Monday
Evening
Open Workout 15.3
50 Wall Balls
200 Single Unders
14min Cap
547 @ 10lb WB

It’s been a month, I don’t remember what I did this week!

Monday
Evening
Open WOD 15.2
77 Reps

Tuesday
Morning
Press 4+13 at 100
“Bowen”
2 + Run

Thursday
Morning
WOD #1
90s Row (cal)
30s Rest
90s Burpees to Target
30s Rest
90s Situps
30s Rest
90s Burpees to Target
30s Rest
x 2 Rds
41-50-57
WOD #2
3 RFT
3 Man Makers
30 Sit Ups
7:03

Sunday
Morning
Yoga
Afternoon
15K Shamrock Run
Late Afternoon
20min M/U Practice

Monday
Evening
Open Workout 15.1 & 15.1A
117 RX + 167.5

It’s been four months since my last blog post and that I deem unacceptable. Recap on the end of 2012, beginning of 2013… 3-2-1-GO!

On November 1, I wrote about Bad Girl Ventures, the business development program (competition) Tricia and I entered. On December 5^th, we won. The business we were starting, Birdtown CrossFit  opened on schedule, January 2, 2013. Within the next week or two, we will be moving from a temporary space in our building, to our much larger long-term home. I am thrilled.

Moving on… The 2013 CrossFit Open begins today. Good luck to all my fellow CrossFitters and competitive exercisers. As a brand new affiliate, our gym does not have a “strong” team, but we have one and in that fact I am proud. My expectations are to enjoy this year’s competition season. I will do the WODs, I will push my hardest, but I won’t win anything and I am 100% okay with that. It’s about participating, getting in on the action. Watching Tricia and I’s community at Birdtown CrossFit grow and experience the Games Season, for most of them, for the first time.

Here are my last things to know/do/read/follow/listen/laugh/watch/experience… these: Words with Lisbeth (formerly CrossFit Lisbeth), The Wodcast Podcast and Fitness Lonnie. If you want CrossFit or life lessons, that’s what Lisbeth Darsh’s blog is for; CFHQ writer, seriously great stuff. The Wodcast Podcast is a bunch of dudes and sometimes ladies sitting around talking CrossFit, nutrition(ish), products, competitions with lots of interviews with new and known CF’ers, etc. Fitness Lonnie: YouTube sensation, dreamboat, ELITE. Keep a sense of humor around for this last suggestion.

Maybe not my best blog, but I just needed to write it. It’s an exercise in and of itself. Put pen to paper, fingers to keyboard and go. If anyone is reading this, thanks for your patience and I’ll “see” you again next week!

Jillian

Words with Lisbeth: website , Facebook.
The Wodcast Podcast: website, Facebook.
Fitness Lonnie: Facebook, YouTube.

I know, start a business! As discussed in earlier posts (here and here), my training partner Tricia and I will be opening a gym. Our hope is to open with the new year, so keep your eyes peeled for ________ ________ located in ________, Ohio in January, 2013 (I can’t give it all away yet, for real, legally, I can’t).

When we first agreed on this crazy idea, I had an idea of day to day operations of working at a gym. Starting a business though is an entirely different beast. With an “approximate” 62 days until we hope to open (no promises, just a whole lot of hope), what’s there to do?

Step one, write a business plan. Three months after we came up with that idea, we are on BP revision number 243 maybe? More or less, the initial piece has been scrapped. But don’t worry, that’s okay. Tricia and I are smart women. We know where our strengths and weaknesses lay which is why we sought outside counsel. Enter: Bad Girl Ventures (BGV).

BGV is an educational and micro-finance organization focused on female owned start-ups. They support these women entrepreneurs through a nine week business development course. Each three hour class is taught by successful professionals from the local community with in-depth experience in their fields. This program is why revision #243 is a good thing. Every week, Tricia and I are learning something new about the back-end aspect of running a business. Through BGV we’ve been able to talk to accountants, lawyers, insurance agents and more. Learned about additional classes and have had one-on-one meetings with the Small Business Development Center. We’ve had to give our 60 second pitch in front 120 or so people.

It turned out that “what’s there to do?” in the next 62 to days is a whole heckuva lot. Not even including the amount of work we’ve put into it since our BGV program started in early September (we have homework due every week b.t.w.). And I’m cool with it.

There has been so much paperwork over the last couple of months, emails exchanged, sticky notes everywhere. I’ve spent more time at the Root Café in the last six weeks then I have in the last six years of living in Lakewood. But I feel like we suddenly hit a turning point. Paperwork is starting to feel like its coming to fruition. WE PLACED OUR FIRST ORDER FOR EQUIPMENT TUESDAY NIGHT!!!

The BGV program ends in a couple of weeks when the “final” version of our Business Plan will be due and we have one more presentation to the Selection Committee. As much extra work as this class has added to our already full plates, I would not exchange any of it. Yes, we’ve been MIA and some may think we don’t have anything to show for it, because while we left one gym, we don’t have our doors open somewhere else – YET. We’re being smart. Taking our time. Setting ourselves up to succeed.

And my last point, real honesty here – as awesome as five-year projections and lease negotiations are: I WANT A T-SHIRT, A SWEATSHIRT, A COLUMBIA JACKET WITH OUR SUPER AWESOME LOGO ON IT because yes, we have one, it rocks and I can’t wait to show it off.

As a CrossFit trainer, we don’t have a continuing education requirement. If you want to do it, go for it. If not, ehh, no big deal – just retake your test in five years and you’ll be fine…

Yeah, I don’t think it should work like that. Continuing education is a big deal for me. I sought to increase my level of responsibility and knowledge with my career, so worked my butt off and earned a master’s degree. Why shouldn’t I apply the same dedication to CrossFit? Yes, its expensive, but its an investment and myself and my future gym. I’m doing it, case closed.

My biggest challenge at first was like OMG, there are like, for sure way too many options! Do I want to be a certified personal trainer? Yes, okay. Wait which accrediting body is the “best?” Same question with kettlebell. Switch my game plan, maybe I’ll take a CrossFit Seminar. Now its, which specialty: defense, endurance, football, goal setting, gymnastics… there’s fifteen choices. Okay, calm down. Take my time. Read more.

USA Weightlifting, boom. Pick up and put down heavy $hit, fast. We have ourselves a winner! I love lifting heavy stuff and think I’m pretty decent at it. But what I am lacking is specific technical tools to understand how to improve my own form and more importantly those that I am instructing. The specific cues and directions I can use with members to help them improve in form and function.

The USAW Level 1 Sport Performance Coach certification is a weekend long course where they scare the pants off of you (or maybe just me) about the test you must pass in order to receive the certification. Time is spent actively practicing the moves, watching videos, listening to lectures and coaching other participants through the moves. Spending both full days with a focus on only two lifts was an excellent structure to the course. Auxiliary movements were covered later on the second day – guess what, we squatted. How totally weird for a CrossFitter… J Overall I learned a lot from the weekend and I am very excited to start putting it into practice.

To add to my USAW immersion experience and taking CrossFit’s advice of “regularly try and learn new sports,” the week prior to my cert I participated in a USAW sanctioned Olympic lifting meet. CrossFitters are all go! go! go! (really more like: 3, 2, 1, GO! but close enough). In an Olympic lifting meet, there’s a lot of sitting. And waiting. And performing six total lifts on a platform. AND HAVING TO LEARN TO CALCULATE KILOGRAMS ON THE FLY (again, maybe just me on that one). Same exact sentiment as the with the cert though, overall a great experience.

Now as athlete and coach, I feel more competent in my ability to perform and instruct these movements. I could have taken the CF Oly cert, but why not expand your horizons? It’s like visiting another box, you get to see their take on things and make an informed decision about what works best for you.

Okay, full circle here. I’m not done learning! The continuing ed continues! I’m already signed up for two more certs, these two are CrossFit specialty seminars and I cannot wait. January 12-13 CrossFit Powerlifting at Coca CrossFit in North Ridgeville, OH and this one I’m super pumped about, December 8-9 CROSSFIT KIDS at CrossFit Chicago. Guess what that means future members… :)

With so much changing or in the works over the last few weeks, it was hard to think about which subject to write a blog post about. Therefore, I fell silent. I didn’t want to go on and be thrilled about one subject, when another was looming in a cloud over my mind. While this sounds full of despair, it should be taken in both a positive and negative light.

Tricia and I have left CrossFit Cleveland to be able to devote more time towards building our own gym. That really is thrilling news that I am ecstatic to be able to share. We have decided that it is time to spread our wings and look to a new direction and are just really, really excited.

With this great news comes the flip side. We are no longer at CrossFit Cleveland. So today, I want to say thank you and see you soon.

In May, 2009 I first walked into CrossFit Cleveland and had little clue how much my life would change because of it. I started in the Free Saturday morning class. Came once and signed up for an Executive Class starting a month later. I was terrified and needed to ease into it. I was out of shape. Had barely been exercising for years and when I tried, it didn’t last long.

I remember the first time I ran 500m without stopping. For a former track athlete, that should have been embarrassing, but I was proud. It led to a Turkey Trot with a fellow CF’er in November and my first half marathon the following spring. I did my first unassisted pullup on December 15, 2009. Flipping out because no one else was on my side of the gym when it happened, I did sixteen more that night showing anyone who would watch. I remember Bill cutting off my deadlift at 225lbs the first time I went for a 1RM. I had a lot of firsts because of CrossFit Cleveland.

None of which would mean half as much were it not for the people. There are too many of you to thank, the list would overwhelm the page. Spending three years at CF Cleveland, it was incredibly hard to leave without saying goodbye.  Just as Tricia and I have exciting things going on, so does CrossFit Cleveland. We wish everyone at CrossFit Cleveland the best of luck in all your future endeavors as we hope you do for Tricia and I.

The point is, thank you and see you soon. It’s not goodbye. Tricia and I are here and we will be. All of the firsts that I experienced for myself and watched all of the members go through at CrossFit Cleveland, I cannot wait to see happen in our future gym.

Jillian

Last note, I started this off with confusion over what to write about. My silence has not been inactivity, in fact I have too many topics to cover. Check back soon for recaps over my first foray in USA Weightlifting, a recent certification I’ve earned, upcoming ones I’m hoping to, some milestones for me in weight loss and of course updates on Tricia & I’s next great adventure, the gym :)

For two weeks I ate great, kept up with my 100 days and nailed each WOD in my 3 on, 1 off routine. I hit a PR on my Clean & Jerk and matched my Snatch max.

Then I got sick – go to bed early, sleep late, leave work after three hours sick. After two days off work and five full days of rest off working out, I felt better!

Saturday, a full week after my 150lb C&J, I was lifting a 65lb barbell and felt like someone stabbed me in the back. It was a sudden rush of pain that has yet to clear.

Over the years I’ve injured my back in a variety of ways: lower back sprain after a car accident in 2007, in 2009 I missed catching the bar correctly when I jumped up to the pullup bar and had some other back related emergency room visit in 2011, frankly can’t remember what I did that time. Each time ice and rest have been enough. Doctors offered pain medications, but not solutions

Realizing I don’t want to keep taking myself out of the game and knowing that 65lbs generally is nothing for me to move, I sought additional help went to a chiropractor. My injury isn’t something that has me bed-bound, but with living a fairly active lifestyle I don’t want to it to be something that keeps me down in any way. I’ve had one appointment so far and performed stretches given to me on my own. Range of motion is getting better each day. Progress = good. My next chiro appointment is Friday and a massage next Tuesday.

The point of me sharing this is to encourage you to take care of your body. Understand if something feels off, what that means and how you should handle it. There is a difference between good sore and bad sore. For me, I’m in the middle of an annoying coincidence of back to back weeks of sickness and injury. And looking ahead, I am regretfully backing out of running a half-marathon this coming Saturday. I know by Saturday, my back may be feeling better, but that would probably be too much, too soon. In that past coming back from injury too fast has definitely been an issue. It’s the responsible side of me that knows I should not run even if the stubborn side wants too.

Moral of the story: be nice to your body, it’s the only one you have.