Fran and a Rant

I'm still running around busy as usual and not really training. I have been having trouble in my front squats. The right side of my back feels like its about to blow when I hit 195# in sets of three. The first one goes alright but the next two are frightening. I haven't gone up in weight for fear I will really pull something. Plus its really hard! I am pretty sure I have done over 205# for three to five. But I also thought that was on vimeo but I guess that was only like 165# or 175# so maybe I really haven't done sets at 205. Hmmm.

I set a max pullup record. Old record was like 11 or 12, got 16 the other day. I think I could have done more if I regripped a little better but I lost it and fell off. I am still horrible at pullups.

And finally I attempted "Fran" today (21-15-9 reps of 65# thrusters and pullps for time) I was dreading this. I can't even remember the last time I did this I think it has been over 6 months but I know my time was 6:46. I was hoping the next time I attempted this workout I would would get under 6, but my training has been terribly inconsistent I thought I was doomed. I was thought if I fought I could PR, but figured sub 6 would be out of the question. My other goals was to get all rounds of thrusters unbroken. The damn 15 rep round is the worst! I always have to break it up. This time it was a fight to get to 8 and then finished the last 7. Pullups felt the best they ever been, something was finally clicking. I still didn't do many in a row, but they felt a little better than previous pullup workouts. I still had to rest, a lot. My end time was 5:56. PR by 50 seconds. Wasn't expecting that. :)

I think a large contributor to my success has been my diet. However, I have to really wonder "is it really?" I have been pretty good on the "Paleo" for about 2 months. And I gotta say, all that feels different is now when I do eat gluten I get siiiiick (I had some carrot cake at thanksgiving that I paid for shortly after). I've read all these paleo blogs, and hear all these people talk about how awesome they feel, how energetic they are now, how their skin cleared up, lost weight, gained strength, amazing body composition changes, cured diseases, disorders, brought dead pets back to life etc. Me? I feel the same, look the same. I still have zits, I get tired like I used to, I haven't lost or gained any weight, body composition is the same, strength...eh I don't feel strong, (I felt strong this spring) I don't feel fast (I'm not sure I ever felt fast). Even during this workout, I didn't feel stronger, better, faster, more energetic than previous "Frans" not on this diet. It felt like every other "Fran" before it...hard. I know people argue that its still the same kind of hard but you're going so much more intense than before...blah blah kind of stuff. But when I did 5000# ground to over head or "Grace" or even "Annie". I felt FAST. Faster than I had done those movements before, and for the next 20min after. This just felt the same, so was I lacking intensity? Was it really my diet that helped? Or whatever it was in the pullup I figured out. I'm not sure what was going on. I have made HUGE changes in my diet over the past year, and especially in the last two months, and I am still waiting for it to click. When does my aha moment happen? Is there something I am still missing? Am I not strict enough? Have I not done it long enough? Was I that overweight to begin with? Is it stress? Or am I just a giant whiner? I plan on continuing the paleo diet for awhile, but if in 6 months I still feel, sound, look, act the same. I'm putting some damn cheese on my burger.