Recovery after major shoulder repair

[QuickDad]

Sorry to hear about the job change Andrew - we are in work a long time and can spend more time with colleagues than friends and family. - It will be a fresh challenge though and that keeps life interesting.

Congratulations on the 150kg x 3 - Huge...

[postman123]

It's sad to hear that your work situation had deteriorated to the point that such a major change became necessary. I'm sure it's not an easy thing. Hopefully in a short time you will look back and and wonder what took you so long. Job satisfaction is a pretty big deal and when you're not happy it can have a profound negative impact on the other aspects of your life as I'm sure you know. It's a shame, and not only a loss for you but I'm sure many of your colleagues as well.

Good luck.

[fittofattofit]

Tuesday and Wednesday bumped:

Tuesday 28th April 2014

169lbs

Squats with the PT

Glute and hammie stretching

Voodoo flossing
10 x BW squats
10 x BW lunges each leg
10 x BW squats

OH Squats ... warm up
10 x bar (44lbs)
10 x bar (44lbs)
Wide stance, hips back, knees tracking out

put on knee sleeves


Squats ... triples
5 x 60kg (132lbs) paused
3 x 80kg (176lbs)
3 x 100kg (220lbs)
3 x 110kg (242lbs)
3 x 120kg (264lbs)
3 x 130kg (286lbs)
3 x 140kg (308lbs)
3 x 150kg (330lbs) PR
Best 3 rep set ever


Superset
BB forward lunges
8 x 80kg (176lbs) each leg
8 x 80kg (176lbs) each leg
8 x 80kg (176lbs) each leg
With GHRs
10 x BW
10 x BW
10 x BW


Superset
Step-ups to 18" box
10 x 60kg (132lbs)
10 x 60kg (132lbs)
10 x 60kg (132lbs)
with reverse 'superman'
30 secs, then 30 secs
30 secs, then 30 secs
30 secs, then 30 secs

Thoracic rotations/hamstring stretches

50 minutes



The session:

Squats
120kg x 3 .... easy
130kg x 3 .... good form
140kg x 3 .... felt heavy but better form than the 130
150kg x 3 .... actually felt lighter than the 140.

JP said the range was excellent and my form was very consistent .. my chest and thoracic spine position stayed upright and tight

lunges
80kg x 8 reps each leg. First set was wobbly .. I was watching the ground in front of my knee instead of looking forward. Once I looked ahead it was good

step-ups
Dropped weight to 60kg. Was starting to get fatigued

Reverse superman
Lying on the back, arms and legs outstretched .. raise the shoulders and legs off the ground and hold them for 30 seconds. Who'd have thought ab work would break you out in a sweat



Summary
I was very busy at work this morning and was running late so I drove across town and got to the gym 20 minutes late .. I'd had a sh!tty sleep and was feeling flustered so I just wasn't feeling psyched up to lift at all. Fortunately we got straight into the OH squats which I find really challenging and the concentration required for me not to drop the bar on my scone made me lose any anxiety about the squats ahead. The session was great and I got a good PR for me with 150kg x 3. JP was very pleased with my form and how consistent it has been the last week .. only the barest hint of a good morning on one of the 130kg reps but otherwise my weight was solidly through the heels and foot, I had good depth and good drive out of the hole with my chest and upper back keeping solid. I was feeling pretty tired after the lunges and was complaining about how unfit I felt when JP pointed out that 80kg lunges for 16 reps is probably the biggest volume lunge set I'd done. All-in-all it's been a really satisfying comeback to BB squatting the last 8 days





Wednesday 30th April 2014

7 weeks 6 days post-op .... distal biceps tendon repair

168lbs

Upper body TuT


BB bench press
8 x 50kg (110lbs)
8 x 50kg (110lbs)
8 x 50kg (110lbs)
8 x 50kg (110lbs)
8 x 50kg (110lbs)
8 x 50kg (110lbs)
Very light and slow. Strict focus on pecs and tris

Inverted Serratus Rows/pull-ups
12 x BW
12 x BW
12 x BW
12 x BW
15 x BW
Serratus

Pec deck flyes
12 x 54kg (120lbs)
12 x 54kg (120lbs)
12 x 54kg (120lbs)
12 x 54kg (120lbs)
12 x 54kg (120lbs)
Tempo 3:2:3
Pecs and subscapularis

Wide grip lat pull-downs
12 x 120lbs
12 x 120lbs
12 x 120lbs
12 x 120lbs
12 x 120lbs
Tempo 3:2:3
Focus on scapular mobility

Reverse Pec deck - Rear delt flyes
10 x 40kg (88lbs)
10 x 33kg (73lbs)
8 x 33kg (73lbs)
8 x 33kg (73lbs)
8 x 33kg (73lbs)
Tempo 3:2:3
Rear delts

50 minutes

I've got good DOMS today: quads (especially medial quads), hammies and glutes. Lower back feels great. That makes me feel good about my form ... medial quads means I was 'spreading the floor' to get that drive up out of the hole and not favouring my lateral quads which makes me 'cave in', and the healthy lower back means that I wasn't doing a 'good morning' to get those heavy reps up

Today was just some light upper body work for chest and shoulders, all going for Time Under Tension. My arm feels good ... no pain and my mobility is very close to 100% ... and my chest and shoulders feel worked

Today was a bit of a sad day for me ... after 20 years as a cardio-thoracic anaesthesiologist I've given it up. There was just too much psychopathology in some of my colleagues for me to go on working there (for you non-jargon types that means that there were too many people I was working with who are just fcuked in the head ). That goes for colleagues on both sides of the fence ... surgeons and anaesthetists. I'm still working in the same hospital and I'm still one of the directors and I'll still be doing interesting stuff but it has been a big part of my working life and it feels a bit like losing a good friend. The nurses gave me a great farewell gift: a couple of very nice bottles of wine .. St. Hugo Cab Sav and Wolf Blass Grey label Shiraz and a load of chocolates, as well as a remote controlled whoopee cushion .



I'll be very sorry to not be working with them because they are a great bunch and really get paid very little, and much less than they're worth, for keeping the whole show on the road and making everyone else's job so much easier. Tonight is my last night of cardiac on call. Next week it will be back onto the trauma roster .... sigh

walkouts are good for the top bit but nothing like the bending with the weight!!!

It's funny but the bar at 140+ can feel really heavy on my shoulders but once I'm on the way down I no longer notice the weight. I suspect that value of the walk out is in just getting used to grabbing the breath and bracing my core to get used to the weight and taking away that 'Oh sh!t this is heavy' shock value that makes me dawdle a bit before I go down

Congrats on the best squat set ever! It is good to see you keeping up the intensity as you recover from the surgery.

Also: love the socks!

Ray

Thanks Ray! I think I have some intensive training days and then I see your programming
I want to be able to train like you when I grow up

I'm going to have to give the serratus rows a try. Still don't have the stability through the scaps I want. I'm thinking more that my serratus are just a little weak. Was scanning around for a movement, and haven't found anything I really like yet. Lol, been looking at them in here long enough but not "seeing them"

It's strange to make work group changes, sometimes can find big improvements to daily life though. Good luck with the new position

Thanks Robert .. the last two years I have been slowly extricating myself from a lot of committees and external boards and trying tto get my life under control. This is another step in that direction and while it was hard I'm happy with the decision

And I'd heartily recommend the serratus inverted rows as well as serratus push-ups on a bar or on a swiss ball. These are all great for helping t stabilise the scaps. Another great exercise is prone incline DB or KB rows (I like KBs) ... row them up and squeeze at the top and it really hits your rhomboids and lower traps, also important scapular stabilisers

So, so sorry to hear this. I've said on many occasions that who you work with has a lot to do with your job satisfaction! Sounds like you worked with some difficult people.

And, of course, stress factors into the "recovery" part of our lifting equation, so perhaps the change will do you body good in addition to your mind!

P.S. Excited to see what affect the Slingshot will have on your bench.

I'm always lacking a bit in recovery and I'm high on stress so anything I can do to reduce my stress load must help with my training ... at least that's the plan
I'm very keen to try the slingshot

Sorry to hear about the job change Andrew - we are in work a long time and can spend more time with colleagues than friends and family. - It will be a fresh challenge though and that keeps life interesting.

Congratulations on the 150kg x 3 - Huge...

Thanks QD!

It's sad to hear that your work situation had deteriorated to the point that such a major change became necessary. I'm sure it's not an easy thing. Hopefully in a short time you will look back and and wonder what took you so long. Job satisfaction is a pretty big deal and when you're not happy it can have a profound negative impact on the other aspects of your life as I'm sure you know. It's a shame, and not only a loss for you but I'm sure many of your colleagues as well.

Good luck.

Thanks Postie ... I have a lot of other supports at work so that helps me in dealing with the other issues. I'm already feeling as though a weight has been lifted from my chest!

[fittofattofit]

Thursday 1st May 2014

8 weeks post-op today ... repair of ruptured distal biceps tendon

169lbs

Rehab session

Circuit ... 4 cycles of:

Single leg squats
12 each leg
1st round holding onto a pole
2nd round free standing
3rd and 4th with a pole across the shoulders

Kneeling Pallov presses
12 x 40kg (88lbs) each side

ab wheel rollouts .... each hand with a separate wheel
12 reps

Glute bridge on a swiss ball/single leg roll-out
12 each leg

30 minutes

OK .. a busy day at work and my regular rehab session ... Thursday at 6:30am for half an hour. I don't always write this up because I often have a second training session in the afternoon but none today ahead of a session with JP tomorrow (Friday) and a probable deadlift session on Saturday
My rehab trainer is 'Ash' a former special forces trainer who's also a state Jui Jitsu coach. He's got a great eye for form and has been good helping my rehab through my various injuries, especially the pyriformis tear and the facet joint rupture. He looked at my squatting today with a bar and said he couldn't pick any faults and then he proceeded to break me apart with single leg squats .. all BW, but with different cues. Single leg squats with a pole across your shoulders really shows up any tendency to either rotate at the hip, tilt the pelvis or to lean forward ... it's a pretty good exercise to give you some body awareness when you squat. When the bar stays steady my knees don't hurt ... when the bar starts to tilt and dip then one or other knee tweaks. He threw in the kneeling pallov presses as a way of forcing me to lock my thorax in an upright position; the swiss ball glute bridges to get the glutes, hammies and core activated and the rollouts to test core strength. All-in-all he was very happy. Tomorrow I see the physio and should get permission to start moving my arm through an eccentric load so next week the rehab session will be about working through that

[jonnyboy44]

Sorry to hear about the job. lets hope the changes go smoothly and you settle in to your new department quickly.
Good thing about living in the UK, if we ever get fed up with our job/life we can always emigrate to Australia.
Will this alter your work times and impact on your gym time.

[Flounderbout]

My rehab trainer is 'Ash' a former special forces trainer who's also a state Jui Jitsu coach. He's got a great eye for form and has been good helping my rehab through my various injuries, especially the pyriformis tear and the facet joint rupture. He looked at my squatting today with a bar and said he couldn't pick any faults and then he proceeded to break me apart with single leg squats .. all BW, but with different cues. Single leg squats with a pole across your shoulders really shows up any tendency to either rotate at the hip, tilt the pelvis or to lean forward ... it's a pretty good exercise to give you some body awareness when you squat. When the bar stays steady my knees don't hurt ... when the bar starts to tilt and dip then one or other knee tweaks. He threw in the kneeling pallov presses as a way of forcing me to lock my thorax in an upright position; the swiss ball glute bridges to get the glutes, hammies and core activated and the rollouts to test core strength. All-in-all he was very happy. Tomorrow I see the physio and should get permission to start moving my arm through an eccentric load so next week the rehab session will be about working through that

This sounds awesome. I have two trainers too, but they are both Bernese Mountain Dogs and to be honest I am beginning to think they may have faked some of their PT qualifications...
Very interesting about the single leg squats and the form issues and knee pain. Will have to Google Pallov presses. On the glute bridges do you add weight? I have tried these recently and they seem very easy, but adding weight seemed really awkward and I wasn't sure how it should be done (barbell? Plate? Weight belt?).
Sorry to hear about the job. If only politics didn't enter into these things so much. Very much the hospital's loss I have no doubt. Hopefully some more time for you though (all of which you will obviously spend to do more deadz sessions )...

[QuickDad]

You have access to some great training support Andrew - Ash sounds a very knowledgeable guy. It's always an education reading your journal, even though half the time I don't understand what you're saying or haven't heard of the body parts / joints you're working on!

[pastorgbc]

Thursday 1st May 2014

8 weeks post-op today ... repair of ruptured distal biceps tendon

169lbs

Rehab session

Circuit ... 4 cycles of:

Single leg squats
12 each leg
1st round holding onto a pole
2nd round free standing
3rd and 4th with a pole across the shoulders

Kneeling Pallov presses
12 x 40kg (88lbs) each side

ab wheel rollouts .... each hand with a separate wheel
12 reps

Glute bridge on a swiss ball/single leg roll-out
12 each leg

30 minutes

OK .. a busy day at work and my regular rehab session ... Thursday at 6:30am for half an hour. I don't always write this up because I often have a second training session in the afternoon but none today ahead of a session with JP tomorrow (Friday) and a probable deadlift session on Saturday
My rehab trainer is 'Ash' a former special forces trainer who's also a state Jui Jitsu coach. He's got a great eye for form and has been good helping my rehab through my various injuries, especially the pyriformis tear and the facet joint rupture. He looked at my squatting today with a bar and said he couldn't pick any faults and then he proceeded to break me apart with single leg squats .. all BW, but with different cues. Single leg squats with a pole across your shoulders really shows up any tendency to either rotate at the hip, tilt the pelvis or to lean forward ... it's a pretty good exercise to give you some body awareness when you squat. When the bar stays steady my knees don't hurt ... when the bar starts to tilt and dip then one or other knee tweaks. He threw in the kneeling pallov presses as a way of forcing me to lock my thorax in an upright position; the swiss ball glute bridges to get the glutes, hammies and core activated and the rollouts to test core strength. All-in-all he was very happy. Tomorrow I see the physio and should get permission to start moving my arm through an eccentric load so next week the rehab session will be about working through that

Dedication...I love it.

Here's to a great day.

Ray

[doughnutgut]

First off. Sorry to hear about the job.

Second. Benching is coming back strong. Nearly where you left off.

Thirdly. Your killing squats. Do you get the same chit scared feeling with these as you did with dreads?

Fourthly. Sorry for the silence.

[fittofattofit]

Sorry to hear about the job. lets hope the changes go smoothly and you settle in to your new department quickly.
Good thing about living in the UK, if we ever get fed up with our job/life we can always emigrate to Australia.
Will this alter your work times and impact on your gym time.

Thanks Jon .. I'll still be working with a bunch of people that I know very well and in some way I'll be reacquainting myself with a few old friends. The plus side is that I'll have more variety in my work now. I'll be doing less 'on-call' but I'll be called-in more often, but in a more controlled environment. I'll also earn a fair bit more over time

This sounds awesome. I have two trainers too, but they are both Bernese Mountain Dogs and to be honest I am beginning to think they may have faked some of their PT qualifications... :rolleyes :

You're lucky they're just your trainers .... in New Zealand they'd be your sexual partners

Very interesting about the single leg squats and the form issues and knee pain. Will have to Google Pallov presses. On the glute bridges do you add weight? I have tried these recently and they seem very easy, but adding weight seemed really awkward and I wasn't sure how it should be done (barbell? Plate? Weight belt?).

I've done them with a bar across the hips but more often we do them with the feet elevated on a swiss ball or a box. Doing these one legged, so back flat on the ground, one foot bent and resting on a 12" box and the other foot elevated in the air, then bridge the hip as high as you can go and hold for 2 seconds. Very quickly you feel the glutes and hammies contracting and after 12 reps it's pretty hard

Sorry to hear about the job. If only politics didn't enter into these things so much. Very much the hospital's loss I have no doubt. Hopefully some more time for you though (all of which you will obviously spend to do more deadz sessions : D)...

It's already taken a big weight off my mind and to some extent frees me of constraints with regard to the managerial part of my job ... I can now direct the battle from HQ instead of from the front lines
I've been steadily extricating myself from external commitments over the last few years and I'm enjoying my free time ... and yes ... that will include more deadz sessions

You have access to some great training support Andrew - Ash sounds a very knowledgeable guy. It's always an education reading your journal, even though half the time I don't understand what you're saying or haven't heard of the body parts / joints you're working on!

Ha ... thanks QD! He and JP are both good guys: very good at what they do and I gel well with both of them ... that's very important when you're looking for a trainer

Dedication...I love it.

Here's to a great day.

Ray

Thanks Ray!

First off. Sorry to hear about the job.

Second. Benching is coming back strong. Nearly where you left off.

Thirdly. Your killing squats. Do you get the same chit scared feeling with these as you did with dreads?

Fourthly. Sorry for the silence.

Thanks Leigh .. my benching and pressing is never going to be half of what it was but I'm hoping that a good injury free year might let me see some progression and even see those chesticles growing. As for the squats .. I'm really happy with the way they are going. I was really scared going in for the first squat session last week but I was fine this week ... with squats I feel that if I fail I'm just going to get stuck in the bottom of the hole and roll the bar off my shoulders, whereas if I fail on the deads my form can get scary and I worry about hurting my back again

Friday 2nd May 2014

170lbs

glutes and hammies ... PT session


Good mornings ... warm ups
10 x bar (44lbs)
10 x bar (44lbs)
3 sec eccentric; 3 sec pause; power up

Superset
Good mornings
8 x 60kg (132lbs)
8 x 60kg (132lbs)
8 x 60kg (132lbs)
with banded side-steps
10 x left, then 10 x right
10 x left, then 10 x right
10 x left, then 10 x right
Glutes and abductors

banded wide stance Box squats
8 x 60kg (132lbs)
6 x 80kg (172lbs)
5 x 100kg (220lbs)
5 x 100kg (220lbs)
Wide stance .. bands around ankles
3 sec eccentric; 3 sec pause; power up

Superset
Prowler Harness pulls
40m x (50kg sled+50kg added) = 100kg/220lbs
40m x (50kg sled+90kg added) = 140kg/308lbs
40m x (50kg sled+115kg added) = 165kg/363lbs
Arms outstretched
driving through the glutes and hammies
with Single leg glute bridges
12 x each leg
12 x each leg
12 x each leg
hammies and glutes

Cobras
30 second hold
30 second hold
30 second hold

Thoracic rotations/hamstring stretches

50 minutes



The session:
Good Mornings supersetted with banded side-steps
Concentrating on breaking at the hips to tension the glutes. Narrow stance with soft knees but not bending the knees. 3 second eccentric, 3 second pause, then power up with the glutes.
The banded side-steps: form a rectangle with a band held in both hands and while standing on the band, then step as far to the right as possible keeping the leg straight. Take 10 steps right one at a time, and then 10 steps left. This really gets the medial glutes and the adductors

Banded wide stance Box squats
JP made me stand with the orange band (doubled) looped around my ankles. This forced me to take a very wide stance to keep the band tight and forced me to track my knees out wide when squatting to the box. This was the first time I'd done this and a great exercise for forcing me to track my knees out wide. The 100kg squats felt pretty light and using the wide stance I got great glute activation on the drive up off the box

Prowlers Harness pulls
Wearing a chest harness and dragging the sled back and forth .. like a horse pulling a carriage. 50kg+sled felt like no weight at all. 90kg+sled still felt light enough on the way out but my legs were tiring on the way back. 115kg+sled took a few seconds to get momentum on the way out. On the way back I hit the wall with about 2 metres to go. Great power exercise!

Single leg Glute bridges
The glute bridges were with one foot on a 12" box and the other suspended, then holding a glute bridge for a count of three. Could really feel my glutes and hammies about to cramp


Summary
Another accessory day working on form. I really liked the banded box squats and the harnessed prowler pulls. Next squat session is on Monday


And nothing at all to do with lifting but I got a nice card from the cardiac nurses

[scott_donald]

where you going???

solid session there.... makes me want to get my prowler out...

[pharmamarketer]

Great note above. Here's to having a warped sense of humor. Loving your drive and dedication Andrew. Keep kicking ass

[doughnutgut]

Superset
Prowler Harness pulls
40m x (50kg sled+50kg added) = 100kg/220lbs
40m x (50kg sled+90kg added) = 140kg/308lbs
40m x (50kg sled+115kg added) = 165kg/363lbs

I am jelly as hell of this here Andrew. That is some solid work and something I would love to get chance at doing.



As for the storytelling. I can pretty much bet on some of them stories coming from inside these journal walls once or twice. Reading some of these logs can make pretty good jackanories at times of boredom.

[fittofattofit]

where you going???

I'm only going across the corridor .... but it will be a total change in my clinical work and doing cardiac anaesthesia is sort of special so I'm going to miss it and most of the people

solid session there.... makes me want to get my prowler out...

You should get that prowler out! I have to say I love the prowler sessions and I'm sure it would be right up your alley. Do you take it to the oval or use a driveway?

Great note above. Here's to having a warped sense of humor. Loving your drive and dedication Andrew. Keep kicking ass

Thanks Rob!

I am jelly as hell of this here Andrew. That is some solid work and something I would love to get chance at doing.

I love the variety of stuff he throws at me but I especially love the prowlers .. he did make a joke about not being able to fit the harness around my lats

This is what I was doing but on a concrete driveway
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_s2SEDit_hc


It's really a great power exercise and I was breathless at the end

As for the storytelling. I can pretty much bet on some of them stories coming from inside these journal walls once or twice. Reading some of these logs can make pretty good jackanories at times of boredom.

It helps to have a warped sense of humour ... when you work in emergency services or a hospital you don't want to think about things too long

Saturday 3rd May 2014

8 weeks 2 days post-op .... distal biceps tendon repair

169lbs .... deadies


Deadlifts
10 x 70kg (132lbs)
10 x 110kg (242lbs)
10 x 110kg (242lbs)
10 x 110kg (242lbs)
10 x 110kg (242lbs)
10 x 110kg (242lbs)
10 x 110kg (242lbs)
10 x 110kg (242lbs)
10 x 110kg (242lbs)
10 x 110kg (242lbs)
10 x 110kg (242lbs)
10 x 10 x 110kg in 32 minutes

Seated cable rows
10 x 120lbs
10 x 120lbs
10 x 120lbs
10 x 120lbs
10 x 120lbs
Tempo 3:2:3

50 minutes

Deadies for volume again today ... bumped the weight to 110kg/242lbs and did 10 x 10. The 10 sets took 32 minutes so around 2.5 minutes between each set. It was easier than last week's 10 x 10 x 100 although I really just wanted to lie down after the 10th set. I did some cable rows later, going slow and light. No problem with my arm doing this so I'll keep on with the deads ... I suspect that bumping it to 120 might be pushing it a little bit too far
Saw the physio yesterday .. flexion and extension are 100% and supination is good but still 22º to go (so three quarters of the way there) .. he thinks three weeks should be good to get that mobility back. Biceps strength is really weak, but that's to be expected .. he said it should still be another three months before heavy loading of the biceps, so that's when the Yates and Pendlays will restart

[jonnyboy44]

good volume on the deadlifts and the bicep recovery seems well on its way now.

[scott_donald]

haha awesome work there with the deeds... i will try something like that for my deload.... giving me ideas...

[pastorgbc]

I am glad the deads went well for you. I hope everything keeps strengthening and stays pain free. That is some sweet volume.

Ray

[fittofattofit]

good volume on the deadlifts and the bicep recovery seems well on its way now.

Thanks Jon!

haha awesome work there with the deeds... i will try something like that for my deload.... giving me ideas...

Given that I'm on an extended enforced deload form deads I figured that not lifting heavy but going for volume will help to keep my injured arm safe while letting me rebuild some of the back strength that I've lost and also allow me to grind in decent form. Maybe a lot to ask but the 10 x 10 felt pretty good

I am glad the deads went well for you. I hope everything keeps strengthening and stays pain free. That is some sweet volume.

Ray

Thanks Ray .. that's the plan .. keep strengthening so that when I do get back to heavy deads I'm not too far behind where I left off

[JohnButz]

Tons of work in that deadlift session! Excellent job!

[postman123]

Encouraging to see how well you have progressed over the last 8 weeks. 8 weeks is not much time all all really. The way you're cranking out the volume now is sure to help with the healing process too. Well done mate

[EB68]

Andrew, hitting 10x10 at 242 lbs. would be brutal for me without any injuries. I would think that once you are healed these type sessions will have helped you retain most of your strength. I would think that by years end you will be back to where you were in most every lift.

[fittofattofit]

Tons of work in that deadlift session! Excellent job!

Thanks John ... I figure that I need to build up tendon and core strength while I'm having the enforced deload from heavy deads so volume seemed like a good idea to me

Encouraging to see how well you have progressed over the last 8 weeks. 8 weeks is not much time all all really. The way you're cranking out the volume now is sure to help with the healing process too. Well done mate

Thanks Postie!

Andrew, hitting 10x10 at 242 lbs. would be brutal for me without any injuries. I would think that once you are healed these type sessions will have helped you retain most of your strength. I would think that by years end you will be back to where you were in most every lift.

Thanks for looking in Eric .. you missed another PR on the squats ... actually only a rep PR but I'm hoping that at the end of the year I'll be well ahead of where I was before the injury at least on the squats and deads. As for my benching .. I'm such a pussy that it would be hard for it to be any worse so that'd better be a lot higher by the end of the year as well

Sunday 4th May 2014

8 weeks 3 days post-op .... distal biceps tendon repair

171lbs .... RPM/HIIT cycle

HIIT cycle .... 50 minutes

Wide grip pull-downs
10 x 120lbs
10 x 120lbs
10 x 120lbs
10 x 120lbs
10 x 120lbs
Tempo 3:2:3

50 minutes + 10 minutes

I felt pretty good after the deads yesterday ... slightly achey upper glutes but back and arm OK. I do feel that facet joint on the right clicking in and out with every rep but it doesn't feel unstable or painful. There is a dull ache the next day but nothing like the pain I was having last year where I couldn't even stand for 10 minutes without being in agony and looking for a doorknob or table edge to lean against. I'd prefer that it wasn't there and I'm a little wary but it's barely in my consciousness while I'm lifting
Today was the token Cardio again .. I always get my heart rate up and I'm soaked in sweat at the end so I do do some decent work and, because I crank up the resistance on the bike as high as I can tolerate, my legs usually get a good power workout. Not necessarily the smartest thing when I've got my squat session tomorrow but at least I enjoy a good Sunday morning carb-up breakfast

Hope you're all having a good weekend!

[EjnarKolinkar]

Playing catch up in some journals.

Looked like a hard week in the gym. I like those GM the PT had you doing. Followed up with the rest I can see he is keeping your PC primed. Not that you are slouching on your own with the volume DL sesion.

[scott_donald]

for token cardio... thats pretty impressive!!!

[cmoore]

Nice work as always.

Congrats on the corridor crossing. Next step[?] , retire to the states--perhaps a small lake town in North Idaho.

[QuickDad]

Great work with the prowler Andrew and a massive deadlift rep session with 10x10 at 110kg!!!

Thanks for the BB lunges recommendation Andrew - used them today and could really feel them working.

[fittofattofit]

Playing catch up in some journals.

Looked like a hard week in the gym. I like those GM the PT had you doing. Followed up with the rest I can see he is keeping your PC primed. Not that you are slouching on your own with the volume DL sesion.

Thanks Robert ... the GMs are both a great warm-up before deadlifting and squatting but also a good PC exercise themselves

for token cardio... thats pretty impressive!!!

I still feel very guilty ...

Nice work as always.

Congrats on the corridor crossing. Next step[?] , retire to the states--perhaps a small lake town in North Idaho.

Ha ... thanks Chris! I couldn't think of too many better places in which to retire

Great work with the prowler Andrew and a massive deadlift rep session with 10x10 at 110kg!!!

Thanks for the BB lunges recommendation Andrew - used them today and could really feel them working.

Thanks QD .. I love the prowlers for power work and my legs always get a great working from them. Following that with deads the next day really gave my PC a thrashing
I'm glad you liked the lunges .. I don't think I'd ever done them until my trainers made me, but they're a great complement to squats and deads for helping you to maintain good hip mobility and stability

Monday 5th May 2014

8 weeks 4 days post op ... repair of ruptured distal biceps tendon

Squats with the PT

Paused box squats ... warm-up
5 x 60kg (132lbs)

Voodoo flossing ... both knees
10 x BW squats
5 x 60kg (132lbs) paused box squats

put on knee sleeves

Squats
3 x 60kg (132lbs)
3 x 80kg (176lbs)
3 x 110kg (242lbs)
3 x 130kg (286lbs)
1 x 140kg (308lbs)
1 x 150kg (330lbs)
1 x 157.5kg (347lbs) PR

1 x 160kg (352lbs) PR
Felt good


Superset
Deficit deadlifts
4" deficit
8 x 80kg (176lbs)
8 x 80kg (176lbs)
8 x 80kg (176lbs)
With Pistol squats
10 x each leg
10 x each leg
10 x each leg
Lower back and hammies were screaming


BB walking lunges
He asked me to lunge with 80kg
NFW! ... I stalled at the first hurdle, then
16 x 60kg (132lbs)
16 x 60kg (132lbs)
16 x 60kg (132lbs)
Had to really focus on hip stability and breathing

Thoracic rotations/hamstring stretches

55 minutes



The session:
Squats
130kg x 3 .... easy
140kg x 1 .... felt good
150kg x 1 .... felt good
157.5kg x 1 .... I started to psyche myself out and spent way too long thinking about it with the bar across my shoulder. I tired myself and then went down too quickly and nearly got stuck in the hole. Still got the PR but nearly lost it
160kg x 1 .... I was much quicker going for the squat this time and got a good rebound out of the hole. No sticking points. Felt really good

JP was really impressed with my squatting progress. He said that in the past my PBs had been with me using every muscle to hoist the weight up. He said that lately I've been maintaining my form, even for the PB lifts

Deficit deadlifts
Standing on two bumper plates, so a 4" deficit, barefoot with the toes hanging over the edge so that I had to keep my weight back and through my heels. Power up, then 3 second eccentric. My lower back knew all about it

Pistol squats
Supersetted with the deficit deads these had my hammies and glutes screaming

walking BB lunges
JP asked me to lunge with 80kg ... I put the bar on my shoulders and my lower back felt like it was going to cramp up ... I had visions of getting stuck on the floor and dumping the bar backwards onto my leg. 60kg was hard by the third set



Summary
Really happy with the squatting and kept my form for a good PB

[pastorgbc]

Thanks Robert ... the GMs are both a great warm-up before deadlifting and squatting but also a good PC exercise themselves


I still feel very guilty ...


Ha ... thanks Chris! I couldn't think of too many better places in which to retire


Thanks QD .. I love the prowlers for power work and my legs always get a great working from them. Following that with deads the next day really gave my PC a thrashing
I'm glad you liked the lunges .. I don't think I'd ever done them until my trainers made me, but they're a great complement to squats and deads for helping you to maintain good hip mobility and stability

Monday 5th May 2014

8 weeks 4 days post op ... repair of ruptured distal biceps tendon

Squats with the PT

Paused box squats ... warm-up
5 x 60kg (132lbs)

Voodoo flossing ... both knees
10 x BW squats
5 x 60kg (132lbs) paused box squats

put on knee sleeves

Squats
3 x 60kg (132lbs)
3 x 80kg (176lbs)
3 x 110kg (242lbs)
3 x 130kg (286lbs)
1 x 140kg (308lbs)
1 x 150kg (330lbs)
1 x 157.5kg (347lbs) PR

1 x 160kg (352lbs) PR
Felt good


Superset
Deficit deadlifts
4" deficit
8 x 80kg (176lbs)
8 x 80kg (176lbs)
8 x 80kg (176lbs)
With Pistol squats
10 x each leg
10 x each leg
10 x each leg
Lower back and hammies were screaming


BB walking lunges
He asked me to lunge with 80kg
NFW! ... I stalled at the first hurdle, then
16 x 60kg (132lbs)
16 x 60kg (132lbs)
16 x 60kg (132lbs)
Had to really focus on hip stability and breathing

Thoracic rotations/hamstring stretches

55 minutes



The session:
Squats
130kg x 3 .... easy
140kg x 1 .... felt good
150kg x 1 .... felt good
157.5kg x 1 .... I started to psyche myself out and spent way too long thinking about it with the bar across my shoulder. I tired myself and then went down too quickly and nearly got stuck in the hole. Still got the PR but nearly lost it
160kg x 1 .... I was much quicker going for the squat this time and got a good rebound out of the hole. No sticking points. Felt really good

JP was really impressed with my squatting progress. He said that in the past my PBs had been with me using every muscle to hoist the weight up. He said that lately I've been maintaining my form, even for the PB lifts

Deficit deadlifts
Standing on two bumper plates, so a 4" deficit, barefoot with the toes hanging over the edge so that I had to keep my weight back and through my heels. Power up, then 3 second eccentric. My lower back knew all about it

Pistol squats
Supersetted with the deficit deads these had my hammies and glutes screaming

walking BB lunges
JP asked me to lunge with 80kg ... I put the bar on my shoulders and my lower back felt like it was going to cramp up ... I had visions of getting stuck on the floor and dumping the bar backwards onto my leg. 60kg was hard by the third set



Summary
Really happy with the squatting and kept my form for a good PB

Yeah! You should be happy with that squatting. That is he-man stuff.

Great work. I imagine the legs hurt so good after that session.

Ray

[jonnyboy44]

160k squats absolutly amazing work Great lifting,

60k lunges,wont even go there 20k enough for me. well done again Andrew.

[scott_donald]

dammit i am miles behind you now!!!