Workout of the Day:
“Nicole”
Complete as many rounds in 20 minutes as you can of:
Run 400 meters
Max rep Pull-ups
(Post number of pull-ups completed for each round to comments.)
Watering Down the Afternoon Blahs
Written by Dani Dufrene
We all are so busy these days. Some of us are starting our own businesses, some tackling school and full time jobs and others juggling careers and families. Busy, busy, busy. I am sure that I am not alone in suffering from the afternoon blahs. You know what I am talking about. The clock strikes 3 or 4 p.m. and you are ready to pack it in and call it a day. What to do? Ideally we would get 8 or more hours of sleep each night and have the liberty to take a 15-20 minute power nap whenever fatigue hits, but this is not reality for most of us. So many of us resort to the same solution…coffee. In my case it is a quad tall cappuccino. It is not only cost prohibitive it may not be the best strategy.
So what is the best solution for warding off the afternoon blahs? Drink water. Lack of water is considered to be the number one trigger of daytime fatigue. Next to oxygen, water is the most important thing to keeping your body functioning properly. Water provides many vital functions in the body including: regulating body temperature, transporting nutrients throughout the body, improving digestion and eliminating waste and toxins. Seems simple right? If water is so essential to our well-being why do so many of us reach for coffee, soda or alcohol? Research shows that Americans consume a daily average of 5.9 servings of caffeine and alcohol, about 33 percent of our daily liquid intake.
you bite your tongue dani!! I will never give up my coffee…
I just turned down FREE PIZZA at Bar Basic! I also only consumed good ol’ H2O. Man that pizza smelled good. I’ve heard that when you think you’re hungry, you’re really just thirsty and those pangs are really your brain disguising your thirst as hunger (for some twisted and unknown reason). Why would your brain do such a thing?!
Great Points Dani. I am a big believer in being well-hydrated. Playing sports in HS I used to drink just enough water to stave off thirst or when there was not a soda or high-sugar sports drink available. Then I joined the Navy and began Officer Candidate School which was, at the time located on NAS Pensacola, FL. I began training in May and temperatures would typically be above 90 deg with humidity levels about the same number. Roll in the countless hours of PT that our class drill instructor would doll out and it wouldn’t be long before you could become dehydrated. So I learned very quickly that there was no substitute for good ol’ H2O! Now, I am not implying that you have to drink gallons upon gallons of water like I did. However, Crossfit is just as intense as any workout you will see in the military (excluding SPECOPS) and even if you don’t sweat as much as some (not saying who here
you are still losing plenty of H2O through the heat generated during the workout. You need enough water to replentish that lost during the workout, to not only maintain those important functions of the body that Dani listed, but to simply breath and have proper lung function which as you know is important during Fran, Helen, Grace, etc. — see quote below from Dr. Jennifer Brett a Naturopathic Physician.
“Several cups of water are lost daily through breathing because the lungs require humid air to do their work. In the winter when drier air prevails outside and heating systems (especially forced hot air and wood stoves) dry out the air inside, even more water is lost. It is estimated that on an average day in the fall, 3-4 cups of water are lost through breathing. On a cold, dry winter day as much as 2-3 more cups of water may be lost in this way. The body has to moisturize the air before it reaches the lungs and does so through the mucous membranes lining the nasal passages and the bronchi. As available fluid decreases, the mucous lining becomes drier. This in turn irritates the lungs, causing them to become more reactive to dust, mold particles, cigarette smoke and other irritants, and less resistant to viruses and bacteria. The result: dry cough and bronchitis.”
Have a good day everyone!
Uhm…I think someone needs to check with my PR guy 1st b 4 releasing such devastating photos. This photo does not comply with my “sexy all the time” image!
Tim, great job this morning!
-Dani, great input… I concur 100%. Water is the best thing for your body…
-Christina you look fine! That’s what real Crossfit women look like
6AM, HOO-YAH!!! It was good to see you guys again and I love what CJ and the rest of the crew are doing with Invictus. The gym looks great and the blogs are awesome. I’m looking forward to dropping in more often. Thanks again for the motivation Snax and I’ll catch you all on the flip side…..
Christina, looking solid!
Ken, you’re almost off of the boat dude! Can’t wait to have you back at the 0600.
Christina, you look fit and strong girl! I think it’s a great picture of you and it shows what we’ve all known for months now; that you’re a determined athlete and can go overhead with some big weight. Nice guns sister!
0600 was great! Tim crushed it with an impressive 120. Little running in the rain never hurt a CrossFitter, right?
Michele,
Nice job on passing up the pizza and beer. I am predicting that you are going to exceed your goals in preparing for the 2009 Games and rep CFI to the fullest!
~BC
Happy Friday everyone! It was my rest day today and my body definitely needed it. Wondering how the thicker bars treated everyone on those pull-ups? Were scores higher or lower then last time?
Tim – I would never suggest such a thing. All I’m saying is…if you are feeling sleepy drinking water instead of boat loads of coffee might be a more effective strategy.
Ken – Thank you for the additional information. I find that when I am in colder climates it is twice as hard to consume enough water. All I want is hot beverages (COFFEE).
Christina – I am sure that there are many who would agree with me when I say…there is nothing sexier than a strong and capable women just killing a WOD. You are beautiful and getting stronger and stronger each day. Nothing better than that.
M – excellent discipline…perhaps next Friday (treat day) you will indulge in a slice of pizza and a beer. If so, I’m all in.
Nate Dogg, sorry I missed you. Hope all is well and you will come visit again soon.
Hope everyone has a wonderful day and that I get to see you all at the 8:30 or 10:00 class tomorrow.
Great post, Dani!
As a rule of thumb, I try to have water near me at all times during the day. If it is within reach I tend to drink more of it more often.
I will admit, however, it is hard to refuse a great cup of 2-6 espresso shots, and steamed whole milk and heavy whipping cream. Yumm-o.
Christina, looking strong and beautiful, as usual. Great work and great picture!
Nice work Christina!! Looking strong! How’s your POSE practice going? You’re going to have to help make me practice. My calves and ankles were sore for a week after less than a mile of running!
Nice post Dani. Water over coffee is definitely not my first choice either, but it is a much smarter choice. I’ll try to change my java ways…at least for the afternoon blahs…
X-Tina you are awesome! Miss you dang nabbit! Mmmm Good- awesome on the Bar Basic pizza snub, it’s not worth it. Thanks for the meal drop-off. I am lost without my meal- literally. Cheese and nuts for dinner makes me cranky and I felt like I was hallucinating.
Dihydrogen monoxide is my beverage of choice.
Water is the best. A good source of cheap caffeine that some people swear by is tea (green or black, in 100 bag boxes or bulk). Work travel through next Thursday will keep me away from San Diego, but will try to follow workouts as time and logistics allow.
Cheers.
I will have a little bit of what Calvin is drinking please, better make it a double. Just reading these posts I am getting thirsty.
Did “Rowing Nicole” and subbed 500M row in for the run. Cut into the total rounds but it was better than a freezing run. 6 full rounds + some row meters. Rounds of 25-25-25-25-25-25.
Wait… so you’re telling me I’m supposed to be ** 81% ** water now? Geesh!
In all honesty, I’ve had days where I didn’t have time to get coffee and I was amazed at how alert and awake water kept me. That being said, let’s hear about some of the possible benefits from coffee!
Dan, the single biggest benefit I’ve heard about coffee is that it supposedly improves human performance.