<p>Wow, Deborah, that is a great run!</p>
<p>Thank you! Best feeling run I’ve had in a while. </p>
<p>BB, sorry to hear about the IC. I hope it’s something that can be shed quickly? On the more enjoyable side, is the race you’ve signed up for going to be a long one, medium one, or short (by BB standards) one? Edit: never mind! I’m slow catching up on reading the posts carefully today! Boston – wow!</p>
<p>Hmmm. Pets doing burpees. Here kitty, kitty. Come to daddy!</p>
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<p>The shame of it is that the basic concept of Crossfit is pretty good – strength training exercises used in a circuit fashion at a pretty steady clip to get a conditioning effect. I do workouts like that once or twice a week as an alternative to the Airdyne or walk/run intervals. The kettlebell circuit I do or the burpee/kb swing workout are those types of conditioning workouts. The problem is that the actual Crossfit workouts are so poorly designed and so poorly scaled to each individual that they are dangerous.</p>
<p>For example, workouts like that always involve exercising at the point of exhaustion. Therefore, you can’t use technique-intensive exercises where form (and safety) falls apart. It’s crazy to use deadlifts or overhead Olympic barbell lifts or plyo box jumps for high reps to exhaustion. Or to substitute a shoulder-killing version of the pull up (the so-called kipping pullup) because nobody can do 100 reps of real chinups.</p>
<p>And, then there’s the mentality that you have to exercise so hard that you puke. That’s just stupid. Bad high school football coach or drill sergeant stupid…</p>
<p>The good gyms located close to Crossfit gyms love them. They get a steady stream of customers who have decided they want to workout without getting hurt!</p>
<p>Congrats on qualifying for Boston, BB. I think Patriots Day is a fun time in the city. H and I almost always go and watch the race after the Red Sox game–the game starts early and when it’s over there are still lots of runners coming along. We usually walk down to Kenmore Square and watch them. I’ll wave to you!! Hope you feel better soon. Are you taking antibiotics?</p>
<p>Great run Deb - don’t you love the ones that just happen?!! </p>
<p>Sorry about the IC up at least you can focus on the good news of your race BB! Wow! We will be your virtual cheerleaders!!!</p>
<p>Congratulations on Boston, BB! That is fantastic. I’m so proud to say I “know” you! Bromfield, you did invite us to stay at your house while we cheer BB on wearing our light up accessories, didn’t you? 
</p>
<p>Hope the medical issues can be resolved quickly. Unpleasant to deal with, to say the least.</p>
<p>I’m staying at iDad’s so he can cook for me!</p>
<p>Speaking of cooking, this little Thai dish I whipped up last night was so simple.</p>
<p>*About a half cup (half can) of coconut milk.
An equal amount of water.
2 or 3 TBS of Thai green curry paste (from a jar).</p>
<p>Heat on stove and stir a little to mix and bring to a simmer.</p>
<p>Throw in some veggies. I used snow peas, some big chunks of red bell pepper, and few of those baby corns from a can, but you could use brocolli or carrots or asparagus or green beans or anything you happen to have. Let those simmer for a couple of minutes.</p>
<p>Throw in big chunks of fresh white fish (I used cod). You could use any seafood. Or chicken breast. Or duck. Or…</p>
<p>Simmer til the fish is cooked.*</p>
<p>That’s it. Ten minutes start to finish. Awesome dinner. It’s kind of cheating using store-bought curry paste, but it’s very high flavor to work ratio! I was going to make it with salmon, but the salmon looked like it had been through a Crossfit workout and the cod looked fresh off the boat.</p>
<p>I’m such “a guy”, I ate it right out of the stainless steel All-Clad skillet I cooked it in! So the sum total of my dinner cleanup was washing one pan, one cutting board, one knife, and one spoon…</p>
<p>That sounds good!</p>
<p>Ok, you’ve all scared me! I’ll try this one class and be ready to say no and not push myself to a point that feels bad.</p>
<p>Ok, you’ve all scared me! I’ll try this one class and be ready to say no and not push myself to a point that feels bad.</p>
<p>CJane, we need an update from the South Pacific!</p>
<p>Arghhh. Dreaded Airdyne Intervals. First time in nearly two months (not a hot summer activity!). Open window (59 degrees out) with a fan in the window blowing on me. Four 1/2 mile intervals. Not the fastest I’ve done, but not too shabby. Now, when the intervals start to burn, I just think about the Jackson-Webster trail. Saw a heart rate of 95% of my max on the fourth interval. The intervals were taking 1:20 and I was recovering in between until my HR fell below 70%. Heart rate fell 32 beats per minute in 60 seconds of easy pedaling after the max. Not bad. Knock on wood, that probably means I won’t keel over of a heart attack tonight.</p>
<p>Airdyne is a strength exercise, so it gets a little easier when the arms and legs can go a little harder. I can definitely feel the improvement. Even with the high heart rates, I wasn’t totally dying and my legs weren’t burning too much. I guess that means I can push a little harder.</p>
<p>Any recommendations on heart rate monitors?</p>
<p>Be aware that the “MHR = 220 - age” formula that is commonly thrown around can be significantly inaccurate for individuals (as opposed to population averages).</p>
<p>Pizzagirl:</p>
<p>There are many options in heart rate montors, depending on the features you need.</p>
<p>The starting point is the basic Polar heart rate monitor watch. A strap around your chest and a watch that displays your heart rate. The biggest brand is Polar and the cheapest watch of theirs that is worth buying is the FT4. Amazon has it for around $60.</p>
<p>[FT4</a> - Fitness & Cross-Training - Get Active - Products | Polar USA](<a href=“Page not found 404 | Polar USA”>Page not found 404 | Polar USA)</p>
<p>This is the cheapest Polar that allows you to set your own personal max heart rate and display your heart rate as a percentage of that. When you are panting like a dog, it’s a lot easier to see 70%, or 80%, or 90% rather than trying to interpret something like 146 beats per minute.</p>
<hr>
<p>If you want a very low cost clone, Timex sells one with similar features for $33 at Amazon that is functionally equivalent and uses a Polar compatible strap that can be read by most treadmills.</p>
<p>[Timex</a> version](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Timex-Mid-Size-T5G971-Personal-Trainer/dp/B000P8VWQS/ref=sr_1_1?s=sporting-goods&srs=2530630011&ie=UTF8&qid=1380168564&sr=1-1&keywords=Timex+heart+rate+monitor]Timex”>http://www.amazon.com/Timex-Mid-Size-T5G971-Personal-Trainer/dp/B000P8VWQS/ref=sr_1_1?s=sporting-goods&srs=2530630011&ie=UTF8&qid=1380168564&sr=1-1&keywords=Timex+heart+rate+monitor)</p>
<p>Another interesting option is the Polar bluetooth chest strap and free iphone software. I don’t think this would be as convenient as glancing at a watch, but it’s an good option to consider. The smartphone replaces the watch. $60 at Amazon:</p>
<p>[Amazon.com:</a> Polar H7 Bluetooth Smart Heart Rate Sensor: Sports & Outdoors](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Polar-Bluetooth-Smart-Heart-Sensor/dp/B007S088F4/ref=sr_1_8?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1380168759&sr=1-8&keywords=polar]Amazon.com:”>http://www.amazon.com/Polar-Bluetooth-Smart-Heart-Sensor/dp/B007S088F4/ref=sr_1_8?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1380168759&sr=1-8&keywords=polar)</p>
<hr>
<p>The next step up is a Garmin GPS watch. These use GPS satellites to measure your speed and distance, displayed on the watch and uploaded to the computer later. These integrate with a heart rate chest strap, so you get speed, distance, time, heart rate, and (after uploading to the computer) a map of where you went. They also integrate with optional bike sensors). These start at around $150 or so and go up to $400. The fancier models even let you program custom interval workouts. For example, I had my workout on the Airdyne programmed today. </p>
<p>3 minute warmup
Pedal hard for 1/2 mile
Recover till my HR fell below 70% of my personal max
Repeat three more times
2 minute cooldown.</p>
<p>So intervals can be programmed to stop and start when you press a button. Or after a set amount of time. Or after a set amount of distance. Or at a specified heart rate. Pretty amazing.</p>
<p>For hiking, these also can display elevation and upload the hike to Google Earth afterwards.</p>
<p>Which Garmin is a whole 'nother topic. So holler if that route is interesting…</p>
<p>Idad, you’re braver than I…I haven’t gotten back on the airdyne yet since swim season because by the time I’ve done the walk or jog plus the planks and kettlebell stuff and a swim, I’m out of time. But just this morning was thinking it was time to rotate out the swim soon with the airdyne…</p>
<p>Thanks for the qiuck-dish tip…busy few days, may need one.</p>
<p>Kudos BB on Boston!</p>
<p>I have the Bluetooth heart monitor and use my iPhone instead of buying a watch. I’ve been happy with it. Syncs to map my run which I was using. </p>
<p>Congrats to BB on Boston. I knew it was going to be popular but I’m surprised how hard it was this year since they increased the numbers. Very impressive BB.</p>
<p>Thank you, interesteddad. That was perfect. My gym’s equipment “recognizes” Polar and the guy I do strength training with would like me to start recording heart rate. I don’t need a Garmin as my running is all treadmill. Very helpful and appreciated.</p>
<p>BB congrats on Boston! So sorry about the interstitial cystitis. Feel better soon!</p>