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- Run - greenlake and athletic fields. Program goal was either (a) tempo with 3@8:54 (last week) or (b) 2 x 1 mile repeats at 8:25. Combined them with 4 miles at about 9:15, middle two at 8:35. Went out a little too fast and paid for it at the end. Left knee felt a little sore at the beginning and end. Heart rate stayed high (>160) despite slowdown at end. Data is here.
- KB intermediate class: 50 SW 12kg to start, then 10 min. of TGU practice to warm up. Worked on the clean using the 14kg, nice middle bell. Main course: 15 min. of 1 SW, 1 CL, 1SN 1 SQ L/R, then 1 pushup. Used the 14kg, felt good throughout.
- ROP heavy day, 4x(1,2,3), 16kg. Didn't own the last set, will stay at this ladders/rungs for next week. Rolled a 6 for swings, so did 6 rounds of (30 sec. 2H SW 20kg (hit 20 reps every time), 30 sec. rest, 30 sec. jump rope (62-65 jumps), 30 sec. rest). Swings felt good with the 20, bell not coming up as high gave room for the 20th rep at the end of the period.
- Gyro - 1-1. Not too much work, but plenty of focus on the pelvic girdle and the connection to the psoas. Huge engagement/awareness, but very tiring.
- Run - greenlake track and then around athletic fields. Program called for 5 miles, did 4 due to time constraints. Hit goal pace (10:28), 4.0 mi., 41:52, avg. HR 150. Data is here.
- KB intermediate class - pressing day, no surprise given Kenneth Jay's appearance in Seattle over the weekend. Lots of Z and mobility to start, then 3 rounds of 1 TGU each side, 5 kneeling presses L/R, 10 SW 16kg. Workout: 10 rounds of 5 presses L/R, 10 dbl SW. Alternated sets between 8kg and 12kg. Form corrections: (a) kick hip (weight) slightly to pressing side; (b) press from wrist (point where KB "ball" touches wrist; (c) neck elongated (looking over a wall).
- Continuation of yesterday's ROP easy day...did the snatches separately due to time constraints. Entire workout took about 30 min., 20 for the warmup/SN, 10 for the finisher.
- Warmup: 3 x (50 jump ropes, 10 1H SW L/R 16kg, 5 1H CL L/R 16kg).
- KB SN: 5 x (8 L/R 16kg). Had rolled a 9 for the dice, took closer to 10 min. w/45 sec. or so rest between sets. Hadn't snatched in a while, felt harder than expected.
- Finisher: 3 x (8 inc. bench 65lb., 8 one-arm row L/R 16kg).
- 3/5 wall squat, pump, halo x 16kg to warm up.
- KB PR, 1x(1,2,3) x 16kg L/R
- Long day of work on the swing, goblet squat, and turkish getup. Passed the pullup test (5) pretty easily, used chinups to guarantee success. Missed one small thing on the GSQ test, will need to retest on that portion.
- Day off other than a few mobility drills.
- Sets of 1H swings, TGUs, FSQs with videotaping to prep for HKC. About 30 min. of exercise total.
- 1-1 w/Kevin, checked all HKC lifts and got feedback. Everything felt pretty good, a little deconditioned on account of being on vacation.
- Gyro, triplet that was actually a duet as one person didn't show up. Felt open in the upper body & legs, core held up well too.
- Run, Greenlake & athletic fields from parking lot by track. 4.13 mi., 4.13 mi., 10:14/mi. Felt good throughout despite jet lag. Data is here.
- KB intermediate class, good class but didn't write down what happened.
- KB PR, 3x(1,2,3) L/R, 16kg.
- KB SW, 10 min. 30/30, 16kg. Did 2, L, R, 2, L, R, 2, L, R, 2.
- Long day flying home, Marseilles -> Paris -> Seattle. Caught a ride home with Eve, got to the house around 3 p.m.
- Breakfast at the hotel, then a quick walk to a flower market in Aix and a very nice garden on the grounds of a mansion built in 1655.
- Walked to bus station for a shuttle ("navette") bus from Riez to Marseilles, a big port city on the Mediterranean which is ancient in parts, pretty ugly in others. Took bus to downtown, then metro to massive cathedral on the hill near the water. Lots of tourists. Had lunch on circle on the way to the cathedral (classic French menu). Back down to the metro, then reversed our steps to get to our hotel, a best Western at the Marseilles airport.
- Travel day - took a taxi from the hotel, then another train->bus switch due to additional railway construction. Walked to hotel from bus station in Aix, then spent the afternoon sightseeing (cathedral, fountains). Found an internet cafe to catch up on email, then had last dinner with hiking group.
- Last day of walking. Uphill to ridge, then mostly flat across a long valley with lots of harvested lavender fields. Views back to Verdun Gorge cliffs, Mt. Ventoux, eventually Riez. Nice old chapel on the hill above Riez, then down to Roman ruins in town. 5k road walk to the hotel, an old hunting lodge built in the 1500s.
- Great dinner at the hotel - midway through, the dogs started barking wildly, and next thing a big black wild boar comes walking across the patio outside, looking like it owned the place.
- Lots of elevation gain/loss; about 2400 up & 3000 down for the day. Amazing rock formations along the way, and Mt. Ventoux (Tour de France horror climb) in the distance. Eventually, views of Lac de Sante Croix (lake at end of Verdun Gorge) far below. Saw lots of parapentes flying over a distant ridge, and one came close enough to get some good camera shots. Very steep (over 1000 ft.) rocky descent to Moustiers, a big tourist town with a nice church (aside from the fact that its bell rang not once but twice every hour, all night long). Good dinner/breakfast, but generally a lame hotel.
- Walked to La Palud (more accurately, La Palud-sur-Verdon) through the last part of the Verdun Gorge. Started by going back down into the gorge, then up and down, fairly close to the water some times, above it at others. Water was moving very fast, but we got a toe dip in after lunch (cold). Amazing views. Log walk up out of the gorge to a small cafe, then grabbed a taxi (crazy French driver at the wheel) for the last hiking section, which was all on the road and not too safe.
- Today's walk took us down to the end of the mouth of the Verdun Gorge, with continued excellent views and an amazing display of flying from a couple of eagles along the the way. Midday we walked off the trail to a small chapel perched on a hillside (we are talking middle of nowhere here), small but beautiful as always. Had lunch at an old potter's village (no longer any pottery being made), then walked across a long plain containing what might have been Roman burial mounds, then down steeply to Pt. Sublime.
- After breakfast, started down into the gorge and along the water, which was a strange color of blue from limestone silt. Trail was mostly flat starting out, with two very long and dark tunnels that required a flashlight. To get out of the gorge at the end of the day, there were some very steep ladders that took some effort to negotiate, especially with fellow hikers coming the opposite way. Long ascent, then a long step descent, including a walk through a very strange commune, on the way to Castellan, a nice but touristy city. One of Castellan's claims to fame is a chapel sitting high up on the rocks overlooking the town, so of course we had to climb up there (hard on the legs after a long day's hike). The chapel was colorful and ornate, with many rememberances of people who'd supported it over the years. Nice dinner outside at the hotel to end the day.
- Started the morning off with a last run around the Avignon wall. Up stairs to garden, elevated pushups 7/6/5/4/3/2/1 w/30 sec. rest between sets, then around to the end. 43:36.
- Traveled by bus from Avignon to St. Andre Les Alpes, the entry point to our hike through the Verdun Gorge. The trip started eventfully, as we nearly missed the bus leaving Avignon due to a misunderstanding around where it left from. Transferred to another bus, then to the train station ("gare" in French) in Digne Les Bains. Unfortunately the narrow gage train to St. Andre was out of commission; work was being done on the track. We took a third bus instead, arriving at St. Andre around 3 p.m. Took a walk around town and stopped for a fizzy water, and by very good luck met not only our guide John, who we remembered from a previous walk, but also our walking companions Alec and Elena, who were sitting at a nearby table. We had dinner as a group at the hotel restaurant that evening.
- In the evening, took a short walk over to the Verdun Gorge entrance, which was right across the street from the hotel. Amazing evening views of the rock faces and water below.
- Took the bus to Pont de Gard, a beyond-amazing 2000-yr-old bridge/aquedeuct. I was personally a little skeptical about just how cool this could be (big writeups in all the tourist books) but it was everything they said and more. We had to walk across the bridge, of course, then had lunch on the far side and hiked up to see views of the aqueduct itself and then around the site to see some amazing and huge old gardens. From there, we took a bus to Uzes, a restored city with a lot of charm. Went to the protestant church (with all the huge Catholic cathedrals, it's often hard to remember there were other religions), then hit the cathetdral (funeral in progress). Walked through a park along the edge of the city, got a few pullups in on a bar at a parcours. Back to Avignon on the bus, then a good dinner at a different Vietnamese place.
- In afternoon, took a car (with a guide - in France the guides have to pass a test demonstrating their knowledge of the area they're guiding) to Rousillon (Ochre Cliffs) . Walked around town, then took tour of quarry (~1 mi. walk). From there, went to Gordes, a beautiful town perched on a hill (apparently a place where the beautiful people live; real estate prices were in the 1-3 million euro range).
- Ran around Avignon wall, added uphill on "bridge to nowhere" side to get some elevation in. Around garden, partway down and back up, then fully down and around. ~40 mi. total.
- Dinner at Vietnamese/Chinese place, very good. As we arrived, a wedding was going on in a synagogue right next door. Young love! Sugar cookie for dessert.
- Breakfast at home, then bus to St. Remy de Provence. Huge market in town, great for food but sure hosed up the traffic. Bought cheese, olives, salami, fruit. Bused it back home, then got a little exercise in (calf raises, hanging leg raises, pushups, dips, front squats, lunges, 5x5).
- Dinner at home - leftover spaghetti, olives, cheese, etc.
- Breakfast at home, then off to Palais des Papes (papal palace), the Catholic papal center in the 1500s when politics caused the pope to leave Rome. The specific politics were explained a couple of times along the way, never did quite get it. The rooms were massive, some with old painting (no pictures allowed in those). Up from the Palais to gardens behind it (great views of Rhone river and Villeneuve des Avignon, a sister city). From there, down to the Rhone and the "Point d'Avignon", a sort of "bridge to nowhere" that is the remnants of a long bridge that connected Avignon and Villeneuve long ago. Took the long way back to the apt. via the tourist office and saw some old water wheels that were used to power cloth factories back in the day. Vuelta de Espana stage on TV!
- Took a run around the Avignon wall, about 5K total, 30:00. Felt good, no rain but lots of puddles. Did some forearm work and jackknife pulls in apt.
- Dinner - wow! Le Tout Petit, 2 blocks from the apt. Fixed price meal with mushroom soup, duck, chocolate dessert. Top 20 lifetime meals.
- Overnight - more hard rain/lightning, and more water in the apt., cascades down the wall from the skylights. Lots of active mopping, got it mostly cleaned up by 1 a.m.
- Took the train from Avignon to Nimes, where we walked through the city to the "Square House" (La Maison Carree), which was unfortunately under construction. The house dates back to Roman times, with lots of rebuilding over the decades. From there we walked up through a park with views over the city, then down past a waterway and wandered through the city toward the train station and back to Avignon. Stopped at the store and bought pasta, coffee, etc. Had the pasta for dinner, then walked to Place de l'Horloge for a glace for dessert. Had a little rain which didn't cool things off much.
- Overnight - heavy reain with thunder/lightning (maybe hail). Standing water on floor of apt. in AM, spent some time cleaning and drying everything.
- Taxi to Lyon TGV station, then took the high-speed (didn't seem all that speedy, but who knows) to Avignon. A bus from the TGV station dropped us off at the edge of the city, which has a wall around it (about 3 miles around). Walked to our apartment and met the owner (Jean-Pierre) to get the key and instructions. After getting settled, walked to tourist office to get maps, etc. Lunch was crepes (delicious) at a location we never found again. Called Mom & Jo since the phone was free (we could not, for some reason, call cell phones), then went back out for dinner at a Vietnamese place.
- Up a little earlier, breakfast at hotel (sitting in student desks, in keeping with the "college" theme). Walked across Lyon to the "other" hill (the first hill is up the funicular to the cathedral) for a 2-hour walking tour of the silk production area. The buildings were designed to accommodate the large size of a silk loom (very tall ceilings and sturdy floors). Tour ended at a silk dyeing shop where we saw color being applied to fabric.
- From there, took a bus to the huge botanical gardens (Parc de la Tetd d'Or), but ended up getting hungry. Went to a mediocre restaurant near the gardens, then took two buses back to the hotel. Both of us finished reading a book (regular vacation goal) before dinner.
- Up around 9, breakfast in hotel. French breakfasts are mostly bread, cheese, a little meat, and of course "cafe au lait", or "cafe" if you want an expresso (try drinking a cafe without scrunching your face up). Walked to tourist bureau and bought 2-day city passes. The fabric museum "Musee d'Tissue" was nearby, saw some cool silk works. Walked to tram ("funicular") at bottom of hill, took it up to the cathedral Notre-Dame-de-Fourviere. The Catholics definitely got the good views, expansive across Lyon, the two rivers (Saone and Rhone), etc. Walked to old cemetery behind cathedral, then down to not one but two Roman Amphitheaters. Back down on the tram to the hotel, then took a 1-hr. boat ride on the Saone (included in city pass). Dinner was at some ordinary french place, then took the funicular back up to the cathedral for night views of Lyon.
- Caught a ride with Eve to SeaTac around 1115a. For the long flight, got row 28J/K, unfortunately next to the bathroom and one of the doors wouldn't stay closed, leaving the light on during our "pretend" sleep. Individual TV was nice, watched "Green Zone" and "Iron Man 2", both pretty good and passed the time. In-flight food was good, and saw the sunrise over Scotland (we knew it was Scotland due to tracking the plane's progress on the TV, a very nice feature).
- At Paris CDG, 3-4 hour layover including passport and additional security (term. 2F). Terminal was new and had lots of light. 1 hr. flight to Lyon. Met by driver (we felt famous) for a 45 min. ride to our hotel, the education-themed College Hotel (French accents...there were school desks mounted on the outside of the building, and in the lobby there was a very old TV playing black & white French movies about kids). Arrived at hotel around 4 p.m. local time. Walked promenade along River Saone, took pedestrian bridge across and back. Too early for dinner (7:30 p.m. is the very earliest anyone will serve you) so took a quick nap, then out for Thai food (French lesson #1: a "crevette" is a shrimp, not some sort of vegetable) and and excellent lemon Sorbet ("glace") afterward.
- Run from house around greenlake and athletic fields. 4.1 mi., approx. 40 min. (maybe a minute or two longer, forgot to turn the watch off). Felt great to run, a little twinge still in inside of left knee.
- Sets of pullups, pushups, dips throughout the day. Top P/U set was 3 good ones, first one very good.
- KB intermediate class - Warmup: 3 rounds of dbl DL 2x16kgx6, 20 2H SW 20kg, 1 TGU to high pelvis. High pelvis actually felt pretty good. Next: 3 rounds of 5/5 tactical lunges, 10/10 1H SW (both with 12kg), 5/5 lizards. Next: 3/4/5 dbl FSQ 2x12kg, dbl PP 2x12kg, RR 2x16kg. Next: from TGU starting position, neck rotations, straight leg raise, cross leg stretch, arm bar. Brettzels 1 and 2 to warm down.
