I Did My First Sand Bag WOD With Pea Gravel In It
We were originally going to do this WOD yesterday together but Molly got home from work too late to do one so we waited until today. Going into the WOD I knew I would be at least slightly slower than I would typically be in a sandbag WOD using a different filling material than the sand I am used to and probably a slightly different weight. The sand had leaked so many times I surely lost some over time and didn’t keep reweighing it but I know the currently pea gravel filled one is 53 pounds.
It felt really good in the WOD. Indeed it did have a slightly different feel than the sand did and that slowed me a little bit, especially with some of the transitions from overhead to the back for back squats. Knocking myself in the head with it doesn’t fit in too well with my fitness goals.
The stones in the bag feel what I guess I would best describe as maybe slightly looser and more mobile than the sand was. It certainly makes sense it would feel that way since the sand was more compact and dense than the gravel is. It also makes the bag feel a little rougher but that’s to be expected since the particles are significantly larger in the pea grave than the sand was. It won’t take long to adjust to it.
The pea gravel is little bit quieter than the sand was. It goes against everything I would have expected but somehow it seems quieter when dropped. Maybe the sand was dense enough it could act as more of a solid substance if it hit the ground just right but it definitely created at least occasionally, some loud drops. With the sand in the bag there occasionally be drops that I guess I would best described as sounding like a flat rock hitting the ground.
There was no dust escaping there there would be at times with the sand inside. The sand dust subsided a bit after using it for a few WODS but there would still be the occasionally puffs of dust that would escape. The dust from the sand did in fact prevent me from finishing one WOD a few months back. Early on in that WOD the internal filler bag had opened and I knew it but tried to finish the WOD anyways since I was doing it outside and a little sand isn’t going to hurt the ground. No need to clean that up unlike inside the garage. but at one point I got a face full dust and started coughing on it. Some thing happened in the garage once too but I stopped right away to prevent a big mess.
I like the gravel and really feel it was a good move to switch over to that. Now I have to fill my other filler bags with 25 pounds or so for easy weight adjustments. Time will tell for sure but I would have to believe switching from sand to gravel will be a huge plus in the end. I sort of regret not doing this sooner but it’s better late than never.