Skill: Muscle Ups or Ring Dips

WOD
3 rounds:
750M row
12 push press 115/83
Rest 5 minutes between

So first, let’s talk a little about muscle ups. Oh my goodness, they are something else!  I linked to a video of them above.  These take an incredible amount of strength and skill, and what’s funny is that while they are an advanced movement in CrossFit, they’re one of the most basic things ever in gymnastics. They call these “get ups” – because it’s how you START – you get up there so that you can do all that other impressively hard stuff, like this.

Perhaps needless to say, I cannot even come close to doing one of these bad boys.  I mean, first you need to be able to do pull-ups – and quite a few of them, mind you – without assistance, and then you also need to be able to do deep ring dips.  I can’t even do a ring dip without a band right now! If you click on “Ring Dips” above, you can watch a handsome man show you how they’re done.  To build up strength for these, they recommend you get yourself up there and then just practice static holds – which is not easy in and of itself. You can also tie a band between the two rings, and put a knee on the band, which will help propel you back upward a bit. That’s what I practiced yesterday.

Anyway, then we did the WOD.  I used 73 lbs for the push presses, Jeff used 95.  Each round took me about 5 minutes. Jeff was more like 4-4:30 each round. I’ve decided my rowing needs some work, I think I am pretty inefficient at it. Sigh.

Today are the first try outs – CrossFit Open – for the CrossFit games.  I think some people from our box will be trying out, and anyone is allowed to do the WOD, but I won’t be.  I obviously wouldn’t be trying out, but I’m not even doing today’s WOD. It’s 7 mins of burpees – as many reps as possible. Kill me now – no thanks!

This is a good video about the Games:

One of the things that is most intimidating or mystifying to people is tofu.  What kind is best? Why are there so many different kinds (silken, soft, firm, super firm, etc)?  What kind do I use for certain recipes?  What does “pressing” it mean? How do I do that?  How do I cook it????

Well, here is my guide to tofu – a food that I never thought I would like, but now love.  Tofu is one of those things that can be a big turn off if you’ve had it prepared badly in the past. You think it’s spongey or rubbery, or tasteless. And while it can be pretty tasteless, that’s actually a good thing – you can make it taste however you want! And if you’ve had it and think it’s spongey or rubbery, worry not. It doesn’t have to be that way!

So, first off, let’s review the types of tofu that are out there, and what kind belongs in what what dishes:

Silken Tofu: Silken tofu is the softest, smoothest kind of tofu, and has the highest water content (and lowest calorie content).  You can find it both in the refrigerator section of your grocery store or in the regular aisles, as it is “shelf stable”.   Silken tofu is not what you want to use in stir fries, or if you want tofu “steaks”.  You’d use silken for desserts, like pudding or custard, or for things like creamy  salad dressings.  There are soft, regular, and firm version of silken tofu, but I use them pretty interchangeably.  I like Mori-Nu brand a lot:

Silken Tofu

Firm Tofu: Regular and firm tofu that is water packed will keep its shape nicely in stir fries and other similar dishes, and has a much lower water content than silken tofu.  You will only find this in the refrigerator case at your grocer.  While you can use this for stir fries and steaks, I don’t like it as well as vacuum packed super-firm tofu (discussed below). This type of tofu is great for things like tofu scramble, mock ricotta cheese (“rinotta”), and if you want to freeze your tofu prior to using (explanation on that later).  When I use this, I drain it after opening, and then cut it into slices. If I’m going to make a rinotta, I’ll just lightly press it. To press it, you lay either a clean white towel or a couple paper towels on your counter, lay the tofu on top, and then put another towel/paper towels on top. Squeeze down with your hands, or put a heavy book or pot on top of it for a couple minutes.  Then proceed with recipe.

Super-Firm Tofu:  Super-firm vacuum packed tofu has the lowest water content, keeps its shape the best, and has the highest calorie & protein content of all the types of tofu.  And yet it’s still not super high-calorie: a 3 ounce serving has only 130 calories.  By far, my favorite brand of this is Wildwood Organics super firm vacuum packed tofu:

This is my go-to tofu for making any kind of tofu sandwich, for a stir fry, etc.  It is SO easy to work with, too.  You barely even need to press it, although it certainly doesn’t hurt to do so (same instructions as above).  This tofu is not good for rinotta because it’s actually too firm, and has too little water. Also, it doesn’t freeze well in my experience.

Slicing it up

How do I cook tofu?

After pressing your super-firm (or firm) tofu, you want to cut it according to your recipe instructions – strips, cubes, steaks, etc. If the recipe says to marinate it, you should do that after cutting it up.  The longer you marinate it, the more the tofu will soak up the flavor of your marinade.

Ready to marinate!

Marinating (in a guajillo chile sauce)

My 3 favorite ways to cook tofu are to “dry fry” it, to grill it, or bake it.  Dry frying just means that you spritz a little bit of oil on a non-stick pan (you don’t have to use non-stick, but you can use less oil if you use non-stick) and then throw the tofu in, on medium to medium-high heat.  Let it get nice and crispy on that side before turning it over, about 5 minutes.  Then flip and let the other side get crispy. You shouldn’t need to respray it, but you can if you want to.

Cooking tofu on a grill pan

Baking is much the same – you just layer your tofu on a lightly greased pan, and bake on each side for about 10-15 minutes (follow recipe instructions for timing & heat).  Easy-peasy!

A couple tips on how to change (improve, in my opinion) the texture of your tofu:

Freezing:  With water packed tofu, if you freeze it first, and then let it thaw out overnight in your fridge before using it, the texture will become more firm.

Refrigeration after cooking: Another interesting thing about tofu is that I think the texture improves with leftovers. So, if you cook it the night before – baking or dry frying, and then refrigerate it, the next day it will have a much denser, firmer texture.  Sometimes I will just take tofu steaks as a snack if they’ve been marinated and cooked the night before, and I have them leftover in my fridge. I love the texture of it the next day!

I hope these are all helpful hints. Now go forth & eat tofu!

WOD
5 rounds:
3 Shoulder to overhead (can do push press, push jerk, etc – just get it overhead!)
(Jeff did 105lbs, I did 75 lbs)
8 Bag throws (over shoulder) – as heavy as possible (I did 50 lbs, Jeff did 75)
30 jumping lunges
25m shuttle run

I have a new 5 rep max on the front squat – 115 lbs!  Prior to this, the most I had ever done on the front squat was 95 lbs, so I was pretty happy to find that I could do 115.  Also, it makes me really wonder how much I could do for  a 1 rep max…

Anyway, I can’t remember our times from Saturday. I should have written this up that day!!! Woopsies.

Monday’s WOD – 2/20/12

Warm-Up
20 double unders
10 squats
20 box jumps
10 wall balls

WOD – Tabata
Row for Cals
Sit-Ups
Push-Ups
Pull-Ups
Rest 30 seconds between exercises.

Tabata means that you do the following:  For twenty seconds do as many reps of the assigned exercise as you can – then rest 10 seconds. Repeat this seven more times for a total of 8 intervals, 4 minutes total exercise.  Once you complete exercise 1, you move to the next, until you have finished all 4.

Score is the sum of your highest # of reps/calories per round (so if for sit-ups you did 11, 10, 8, 8, 12, 9, 9, 10, you’d use 12 for that set to add to your highest # of reps in each category).

My score was 36, Jeff’s was 42. My total reps were 226.

I started out with pull-ups, because I knew those would be the hardest for me, but I think that was a mistake, because when I got to push ups, they felt SO HARD. I know I can do more push ups than I did (57 total), so I won’t make that mistake again!!

Yesterday was Jeff’s birthday, and yes, we celebrated by going to CrossFit!   Then we made some vegan chorizo tacos, and watched some TV together. It was a nice, laid back night.  We actually celebrated officially on Saturday by going out to Saffron downtown. So yummy!

Valentine’s Day WOD:
5 rounds
10 star jump burpees
8 push-ups
15 squats
30 sit-ups

Time: 17:10

Then today, Jeff & I went together:

Warm-up:
2 rounds
400m row
5 push-ups
10 light-weight presses
15 skaters
20 double-unders

Skill: Overhead Squat (OHS)

WOD:
21-15-9
OHS (115/75)
Pull-ups
Box jumps

I did 60 lbs for the OHS, Jeff did 65. 
My time: 11:29
Jeff’s time: 11:50

Ingredients

1 cup unsweetened almond milk
1 banana
1/3 cup oats
1 T sunflower seed butter
ice

Instructions

Add all ingredients to blender, and blend until smooth. Enjoy!

This is a little higher fat than most smoothies, but it keeps you full all morning, so kind of worth it!

Skill
Deadlift
5-3-2, increasing weight

WOD
Max Rounds in 20 minutes
5 Bodyweight Deadlifts
10 Push-Ups
15 Squats

This WOD was way tougher than it looks.  20 minutes is kind of a long time in CrossFit-land, which is part of it, but also, I went pretty heavy on the deadlifts.  You’re supposed to do body weight, but that’s supposed to be light for you – ie, this WOD is geared toward people who can easily (semi-easily anyway) lift their body weight. That is not me. I mean, I can lift my body weight, but it’s heavy for me.  And while I’ve gotten MUCH better at push-ups, getting through 110 of them (which I did – all on my toes!) is A LOT for me. The last couple sets, I was taking them 3-4 reps at a time to get to 10. Owwie.

So, Jeff did 180lbs, I did 145lbs for the deadlifts. He got through 11 full rounds. I got through 10 full rounds plus the deadlifts and push-ups for round 11.  The person with the most rounds had nearly 22. WHAT?  Unreal.  Seriously.

Anyway, I am SUPER sore today, and slept like a dead rock last night from being so tired!

"Um, why is my plate empty?"

Elin about to dig in to her "smash cake"

Someone looks like she's on a chocolate high!

Grace approves

It's official: these girls like cake!

We are hoping to get to celebrate with them soon. What cuties!

Last night’s WOD was a Hero workout. Hero WODs don’t differentiate weight for men and women, so the Rx was 95 lbs for women too, which several women at our gym actually did – impressive.  I am not yet one of those women.  I did 65 lbs, though, which our instructor says counts as Rx for women on this one, so there!

WOD – “Rahoi”

Complete as many rounds as possible in 12 minutes of:
24 inch Box Jump, 12 reps
95 pound Thruster, 6 reps
6 Bar-facing burpees

About Rahoi:  U.S. FBI Supervisory Special Agent Gregory J. Rahoi, 38, of Brookfield, Wisconsin, assigned to the Hostage Rescue Team, based in Quantico, Virginia, was killed on December 6, 2006, during a live-fire tactical training exercise at Fort A.P. Hill, near Bowling Green, Virginia. He is survived by his parents, Natalie and Richard, sister Teri, and fiancee Paula Paulk.

Jeff did this WOD completely Rx – 95 lb thrusters and using a 24″ box for the box jumps!  I did 65 lbs for the thrusters, and used a 16″ box. My right knee has been tender lately, so I didn’t want to push it by using a 20″ box. Not like I’m babying it by doing CrossFit, I guess, but still.  I have my limits.   We both finished 5 full rounds, and I completed 3 box jumps for round 6.  My heart was beating so fast I thought it might explode by the time I finished. It felt kind of awesome.

In other CrossFit news, I am finally learning how to do double unders!  I’ve been practicing during warm ups, and I can now do double unders as long as I do singles in between each DU.  It’s progress!

My grandfather, Marino

This weekend was a sad one.  My Afi (‘grandfather’ in Icelandic) passed away peacefully at his home on January 31. This Saturday we said our goodbyes as he was laid to rest.  It was a tough weekend, but I am thankful for all the wonderful memories I have of him, and am thankful that I was able to make the trip home to say my goodbyes.

This picture was taken at our wedding, and it’s one of my favorites from that day.  It’s just such a great photo, and captures him so nicely.  He loved my sisters and me so much, and was so happy to be at my wedding.

No matter how old someone is when they pass, it’s always so difficult for me to process.  It’s just hard to believe that I’ll never hear his booming voice again…that he’ll never tease me again about when Jeff and I are going to give him another great-grandchild….that I’ll never again get one of his big hugs.  I know it’s real, but it still doesn’t feel entirely real.  I suppose maybe that’s because I wish it weren’t?  I don’t know, but I do know this: He was a great Afi, and we will all miss him so much.

We love you, Marino.  Rest in peace.