Frustrating WOD
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caribougal
Posts: 865 Member
Today's WOD shouldn't have been so hard. But man... I am so frustrated with myself.
I started in January, so I'm still learning.
The WOD was 15/12/9, overhead squat, ring dips, burpees over bar.
OHS: I started with a training bar (15 lbs) with 20 lb. Bad form. They bumped me down to 10 lbs. Bad form. Bar only. Bad form. Then they made me just use the PVC pipe. Ugh, embarrassing. I try so hard to get the form right, but it seems I'm always off. Coach says he thinks my hips are just not flexible enough to let me go down in my squat and stay straight. I lean forward too much, even though as far as I can tell, I'm trying to sit back on my heels and stay straight. I'm glad they're so strict about stopping people with bad form, I know that's so important, but I just wish I could get it! Too bad CF boxes don't have fancy mirrors... I wish I could see myself to see what I do wrong.
Ring dips... didn't even try them. I did them on the box, but had to modify down to push-ups, and then modified push-ups. I mean, really... it shouldn't be so hard to bang out 12 push-ups!
Burpees over bar... let's just say mine don't look quite as springy as the coaches'.
Sometimes it's just so frustrating not to be as strong as I want to be. I try to remind myself that I'm 43, and have not weight-trained in 20 years. Patience, right?
/rant
I started in January, so I'm still learning.
The WOD was 15/12/9, overhead squat, ring dips, burpees over bar.
OHS: I started with a training bar (15 lbs) with 20 lb. Bad form. They bumped me down to 10 lbs. Bad form. Bar only. Bad form. Then they made me just use the PVC pipe. Ugh, embarrassing. I try so hard to get the form right, but it seems I'm always off. Coach says he thinks my hips are just not flexible enough to let me go down in my squat and stay straight. I lean forward too much, even though as far as I can tell, I'm trying to sit back on my heels and stay straight. I'm glad they're so strict about stopping people with bad form, I know that's so important, but I just wish I could get it! Too bad CF boxes don't have fancy mirrors... I wish I could see myself to see what I do wrong.
Ring dips... didn't even try them. I did them on the box, but had to modify down to push-ups, and then modified push-ups. I mean, really... it shouldn't be so hard to bang out 12 push-ups!
Burpees over bar... let's just say mine don't look quite as springy as the coaches'.
Sometimes it's just so frustrating not to be as strong as I want to be. I try to remind myself that I'm 43, and have not weight-trained in 20 years. Patience, right?
/rant
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Replies
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Yep - patience! I started with a wooden stick too - most people do! Does your box offer training work shops? I did one a month ago and it has helped me immensley! It has given me the confidence to actually put some weight on the bar and know that I am not going to ruin my back.
Give yourself a goal (master pull ups or ring dips) and get to the box 10 min early to practice - thats what I do with my pull ups - I am determined to master these by July.
Not having mirrors is actually a good thing as I believe you should be able to feel when your not lifting with good form. Otherwise I know people who tape them selves and get others to offer opinions - but at the end of the day that is what your coaches are for - to look at you and help you master good form.
Good luck, don't be too hard on yourself and keep on going!
Add me as friend for support if you like :-)0 -
Thanks for the feedback.
I go to the 5:30am WOD, so I may not go in early, but maybe I can stay a little later and ask for help or go later in the afternoon when they're not so busy.0 -
Also with the squat thing - perhaps practice deep squats at home. Concentrate on looking forward and going deep to loosen up those hips. I am 40 and if I can do it, anyone can - but it does take time - grrrrrr0
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Coach yells at "us hockey players" becasue for some reason all of our hamstrings are tight always. So for us and other people that can't get squat form, he has us "get on the wall", which is lay on your back with your butt all the way to the wall and spread your legs in a V and just lay there a few minutes stretching.
The other part of it is to "squat on the wall". Same position, but your feet are flat on the wall and try to bring them into your body as close as possible. The only example pic i can find of that is this:
http://thediaryofamadbrownman.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/wall-squat-stretch.png?w=584
I know it's frustrating, I've only started in December and I get kind of bummed out like today when I know I can Rx the strength part of a WOD, but overall it is "ruined" only becasue I can't do a knees to elbow and a double under so the Rx is out of my reach from the get go LOL. No worries, we will all get there and you will see improvements little by little.
I've started a WOD diary - and I'm tracking everything every day along with my food journal. I don't track on MFP, I write it down old school and just come on here for the message boards lol. But anyway, i'm tracking all my weights lifted and WODs and times and reps. Then I keep a separate log of the Hero WODs and my max rep stats. I just started this within the last week so I'm excited to see the changes to come in the next couple months
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Thanks for the stretch ideas. I'm going to get a journal too. My box has a little online WOD tracker on their website, but I don't really like it. I think I'll go old school like you and keep a journal.
I dropped in on CF Brier Creek near the Raleigh airport in NC last week while I was traveling. They kept journals for everyone, and the coach had them all go get their journals at the beginning of the skill session because they were finding their 1-rep max for bench press. At the end of the WOD, they all wrote in their journals. I thought it was great that the journals seemed to be an integral part of their community.0 -
I had one of those last night - just super light weights and it was super hard. It takes time to get stronger - just keep at it - everyone was there at some point! Some of these are Olympic lifts - it takes time to learn them and build flexibility!0
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I've been Crossfitting for 11 months, and I still ahve to modify a lot of things... and my burpees are awful! Try not to get discouraged. You are working hard and some of this stuff takes a long time to master. OHS are particularly challenging for a lot of people. The form is difficult to get and it's best to start out lighter and work your way up as your form improves.0
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Yeah, you are too hard on yourself! My OHS are atrocious at the moment, I simply fall over or crumple under the bar as I have zero core strength. That and snatches seem impossibly hard for me. Like, I quite literally can't figure out how to motor myself through one.
I had a frustrating day this week when my coach kept correcting my form doing power cleans during the WOD (keep your hips back, bar closer to your body!), and I was ready to scream by the end of the WOD (am I doing anything right?!?). Then I took a breath, reminded myself Rome wasn't built in a day (cliche but that mantra helps me when I get down or compare myself to the incredible women at my box), and I've only attended 20 classes.
I can't wait to look back at my training log a year from now and laugh at how weak I was!0 -
Me too. I can lift a ton but flexibility I don't have. So been in it 3 months have finally put weight on it. I did the pvc pipe for a while too.
It will come, just keep working on it.0 -
I tried a clean straight to an overhead press. Just with the bar and it's the flexibilty that gets me. I can't stretch my arms back enough to get the bar behind my head.
I'd think the upper body flexability would be the limiting factor?0 -
Patience! Yes! It's like talking to myself, LOL. I too am VERY hard on myself. You have to remember that the lifts are very techinal (especially Oly lifts) and people work for years to perfect it. I've been crossfitting 9 months and still can't do an OHS *kitten*-to-grass. My squat depth is still not like everyone else's.
When I get hard on myself my coach reminds me by asking me the following questions:
- how many hours a week are you crossfitting (for me it's 3)
- of those hours in a month how much time is spent on __x__ (usually less than 30 minutes)
- so how do you expect to get better so quickly when you're only spending 30 minutes a month on ___x___ skill?
Yeah, this is me with lifts, doing push-ups NOT on my knees (I'm still on them at 9 months), pull ups without a band (I'm only on the medium band).
So yeah, everything takes time and practice. Definitely work on things at home and if they offer specialty classes take those. Mine offers a Saturday Oly class where we do 1 lift for 2 hours. That's really helping me out alot.
and PATIENCE!0 -
Everyone has those and then on the days the WOD is comprised of all things you are good at it feels so good. We had ring dips yesterday too, I'm surprised they didn't let you try them using the bands, I used a band to do mine...0
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I didn't read all the responses, so forgive me if this has already been suggested ... but whenever our coaches tell me I'm doing incorrectly and I can't seem to fix it I get them or another member to make a video or take a picture of me so that I can visualize it.0
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I didn't read all the responses, so forgive me if this has already been suggested ... but whenever our coaches tell me I'm doing incorrectly and I can't seem to fix it I get them or another member to make a video or take a picture of me so that I can visualize it.
Great idea! Thanks.0 -
Have you checked out mobilitywod.com?
For OHS it's usually hips, (like you mentioned) and can also be a shoulder mobility issue.
They have a TON of short videos to help with mobility. Also, getting treatment (ART from a chiro or pt) is an option, but the vids are a great place to start.
It's all great to be patient and everything, but there might be actual mechanical issues that you can address while being patient.0 -
Simple diagnostic and practice tool for OHS...Get right up on a wall ready to squat, put your heads up on the wall arms extended, squat....work at it and see if you can do it pretty much right up on the wall. If you don't feel at least a little awkward doing it, then you aren't close enough to the wall yet....well you feel like it probably looks disturbing/awkward then congrats you're doing okay! (OHS ain't easy, just a way to help improve the start of it....it is probably the most difficult of the squats, hence why I say okay)0
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You've only been at it since January!! Nothing wrong with scaling and mods still!
Work your hip and shoulder mobility. Watch the video's on mobilitywod.com, use them to help you in juicing your hips.
We were doing OHS and bar facing burpees too yesterday. One of the members had to start his OHS from rack position. find out what is your sticking point and just keep working it.
PS - frustrating is being crossfitting for 2.5 years and still not able to do 1 PULL UP!!:explode: So I get it.0 -
The power snatch we learned this morning is my nemesis right now. I am so uncoordinated! I'm going to watch videos of the movement and practice. =(0
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My flexibility is so bad from power lifting that when I do OHS my left arm goes numb for 3 days,lol.0
