Because I can fluctuate a lot between having good and bad workouts weeks, it seems like I never have just a boring and normal workout week. It’s usually really good or really bad and I don’t have a lot of the in-between. But this past week seemed really normal to me and I think that’s what I needed after the last few weeks of my workouts and some other craziness going on in my life.
Monday’s workout was a good start for my boring week. It was a typical Orangetheory class and that’s exactly what I needed to kick off my week.
For cardio, the first block was all about 1-minute intervals. We worked with push, push to all-out, and all-out paces. In the second block, we did the same but the active intervals changed to 45 seconds and the walking recoveries stayed at 1 minute.
On the rower, we split each block into 2 segments. The first segment was medicine ball exercises and then the second segment was rowing along with cardio. The medicine ball exercises were front presses and halos, but because we were doing them for several minutes, it was really hard! I was glad I used a lighter medicine ball than I normally do because it was getting very heavy toward the end. Both blocks were the same idea, but the reps for each exercise were lower in the second block so we switched exercises a bit faster.
And on the floor, we had one long block with supersets. Supersets are back-to-back exercises that are similar but not exactly the same. We did each set of superset exercises twice before moving to the next set. We had chest presses and chest flys using a Bosu, squats to reach and lunges using the straps, and plank leg lifts and pop squats. For the leg lifts and pop squats, we were supposed to use the Bosu, but I just used the floor since I knew I didn’t have enough balance to do them with the Bosu.
Tuesday’s workout was all about repeating patterns with the goal of improving what you can do from block to block. The blocks weren’t the same, but they did allow us to challenge and push ourselves to try to find ways to improve because we repeated things within the block.
For cardio, each block was themed to a different focus we have at OTF. The first block was endurance, the second block was strength, and the last block was power. The first block had rounds of a 1-minute push pace to a 30-second all-out. It wasn’t as long as a lot of endurance blocks we have, but it was still more endurance-focused than the other blocks. In the second block, we had 30-second intervals with increasing inclines that we did twice. And in the last block, we had 30-second intervals of push, push to all-out, and all-out paces. I don’t know if I really improved within each block, but I think I did at least the same which feels like an improvement when you are getting tired.
On the rower, we did the same things that cardio did. The only difference was in the second block we focused on stroke rates since there are no inclines. We increased our stroke rate every 30 seconds. For all the blocks, I’m really happy with how I did with my rowing. I felt very stable and consistent in my efforts, which is not something I always feel.
On the floor, we had one long block that was a mix of upper and lower body work. We had kneeling around the worlds with a weight, push-ups, single-arm deadlifts, reverse grip low rows with weights, and neutral thrusters. I did modify the push-ups because we were supposed to also do side-to-side reaches and I didn’t have the balance to do that. I did try to do them, but I could feel my hips tilting too much and knew it would be better for me to skip them. But I felt good about the rest of the exercises that I did.
Wednesday’s workout was a signature workout. This time it was Capture The Flag. This signature workout is focused a lot on the rower, but it’s pretty balanced with what you do all over the room.
Before we started Capture the Flag, we had short blocks at all the stations first. Everything was pretty simple with push paces being more of the focus so we could get warmed up. And on the floor, we had bicep curls, mountain climbers, and squats.
For Capture the Flag, you are partnered with other people. In a 3 group class, you are a group of 3 working together. Because I use the bike for cardio and how things got divided up, I ended up being alone for this challenge. I was ok with this and had volunteered to be the odd man out if necessary. I do like doing the challenge, but I know how hard it can be to be alone and I didn’t want anyone else to have to do that. So my challenge was a bit different from what everyone else did.
Normally, the person who is on the floor sets the pace of when everyone switches. The person on cardio and the rower just go until they are tagged. And on the floor, you have squat to press, lunges, double crunches, and torso rotations with a medicine ball. The goal is to get as far on the rower as possible and you can earn different flags based on how far you go.
Because I was working alone, things were only set at my own pace. I did the same thing on the floor since it was just one round of the exercises. For the bike, my coach told me to go a specific distance. And however long it took me to do that distance, I was on the rower for the same amount of time. I felt like it was very similar to what the normal workout is like, so I know I got a good workout in. Of course, since there was nobody on the rower when I was on the bike or the floor, I didn’t earn any flags for my rowing distance. But I’m ok with that.
Thursday felt like a good bookend with Monday because it was another typical workout. I was a bit tired after Wednesday’s class, but I think it wasn’t as bad as it would have been if I was partnered with other people since I wasn’t as stressed about pushing myself really hard on the rower.
For cardio, the first and last blocks were the same with intervals of a 45-second push pace and a 45-second base pace with a 45-second all-out at the end. The middle block was rounds of a 30-second all-out with a 30-second recovery. I think I did better on the first and last blocks than I did with the middle one. The middle one was so hard with such short recovery intervals when we were doing back-to-back all-outs.
On the rower, the first and last blocks were focused on 200-meter rows. In the first block, we had curtsy lunges between each row. And in the last block, we had regular lunges between each row. And in the middle block, we were timed with cardio with 30-second intervals. Again, the middle block was the hardest because of the short recovery intervals. We were told to try to get the same distance for each row if possible, and I was able to keep all my rows within 10 meters of each other which is really good for me!
And on the floor, we had one long block. We had sumo squats to upright rows, plank to pikes, clean to front squats, wood choppers, hip hinge swings, and bird dogs with toe taps. it was a lot of lower body work and I did need to take a few breaks on the floor because of my hips. The breaks weren’t that unexpected for me with the exercises we had to do, but I tried to get back to the exercises as quickly as I could.
As much as I love having wins during my workout weeks, I don’t mind that this past week was relatively uneventful. I still got in some good workouts and I know I worked hard. And before I know it, I know I’ll be having another tough week and I’ll really appreciate how this past week went.
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