Recovery after major shoulder repair

[ljimd]

U still cuttin'? You look leaner. VVVVVV




By the way........your daughter is lovely.

[ProtienandIron]

Such a pretty daughter you've got mate, they look good together.

I can't believe the volume you give to each muscle group, no wonder you're feeling such good pumps. That stomach is looking awesome mate, leaning up nicely.

[cmg1976]

Holy cow those are some abs! Your daughter is lovely, is she the feral one?

[fittofattofit]

arm days... such a bber!!!

solid stuff over the weekend... and cute a matching bow tie and dress...

Yeah .... can't help having the arm sessions

And you noticed the matching tie .... it would never have occurred to me but the girls insist upon it now (it's all about them if you hadn't realised already )

You came back for two on 140kg after the fail on squats. That's a tough thing to do. I would have given up but I think you have already been in this zone enough to know that you can make yourself go that little bit further. Good stuff!

All that work you do after amazes me and I understand what you mean when you say after the squats so and so weight feels light. The legs love a good build up and then everything else feels easy. Great feeling and way to go Andrew

Thanks Louise! I was glad that I went back and tackled the squat ... I wish I could say the same about the deads

Lots of volume to destroy arms! Then again chest got the same treatment. : p How are your shoulders coping with dips?

Goodluck tomorrow!

re pic: abs and serratus looking good, lats too.

Thanks! I've dropped the weight I put on in Bali and at 165 I think that I may have gained a pound or two of muscle for the same body fat

The orange ball looks lethal enough, what you need is that brutal weapon from medieval times - a mace...either off the chain or on the end of a stick.

I'm always looking for instruments with which to torture my knotted muscles ... this looks like a perfect one to add to my collection. The mace sounds good but I'm sure that my wife would complain about the blood on the sheets after one of my rolling sessions

Your daughter looks absolutely beautiful! : ) What a lovely couple they make. He seems like a nice lad and especially with the way he's really taken to working with you in the gym.

If only her inner person matched the outside I am assured that teenage girls become human again at some time in their twenties
He is a nice lad and he really looks forward to me taking him to the gym!

I was like that...

Now I prep myself before I apporach the bar...I have a routine that gets myself prepared and when I get under the bar or under a weight I get set with nothing but power visuals going on in the head and just go for it.

Makes a huge difference.

Get a routine down pat and focus on it and simply unleashing da beast!

Thanks Yak ... I really have to work out a mental approach to deadlifting that takes my mind off the lift. Last week I didn't even think about the lifting and I didn't really spend too much time over the bar before pulling it ... today it was a totally different story, and once I'd decided I was going to fail it became self-fulfilling

Nice gun session. That is a lot of volume for arms.

How is the vascularity on a day like this... I would think veins were popping everywhere ; )

Thanks SK! I've gradually added volume and cut rest times on my arm day and I think it's paying off in extra size and vascularity. The veins over my delts and forearms actually look pretty nasty but my biceps veins are deep ... they're lurking and I'm still hoping that one day they're just going to pop!

Good stuff Andrew, look forward to DLs tomorrow! I'm still hoping to see 4 plates soon. : )

Thanks Supah .... unfortunately DL day today was sh!te! 4 plates is looking dismal again

U still cuttin'? You look leaner. VVVVVV




By the way........your daughter is lovely.

Thanks Larry!
I haven't been deliberately cutting since I came back from Bali but with being ill last week I had trouble keeping my food intake up. I'm back at 165 now but I feel that I'm as lean as I was at 163 a month ago so that's at least a positive. The trainer commented today that I was looking leaner and vascular!

Such a pretty daughter you've got mate, they look good together.

I can't believe the volume you give to each muscle group, no wonder you're feeling such good pumps. That stomach is looking awesome mate, leaning up nicely.

Thanks Andy!

Holy cow those are some abs! Your daughter is lovely, is she the feral one? : )

Thanks Christine!
And yes ... that's the feral daughter

Tuesday 6th AUGUST 2013

165lbs

Deadlifts with the PT

Thoracic/hip rotations and stretches

Deadlifts
10 x 70kg (154lbs)
5 x 100kg (220lbs)
5 x 132kg (290lbs)
5, 5 x 142kg (313lbs)
Full reset each rep. Concentrating on form
Head thing happened again .. just wouldn't pull at 152kg/340lbs

Superset
Pendlay rows
10 x 70kg (154lbs)
8, 8 x 80kg (176lbs)
with inverted ring rows
10, 10, 10
Power up; hold; slow neg

Superset
KB banded swings
15, 15, 15 x 24kg KB + bands
with ring pull-ups
5, 5, 5
Pull-up rings to chest; hold;
Slow neg to full extension

Triset:
Prowler reverse Squat and rows
95kg+50kg sled = 145kg/319lbs x 20metres. 3 laps
Prowler tow running backwards
95kg+50kg sled = 145kg/319lbs x 20metres. 3 laps
Cobras
30 sec, 30 sec, 30 sec holds

Thoracic rotations/hamstring stretches

60 minutes

The session:

The deadlifts
The old sh!t was happening today. Just couldn't get my head around the deads. I did 142kg for 5 .. the trainer said with very good form ... then I went to pull 152kg and never got beyond tensioning the bar. My set up just didn't feel right and I spent way too long thinking about it. Last week I did 150kg for reps and then 160kg and 170kg/375lbs for singles and today I didn't even attempt to pull at 152 kg . I still have a lot of issues about my mental approach on deadlift day
We abandoned deads after a second set of 142kg/313lbs

Pendlay rows supersetted with inverted ring rows
Pendlays felt good: keeping back tight; power up; hold; slow neg.
Inverted ring rows: feet on a box, full hang, hands prone; power up chest to rings; hold in hammer position; slow neg

KB banded swings supersetted with ring pull-ups
KB banded swings: band looped through the KB handles, then under the feet; do a KB swing. The bands keep the tension on and you have to use hip drive and keep your balance through the heels. If your balance is out you fall over. This was a good exercise!
Ring pull ups: full hang, hands prone; power up chest to rings; hold in hammer position; slow neg

Prowler reverse squat and rows
Face the prowler with straps at arms length and squat down. Stand up, weight through the heels and row the straps towards the chest
Prowler tow running backwards
This really gets the hammies firing.
The prowler work is starting to feel easier and I'm getting aerobically fitter

I thought that i'd overcome this mental block about the deads but it came back with a vengeance today and it's depressing. I got 170kg/375 last week and there's no reason for what happened today. I know that I'm letting JP, my trainer down and I feel bad about that
Otherwise the upper body work and the prowler work is feeling strong
I'm doing squats with the trainer on Friday and I'm hoping that I'll redeem myself then

[scott_donald]

I know what you mean with deads... i have never liked them so never do them... so many alternatives RDL or olympic lifts!!!

[fittofattofit]

I know what you mean with deads... i have never liked them so never do them... so many alternatives RDL or olympic lifts!!!

I used to be happy with my form but when I popped the facet joint it threw me off .... just can't get the 'tension' right, at least nor consistently. I'd love to get into the oly lifting but given that my RCs are mostly ruptured I can't really work overhead. I'm sort of stuck with squats, deads ,rows and ....... arms

[securekey]

Looking lean in the pic fitto.

I wouldn't worry about the deadlifts too much... everyone has those days. The fact is you are killing it in all your sessions and obviously have the diet working based on the pictures.

[jeezyreezy]

I used to be happy with my form but when I popped the facet joint it threw me off .... just can't get the 'tension' right, at least nor consistently. I'd love to get into the oly lifting but given that my RCs are mostly ruptured I can't really work overhead. I'm sort of stuck with squats, deads ,rows and ....... arms

So what you're saying is you can only get cut, jacked, swole











Keep doing what you're doing... it's working

[fittofattofit]

Looking lean in the pic fitto.

Thanks SK! I'd thought I'd gone backwards with the holidaying and then being ill but I leaned up better than I thought. Of course I really want to be at 8% and weigh 175 so I'll never be happy

I wouldn't worry about the deadlifts too much... everyone has those days. The fact is you are killing it in all your sessions and obviously have the diet working based on the pictures.

Yesterday was just one of those days but I was having way too many of those. I hop to make up for it next session!

So what you're saying is you can only get cut, jacked, swole











Keep doing what you're doing... it's working

Thanks Jeezy ... but I want to get cut-ter, jacked-er and swole-er as well as stronger

7th August 2013

165.5lbs

Upper body

Bench press
FST-7 30-45 sec rest
12, 12, 10, 10, 10, 8, 8 x 60kg (132llbs)

Seated Cable rows
FST-7 30-45 sec rest
12, 12, 12, 10, 10, 10, 10 x 80kg (176lbs)

Wide grip lat pulldowns
FST-7 30-45 sec rest
10, 10, 10, 8, 8, 8, 8 x 80kg (176lbs)

Pec deck flyes
Tempo 5:2:5
8, 8, 8, 8 x 89kg (196lbs)
8 x 89kg ... 6 x 75kg ... 6 x 61kg ... 5 x 47kg drop set

UH close grip pull-downs
FST-7 30-45 sec rest
10, 10, 10, 10, 10, 10, 10 x 80kg (176lbs)

Band pull-aparts

Standing rope 'chest pulls'
20, 20, 20 x 90lbs

Stretches/rolling

60 minutes

I decided to save myself for a good leg session on Friday so today was an upper body day just going for the pump with the chest, lats and shoulders
Didn't take much rest

[jonnyboy44]

Going for the PUMP is an under statement

[fittofattofit]

Going for the PUMP is an under statement

I got a fierce pump out of that session Jon! I figured I'd any heavy work and lower body stuff for my squat day tomorrow

8th August 2013

165lbs

Rehab session

Glute/pyriformis/hamstring stretching before

The trainer looked at me doing 'windmill stretches' to look at my flexibility through my PC.


This is what I was doing ... holding a kettle bell in the one hand and then reaching across down the front of the other leg as low as I could go. The trick is to keep the opposite leg straight so that you open up the PC structures on the side opposite to the way you are bending
I was very tight and could realy only reach to mid shin initially
He got stuck into my glutes, hammies and calves with a ball doing DTM and got me to do some calf stretches and hip mobilisation
He said that the 'fascia' and muscle is very dense through the glutes, hammies and the spinal erectors
After this I could reach to the floor. Managed to do some really good free-standing pistol squats as well

The moral of the story is that I need to do a lot of deep fascial massage of the hammies and the calves before squats and deads

Today is really a recovery day
Tomorrow is a squat session with the trainer and the plan is to go heavy ... I'll let the trainer set the agenda but I'm expecting it will be a heavy volume day, probably looking for max reps at 130kg/286lbs or going for doubles or triples at 140kg/308lbs. I'm looking forward to it ........ and not looking forward to it
I'd better get started on the fish oil

[securekey]

I need a rehab day myself. Good luck with the squats tomorrow.

[jeezyreezy]

In for heavy volume day tomorrow fit

[cmg1976]

Looking forward to hearing about it, I love squat day!

[robertfah]

Great workouts Andrew....looking strong in your latest pic too....that's some solid benching #'s with your shoulders and all...way to keep at it

He got stuck into my glutes, hammies and calves with a ball doing DTM and got me to do some calf stretches and hip mobilisation

had to chuckle when I read that first part Stretching is so overlooked.....even though I don't stretch to 100%, but what I do has seemed to help with everything...especially my back.

[ArchAngel'73]

I was practicin' that whole empathy thing we discussed as I read this page, reached that upper body day...was doing good, feeling the weight and exercises with ya (solid weight/reps btw)...feelin' a little pumped myself (I bet that felt good, heavy but not too heavy lifting)...and then I got to that drop set...

gawd damn that frikkin' burned like ghost peppers on my angus.
-amidoingitright?
Nice work Andrew!

[lllDBOlll]

That looks like a good stretch for me to do mate

[ljimd]

Good to see there was no pain mentioned during your last benching session. Good sign - yes.

I'm feeling achy just thinking about your squat session with the trainer.

[fittofattofit]

I need a rehab day myself. Good luck with the squats tomorrow.

In for heavy volume day tomorrow fit : D

Looking forward to hearing about it, I love squat day!

Thanks SK, Jeezy and Christine! I had a good session and my legs are toast .... I can't walk and I just want carbs!

Great workouts Andrew....looking strong in your latest pic too....that's some solid benching #'s with your shoulders and all...way to keep at it ; )

Thanks Bob ... I'm happy that I didn't seem to lose any mass with being sick. I know the benching is pussy weight but I try to make the tempo and rest times pay. My shoulders aren't complaining at all at the moment

had to chuckle when I read that first part Stretching is so overlooked.....even though I don't stretch to 100%, but what I do has seemed to help with everything...especially my back.

I am sooooo tight through the hammies, especially when I'm training first thing in the morning. Trying to do those windmill stretches was a great reality check .... note to self: 'I must do dynamic stretching of my glutes, hammies and calves!'

I was practicin' that whole empathy thing we discussed as I read this page, reached that upper body day...was doing good, feeling the weight and exercises with ya (solid weight/reps btw)...feelin' a little pumped myself (I bet that felt good, heavy but not too heavy lifting)...and then I got to that drop set...
:eek :
gawd damn that frikkin' burned like ghost peppers on my angus.
-amidoingitright?
Nice work Andrew!

Ha .... thanks Brian. I can see that you've got this empathy thing nailed

That looks like a good stretch for me to do mate

Danny ... I reckon you've got the same issues as me so it will be a great exercise for you, first to see how limited you are on one side compared to the other, and then to see how much better you are after doing a good bitt of stretching for the whole PC

Good to see there was no pain mentioned during your last benching session. Good sign - yes.

I'm feeling achy just thinking about your squat session with the trainer.

Thanks Larry! The benching is light but painfree and I'm just working for that TUT. I'm feeling my pecs engaging and reckon I'm seeing some slow hypertrophy so it's heading in the right direction
I actually start to get butterflies in my stomach just before I go in for the squat sessions ... I'm not sure if it's the 3 double shot cappuccinos I had or the anticipation of how much I'm going to be asking my knees to do

Friday 9th August 2013

167lbs

Squats with the PT

Thoracic/hip rotations and stretches

Paused Squats
Deep. 3 second pause. Explode up
10 x 60kg (132lbs)
5 x 80kg (176lbs)
5 x 90kg (198lbs)

Squats
Deep. Rebound out of the hole
5 x 120kg (264lbs)
3, 3 x 130kg (286lbs)
2 x 140kg (308lbs) fail on 3rd rep
All deep, unassisted

Forward lunges
12 x 60kg (132lbs) each leg
10 x 70kg (154lbs) each leg
8 x 75kg (165lbs) = BW each leg

Step-ups to 18" box
12, 12, 12 x 60kg (132lbs) alternating legs
Supersetted with
Glute Ham Roll-outs with a swiss ball
12, 12, 12

Walking lunges
20 steps, 20 steps x two 40lb DBs
Supersetted with
Swiss ball jacknkives
12, 12

Power Sled Prowlers
50kg Sled + 60kg = 110kg x 40metres
50kg Sled + 70kg = 120kg x 40metres
50kg Sled + 80kg = 130kg x 40metres

Thoracic rotations/hamstring stretches

60 minutes



The session:

Paused Squats
These are feeling really solid now.
90kg x 5 ... no problem at all keeping form or with strength. I need to work on getting more 'explosive' out of the hole

Squats
These felt really good again
120kg x 5 ... all felt strong and balanced
130kg x 3 ... great depth. First set I rolled forwards slightly on one rep. Second set all were good
140kg x 2 ... was going for 3 reps. First two were good but I was slowing down ... got stuck too deep in the hole on the 3rd rep and just dumped the weight. I have no doubt I've got the third rep if I get the timing right

Forward lunges
60kg x 12 each leg .... these felt so light!
70kg x 10 each leg .... easy
75kg x 8 each leg .... this is my BW! Really hitting the quads

Step-ups
60kg x 12 for 3 sets ... quads and glutes

Walking lunges
these are starting to get easier ... I used to hate these. Full range step out, knee to the floor and drive up with the front leg

Prowlers
There is a slight incline to the track so that the first half of a lap is downhill but the second lap is uphill. The 80kg added to the sled was hard ... calves and hammies at max effort and gasping for breath!


This was another great session ...
1. 140kg/3pps is feeling comfortable. Still heavy and I can feel the fatigue with each rep but I'm confident I can get a 3rd rep
2. My form felt really good ... posture was tight and I pulled the bar tight onto my traps
3. No problem with the lower back
4. Knees feel good
5. I'm getting fitter (less knackered ) with the accessory leg work
6. I just love the prowlers ... my hammies and calves are trashed

I can barely walk now

[securekey]

I can barely walk now

[/center]

The true measure of a successful leg session

Your intensity hasn't let up at all after your vacation... if anything I would say it has picked up. Congrats on being mentally tough and sticking with the plan.

[fittofattofit]

The true measure of a successful leg session

Your intensity hasn't let up at all after your vacation... if anything I would say it has picked up. Congrats on being mentally tough and sticking with the plan.

Thanks
I don't know if it's so much about being mentally tough as pig headed
I'm enjoying these sessions and I'm getting fitter. One of the things about them is that the lifting and work all happens in 50-55minutes foillowed by some painful active stretching. There's very little rest time and that's made a huge impact on my overall fitness so I feel like I'm squeezing more work into my lifting times

[ljimd]

"140kg x 2 ... was going for 3 reps. First two were good but I was slowing down ... got stuck too deep in the hole on the 3rd rep and just dumped the weight. I have no doubt I've got the third rep if I get the timing right"

Nearly 2x bwt squat for reps - ain't nothin' to sneeze at. Wish it was me.

[ProtienandIron]

Strong squatting mate. And as always, I'm in awe at the volume of work. Also, good news about your pecs in your upper body session, you deserve it.

[fittofattofit]

"140kg x 2 ... was going for 3 reps. First two were good but I was slowing down ... got stuck too deep in the hole on the 3rd rep and just dumped the weight. I have no doubt I've got the third rep if I get the timing right"

Nearly 2x bwt squat for reps - ain't nothin' to sneeze at. Wish it was me.

Thanks Larry! I did notice a slight strain in the right VMO ('teardrop') so I hope that's not going to become a problem. It would be nice to be getting 5 clean reps at 140kg, and now that you mention it ... 2 x BW would be cool

Strong squatting mate. And as always, I'm in awe at the volume of work. Also, good news about your pecs in your upper body session, you deserve it.

Thanks Andy! I'm surprised myself when I look at the volume of those training sessions .... the supersetting and the short rest times do mean you can get a lot more work in. TBH, by the time the session is ended I'm starting to look at the clock thinking 'I can't take any more'
It's been good to feel that there's some pec activation happening ... it'd be even nicer to press 100kg again

Saturday 10th August 2013

166lbs

Back training with Frenchie no. 1

Yates rows
10 x 60kg (132lbs)
10 x 80kg (176lbs)
10 x 100kg (220lbs)
10 x 110kg (242lbs)
8, 8, 8, 8, 8 x 120kg (264lbs)
16 x 100kg (220lbs)
Strict form

Pendlay Rows
8, 8, 8, 8, 8 x 90kg (198lbs)
Power up; hold; slow down

Landmine rows
10, 10, 10, 10, 10 each arm x 25kg (55lbs) on bar
Strict .. pulling through the lats

Reverse pec-deck Rear delt flyes
10, 8 x 61kg
10, 8 x 54kg
8, 8, 8 x 47kg

Standing rope rows
20, 20, 20, 20, 20 x 90lbs
Serratus, rhomboids, lower traps

Roman chair sit-ups
20, 20, 20 x BW+20kg

80 minutes

I had to work this morning so I got into the gym late. I'd promised Frenchie no. 1 another gym session and he already knows that 'Saturday is back day' so I made him work hard. It was a good session and my lats and midback are fried
Tomorrow will be an HIIT cycling day with a bit of 'fluff' thrown in ... maybe some arms and chest, ahead of Monday which will be A deadlift session with the trainer
It's already the weekend here so that means alcohol and carbs

[jonnyboy44]

Strong back workout

(going to try pairing Pendlays and flat bench press in a superset )

[scott_donald]

haha enjoy the rest of your saturday...

nice wee back session there... so how many frenchies are there???

[fittofattofit]

Strong back workout

(going to try pairing Pendlays and flat bench press in a superset )

Thanks Jon! Pendlays are a great exercise to use in supersets .. my trainer often get's me to superset them with single leg stability work like step-ups after I've been deadlifting but they would be great paired with DB or BB benching

haha enjoy the rest of your saturday...

nice wee back session there... so how many frenchies are there???

Thanks Scott ... I love my leisurely back day on Saturday! There are two Frenchies ... no 1. has been staying with us for 7 weeks ... he's 15. No. 2 is 18 and he and my 18 year-old daughter are an item and are travelling together in France

[robertfah]

Strong couple of workouts doc....diggin' those pause squats....these will help you tremendously.....check out this article on Dan Green about slightly bowing your knees inward when coming out of the hole to get more explosive speed....http://www.jtsstrength.com/articles/...-in-the-squat/

Enjoy your weekend!

[EB68]

Wow Andrew! You are beating gravity down with those squats lately. That was one really tough leg session, followed by a really tough back session. I can see how you would be getting in shape with those sessions.

[fittofattofit]

Strong couple of workouts doc....diggin' those pause squats....these will help you tremendously.....check out this article on Dan Green about slightly bowing your knees inward when coming out of the hole to get more explosive speed....http://www.jtsstrength.com/articles/...-in-the-squat/

Enjoy your weekend!

Thanks Bob and thanks for the PM! That was an interesting read and vid. I really have trouble getting explosive speed out of the hole so it makes sense to recruit as much leg muscle as possible to get that drive happening. I'll try to think about that for the next squat session

Wow Andrew! You are beating gravity down with those squats lately. That was one really tough leg session, followed by a really tough back session. I can see how you would be getting in shape with those sessions.

Thansk Eric! I can feel it making a big difference fitness wise and the squats are feeling really good (although my right knee is objecting a bit at the moment). Now I want to see some carry-over to the deads