My Personal Goal in Writing

[Chrissy Scott]

In order to test for Brown belt, we have to meet certain requirements. One of them being to work towards a personal goal. This is my personal goal, in writing.

I am going to train/prepare for the the World Oyama Karate Organization's 2012 Fighters Cup. The tournament takes place at Mercy High School in San Francisco on June 3rd. The tournament is unique in that it is full contact, semi-knockdown (for women - full contact for men). So, on top of training for fitness, I have to spend some time on body conditioning as well.

My training consists of Crossfit workouts, sprint workouts, body conditioning and once a week, because I love it, a nice long run. Crossfit exercises are done in 20/10 intervals for 4 minutes. So for example: jump squats/bicycle crunches means 20 seconds of jump squats, 10 seconds of rest, 20 seconds of crunches, 10 seconds of rest, all repeated 4 times. Then a 60 second rest and roll into the next set of exercies. There are 4 sets of exercises in each workout. Crossfit is a great way to get a killer workout in on a short lunch break as it only takes 16 minutes to do the whole cycle. Sprint workouts time oriented. I will add extra rotations on the sprint workouts as I get conditioned. Body conditioning includes drills on the makiwara or with a partner . And then I get one nice and relaxing long run on weekends that's anywhere from 5 - 8 miles.

Here is my training plan in detail:

Mondays: Crossfit 1 and Body Conditioning

Crossfit 1 - jumping lunges/shoulder press (x4)
                   superman/bicycle crunches (x4)
                   mountain climbers/dive bombers (x4)
                   jump squats/dumbbell rows (x4)

Body Conditioning - Tic Toc (20 rotations), 20 leg kicks, 20 punches on makiwara

Tuesdays: Sprint Workout 1 and Body Conditioning

Sprint Workout - 10 second sprint, 20 second rest, 20 second sprint, 30 second rest, 30 second sprint, 60 second rest (x3)

Body Conditioning - Tic Toc (20 rotations), 20 leg kicks with partner

Wednesdays: Crossfit 2

Crossfit 2 - plie squat/plank (x4)
                   butterfly press/weighted prone back lifts (x4)
                   leg press/tricep dips (x4)
                   reverse crunches/ lateral shoulder raises (x4)

Thursdays: Sprint Workout and Body Conditioning

Sprint Workout - 10 second sprint, 20 second rest, 20 second sprint, 30 second rest, 30 second sprint, 60 second rest (x3)
Body Conditioning - Tic Toc (20 rotations), 20 leg kicks with partner

Fridays: Crossfit 3 and Spint Workout

Crossfit 3 - jump squats/push-ups (x4)
                   mountain climbers/crunches (x4)
                   high knees in place/tricep dips (x4)
                   jumping jacks/speed punches (x4)

Sprint Workout - 10 second sprint, 20 second rest, 20 second sprint, 30 second rest, 30 second sprint, 60 second rest (x3)

Saturdays: Long run and Body Conditioning
Long run - 5 - 8 miles nice and slow
Body Conditioning - Tic Toc (20 rotations), 20 leg kicks and upper body basics with partner

I feel like this is a good challenge for me because it's unlike anything I've trained for before. I'm used to training for distance events where steady pacing is the key. With this, it's all sprints and high heart rate for short periods. And I can tell you, it's a totally different sensation to do a 8-minute sprint workout than to go for an 8-mile run. I'm nervous about, but I figure that's a good thing.

[Chrissy Scott]

Thanks for the encouragement everybody! Stacia and Lisa, stand by for some vegetarian goodness. I'll be sharing a recipe for quinoa chilli!

Thanks for the recommendations Sensei Debord. Me and the makiwara have been working on a lot of shin conditioning. I'll be adding some joint strengthening exercises and extra stretching on sprint days. I hope you can make it out on tournament day, it'll be great to have you there!

[Lisa Clark]

The plan is exemplary and inspiring to some of us (me) who have grown a bit lazy. It will be great to see your progress. Maybe you could post some of the recipes with the diet chronicles? New healthy food is always welcome in our kitchen.

[Stacia D. Kelly]

Love it! And, can't wait to see the videos on diet too esp about vegetarian and tofu ;)

[Chrissy Scott]

Chronicle the process! Got it! I'm sure there will be some entertaining videos :) 

As for diet, I will start logging some meal examples. As a vegetarian I have a pretty healthy, clean diet. I will make this a challenge to show how vegetarians can get enough protein without overdosing on tofu. :)

[Mike Oliver]

To take this project to the next level would be to chronicle your training so as to inspire or motivate others. Get some video of your runs, your crossfit work, and your work in class. Diet?