All Aboard the Mill

The Mill:  Finished Crossfit for Hope, and finished is the key word, as prescribed.  This was a great event for an awesome cause, and thank you to everyone who helped support St. Jude's through sponsoring me.  Click on the image to see the full workout and description if you're interested.  You can donate to St. Jude's anytime of the year at this link.

Crossfit for Hope score card 

We lost a classmate to leukemia in 2002 which is a big reason I wanted to get involved in this fundraiser.  It's  how I chose to honor Rob some 10+ years later.

There were a couple of newbies in the gym while I was doing this workout.  Mind you, it's not a Crossfit box.  So, while they are being taken through each machine and told how it works they were probably asking if they could have their money back if this crazy nut goes here.  These older women were probably thinking why does he keep humping the ground (burpees), swinging like a monkey, and sweating all over everything? Well, they didn't say that, but you can imagine what it would be like if they did.  One of the older women just stopped about 2 feet away from and watched for quite some time, and then she left.  I haven't seen them since Monday.  The power snatches were a little tougher then I expected.  The plates are a lot smaller then bumper plates, and that 3 extra inches is a real ball buster.   Again, thank you to all who donated to this great cause and I was honored to have had the opportunity to participate.

My goal is to eventually give this blog some life.  Life in what though?  I want to people to be able to take something from it whether that be a workout, motivation, and hopefully eventually it turns into good writing.    Changing the fitness model is overdone and overused.  Take a step back and think about all the successful programs out there like Insanity, P90X, Crossfit, and my personal favorite Richard Simmons.  There's a ton more and probably offer the same advice, and definitely more to come.  Eat right, look good (not high on my list), and move fast.  Sound familiar?  If you tell someone that wants to lose weight that they should follow your program then chances are they will follow.  Now, I'm a Crossfit wanna-be athlete and I agree with a lot of things that they do, but essentially eat right (except my current chocolate chip addiction) and move heavy things fast.  My point is different and not about change.  As long as someone is moving, working, and eating right (moderation) then things will get into balance.  Fitness doesn't have to be complicated.  Being healthy doesn't have to be complicated.  Basic, everyday movements, that's it.  I do, contrary to popular belief, like to lift heavy things (heavy for me), using those basic movements.  This will get you strong if you want it to or if losing weight is your goal then this will do the trick.  A half hour run on the treadmill, followed by a case of beer, really defeats the purpose.  You would have been better off just drinking rather than being drunk and dehydrated.  I've kind of gotten off the path here, but you could have stopped reading a while ago if you wanted.  So I don't feel too bad.  Increase your heart rate and get creative.  My schedule allows for 2 really creative days outside the gym a week.  This is absolutely awesome.  Park workouts, tire flips, pull ups on the monkey bars, bear crawl up a slide, and anything else you want to do to change up the gym routine.  Expensive gym memberships aren't necessary to workout and get after it.  I wouldn't belong to a gym if my employer didn't offer it.  That stuff is crazy expensive.

I want this blog to give people options.  All people (well the people who read it).  What is fitness?  Crossfit gives fitness a definition, and you can give it your own.  That's the beauty of it.  Make it your own.  Personalize fitness. Here's my definition which is a constant work in progress.
Fitness- Sweat. Blood (a little). Exhaust yourself. Sweat, again. Challenging workouts. Conquer failure. Improve everyday. Be enthusiastic. Embrace each day. Moving is fitness.  So move swiftly.  Live life positive. Keep moving forward. Enjoy your family and friends. Balance.

The Hammer Mill is my outdoor, indoor, anywhere account of what happens while lifting some shit.  I love working out outdoors during the summer.  The winter months up north can kiss my ass for outdoor WOD's. My brother sees it differently, though, as he works out in his garage all year long.  Those walls don't do much for heat in the winter so I spend it in the gym.  I welcome anybody to come on down and join us for some tire flipping, sledgehammer fun. Mix up your routine a bit and come on down.  Just shoot me an email or comment if you're in the area, hammer.mill.blog@gmail.com .

100 tire flips 100 hammer's 6/13

Be a visionary....be kick ass.....be a go-getter


Side note:  The other day I was listening to a radio talk show discussing the Michelle Obama's program called Let's Move!  In a nutshell she is trying to create something that endorses healthy living for children.  Disclaimer: this is not about politics....  These hosts were bashing this program and the importance of creating a healthy lifestyle for our children.  WTF?????  I could hardly control myself in the car.  Being a fairly long road trip and early in the morning, I became irate with these people that I've never met.  I didn't pay much attention to the politics behind the whole thing.  I just took it at face value and declared these very intelligent radio hosts morons to every car I passed.  I'm still pretty upset with the whole situation and how people are finding this program wrong and disturbing.  I find those people wrong and disturbing.  How can they honestly say that they don't agree with, in essence, treating our children better?  Everything in moderation, right?  Can't we all just get along?

Celebrating a MOversary today....our little guy turns 6 months old.

Sporting the new Hammer Mill shirts...I think he just did a burpee.

Show some social media love and share it or re-post it on facebook or twitter (new share links on the left)..... I'll post the workouts later on.

Impact The Pack

The Mill:  Some days you get the bear and some days the bear gets you.

Well, the bear was starving.

First of all a big shout out to Crossfit FBO/212 Degrees of Fitness who hosted the The Garage Games, and congrats to all the winners and competitors.  This was my first Crossfit competition, well it was my first competition of its kind.  To put it nicely, I struggled.  To tell the truth, I busted my ass and got my ass kicked.  Think of Happy Gilmore at his first PGA tournament, pitching against Albert Pujols, hitting against Justin Verlander or playing one-on-one against LeBron James.  Well, that's what this competition was like for me.  We sure as hell competed, though.  We, as in my brother and I.  We elected to compete in the RX division knowing that it was going to be crazy hard.  We now know that it was really crazy hard, but we competed the whole way through, and I'll take that any day of the week.  

I struggled out of the gate with the handstand push ups (the horse turd).  Not making any excuses, but I've never gone all the way to the ground before probably because of some mental thing I had going on.  I always stop when I hit a pad about 2 inches off the ground.  An extra 2 inches was the deal breaker.  I rattled off 2 quick ones, knocked out the the overhead squats, got 2 quick handstands then rattled off about 20 no rep variations of handstands (judges were awesome too).  I needed 4 (to keep moving in the workout).  I got 3 (in 6 minutes).  Need I say more.  The experience was awesome.  The people were awesome.  The athletes were awesome.  

As I mentioned in previous posts, I knew I would struggle.  Doing 3 workouts in a day was brutally awesome.  The deadlifts were painfully successful, and the last WOD I was spent.  The deadlifts left my leg a bloody mess, but I enjoyed every rep.  The no rep after no rep of handstands really wore on me.  Nah, I'm just playing.  But tired, I was.  Nevertheless finishing the last WOD under the cap became unrealistic, and finishing each rep was the new goal.  That should have been my mindset from the beginning instead of taking it as a whole and thinking ahead.  My mistakes were evident and my weaknesses were glaring  You definitely see a difference in being coached and coaching yourself.  From technique to rhythm of each WOD the coaching tips were prominent.  The benefits of a coach and a gym for sure.    

With all that said the competition was a great experience.  It left me wanting more, pushing harder, and making new goals.  The atmosphere of a Crossfit FBO was incredible.  After working out by myself for as long as I can remember, and having people watching, cheering, and helping was really something.  Something I can't quite put my finger on.  I know I have been craving that excitement since my brother and I pulled out of the parking lot.  I spent the drive home thinking of the next competition we could get into, and training harder, better, and smarter.  It would be awesome to workout in a gym like that everyday, and train with bumper plates and heavy weight without worrying about dropping it on the floor.  I also spent the drive home trying not to cramp up or fall asleep.

The atmosphere at Crossfit FBO presented by everyone involved was outstanding.  I want to compete. I was missing the edge in the workouts before and this general ass kicking was just what I needed to try and take my workouts to the next level (after my body heals for sure). Compete to get better everyday.  

I'm going to scour the web for upcoming ass kicking competitions.  Time to take it to the next level at the Hammer Mill.  I forgot what competition feels like even it means getting whooped.  The preparation and execution is what it all about now.  Get your mind right.  

Congrats, again, to all the winners and competitors, and thanks to everyone for making it a great experience.   

You can see in the picture below that my hand was still in the claw from the hanging squat cleans. 

My brother Joe and I after the Garage Games.  It was a lot of fun doing this with Joe.    

Garage Games WOD

6/2

8 minute ladder

2hspus

2OHS, 115lbs

3hspus

AMRAP in 3 minutes

17, 315lb deadlift 

7 minute cap

600 m row

27 hang squat cleans, 95lbs

30 hang squat cleans

30 wall balls

Crossfit FBO/212 Degrees of Fitness

Tap into that work ethic.  Make an impact.

#GetYourMindRight

The Mill:  The Garage Games are right around the corner, my first competition, and I'm not sold on how it will turn out for me.  Am I training the right way?  Am I prepared to do 3 max effort WOD's in one day?  Ahh the hell with it.  I'm training how I want to train which is simply just following the main site.  I don't have the opportunity to train 3 times a day, but the once a day workout sure is ball busting.  And new t-shirts are always good.  My dad always said, "look good, you'll play good", he was a stickler for having your shirt tucked in on the court/field.  Well, my shirt will be tucked into my gym shorts.  Thanks for that one.

My plan for the week leading up to the Garage Games is to go at the WOD's with low intensity and the right mindset.   (If anyone has any tips about how to train the week leading up to the competition please let me know.)  The goal is to compete the whole day and finish the WODs in the RX'd Division.  And please no cramps.  It's definitely going to be challenging, but what CF WOD isn't, right?  It's supposed to be challenging.

Anyways, I'm crazy excited/nervous/anxious for the Garage Games almost like those big game jitters.  Not quite that feeling, but damn near it.  It will be my first time in a CF Box, Crossfit FBO, and working out with that many people. But I guess I'm excited for the atmosphere and competitiveness that's going to be jammed packed into one crazy Saturday in Erie, PA with what I'm sure are awesome people.

This competition is my way of changing things up.  Shake up the norm and be different.  The 8-5 routine, Monday-Friday (side note I do like my job), doesn't separate me from anybody else.  But to me this competition is about testing my limits, a new environment, meeting new people, the atmosphere, and experiencing it with my family. Sounds like an action packed weekend for sure.

Create your own path and be a pioneer.

The 4 workouts below really kicked my ass and made it hurt, too.



5/19
Ring Dips
Ring Pulls

Nothing beats a workout in the park with my awesome wife.

5/21
Row 500 meters
135lb Bench Press, 30 reps
Row 1000 meters
135lb Bench Press, 20 reps
Row 2000 meters (yep you read that right)
135lb Bench Press, 10 reps

22:37.....it was supposed to be a body weight bench press, but,                             well, that would have taken me longer and I had to get to work.

5/22
Helen
3 rounds for time
400 meter run
55lb. Dumbbell swing, 21 reps
12 pull ups

11:19....this one always feel like I should do it faster.  Probably took a long enough break to put me over that 11 minute mark.  This one is going to be on repeat after the games.

5/23
AMRAP 20 minutes (yep you read that right too)
5 Chest 2 Bar pull ups
5 Ring Dips
15 Squats

23 rounds + 18 reps.....This one needs a name.  Any ideas out there drop a line on facebook, twitter, or the comment section.  Shoot me an email at hammer.mill.blog@gmail.com.         

Quick shout out to JH on his pr!

Rise & Grind

    Check this out...  Crossfit for Hope      
To sum it up, there will be a workout done to raise money for this awesome cause.  There are a ton of other participants so if you want to sponsor someone else or just make a straight donation please do.

Look for the Garage Games Experience coming in the next few weeks on the blog.  I'm stoked to write about it.  

There are 3 Rise & Grind Shirts in circulation now with a 4th one on its way.  One is in Alaska and the others are local, but we're spreading the word.  If you're interested in purchasing one let me know at hammer.mill.blog@gmail.com or on facebook or twitter (@smann207).

Believe In You

The Mill:  As I was doing the 5/17 WOD it felt like my body was giving in.  Or was it my mind?  It was hard to distinguish between the two in round 4.  I gave myself a goal of 10 minutes and when that clock hit the mark I was just starting round 5.  I started thinking during the last set of wall ball shots that "maybe I need to take more rest days" and "have I made any gains in the last few weeks" and "maybe it's those animal crackers that slow me down" (they are delicious though).  For that final round, final rep, I doubted the program, I questioned the program, and most of all I doubted myself.  Can't have that anytime, but these workouts always bring you back to knowing that you can and immediately buries the any doubt.  Positive. Positive. Positive. Happy Days.

The thought process of while going through this workout was draining in itself.  I began the WOD thinking I was going to crush it.  Power cleans are to me like Mario's Star Power is to him.  I just flat out don't like wall ball shots.  They're boring and hard.  Not a good combo.  But by the end of the 5th round I felt drained, sweaty, tired, and my forearms were crazy sore.  I was sporting the claw for a few minutes post WOD, but finally shook that show I could scratch my head.  The cleans got to me more than the wall ball shots which I did not expect.  Nevertheless, the workout was finished and my body was restored to it's functional capacity.  Love it!

Ah the power of the mind.  It's a beautiful thing.  Try to keep it sharp challenging your mind as much as your body. They can do amazing things together.  

These workouts never let you get too high too low.  Each workout gives a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction after it beats you down for 15 straight minutes.  The workouts always balance themselves out in the end that's for sure.  You just have to keep grinding them out.  And by the way, it's not the animal crackers.

Don't worry in case you missed it on the last post....you can donate to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital through Crossfit Hope at https://hope.crossfit.com/sponsor?id=U32284 .  100% of the proceeds benefit St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

Congrats JH!  There will be a picture of him in his new shirt in the next Mill.  The plan backfired a little bit, but no worries I have another one coming up soon.  I realized after I posted that there was nothing to comment about; no question, no thought provoking statement, just a blog with a list of workouts on it. And I'm thinking of a Hammer Mill t for the next one.  It'll be pretty sweet and you could support the Mill.

Show some love on Facebook with a like or share or retweet it to your all your tweeps.

#keepliving


5/17
5rds for time
10 Power Cleans, 135lbs
15 Wall Balls, 20lb ball, 10ft. target
12:46.....This is the first time that I actually used a 10ft target for wall balls.  Usually I just throw it up on the wall as high as I can.  It changes with every rep.  This was a great test/practice for the Great Lakes Challenge.  The 3rd WOD in the challenge involves a 600 meter row, 30 hang squat cleans, and 30 wall ball shots with a 7 minute cap.  Pretty excited about this one.  My brother is participating as well.  Should be a fun ass kicking.



5/15
3 rds.
15 Pull Ups
25 Squats
4:17



5/14 
Overhead Squat 7x1
135-155-175-185-185-185-185


5/10
7 minutes of Burpees
85....beat my score by 12


5/8
4 rounds
70lb DB snatch
Sprint 200 feet
6:20







5/7
For time
135 lb Back Squat, 50 reps
40 Pull Ups
135lb Shoulder 2 Overhead, 30 reps
85lb Front Squat, 50 reps
40 Pull Ups
85lb S-2-OH, 30 reps
65lb Overhead Squat, 50 reps
40 Pull Ups
65lb S-2-OH, 30 reps
37:32.....I thought this was never going to end.

Thanks for reading and following.

Donations for St. Jude's, free shirts, Happy Days!

5/3
Pipe line sprints (not sure of the distance, but the incline and terrain were crazy hard)
50 tire flips

The sun was shining and it was hot and muggy.  A perfect day to get out of the gym and enjoy the fresh air.  Work sucked afterwards, but it was worth it for sure.

5/4
Deadlift
5x5
225-245-255-275-300

I wasn't sure on how heavy I wanted to go so I settled for 300, but I know now that I could have gotten more.  Worked the deadlift movement quite a bit this week which definitely played a role in how much I wanted to lift.




The Mill:   Win a free t-shirt!  Below is the "official" shirt of the Hammer Mill.  It's pretty simple, all you have to do is leave a comment for this post and you will be entered to win the "Rise-and-Grind" shirt.  It's pretty sweet I'm not gonna lie. (Thanks Joe for helping with the design/creation)  In celebration of the 100th blog post I want to thank the readers/followers and offer something for reading this sub-par writing. Here's your chance!  Hop on board and make it happen!  The lucky winner will be announced in the next blog, and hopefully with a picture of them wearing the shirt.  (My brothers are excluded from this, but chances are they'll get one anyways.  They are my brothers ya know.)

#getafterit

Getting involved/immersed in Crossfit has allowed to be a part of something and share my experiences with the community, friends, family, and whoever else will listen/read.  Now, I want to try and give something back.  I am going to be involved in Crossfit for Hope which benefits St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.  Donations of any kind would be awesome.  Feel free to sponsor me at  https://hope.crossfit.com/sponsor?id=U32284.  The workout is:

"Hope"

Three Rounds of
Burpees
75lb. Power Snatch
Box Jumps, 24" box
75lb. Thruster


To quote the website - 


"Hope" has the same format as Fight Gone Bad.  In this workout you move from each of the five stations after a minute.  This is a five minute round from which a one-minute break is allowed before repeating.  The clock does not reset or stop between exercises.  On call of "rotate", the athlete must move to the next station immediately for a good score.  One point is given for each rep.

I hope you at least give the link a look to see what it is all about.  Donations are also accepted from Canada just an FYI for all you Canadian bloggers.  $1, $5, $10....whatever you can give know that it is going to a great cause.  If you have any questions about how the donations work you can email me at  hammer.mill.blog@gmail.com.  Also, if by chance you don't win the shirt but really feel that you have to have one shoot me an email so I can see how much interest there might be.  Thank you in advance if you choose to support the St. Jude Foundation and Crossfit for Hope, and another thank you to all the readers.  I greatly appreciate it!  

Courtesy of St. Jude's and Crossfit.com 

Today is your day!  

A shout out to my wife, who is a flat out superhero.  

Prove 'Em Wrong

4/23
Back Squat
10x2
225-225-235-245-255-265-275-285-295-300
4/24
15 min AMRAP
10 handstand push ups
5 Push Press, 40lb DB's
10 sit ups
9 rounds plus 5 hspu's.....let the hotel Wod's begin.

4/25
7 Rds of
7 burpess
7 one arm snatch, each arm 7 reps @ 30lbs
9:36

4/28
5 rounds
10 ring dips
10 KB swings, 70lbs
100 m run
7:18

4/30
Diane
21-15-9
Deadlift 225lbs
Handstand push ups

6:13....PR....this one felt really good.  Did the first set unbroken and then had to break up the remaining sets, but with minimal time during breaks.  PR by about a minute.  Mindset was a little overboard was I was crazy pumped to knock this one out this morning.  Polishing up!

The Mill:  I spent the last week on the road for work, and it is always a fun challenge creating your own workouts with minimal equipment or none at all.  It's a good change of pace from weights, bars, and everything else.  But I love bars, weights, and everything else.  I couldn't wait to get back in the gym this morning especially to finally get to Diane.  I even had a dream about the workout last night.  That's how excited/obsessed/insert adjective here I was about it.  Is that too far?  I don't think so.  It's on the same level of the Tool Man and his car obsession I think.  Start the day with excitement!  


On the same topic as the Tool Man; I came across some grunters in the hotel "fitness center".  Really?  Do you really have to grunt?  Their suitcase probably weighed more than the highest DB and I'm almost sold that they didn't grunt with each step to the elevator.  Or while lifting their bag out of the car.  Dude, we all know you're here and the woman on the treadmill is married and not impressed.  Just some road trip fun.  Enjoy the salute to the Tool Man (and the hotel grunter)!

Finding good food on the road is tough and last week was no exception.  I ate anything and everything, luckily my awesome wife kept me somewhat in check.  Lunches were big and dinners were even bigger at Joe's Crab Shack and Bugaboo Creek.  So as the week came to a close I began to feel a sense of relief from all the garbage food I just pumped into my body.  I'm not crazy about what I eat, but I try to limit the things that leave me feeling like I'm stuck and worthless.  Although, every now and again isn't all that bad.

We are approaching the 100th blog post and I'm trying to plan a giveaway for a shirt.  Not much to it, but details will be coming up in the next post.  Stay tuned!

No better time than right now!


Be sure to check out WOD Talk Magazine as they are ready to relaunch in May 2012...

Giddy-Up

4/16
Run 800 meters
10 rounds for time of
10 handstand push ups
10 squats
Run 800 meters

19:46.....I subbed pistols (single leg squats) for regular squats....still a good WOD.

Lunch time WOD - 80 tire flips - It was so nice out yesterday and since running sucks something awful (better yet I suck at running) I decided to flip some heavy shit in the sun.

4/17
Deadlift
7x1
275-315-320-325-330-335-340-350


No PR, but I'll take 350 for sure.  I played around with 2 different grip styles and hand/foot placement in the later reps.  I liked it, but didn't feel crazy comfortable yet with my feet a little wider.  I did some DL's @225 to test out the form after the WOD.   I play the deadlift safe since while deadlifting in September I messed up my back to the point where I struggled getting in and out of my car.  I still pushed the limits with 350 while maintaining good form and the ability to stand upright.

The Mill:  A little giddy-up in your day-to-day operations will work wonders.  A little bounce in your step, if you will.  Be excited about the day and know that you can take on any adversity and tackle any opportunity that comes your way.

I was going to try and tackle some of the social media breakup specials like favorite song quotes or calling someone out on facebook, but I decided to keep this blog free of negativity and on Crossfit/lifting.  Stayin' classy (trying at least). Negativity knocks me down when it gets too close, but bouncing back is the fun part.  A positive mind set can take you a lot further then a shitty one.  As I was deadlifting this morning, someone came up and wanted to jump in on the sets.  This was odd in a few ways, but one is that I usually lift alone for the sole fact that I'm  the only one in that area in the morning.  He was a bit negative towards the end about him/me getting the last set of 350, but quickly replacing those shitty negative words ended those comments.  It's a mindset and you have to decide if that's how you want to roll.  Why not start today?  Make it happen!

Shout out to Chief...The proud owner/father of the Salty Cracker

Oh those awkward teenage years.  The Salty Cracker, above, was a staple throughout our teenage years and for some of us even through college.  Some/most conversations held in the Salty Cracker were sworn to secrecy or only shared within the group (which was given many names over the years).  The owner of the Salty Cracker said it best, "If there was one image that defined our teenage years that wasn't a baseball, it would be the Salty Cracker."  I think that about sums it up.  The Salty Cracker has succumbed to the harsh winters of the Northeast, chew spit on the floor, probably some vomit, and whatever else you think of.   


There's another shout out that's due, but I'll wait for the right timing and the ok.