That was a really kick in the a$$!

Hi all!  This is my first post in my new blog, which is going to chronicle my "CrossFit Endurance (CFE) Experiment".  There will be some other random posts thrown in, I am sure.

I have been doing CrossFit (CF) for just over one year now and I absolutely love it.  I joined at a time in my life where I had been injured multiple times from overuse injuries from running.  In 2009, I must have ran 10 races, including 4 half marathons.  I joined Element CrossFit (ECF) in hopes that my running would improve.  Well, lo and behold, I quit running altogether after a few months.  I am happy to report that I have not had any injuries due to CF, *knocks on wood* and hopefully that won't change!

A few months ago, I got the urge to start running again, but the thoughts of the injuries and the long runs just made me shudder.  Plus, how would I incorporate the running in ON TOP OF my CF workouts.  I didn't think it was possible.  Enter CrossFit Endurance! Basically (I'm not going into too much detail bc I have given the link and can assume everyone can read), it involves running a MINIMUM of 2 and a MAXIMUM of 3 times per week, and only running at high intensities (intervals or time trials/stamina runs.)  This appealed to me big time!  So much so that I signed up for the CFE trainer course in April and I'm now certified to teach the CFE philosophy, along with the appropriate running technique.  I'm working with a few people at ECF and already am noticing such a huge improvement in their technique and ability to run.

SO I decided it was time to do an experiment on myself....My best 5km time when I was just a runner was 25:22.  That was on many hours of training running only per week.  I would love to see what I can get my 5km time down to by October/November, by doing 2-3 CFE workouts per week.  

Today was day 1....time trial day.  I haven't run much in the past year and a bit, but I figured I was pretty fit from CF, so it shouldn't be a problem.  I was wrong.  For the following reasons:

1. It was quite warm out

2. I have not been running much more than a few sprints in CF Workouts-of-the-Day (WOD's)

3. I'm about 15# heavier than the last time I raced

4. I was coughing up some blood...I think it was a fluke, don't anyone freak out.

Needless to say, I walked several times in the race, wondered why the hell I was doing this and simply wanted to quit.  But I didn't.  Instead, I dragged my ass across the finish line in 30 minutes and 25 seconds.

So that is where I am now....In 4 months, I expect I will be in much better running form, as I will be implementing the same CFE programming on myself as I am doing for others.  Running skills, adequate warmups, interval and stamina workouts, myofascial release and keeping up with the CF!

Tuesday will be my first CFE WOD...2-5x800m with 3 min rest.  I have one day to rest up.

Here is the pic Stove took of me after crossing the finish line...notice the pain face.  I will change that face to a smile.