_tim's Log

I have no idea, Tot. The pull is much lower than where a belt would sit. I guess I'll find out.

Extended Tabata (Elliptical): 10:00 WU; 4:00 work; 6:00 CD
Wanted to be sure I was warm before sprinting.

Push Up To Plank: To the pain!
Yeah - I stopped counting. Went until my obliques were cryin', then did three more. Probably about 15 or so?

Ah conditioning. So, so not fun.
 
I'd ask what purpose he thinks a belt would serve when using sub-max loads for less than max reps (ie. for reps that are not utterly fatiguing)? Some folks find a belt very useful for high %age of 1RM lifts, and you will no doubt have a slightly higher 1RM with one, but it's not going to protect your lower-back if your form drops off. It's much more about overall torso stabilisation using increased intrathoracic pressure.
 
I asked my doc this morning about the belt and he gave a very non-committal, very vanilla answer. Truth be told, I don't think he has the kind of understanding that a few folks here have in terms of the mechanics of heavy lifting. Not sure what to do, guys. I'm feeling 10,000% better and I'm not sure if it makes any sense at all to go see a guy without the level of understanding displayed by both Lol and Tot just here in my log. Dunno. I digress...

Pause Standing Press: 115, 125 x 3; 130 x 5
Fought hard for the 5th rep - it was one of those very drawn out reps that could have gone either way. Thing is, I won.

Repetition Standing Press: 100, 95, 80, 90, 85 x 10
I listed the order right - I wasn't paying attention when I was adjusting the bar for the 3rd set. This time, clustering was much less necessary - only the last two sets had any form of clustering - 8-2 and 9-1 respectively. Massive improvement over last time.

Pullups: 10, 8, 5, 5, 5, 3, 3, 1
Was at something of a loss for time, so I stopped at 40.

Kroc Row: 65 x 25
These were not close to where I wanted them to be, truthfully. Looking forward to my next attempt at 65. The right arm clustering was 20-3-2, and the left was 17-3-2-2-1. Regardless, my back and biceps got blitzed like crazy - the pump is still going strong 3 hours later.

Loving the cycle despite the low back issue.
 
My surgeon is an excellent professional, and he encouraged me to go back to lifting as soon as possible. He told me to stay away from belts, straps, and stuff. He thinks that if we were meant to lift with belts, we’d have been born wearing one, lol. In his opinion, many lifters mess up their back because they’re wearing the wrong shoes. Either get a pair for lifting, or wear none. I wish more professionals were like him.
 
I very much agree, XFM. I always deadlift in my socks - so my standing position was about as natural as I could have gotten. I think Lol was dead on - I had to have relaxed as I began the concentric portion of the final rep on the 260 set. I'm supposed to do deads again on Friday. Maybe I'll do a toe dip and see how it goes.

I'm seeing my massage therapist tonight to work on my neck as per my norm - maybe I'll have him throw his two cents in.
 
Very late today...

So what better than some Kipping PU's and some Thrusters to get the blood going!

Kippings: 15, 10, 10
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Thrusters: 10, 5, 6 @ 75
The rule was - go to form breakdown. I didn't do the sets back to back like a Fran - I actually rested about 45 seconds or so between supersets. I totally forgot how much Kipps hit the forearms. WOW!

Deadlift Toe-Dip: 135 x 8
No pain at all - felt like a warmup set. But - being a toe dip, that was all she wrote.

Ab Coaster: 25 (front, no added weight)
Evil.

I was done with this in 17 minutes; my heart rate is STILL elevated (3 hours later).
 
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Had a bout of really bad food poisoning on Saturday and still don't have my energy or strength back. I'm going to push the start of 5/3/1 training back to at least Wednesday; I may do some light cardio tomorrow but that would be it.
 
Get well soon Tim. Up your fluids. Usually helps with any dehydration effects.
 
Well, as much as I hate to say it, I'm going to have to end MC2 prematurely and reset. The back injury and then the food poisoning put me in a place physically where I think I should restart the cycle (with a couple changes) next week. The rest of this week is going to be very hard to work around schedule-wise, so working out will probably not be in the cards. Add to that the fact that my caloric intake has been about half what it usually is when I train. So - with a full week off and nowhere near enough eating, I sorta figure that starting a modified MC2 over again as MC3 is the right decision.

So - I'm going to literally restart the bench and standing press portions of the cycle - they don't need to change. Squat and deadlift loads will be reset much lower and assistance will be slightly increased for both lifts.

I never went to the doctor - I talked to him a couple more times and I just couldn't justify going based on what he was saying. That said, I have some tightness in my left hamstring that seems to be the result of the injury. So - going based on my current convention of treating injuries with bloodflow (which works better than any therapy or drug I've ever been given) I'm going to focus on lower loads with sustained volume for my lower body lifts. Having 4-5 weeks of lighter work with increased volume should do the trick both in terms of healing and progress forward.

I so appreciate the things that those of you have posted recently - thanks for chiming in on all fronts.
 
How many days off total will that be for you? I agree with your course of action. I'd go for 9 days off and then restart and see how it goes. I mean really, it is hard to be motivated when you aren't getting enough calories for one thing, but also it's not a good idea to risk further injury if you feel something uncomfortable nagging at you. Good plan. Good luck. Food poisoning sucks hard!
 
I'd do the same thing, too. But I would really have the injury checked. I know I’m a little paranoid when it comes to injury. I had always imagined that my injury was something minor and was totally shocked when the guys told me that the entire rear deltoid was torn off. I’d definitely have it checked just to rule out something serious.
 
Tot - the last strength workout I did was on 10/13 - so if I begin again on Monday (10/25) it will have been 13 days. I definitely think this is the way to go.

XFM - I totally hear you. I'm going to see if I can get into my old doc's office - he joined up with a major hospital conglomerate here in Cleveland and is booked solid. I have a call in - but there's a great chance I'll never hear from them to schedule.

Forgot to mention - I'm also changing gyms. I'm moving sometime toward the end of the year and have centered on a workout approach that should work once the divorce is final. I'm going to start it now so it isn't a huge adjustment in about 8 weeks.
 
MC3 Start...

Pause Bench: 185 x 5; 195 x 5; 210 x 5
Felt very untrained.

Repetition Bench: 165, 155, 145, 140, 135 x 10
Sets 3 and 5 were clustered 8-2. Unreal.

Kroc Row: 55 x 30
NO CLUSTERING. Very happy with the fact that my upper back remains strong.

No time for chins today. I worked out at the new gym and though I'll give it a shot for a while, it's not exactly the best fit. There literally is nowhere I can do Kippings, and chins/pullups will be a challenge as well. There's another location that I'm going to check out - so we'll see.

Regardless - good to be back.
 
New workout time!

Pause Squats: 185 x 5; 195 x 5; 205 x 7
OK - I know what I said about low body work. Thing is, I was warming up with 145 and that would have been my middle load from what I had programmed. This is still a noticeable reset - and I had no pain whatsoever.

Repetition Squats: 165, 160, 155, 150, 145 x 10
Breath stealing! Kinda burn-inducing too. NO LOW BACK PAIN - really focused on keeping a tight core throughout.

Bench Abs (triple reps): 3 x 10 @ 135
The third set killed me.

I'm going to work out at lunch now - the gym I just joined has a location right by where I work, so it works out. I'll have to be stricter about time, but the facility itself is just what I've been looking for. I'm still not sure I have a place for Kippings, but everything else looks great.
 
Cardio with crazy leg DOMS...

Treadmill: 20:00, 6.7 MPH + CD
I had hoped for 30:00, but I got to a point and my legs got very stiff. It was a quicker pace than normal - I hit 2 miles in under 18:00. I think I finished with 2.3 mi. total.

Liking the midday workouts thus far - very nice way to break up the day.
 
DOMS in my legs is really going strong! I've been stretching like crazy!

Pause Standing Press: 105, 110 x 5; 120 x 6
I reverted these to cycle-1's loads. I'd rather not have to reset prematurely - so this seemed correct in my mind.

Repetition Standing Press: 95, 90, 85, 80, 75 x 10
Sets 3-5 were clustered 7-3, 8-2 and 8-2 respectively. I used a pause of no more than 4 breaths between clustered sets.

Kroc Rows: 60 x 25
No clustering, either arm.

Wide Grip Chins: 2
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Neutral Grip Chins: 3
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HS Pulldown: 200 x 6
Not sure how I'm going to do the other half of the back volume yet - this one ran a bit long for my taste.

Good week.
 
Finally. I've been sick as anything with a sinus infection. It started last week and came to a head on Saturday - I had no energy, to the point where it was hard for me to even get out of bed. I'm still on antibiotics and steriods, but had enough energy to test out deads...

Deads: 225, 245 x 5; 265 x 6
Felt great - very strong. Hook grip throughout, DOH grip. Paused enough to completely release tension.

Repetition Deads: 205, 195, 185, 175, 165 x 8
Next test went well - low back was feeling it, but no pain. Touch and go reps.

Bench Abs (triple reps): 135 x 13
Variety of ab work today.

Hanging Leg Raise (Toes to Bar): 6
Grip and energy became an issue here.

Hanging Leg Raise (Knees to Chest): 2 x 10
Grip and energy were a massive issue here...

All in all, I feel good. I'll use these loads to reset for the rest of the cycle. Triples start tomorrow - I'll get back on schedule.
 
_tim said:
Well, as much as I hate to say it, I'm going to have to end MC2 prematurely and reset. The back injury and then the food poisoning put me in a place physically where I think I should restart the cycle (with a couple changes) next week.
Click to expand...

Starting over is no fun, but it's possible -- trust me on this...

But working out when you're sick enough to need antibiotics may not be the wisest course of action. Another day or two of rest won't be enough for the iron to forget your name.
 
Totally hear you, TR, and very much appreciate your concern. Here's the thing - I'm an idiot, and I have an addiction. The second I start to feel strong, I want to get stronger. The second I feel an injury start to heal, I'm back in a stance picking up where I left off. I became this way as a kid, navigating injuries as a gymnast and being told by coaches to do whatever I could to heal and get back to work. So - that's what I do. Idiotic? Absolutely. Does it work for me though? Absolutely. I don't for a second suggest anyone follow my lead on this - make no mistake about it. I have damn near 20 years of lifting experience behind me - and have learned very humbling lessons and at the same time honed this very crafty addiction of mine in the process. Noobs - if you read this, form your own addictions without the idiocy.

Today - a great one...

Pause Bench: 195, 201, 220 x 3
The 220 set may have had one more, but I bailed not having a spotter.

Repetition Bench: 175, 165, 155, 145, 135 x 10
One cluster - the 145 set. 7-3. I took only 3 breaths and got the triple done. I put a premium on stress with these sets as they have proven to be a big difference maker in terms of overall progress.

Kroc Rows: 65 x 25
No clustering, hook grip. Probably will stay at 65 when I do my pressing next week, and will try to overshoot 25.

WG Pullups: 3
NG Chins: 5
Pulldowns (Sup. Grip): 165 x 10; 180 x 6, 4; 210 x 1
Still figuring out the second half of the back volume thing - but man this was fun.

All in all, I have a two-way pump going in both my pecs and my lats right now. I feel amazing.
 
Adding to the unexplained...

Treadmill: 35:00; 7.5-9.0 MPH; 4.82 (miles) Total Distance
Um, when I was working out in the morning, 6.5 MPH was pretty much my limit. Could it really be that being more awake makes that big of a difference? Whatever the cause, this was the best run on a treadmill I've done to date. The first 15 minutes were predominantly at 7.5 MPH and then as I moved into the second half of the jaunt, I bumped first to 8.5 and then to 9.0 for the final 10:00.
 
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