Brains, Brawn and Bamboo

Went to the gym for the first time in…ooh, 6-7 weeks. Wanted to see how much of my strength I’d retained in the ‘big three’ since following Pavel’s ‘Power to the People’ program. My best results are below.

Deadlift: 105KG / 231 Lbs x 3 (-7 reps PB)

Bench Press: 65KG / 143 Lbs x 4 (-1 rep PB)

Squat: 70KG / 154 Lbs x 5 (-15KG / 33 PB)

My Bench has fared quite well, only dropping the one rep (I thank all the pushups I’ve been doing). My deadlift reps are slightly down, but then getting 10 reps at the end of PTP was the culmination of 3 months hard work, and I’d rested specifically to tackle such a task. My Squat is dissapointing. I like to think I have strong legs. It’s understandable though, as I did these at the end of the workout, so I didn’t have as much to throw at them.

Also, all the above were reached by the 5 x 5 method, rather than the PTP method (one 100% set and one 90% set), so while the weights/reps are down, the overall volume was way up - in a way, I’m pleased I did so well when such high volume (for weight training) is so unusual for me. I’m also 7 Lbs lighter than when I last attempted these maxes, as well as three weeks out of hospital, rather than three months! Good effort I’d say.

It also demonstrates Pavel’s belief that strength is a skill. I shall meditate on how I can fit this truism into my own ‘instinctive, naked warrior’ way of training.

I also tested how good my barbell curl was (it wasn’t - 25KG / 55 Lbs x 5!) and, after a set of dips to failure, went for a swim. I’m a big fan of the breaststroke (urge to make inappropriate comment…rising…), but this time I mixed it up with front crawl, which I deployed every 5th lap. I only did 20 laps total - I’m hoping to work up to 100 in this format.

Felt good to attack the weights again!

Snippets from my life.

1. Tests reveal I am NOT suffering from adreneal suppression. This is, of course, a good thing. The docs have put me on a new medication as a substitute for the one that made me nauseaous and landed me in hospital recently. Hopefully, it will do it’s job (stop colitis flare-ups) without the side-effects of the previous medication (make me as ill as when I have a colitis flare-up…)

2. No more pullups in the house for me. The door gym I have, which hangs off any door frame and uses your own weight to remain there (very clever) has been, with my repeated use of the device, carving out chunks of plaster above the doors in my house. As we rent, my girlfriend has forbidden me using it for fear of damaging the house beyond our ability to repair it and thereby endanger our deposit. Boo! I see her point but, damn, was I a bit sulky when she threw down that law. I don’t want to go to the gym everytime I want to do pullups…but it seems I have little choice, or rather little opportunity to do pullups, until I find an alternative.

3. In better news, I smoked my Kettlebell Swing (16KG / 35 Lbs) previous best by about 20 reps. I say about, because I can’t find where I wrote down my Kettlebell work from before my hospitalisation earlier this year (the last time I worked swings), but I know I did a lot better this time around: 242 swings in 12 minutes, and I felt a lot more energised than I remember doing before. Could have done more, but my wrists started hurting from the surprise stimulus (a downside of my current ‘instinctive’ training, where you do something everyday, but that something could be absolutely anything. Like Crosstraining, only without the destructive belief that unless you vomit you’re not working hard enough.)

4. Part of my success in the swings is new deep breathing techniques I have been incorporating into my exercise. Not only did it help with the kettlebell work, but I’ve also been using them to help me power through ordinarily super-tough kung fu workouts. Wednesday Kung Fu training is hella-tough, but this past Wednesday, with the deep breathing, I managed amazingly well - full of energy and ready to keep going when the session was done. Hurrah!

5. Have received Brooks Kubik’s book, Dinosaur Training. Everything I’ve read about it suggests it’s a must-have in any fitness fanatic’s library. I look forward to assimilating its knowledge.

Probably going to hit the gym tommorrow and see where my strength in the ‘big three’ (Deadlift, Squat and Bench Press) stands after 6-7 weeks of not doing them. Gonna try and work up to my previous maxes, just to keep the strength in my body, and finish off with a swim.

Let me know what you’re up to!

With my new (kinda) goal of ‘ripping up’ physically while still developing my athletic potential, I am having to re-think my diet. Unfortunately, a lot of truths about fitness/bodybuilding dieting are contraindicated by colitis - that is, stuff that is ordinarily good for people is often bad for people with colitis. Here are my observations:

1. Eat plenty of fruit and vegetables

Personally, I handle fruit reasonably well, but leafy vegetables are another matter. Due to their texture and harsh fibrous make-up, they do not settle very well in a digestive tract afflicted with colitis. In February, I really upped my vegetable intake to see if it would have a positive effect on my colitis. The result was quite the opposite- I felt terrible - and so I tend to avoid leafy vegetables (and tomatoes / onions).

2. Brown bread and rice is better than white bread/rice.

Again, the non-soluble fibre of brown bread and rice mean that a colitis-ridden digestive tract, at best, struggles to process the food and, at worst, is actively agitated by such food. White bread/rice on the other hand, being softer, is easier to digest. I should point out, I tend not to eat any bread, except on rare occasions.

3. Squats and Milk!

Hey, I’m not here to argue with squats! But milk, or rather dairy, is a different matter. I’ve always thought that I’ve handled milk fairly well, but I tend to drink less nowadays so as not to risk agitated my condition. Cheese, except if very mild and in very small amounts, is a big no-no.

4. Don’t eat sweets, chocolates or fried / greasy food.

The problem with coli…wait. This is actually very good advice for colitis. I’ve never had a sweet tooth, but now I hardly ever touch any desserts, fast food or, indeed, any food that is rich, spicy, or strong.

My girlfriend describes my diet as ‘baby food’ - bland and sloppy, so as to place minimum stress on my body. But I do what I need to do to keep getting better. These are just a few of my thoughts on the subject (I have more, but I don’t like to make my posts too long!), and I keep exploring, researching and experimenting with different approaches in the hope that I’ll find the right combination - for me - to control my condition in the long run, and thereby allow my body to fully propel towards my athletic goals.

Any ideas are most welcome.

In other news, I’ve been doing a lot of pullups/chinups these last couple of days. Big stretch, slow and controlled. Greasing the groove throughout the day. Throwing in pushups to balance them out. Bodyweight training really is refreshing - anytime, anywhere!

I’ve radically reduced the number of calories in my diet. I’m adopting a ‘near constant grazing’ approach, whereby I have multiple tiny meals of (mostly) very healthy stuff (fruit, lean white meat, yoghurt, nuts etc.). I’m hoping that this will…

1. Put less stress on my digestive tract (vast amounts of food may not be the best thing for colitis…)

2. Put an emphasis on maintaining my current weight (around 170lbs), rather than bulking up. I’d like to be bigger, but if I can hold on to my current weight at such a (relatively) low caloric level, then bulking up periods in the future will be easier, both practically and on my digestive system.

Plus, if I’m honest…I’m kinda wanting to be…you know…(looks around, embarrassed)…ripped. Figure rather than struggle to gain weight, then I can at least make what I have look good(ish)!

Anyway, it’s a new approach, and will need a trial period. We’ll see how it goes.

Training wise, I’ve taken the week of Kung Fu to recover after my recent hospitaliation (all 3 days of it, but the build-up was draining). I have, however, adopted an ‘instinctive’ approach to home training. Lots of bodyweight exercises - as a martial artist, I know many such exercises - whenever I feel like it. A moderate amount, everyday, with some skill stuff thrown in; hand balancing, grip work etc.

I’m liking the freedom, and the primal nature of bodyweight work. Pavel’s Naked Warrior is an inspiration. However, I don’t want to lose my deadlift/iron strength, nor do I want to be one of these crazed ‘bodyweight-exercises-only’ fanatics that you find on the internet (usually hassling the ‘weight-lifting-exercises-only’ fanatics…) I want the freedom to flow among all exercise outlets.

I’ll have to think of a way to combine all such elements without restricting myself with a too-rigid regime and thereby negating the primal freedom of ‘any time, any where, any way’ exercise. I’ll post my thoughts, when I have some.

Until then…I think some pullups are in order!

I’ve been in and out of hospital. Again. This time they’re not quite sure why my health spiralled out of control so quickly. Most likely it was an adverse reaction to new medication they put me on, or the dosage of it at least. Adrenal suppression is also an option (adrenal glands gone to sleep). They’re running tests to check out the possibility.

I’ve lost weight, though managed to stay above 12 Stone/ 168 Lbs…just. But I’m wrecked. I’m absolutely exhausted, mentally as well as physically.

I really don’t know where to go from here. I’ve given up on having a weight goal - what’s the point when, with colitis, it’s a good day when you wake up and haven’t lost weight? Why struggle for every scrap of mass when in the space of 7 days any gains (and then some) can be obliterated, all because my unique internal geography randomly decides to have a hissy fit?

I’m not whining about having a chronic medical condition - gods know there are uncountable people in the world with worse things than me. But it is frustrating, physically traumatic, and I can’t act like it doesn’t affect me or the choices I can make with my body.

I’ve taken down my progress photos. They showed no progress, despite strength and mass gains. I don’t want to look at my skeletor-esque frame, I doubt anyone else wants to. Besides, athletics, not aesthetics, right?

I’m considering cancelling my gym membership. Not cancelling exercise, but when I can held up for months at a time with the condition, a lot of money can be wasted with medical layups.

In limbo at the moment. Need some time to think; to meditate on things.

Maybe I’ll know what I need to do when I next blog.