30 down, 266 to go ...

This probably won't be the longest post, I apologize, but I realize it's been a long time since I posted and I wanted to give a quick run-down of what's going on here.

I'm going to skip ahead to the present for a moment before recapping the past. I've realized that, though my pay reflects me being in a combat zone, FOB Sharana is not a combat zone. When they have enough time on their hands to strictly enforce their (at times inane) uniform restrictions[1], increase their on-base security personnel so they can crack down on speeding and not-coming-to-a-comPLETE-stop, etc. I recognize that driving safety is important, but this is rather annoying.

[1] Uniform standards are kind of funny. I understand that military standards are things to be followed, not questioned, but really ... the reflective belt at all times (regardless of time of day) is being enforced on the other side of the FOB, and I won't be surprised if they throw that BS our way as well. Heck, apparently some commanders (in the military sense, not Naval) feel they can change uniform regulations (more strict in some ways, just slightly different in others) on their whim. So, it's a bit off of what I perceive as "deal with the important stuff first".

Granted, Molly is likely happy to hear that things are not kinetic enough here for them to focus on that. I'm not upset, either. There are certainly other FOBs (with friends working on them) where they quite often get indirect fire (mortars and/or rockets). It's usually ineffective (in that injuries are minimal or non-existent), for which I'm thankful.

Okay, back to the past for a little bit. I've gone outside the wire a bit over a dozen times, which if you consider that I've been here 30 days, is running me about half the time on a trip. That seems high as I type it, but really isn't that bad compared with some others. Most of my trips have been rather short and into other protected compounds; I don't relish the fact that my job prevents me from really over-extending myself locale-wise, but again I'm not trying to put myself at risk, certainly.

I recently took a helo ride to a village district center where we aren't very happy with their support of anti-Afghan forces. They were holding a shura (and the provincial governor was there), and apparently they may be relaxing their opposition to our presence and may allow us to become productive in that area again. I'll believe it when I see it ... or, more appropriately, when we make several trips there and don't have IEDs and other "issues" with which to contend.

Anyway, while there and after my primary duty was complete, they asked me and a colleague to join them for chai. (My first invitation!) The chai took a bit of time to heat up, so we talked for a bit. About 10 minutes later they brought in lunch! Rice, beef (or lamb, not sure) in a spiced sauce, some kind of vegetable common to Afghan plates I've had here. Before the chai came, they gave me a Mello Yellow as well. I made three compromises during this meal:

1. I have had 1 soda since a few weeks before leaving Atterbury almost 2 months ago, and even then I think I've had 3 in the last 4+ months. I drank some of the (half-can) Mello Yellow.
2. There was a (long) hair in my meat dish.
3. There was what appeared to be an eyelash or eyebrow hair in my chai.

The first is manageable, and considering I've been trying to eat healthier since arriving here, not exactly a huge setback in my health management. The other two, however, probably have a few people losing their appetites. Oh, I pulled the hair out and continued eating, for fear of offending them. It's been a few days and I've had no "issues" so I think I got lucky.

On that, somebody else (not this team) was visiting a new school in his province. The principal showed him around, including the class room for the girls (where they were quite excited to show off their new books). Afterwards, he was invited to eat lunch with them, towards which he was escorted into the dining room where the food was covered in flies. Before starting that job, he made himself a promise to eat everything offered -- even when it looked such as this -- in order to not offend. He had predicted that, if he chose to eat it, he would likely pay for it later. He did, and he did.

I got lucky.

That colleague I was working with that day, btw, alleges that only two meals brought food poisoning since coming to Afghanistan: the dining facility in Sharan, and the dining facility in Bagram. Nice.

So my turnover is complete, and I must say that I've never had so much turnover (over 3 weeks) and yet had such a pathetic grasp on everything that was going on, and I don't think it's because of the complexity of things. My predecessor, though an intelligent person, certainly looks at everything so vastly differently than most others. His organizational skills are ... curious. His management of contracts and funds is ... creative, though lawyers don't often associate "creative" with recommended techniques. Every day he would tell me something about the job that he hadn't told me before. For a while, that's normal and expected. However, when on the last few days he tells me about projects that I need to handle since they're about to finish (and nobody else knows about them because of his slightly non-traditional communication and management skills), I get concerned about all that he isn't telling me. I won't get into the details; suffice it to say that the turnover has been very difficult. This is my second night with him gone, and today didn't introduce a lot of new things, but one project's timeline is vastly different than he originally let on. Awesome.

Sooooo, anyway, I finally have my room and my department to myself. My room is closer to austere than anything else, though it is functional. I'm fortunate enough to not share it with anyone, an unexpected perk considering the Army doesn't consider anybody below O-6 important or of sufficient rank for recognition.

I'm taking some pictures, but because I spend most of my time on the Army's computers and networks, I'm unable to load those pictures. Of course, I'm also unable to view other peoples blogs, copy the pics to any computer, or even view most productive sites on the web. It's actually worse than NMCI with its two slightly different definitions: Navy and Marine Corps Intranet, and Non-Mission Capable Intranet. Oh, that reminds me: I have three computers on my desk. And I use all three frequently every day. If you look at just my military emails, I have 4 that I have immediate access to and another 2 that I should have access to but haven't been able to get work. That doesn't even count my personal email addresses (that they don't let me access from work).

I'd love to say that my job description was factually accurate or misleading, but truth be told there isn't a job description out there. I'd love to say that that's because every PRT operates a little differently, but that's not really the reason even if it is true. The reason? I often feel that the PRT mission is a hodge-podge of several beasts stuck together in a way that makes it the red-headed step child of all the services (simultaneously, quite an accomplishment) and yet at times immensely productive in trying to undermine sources of instability.

So, though I am the department head for the engineering department, my job doesn't really require me to be an engineer. It would help, but it isn't required. I gotta say, being married to Molly has helped in this regard, as well: all of her talk during her COR (Contracting Officer's Representative) course and work is coming back in spurts where I didn't really appreciate the considerations that go into contract law (and management).

BTW, here's a deep thought for you (though if you don't deal with contracts or contract law, it may not make sense or at least be at all funny to you): if "KO" is contracting officer, "KTR" is contractor, and "K" is contract, why don't they call contracting officer's representative "KOR"? It plagues me ...

So anyway, my department does a lot of engineering projects. I'd say that helping them manage our (over $40M worth of) projects is not even half of my job. I get to deal with so many other things that it keeps me hopping, guessing, and constantly wondering when things are going to start making sense. I get to work on smaller, agriculture-centric projects (I'm learning about animal health a little) as well as watershed considerations. I can discuss -- somewhat intelligently -- the use of checkdams, gabians (sp?), and other irrigation techniques to improve the quality and quantity of water reaching a community, as well as ways to maximize its effectiveness in their crops. I'm not good at any of these things, to be honest, but if I can keep my head above water, I can enable people who do know about these to teach the villagers. Today, I just picked up tasking for around 8 more projects for the next couple of months; projects that my assistant (an architect and very intelligent person despite that! ;-)) will likely never see.

I haven't gotten any guidance from my command officer, either. Though I have found this fact to be frustrating in the past, I actually find it liberating right now. Don't get me wrong, I truly believe he should be providing a little more guidance to me. But, in the absence of that, I've developed the goals I think somebody in his position would develop and give to my department; I've communicated those goals to some of my peers (for review and critique) and to my department (for understanding and execution). And I move forward with determination to get them done, keeping my CO apprised of my way-aheads, giving him the right of refusal, but really driving my own plans and destiny here. I hope he continues to let me guide myself here.

Our team in general is, not surprisingly, having many growing pains. Our missions are labored and not efficient; our meetings are a little long, clumsy, and inefficient; our inter-colleague collaboration is sometimes lacking, sometimes contrived and unnecessary; and realistically most people are slowly growing into their positions. I hope many of our current processes are adapted later, as they have taken a few steps back in technology and capability / efficiency. Ugh.

I'd love to keep chatting here, but I must bid you good night. I'll try to write more often. I will say, however, that I haven't gotten one picture from my brothers or sisters with children on Halloween. I'm just saying ...

Good night.

So what would you say you DO here?

Sooooo ... unfortunately I'm going to be rather vague about many aspects of my job. This is unfortunate in many ways, not the least of which being you may not be able to appreciate some of these posts without that perspective. Just keep in mind a few things: though the Navy has certainly put me in positions were I didn't quite know how to do that facet of my job, the environment was always aviation-related among like-minded people, so it was familiar. Now I'm in an engineering job for which I've received zero training in a service that is so drastically foreign from the Navy to be classified as requiring language and cultural desensitization training.

So, as part of my job so far (meaning, very early here in Sharana), I went to a seminar our PRT was putting on for locals over at the Governor's compound. Again, no details on that portion (yet, though "CERP As A Budget" on google may reveal some interesting things), but while there I saw a cute kitten up in the rafters of a picnic area:

What you don't see in that picture will be revealed when I step back ...

Both animals seemed tame enough (the dog had a collar). The does was showing such intense focus, unlike anything I've ever seen in our dogs (except when we're holding food ...).

On another mission I had quite a lot of exposure with locals. In fact, the local school just let out and we were quickly swamped with kids walking by us. We were certainly the oddity. Of course, I was *really* trying to practice my Pashto so not only did I look weird, I sounded different than all the other weird-looking dudes! I did realize, however, that my accent is nearly incomprehensible. I can understand a little bit of what they say, but I'm still rusty as heck ...

Good times!

Okay, I'm out. It's been three (loooooooooong) posts and I'm pretty tired. Tomorrow's schedule is busy (though it changed -- again -- an hour or two ago), and I need some sleep. I'll try to keep this up in whatever facet I can. Thanks for keeping up!

He he ... not much air up here ...

Okay, the air up here doesn't seem that thin until you try to DO anything. It's comical, but a couple of us often walk to the PRT together and we feel slightly winded when we get there. Really ?!?

Molly has been doing a lot of training recently, ramping up for her 10K runs. If you're reading this, you probably read her posts or heard otherwise, but if you didn't then realize that I'm PROUD AS HELL OF HER! She's beaten her goals for every race until this very last one where I finally convinced her to set a very competitive one (60 minute 10K run). She just barely missed it which means by the time she runs another one, I think she'll be smoking the hour mark. Too cool!

Well, in addition to providing moral support, I'm also trying to keep up in the miles. I've been keeping up somewhat, and my 5K time has dropped incredibly: 22:30! Until Paktika, that is. The first day (when I woke up at 2:30am and couldn't sleep), I decided to go run. And run I did, for 1 mile. And then I stopped.

The next day, I slept in all the way until 3am. Awesome. So I tried running again, and this time made it 1.5 before crashing. Ouch.

Well, long-story-short, three days ago I finally was able to run a 5K, albeit in just under 28 minutes. I'm not upset, honestly, because I know it takes time to adjust, but it'll be nice when I can get my time back to where it was a few weeks ago.

Back to my fitness goals. I haven't been able to participate in any crossfit routine for a couple of months now due to my shoulder. Well, after Cherryl gave me that sports massage before I left and found knots I didn't know I had (thanks, Cherryl!), I'm finally able to move my arm all the way around with no pain. So, it's time to get back going again. Very slowly, though.

I think I injured it by jerking on a lot of the barbell exercises. So, I'll mitigate that by lowering the weight (initially), moving slowly until full tension is achieved, and watching for the tell-tale signs. It's not like I'll be able to do too much damage though, I'm still out of breath way too early ;-)

So far, these have been my workouts:

October 8: 5 sets of 10@: pull-ups, push-ups, knees-to-elbows, and 24" box-jumps; followed up with 8 tabata sprints at 8% incline. OUCH.

October 9: 5K run, 22:26 (in Bagram).

October 10: 1mi run, 9-ish pace.

October 11: 1.5mi run, 9-ish pace.

October 13: 5K run, 27+45.

October 15: Annie from 40 (40,30,20,10 of double-jumps and situps); 3 sets of 10@: pull-ups, sliding push-ups, GHD back extensions; 25,20,15,10,5 of shoulder presses with 10# interspaced with 10x 25# lunges. Oh yeah, this is gonna hurt.

It's now the 17th, and my shoulder hasn't hurt at all since then, which is absolutely awesome. Can't say the same for my gluts ... those lunges made things difficult these last two days ...

So, if you look back to my goals for starting crossfit so long ago, one of the hard parts was going to be keeping it up in Afghanistan. Well, I'm trying hard. My work schedule is not really accommodating, but I can make something work.

Of course, I haven't worked out in a couple of days so I feel like a slug. But my work schedule now will eventually ease up a little as I become more acquainted with my job here.

I've arrived ...

I know I've been remiss ... but I'm just now getting less unreliable internet connectivity. I also just copied some pictures from my iPhone to my computer at a point when/where I can send/post away. Not a lot, mind you, but some. I may break this post up into a few ... try to keep up :-)

The trip out here was about as predicted: stuffy, crappy, long, sleepless, uncomfortable, and at times, dark. The one break in this tedium was actually only 2 hours into the 24+ hour trip, when we stopped in Portsmouth, NH, for about 40 minutes. (Chris and family: I didn't know we were going there until the last minute.) While there, a huge contingent of retirees and local supporters put together a fairly good spectacle. Coffee, sodas, ice cream sundaes, donuts, lots of candy (they handed us grocery bags full). Wow. They even gave us lots and lots of calling cards. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to get them to work yet ... I really appreciate them, though. Nice send off!

After a few more legs, we ended up in Manas, Kyrgyzstan. Actually quite a livable place. Sorry, I don't have any pictures, but it was very livable. That is, compared to Bagram. The flight there was comical:

Yes, it's a bit dark (sorry for the quality), but the seats are among the worst I've ever seen and sat in. Well, actually, I wasn't sitting in these this time; I was sitting in a sideways-facing seat. Quite lucky, in fact.

Bagram's living conditions had the "cherry on top" of finding a dead rat when sweeping up. Awesome way to start a tortuous and stupid waiting period.

Yeah, pretty shitty. After a couple of days of stupid training (well, one was okay) and jamming 30 minutes of M-4 shooting into 5 hours of standing around, we were allowed to stay up all night waiting for a C-130 flight to our final destination, Sharana, Paktika. The C-130 was well packed with little room to spare.

When we finally landed, as I posted on FB, I was blessed with a moment (waiting for our ride) to watch the sun rise. Though there is certainly a lot of brown, this picture doesn't do justice to the purple mountains and spectacular serenity in this scene:

And yes, here's the obligatory picture of me in full "battle rattle":

Alright, that's all for this post. I'm here, I'm alive, and I'm working hard. My posts will be overly generic and very little information provided. This is primarily because of OPSEC, or OPerationsl SECurity. I won't provide timelines, details on locations, etc. But I'll try to include pictures that paint so much more. Until then ...

And finally, the important stuff

I'm certainly not going to say things are going well, nor have the snafus decreased in frequency or buffoonosity. Perhaps I'm just getting tired of complaining about this after-thought they call coordinated training. We'll see.

Today was the first time the security force and main body (engineers, civil affairs, etc) actually did a "full mission", together. Though the mission was relatively benign, keep in mind that we've been together since August 1st, many of us have been here for 7 weeks, and I've been training en toto for this for 5-1/2 months. And today was the first time we did something really mission-oriented and together, real-time.

As you might imagine, it had a few debrief points. I won't go into details, partly for OPSEC, partly for brevity, but many people were slapped in the face ("that's not what we've been told we're training for!"). Not surprising, really, and though certainly not completely unavoidable, for all practical purposes the previous training was not necessarily inconsistent with this new shift.

No, the quote was not mine. In fact, the "mission" went about like I thought it would, and those "slapped" were behaving like I thought they would, and arguably the way they should given the information they were provided.

Anyway, today was certainly productive, though a lot of people are perhaps not thrilled with the arrangement. We'll see.

Based on stories of other PRTs training in parallel, honestly, our problems seem smaller. Others (again, no names mentioned, non attributable) are already at odds within the staff (i.e. department heads) and they haven't even arrived in country yet.

189th still has issues.

Though today was certainly not a "success" mission-wise, it was certainly a very productive training session, and that's ultimately what we're doing here. I just wish this point had been intentionally derived (other teams did not quite get this response). Okay, I'll turn my complaining back on. ;-)

In other news, my shoulder is nearing the point where I can move it around without feeling pangs of pain. Though it was rarely full-up "searing pain", it was truly annoying and unavoidable. Now, though I think I can trigger it if I try, it's getting better. Why is this relevant? Well, I haven't been doing any workouts or exercises that work the shoulders, now going on almost 2 weeks. This includes pull-ups, push-ups, any barbell work, any dumbbell work, etc. This has severely limited the work-out combinations and WODs I've been able to do. It's been getting boring.

I'm giving it until the weekend, and then I'll try it again. I'll probably go light again for a couple of weeks to warm it back up. We'll see.

So, I ran 4-1/2-ish miles yesterday. I haven't done that in a while. Probably won't do it again for a while.

We're not in Kansas anymore

Often I feel like Dorothy must have felt, often for similar reasons. The inhabitants of her new world were often culturally very different from, well, Kansas. That and the Wicked Witch, the flying monkeys, and the Scarecrow, Tin Man and Cowardly Lion, to name a few. Well, I have equivalents of them here.

Wicked Witch: very much the 189th and 1st Army. There are numerous rules put in place (many valid, some seemingly trivial and arguably parochial) whose intent appears to be nothing more than suppression of morale. This character is more an embodiment of the process here than anything else.

Flying Monkeys: just as the Wicked Witch is the 189th as a whole, the henchmen (Sergeants, Captains, etc) who deliver the edicts, FRAGOs, and other suppression tools are all the Flying Monkeys. I'm sure that when the flying monkeys from the movie were done with their raids, they went home to families and had a relatively normal life. Like this, I'm certain all those individuals are fine workers. However, together as one body, they bring nothing good.

Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion: well, I'll hold off on announcing these for now. (I have specific people in mind but as we shift out of our culture shock and get acclimated, some of these relationships are becoming less strained.)

To Dorothy, everything in the movie was just a little foreign. Here, many decisions and (apparent if not actual) justifications all seems rather odd and (to me) missing the point. Some examples:

• Today's class had an unstated prerequisite of having certified HMMWV drivers in the class (or at least available). Unfortunately this word never made it to us, so it didn't happen. Tomorrow's going to be a long (and hot) day. (It's not "possible" for anybody to drive one.) (Edit: they flexed and provided their own drivers, which in this case worked out better anyway.)
• Last night, our night shoot of the M4 carbine was (as we were told) intended to also give us an intro and familiarization to using NODs (night vision devices) along with our IR illuminators (lasers used for night shooting). As we get to the range, the NODs we were told would be available, were not. In fact, I learned afterwards that our unit had IR lasers and no NODs; and another unit had NODs and no lasers. (Sounds like JHMCS and AIM-9X ...)
• The dining facility we use for breakfast and dinner (we must not eat lunch there ... they'd rather pay for MREs): well, this facility is apparently so temporary that they have no facilities to handle cleaning dishes, so they don't. Every meal utilizes styrofoam plates, plastic silverware, and paper cups. I can only imagine how much trash we generate daily.
• Over the last week at the firing range, we (all PRTs) have had numerous "heat casualties" (dehydration and worse conditions that required some form of assistance by medical personnel). We're often in "heat condition 5", meaning all strenuous activities should be stopped ("moderate" activity should be limited to 20 minutes per hour). Should be. Right. Why not start weapons training earlier in the day (sunrise is ~6am) and get more time in the day. (Edit: they are now stopping training at 3pm; as you can see in the graph here, the heat index is already above 105 degrees, and that's not adding the 5-10 degrees that the (required) body armor adds.)
• And they have repeatedly tried to schedule us for night shoots at 10pm and later followed by "combatives" (similar to jiu jitsu and grappling) at 5am the next morning. Oh, and remember we should clean our weapons after a shoot.
• Nope, the Sane Man did not get the memo.

There are several other issues here. The lectures are often ill-prepared and/or ill-presented, with several instructors being downright unprofessional, though I must admit that the "combatives" instructors were awesome. Most of the guest instructors (different commands, flown in for our training only for a couple of days) were told we were another type of command (so they didn't tailor their discussion to the reconstruction role) and that they'd be speaking to about 1/3 to 1/2 of the people than what actually showed up (ergo not enough "products" or printouts available). This carries over immediately into room reservations: often no where near the available capacity. (When the schedule lists "ALL PRTs" with 13 teams here, and 6 positions listed per PRT, that's ... errr ... 6*13 = 78 people. In a room sized for 45 people. It don't work.)

In general, the training is frustratingly unorganized, reactive, and very difficult to just "swallow my pride and do it". They don't really know until the night prior the "solid" facts of what is happening the next day. Sure we have a rough daily schedule, but that's often just a point from which we can deviate. (I understand full well the requisite flexible of incomplete evolutions, etc. That doesn't appear to be the issue here.)

All in all, I'm learning. I'm not necessarily learning the method "forced" upon us, but I'm learning. I have not yet been beaten into using "check", "roger", "tracking", "too easy", or the dreaded "HUA". This will be an uphill battle for somebody. I fully fear that that "somebody" will be me.

Lastly, don't confuse the Wizard of Oz analogy with a literal overlay. Emerald City and the heel-clicking trip home aren't transferable. The closest thing we have is that they are systematically trying to make us look forward to getting to AFG so we can get out of the 1st Army's grip. It's working.

BTW: "HUAW" stands for "hurry up and wait". It's often mistakenly spelled "HUA". Trust me, it's more prevalent here than anywhere I've had before.

I'm not dead yet ...

Though I certainly haven't been blogging it (nor logging it, bad on me), I have been exercising this last month. Admittedly a bit limited (in scope more than frequency), for several reason: the gym is good for a gym but not for crossfit, so modifications have been necessary (e.g. they frown on dropping barbells); though admittedly I've had plenty of "white space" dead time, it's mostly been inconveniently out on the range or otherwise challenging to get a workout and clean up; and my shoulder is acting up again.

It's #3 that's now making me curtail most weight lifting. After some research (I'm specifically not involving formalized medicine right now for several reasons, one or two of them legit and healthy), I think I've got rotator cuff tendonitis. Best case, just irritation; worst, a tear. Either way, I have too little information to form a conclusion.

My research (the internet never lies, right?) reveals that the tendonitis (very much so in the shoulder) may be triggered by a specific action (e.g. jerking, too much weight, repetitive over-user) but regardless gradually worsens over time when left otherwise untreated and/or unmitigated. For the last month or so I've been going "easy" on shoulder-related lifts, but I've still been doing them. Since the discomfort is getting worse, not better, I'm opting to go full-bore on treating it. Translation: no barbells for "a while" (until I notice a palpable improvement).

Unfortunately, the Army life here at Camp Atterbury doesn't really allow for this: 31-36 pounds for the unencumbered IOTV (kevlar vest), 7 pounds for the M4 carbine, and 35-45 pounds in the ruck sack. Not heavy, per se, but putting it all on, taking it off ... often exacerbates the shoulder pain. And the vest doesn't exactly fit smoothly on the shoulders (it's taking time to finesse it's fit).

Soooooo, in the meantime, I'm doing lots of metcon and core. Pull-ups? Nope. Squats? Perhaps back squats soon but none for now. Perhaps I'll do some isolated arm exercises (e.g. curls) to keep from completely atrophying what little improvement I've attained. Does anybody know of CF-workouts that work arms without straining the shoulders? Yeah, that's a tough one.

Regardless, I'm still exercising. I ran another 5K a few days ago (treadmill, 1.5% up) in 23+28, so my time is consistent. Of my goals, my diet has taken some hard hits (food here is really not that great ... technically health-minded but not what I'd term healthy) and my exercise is modified, but I'm keeping my weight down and exertion up.

BTW: Chad, thanks for the encouraging words. Now that I know you're reading this, you'll keep me honest on continuing with WODs.

Phase 2 of my CF plan

If you remember my post from a couple of months ago, I stated my goals: (1) diet, (2) start, (3) stay the program, (4) stay, (5) stay. Well, #1-3 are complete! Granted, #1 has taken a little bit of a nose-dive since we've been restricted almost completely to "fine Army cuisine". Not to say their bad, per se, but they often fry things and don't really give me the unprocessed food and options I'm looking for.

We finally figured out how to get a "To Go" box of dinner. With that, I actually tend to do better portion control. Today's dinner had fried chicken "parts" and some fresh vegetables. As long as I can visit the salad bar and occasionally find some good protein (e.g chicken, fish or ribs). It's gotten better. Now if I could figure out a way to do it without using styrofoam containers each meal... Anyway, the diet will certainly be a struggle over the next year, so this is no surprise.

I stayed the course in DC, which is #3. I'm trying really hard to stay the course here at Atterbury (#4 is Atterbury and beyond, through me getting out of the Navy). I found several guys (in my current barracks arrangement, only valid for another 2 weeks or so) who want to CF with me. It's good to have support!

So, I've not been logging things consistently. I missed workouts the first few days (trying to figure out my own personal schedule) but finally got in my third workout this week. I don't remember 4 days ago. Yesterday, we did 5x3 bench press and tabata sit-ups followed by tabata air squats. I didn't realize those two would kill my legs as much as they did, and it's been over 24 hours!

Tonight, our initial plan involved bringing kettlebells outside of the gym; no surprise, really, they weren't supportive of this plan. So we did a simple one: ~200m spring, 10 knees-to-elbows, and 10 burpees. Oh, three sets, for time. It was short and to the point. I didn't say sweet, but perhaps someday it'll feel good ;-)

So, I've found friends to work out with which is great! Today we flexed to something pseudo-random but I'd really prefer to go with warm-ups, strength, and WODs of actual coaches to make sure I cover all muscles. We'll see what we can do Monday night.

Minana!

The Navy sure is a well-oiled machine ...

... as several friends told me before coming here. It's not bad, mind you, now that I'm used to the ... well ... treatment.

A day or so ago, more people for the teams showed up (like our commanding officers ... nobody special). About 40 total. The intent (contrary to the published schedule, no problem there) was to bring them to the language training seminar with the rest of us. Unfortunately, the side of the training office that said "we'll get another bus to drive you there" and the side that actually does it ... are apparently separated by more than a short fence. Only about 1/3 of them were able to make it, and they made it very late morning. Awesome.

Oh well.

Regardless, we're in an eternal Groundhog Day (the link should say it all). Looking at the schedule, it's not exactly refreshing to see that we have no time off for the next couple of weeks. I don't expect any time off in the next few months, either. Joy.

So far I haven't gotten reimbursed yet (for June and the trip here). It's only been a week so far so I'm not nervous or pitching a fit yet. Just curious and concerned.

The fun part is my purchase of the "discount bargain internet access" provided by the ever-so generous Army MWR bubbas (under the name of Army Recreation Machine Program or ARMP) charges $39/month and has for many nights now averaged 5 minutes between getting kicked off the net and requiring around 5-10 attempts to re-join the net. Unfortunately I get very little phone signal, otherwise I'd just tether and deal with the slightly slow throughput (and ever-warming iPhone). Samada.

Can't wait for "Army Training" to start. (The first 10 days is just language/culture training at Indiana University.) Oh, that brings up one side point: after 7.5 hours of speaking Pashto, we are given some form of culture lecture. Apparently the Army decided to tell the instructors (none of whom live locally; they all fly in from elsewhere. Well, the Army tells them as they got here that they need lectures. I would think that getting that request out there earlier would produce better prepared instructors. Not that it shows ... much. (It's not encouraging to the see instructors shaking their heads and hearing the speaker bite their head off.

Awesome.

New topic: Why I'm Glad I Joined The Navy

The Navy certainly isn't perfect. Heck, it can be downright frustrating at times. But I'm learning to see how well oiled a machine it truly can be. And that's saying a lot.

This new section is going to highlight some of the fun associated with my training in Camp Atterbury. I obviously will not be discussing OPSEC-sensitive materials, and names will be changed to protect the ... stupid.

I understand the need to control -- somewhat -- students in a training environment. But if that Sgt tries to chew us out again, or expects us to follow directions she never clearly provided, I'll be in line to have a discussion with her. She should really re-learn a little decency. Positional authority only covers so much bull.

Scenario: you will be leading a convoy to a university over an hour away daily for the next ten days. Leading as in: lead car since nobody else has directions (mistake #1); and leading as in: in charge of all personnel (muster, etc). This group of people includes E-4's through O-5's, so you'd think perhaps a drive-through or at least a solid set of directions would be in order. Nope. She got lost. Since all other drivers (8 other vans) were from our group (i.e. no insider information), well, we eventually found our own way and had her follow. She got lost again going home. And when two of the vans stop somewhere to pick up a bite when we obviously wouldn't make it back in time for dinner (predictably), she tried to chew the rest of us out. Though she never gave us her rules.

I signed up for internet access so I might enjoy seeing my beloved wife occasionally. So, the "Army Recreation Machine Program" (ARMP) has been "generously" provided for us. Great. So, $24/week or $39/month is generous? Awesome. Connectivity is decent but blanks out periodically.

All of our other complaints right now seem relatively minor, but they should be remedied shortly (so we're told). We'll see.

I guess, all in all, I'm just surprised at how out-of-whack this appears right now. I truly expect some lemming-like expectation, and can even handle some of it (I know, that doesn't sound like me). I should relax and try take it all in stride ...

Pashto "complete"!

I took the OPI (oral proficiency interro... interview) last week. I was "hoping" for a 2/2 but earned a 1+/1+. Why do I say "earned"? Well, I don't think I was challenging myself well-enough with tenses and my vocab.

Despite knowing that the scenario required the instructor to throw a curve-ball at me, I heard most of it but missed one specific word and went around-and-around for about 3 minutes trying to understand what she was asking. Instead of "uhhh, repeat, please", I said "I understand you are saying this, this, and that, but what do you want now?", which is better. But I missed the curve ball. Granted, if I had applied strategery to it I would have known exactly what she was going to say before she said it, but I didn't. I honestly missed the word and stuck with it. Oops.

So, I think the "1+" is commensurate with my actual performance. It may be enough to give me a bonus in pay (not my justification but nice anyway), but it will certainly give me a leg-up for when I get in country.

Now my biggest challenge yet: 3 months of "Army Training" (said with a Bill Murray "Stripes" accent), trying to maintain what little Pashto I have.

Long time no ... blog ...

Okay, so it's been a while. I've been busy, alright?

So, after I front-loaded (when my sibs came to town), I had a few more WODs the following week. I can't remember them off-hand, but they were good. Why? Because I don't remember being in much pain. Okay, so I'm over that part of it (the long-lasting physical pain of the WOD), but I think I'd remember if one was particularly bad. (Come to think of it, I do remember specifically doing a full Cindy. Though I scaled the pull-ups (red band), I didn't scale anything else and ended up doing 10+ sets, I think. Not the highest count but exhausting nonetheless and worthwhile. Especially considering that on Foundations Day One I did a half-Cindy -- and it kicked my butt -- I feel like I've adapted and overcome that hurdle.)

I'm now in Pensacola, and before yesterday it had been about 9-10 days since my last WOD (I tested out of my language training and moved back down to Pensacola, both of which took a lot of my time). However, I went to Razor's Edge with Molly yesterday. I like the facility and like the owner (Gil), which is great. I'm concerned about Molly's coach right now, in that she (the coach) applies unfocused pressure, pushing for the sake of pushing. She also taught bad form on at least one exercise (resulting in Molly being injured and out-of-commission for a couple of weeks). Her technique of instruction is certainly her own, but I find it less-than-productive with me (and Molly).

Granted, my exposure to Razor's Edge in Pensacola has been limited to two coaches: Gil and the other one. Like I said, I like Gil, but I haven't seen him coach. If I assume that she has Gil's blessing then I can only assume that the rest of Razor runs things the same, and I'm not impressed. Granted, I'm still a sub-novice in CF but mechanics/form do not appear to be stressed nearly as much as in Potomac CF. If Molly opts to continue with CF at Razor, I hope she gets exposure to different coaches running the WODs. Sticking with the other coach could easily be discouraging.

Soooooo, yesterday's WOD was relatively simple: warmup with 3x5 snatch full squats, and the WOD was 3x4 minutes of AMRAP (10x20" box jumps, 5 ring dips, and 8 GHD situps). I used a red band for the dips, but otherwise did 12 sets.

Today's was again good: warmup with 3x5 Romanian deadlifts (135#), WOD of 3x(400m run, 25 GHD back extensions, 15 pull-ups) for time. I scaled on the first sets of rom-DL but ended on 135# (yay!). For the WOD, I did the first set of pull-ups with a red band (15 reps) and went without a band on subsequent sets (10 each). I'm not thrilled with the 18 minutes it took, but I was able to do more unaided pull-ups than I had previously thought which is great. My kip form was alright with the band but really sucked unaided ... something I really need to work on.

I have an ice-pack on my neck/shoulders now but it's precautionary (felt a little tightness after today's WOD). I'll go back to Razor on Thursday before I go up to Indiana on Friday and am limited to whatever facilities they have up there. CF affilitiates on base? I can almost guarantee "no". CF-friendly gym(s)? Likely, but again it will be limited and certainly not solely CF-oriented (meaning I'll have to work in/around others). Wish me luck!

Quick post-script: if I were to give myself a report card right now, I'd say I'm really feeling the benefits of a good workout regime. My previous 5K was in May (a virtual race, running while Molly was running an actual race 1000 miles away) and was not thrilled with my 28:00 time; 4 days ago I ran another 5K here in Pensacola (this time much closer to Molly ;-), and crushed it (relatively) in 24:02. So, my general health is certainly improving (metcon, tabatas, etc). My strength numbers are getting better, though by a table I saw at Razor's today, I'm still at to slightly below "novice" for weight levels. I have my work cut out for me.

So close to "RX"

I front-loaded a few workouts today hoping to prep for my brother and sister coming in town; see, I wanted to maximize time with them so I'm opting to not go to the gym with them here. I worked out Sunday, Monday, and Wednesday before they came on Thursday. However, spanning the next three proved too much for me, so I did a WOD this morning in the apartment gym. Unfortunately, they didn't have a rower and I didn't see the platforms for box jumps, so I took the "3x(500m row, 12 bodyweight DL, 21 boxjumps)" and modified it to "3x(500m run, 12 BWDL, 21 burpees)". Huh. Burpees not fun. Of course, it was on the third set, 15 burpees down 6 to go, when talking with a personal trainer helping somebody else, he told me they had platforms (for step class) in the second half of the gym. Burpees not fun. 23:37 was my time, nothing to brag about but I was so close to being able to do it as prescribed. I scaled the BWDL down 20# to 155#. So close! (That in itself is an accomplishment for me.)

I would really like to be able to do WODs as prescribed. Granted, I can't even 1RM presses and thrusters that others are doing sets of, but that'll come as I strengthen my shoulders.

Non sequitor: with my sister in town, she's missing their anniversary, Father's Day, and the 5K race that her kids, her husband, and his father will be running in. In fact, the local paper is sponsoring their race registration and posted a story on them! Here's the link: The Coloradoan.

Go Alan, Adam, Sid and Viv!

"The Sevens" ... even more intimidating than it sounds

If you haven't realized, many CrossFit affiliates (if not CrossFit Central itself) passively and actively support the Wounded Warrior Project, whose mission is to "to honor and empower wounded warriors". Some events and some exercises are specifically intended as a way to honor soldiers (sailors, airmen, ...) who have sacrificed much if not everything defending our country. On December 30, 2009, 7 CIA officers and 1 Jordanian officer were killed by a suicide bomber. It is in paying respects to them that "The Sevens" was created. It is far from easy, and once you realize its rationale and birth, it's one you just don't want to fail.

It's 7 sets of 7 exercises, 7 reps each. Sound easy, huh? Even if they were easy exercises (which they aren't), that's 7x7x7=343 reps total. But they aren't easy:

• Handstand push-ups
• Thrusters, 135#
• Knees-to-elbows
• Deadlifts, 245#
• Burpies
• Kettle bell swings, 2 pood
• Pull-ups

Honestly, I wasn't really looking forward to it (in the "this is going to really hurt" mindset). And then I walked in and the instructor was blasting all sorts of "stretch out people, this is going to hurt" and "this is the hardest one I've ever done", as well as "scale; if you aren't considering scaling, consider scaling". Hmm. Certainly inspires confidence.

Well, I scaled, obviously, but I finished just after my goal of 40 minutes (missed by 28 seconds). It's only an excuse, but I should have finished on time: I dried my hands, chalked 'em, and went for the pull-up bar, and it was still sweaty from my last bout. So I took time to dry it off so I wouldn't fly off mid-kip (though that would have amused everybody watching).

I'm finishing the evening with a nice lightly-seared tuna steak, some lightly boiled vegetables, and some wine. Okay, the wine probably isn't perfect for me, but it was a good day! Overall, though I hate to use them as absolute metrics, I've lost 10# and about 1-2" on my waist, all in about 6 weeks.

The bigger question, of course, is how do I feel. I did a 30 mile bike ride yesterday, hoping to "feel" the extra energy and endurance. However, because I didn't have a bike computer with me I couldn't really assess my time and average speed. I don't think I did incredibly faster, though I did go further before my knee started aching. Other than that, I feel invigorated, the WODs kick me for about an hour and then I feel great (often following good food, too), and I have more energy during the day. Do I look better? I'd like to think so, but regardless I certainly feel better, so it's working.

I only have a couple of weeks left here at Potomac CrossFit, and I must say I'm a little bummed I'll be leaving. Granted, there are certainly many other good CF affiliates out there (and not-so-good ones). In fact, Razor's Edge CF in Pensacola is reputed as being good. That's where Molly is doing Foundations (stick with it baby!), that's where my friend's brother is going, and it so far has a good reputation. (That and the owner answered my email within 2 days, whereas the other Pensacola CF gym took a couple of weeks to get back to me ... and proceeded to tell me that I would need to pay an additional $50 for them to assess that I look Foundations-complete enough to attend 2-3 classes for the week before moving on to Indiana.) So, Razor's Edge, see you in a few weeks!

I've always been somewhat hesitant to take my shirt off in public, partially because I've always been a pale non-jock (you know the band-weanies :-). Though I don't think I'm anything to gawk at, Molly showed my picture to some friends and apparently they remarked that I look a little firmer/trimmer. Okay, I'm not here to model, but I guess I can accept the compliments. Other than my arms, though, I'm still rather pale ...

(Beavis? You there? You're an inspiration. Keep the push on.)

Feeling better, still looking clumsy ...

Tonight's WOD warm-up involved bench presses (haven't done many of those recently) followed by the WOD's 5 cycles of 30sec hand-stand hold, 30sec sit-up. No break. You know, as often as I see kids holding hand-stands for what seems like that long, you'd think it'd be easier. Uh uh. If you combine the fact that I fell out of it once each rep with the "subtract 10 situps for each time you fall out", well, I barely did any situps. Dang, that stinks.

But I am feeling better about this thing called CF. I've lost weight (and half a belt size) and feel quite healthy. Granted, this can also be attributed to changing my diet (more proteins, vegetables and fruits, fewer carbs), but that's okay.

I'm wondering if the 3/week membership I signed up for this month is going to be enough. 4/week would be nice, and I think 5/week may be too much for me (at this point).

Wait, what is She doing here?

I do another back-to-back CF day because I felt good and wanted to be challenged. Granted, I scaled the hang squat snatches to power snatches (based on Brian's recommendation about my form and new Vibram FF shoes), but I didn't do badly. Today's workout for me was going well until I realized (mid-jump) that Vibram FF's are not great for double jumps. In fact, my calves certainly have a thing or two to say about them.

Then I find out that my lovely wife took a statement I made over a week ago as a personal challenge to try CF herself. Not certain I said it exactly that way, but if I did, mea culpa. If not, well, if she finds she likes it then so be it! She's going through some difficulties right now (I know I did in the first few classes); I hope she is able to find a way to work around the problem to prevent them in the future and continue with a workout regime (CF or something else). She's also been blogging about it: http://evansmove.blogspot.com/ (as well as knitting and store-owner stuff ... if your stomach can't handle the shift from "manly weight lifting" to "girly knitting and crocheting", well, perhaps it isn't for you. ;-)

May not go again tomorrow, we'll see. I'm set for this month for 3/week, but I really won't be upset if I go over and upgrade to the next tier. For me, this month, it's worth it. Next month I don't think I'll have the support and will need to venture out on my own (and I really hope to find somebody who can CF with me on the base gym).

Molly doing CF? And blogging about it? What is this world coming to ...? :-)

CF, month 2

Metcon appears to be my undoing. Today's was relatively simple and devastating: 5 cycles of 3 minutes continuous sumo dead-lift high-pulls and box jumps, 3 minutes  break, and repeat. The 3 minutes break seemed to pass by a LOT faster than the 3 minutes of work.

Metcon is my undoing. I'm thinking I'll do more metcon on the off-days. Not so much really-kick-my-ass hard, but certainly *something* to challenge a little more. There are certainly days off when I'm not very sore and can handle some sprints or something like that.

I don't know that I've lost weight (though the daily-average-weight appears to be slightly lower), but I feel better. I think I'm over the initial shock of re-introducing my body to hard exercise and now want to work harder. Perhaps I can reduce my run-time by the end of the month.

Next month I hope to run a 5k with Molly. She has her own goal; I'd like to run with her and motivate her, but I'd also like to meet my own goal (25min). Think she'll understand if I only run with her for the last stretch?

The early pashto testers have spoken

... and they are not speaking highly of Monterey's testing process.

Background: the Defense Language Institute (DLI) in Monterey has been teaching languages for years and years. They feel (and rightfully so) that they own the process (as far as the USG/military is concerned). There is a branch in Washington DC (DLI-W) that provides some "low-density" languages (few students) that the State Department requires, as well as languages that are also taught in Monterey. In DC, the languages are mostly farmed out to private sector language schools (though we're told the materials are controlled by DLI-Monterey).

Recently, as AFPAK HANDS (an effort to provide select servicemen with extensive language and cultural training before going to Afghanistan and Pakistan) came to fruition, a lot more students have been going through DLI-W. (Specifically in Pashto, Dari, and Urdu languages.)

At least one of the schools feels that they create the same quality and speaking-level student in 4 months that Monterey creates in a year. Granted, there may be a slight vocabulary difference between the two, but it's not as sizeable as the 8-month deficit would lead you to believe. In fact, they've created some arguably 2 or 2+ solid speakers (the numbers are defined by the ILR scale).

The point of contention, of course, is in a world where efficiency is valued more than traditional metholodogy. If DLI-W can create on average the same level of speakers in a third the time, why spend the extra money that DLI (Monterey) requires for a full year?

Here's the rub: because DLI (Monterey) holds the torch on standards, they are the ones that provide the tests. This should definitely provide a standardization between the school houses so that a "2" in DC is the same as a "2" in Monterey. Unfortunately, many of us in DC believe that they feel the pressure and are actively trying to ensure that DLI-W does not produce results as high as Monterey.

Partial justification for this appearance of inequality: we are provided video and audio recordings of previous Oral Proficiency Interviews (OPI, the evaluation) at various levels of accomplishment. None of the interviews that were given this week were anywhere close to how the recordings went. They spoke a lot faster, used a lot more words that they know have not been covered (since they "own" the materials), and they were less patient with answers and interrupted the students. None of this was evidenced in the recordings.

Granted, this could easily be explained away by saying the recordings are out-dated (though they're within a couple of years) and the standards have changed. Though I think that statement is overly optimistic, it is possible.

Another possible cause: lack of standardization among testing instructors in Monterey. This is actually very possible, regardless of politically motivated efforts (actual or apparent). This is also very evident in many of the instructors in our (private-sector) course; some instructors really have little-to-no instructional ability or motivation, and with little apparent mentoring or training it appears that they will stay in that rut.

The fix? Either bring the senior tester in to each OPI to observe the other testers administer the interview, or record (video) the OPI and have the senior tester evaluate it afterward. Either way, they can provide guidance to bring them in alignment with the desired standard.

Regardless, it's annoying to have personal morale, confidence, and possibly money* be adversely effected as a result of politically-motivated discrimination.

Do I believe I'll be able to score a "2"? I think it's possible, though I wouldn't categorize it as a strong "2" so if the tester desires then they can easily "stump the dummy".

Just my $0.02. (Just over three more weeks and I'm up to bat.)


* Money: if we score a "2" or higher in some of these languages, we are eligible for a $200 or more bonus per month.

Okay, he told me not to run ...

... but now, two WODs in a row, I've run 2km. Not a lot of distance, granted, but still, Brian did tell me I shouldn't run as much (specifically for hip flexors' flexibility). Guess they try to keep us guessing.

Today's was completely metcon, meaning it really kicked my butt. "Man makers"? Oooouuuuuucccccchhhhhh. Really? Who thought these up? Judge for yourself: youtube. Now do as many as you can in five minutes. And then run 2km.

I set a modest goal (not as fast as the last run due to the preceding metcon) and made it by 4 seconds. I need to set harder goals for myself.

Though there are always a variety of opinions on what shoes to wear for CF, I've seen a lot of people wearing Vibram FiveFingers shoes. They aren't cheap but apparently are better for good form (lifting) and a popular trend I'm hearing about it shying away from big-soled shoes (running). In fact, some go with bare-foot; I'm not there yet.

So, does anybody have opinions on what type of shoes are good for CF? Think: "heavy" lifting (don't laugh, remember it's all relative) and running.

Some people have 2-3 different pairs of shoes depending on the WOD mix, but I'm not going that route.

Oh, and by the way ... they need to survive Afghanistan.

Thoughts?

There goes that neck again

Last night's actually wasn't that bad, and despite my header, it's only a slight twinge in my neck. Last night's WOD was push presses (had some difficult, I think it's my form ... figure that!) followed by two 1km runs with 2 minutes break. I set a simple goal for myself: looking at the previous group's numbers on the whiteboard, I took the slowest guy and wanted to beat him. His was 10:18 combined, I finished (exactly) at 10:17. My pace during each of the runs was actually decent for me -- a bit under a 7-minute mile. Could I have run faster? Well, I sprinted a little at the end, so I think so, but not by much. Good workout!

One of the other runners tried (for the first time) to run in his Vibram Five-Fingers shoes. Allegedly they're better than my uber-padded "running" shoes (in quotes because I'm told they may actually be conducive to less-than-ideal form) for both workouts and running. Maybe I'll go get some. We'll see. One guy said it was "weird" running in them but he had no problems.

And after this WOD, we move into Month #2.

He really enjoys making us suffer ...

Brian, that is. The owner and the (sadistic) coach for today's (5pm) WOD. You can see it in his eyes -- he does not appear to care that we are grunting (okay, perhaps I was grunting enough for everybody) and struggling. (Just joking ... it's the squint in his eyes of "I know this hurts but it'll make you better." At least that's what I'm convincing myself it is ...)

Today's WOD: deadlifts, front squats, and the dreaded double-jumps. Today I actually 20 DJs in a row! (Once. After that it was "oh no, we suck again" all over again.) Today hurt, and I certainly couldn't perform "as prescribed", but I didn't slouch either -- I pushed as hard as I could and didn't stop until the time was up.

On a side note, as Brian is looking at my squat form, he comments -- doesn't asks, just comments -- that I must jog/run.

• "Yes, of course I run." (I'm in the military after all.)
• "Don't."
• "Don't run?"
• "Right, don't run. It's keeping your hip-flexors too tight."

Apparently my hip flexors are hurting my form. (Beavis: are you reading this? I'm guessing you'd be arguing something against this point.) Flashback to a pashto class a couple of weeks ago ...

We've been commenting about how afghans (and arabs in general) often like sitting on their heels. In fact, they sit low and can for hours. Chris, being the show-off in-shape flexible kind of guy that he is, goes right into position without a pause and holds it for a while. Not to be out-done, down I go ...

Of course, you know where this is going. I can almost get "as low" as Chris, but certainly not as comfortable, as I just cannot stretch as much and end up balancing on my toes. This does two things: keeps me a little distracted because I inevitably rock trying to keep my balance, and it tires out my legs a bit faster.

To this Chris comments: "Bill, you are no-where near flexible in your hip-flexors. You should really work on stretching them out." Back to the present ...

Huh. Perhaps I should stretch them out a little more. I guess I should really listen to simple statements like "I didn't know how out-of-shape or inflexible I was until I did CF". Well, it's true. Honestly, I presumed heavy lifting did not work on true flexibilty as much -- in fact, many heavy lifters I've seen at the gyms ("Globo Gyms" is one popular phrase in CF-ease) are not flexible at all.

So, I'm inflexible. Guess I have another goal to strive for. So as I sit here with a small ice-pack on my knee (the front squats ached just a little), I re-gain appreciation for the finer things in CF: mechanics before consistency before intensity.

Beavis, I really think you ought to try a CF session or two. I'm curious to see how well you do at metcon! I think your SOPs are preparing you well, but ...

This weekend I'll try to visit a CF gym in Pensacola since I'll be there through Monday. I gotta be delicate, though, as Molly still does not know about me doing CF. Not sure how I'll get there ... she's going to catch on sooner or later.

Two at the same time ...

Not really ... but I did two consecutive nights of CF workouts, partly because I felt so good after yesterday's. Tonight's was (for me) a somewhat aggressive warmup (run a lap and then 3 sets of 10 pull-ups, 2 hand-stand push-ups, 10 toe-touch-to-bars, and 10 kettle bells) which did a number on me. After that, the front-squats elicited some scary sounds out of my left knee (which is one reason why I didn't push the weights much higher for the 5 sets of 3 squats).

The metabolic conditioning was by far the kicker of the evening: 21-15-9 of thrusters and burpees. Again, light on the weight until I know what I can handle, which translated into "I don't need more weight". Granted, that's as much because the burpees brought my heart-rate right up there and FAST. There's nothing like finishing last in a room full of people (somebody has to be the anchor man) to feed you some humble pie. I'm not completely embarrassed (I'm still new at this), but it's motivation nonetheless.

Tonight, Erika and Kristen were the coaches, and they were a great help.

I'm not sure I'm going to do tomorrow's WOD ... mostly because of my left knee which still hurts a little. We'll see how I feel in the morning. (Plus, I don't know if doing WODs every day this early is good ... gotta heal after all. I'll ask around and see what makes sense.)

Beavis: you gotta try crossfit! I'd be curious to know how CF compares with your SOP (and what Summer thinks about CF).

BTW: I just read a great list of things to NOT do when considering CF. Go to http://www.barbellsandbacon.com/archives/771. Interesting read.

I might live ...

Today's workout was great! Granted, I scaled a bit to keep the reps up but the overall feeling was awesome. The WOD was: 9-6-3 of dead lifts, hand-stand push-ups (scaled), weighted pull-ups (scaled), and a run. I did it in 10:55, of which I'm fairly proud. I might just get through this!

Pursuant with guidance I've gotten from friends (Beavis and Chris, mainly -- thanks guys!), I tried picking up my pace and fixing my stride on the run. Granted, it's about 400 meters (if that), but since I ran with Motion Traxx yesterday I feel like my pace has been a bit too slow. So I picked it up. This certainly throws off my breathing rhythm (my breathing, right or wrong, has often been in some form of sync with my steps), but that's not too hard to overcome.

Today's WOD's instructor is a former Navy ECMO. It's funny how many of the instructors (at least, the ones I've run into) are former military in one shape or another. I think so far I've seen an Army, a Marine or two, and a Navy or two. And each one of them agrees that they're in much better shape doing CF than any military workout routine they've done.

There's hope for me yet :-)

Pashto, week 10, complete

Only 5-1/2 weeks left and then the OPI (oral proficiency interview, though sometimes it sounds like an oral proficiency interrogation :-). I listen to others' OPIs and sometimes feel encouraged, and sometimes like I'll never make it to their level. Granted, most of the others have had 50 weeks to learn it and we're doing it in 16.

They've provided some graduated examples, starting with a 0+ (minimum contracted goal) on the ILR scale, followed by several higher-performing students. The "0+" example was difficult to listen to, because the student was clearly having difficulty with the most simple of questions (appeared deer-in-the-headlights, probably very nervous). The "1+" had a few gaps for us but was generally doable. The "2" was a little harder since many words we haven't learned are being used, though we could generally follow the conversation with small gaps.


The culture-centric conversations are certainly interesting. Just as I often find language barriers (they don't understand the question as asked), I find that as they try to help us become more acquainted with and open-minded about their culture, they are often not very accommodating with ours. I'm certainly not throwing stones as it is foreign for both sides, but it's certainly an interesting dynamic.

Not certain if this is related, but my spelling of english words is starting to slip a LOT more these days. I guess in re-wiring those portions of the brain to accept a different language, occasional short-circuits should not be surprising. And ... occasionally a french answer will jump to mind first (e.g. "il etait un longtemps que je ..."). If that weren't bad enough, mid-french-sentence I slipped right back into pashto. Talk about confusing (to me and to whomever is listening).

We still haven't been paid properly for our per diem and housing costs. So far I've paid out over $10.5k in rent alone and received much less than that (which doesn't come close to covering per diem). Apparently what Millington thinks is happening with their money and what PACC is doing with it are two drastically different things. Great.

Ciao.

Mechanics before consistency ...

Thursday night I went to the 7pm WOD: snatches. Having never really done them before, I looked and felt rather clumsy with them. Brian (the owner) helped me with some stretches (close to an "adjustment") since my shoulders weren't opening up enough, and though I never got much weight on I slowly got better (I think). Alison was helping a lot with the form, though I'm sure I'll have to do it a lot more to really be able to add reasonable weight.

I was paired with Mark (a 3-year CF veteran) for the snatches. He took it a little easy on himself (shoulders), which made it easier on me as I didn't have to remove a lot of weight each time. He was helpful and supportive, a good combo for me as a freshman in the program (those in the foundations class are still plebes, is that the right analogy?).

Break, break: my wife has been training to get back into running for her health. Years ago we used to run 5Ks together, and we really enjoyed it. We've let it fall off in the last few years (10?), so we're picking it up again. Her "repatriating" program (Couch to 5K) has another two weeks before she's running a full 5K. Well, schedules are meant to be bent ... she ran a 5K this morning (in Pensacola) and only missed her final goal by 20 seconds! Woo hoo! I'm so proud of her! I chose to run a sympathetic 5K around the block here and missed my modest intermediate goal of 27 minutes (I got 27:30) but really want to beat 25.

I tried something new in my running today, on the recommendation of Chris (a friend in my pashto class): Motion Traxx. It's a podcast from "Deekron, the fitness DJ" who has made 60+ minute long tracks of music mixed up to 128-180 steps per minute. Many experts claim that the ideal running pace (depending on health level,  etc) varies, but is typically in the 160-170 area (up to 180 for harder runners, down to 150 for slower joggers, etc). I think I've not always kept my pace when running, so this encouraged a consistent pace the whole way. Today's music (episode 3) was interesting, but I really just used it as a musical metronome. (A true metronome would probably bore the bejesus out of me!) I wasn't certain the mileage of it would work out, but as I'm rounding the corner at around 2.9, he comes up and says we should be nearing the 3 mile marker. Granted, I had another 45 seconds to go but  I had started the music well before starting to run, so it paired up well for me. Nice! I think I'll continue using it. (BTW: it's completely free, though if you like the music then he encourages and facilitates buying the full un-remixed tracks.)

CF Foundations, day 6, complete!

I've survived the class, no worse for wear. Mostly.

Much of my pain is easily "explained" by a few things:

• Though I can run (and "easily" pass the Navy standards, which doesn't mean much), I certainly am not in shape because of it; in fact, my legs have lot less strength than I thought they did, specifically in explosive moves and stamina.
• Though I can stretch decently (again, Navy minimums), I'm in fact a lot less flexible than I gave myself credit for.
• No surprise, but my upper-body strength is lacking. A lot. I need help doing ring-dips, pull-ups, and I'm certain I'll be scaling the WODs a bit to be able to continue for a reasonable time or number of reps.

Though I hurt, it's mostly soreness. In fact, I haven't had any neck problems since last week, which is a very good thing. I'm not certain if it was a random tweak, bad form, or what, but it hasn't come back despite some shoulder work. No, I'm sore mostly in my legs right now, though my lower back feels it a bit, too.

Today's workout was dead lifts and ring-dips. I was okay on the dead lifts (on a light weight), but the dips really suffered.

I must admit I'm embarrassed by needing as much assistance as I do (in the form of straps or light weights). I believe nobody there judges me, but there's always that moment where somebody 30-40# lighter uses no bands, heavier weights, and pumping out more, faster. Competition is a great motivator, no doubt about it.

One thing Chad (my instructor) said in the first class that rang true: his best performance on his semi-annual fitness test was in boot camp. After that, times and performance slowly declined. Though I can't claim CF is the answer, it certainly raises the issue that perhaps the military's physical training regiments could be tuned better.

I gotta say my initial reaction to my six classes of CF is good: the focus is on overall strength, symmetric and balanced. I'm certainly not training to be a modeling body builder, nor am I trying to "work on my shoulders" (especially since I feel it's obvious my legs are not as "decent" as I thought they were). My previous workout regiments (if you can call them that) lacked intensity, balance, or both.

According to my methods (posted on May 5th), I'm starting phase 3:

1. Improve my diet. I've modified it, leaning more towards proteins and fruits, controlling carbs. Not eliminating them, just being aware of when and how much. (Note: one of the instructors at PCF has a pseudo-CSA-like deal with local farmers and non-processed meats and dairy. I'll look at the prices and will likely get into some of it. I'll post more as I know more.)
2. Start the program. Foundations class, done.
3. Stay the program. Three times per week. Transitioning to normal WODs is a hurdle for me.
4. Stay the program, after leaving Potomac CrossFit and the DC area.
5. Stay the program, long term, after the Navy. (There's life after the Navy?)

 Out.

CF Foundations, day 4

Okay, so I spent most of the weekend in various states of discomfort. Half-way through Monday, I could move around but laying down still proved a problem. I was a bit anxious going into tonight, if for no other reason than I'd rather sleep well without waking up every time I roll over. Therefore I was resolute to throttle back the weights, focus on form and mechanics, and not kill my neck again.

Tonight's workout, however, focused more on lifts than presses, which is a good thing. "Really?" Apparently, when you do them right (i.e. not what I've done before), dead lifts and back squats work the core, the lower back, and a bit of the legs. (Granted, the high pull on the "sumo deadlift high pull" certainly had potential, but those were only demonstrate/learn today, not actually perform in the workout.)

So, I was actually able to do better today. Granted, I didn't impress anybody (only went up to 145# on the back squats), but (1) this isn't about impressing anybody but myself, and (2) today's goal was simple: don't get hurt (again).

So, I think I accomplished it. In fact, I feel great! A nice dinner of (very lightly) seared tuna steak (unfortunately not sushi-grade) and some sugar snap peas, and ice-pack on my neck (just in case), and I'm feeling rather refreshed.

This feeling is likely very rare at this stage of Foundations, so perhaps I missed something ...

Two more "classes" and then I'm released to the world of "Real WODs". Huh.

Pashto, week 9 ???

I had to do a double-take to verify this ... we're half-way through the training? Granted, I've come light-years into it so far but yet can barely speak about more than family, weather, and some basic daily or weekend routines. Not exactly riveting ...

Had a good conversation today with one of the directors (?) of DLS (whom is contracted by DLI to provide the language training). In our class (of 3 students), we've been asking more and more for things that the books have been unable to provide or provided poor (and/or contradictory) examples. Seems like they're in the process of fixing it ("yay!") and should have changes final by November ("boo!" as we are finished in June). However, they're attempting to modify things slightly for us, though I get the feeling we'll still be providing our own rudder to the flow. (This is really weird ... I've never been able to control my own training to this degree! Wish it weren't necessary but at least we have a strong say.)

We're working hard on verb tenses, something that has certainly taken pulling teach to get done. The hardest part, honestly, has been at times the language barrier. Figure that. For example, we finally convinced one of our instructors that it's alright (in fact, preferred) to answer a question about inconsistent verb conjugation with "it's an irregular verb, so memorize it". Last week we got into a lufbery (prolonged engagement) about a verb where he thought we were commenting that pashto is so inconsistent. Though the language is certainly inconsistent, he hadn't (yet) realized that we were talking about the conjugation itself.

We are also dealing with frequent frustrations with the vocab words they provide. For instance, a month or so ago we learned words for dog, cat, and (of all things) parrot. If parrots were an integral and pervasive part of Afghan culture perhaps I'd understand, but they aren't. Last week, we learned quail. Granted, we don't know how to say bird or even the verb to hunt yet. Neither word has been used in the examples they provide or in any conversation. We have, however, learned about exercise with spear; though there is certainly the not-so-popular afghan sport buzkashi, spears do not appear to be involved so I'm not certain what the relevance is.

Things are progressing. Tomorrow is my mid-term, a conversation with a yet-unnamed individual (internal to DLS) for 20-25 minutes, quite possibly on a phone. It's amazing how much of our communication (especially learning a different language) is visual. Though most of us are in fact NOT training for the test, we still feel a bit competitive (with ourselves) to do well. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it) they will not be providing an assessment of our current speaking level (something they will do in June on our final test).

8 more weeks. Wish me luck.

CF Foundations, day 3

Last night was day 3 in the Foundations class. "Tower, 104 needs a rep."

I think it's one of two things:

1. I tweaked my neck a little on day 1, made it a little worse on day 2 (last Wednesday), and tweaked it a LOT more last night; or
2. I am doing things slightly out-of-balance and therefore all of the dynamic moves are being exaggerated up my spine and into my neck.

I'm on motrin and using a heating pad (I used an ice-pad last night). It wasn't really until lunch today that I could turn my head to the right. I really *hope* this is a simple thing that I just hadn't recovered enough for last night's workout. (If I were an alarmist, I'd believe the internet warning that said this is possibly/likely a herniated disc. The internet's never wrong, huh?) We moved our #4 class/workout from Tuesday night to Wednesday night, meaning I have one more day in which to stretch, relax, and try to return my neck to a relative state of normalcy.

Anyway, last night's workout introduced "wall balls", throwing a medicine ball to a targeted height on the wall. Comical how simple it seems and how a weak neck/shoulder made it so difficult. The workout was "AMRAP: 15 push jerks, 15 wall balls, 15 situps". Admittedly, I did slower sit-ups to give me time in between the others. Lucky for me Chad was a real d*ck and kept pushing me to keep the intensity up there. I only finished 3+ rounds, which in hindsight sounds like such a SMALL accomplishment though at the time I could really feel my heartbeat. I think I did the first 2 rounds in 8 minutes. *sigh*

I really hope this neck/shoulder thing doesn't keep me down.

CrossFit Foundations, day 1

... and as I mentioned in the previous post, I'm also starting CrossFit.

So, I'm doing it at Potomac CrossFit at the Clarendon stop near DC. I walked in and was met promptly by Brian, the owner. Gregarious, earnest, approachable. Seems like he really believes in the program and his gym. In fact, I spoke with several of the instructors and they all have very similar mindsets in this. Not sure if it's a cult thing (just kidding), he's careful who he hires, or it's just that good a program. I'm thinking #2 and #3.

I'm in the Foundations course with Chad as my instructor. He's straight-forward, helpful, non-judgmental, knowledgeable, and so far really good. Perhaps I won't think he's nice when he really starts pushing me, but that's par for the course. The gym looks a little different than most gyms, but then the concept of CF doesn't really follow the standard "GloboGym" concept of weights and machines.

I made it (most (?) of the way) through Chad's "Half Cindy" (not sure if that's right) and wow, previously I only had a fleeting glimpse of what it would do to me. A little light-headedness was enough to remind me what hard workouts are supposed to feel like. And today's was not a "full" workout. Heh.

I hurt, both physically and I'm rather embarrassed at how little I actually did today. Chad tried to tell me that that's common, but it's still embarrassing. That's just motivation to do better!

My goals with CF:

1. By far my highest priority is to Get in Better Shape. Both stamina and overall musculature. I'm not specifically trying to build mass (though that'd be good) as much as improve my core and other balanced strengths. I'm not focused on "cardiovascular work" for two reasons: apparently the new buzzword is "metabolic conditioning"; this conditioning will come with time.
   
2. Control my Weight. I don't know if I'll actually lose weight, but I'm higher on the BMI index than I want to be and I'd rather it be more muscle than ... not. This is certainly secondary to #1, above.
   
3. Specific goals: unassisted hand-stand push-ups, rock-climbing, rope-climbing (arms only). (I've got a long way to go on these.)
   

My motivations, both immediate and long-term:

1. My general stamina and current metabolic condition, not where I want them to be.
2. I'm going to Afghanistan ... I'd rather be able to run, climb, hike, carry, ... when I need to vice huffing and puffing and lagging behind. Plus I will most likely be doing it at 8000 feet elevation.
   
3. This is NOT a mid-life crisis, though the timing may look like it ;-). Is 50 the new 40?
   
4. I want to be able to stay in shape (of various levels) well past leaving the military. Heck, I want to maintain it past 40, 50, and more. Since I'm rapidly nearing the point of military retirement, I need to start earlier rather than later (it'll be too easy for me to become sedentary out of the military). I've seen a relatively sizeable decline in my condition, and I need to stop ... errrr, reverse it.
   

My methods:

1. Improve my diet. Not cosmic. I'm not eating junk food, but I can tweak things. I'm not sure I'll go full "paleo" ... we'll see.
   
2. Start the program. This is likely the hardest part right now as I feel really frustrated and embarrassed. I can't miss or put off foundation classes or integrating into the normal WOD schedule.
   
3. Stay the program. At least 3 times per week.
4. Stay the program after I leave DC, into Indiana and Afghanistan. This may be difficult. Since I'll be relatively young in the program, I'll want to find friends in my future locations who know more than I do to help me keep it going.
5. Stay the program, long term. I'm hoping by this time (post-Afghanistan) it will be enough ingrained in my skull that I find it too satisfying to even think about letting it slack.
   

Okay, I said it. To the world (if anybody is actually listening to a blog started only moments ago). I hope this will help motivate me to keep going through the hump of starting.

Foundations, day 2, tomorrow night. If I make it! My shoulders hurt, just like Chad said they would.

It starts ...

Though many people claim many more reasons (and perhaps more significant/meaningful), I primarily have two reasons to start this blog:

1. Track my progress through learning Pashto and my impending deployment to Afghanistan; and
2. Track my progress as I start CrossFit training.

I'm a bit late for #1, admittedly: I started the language training in March, 6 weeks ago, and I'm just getting to the blog now. So, for that, I'll summarize the weeks/months in a paragraph or three:

Going into it, my first thoughts sounded similar to "I haven't studied another language in over 20 years", and often hovered near the myth "you can't teach an old dog new tricks". Not that I'm old, mind you, just more likely set it my ways of learning. And with my engineering background and Navy Aviation career, learning a spoken language (especially one as complex as Pashto) is a completely different tack, so to speak. Though I was partially right, I was so wrong on many notes.

After the first few weeks, we were finally able to compose (really) basic sentences. Our vocabulary was on the order of 300 or so words, our verbs constrained to the present tense (very frustrating), and listening skills have been (and still are) my weakest link. Defense Language Services (DLS, contracted by DLI-W) provided a couple of seminars, one of which focused solely on learning styles: visual vs. verbal, sequential vs. global, actual vs. referential, and intuitive vs. sensing. Not surprisingly, I'm completely visual, almost completely global, mostly actual, and about 50/50 on sensing/intuitive (though I had to bias some of my answers to be specific to something I haven't studied in 20 years ... learning languages is a bit different from engineering formulae!).

Anyway, perhaps the most frustrating part of the language part at this point and carried forward into the present is that the content they teach us is frequently random (e.g. why do I need to learn the phrase "exercises with spear" unless I will speak extensively of bazkushi, a relatively harsh sport in Afghanistan) and hasn't given us the tools a few of us feel we want to be able to better form sentences (e.g. tenses). Though some of this is certainly along the lines of "we don't know what we don't know" and we need to trust that the syllabus administrators have a purpose for the order and content, even after 6+ weeks we haven't seen a method to some of the madness. We'll see.

Long story short (too late), it's coming along. We're nearing our mid-terms (they call them "mock OPIs" or Oral Proficiency Interview, where the actual OPIs come in two months) and I think we're much better prepared than perhaps previous classes were. A lot of that can easily be attributed to several great and accommodating teachers we've had. I'm over the fear of learning a language and certainly into the swing of learning it. Only 8-1/2 weeks to go ...