’m talking about the times when you’re the disappointment. When you’re cut from the football team, fail a test, or lose your job.  Or, maybe you’ve gained 30 lbs since high school and can’t handle walking past a mirror.  Nothing compares to the anguish you feel when you’re disappointed in yourself—you’re exposed, vulnerable, face to face with your own failures, and it stings. 

While overwhelming at times, we have to remember that disappointment is nothing more than an emotion.  It’s something we feel, not something we do.  The pain, loathing, and regret that are symptomatic of our worst failures are not results of the weight we gained or the job we lost, but are our reactions to those conditions.  In reality they say more about our problem solving skills than they do about our general self-worth.  I submit that if we’re willing to face them honestly, failures can actually be a very useful and positive tool.  I’m not saying it’s easy—when you’re truly disappointed it’s hard to think at all let alone think straight.  But practice makes perfect, and training offers ample opportunity for rehearsal.

I’ll share a personal example.  It’s the CrossFit Games, Northern California Regional 2012.  If you’re unfamiliar with this event, it’s a 6-stage competition held over three days.  Each of the 6 events is equally weighted and designed to test different aptitudes along the fitness spectrum.  After 4 events I was sitting in 3^rd place and I was entering a stage I was extremely confident in—the snatch ladder.  For this task each athlete had to complete 20 double unders then perform a snatch in 50 seconds.  Each minute the bar increased by 10 lbs, with your heaviest successful lift marking your score. Having snatched 244 lbs two weeks prior, I had my sights set on the 235 lb bar as my goal, but I knew that even a lift of 225 lbs would most likely secure my spot at the CrossFit Games.

I approached the 215# bar in the same manner I’d approached all of the bars that preceded it: ready and relaxed.  This was merely a means to an end.  I pulled the bar from the ground to overhead and felt my legs buckle a little as I tried to squat to full depth.  My feet compensated by splitting too wide and I ducked into a half-squat, half power snatch.  As I stood to lock it out I felt my momentum carrying me backwards.  I staggered back with the bar a few steps, then descended off the platform and lost the lift behind. 

“No rep,” called my judge. “You have 20 seconds, Blair.”  

I hurriedly rolled the bar back on the platform and got in position to make the lift. 

“10 seconds.”

Big breath, smooth takeaway.  As the bar is moving upward I can feel it’s too far in front of me, but before I can adjust it’s crashing back to the ground.

“Time. Best lift: 205#.”

The surreal quality of a moment like this is indescribable.  I had just thrown away my chance at CrossFit’s biggest stage, yet I wasn’t sad.  I had just underperformed by almost 40# on a lift I practice all the time, but I wasn’t angry.  Roughly a year’s worth of preparation, dedication, and sacrifice had gone into that weekend but I felt blank, numb, nothing.  I instinctively moved my hands to my head to check that I wasn’t dreaming, but I felt like I was touching myself without someone else’s hands.  Nothing about it felt real.

If you’ve ever been disappointed like this you know the feeling.  You’re trapped somewhere between shock and denial and your mind placidly idles on the outskirts of reality.  We feel the same way when a relationship ends suddenly or when a family member’s been admitted to the hospital.  It’s like our brain dulls our senses to protect us from the full pain of the moment.  We walk around like zombies until the weight of what happened slowly sinks in. 

When it finally does, most people react in one of two ways:

1)   We rage against reality and search for reasons to discount the enjoyment we were feeling before our disappointment. 

This can manifest itself through outward anger—imagine the person who is visibly pissed off, uncomfortable to be around, and in all ways bitter about his/her outcome.  This type of individual will choose to hate that which has caused him pain and attempt to avoid it at all costs in the future.  In Little League we call him the “bad loser.”

It can also manifest itself through internalized pain—imagine the person who claims not to care or to never have cared when they obviously do or did.  This type of individual will begin to fear that which has caused him pain and attempt to protect himself from it in the future by pretending it doesn’t exist.  This person is the self-described “non-competitor.”

Or…

2)   We acknowledge reality and search for reasons to validate the enjoyment we were feeling before our disappointment. 

Picture the individual who admits they’re emotionally crushed but at the same time isn’t consumed by it.  This type of person will determine whether that which caused him pain holds value beyond the outcome, and whether that value was worth his current state of disappointment.  If it was, he will continue throwing his hat in the ring with no regard for failure or consequence.  If it wasn’t, he will move on to another challenge without bitterness or remorse.  This person is what we call “mature.”

What are the consequences of these types of reactions?

For the bad loser, disappointment is an accelerating downward spiral.  Take the man who loses 3 pickup games in a row and starts playing the fourth as an angry hack.  The mutual respect and satisfaction he could’ve gotten from winning is gone in the wake of cheap fouls, high tempers, and bitter opponents.  He is branded a poor sport by his friends and begins to resent their judgments.  Eventually he no longer competes because his anger has chased away anyone who would support him or play against him and he cannot physically handle the toll losing takes on him during the course of a game. 

For the non-competitor, disappointment is more of a silent killer.  Take the girl who isn’t asked to her high school prom and decides not to go as a result.  If unchecked, the rejection of that event will birth an insecurity that will shadow her every time she goes on a date or looks in the mirror.  She’ll begin to resent herself for not being pretty enough, thin enough, or fun enough for somebody else.  Rather than risk that disappointment again, she’ll pretend she doesn’t need or want companionship and slowly remove herself from situations where there is a potential for rejection.  Soon, she will have so insulated herself that it will take a pick-axe and dynamite to penetrate her shell.

These are extreme examples, perhaps, but they illustrate the potential we have for letting our emotions dictate our actions.  In both cases, the consequences are so severe, not because the initial incident was overly devastating, but because the response was misguided.  If the bad loser had played harder rather than dirtier, his reputation might have actually benefitted from losing rather than been tarnished.  If the non-competitor had gone to the prom anyways, she might’ve discovered that she didn’t need a date to have fun instead of feeling ugly and unwanted.  In both cases, the individuals were so fixated on the immediate outcome (winning/acceptance) that they were blind to the inherent value of the activity itself.  This perspective is the definitive difference between a mature person and everybody else. 

For the mature individual, failures are valuable and instructive.  This is not to say that he never loses perspective, only that he has the capacity to correct it when needed.  Often, this will happen in the midst of our disappointment. Our lowest moments are a lens through which things appear as they truly are; asking the right question in this instant will offer clarity and perspective that is lost when things are going well.  If you recognize that basketball isn’t enjoyable unless you’re winning, you need to take a break from playing.  If you need a date to establish self-esteem, you’re clearly not ready for dating.  These disappointments are indicators of dysfunction to the honest eye, and having the courage to address them will show you the way through.

Following the snatch ladder I spent a lot of time thinking about how my failure had impacted me.  At first all I could muster were the reasons to not go out and do the final event.  Regardless of whether I could make up the points I had lost, it was the last thing I wanted to do.  I was embarrassed and ashamed at having so publicly flopped and I hated the idea of having everyone’s eyes judging or pitying me. 

After this initial wave of self-loathing, my mind wandered back over the event itself, straining to re-make what was already made.  This was my brain again attempting to reject reality, but every time I went there it hurt a little more. 

Finally, after an hour of mental badgering, I asked myself the right question: why was I so disappointed?  What was it that I had lost?  The answer was surprisingly direct and simple: nothing.  Nothing about my life was physically different than it had been 60 minutes earlier, and nothing about it was going to change as a result of what had happened.  I knew then that I was squeezing myself in an emotional torniquete but for some reason couldn’t release it. 

Next I asked myself whether the weekend would hold any value if I didn’t qualify for the Games.  If I wasn’t able to pull off a miracle in the final event and earn a spot in Carson, would all of it be for nothing?  It was at this moment that the pressure began to ease and I could start to feel my sanity again.  I realized that my conception of success and failure had been too heavily predicated on my placing in the event—just like the dateless teenager, I had allowed myself to fixate on a result rather than a principle.  I realized how much value there was in the year of training that had preceded the Regionals; that I so absolutely loved what I had accomplished and done that I wouldn’t trade any of it for a place at the Games.  I realized that the opportunity to compete was a gift in itself, offering the chance to test myself without reservations and without fear against any obstacle.  Further, I realized that to seize this opportunity required courage and resolve and that those were qualities I wanted to foster.  Finally, I realized that the only lasting disappointment I would take away from the weekend would be if I failed to finish the event with the effort and commitment it deserved.

So I competed.  And lost.  I took 4^th in the final event, 5^th in the Regional overall, and finished one spot short of qualifying for the Games.  Driving away from the event I was flooded with texts and calls, some congratulating me on a great weekend, others consoling me on what I hadn’t quite done.  I remember thinking how lucky I was to have failed that day, not because it would motivate me to come back harder and stronger the following year (striving to be the best at anything will never be a reliable, long-standing motivator because there is always somebody better), but because it reminded me of the true reason I love CrossFit: it forces you to embrace the total experience.  It’s not all PR’s and pats on the back.  It’s failure, progress, challenge, and grit.  It’s affirming when you’re up and humbling when you’re down.  The combinations are kaleidoscopic and immeasurable, and without disappointment we might never see them in full.  To be fit, we must receive this range of possibilities without balking.  We must admit when we’re misguided and recalibrate our compass.  We must be ever on the margins, and comfortable there.  

Atlas Stone/Swim WOD

Workout of the Day

WOD 1 – in the morning…
Snatch 5 x 3 @ 70% 1RM for speed
5 rounds for completion:
5 back squats (295#)
5 muscle ups

WOD 2 – in the evening…
2 rounds for completion:
10 stone to shoulder (135#)
100 yard lake swim
5 wall climbs

Today’s training was a step towards a more organized strength/conditioning split like I was doing before Regionals.  While I doubt I’ll begin training 3 times per day again any time soon, I like the idea of getting 2 sessions in to both lift heavy and get outdoors to condition.  I took some video of the stone lifting and swim WOD, hopefully I can get around to editing it in the next few days. 

The major takeaways from today were that I felt super weak on squats, but very strong on the swim.  Apparently when you don’t lift heavy weights often, they feel heavier… go figure.  The water felt amazing and I can’t wait to get back out there.  If you’re not finding a way to swim a couple times per month, you’ve waited long enough.  It’s fundamental and extremely effective.

Anywherefit Iceland 2011 video - part 3

It's that time of year and Anywherefit 2012 is fast approaching.  Here is a reminder of what that means for all involved...

HOPE

Workout of the Day

“HOPE”
3 rounds for repetitions:
Burpees
Power Snatch (75#)
Box Jumps (24”)
Thrusters (75#)
Chest to Bar Pullups

I actually did this workout on Saturday with a large group of people over at CF East Sacramento but haven’t had the chance to write about it until now.  We had the opportunity to do it either outside or inside the box… naturally I chose to do it outside.  We had a nice breeze so the heat wasn’t much of a factor, but doing it on uneven ground made things a little more interesting.  Overall I felt the workout was more difficult than Fight Gone Bad, mostly because the movements were longer and required more power to execute.  I found burpees and power snatches to be WAY more challenging than wall balls and sumo deadlift high pulls.  Box jumps were obviously harder due to the 4” increase in height and thrusters instead of push press is a substantial increase in difficulty.  Finally, the chest to bar pullups don’t allow the same kind of total body rest pattern as the rower.  All in all, this is a bitch of a WOD.

I went through the first round with a score of 115 reps. I was trying to keep my heart rate down throughout, but could definitely feel it starting to creep up towards the end of the thrusters.  Starting the 2^nd round with burpees is where this workout truly starts.  This is a gut-check moment where you can either be defeated mentally or press on with the pace you’ve set for yourself.  Making this simple decision—to push on at your current pace—is where so many people fail.  My numbers dropped in the second round as they naturally must, but I still managed to get 102 reps. The 3^rd round is easier than the 2^nd because you have the end in sight.  You know it’s not getting any worse than it already is and all you’ve got to do is hold on to the finish.  Not quitting becomes my strongest motivation.  The last round I score 97, for a final total of 315.  If done a few more times, I think I might be able to get close to 350.  I see room for improvement on the thrusters and pullups by a few reps per round.  Other than that, I think this is all I got.

Back Handsprings!!

Workout of the Day
90 minute gymnastics session
Today marked the second consecutive Thursday that I've spent at the International Gymnastics Centre in West Sacramento.  Honestly, I think I'm aiming for 52 consecutive weeks--this is just too much fun.  Today we worked on some parallel bar drills that I'm absolutely going to employ for general strength building.  Straight arm swing throughs, bent arm swing throughs, back up raise, front up raise, weird muscle up variation (I'm making up all of this terminology, if you haven't noticed).  Eventually the goal is to be able to swing into a handstand and do a pirouette.  Whether that happens remains to be seen.
We also continued the tumbling lesson from last week where I was able to do half decent front handsprings by the end of the day.  Happy to report I have improved to just plain decent front handsprings and have added quasi half decent back handsprings.  These were difficult to figure out for me, but by the end of the day I was doing them with no spotter.  Hopefully by next Thursday I'll be ready for the London Games.
The video below is from Memorial Day weekend in Almanor.  Some pretty cool footage of how to create a workout with nothing but the surrounding environment.  All the better when the environment is gorgeous and austere.  Enjoy.

Tire Drags at Bannister Park

Workout of the Day

WOD 1 – in the morning…

15 minutes Double Under practice

WOD 2 – in the afternoon…
5 rounds for completion:
25 meter forward tire drag
25 meter backward tire drag
Then complete:
100 pullups
100 pushups

Did today’s workout with Clint and John down at Bannister Park in Fair Oaks.  This is a nostalgic location for anyone who has grown up going to the San Juan rapids on the American River.  As kids this was the staging point for the short hike around (or often through) Waldorf school to the river bank.  So, it was with a few memories that the 3 of us designed the above workout. 

The idea was to do some max effort intervals at the beginning using the tires and then finish with a longer, slower effort to train our muscular endurance on the bodyweight exercises.  The intensity was certainly high enough on the sled drags—ass and quads were thoroughly burnt by set 3, leaving sets 4 and 5 as the barrel scrapers.  I found the backwards drag to be especially painful; so painful in fact that we all quickly started using our upper bodies to row the tire as well as drag it. 

Clint managed to capture a little bit of video, check the link below.

Barbell Complex

Workout of the Day

10 minute AMRAP:
10 power clean
10 push press
10 front squat

All lifts are 135#

This is a classic barbell complex that turned out to be much harder than anticipated.  Nothing exotic about it, just plain and hard.  I found the cleans to be the easiest portion by far.  By the second round the push presses and squats were getting broken up in sets of 5 and I was pouring sweat.  It never ceases to amaze me how quickly a WOD like this can elevate your heartrate and get you dripping.  I did this with the 6:30 class at the gym so it was extra fun—nice to work alongside the members and draw inspiration from them.  I finished with 4 rounds plus 19 reps.  5 is definitely possible.

Tomorrow I’m hoping to get out and do a swim WOD at the lake.  Hopefully the body isn’t too banged up from today.

Front Handsprings!!!

Spent an hour and a half at the West Sac International Gymnastics Centre with some friends from CF East Sac yesterday doing all sorts of floor exercises.  I spent the vast majority of my time working on a front handspring, which by the end was looking pretty passable... for a meathead crossfitter, that is.  The bottom line was that it was a ton of fun and I'm sore all over.  For the remainder of the summer I'm planning on going in once a week to work on different skills, explosivity, and general coordination and flexibility.  It's fun to feel like a physical idiot every now and then; gives you the chance to really improve.

It's getting to be a hot, hot summer, and I was reminded of one of the hottest workouts I ever did.  2 years ago down in Newport Beach with my boy John.  Attached is the clip from the archives.

Long Absence...

Apologies to the dedicated anywhere fitness enthusiasts out there!!! The last month has been a whirlwind of Regional preparation, aftermath, and regaining focus.  Happy to say that everything is back where it should be and that I will be loading the blog back up with useful and interesting content.  This past week in particular has been full of really fun outdoor training.  I will be uploading some videos over the next few days that captured much of it, so stay tuned for those. 

The one below was done at my favorite fire trail near Lake Natoma.  Clint called me up and asked if I was up for a barbell carry uphill with muscle ups in the tree.  Ummm… biggest no brainer of all time.  The hardest part of this was definitely the hiking downhill.  Not a secure surface at all, and without the use of your hands to balance or catch you if you fall this got pretty hairy.  Constant concentration, balance, agility, and readiness.  If that ain’t CrossFit I don’t know what is.