December 29, 2019 – Week 4, Day 3

5 Minutes NordicTrack

Mobility Prep

Yoke (casual pace)

200x50’

250x50’

300x50’

350x50’

400x50’

450x50’

500x50’

Sandbag Rows

100x10

150x5

175x27

Prowler Drag/Treadmill Backwards Push Medleys (casual pace)

175x50’/23 Seconds

225x50’/23 Seconds

275x50’/23 Seconds

325x50’/23 Seconds

375x50’/23 Seconds

Stretching

Comments: Day off the usual schedule. Mostly due to social obligations but I needed to get at least a day break between training days. Saturday was exhausting but fun. I knew that I was going to be solo so I took things slow getting out to train. Rain was constant so that would alter some things. It was lovely the day before but oh well. Still dealing with symptoms but it is tolerable. Dreary and gray outside. As has become a common thing for me now, foam rolling when I got there before starting things off. Tight IT bands and pecs. Hips flexors, inner thighs and knees were tight and sore from the leg presses and hanging knee raises. I had gotten some manipulations done but I’m still any achy mess it seems. Warm-ups felt good though. Yoke again. This time, all for 50’ so I could do these all inside and not have to bother with the tiny light yoke. Plan here was to do 50lbs jumps up to 500lbs. Same slow, casual pace. No noticeable change in symptoms between 200lbs and 500lbs. I wasn’t taking very long rests on these. No support gear. I wanted to feel things and see what I need to correct. Definitely tougher on the core as the weight climbed. I want to go fast but that isn’t wise right now. That will come. You’d think it would be easier to brace on the pick up but it’s not. I guess my style of rocking into it isn’t the best without a belt so I had to rethink that a tad. I got to evolve to stay relevant. To not get injured and fall off. Next up was rows. This time switching out for a sandbag. Wasn’t keen on these with the right pec feeling tight. Felt light. Grabbing these so the bag is short was for grip. Trying to get better at this style as this can be a quicker pick if I can get it. Plan here being two work up sets and then max reps on the last set. Keeping a grip on the bag when it is not full lead to some issues. My pressure from my hands had the sand move into the top and bottom and the middle kind of squished so it was like I was gripping it with my fingers rather than my hand. I dropped the bag eventually so that I could get my wrists on it instead to keep it more solid and less like I was just doing a finger grip row. I was going at a pretty good clip and then just hit a wall after getting two dozen reps. Readjusted for another at the end and it was all she wrote. I thought I gassed out on it too quick but it was close to a minute straight of rowing so maybe not. Last thing was prowler. The original plan was to do the same thing as last week with five sets of 100’, increasing weight each set with a minute rest but do the drags instead of pushes. But rain made that not possible. So the options had been to use turf and do a little less or concrete and half the distance. Concrete for 50’ it was. But I felt like that wasn’t going to be enough. Drags feel tortuous and doing only 50’ wouldn’t be the same. So I supersetted with doing pushes with my legs on the treadmill while it was off. Same casual pace. I did 20 second count in my head but that ended up being a little over. So rest was time it took to get to one spot to the other. Little more rest for the drag as I had to add weights each run. I was able to keep a good pace for each. Nowhere near the leg torture I wanted but it was good work to get the blood pumping. I did some more reverse hyper stuff (no weight for 50 some reps, added 50lbs for like 20 reps maybe) to see if that would help traction the back a little. Bar hangs and some belt squat marches (not really getting those for the back but would seem to be a good one for yoke in the future). Home to stretch and recover as I didn’t want to drive home in the dark and rain.

December 27, 2019 – Week 4, Day 2

5 Minutes Precor AMT

Mobility Prep

Deadlifts

45x10

135x5

185x3

225x3

275x3

315x3

365x3

Added Straps

405x5

Precor Angled Single Leg Presses

156x5/5

246x5/5

336x5/5

426x5/5

516x21/21

Hanging Knee Raises

Bwx40

bwx38

bwx36

Stretching

Comments: This week has been odd. Holidays in the middle of the week make things interesting. Going to be the same thing next week. Symptoms keep moving but seem to still be in the L5-S1 category of dermatomes. Very annoying. But I want to still do things. Christmas Eve I went to bed early so that I could get up really early to volunteer Christmas Day. This ended up taking a bit out of me with all the driving and early morning that I pretty much slept from 3:30PM to 7:10AM. Ended taking ibuprofen and muscle relaxers both days to try and help me sleep for a solid chunk of time. For the day before so that I was rested for a 4:50AM start and the next day since I woke up at 9:30PM and needed to get back on a normal schedule. No walking this week because of schedule and other things so it was an odd week for me. Anyways, behind on workouts and write-ups. Fluctuating between pain and numbness. Neither is good though. I was able to get some manipulation on my lower back that got it to calm down Thursday evening. I was still leery going to train. I’ve got things planned for deep tissue massage in two weeks time and I’d hope that I don’t need to go with chiro stuff. Really hoping that traction based things will get things back on track, and be smart with the recovery stuff. Definitely need to wait until after the holidays to even consider ortho or chiro at this point. My body just seems so stiff and achy. Muscles and joints. Foam rolling becoming a thing I do now. I felt somewhat loose at the start but got stiff again by the end of my warm-ups. Deadlifts again. This time, going up until I hit a certain weight. So not stuck with doing something light with a set weight. Suggested jumps being quarter-plate-quarter. First set with the bar, I started from the top of the rack like before. Rather than start at the bottom and be in an odd position. Deadlift form is different in that I’m not trying to arch my back. Load the hamstrings and brace and push. Seems to keep things secure. I was feeling pretty good. Besides my back being tight that is. I was thinking I’d be doing 495lbs for my top set. The plan was warm up in triples and then do a set of five with a rep or two in the tank. Whatever I felt comfortable with. These I was doing the slow eccentrics and a breath/hold at the top. I’m in that rebuilding phase. This seems to be the way to go. All double overhand with no chalk. Grip was giving on me with 365lbs. I thought I still had 455lbs or 495lbs there for the top set as I had not yet put on a belt or straps. Boy was I wrong. 405lbs felt like a ton of weight. Felt slow and heavy. I knew this was my limit today. I was almost worried I’d not get five with how this felt. Woof. Video says these were much faster and smoother than they looked. I’m a ways off it seems from where I want to be. Single leg presses after that. This time, work up in fives to 20lbs more than last time and rep out there. A bit achy in the knees. No clue how these would feel. That concern of it being too much for the back and what not. But these have been pretty good for me, even when my back is fubar. That top set felt so darn heavy. But I know that it will move for reps once I get a rhythm going. Left side is the injured side and it is quite apparent with that side lagging on these. 21 reps was my limit for that side. Almost had to have the other leg step in to finish that last reps safely. Right side was able to bang them out in about 10 seconds quicker and not be nearly as destroyed feeling. Been a while since I did these and felt like I was walking like I had a peg leg or something. Last item of the day was the hanging knee raises. I was looking forward to these as I hoped they would get my back feeling good with some traction. Might have just been too tight today after deadlifts. What I was supposed to do was do 1-2 more reps per set from last time. What I thought it said was do a few more reps more so I set my sights on doing 40/38/36. Chalked my hands up for these so that I could get the reps in I wanted. First set, my right pec cramped just getting my arms up to hang. Not a good start here. That’ll learn me for skipping soft tissue work two days in a row. Not too bad at the start as far as the actual exercise but last set was a tough one to do. My forearms were pumped and sore by the end. Good grip workout for sure haha. Well hopefully after the burritos and stretching, I’ll get some heat and ice and soft tissue work. Walking a fine line here.

December 24, 2019 – Week 4, Day 1

5 Minutes Precor AMT

Mobility Prep

12” Log Strict Presses + Push Presses

Dumbbells

25’sx10+5

35’sx5+5

Log

90x3+2

110x3+2

130x3+2

150x3+2

170x3+2

12” Log Push Presses

170x21

Neutral Grip Pulldowns

80x10

110x10

140x8

170x5

200x5

220x16

Push-ups

bwx15

bw+25x12

bw+45x25

Neutral Grip Precor Chest Supported Rows

110x10

160x8

200x5

250x5

290x26 PR+3 reps

Stretching

Comments: Holidays are here. Things are going to be wonky. Left side is feeling off. Not a much numbness sensation as it was on Thursday night but still not great. Lower back was tense and I was wondering if I needed to not do this week. Early out of work so I could go to the gym at noon. Needed to go then as the gym would close at 4:00PM. Gym was packed with people. Not quite the level of suffocating but a lot of them. Upstairs was a little better to do my warm-ups. Trying to traction my lower back and hips a little adding back in swings. Not really doing it today. Workout very similar to last week. Log instead of axle but the idea being warm-ups with strict and push presses and then do a top rep set with the push press.  Warmed up with dumbbells as I had to wait for some oblivious people that were doing rows in the tiered squat rack that I had moved my log to. Until I get to doing cleans before the presses, this will be a thing that happens. Again, lower back was feeling quite stiff. Even rolling out on the foam roller and hanging from a bar did little. Log is definitely less forgiving on the lower back when it comes to strict pressing compared to the axle. I can keep that right close. Not so much with log. My push pressing was a little off but that improved as I went. Honestly, I’ve never done more than I think 10 reps on log press before. Took the 5 minute rest and got ready. I was a bit better with breathing this time. I felt like I was going to fatigue before I got to 12 reps but I kept going and managed 1 more rep over last week’s 20 with the axle so that was good. Had to wait a bit for the next machine to be available. Pulldowns with the neutral grip. Same as regular pulldowns last week as in the same reps and weights with the plan being 220lbs for the max rep set. I’ve never really done these for a max rep set like I’ve done for regular style and wide grip style. Neutral grip is very hard for me. Not a bad feeling but never as comfortable as those. I was struggling to get double digits on this. Kind of hoped this would traction my back more but oh well. Push-ups after that. Was pretty easy for the work up sets. Considering how much of a drop off I had on the sets last time with just bodyweight. Was trying to figure out what I had to compare with from before with the paused style push-ups. About the same here really. Triceps burnt. Last thing was rows. Very careful to brace and not bend. Was feeling pretty easy at the start when working up but man did I hit a roadblock about 12 reps in but I wanted more. I felt that I was back to my normal repping abilities after a month of workouts. This tends to come back fast. Home to stretch, clean up and eat. Holidays really going to throw things out of whack.

December 21, 2019 – Week 3, Day 3

5 Minutes NordicTrack

Mobility Prep

Rogue Farmer’s Walk (16” pick, casual pace)

23x100’

73x100’

113x100’

163x100’

203x100’

Stone of Steel Rows

138x10

171.5x26

Prowler Pushes (casual pace)

255x100’

275x100’

305x100’

325x100’

355x100’

Stretching

Comments: Woof, did I feel beat going into this workout. I had felt good immediately after the last workout session but I may have spoken too soon on that. Could be from some other activities but my lower back was stiff and I was feeling a bit of numbness on the left side of my left leg. Not pain but again, not good. Resting and massage and heat seems to have helped. I had no idea how tight and sore my hamstrings were until I touched them with the car buffer the next day. It might just be them being super tight (especially my left one) that is pulling on things and putting pressure on the nerves and disc. I think that is the case as it’s getting better pretty quick and the sensation is changing. So I had training to do. If things were still numb, I’d have not gone and probably gone to the ortho. Which I’d hate to do but if necessary, I must. I was worn from the past two days so I slept in about 2hrs from when I’d normally try to get up for an early weekend training session. Despite those sensations, things are going great and I feel happy for the direction I’m going in general. Ended up using the heating pack on my hamstrings before leaving the house. Cold out today. Ended up doing some foam rolling and bar hangs to loosen things up. First exercise was farmer’s walk. Like last time, 100’ course and going at a casual pace. Still doing the quarter-plate-quarter jumps but this time up to two plates a side so an extra set. Was debating on whether to belt up for this or not and figured I’d play it by ear. This is easier on the back with it being to the side and I’d like to keep working the bracing at different times to cover my bases. I was a tad concerned with how tight my hamstrings were but this didn’t seem to faze me in the slightest. Slow pace not much in the way of hamstrings. Grip was getting worked. My upper back was just beat to hell from the breathing rep set of rdls. That was like 2 minutes of time under tension. And these slow going farmer’s weren’t helping haha. I had hoped to do these with nothing but I knew that if I wanted to keep the meandering for the last set, it would be wise to add some chalk for that. Cold weather, cold metal, makes grip tough. Things held up fine. Another week of the stone of steel rows. Still stupid light with these so high reps continue. It does appear that next week with sub in something else. High reps are good as it will get a good training for the tendons and muscles. This time was different in that I was going to do just a set of 10 for the empty implement and then add weight and do a max rep set. Goal was to add 30lbs but it isn’t always that clean do to taking out spacers to put in weight. So that I didn’t end up going less than 30lbs, I added a 35lbs plate instead. About 3.5lbs over the planned weight but that’s fine. Adding weight definitely changes the dynamic a little. I guess that is true with any implement. Added difficulty of listening to filthy things while doing both sets from people in the gym nearby haha. Last thing was sled work. Outside for the 100’ runs. Change up here. This time, just pushes of the prowler for 5 sets and taking a minute rest. Another difference was increasing weight each set. That made things a little tricky. Still to keep the casual pace. I had no idea if the one way was the same difficulty or not since the times I’ve done this have been pushing one way and dragging the other and dragging is always harder for me. I was going to do 20lbs jumps a set but I could only find 3 pairs of 10’s nearby so I just figured I’d do 20-30lbs jumps so that I’d go up 100lbs by the end. The other thing was the minute rest. This meant I’d need to setup the weights at each end and have to turn the sled around in that rest time. The amount of time I was working versus rest period would be easier compared to the double distance stuff. But I also needed to get my rests closer to a minute. I count too slow, especially as I get tired. So I counted to 50 instead of 60. This got me closer but still about 6-8 seconds too long. I’ll need to lower it by another 5-10 count next time. Stuff was pretty even until the last set. That was a lot longer of a set to finish. Legs felt good at the end. Took my time putting stuff away. Did empty reverse hyper for 50 reps again and then 25 5 count holds of 90/90 diaphragm breathing before doing some hangs and then stretched. Just got to keep an eye on my injured side and try and be more reserved.

December 19, 2019 – Week 3, Day 2

5 Minutes Precor AMT

Mobility Prep

Hatfield Squats to box (18”)

60x10

150x8

240x5

290x3

330x3

380x2

420x1

470x3

Romanian Deadlifts (top start)

45x10

95x5

135x5

185x5

225x5

Added Straps

275x21

Pulldown Abs (pulldown station)

50x15

80x15

110x15

Stretching

Comments: Body still holding up to the training. Hopefully it stays that way. But I get encouraged and I try things that I’d normally do that aren’t normal things and that can lead to problems. Got really cold and I was hoping it would be a quicker workout. Wore the kind of spandex shorts for training with my compression socks since plan was heavier squats and deadlifts. Warm ups felt fine and so did the movement stuff. Shoulders felt stiff but they weren’t really going to be involved this sessions. Felt fine. Movement stuff was also fine. First exercise was hatfield squats. Just like two weeks ago. Same idea of slow lowering and only lightly touching the box and squatting up quick. Keeping that brace. That is getting to be second nature to me. Needs to be first nature. Plan was set weights up to 20lbs more than last time for a triple. Should definitely be doable as I wasn’t to go for a max last time anyways and that was more reps and smaller jumps. This time, plate jumps and then quarter-plate-quarter. Back wasn’t feeling that pressured way like last time but the weight wasn’t feeling that easy on the upper back and midsection. No problem for my legs. Getting in some work with the belts this time to make it a gradual jump up. It felt like my left side was touching the box first but that just could be in my head. Feeling heavy but I think with more practice, it won’t be so bad. This is like 100lbs under my best triple on this kind of squat. Granted it was full squats and regular tempo. Next was Romanian deadlifts. These again, I reiterate, may be that thing I need to fix my deadlift woes (along with leg pressing). These felt good last time. I was bit surprised by the plan this week. Since last time was sets of 10 up to 185lbs if that felt good. Guess these looked real good to be allowed a 90lbs jump. A bit different from last time in that less reps for sets and the top set was an AMRAP. The work up sets, I did with no real assistance and double overhand grip. Heavier but less weight. The top set was where I’d add the belt and straps. This would be a true test. See how things hold under an extended set. I feel that if I hadn’t prepped with high rep squats that I’d have done a lot less here. I really had no idea what I would hit. I was feeling fatigue doing like five but somehow I kept going. I was tired but I was staying solid and my hamstrings felt fine. Was definitely getting a little bar burn. Stopped at 21 reps as I felt I’d need to take more rest for another and my body was feeling toasty. I knew that my hamstrings would be tight as hell for a while after all that. I know this isn’t that much weight right now but this was good as I hope this is like 50% of my current max. Still a long way to go but doesn’t seem like I’m that far off now. Last item for the day was pulldown abs. Higher reps but lighter weight. This was easy stuff after the squats and rdls. Literally did the first two light sets with no rest between them. My grip was slipping so I took a rest so that I didn’t have that problem on the last set. I know my legs and glutes will be sore, tight and overworked but hopefully I can keep things in check with recovery stuff.

December 17, 2019 – Week 3, Day 1

5 Minutes Precor AMT

Mobility Prep

Axle Strict Presses + Push Presses

PVC

22x10+5

Thick Bar

42x3+2

62x3+2

Axle

82x3+2

102x3+2

122x3+2

142x3+2

162x3+2

Axle Push Presses

162x20

Pulldowns

80x10

110x10

140x8

170x5

200x5

220x25

Precor Pec Flyes

125x10

155x8

185x5

215x28

Cybex Eagle NX Rows

150x10

180x8

210x5

240x26

Stretching

Comments: I got to say that this getting pitch black dark before 5:00PM is a drag. Seems to really sap motivation. Maybe I’m just tired all the time and it makes me feel like going to sleep. Wish I didn’t feel like there was another layer to that feeling of holding or being held back. Once I get inside and I’m under that artificial light, all is good. Body is not 100% but it is very tolerable. Warm-ups were good. Definitely tight is some areas. Legs are legs, they’ll be fine. Biceps and stuff take a beating on those rows so not having a day extra rest is noticed. On to the workout. Added some extras to the workout. I mean, a lot is the same but different. Not yet at the point to add in supra max stuff as need to build up and see what is what. Last time with the axle, it was all strict pressing for sets of 10. This time, it was complex clusters of strict and push press.  I was advised to start light and work up to a set weight with 20lbs jumps. I felt this was important as the push press movement would require stability and movement rather than just being a solid rod. Now my axle is 72lbs empty but I got other ways. So I draped chains around the PVC pipe that is about as thick as an axle for the first set. Had to be controlled as too much movement that was unnecessary would cause things to get catawampus quick and have the chains fall off. Which they did when I finished the set. Then I swapped in the hollow thick bar I was using for the deadlift in prep for USS Nats this year. Then finally on to the real axle. I had all my gear here in case but I didn’t feel like I needed it. Strict press was feeling like a decent weight but the push press was just flying up. I put on the rehband belt for the last set as it was getting a little heavier for the strict stuff. Bracing has been great. Feels like it is clicking for me. But again, this is light stuff. So after that last complex, I was to rest a bit and then do a max rep set with that weight on the push presses with plenty in the tank. I was hoping for at least 20 reps if things were feeling good. Get my timing down. Work on that bracing and breathing. I need practice as I was more tired than anything after that. Some reps I was off and it felt like I didn’t get that great of leg drive. I definitely had more there but I figured that 20 was a good stopping place. The rest of the workout. Pretty much taking those top sets from last week and now doing max reps. Without the added baggage of fatigue of reps on reps on reps. So pulldowns first. The middle child of concern for me. I apparently adapt back to this kind of training quick. I felt like I was out of synch on the first set but didn’t really matter as it was stupid light. Back on track the rest of the way. I knew I wasn’t at my best yet but I was a lot more confident in pushing things this week compared to last. Top set, I chalked up my hands as this was go time. I definitely got tired faster as I usually can tell on these max rep sets on pulldowns how many I can get by how the first ten reps feel. Then next eight were a struggle. I got a heave going to continue the set and I felt secure in keeping myself braced. I missed the exhaustion I feel after doing these +20 rep pulldowns. Next was flyes. Chest was sore from the stone rows (got to crush to row) and with how hard these felt last week, I figured I was not going to be on par with where I usually am yet. My best with this weight is 30 reps and I was so close to that. Just got stopped on the 28^th rep there. Ended up having to take a break waiting for the row machine to be open. That’s fine. Arms and back were tired and I really didn’t want to do these with how they made my hip and lower back feel from the motion. But I was better at bracing this week and it was nothing as long as prepared for it. Felt heavy that first set but felt better as I went. Again, chalking up for the last set. Another exhausting set. Good to be hitting 20 or more reps on these right now. Just about feels like a real normal workout. Keep this momentum going.

December 15, 2019 – Week 2, Day 3

5 Minutes NordicTrack

Mobility Prep

NY Barbell Yoke (low pick, casual pace)

200x100’

250x100’

300x100’

350x100’

Stone of Steel Rows

138x32 PR+9 reps

138x28

Prowler Push/Drag Medleys (casual pace)

275x100’/100’

275x100’/100’

275x100’/100’

275x100’/100’

275x100’/100’

Stretching

Comments: Things feeling better compared to last week at this time. Saturday I didn’t do much. I did have to be up to go and apply for a passport but that didn’t take long. Most of the workout involved longer distance stuff like last week and it was cold and rainy all day. Weather forecast had it being dry and somewhat sunny tomorrow so I figured it made a lot more sense to rest, take care of things at home that I’d been putting off and get a good night’s sleep and be raring to go the next day. I honestly didn’t expect there to be anyone there this morning considering the night before was the gym Christmas party. Plenty of evidence of that when I got there haha. Did foam rolling before my warm ups as that seems to help with things after driving. As I said, I may need to invest in one for traveling as this may be a new thing I’ll need to do if I’m stuck sitting still for a long time. Warm ups felt good. Didn’t bother doing hip swings that I added as things felt good. I will say my quads had a deep soreness that was present during some of this. So as is usually the case, this week is yoke. They pair nicely with farmer’s walk. Same thing, casual pace, 100’. Now as the inside isn’t conducive to 100’ runs right now, this would be outside. And can’t open the large doors so walking around with the Rogue yokes to do this wasn’t smart or worthwhile. So used the really light yoke I brought in last week as that sucker is 90lbs so hardly anything to move around and I can fit it through the people sized doors. I also left it at the low pick height (for me) as it would be easier to move around to get outside and back inside. Weight was going to be super light anyways and I could work on the pick and bracing similar to farmer’s again. Only going to use this yoke this way for just this week anyways. First run was a mess. The wind blew the cone at the finish away as I was going and a car came up on the path. I had no idea what was going on and I wasn’t really going to move any faster. I then got close enough to realize it was one of the owners of the gym as they needed to load stuff from the party into the truck. Felt stupid after that haha. Used a heavier cone for the other sets. Didn’t get the same lower back pump I had last week after doing the runs like I was getting with the farmer’s walk. Feels odd moving slowly on these but it’s important right now. I’ve done this with heavy weights too. Slow is smooth, smooth is fast. Left hip was a little stiff but no worse for wear. Again, had the choice to skip the stone of steel rows and do the prowler stuff but they didn’t bother me last week so here were are again. I also didn’t want to do the prowler stuff again. This time, it was two sets, trying to beat last time’s reps each set by a few reps. Stone of steel rows felt way easier this time. Bracing didn’t seem to be something I had to consciously do this time. Not as much build up. Automatic and able to hold the brace for several reps in a row.  Crushed it that first set and was almost lost count on the second set. These are getting interesting. Again, going to need to do soft tissue work on the arms since I got one less day of rest this coming week. My lower back and hamstrings were pumped from this from holding the position for so long. Last thing was working the prowler. Sets of 100’ for push and drag again. I was advised I could do the same weight again but I’m stupid and did more. I had all these 25’s that I was using on yoke so I figured I’d just do those. I had thought it was 10lbs more but it was actually 20lbs. The push isn’t bad, it’s that darn drag. Casual pace again for five sets. My rests were around 70 seconds besides the first one, which ended up being 90 seconds or so because I started a conversation with the gym owners and lost count of where I was in my rest. Legs felt heavy and it was definitely taking me longer to do these this week. I know I can move faster on the push part but the drag portion my legs feel so damn heavy that I wonder if I could move faster without falling over. I feel like an inebriated ostrich. I ended up going too slow on the 4^th and 5^th set as the friction caught up with me and stopped me in my tracks on the drag portion. I took enough of a break to hopefully ensure that I finished the rest of the course with no further stops. I knew I could do that for the 4^th set. Wasn’t so sure on the 5^th set. Maybe knowing it was over on that one helped. Stupid legs after all that so it was nice to take my time putting things away until my breathing was back to normalish and my legs weren’t acting like they were disconnected and filled with jellyfish. Did some rehab stuff in the form of bodyweight revere hypers for a set of 50 reps and 20 diaphragm breathes in the 90/90 position with holds. Going home to relax and get to bed at a reasonable hour. I’m happy things are holding up. This is a positive direction. Overall, I’m sure I’ll be back at 100% or beyond by June.

December 12, 2019 – Week 2, Day 2

5 Minutes Precor AMT

Mobility Prep

Deadlifts (top start)

45x10

95x5

135x5

185x5

225x5

Precor Angled Single Leg Presses

136x10/10

226x10/10

316x10/10

406x10/10

496x10/10

Hanging Knee Raises

bwx35

bwx35

bwx35

Stretching

Comments: So I think things are on the mend from the spasm I had Monday evening. Talking with Mr. Westerling, it could be I’m doing too much rehab stuff. The TENS unit is essentially giving those areas jolts to contract like a thousand times. Stuck on that more is more stuff. Drop the rehab stuff for the rest of the week and see how things are. No TENS unit and just rely on heat, decompression and soft tissue work. Starting to get that confidence back that my body won’t collapse on me. But still got to be cautious as it seems like there is a two day delay on stuff for my body registering it haha. This was going to be an interesting one. Things still tensing a bit. Warmed up and that felt ok. Lower back was a bit tense from some things but ok. I felt mostly comfortable with the first exercise. This was deadlifts. Starting from the rack like the rdls last week. Easier to brace starting from the top. I figured the weight wouldn’t be a problem since I did 185lbs for 10 on the rdls and this was for lower reps, just a greater ROM. Not the best knurling on this bar but that is fine at this weight. My right biceps felt tight but kind of expected with the upper body session earlier this week and the reps as well as the rows I did on Saturday with the stone of steel. Nicked my shins a little but still good I think. No support gear on these. Need to work that brace. Get comfortable with that, then worry about the other things. So I didn’t have my spine explode and I wasn’t on the ground in pain so on to the next exercise. I was leery about this one. Single leg presses. I got good at these prepping for USS Nats this year after the previous back injury relapse but it was exhausting. 30-40 rep range. I wasn’t sure how these would go and if these would just wreck me. I felt good with the deadlifts. Low 400lbs was where I stopped on these in the 30 rep range so since this was another moderate weight set, I figured I should be safe doing that and maybe a bit more to be in compliance with parameters. I decided on plate jumps and starting with the empty sled. If the empty sled was fine, then I’d do my plate jump plan. I was very slow on that first set with the injured side. Much smoother on the other side. I’m just glad that I was able to do these and not be in pain. Bracing big time on these. I probably should’ve stopped at 406lbs as that felt heavy. These are weird in that it feels heavy but I can do a lot of reps when conditioned. 496lbs was quite a bit more challenging. I got the reps but certainly not a super easy set. This required effort. And technically the most I’ve done on this exercise. The future will tell I guess as I feel ok right now. Just like that I can still move a decent weight with my legs even though they are deconditioned. Last thing was abdominals. I was initially going to do these with my elbows braced to keep from bothering my shoulders and keep from swaying. However, this would cut down on the decompression and spine traction that I probably need. Then I realized that these were the knee raises, not the leg raises. That arc of motion is much easier to control and doesn’t cause any rotation stress on my shoulders. Idea here was three sets and not going to max effort. So I figured the best thing was to do the first set until I felt my grip was going to go and then try to match it the remaining sets. I might have been missing out on these. Felt like this was a good session. Beginning to feel optimistic I can compete this year at a decent level.

December 10, 2019 – Week 2, Day 1

5 Minutes Precor AMT

Mobility Prep

12” Log Strict Presses

Dumbbells

25’sx10

35’sx10

Log

90x10

110x10

Neutral Grip Pulldowns

110x10

130x10

150x10

170x10

190x10

Push-ups

bwx37

bwx30

bwx15

Neutral Grip Precor Chest Supported Rows

150x10

180x10

210x10

240x10

270x10

Stretching

Comments: Ups and downs last week. Getting rest Sunday and Monday seemed to be what I needed and I was feeling really great by the end of the day on Monday. But then after I finished up all the recovery and rehab stuff, my lower back just seized up on me. No clue what happened. Sleep is important so since it didn’t really calm down after a hot shower, I took ibuprofen and a muscle relaxer. It was better this morning but still not pleasant. Hard to tell if this is one of those “it feels worse but is getting better” scenarios. It seems muscular in nature so that’s better than nerves and this would hopefully be considered centralizing of the pain/symptoms. Regardless of how I shake this snow globe for a yes answer, it still sucks for now. This delayed stuff is making it very difficult to assess things and make timely decisions.  I really didn’t know if I was going to really train today. My plan was to get to the gym and do some foam rolling and decompression and see if that helped anything. That seemed to do something and since this was upper body stuff with no leg drive or bending over involved, I figured I could still do this. Trying to get things loose with the warm-ups. So first up was log strict presses. A bit different from axle last week in that I had set weights for this. I could warm-up with dumbbells however I wanted and then it would be empty log and then plus 20lbs for 10’s. I did equivalent jumps with the dumbbells for sets of 10. Felt it made more sense to do log from the closer rack rather than risk something trying to maneuver it around. Being lazy with the rack arms had this a little too high for reps and I had to walk it back after banging a few. Log feels heavy to me since I’ve not done it in a while. Different feel from the axle. Easy enough but not as easy as I would’ve liked. The next exercise was the same scheme as last week. Neutral grip pulldowns, with the plan being 5-7 sets of 10 reps. Same thing, with expectation to only get five sets from my hopeful seven. I lowered my weight by 10lbs from what I was going to use with how regular felt last week. This wasn’t a pulldown exercise I did for higher reps so this one isn’t as comfortable to get back to. So about 20lbs difference from the other style of pulldown I like. Next was a change. Just push-ups. Three sets of bodyweight for max reps. My plan here was do 5 minutes rest or so. No clue what to expect. Back was a little stiff so I’d self-adjust after some sets of exercises. Considering all the press-ups I’ve been doing for my back, I thought I’d get more here on the first set. Like 50 or so. I could’ve done more but it would’ve been ugly reps and I need to work this bracing. I know I drop off quick on push-ups so I was surprised to get 30 reps that second set. Third set was about what I was expecting to get on the second set and stay around there. No ego, allowing easy things to be hard for now. Last thing was chest supported rows. With how the previous week’s rowing had my SI joint ache from moving (hard to brace sometimes), I was a tad concerned this would be more of the same. Going to vigorously on this in the past had reinjured me trying to rehab back in 2016. Mr. Westerling had indicated I needed to brace like I would an atlas stone load. This got me thinking and I couldn’t think of when I was bracing on atlas stones other than the pick. Maybe that is where I’m going wrong with my extensions, not bracing correctly. I will say that bracing on chest supported rows is different. Almost lightheaded that first rep. These started out sucky but I got my groove as I did them. I meant for there to be another jump but I messed up my math so did a bit heavier than expected. Back was stiff as hell though. Stretching, heat and TENS unit and recovery burritos. I don’t feel like training made it worse. Will have to see how sleeping does the trick.

December 7, 2019 – Week 1, Day 3

5 Minutes NordicTrack

Mobility Prep

Rogue Farmer’s Walk (16” pick, casual pace)

23x100’

73x100’

113x100’

163x100’

Stone of Steel Rows

138x23

Prowler Push/Drag Medleys (casual pace)

255x100’/100’

255x100’/100’

255x100’/100’

255x100’/100’

255x100’/100’

Stretching

Comments: I was really hoping that I’d be feeling a bit better before going to train this day. I was excited to train but some niggles made this seem like a maybe. This would require a drive out to Lancaster to do so it required a commitment as that would be 45 minutes in the car each way. I had perhaps got too much that I had planned to do. I couldn’t sleep in forever as I needed to get passport photos (only open 3hrs on Saturday). Getting a passport since my state is stubborn with real ID laws so I may need it for flying to USS Nats in Minnesota and if say I end up with an invite for international competition, I’d need one then. Been putting it off due to injuries as I meant to get one prior to USS Nats this year. I also kind of promised to bring in some gym equipment for the gym since they lacked lighter weight stuff for yoke. I got a 90lbs empty yoke just collecting dust and spiders and I’d rather have the women and novice have a chance to try yoke press then get something substituted at the upcoming gym contest in February. That was more of a pain in the ass than I had planned on it being getting that into my tiny car. I knew it fit as I got it years ago and it fit in the car. So I was going to be up and about. If things bothered me, I’d just change it into a rehab and socializing session and have to go back to square zero (I feel like I’m on square one as it is). Took a bit of time to get things moved at the gym. The large doors were not really opening due to added insulation so I had to move things piecemeal through the regular door. This also meant moving things outside for stuff wouldn’t be so easy. But that was okay for now as it was all light stuff. Caught up with some friends and got a little distracted by the large great dane puppy. Ended up doing some foam rolling before training and warming up as I didn’t go for a walk the night before. Trying to keep from getting a cold from not getting enough rest. This could also be from me loading creatine. Never did it before but I’ve never been off it since I started using it when I came back from injury the first time. But that stops tomorrow and then it’s just regular stuff. Also ended up doing some hangs to decompress things a little. Warm-ups felt ok. I may need to invest in a foam roller as my IT bands are tight. Didn’t realize how tight my quads are. Added some hip swings to loosen things up too with my regular warm-ups. First exercise was farmer’s walk. Plan here was super light and go at a slow pace. Like I was walking. Not going as hard and fast as I can. I brought my Rogue Fitness handles to use as they were the lightest I have and would be easier to move around. Outside was cold but it was really the only place to get 100’ run with somewhat even ground and  a straight shot. I had to do things a little to the side as a HVAC van was parked in the middle. I did these a bit different than usual. No belt as honestly, light weights were going to be used and I wanted to practice my bracing with nothing some more, especially since this was kind of the first time bracing from the bottom at a dead start. I gripped the handles dead center rather than towards the back. Again, light weight, not going for speed and this also was better to balance the handles and not worry about the weights sliding off. Very slow moving. I think my fastest was 30 seconds or so so quite a bit of time under tension. Felt a little bit of tension in my right obliques on the penultimate set. No issues while doing these but I’d feel a little bit of a lower back pump a few moments later once I was done that seemed to subside in short order. Can’t tell if more weight or just the fact I was moving slower or more gingerly with the heavier stuff (IE more time under tension) that had it last a little longer. This weight has never felt so challenging haha. Maybe because I got to go slow and maybe because I had to evade a elderly woman being pushed in a wheelchair while avoiding cracks in the concrete. So this was done and I had two choices really. Skip the next exercise and go into the prowler work or try the next exercise and then do the prowler stuff. I kind of subconsciously decided on the 2^nd option as I had been putting away all the weights after the farmer’s walk stuff and I was going to have to bring it back out for the prowler stuff. But I didn’t feel comfortable leaving stuff outside unattended. I was pretty much the only person left by this point. This next one was something I’ve only done once before; rows with the stone of steel. I don’t think anybody really uses now since it has the dent in it so it only seals at one spot. Goal here was do as many as I could as long as I felt I could safely brace. I figured the best way to do that was to reset my brace every rep and really focus on that one effort. This was challenging at the start. The most I’ve done with this thing empty was 5 for a warm-up one time. That felt like I’d barely get over that as my arms were slipping. I remedied things by getting a bit deeper on the stone. I lost count and I just kept going until I got tired and couldn’t keep my arms secured as well as I wanted to. Turns out I got just one shy of two dozen. This felt good. Going to need to use the car buffer on my biceps later haha. Last thing was working the prowler. Sets of 100’ for push and drag. Not enough space to safely do it on the same area as the farmer’s walk due to the van and not enough room inside so I journeyed down to the parking lot. No idea what this terrain would be like. I was also not to “sprint” so this was at the same casual pace as the farmer’s walk. Going fast would probably be easier as the momentum would be built and the friction not so much. No ramps or anything so a bit of a pain to get everything set up. Plan was 5 sets with 1 minute rest. I don’t have a watch anymore so I counted in my head. Going slow is tough, especially the drag. I didn’t think I’d finish this after the first two sets. Total time was between 70 and 90 seconds to complete and that was about what my rest periods were as well it seems. Legs were quivering by the end. Did some decompression stuff before stretching things out. Used the TENS unit on the ride home to help with things. So a week down and hopefully I don’t end up sidelined again here. I hope but I also know that hope is not a plan. Got to be active about it. See how two days of rest go.

December 5, 2019 – Week 1, Day 2

5 Minutes Precor AMT

Mobility Prep

Hatfield Squats to box (18”)

60x10

150x5

240x5

270x5

300x5

330x5

360x5

390x5

420x5

450x5

Romanian Deadlifts (top start)

45x10

95x11

135x10

185x10

Pulldown Abs (pulldown station)

40x3

80x3

100x10

120x10

135x10

Stretching

Comments: I thought things would be good with how I felt after training last session. Only slight aches from rows. Almost feeling myself. But feeling like I might be getting a cold and my SI joint was aching a lot come Thursday. Maybe just getting to me now. Maybe extracurriculars had something to do with it. Maybe being lax in rehab and recovery stuff the past few days didn’t help. But I wasn’t happy with how it felt Thursday. I want to be better. I want to be training. Trying to not get to rely on ibuprofen and using natural stuff. Haven’t used any since finished with the Prednisone. See how things go and if necessary, shut them down. Warming up as per usual but not worrying about the heartrate stuff. Just do my five minutes and then move on. Felt fine. Movement stuff was also fine. First exercise was hatfield squats. A way to still squat heavy while dealing with this crap. Plan here was warm-up and then do sets of five taking 30lbs jumps up to a moderate top set. Not quite box squats. Motion was to brace, slow eccentric and lightly touch the box and then squat up with authority. It wasn’t so long since I did a set so I had expectations of what to hit. Really hitting the legs and I’m able to stay upright with neutral spine. Definitely some pressure on the left side. Smallish jumps and slow eccentrics made fatigue go up quick on these. Glutes (especially the left side) were cramping by the time I got over 300lbs. I knew these were going to make me sore in the legs. Adding layers for the midsection as I went. I want to work on bracing better but also with belted work. I wanted to keep going after the last set but I figured this was the first workout and I had already not been feeling great to begin with and the idea was a moderate set. Treat things like the previous session and stop here. Posterior chain was quivering by the end from these. Next was Romanian deadlifts. I feel that these might be a missing piece to my deadlift woes as I had been doing variations of these a lot in the past when my deadlift was 645lbs without a suit. But this was to test things. Starting from the top of the rack with the bar and doing sets of 10 reps. Working that time under tension by taking a breath at the top and bracing and doing a slow eccentric. Easier to work the bracing from the top. Sets taking like a minute so a lot of work for the hamstrings, glutes and grip (doing these double overhand). I elected no belt considering how light these were so that I could practice bracing without a tactile guide. I miscounted on the second set. Oh well. Still feeling about the same so on to 135lbs. Still good. 50lbs more for a final set. That jump was noticeably tougher than the previous sets. Even though my grip was feeling it by the end, I didn’t rush things. Last item for the day was pulldown abs. Plan being 3 sets of 10. I elected to use the pulldown station tower weight stack instead of the cable tower as the weight “feels” heavier. For comparison, I did 200lbs for like 35 reps or so on the cable tower setup. I also can’t stand up fully with it and have to use a towel to keep from having things be painful on my rear. Idea here is to get abs working like in squat and deadlift, more bracing and some traction from the weight pulling up on the spine. Ended up using less than I expected here. It was more the grip on the rope attachment than anything as far as the abdominals. Figuring that it was again to be “moderate” that I not push that. I’ve done these with slight breaks due to grip on the slick handles (chalk doesn’t really help) but I felt that would be against the spirit of the session and weight guidelines. Home to stretch and eat. And try to get some sleep to help with recovery. Definitely going to get in recovery and rehab stuff tomorrow. Going to need a relaxing weekend to recover I think. I really hope I don’t lose ground here on this setback.

December 2, 2019 – Week 1, Day 1

5 Minutes Precor AMT

Mobility Prep

Axle Strict Presses

72x10

92x10

112x10

132x10

Pulldowns

130x10

150x10

170x10

190x10

210x10

Precor Pec Flyes

125x10

145x10

165x10

185x10

205x10

Cybex Eagle NX Rows

150x10

170x10

190x10

210x10

230x10

Stretching

Comments: Hoping that this time around doesn’t end abruptly. Trying to be smart. Well smartish. Warming up as per usual but not worrying about the heartrate stuff. Just do my five minutes and then move on. I knew it wasn’t going to be super easy with only doing walks most days. Movement prep stuff was adjusted. Stuff dropped, stuff added and stuff from before reduced. No static stretching. Felt good. Like a good warm-up. I had thought I’d need other stuff but this was good. So first up was axle strict presses. Idea was sets of 10, up to a set I could probably do for 20 but stop at 10. That was pretty much the theme for the entire day. I was going to start with my thicker than normal hollow bar but I felt pretty good in the shoulders and I just went with the solid axle. I had to use the tiered squat rack as someone was using the power rack to get there Instagram booty stuff done. 20lbs jumps, feeling easy. I didn’t want to take much rest but I knew I’d fatigue faster if I didn’t take some kind of rest. I figured that I’d do the first few sets and then space things out. Heaviest I was planning was 152lbs but I felt at 112lbs that the next jump should be the last one. Working on breathing, bracing. No ugly reps. The rest of the workout, the plan was 5-7 sets of 10 reps. I had looked at weights at my best I had hit around 20 reps and used that as my top weight if I felt good for the 7^th set. Pulldowns I wasn’t sure how those would feel. Trying to get some traction exercises in play to help recovery. Felt good, felt like I was going to be doing my goal no problem. Then the fatigue. I guess I’m used to the bigger jumps and lower reps to work up to the high rep set. About 40lbs shy of those weights. Not a problem. I knew I’d be rusty and this isn’t discouraging. I’m feeling good being in the gym with purpose. Pec flyes after that. I thought for sure I’d get to the bottom of the stack. Nope. Fatigue built up quick. Probably should’ve called it at 185lbs haha. I thought this wouldn’t be that bad considering all the press-ups I’ve been doing for my back. Must be more triceps and shoulder than I thought. Last thing was machine rows. This was the one I had to actually lower my expectations on as this felt really difficult and I dropped things down 20lbs to make sure I got five sets. This was causing a bit of hip ache but manageable. Have to see how it is later in the week as thing accumulate. Home to stretch and use heating pad. Feels like muscle aches mostly so that is hopefully a good sign. Fingers crossed. I really want to get back to competing.