Sunnyshine!

Ahh, it's good to be back in California. When I stepped off the plane in Santa Barbara at 8:00 PM into 65 degree weather as opposed to the -12 degrees it had been in Chicago when I stepped on, it was a beautiful thing indeed. It was the very best return, there's no other way I'd rather be welcomed home.

It was very tough saying goodbye to my sister. The last night I was there, she, her boyfriend Adam and I had just finished watching The Prestige and were laying snuggled up under down comforters and flannel sheets when it hit me how much I miss her when I don't see her. I'm so fortunate to have such a family that I actually miss them when I don't get to see them. Not just some of them, I mean each and every one of them. I feel much the same way about my extended family, as well. I'm so grateful.

The trip was a nice reprieve, and it allowed me time to rest my body from training and to take a holiday from trifles and larger issues. However, I woke up this morning at 7:30 refreshed and felt very ready to get back on track. I showered, ate breakfast, then took my 16 kg kettlebells down to the lawn and did a workout.

Everything was done with a 16kg (or two, if indicated):

-Started with some shoulder mobility warm ups, did a few snatches with the 12kg to see if they felt all right on the left shoulder -- which they did!
-Snatch Test - 80 reps, switched hands after 20 reps, no rest. Steady tempo, done in 3:30. No pain in the shoulder!!
-5 sets of 5 double front squats
-5 minutes of TGU, switching sides at the bottom
-3 sets of 5 boot-strap squats
-2 sets of 20 alternating swings

Completed the workout in 35 minutes.

I'm going to see how many snatches I can get done in the 5 minute span next time.

It felt fantastic to do that. The rest of the day will entail going to the beach and possibly rock climbing. I'll post some pictures of my first sledding experience (done in 0 degree weather) soon; I need to enjoy the sun now though. Cheers!

Yarr.

A good mornin' to ya. It be a nipplie, breath-takin' zero degrees here in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, and that be without the wind chill factor. The snow be a kaleidoscope of refracted rays upon the earth, the air singes on the way down. A beautiful phenomena to visit, and it be a beautiful thing to be able to leave it.

I did a workout a couple of days past. Worked the deadlift to a degree, but the equipment was a little shoddy. Did a few sets of 225 at 4 reps each, a few at 205 at 5 reps each, and a few at 185 at 8 reps. I also did some barbell suitcase deadlifts using the Olympic bar. My grip was a bit shot by that point, so I did 3 sets R/L, 4 reps per side. The last set I only did 3 per side.

I'm missing my kettlebells a lot, and looking forward to the workout that'll ensue once I get ahold of them. I need to have my ass kicked by a workout. I've also been pretty bad this last week diet-wise: it was my birthday on Thursday (pictures included), and I sort of took it as an excuse to eat crappy for most of the week. (Specimen A to your right.) The truth is, while it's great at the time, you always suffer for it later, even if you don't bear physical repercussions. Jacking up your nutritional intake in that way has such an effect on the psyche, and screws with your body image. It's an interesting thing. I'm not saying not to let loose once in awhile, and I don't think that these effects are strongly felt with small acts of indulgement, which I think can actually be beneficial. It's just a fine line, in my opinion. Anyway, I'm not going to worry about it, and it was all damn tasty! Particularly the Ben & Jerry's mint ice cream. If you haven't tried it, I recommend that yumful stuff.
This song has been stuck in my head today, and these lyrics in particular. I leave you with Aqueous Transmission by Incubus:

I'm floating down a river
Oars freed from their holds long ago
Lying face up on the floor of my vessel
I marvel at the stars
And feel my heart overflow
Further down the river
Further down the river
Further down the river
Further down the river
Two weeks without my lover
I'm in this boat alone

Floating down a river named emotion

Will I make it back to shore
Or drift into the unknown?

Bruises galore

I gotta say, I'm freakin' LOVING BJJ. I get more hooked every class. Today we went over a couple of sweeps and a few chokes. That's always fun, especially when done repetitiously. I also got to roll today once, which I won't really be able to do regularly for a little while, and really enjoyed it. So good!

My left shoulder is still jacked up. This is a big bother to me, and I'm not pleased that it's still an issue. Doing snatches last night with the 16kg on the left side was very uncomfortable. I've just been gritting my teeth and working through it for the most part, but I'm going to really try and give it a rest this coming week while I'm in Wisconsin visiting my sister and hopefully I'll be able to get her to work on it.

I'm now sporting black and reddish-pink hair. It was supposed to be Rufio-colored hair from Hook, but it turned out a bit lighter. I'll have to post a picture sometime soon.

Makin' some man hands.

Today was a deadlift day again. I attempted a max which was pointless since I tried for it last week and didn't get it, but that's okay. I also threw in some T-Bar rows at the end since I had the desire to do them.

DL:
Warmed up with 135 lbs. x 10
Max attempt: 275 lbs x 0. I got it off the ground, but it wasn't going up.
2 sets of 225 lbs, x 5
3 sets of 185 lbs, 8 x 8 x 7
T-Bar Rows:
4 sets of 185 lbs., x 10

I had a man come up to me at the end of my warm up and ask me how long I've been lifting for, and said I was the strongest woman he'd seen. It's not the first time someone's approached me, especially when doing deadlifts, but it got me thinking: I wish women weren't so afraid to explore their strength and fulfill that potential! It's too bad when the sight of a strong woman illicits shock. To each her own, truly. I just wish that women would realize that they aren't going to look like a Hulkette if they so much as look at a kettlebell or barbell.

The New Year

A belated 'Happy New Year' to everyone! I hope this year is full of beautiful new beginnings and the continuation of trends of fulfillment for everyone. I'm certainly planning on it being just so for myself.

I brought in the new year with a lot of great people, and I'm fairly certain I was one of two people who wasn't drunk, in case that isn't apparent from the picture. It was a good time with a lot of laughs -- definitely won't be forgetting it any time soon.

I've been enjoying the break from school a lot. I've been filling my days with training of the kettlebell/BJJ/rock climbing variety, and with people that I care about, creating stronger bonds and deeper connections. I've overcome some tough stuff and made so many positive changes, and more keep rolling in. I'm healthy, strong and getting stronger, and motivated for more. I'm in a fantastic state of mind, and loving life and all that's been coming with it. There's a lot to work on and to work towards, as it always will and should be. Honestly though, for the first time in several years, I feel as though I'm starting the year off just right. And it feels amazing.

"To me, you're like... lord of the rings!"

The above was said to me by my good, then-extremely belligerent friend. I'm pretty sure he was paying me a compliment, and I definitely don't know what it means.

Can I just say that drunks, while they can be amusing, can also suck? I went downtown Saturday evening and met up with some friends who had been out for awhile already, and they dragged me on to the dance floor, which I was happy to do. But I was not dressed up for the event, and was wearing flip flops, which was the wrong choice, because apparently drunks drop their tall glasses of beer, and don't pick them up! The club was naturally dark so I didn't see the glass until my toe and the bulk of the glass greeted one another intimately. No big deal, I didn't really think about it actually until I noticed that my foot was slipping in my shoe because there was so much blood. Silly drunks.

I just got back from an overnight camping trip with my girlfriends, which was a blast. We had some issues getting to the final destination that resulted in a lot of off-roading in a Scion tC, i.e. NOT 4WD, but I was getting a kick out of it. The evening consisted of hard cider, very crunchy burritos made over the fire, a bunch of crappy, tasty camp food, and cold. Yes, it was cold; ice = cold, and there was definitely ice on the ground and on
my sweatshirt that I left outside this morning. I don't think anyone slept all that much, but it was a good time. Threw some food down the chute and went on a two hour hike, which was beautiful and refreshing. It's always good to take time to get outdoors and absorb that energy... everything is much clearer when all of the distractions and modern "noise" are dissipated.

That deadlift thing

It's barely 5:00 and I'm dragging. I've not been sleeping enough/very well the past few nights... gonna have to do something about that...

I did a short deadlift workout today. Warmed up with 135 lbs, then tried pulling 275 and wasn't able; I successfully pulled 265 a few minutes later though. Engage the lats, chin down, feet under the bar, get wide in the hips, MAINTAIN TENSION! It's been a couple of months since I've deadlifted, so I was pleased that I haven't lost it at all. Did reps with 135, 185 and 225. The weight felt sort of heavy today, but I'm attributing that to general fatigue. My shoulders started firing after awhile, so I decided not to push it since kettlebells are tomorrow.

Two weeks until I leave for Wisconsin -- what was I thinking??? If you read this Anna, it's obviously because I love you; freezing cold sounds IDEAL!