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Post Op, Healing


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@vv You better believe it, especially when I was ride the escalators.

 

@Rob http://www.shapefit.com/lower-back-exercises-hyperextensions-back-extensions.html

 

2h workout with DB in the Dungeon. MW wasn't able to make it.

 

I'm totally new to this location, but got in alot of freeweights in for lower back and traps. The highest db they had were a pair of old 110 hex dumbs, so I mainly played with those. Nothing too far off from what I do and was able to get in four rotations.

 

Highlights:

110lb one handed rows

behind the back shrugs in a split stance (there wasn't any block for my heels)

 

Oh and let me tell you how much fun it is to have control over the overhead music. You can even bring in your own CDs and stuff. Also it's nice to be able to wear just an oversized t-shirt and not worry about folks trying to touch up on a brada.

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In an attempt to attack my bulking issue at a different angle. I'm reducing my caloric expenditure rather than increasing my already hard to manage increase in caloric intake. Starting MON I am reducing my workout session to 1h and I am limiting the session to only one composite exercise. I will still be going 5 days a week, but will be taking a back to basics approach. The weight is going to be extremely light and I will be focusing on form, slow movements, deep stretching and concentrated contractions with each and every rep. Breaks will be 3m per set and I will force myself to sit down and not dance or pace around. Also all of these exercises will be executed via freeweights, with the focus being to strengthen the ligaments, tendons and stabilizers.

 

Here is the plan:

 

MON - Chest : Flat Bench Press (Bar) stretch + warm up + 8x8@95lbs

TUE - Upper back : Pull ups (assisted) 8x8@(never used this machine)

WED - Legs : Squats stretch + warm up + 8x8@95lbs

THU - Shoulders : Shoulder Press (Bar) stretch + warm up + 8x8@95lbs

Biceps : Curl (Bar) 8x8@65lbs

FRI - Lower back : Dead Lift (Bar) stretch + warm up + 8x8@95lbs

 

The following week I may increase the weight by 10lbs if I felt as if I wasn't feeling a pump or not burning or fatigued. I may also swap the days/exercises around if I feel as if my biceps or grip is fatigued after coming off of a certain pulling exercise. Also if by the ending sets I feel as if I need more of a rest period to be fully engaged for 8 reps, then I will rest accordingly.

 

Wishing myself good luck in the mental department as I know this is going to be a humbling experience for me.

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@lobsteriffic Thank you, I'm hoping I won't be too bored.

 

2h workout with MW.

 

Went in for chest and did basically high rep shaping exercises. My breaks where rather short and I started at 20 reps and went until I could only eek out 6 reps. All in all I would say and average of 9 to 12 working sets. I didn't count them, but MW was able to knock out 1050 reps on his full body work out in that two hours.

 

Anyway, eat time and making sure I stay focused during this new routine. The battle is going to be not trying to do more than is needed.

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Day 1 of the new routine. It only took me a touch over 30 mins to knock out 8x8@95lbs on the bench press. I focused on making sure the bar was on the rack evenly, that my head and feet placement was identical and that my hand placement was exactly the same way each time. I noticed that on the first set I was a little wobbly, so the next set I started to tighten up my whole body during each rep. That helped correct that. I didn't feel any fatigue, labored breath nor sweat. I probably won't until I get into the heavier weights. Right now my chest is sorta warm and under my right shoulder blade I feel a little tweaked nerve. I don't think the tweak has anything to do with my form or anything mechnical with the press. It's just something that will have to be worked out eventually.

 

When I started to leave the gym I felt as if it was a wasted trip, since I've got a Monster Bench at the house. Also since I had to suit up and drive to the gym. But realistically I'd rather stick with the exact same equipment all the way through this so as to not cheat myself when it comes to strength gains.

 

Anyway, only day one...so lets see how the week goes.

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Ok thought about it more during work and I am totally revising the routine. 30 mins just isn't gonna cut it, maybe if it was maintainence. Here is what it's going to look like, since I want to get a mix of mass building and shaping exercises in.

 

Chest/Tris:

8x10-12 Flat Bench Press

4x10-12 Incline Chest Press

3x15-18 Skullcrushers

3x10-12 Dumb Flies (deep stretch)

3x10-12 Rope Pulldown (I don't know of any freeweight tricep shaping that does the trick)

 

Legs:

8x10-12 Squat (Parallel)

4x10-12 Quad Ext

4x15-18 Seated Ham Curls

3x20-25 Calf Raises

 

Upperback:

8x10-12 Pullups (Wide Grip) ((Oh yeah we talking Fed Pen style baby!!))

 

Lowerback:

8x10-12 Deadlift

4x20-25 Hyper-Extensions (optional) ((I tend to really overwork lowerback, so totally optional)

 

Shoulders/Bis:

8x10-12 Seated Shoulder Press**

8x10-12 Bicep Curls

 

**I may want to graduate to Standing presses if I feel ok with the weight on my finger/wrist. As well if my shoulder feels up to it.

 

That is a 5 day a week setup. I might be starting up an early morning job at a gym, if that's a green light I will be doing ab and forearm work during my shift.

 

As for the crappy chest routine I did today...I am going to chuck it up to a rest day and not try and attack it tonight or get it in during the weekend or a night session.

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@RC Thanks man.

 

@VJ Awesome. All I know is my upper chest responded well as soon as I hit it and went heavy. I started off on the Hammer Strength machine and wouldn't be afraid to load it up and do partial contractions, just to feel the tension/load. Then I'd ease the weight down and work up to the new load.

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Back from a 30 min upperback routine that I am pretty happy about. I wasn't feeling out of breath, but I did end up breaking a sweat towards the last 20 pullups. I definitely felt muscle fatigue. I felt as if I could of gone another set, but I don't want to get into that mentality. If anything in a few weeks I will add rear delts on this day. In order to extend the workout and address that muscle group. For now, I just don't want aggravate my rotator.

 

I located the chart on the assisted pullup machine in order to get an idea of how much weight I was doing the pullup with. I weighed in with all my clothes and shoes, then went to work.

 

3m breaks

5x10@184lbs

3x10@172lbs

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Back from an 1h15m leg routine. I felt sorta good about it. I'm not too sure about my squat form towards the end. I felt a little awkwardness in my lowerback as if it wasn't staying as tight as I'd like past the sticking point. Who knows, it's something that I am going to be mindful of when I start increasing the weight.

 

Squat@2 plates:3x12,5x10

Quad Ext@3 plates:4x12

Seated Ham Curls@#10:4x18

Calf Raises@200lbs:3x25

 

Next week I am planning on increasing the resistance on the hams and going down to 12 reps. I was suprised that I couldn't get out 4 plates from the quad ext after the 8 sets of squats, so I only did 3 plates. As for the calf raises I plan on getting in another set just to bring that inline with the rest of the exercises.

 

Yesterday my lowerback was feeling sorta trashed so I took that morning off. I don't plan on doing lowerback this week, especially since it would be a quick 30 min thing.

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1h15m routine with MW. Ended up spending almost 3h there talking and bullshitting. Of course only after our routine.

 

Shoulders and biceps where the focus. My shoulders were done with just the bar and I defintely felt issues with my right rotator and the stabilizers involved. I am just going to readjust the weights from the data I recieved this first run. I didn't count my warmup sets as well as the smith machine stretches between sets. Just so that I could remind myself to stay tight and attempt to hit that plane. Also at the end of the shoulder routine I went on the smith and pumped out 6 reps with 2 plates.

 

Seated Shoulder Press@95lbs:1x10,1x9,1x6 @85lbs:3x8,1x5

Standing Bicep Curls@60lbs:3x12,2x10,1x12,1x10,1x8

 

Afterwards while waiting for MW to finish his routine I took a 25lb dumb and worked forearms until I was no longer able to grip it. YB!

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  • 3 months later...

Ok here's the update:

 

In my goal to get to 230lbs, I changed up my workout routine to 3 days a week morning and after work at 1h30m sessions. And focusing on resting and eating big all week long. My employment schedule started to pick up, so I didn't get the type of calories in that I wanted to and was hovering at about 218-220lbs.

 

About three weeks in I started to develop a pain in my left glut that seemed very abnormal. I thought it was from overtraining legs, since I had been doing high rep squats at the beginning of the week and heavy squats towards the ending of the week in concert with deadlifts and lower back in the middle of the week. So under the advisement of MW I took 6 weeks off of training lower back and legs, just to heal the glut. Sure I wasn't happy about halting my leg training during a bulk since that was the focus, but I stayed off those two big movements.

 

After maybe 5 weeks and seeing my legs fill in from basically allowing them repair time, I noticed that the glut pain was linked to me standing too long during work. I mentioned it to MW and since she was going through rehab from two disk herniations, he demanded that I go to an ortho just to have it checked out. I scheduled a visit and everything from that point on progressed like a white water rapid. I went in for the checkup on a TUE, MRI on a WED, pre-op on a FRI and surgery SAT morning.

 

Here is the skinny, I go in for the checkup and immediately it's diagnosed as a disk herniation. I go in for the MRI and have it read the following day. The surgeon explained that it was an L5/S1 disk fault with herniation on the left side causing root sciatic irritation. It was fairly bad and cortisol shots weren't going to retract the herniation and surgery was my best option and that it needed to be addressed quickly.

 

So now I'm a little less than a week post op, with a check up at the 3 week mark and no lifting of any kind until the 6 week mark where we'll discuss my approach back into the gym. The great thing is my doc is a sports ortho who is keen to the type of gym routine I do and goals.

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Tomorrow is the 2 week post op landmark; eating as been a little less calories than optimal. I will definitely work on eating more before the week 3 mark, so that my weight will be up before I see my ortho.

 

As soon as I get the go ahead at the 6 week mark, I'm looking to ease back into lifting with a strict bodyweight exercise routine. I won't go crazy high volume or anything, but when I do progress it'll be an increase in volume and not load. After I feel like I am getting back into the feel, I'll progress with 40lb dumb then 60lb dumb onto the bw routine. My thoughts are that doing a routine like this at home and not visiting the gym will stave off my desire to start lifting heavy again; possibly leading to re-injury.

 

The great thing is during this progression, I intend on utilizing this blog to track my progression as well as to insure that I am not proceeding too quickly or with too much of a load when I add in resistance. The goal at this point is going to be tone and stay fit which will then transition into approaching the load I use to do; keyword being approaching.

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Sorry to hear about the back injury, LB - I know firsthand how much they suck, but keep that rehab going slowly but surely, and in due time you'll be better than ever. Just don't follow my example and start doing 700 lb. quarter squats a week after being hurt because it somehow makes your back feel better Glad to hear that your ortho is actually not going to discourage you from training - I only wish that the one I'd see had said something other than "I think you need to stop lifting completely" and had given anything encouraging. Take care, and get yourself back in top form!

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Thanks VE, he did mention that I should not bulk and train more for endurance, but the fact that he didn't say, "Consider not training period," kept me from walking out of the examination room.

 

And yes I won't go lifting celestial bodies that soon out the gate, although I was up and walking way way too early.

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