lift.live.love: This Weeks Training...

This week at Anvil was tough, like a sneaky tough! I mean it's not that the workouts look easy, I knew that with the combination of our strength and the METCON I was going to get a killer workout, but I didn't think I would be as sore or exhausted as I have been this week!

We started a new strength cycle, that is focusing on getting comfortable with our snatch positions, and getting under the bar. Garrett is in charge of putting the strength programs together, I swear I'm not being biased haha, but, I like what he has done, and how he has set them up. He has done such a good job. For those of that are consistently going to the gym, we have seen huge improvements with our over all strength and technique with all lifts (including gymnastic movements, that what the last 4 weeks were focused on).

I have been consistently going to the gym since the beginning of June, I definitely have my good and bad days, but it has been pretty awesome to see/notice them improvements that I have made. This week stringing 4 pull ups together was no problem, in a work out I have been able to string double unders for sets of 6 and that is a HUGE improvement for me haha, and on Thursday I was able to do 4 sets, of 5 Deadlifts @ 205lbs, when my last max was 225lbs. Since I signed up for the Central Valley Throwdown & Expo I have been trying to better all areas of my fitness. I know that I am strong, but there are a lot of gymnastic movements that I need to work on, like: double unders, push ups, and pull ups ( and maybe now, even, rope climbs!) I am getting better at them all, I just need to be at my best by the 23rd of August! What I noticed in workouts is that I know how to pace myself, I know when I can work, and when I need to rest. On the other hand, at times I sometimes feel like I don't have the mental drive to push through in the last few minutes, to go balls out, and get as many reps as I can. It's almost like I tell myself that I need to rest to keep going, that I wont be as efficient if I don't catch my breath, or I will have nothing left, but its at the end so I can rest after. I don't know, all I know is I need to work on it, that is one of my goals for this next week, to push harder, to drive and to string 5 pull ups in a row haha!

This week I started to keep track of my workouts, in an actual notebook. I love the idea of how handy our phones are, I have Evernote, my notepad, and a ton of other apps, but there is something about physically writing down what I did for the day, and being able to flip through the pages to see all of the improvements that I have made while filling the notebook.

I hope that this will be a tool that can help me see progress and to stay motivated, rather than putting myself down. There are more days then not, that I doubt myself, and really slam my progress and body image. I have a hard time being happy with all that I have done, who I am and how I look ( I know, getting deep haha) but this is a constant struggle. I feel like no matter how hard I work, my body wont cooperate, in all areas like, strength, size, ability. I think working at S2S has a alot to do with it. I feel like many of my co workers dont take me seriously because I dont look like the average marathoner, or because I dont really run in general. Ugh, if any of you reading have any tips or advice on how to deal with kind of stuff please, help a girl out! haha. This wears me down, and I know that I need to stop stressing like I do or I will never believe or see and improvement that I make.

Here are a few pics from this week!