StrongWOman Competitions

I wrote this past for South Baltimore CrossFit a few weeks back, and just thought I'd copy it to my own blog. No need to rewrite the wheel, right? I did make a few edits, and expanded on my teams' events. This all points in the end to doing something that is beyond yourself, both in life and in sport.

The weekend of August 7-8 was the weekend of the Strongwoman. You won’t find very many women competing in, let alone doing ‘Strongman’ style events around the world, so the fact that there were two in one weekend was quite rare, and the fact that MW and I did both was just plain silly.

There is something to be said for women who are willing to step up and do things that are not ‘normal’ and to spare any sort of woman’s lib mumbo jumbo, I’m just saying kudos to those of us who are (patting my own back, and any of the other women at SBCF, Keystone and the Belles). BUT the greatest thing about the competitions over the weekend, was that there were some phenomenal competitors out, including a 58-year-old type-1 diabetic, a mother whose been training for 1 month, a few CrossFitters from around the area, some other rugby players, football players, weightlifters, even some veteran Strongwoman

competitors and a pro highland games athlete. Ladies – picture yourselves at 58 years old lifting an atlas stone over a bar, deadlifting an axle, or taking #250 into your forearms and doing the Conan’s wheel…. amazing!

As for the competitions, Saturday my rugby team (Keystone) competed against the Philadelphia Women’s Tackle Football team (Lady Liberty Belles) in what came to be known as The HERculean 2010. At first, I was bombarded with nervous questions about what each event would be, if each person would be able to do it, what the weights were, etc etc etc. These events were different from what anyone had done previously (with a few exceptions), so there was a lot of anticipation. Keystone defeated the Belles in a very close competition which consisted of the following: Tire Flip Relay, #95 log clean to overhead for reps in 90s, #135 atlas stone over bar for reps in 90s and then a 25M medley of a #200 yoke walk, chain drag, prowler push and anvil carry. MW gets a special shout out for her amazing feat of strength vs the 240lb atlas stone.

On Sunday, Judith and I competed in the Bad Ass Bitch Invitational at Iron Sport Gym, just South of Philly. I woke up pretty sore from Saturday, and was not really looking forward to the day’s events, knowing Sunday was going to be harder. I got there at about 9:30 to see JS making friends and pacing around the parking lot, not knowing if she should register, or if she really wanted to do this. I grabbed her by the pony tail and dragged her inside (not literally) and we both registered for the novice division. We waited for about 40 minutes for things to begin, JS made sure our coach for the day, JF and I knew that she was scared. For what reason? Because it was new to her…. but hey, she was still there! The first event was a press medley, ground to overhead however you can of the following: #110 barbell, #105 axle (2″), #45 dumbell, #105 log. This one hurt my already bruised up wrists from Saturday. Thank you JF for the wrist wraps.

The second event was a jeep pull, where we pulled a jeep that was in neutral a set distance by a rope that was tied to it. This was the most fun event, I thought. Who gets to go into work on Monday and tell people ‘I pulled a jeep this weekend, what’d you do?’

The third event of the day was the Conan’s wheel which is an odd-looking thing that pivots from the center, has an arm that sticks out, with weight that hangs from the middle. You have to Zercher grip the bar, which means you cross your arms in front of you and put the bar as far up on your biceps and forearms as you can. I had an awful grip when I picked this up, but once you’re up there is nothing you can do about it. I was pretty miserable for the entire walk.

They tell you this is about finding a happy place and believing your there… and *$&% was that true. Judith – give your opinion of this miserable torture device. BH – they made me do this as your revenge and I am sorry for all of the pain I’ve put you through pre-front-squat.

The fourth event was an axle dead lift, which is a 2″ round bar with no knurling – meaning the bar is very smooth with no markings to let you know you’re even. I wish I had a picture of JS KILLING a #300 AXLE deadlift, blowing her #275 BARBELL deadlift PR out of the water! Of the entire day, this was the most amazing thing I’d seen.

The final event was loading the atlas stone over a 46″ bar for reps in 120s. By this time, I was tired. My body was done, I was ready for this to be over, to go have a beer, and call it a day…. then I was told that since I was consistent in placing in the top 4 throughout the day, that I was in a 3-way tie for first. SOB! I was the last to go, one of the girls I was tied with got 8 reps, the other (with a hurt foot) got 5. With a strategy in my head, I went out and kept a consistent pace getting the #135 stone over the bar easier than I’d done the day prior (and the bar higher). I got to the 5th rep and missed it, throwing off my pace, got the 5th, and then the 6th… and had 5 seconds to get the 7th. I didn’t quite get it, so I’ll settle for 2nd.

I asked JS her opinion on the competition, she was surprised at how much structure there was in the competition, and how so many women were determined, and strong. You see the people you workout with in your gym and compare yourself to them, but going to something like this and seeing other extremely strong people, its humbling and inspiring. There was so much support among competitors – nobody there was out for themselves and I lost my voice screaming for other people. Everybody wants someone to PR, or to do something beyond themselves, which I believe is something Strongman competitions bring out in everyone at any level.

Did anyone see that Mac truck?

The one that hit me, reversed and ran over me again?
*I meant to post this yesterday, as I was feeling 10 times worse... however work - busy, post - pushed back.

I remember laughing quietly to myself when I would hear some of the more senior members of Keystone talking about how they don't recover like they used to, and how it took a few more days before things felt right again. I will never laugh at them again. Nothing can explain how it feels to play in a tournament all weekend and then have to be at work by 8am Monday morning. I can't imagine what my coworkers thought, when they saw me with my eyes hardly open, my pace slow.... and hopefully none of them saw me try to bend down to plug in my computer under my desk. I didn't think I was going to get up. I wish I could say today was any better. At least my computer was already plugged in. :)

Keystone competed in (and won) the Rites of Spring tournament in Baltimore this weekend. The schedule was a bit ridiculous, having a total of 5 woman's teams. We were scheduled 3 matches on Saturday, then to come in 1st or 2nd in the tournament you were (supposed to) play 3 more on Sunday. So a complete round robin, a semi final and then a final. Badly structured brackets.

In any case, we played a lot of rugby which is never bad, and went 3-0 on Saturday. It was a good day, good matches - enjoyed ourselves. (Barred some crazy person with big eyes)

Its not very often that Keystone gets to go out as a team together after a full day of rugby. So Saturday night, we all went out and had a great time, had a few drinks, was social and mingled with other teams! There are some fun stories we can all take away, but I will spare anyone the embarrassment, and keep them to myself. :)
*I would like to personally thank the Washington Irish guy who stopped by our tent on Sunday to give us a recap of an 'event' of the night before... highlight of the day!

Sunday at an early 9:40, we were scheduled to play the only team that we had not played yet... who went 0-3 on Saturday. We started warm up around 8:30 to find out at about 8:45 they didn't have enough people. Game forfeited. Next game up, scheduled for 12:10 against a team we'd already played on Saturday. They had a 9:40 match as well... lost it. Went home directly after it. Game forfeited. I might state the fact that it was pouring rain all day and probably only about 50 degrees out. This means we were at the pitches from 8:30 until the kickoff of the final match which happened (on the crappiest field they had to offer) at 3:10. 6 hours and 40 minutes. We were cold and miserable, I was sore/tight from Saturday's matches... and possibly the fact that I'd done 2 grueling crossfit workouts on Thursday and Friday before the tournament.

At least when all was said and done, we walked off the pitch after the W looking like mud woman I was lucky enough to only have a 5 minute drive home... someone now has some extra hardware taking up some space in their living room, kitchen, or basement.

Ahhh and yes... the week starts, back to reality. The bruises might fade slightly before this next weekend's match in NYC but if not, I'll add a few more to my collection before the end of the Spring season.

*Please keep JP Stratton in your thoughts and prayers, she is a Keystone Alumni who we all miss on the pitch and off the pitch. She'll pull through this illness, but we need to send her some vibes to help her get through it a bit quicker.

Training... From the Desk

One thing that I find the hardest part of being a 'professional' is that you sit alllll day... and stare at your computer allllll day... and then have to find motivation and energy to train and/or go to practice before or after work. Not all professionals sit as much as others, though I think I'm glued to my desk, and am only out of the office on a rare occasion. It reminds me of being in grade school, the excitement of your field trip going to the zoo in Philadelphia, or the Science Center in Harrisburg... you got excited about that for weeks! When I have a networking event, lunch, meeting that is out of the office, I look forward to it for weeks. Pathetic? Yes, absolutely.

When I thought about writing this blog, I wanted to post some information on the health implications of sitting at your desk for too long. There are several conditions that plague office dwellers. RSI (repetitive strain injury) is one that covers a broad range of issues. Check out this NBC/iVillage article "Is Your Office Killing You?" HOLY CRAP, I'm a goner.

I get up fairly often during the day, but after reading the article, I'm not sure if I should or shouldn't. The 10x/day I get up to fill my water bottle &/or use the ladies' room... I have to walk by our laser printer, use a public restroom (though there are only 6 females in my office and the b-rms are cleaned daily), walk by dusty bookshelves... and then back to my desk to type and stare at my computer screen for about 45 minutes before there is an empty water bottle and a full bladder, in which I repeat the process. That right there - without including the commute into work covers 5 of the 8 ways my "office could be killing me." Yikes! (Check out this cool view of my cubicle from my computer's point of view.)

After such a long hard day of sitting, how do I find the motivation to train? The first thing that helps is training/working out is not a chore, its more of a hobby or necessity for me. I treat it as part of my day, like its a meeting I have to go to or I'll be fired (read: fat). There is also the motivation of my 'Team' where I know that if I'm not doing my part to keep fit, I will let others down. These things combined with the fact that Crossfit is not cheap - keep me going.

I've gone through what I estimate to be an average M-F work week for me:
I work for 8-10 hours a day.
Workout which will go anywhere from 20 mins - 1.5 hours, along with the 20 minute commute.
Practice which is about a 5-6hour round trip commute... 1 or 2x/week.
Waking hours at home - 13-15 max.

• 6 making/eating meals
  
• 4 getting ready for work or bed
  
• 2 doing regular house hold things... which leaves me with about
  
• 1-2 disposable hours b/t M-F in any given in-season week... which are filled with things like softball, the occasional week night out.... orrrrrr sometimes I park my butt on the couch and watch Criminal Minds.

This can be a taxing schedule, which is hard to stick to. I get called crazy pretty often, as does IB (probably for more then just the long commute to practice) and so will Keystone's newest Maryland crew! But I chalk it up to the fact that those people don't understand what it is to be a part of a team that has gone on a roller coaster journey in the past 4 years that I've been a part of the club.

What keeps you motivated?


*Random thought of the day: Why do Maryland drivers REFUSE to use turn signals?*

Everyone else is doing it....

I've finally decided that since everyone else in this world is blogging, I have to stay up with the world and do the same. Who knows if anyone is going to read it, probably just MR... but I'm going to write it anyway! Its going to be a blog on how I attempt to be a professional in the marketing biz, play rugby for Keystone RFC, a competitive 'Premier' team in the US, and explain to the world that just because I'm a woman, and I have a black eye, or bruises on my arms... that I'm not in an abusive relationship.

I'm also probably going to post about random things as well, because... how could I not?

I've played with Keystone for about 5 years nowand am currently the Secretary of of the club. I took an 8-month hiatus to Ireland to play with Shannon RFC out of Limerick. I played at Temple University where we won the 2004 DII national championship, and at Drexel U for 2 years before that.

I work for CCG Facilities as their Marketing Coordinator, which is an engineering firm out of Baltimore that specializes in 'mission critical' MEP engineering. Don't know what that means? I'm still learning myself... I'll just say - we do a lot of work for data centers all over the world.

I began CrossFit in the summer of 2008 out in the park with Troy and Karen of South Baltimore CF and have also started CFing at BWI with Ryan. Thanks to them, I've progressed immensely in my fitness, which translates onto the rugby pitch (I hope).

All of this combined with trying to have a social life, meet people in a new(ish) city, and keep in touch with my family is not easy. I'm hardly the best at it... but here is to the attempt.

Stay tuned, I always have something else to say and plan to post often. Comment as much as you'd like, I welcome the conversation.