Lol's New HST Log

Cheers FF! Churchmouse Squats!  
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Had me op. All went well. Hardly any pain at all as yet. Much better than for previous similar procedures. Still have a sore throat from the anaesthetist's pipe thingy, but that's the only way I know I've had it done.

Another plus was that I met a nurse (nudge, nudge, wink, wink, say no more!) that deals with all the hernia ops at the hospital. She told me about a new type of mesh that is undergoing a clinical trial over here. Unlike the previous mesh which required stitches to hold it in place, this one works a bit like a velcro in that it has lots of microscopic hooks to hold it in place (it's called Progrip). This should help reduce or prevent the feeling of tightness which I have heard about. However, because it's a blind clinical trial, the surgeon doesn't know which type of mesh he will be fitting until the actual op is taking place. Somehow or other I will have to find a way to ensure I get the new mesh fitted once I've done a bit of research into it - I want to make sure that it doesn't have any known shortcomings.

Here are a couple of vids of the new mesh being 'fitted' (not for the squeamish!):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCwnQf3KKHY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=juj6GSoybR4
 
Glad to hear that the first one went well, Lol. That hernia mesh does sound quite a bit more friendly for healing than what I've heard in the past. Good luck on that front!
 
Cheers Tim.

For the couple of days following my op I have had what seems like a chest infection but must have been a reaction to the anaesthesia. The sore throat got much worse and then my lungs got congested; I've felt really tired doing little more than sitting and walking around. I also have a load of blisters in my mouth on one side which I'm guessing is from the pipe that was shoved down my throat.

On the plus side, the area of the excision is healing really well and has given me next to no bother because it is in a place that doesn't get stretched much when bending or twisting.

Assuming my lungs are up to it, I'll be back to some sort of training tomorrow.
 
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(Lol @ Jul. 26 2009,7:31)</div><div id="QUOTEHEAD">QUOTE</div><div id="QUOTE">Assuming my lungs are up to it, I'll be back to some sort of training tomorrow.</div>
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how's your appetite been?
 
Wed 29/07/09

FF: Appetite was fine the whole time, although if I'm generally sitting about I tend to eat less anyway. My oncology nurse reckoned I got an infection from the pipe down my throat. Nice.

&quot;It never rains, it pours&quot;, as they say over here in Blighty (especially in the summertime): had a horrid bout of tooth pain over the last few days due to a molar that I broke in half and have been ignoring for a while now to my peril. More fool me! Anyway, had a root canal job today which was not a whole lot of fun but then I'm a bit of a dentaphobe! I have to go back for some more work but I should be able to get some decent sleep tonight.

My left shoulder was feeling a whole lot better (although not 100%) so decided to experiment with a bit of benching to see if I could figure out what hurt the least. Moved my hands about 6&quot; closer together than what I would ordinarily use (about 3&quot; in each side from the narrow ring on the O bar). That seemed to help me to keep my elbows in a bit and the bar path arced down towards my upper abs.

Bench: warmups then 10, 5, 5, 5, 3, 3, 2 (M-R)* x 80kg - * Myo-reps

I still felt some discomfort in my left AC joint during and afterwards. I think I'll keep this narrower grip width and experiment with bench angle next time. I'll try a slight incline by raising the bench with my calf-raise platform ~4&quot; high.

Pull-ups: 10, 5, 5, 5, 3, 3 (M-R) x bw with raised knees (less strain on hernia with knees raised but harder than with hanging legs).

Roman-chair Sit-ups: 20 x bw - feet supported, sitting across bench, head dropped back to floor. No extra weight added. Felt a bit weird on hernia side but with pressure on the area nothing popped!

EZ-bar Curls: 12, 7, 5, 5, 3, 3, 3 (M-R) x 41kg (90lb)

Standing Calf-Raises: 10 x 110kg; 10, 5, 5, 5, 3, 3, 3 (M-R) x 130kg (286lb) - plus pulses for last two sets.

CoC Gripper Work: 2 x [12, 7, 5, 5, 5, 5 (M-R) x CoC1] - alternated hands - only rested as long as each alternate set lasted. Performed twice, with a 5 min rest between sessions.

So today was a bit of a Myo-rep experiment day. In general, I liked it. Nothing heavy here though, so I won't know how I really feel about Myo-reps until I've used them for RDLs or squats. Less fun I should imagine.

Bench felt way heavier than it should for the first set but I haven't benched in ages so that's to be expected. If I can just find a way to bench comfortably I'll be back at it.
 
I had to hit my M/E day with bench today after doing myo's for bench last week - I got a new PR of 350 - just not touching the chest yet, but the myo's didn't hurt a thing! We need to watch how these things work on folks, both mixed and running alone. I was using 205 for the Myo work, after a max of 345 the week before.
I couldn't say wether they helped or did nothing, but my pec deck work came up too.
http://www.hypertrophy-specific.info/cgi-bin....;st=300
 
Thur 30/07/09

Well, it rained again today! This morning, I was on my back under a desk fixing some TV wiring in a wall socket when I had a sudden urge to sneeze; I instinctively twisted around to hold my hernia in and, as I sneezed, I felt something go in my upper back. Ouch and darn! I think it's a bit of a pull in one of my intercostals as it hurts to breath. I wondered if it was just a muscle cramping, so I tried a load of light rows, pull-overs and broom handle twists but the pain remained and the area soon stiffened up.

I spent the rest of the day trying to ease the pain and stiffness by occasionally applying heat to the area with a hot-water bottle. Decided to finish work early and take a kip with a fresh hot-water bottle. I lay on it and got comfortable enough to snooze. A little later, I awoke to find I was soaking wet! At first I thought I must have been sweating profusely because of the hot-water bottle, but then I discovered that the bottle had sprung a leak! I spent the next hour or so trying to dry my bed and pillows. Sheesh! If I hadn't been lying down, I'd say I qualify as a walking disaster.

Anyway, by this evening, I was still unable to breath deeply or twist without discomfort so I decided to skip my workout tonight apart from calf-raises. It wasn't too uncomfortable just holding the bar and raises don't make me breath deeply.

Standing Calf-Raises: 12 x 130kg (286lb); 12, 5, 5, 5, 3, 3, 3 (M-R) x 130kg (286lb) - plus ~ 20 pulses for last set. Awesome pump.

Calves are currently ~16.25&quot; for both legs. Pretty small. I'd like to get them up to 17&quot;.
 
Sat 01/08/09

That weird muscle pull thing in my back, that I caused the other day, is still sore but it is starting to improve. Moral: Don't sneeze while twisting!

Tried a few more bench variations in my quest to find a way to do these without causing left AC joint pain. The most comfortable variation for me seemed to be with the bench set at a very slight decline (foot of bench propped on 4&quot;x2&quot; timber). That seemed to be a little better than flat or with a slight incline.

Slight Decline Bench: 10 x 60kg; 17, 6, 5, 5, 3, 3, 2 (MR) x 60kg - MR sets were great. I'm hoping that I might get some mileage out of using lighter loads with this style of training. I push the activation set to the point where I think I would get another rep but it would be grindy. All subsequent sets are taken to the point where I'm pretty sure I wouldn't get the next rep.

Hang Cleans: 10 x 40kg, 5 x 50kg, 10 x 60kg (132lb)

Power Cleans: 10 x 80kg (176lb)

Power Cleans &amp; Jerks: 5 x 80kg (176lb), 2 x 91kg (200lb) - bar lowered under reasonable control to shoulders and then dropped.

RDLs: 25 x 91kg (200lb) - as fast as possible on the concentrics which was a real blast.

Quite pleased that I got the 200lb C&amp;Js because I haven't done any bw cleans in ages.

Intended to also do squats and calf-raises but ended up helping my lad with his cleans and deads so I'll attend to them tomorrow.
 
Wow man, you are really a trooper!
I got my bench up despite the impingement by putting a 3&quot; pad under my butt - same deal as you. Then after the bigger lifts, I'd take out the pad and go flat with less weight for some reps. Seems to have worked.
Still prayin' for ya, ya unlucky goober.
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Sun 02/08/09

Cheers Quad. My AC joint isn't too bad today which I'm taking as a positive sign.

Low-bar Squats: 10 x 60kg; 5 x 110kg, 5, 3, 5, 5 x 140kg (308lb)

I wondered how 140kg would feel since the last time I squatted with 140kg was on 28/06/09 (back then I did 10 x 60kg, 5 x 110kg, 4 x 5 x 140kg). Well, it felt tough. Second set I wimped out. Then I checked my log and decided I needed to try a bit harder (whilst keeping an eye on the ol' war wound). Last set of 5 triggered that chemical smell that I experience following a really hard set. It's a bit like ozone. That's my gauge for when I've tried hard.

Standing Calf-Raises: 10 x 110kg; 12, 6, 5, 5, 3, 3 (M-R) x 140kg (308lb) + 15 pulses following last set.

-------------

Forgot to add that my hams were already toasted from yesterday's RDLs and cleans which would have made a difference to fatigue levels during squats. In which case I am not too disappointed with my effort.

Still, I have to get back to more regular squat sessions if I'm going to see some improvements in these numbers. BW is currently ~ 195lb.
 
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(quadancer @ Aug. 02 2009,3:31)</div><div id="QUOTEHEAD">QUOTE</div><div id="QUOTE">Wow man, you are really a trooper!</div>
absolutely agree. very tough guy.
 
Mon 03/08/09

Thanks folks. Got to keep fighting the fine fight. Speaking of which: Spent the morning in hospital as I now have a new lump (on my left arm this time) and needed to get it checked by my oncology nurse and my doody plastics surgeon (he made an amazingly neat job of my recent excision). After much prodding and probing, I'm booked in for another scan and biopsy which I should get really soon. It's possibly just a lipoma but with my history it has to be checked out thoroughly. I'm not expecting good news - I find it easier to deal with that way.

Anyway, enough of that...

Slight Decline Bench: 10 x 60kg; 20, 6, 5, 5, 3, 3, 2 (MR) x 65kg (143lb) + 7 push-ups - just wanted to see how much I had pushed myself after that little lot. That's all the push-ups I could manage!

11lb heavier than last time and three more reps for the activation set. Left AC joint is a little sore.

EZ-bar Pendlay Rows: 10 x 61kg; 10, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 2 (MR) x 91kg (200lb) - Probably should have taken a few more breaths after the activation set as the next set of three was very hard.

DB Curls: 15, 10 x 21kg (46lb)

Skipped tris and calves cos some mates popped over. I'll try to get time for them in the morning.
 
Tues 04/08/09

Front delts noticeably more sore than pecs from yesterday's benching. Left AC is sore but it's a lot better than it has been for a good while. I'm going to try to really focus on pec contraction with the lighter myo-rep sets rather than just trying to raise the bar.

Just this tonight:

Standing Calf-Raises: 12, 12, 5, 5, 5, 5, 3, 3, 3 (M-R) x 145kg (319lb) + 15 pulses following last set.

First set of 12 followed by a regular 2 min rest. Second set of 12 used as activation set for the myo-reps to follow.

I'm definitely still managing to make some progress.
 
Because my hernia op may be delayed yet again (by this arm thingy) I find myself wondering what to do? I hate spinning wheels. I think this is the longest time in the last three years that I haven't been pushing for some sort of PR (I don't count the calf training experiment - who cares about that?!).

So, seeing that my exercise choices are somewhat limited until I'm properly patched up, I thought that now might be a good time to try a Smolov squat cycle.  
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 The thing is, I seem to be able to low-bar squat without the problems I get from deads or front squats. Also, with my left shoulder not being great I'm going to have to take benching slowly and carefully (I'll stick with the myo-reps thing for that). I should be able to do some benching and chins/rows and the calf thing whilst I'm being attacked by the Smolov squat routine. That's the plan anyway.

For anyone unfamiliar with a Smolov squat cycle, it's basically this:

First, you need to know your current 1RM. I think mine is pretty close to 160kg (352lb) right now so I'm going to base all my figures on that. (I may check to see before I start.)

Introductory microcycle (2 weeks)
This is primarily for those returning from a lay-off in order to get your numbers back up to 90% of your squat PR as quickly as possible.

Week 1
Day 1: 3 x 8 x 65%, 5 x 70%, 2 x 2 x 75%, 1 x 80%
Day 2: 3 x 8 x 65%, 5 x 70%, 2 x 2 x 75%, 1 x 80%
Day 3: 4 x 5 x 70%, 3 x 75%, 2 x 2 x 80%, 1 x 90%

Next three days dedicated to lunges with the emphasis on maximal stretching of the thighs.

Week 2
Squat every other day with 80-85% weights. Goal is to work up to one set of five in that percentage range by the end of the second intro week.

I can do this already so I'm going to skip this microcycle and start with the Base Mesocycle.

&lt;Fun starts here!&gt;

Base Mesocycle (4 weeks)
All squats in this phase are to be performed at a slow to moderate tempo.

Week 1
Mon:  4 x 9 x 70%
Wed:  5 x 7 x 75%
Fri:     7 x 5 x 80%
Sat:  10 x 3 x 85%

Week 2
Mon:  4 x 9 x 70%+10kg
Wed:  5 x 7 x 75%+10kg
Fri:     7 x 5 x 80%+10kg
Sat:  10 x 3 x 85%+10kg

Week 3
Mon:  4 x 9 x 70%+15kg
Wed:  5 x 7 x 75%+15kg
Fri:     7 x 5 x 80%+15kg
Sat:  10 x 3 x 85%+15kg

Week 4
Mon:  Rest
Wed:  Rest
Fri:     Work up to a near max single
Sat:    Again, work up to a near max single

Switching Phase (2 weeks)
&quot;The motto of the switching program is speed, and speed again,&quot; explains S. Smolov. It's &quot;to let the body and mind recover before taking on the next mesocycle&quot; and for a change of pace.

Dynamic leg work is the order of the day. So that means various jumps, hops, deep squat jumps with a light barbell. Exploding from the sticking point in the squat is another fine exercise for the switching period. I might do some squat cleans during this phase.

It's not all dynamic work though. Some negative squats are also recommended during this period. I need to check up on this and see how others have approached it. Not sure how much volume I should attempt. I'm guessing not much.

If my joints and tendons are bugging me at this point, I'll try some higher rep work to produce a bit of lactic acid in the hope that I can stimulate some healing.

And then it's back to Hell's Kitchen!

Intense mesocycle (4 weeks)
Loads based on current max. from two weeks ago! Me thinks this will be less than fun.

Week 1
Mon:  3 x 65%, 4 x 75%, 3 x 4 x 85%, 5 x 85%
Wed:  3 x 60%, 3 x 70%, 4 x 80%, 3 x 90%, 2 x 5 x 85%
Sat:    4 x 65%, 4 x 70%, 5 x 4 x 80%

Week 2
Mon:  4 x 60%, 4 x 70%, 4 x 80%, 3 x 90%, 4 x 2 x 90%
Wed:  3 x 65%, 3 x 75%, 3 x 85%, 3 x 3 x 90%, 3 x 95%
Sat:    3 x 65%, 3 x 75%, 4 x 85%, 4 x 5 x 90%

Week 3
Mon:  3 x 60%, 3 x 70%, 3 x 80%, 5 x 5 x 90%
Wed:  3 x 60%, 3 x 70%, 3 x 80%, 2 x 3 x 95%
Sat:    3 x 65%, 3 x 75%, 4 x 85%, 4 x 3 x 95%

Week 4
Mon:  3 x 70%, 4 x 80%, 5 x 5 x 90%
Wed:  3 x 70%, 3 x 80%, 4 x 3 x 95%
Sat:    3 x 75%, 4 x 90%, 3 x 4 x 80%

Taper Phase (1 week)
This is a one-week active rest period before a competition or PR attempt.

Mon:   3 x 70%, 3 x 80%, 2 x 5 x 90%, 3 x 4 x 95%
Tues:  Rest
Wed:   4 x 75%, 4 x 4 x 85%
Thur:  Rest
Fri:     Rest
Sat:    Rest
Sun:   Work up to new max single! I suspect it's best not to be too greedy here.

&lt;End of fun!&gt;

So there it is! I hope I've got the numbers right. Now I just have to decide when to start.

If anyone has any thoughts or experiences I'd be pleased to hear them.
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That looks really, really intense, Lol. I'd be very interested to know what the cycle does for you.
 
Tim: Well, if it doesn't kill me I'll be sure to let you know.  
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Wed 05/08/09

Decided to do some of the introductory sessions to see how I fare. First one tonight. I'm starting with what would normally be the third session. I'll do another one on Friday.

Smolov introductory squat session:

I'm basing my numbers on an estimated current 1RM of 160kg (352lb)

Low-bar Squat: (w/u - 10 x 60kg) 4 x 5 x 70% (112.5kg, 248lb), 3 x 75% (120kg), 2 x 2 x 80% (127.5kg), 1 x 90% (145kg, 320lb)

Good session. I didn't rest much between sets. I bet that'll have to change soon.

I really need to do this program. I hope I can last the distance. I will give it my best shot. (Notice how short my sentences are now?!)

Slight Decline Bench: (w/u - 15 pushups); 17, 5, 4, 4, 4, 3, 3 (MR) x 67.5kg (148.5lb)

These felt better tonight. I am gradually fine tuning my technique and I think there is some improvement but then, of course, the load is still light.

Standing Calf-Raises: 12 x 147.5kg; 12, 5, 5, 5, 5, 3, 3 (MR) x 147.5kg (325lb) + 20 pulses following last set.

Hyper-extended Sit-ups: 20 x bw - across bench. One hand behind head, the other putting pressure on the war wound!
 
*sees that Lol is doing smolov*

*finds a Dante's Inferno quote and posts it in his log*

&quot;I am made by God, thanks be to Him, such that your misery toucheth me not, nor doth the flame of this burning assail me. &quot;
 
Ha, ha. I will try to keep those words in mind over the next few months. In fact, it would make a nice banner above my squat rack. Hmm...

The one caveat that I will make with this Smolov squat program is that if my hernia starts to complain a lot I'll have to back off. I'm really hoping it doesn't because I want to give it my best shot.

I'm thinking of aiming for an increase in bw of 2lb a month. I could aim for 4lb a month and probably feel stronger but I have a tendency to pile on the fat - not a good look for me.

Good Smolov experiment write up: http://www.dragondoor.com/articler/mode3/81/
 
Didn't TUNNELRAT do a Smolov cycle some time back? If I remember correctly he made some impressive strength gains.
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