While watching GORUCK Pre-selection, I became aware of how the Cadres spent about 15 minutes using the illusion of them wanting to switch from one exercise to another frequently, to get into the minds of the candidates while also physically exhausting them. You have it in your mind that you are about to do one exercise, and you set it up by lifting your heavy ruck and moving your tired body into the proper starting position, only to be told to switch to some other exercise that you now have to shift everything over to. It might frustrate you if you don't realize what's happening. Just moving from one exercise's starting position to another, non-stop, is in and of itself a workout, too. I decided to build my own Pre-selection 2021-inspired workout based on what the cadres had them do in the surf at Jax Beach during the beginning of the event (11pm on Friday night).
Here's the workout, for your exercising pleasure...
Pre-selection 2021 Welcome Party Part 1 WOD
- 1 mile coupon ruck
Drop the Coupon, then with ruck:
- Low crawl 25m
- 5x (5 roll right / 5 roll left)
- 50 4-ct Flutter Kicks with ruck OH
- 10 Ruck F-Ups (refer to the YouTube video)
- 25 Leg Levers with ruck OH
- Bear Crawl 25m back to the Sandbag
Sandbag Work (with ruck):
- SB over-the-shoulder throw 25m
- 10 SB back squats
- 10 SB lunges (per leg, alternating legs each time)
- 1 min SB OH hold
- 10 SB farmers carry hold then dip to ground
- Low crawl SB drag 25m
- Then SB side toss until you hit 45 minutes
If you have time afterwards (I didn't), the workout continues...
- 10 pushups
- 10 mountain climbers
- 5 SB cleans
- 5 SB clean and squats
- 5 SB clean squat presses
- SB clean squat presses to back for a lunge left and lunge right
I made a nice salad afterwards that reminded me of what Ari would make me in Switzerland:
Lots of fresh veggies, herbs, balsamic, and olive oil. Superfoods.
I did an 8 mile ruck in the evening, to try to get back into the habit of some longer rucks, going at a 20:09 pace, wearing Salomon XA Comps, carrying 30# in the Speed Rucker.
Monday, July 19:
I did 45 minutes of stairs to prepare for the upcoming 9/11 HTB. I carried 30# in the Speed Rucker. I got exactly 90 stories up and down the parking garage (2.5 min per 5 flights = 30s per flight). My knees crunched a bit in the second half, so although this is a nice workout in concept, I don't think it's healthy for me to do for too long at a single time, or to do too often. I had on long sleeves and pants despite the heat, because I had originally planned to go to the range, but ended up doing stairs instead.
Tuesday, July 20:
HDT IR 17-18.1.3 (core and arms) in 62 min. The pullups weren't great, but that means it's good that I'm doing them and working on it now. I did this at midnight, since I needed a shower anyways, and wanted to get in some training while my body felt up for it.
Thursday, July 22:
Someone on FB said that the moon was low, orange, and big. I decided to ruck outside to try to see it. It wasn't particularly big, but it didn't hurt to get in a recovery ruck. I progressively went faster, wearing a 40# weight vest and Ballistic trainers. The air quality was bad today, as a result of the western wildfires.
Friday, July 23:
HDT 19.5.2 (legs) in 35 min, followed by 100 situps and 2x[15 40# SB rows w/ ruck and 1 minute of high plank with ruck] for 10 minutes. The 6 minutes of duck walks with the 20# plate in front of my body was probably good for shooting strength. My left knee has been a little wonky lately, though.
Saturday, Jul 24:
The Olympics have begun. I've been a big fan of the Olympics ever since I was a kid. When we had writing assignments, I'd always choose to write stories about Izzy, the 1996 Games mascot. It got to a point where my teacher encouraged me to branch out. One of the earliest CD roms I remember using when computers were first "a thing" in my household was one that came with a big book about the Olympics. It let you learn about and play videos related to different sports and athletes, kind of like a website would do nowadays.
Anyways, I decided to organize a ruck club ruck carrying the Olympic flag. Nobody else came, but that's OK. I make the rucks interesting enough to myself that I wouldn't mind doing it alone anyways. And I wasn't alone, in a way. A couple of construction workers along the route cheered, and I'd say "go USA" to other pedestrians along the rail trail.
Sunday, July 25:
Not a workout per se, but I volunteered to help build some obstacles for the following weekend's Spartan Super in Asheville. It is physical work, and tiring, being outside on your feet all day. I do enjoy volunteering with Spartan, though. I've done many different roles over the years, and it's always interesting to see how they organize things and try to optimize processes and flows. The behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to run such a big event is helpful.
Monday, July 26:
At one point in my life, my role and team at work allowed me to travel about 25% of the time, with international trips in different continents. It was a great amount, because it wasn't so much that it significantly impacted my home life, but it was enough to get to enjoy it. I've missed it, so even the opportunity to go to the Midwest was really exciting, especially since I haven't gone much of anywhere since COVID started.
Tuesday, July 27:
I look like a bee-keeper, according to my sister.
Someone mentioned that the location where we were staying (Sioux City, NE) was near three different states. I checked it out on Google, and found that it was close enough for me to hit all three states within a 10-mile run. Mission accepted.
I started out in Iowa, where I was staying. I ran up a greenway where I could get onto an overpass that took me into South Dakota. After crossing back, I went a little further out on the Iowa side to check out a park that was the terminus of the greenway. I then made my way back towards my hotel, and then crossed into Nebraska. Picking the route required some creativity, since this isn't meant to be pedestrian-friendly for some segments, but like in adventure racing, you see what options you have (with the benefit of Google Map satellite imagery in this case), make a plan, and adapt when you need to.
I saw a wild turkey on the way, and also found a cool feather. I also saw a historic site of where the first white settlers had built a cabin in 1849. It was a hot run (99*), but I survived without water.
Afterwards, I enjoyed a tasty salmon salad and porter.
Wednesday, July 28:
I did some geocaching, which is a go-to hobby when I'm traveling and don't have definitive plans. It's fun on its own, but you also get to see a bit more of the city, and may wind up discovering things or places you wouldn't otherwise get a chance to appreciate. Not all of the sites are glamorous, when they're in parking lots or industrial parks, but there are nice nuggets every now and then.
Thursday, July 29:
Before the trip back, I stayed at a hotel in Omaha that was designed around fitness, which was pretty cool. They had some equipment, as well as a workout video player, right in the room. I wish I had stayed long enough to take advantage of those amenities.
Omaha has a cute downtown area with shops and restaurants, which I explored. I had wanted to see the Heartland of America park, but it was closed for renovations. The stores were interesting, though. Antique shops, collectible toys shops, etc.
Friday, July 30:
On the plane ride home, I had to be careful about protecting the feather, which I was bringing back as a gift to my dad.
No comments:
Post a Comment