Lipedema Homage to CrossFit 19.3

Saturday WOD at the dojo, homage to CrossFit 19.3

Regular CF warmup followed by (40) 35lb. Olympic bar lunges, (50) 35lb. Bar overhead squats, (50) pike pushups, and (4) lengths of the dojo bear crawls. 

10 minute cutoff. I got to about 1/2 the length of the dojo, which equates to 15 reps, for a total of 155 reps.

Video is 3 reps of each movement.

Prescribed WOD for reference...

For time:

200-ft. dumbbell overhead lunge

50 dumbbell box step-ups

50 strict handstand push-ups

200-ft. handstand walk

50/35lb. dumbbell, 24-in. box 

Time cap: 10 minutes

Lipedema Homage to CrossFit 19.2

Saturday WOD at the dojo - homage to CrossFit 19.2

Mobilities (so important), followed by Reg. CF warmup, and then our modified version of 19.2

20 minute AMRAP
(25) sit-ups (in place of Rx’d toes to bar)
(50) marching (in place of Rx’d double unders)
(15) 35lb. Bar power snatch overhead squat (in place of Rx’d weighted squat clean)

I was four reps shy of 5 rounds (446 total reps)

Lipedema Homage to CrossFit 19.1

Saturday WOD at the dojo: An homage to the CrossFit Open 19.1 workout

Modifications due to location/lack of equipment:
- 10lb medball squat/slams (for Rx’d 14lb. 8ft. Wall ball)
- 35lb. Bar SDHP (sumo deadlift Hugh pulls) for the Rx’d 19 cal row

AMRAP (as many rounds as possible) in 15 minutes.
I was 3 pulls short of 7 rounds (263 reps).

I Want To Ride My Bicycle

This weekend the discussion of getting me a bike came up again, I love my husband. Brief background, he is an avid bike rider, rides every day at lunch, great way to break up the day for sure, rides as often as he can, and used to ride a lot more. When we first were dating I had gotten a bike and we even went camping via bicycling to get there/back. it was a lot of work, but fun. My bike was stolen and I hoped it was by someone who rode it more than I did (how sad is that).

Anyway, after the past three years of the triathlon and riding 12+ miles on the stationary bikes in the gym, I have been dreaming about riding one again.

Finding a bike to support someone my size is not easy. There are some, but pricey as all get out. Some have electric abilities you can add (my friend has one and absolutely loves it).

Since I want to make sure I can ride, and will ride, we are making the first option something as low cost as possible.

I found some great articles and posts online from other heavier riders and it has boiled down to a fat tire mountain bike. The good news, something my husband will ride, too.

Mongoose Dolomite - about $220 - $250 online

Mountain bike frames are made for pounding, so even if the weight limit is lower than I am, I am not going to be plowing through the trails and putting it through the typical workout someone like my husband will. So I should be ok doing the track or paved roads, being mindful of potholes, etc.

Last night was the first time I tried to even get on a bike that wasn't the stationary bike at the gym (which before that was mostly likely 20 years since my last bike, you know, the one that was stolen). It was my husband's mountain bike, seat far too high, but I just wanted to see if I could even get my legs on either side (not sit on the seat).

I have pretty good range of motion, to typically swing my leg over the seat, but with his seat up much higher (for him to use) I could not clear the seat. He said I should step over the center bar (also a man's bike so the bar is higher up than a woman's bike), but my step up clearance is minimal - the size, shape and weight of my leg made clearing the bar impossible that way.

Brilliantly he said to lay the bike down on the ground (chain side up so as not to get dirt on the mechanics), and then step over the bike, placing my legs on either side, and then raise the bike back up, off the ground. It worked. I was straddling the bike.

The bar was far too high on me, but he reminded me it would be lower on my bike.

More to come on this journey to a bike and the obstacles that come up - how we get around them, and the ultimate joy of riding a bike again - remember how much fun it was to ride a bike? I do. I cannot wait.

Lipedema Fitness WOD: 7/28 - Warm Up Gone Bad

Saturday WOD in the park. Mobilities only, because the workout should be called "Warmup Gone Bad".

(45) 1 minute rounds of pushups, situps and squats...

• Rounds 1-15: (10) push-ups every minute. You think no problem, until you get into the middle rounds.
• Rounds 16-30: (15) sit-ups every minute. I was finishing the first round of 15 just as round 2 was starting, so had to drop down to (10). I was kipping the sit-ups, and my thighs were burning in the later rounds, always good when the squat rounds are still coming up.
• Rounds 31-45: (20) squats every minute. Surprisingly my favorite rounds. Had to remind myself to keep the core tight, looking strait ahead and not at the ground kept my back in alignment. Much stretching in the down time.

An older woman (who was killing it on the racquetball court) said “you know the shade is right over there” 🤣 I loved her. Our park is awesome, lots of activities and families out enjoying the space.

MOD option for sit-ups: if doing sit-ups on the ground is not good for you, I have used playground equipment at the park to raise me up, or the incline of a small hill to give me a little lift. Look around, you might be surprised what you can find to help you.

No video, just my post WOD tomato face selfie. Hope you had a good weekend.

Lipedema Fitness WOD: 7/21 - Wall Ball Situps & Squats

Saturday WOD in the park, regular CrossFit warmup followed by descending/ascending 10lb. Wall ball sit-ups and squats (my mod for double unders).

Round 1: (50) WB situps and (10) squats
Round 2: (40) WBSitups and (20) squats
Round 3: (30) WB Situps and (30) squats
Round 4: (20) WB Situps and (40) squats
round 5: (10) WB Situps and (59) squats

My time was 23 minutes, squats went unbroken, so another mod might be needed next time. Video taken after I finished the workout, note to self maybe do before or during LOL I was spent and still needed to video.

How Lipedema plays into this workout for me: getting on the ground and back up slows me down, I need to be extra mindful of knees and ankles since they are more easily twisted. Progress since I started training, being able to get on the handball court (and back up) at the park! Woo hoo!

Lipedema Fitness WOD in the Park: 7/14 - Agilities & Box Jump MOD

Our Saturday WOD (workout of the day) started with some stretching and our CrossFit style warmup (3 rounds of 10 each: sit-ups, pushups, squats, samson stretch and good mornings, no pull-up options at the park, so I used the fence to get a good pull stretch for 10 seconds on each arm).

The warm up was followed by agilities (high knees, side step, walking lunges, light jog, Carioca, Tapioca, burst starts, rolling start sprints, sprints, long strides, lateral strides, combo strides, etc.). Coach had some small cones set about 20 yards from each other and we went up and back with each movement, sometimes the movement was doubled up and we did the movement up and back twice.

Things I have to be mindful of when exercising with Lipedema:

• Twisting a knee or ankle, and since there was wet grass (it had recently rained before we arrived at the park), it became necessary to stay very focused. Slow and good form helps to limit injuries.
• My legs are quite heavy due to Lipedema, which makes any cardio movement a pretty big hit physically. Being mindful of hydration and humidity during the workout, and understanding I might require more recovery post workout are key.
• Wearing graduated compression is also key for me, I couldn't do any of the workouts I do without compression supporting my legs (gives something for my muscles to work against) and wearing compression helps support the knees and ankles and and keep the lymph fluid from filling up in my lower legs.

After agilities we worked on box jump progressions on the park benches...

My box jump mod, is a step up. It started with a much lower step and over the past couple years I have progressed to a higher step, in this case the park bench. 

I need some work on bringing up the second leg, it is harder because my body is in a compressed position. 

Mad respect for those who can do full box jumps. Great workout!