Her sweet seduction…her painful sting

November 17th, 2009, by

I gave Fran the middle finger a long, long time ago. I told myself that I AM NOT MY FRAN TIME. I have NOTHING to prove. I'm a CrossFitter, I'm strong, and I don't need Fran to prove myself. I met Fran 3 times RX'd, and all 3 times I ended up in the ER with a migraine. F-FRAN!

Somehow, her sweet seduction called me again last night. It was late...I had just set a new "fish game" PR....and it happened. I set my barbell to 30kg's, cranked up the music, and did a little dance with Fran. I set a 3 minute Fran PR yesterday. Our dance lasted 6:47. I collapsed on the floor, exhausted but triumphant. Grip screaming, lungs burning....ah Fran...you're just like I remembered.

That could have been a catastrophic move for me. With no health insurance, there's no ER for a migraine....just the cold bathroom tile, and 13 hours of agony.

Was it worth it? YES.

However, my answer to that question would be MUCH different today had I ended up with the dreaded Fran migraine. I dodged a bullet yesterday, that's for sure. The headache stayed away, so for today, my answer is YES. It was worth it.

My answer to that question would also be much different had I not set a PR. If I grabbed pull-up number 45, looked over at the clock, and it said 9:38, my answer would be different. I would have been mad at myself for taking that risk.

Is that the right attitude to have? That something is only a bad idea if #1 - it causes you pain and #2 - if you don't PR? I would like to throw this question out there to all my CrossForters. We all do things that are questionable at times, and is it OK that we justify things with "well, I set a PR"?

Everyone has days where something just doesn't feel "right". Whether it's a swollen knee, an uneasy lower back, or even a sore big toe. Everyone has days like that. Does it go against everything that we stand for if we take it easy for a couple of days instead of barreling head strong through a WOD? Are we as CrossFitters supposed to ignore those things and just suck it up?

I'm asking these questions because 9 out of 10 times, I see people push through injuries, working at full intensity, even though they have been advised to take it easy. Why do we do this to ourselves?

There were a bunch of Fran PR's yesterday, not just my own. Bender, Matty Lo, Stacy, Brittany, Tommy Mo, Todd, Jessica, Mark R, Garth, Dave and Stephanie all welcomed a new Fran PR into their lives, as well as the "Fran cough". What's WITH that anyways?!

Tommy Mo's Fran face

Tommy Mo's Fran face

Category: CrossFit

13 Responses to "Her sweet seduction…her painful sting"

  • Heath
    November 17, 2009, 2:36 pm

    It was my first dance with Fran. I made the mistake of going second so I had the "pleasure" of seeing the hell delivered by Fran to her dance partner. However, I spoke to my inner self to suck it up and keep up with Fran. She was a rough partner and left my lying on the floor gasping for air, prompting Bill to exclaim "Oh no, we killed Heath!"

    But, like always, as soon as I could breathe, I had to wonder if it was physically possible to have taken a shorter breather in the last set and had a better time. Oh well, have to wait until the next dance with Fran to find out.

    As far as pushing through....that's what I'm trying to figure out as well. Tweaked the lower back last week trying to muscle up a power clean and don't know anything else but to keep going, keep stretching and watch my form.

    My after pictures definitely showed a difference but it still aint where I wanna be so I'm super eager to make a continued difference and get some more pics taken at the end of December!

  • Tommy Mo
    November 17, 2009, 3:26 pm

    You know, this is a very interesting point that you bring up, Jennie. I've been thinking about this for a while and most recently, I've been tinkering with the "all out" vs "dialing it back" approach.

    For a long time I was always one to go "all out" or go "as hard as you can possibly go." While it's not entirely a bad thing, through my talks with both you and Bill, I've learned a few valuable lessons by applying and tinkering with your suggestions.

    Currently, (and not sure if you or Bill have noticed), but I've started a more cycled approach. That is, some WOD's are "all out" and some are "scaled back" to a lower than 100% intensity ("all out") effort. My thoughts are these:

    1) Flawless Technique: You, Bill and Zach drill this into all of us every day. And, I am very thankful for that and take it seriously. That said, I've been approaching WOD's that have movements were I struggle with an approach of "drilling the movement" and not going all out and using loads at the recommendations of the coaches.

    2) Recovery: I found that going "all out" all of the time really had a huge impact on me from a "tear down" effect. Thursday has always been a rest day and by the time Wednesday morning came I was already hurting and Thursday couldn't come fast enough. Even on Friday and Saturday I was still hurting. By cycling intensity, I've felt better and stronger all week much more often than before. Granted I still feel the pain, but it's not near what it used to be.

    3) "Less is Mohr!": Getting even more granular, I've used the 1 hour classes and broken the overall WOD into "hard" vs. "steady." Example would be going hard and lift heavy on the strength work for movements that I feel I do well and then scale back the METCON. Or vice versa, scale back strength for technique training on my struggling movements and then go hard on the METCON.

    All that said, my point is pretty obvious: I don't see any problem with scaling it back or "taking it easy" providing you do it with a solid purpose and still take the opportunity to challenge and push yourself when you have the opportunity to do so.

    Not saying this would work for everyone, it's just what I've been doing for a while and what's bringing me some solid results in terms of gains and PR's.

    Just sharing my feedback with all.

  • Garth
    November 17, 2009, 3:49 pm

    I always say "Suck it up buttercup" "What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger" "No pain, no gain"

    Why didn't you take it easy yesterday Tom? Then my name could still be on the board for Fran.

    I'll get you next time :)

    ps - Matt's 4 minute Fran was a thing of beauty!

  • Mark R.
    November 17, 2009, 4:33 pm

    Good discussion guys, but I think Tom is hitting on something important, that being the 'motive' of the scaling intensity. For example I hate 'Fran' and yesterday morning when it was on the board I was thinking not sure this is a good idea for my neck, similar to Jennie only I don't spend hours vomiting and heaving with light-sensitive throbbing head pain...yeah so it's pretty much the same :) The point being that when I searched my heart/motives I realized my neck wasn't the issue, I just didn't want to get after it and needed to suck it up and gut it out. So I salute Tommy for wisely pushing and scaling with a purpose, and Jennie we've had the migraine discussion: You're Crazy, that is commitment I respect beyond no other. Oh and Garth it was Nietzsche who famously coined that overused phrase of 'what doesn't kill us...' and he wound up in the looney bin for the back half of his life, I guess not knowing your limits and shirtless runs in subzero temps catch up to us all eventually :)

  • Super Dave
    November 17, 2009, 4:56 pm

    Guys, I'm with Mark Ritchie and Tom on this one. I like that "pushing and scaling with a purpose" line of Mark's. Yesterday I went home from work sick (that "Fran cough" is a real thing that should be written about in medical journals). When I woke up this morning, Dawn said "You're not really going to Crossfit, are you?" to which I replied "Of course I am!".

    Right before the metcon I was still feeling the effects of being sick yesterday, and thought to myself "Okay, so I'll just do the strength stuff and skip the metcon". Then I looked around the room and saw everyone else getting ready, and knew that I couldn't skip it. Everyone has SOMETHING going on, whether it be physical, emotional, mental, whatever. So I decided to do the metcon, put in a solid effort, and now looking back to that moment almost 10 hours ago, I'm SO happy I decided to go for it.

    Everyone should check out the post from Crossfit Watertown today. It perfectly summarizes us members of Crossfit Fire, and how we show our "true colors" everytime we step into the Fort!

    http://www.crossfitwatertown.com/

    PS all of those PRs yesterday proves two things:
    1) The programming at CFF WORKS!
    2) We are ALL committed to giving it our absolute all at every workout!

  • Tommy Mo
    November 17, 2009, 6:02 pm

    Just pointing out that we might be the first CF Affiliate with a blog that had discussion points around Nietzsche.

    CrossFit Fire - Beasts with an Educated Purpose!"

    HEY! Might be another CFF T-Shirt Slogan. :)

  • Jennie Yundt
    November 17, 2009, 6:30 pm

    Great discussion, and great points by all.

    I'm glad that you have all helped me prove my main point; the majority of us go against our better judgement and work through sickness, injury, pain and extreme fatigue.

    Is that the essence of CrossFit? Sucking it up and gutting it out? If we didn't gut it out when we felt like quitting, where would we be at in terms of our training? I like that Lisbeth's post on the Watertown blog compliments our thread perfectly. (we didn't plan that, I swear)

    When you step up to that barbell, you decide what kind of person you are. The steel and the stopwatch are the ultimate equalizer. But let's remember that we are the sum of our cumulative efforts....taking it easy for one workout out of 100 doesn't make us soft. Only anchoring sit-ups makes you soft. :-) Just kidding Tommy Mo.

    I gotta give Tommy Mo props. He is the most calculated individual I have ever met. Maybe it's just the watch....but he always has a plan. I respect that he knows his boundaries, and he CHOOSES when he pushes through the suck, or takes it easy. What I respect the most about him is that he chooses BEFORE the 3,2,1 GO. He doesn't get to his set of 15 on Fran and then just decide that he's not quite feeling it. He comes into it with a plan based on about 35 different factors. Just read his blog some time. He pays attention to how he's feeling in the morning, what his appetite was like, and which side of his teeth he brushed first that morning.

  • Heath G
    November 17, 2009, 9:06 pm

    Couldn't make it in to the Fort tonight because of Cub Scouts. It wasn't a physical block this time but a mental one. Worked all day, work sucked today. Had to rush dinner and inhale before leaving for Cub Scouts. Couldn't get a run in tonight because my wife is out and I have the kids by myself. The thought entered my mind....you could do a WOD at home. Hmmmmm....really didn't want to. Read some of the comments on this blog and decided I needed to get past the suck. Went ahead and did my own WOD. 21-15-9 push ups, sit ups, squats. Finished in 4:27. Might be able to make it in tomorrow for a rare Wed. workout for me. See ya then.

  • Brittany
    November 17, 2009, 9:24 pm

    This discussion reminds me of a quote I saw (I think it was last week or a couple weeks ago) on CrossFit Windy City's site:

    "Sports don't build character. They reveal it."
    - Heywood Hale Broun

  • Bill
    November 18, 2009, 7:57 am

    403-202-5559

    Personally, I would rather stay here and be teased for anchoring sit-ups than moving to Canadia and having to deal with the fact that I'm a crazy Canuck :)