2010 and a long way to go....

Well, I have my computer back so now with that and the new year, let's see if if I can keep up at least somewhat with this....

It's been a long year.  I have been struggling with no weight loss pretty much forever.  I have tried just about anything people have suggested as far as eating/not eating.  I still have not been ultra successful at the eating log, but I do have a good handle pretty much of what I do and don't eat.  So...early in the year I tried the "Optifast" plan.  It's a medically supervised low calorie protein diet.  There are weekly individual meetings with a registered dietician where you weight, discuss how things went the previous week, they work on behavior modification and you buy your food for the week from them at that time.  I know 4 other people who had used this diet the previous year and had successfully lost anywhere from 20-150 pounds over the course of the time they were on the diet.  I was told by the doctor and the dietician that most of the people who start this and have as much weight to lose as I do that what is most commonly seen is weightloss in the range of 20 pounds every 4 weeks for the first couple of months and most of these people are not working out in any manner when starting.  I figured I should have an advantage here since I workout typically 5 days a week at a minimum.  In the first week I lost 8 pounds...YEAH!  Well over the course of the next 7 weeks I only lost an additional 9 pounds.   I can't scoff at a loss of 17 pounds, but this diet is expensive and I am WAAAAAYYY below average.  In 8 weeks I lost just under what most people lose in 4 weeks.  The dietician had continually changed the formula of stuff to try and get the weight to come off.  Ultimately she told me it was my fault and that obviously I was not doing what she was telling me...on top of that my workouts were suffering.  So I quit that.  I successfully kept that weight off until the last few weeks when I have gained 7 pounds.

I went to an endocrinologist at the urging of several people who said, maybe there is something else wrong.  Well, in the end they have yet to find anything beyond that my cortisol level seems to sit right at the highest it can and still be in the "normal" range.  I don't have Cushings Disease which causes high cortisol, so no-one can tell me why this is or how to fix it.  In an attempt to help, I was put on a medication on a trial basis in the beginning of December...it's been since I started this medication that I gained the 7 pounds.  I will be stopping this within the week.  Now I again have an additional 7 pounds to lose.  My kidney stone medication was changed in the late summer/early fall to a higher dose.  This I found out in early December can cause extreme muscle fatigue (I had), bad muscle cramping (I had to some degree), drop in blood pressure (oh yeah and I already have low blood pressure).  Well, since then I have been dropped back to the lower dose.  Well see how that goes in February.

Anyway on the WODS since 01-01-10.

CROSSFIT TOTAL 01-01-10
3 single attempts for max weight on

Back Squat
Press
Deadlift

My finals-
BS- 265
P- 100
DL- 305
TOTAL= 670

Well, I should've been able to at least get 315 pounds on the deadlift.  That's what I did 01-01-09, and several times since then I have got higher numbers than that....well not so much.  275 and 305 both actually felt pretty easy, I don't know what happened.

The 265 almost made it to depth, but was close enough to count for CFT not for a powerlifting meet though.

I did however get 100 pounds on the press which is only the second time EVER and it went up pretty easy too.  I really thought I'd get the 105 I tried for attempt #3 and I did get pretty close, but just could not quite get it up high enough.

Tonight 1-4-10 I was actually pretty psyched to do "The Vinn Man" I did pretty good last time we did it and didn't have any problems with muscle tightness pain until round 3, but even that I could push through...not so much tonight.

THE VINN MAN
3 Rounds 1 minute per station, with a continuous clock...no rest between stations, 1 minute rest between rounds...For TOTAL REPS

Deadlift 125#
Fitness ball hip extensions
Single leg goodmornings
1 1/2 goblet squats
Kettlebell swings 12kg
Glute ham raises

01-04-10  200 reps

I did things unscaled same as last time (total reps from last time = 255), I lost reps.  My hip (gluteus minmus) tightened so tight I could hardly stand, or bend without weight to pick weights up or anything else required to complete the WOD.  This all happened in round 2 my worst round today.  I only got about 5 kettlebell swings and should have been able to get the 35ish I got in round one.  The glute ham raises...I think I counted 2 maybe 3 and they were very shallow.  I actually didn't get far enough to feel it in the hamstrings that round, only in the gluteus.  Then deadlifts...again at 125# easy...I got about 20 the first round down to 4-5 for round 2...WTF.  Round 3 went a little better but not as good as it should've been.

I haven't had this muscle tighten this bad in probably about a year, maybe more.  Tighten, yes, but not to the point of almost tears that almost happened tonight...almost that or not finishing the WOD.

My ankle being sore and swollen killed the warm-up too.  All the way around tonight was not a good day at the gym....We'll see what tomorrow brings with 5000# overhead anyhow.