hdjedi1’s BodyBlog

No spasms for 48 hours, a good abs session yesterday and light lifting all week.  Good mobility, no warnings and actually feels relatively ok this morning when I woke up.  Waking is the time it generally feels the tightest.  I’m almost healed up.

Amy mentioned low weight squats with exploding upward should preserve the back and work the legs.  I wonder if you have opinion on working your legs with light squats versus press and would sissy squats be a gool alternative. I don’t think I will be able to squat over 200 again, so definately will be looking for alternatives.  Best Rob

Hit 30 minutes of cardio this morning and did arms this afternoon.  My back is definately on the mend after two weeks or various spasms, lock up and a bugger of a time getting out of bed.  I think tmrw I will try to do abs after cardio and see how that goes. If that’s OK, i might try bench for the two a day.  I’m very relieved I must say.

So I have been taking some time off lifting to let my back heal.  I am doing some morning cardio. 

My weight has had a pretty dramatic change.  I having been eating/supplimenting like I was when I was lifting. I lost almost 4 pounds in the past couple of weeks.  I admit the cardio session as longer (from 20 minutes to 40 minutes) and I’m not taking in the same amount of calories, but I am surprised at the loss.  I also didn’t do cardio thurs and friday, and still have lost a pound in the last day and a half. I best start eating, I only have been off the weights about a week.

Hopefully I will be able to get back in the game next week. Back is still very sore in the morning and if not better in the next couple of days will get an Xray. Chiro sessions are temp relief if anything at all.  I must say I am disappointed that I am side lined.  However, usually do recover quickly from a break.

So my back last is still bugging me and I have had a couple more spasms. Aye carumba … i’ve been injury free for so long. This is a P.I.A.

Anyway tried to work out today and after a set and a strong warning from behind me, I gave in. Incline bench press went okay, but first set of flat and I got a warning. Getting up off the bench to add weight I got a big warning shot of pain. So, I think I’m just gonna do cardio until I feel better…but, that’s what i think tonite …will probably try something tmrw. I hope it feels better soon … i was thinkin the progress was really good this past month.

I have been trying the M+F workout which is 5-6 sets per exercise, starting heavy and getting light.  Typical set reps are 6,6,10,12,12.  So to do this, which is somewhat opposite what I have been doing, I’ve been jumping from warm up to heavy and working backward.  It works on some exercises, other’s I just can recommend.

Case in point: squats. 1 warm up set and then jumping to a wieght for failure in 6 reps was almost a disaster for me.  On rep two of the heavy set I felt a "clunk" in my mid back and felt like I suddenly got shorter.  CRAP! Replaced the bar, tried to stretch and called the chiro.

My Chiro appreciates the fact that i work out.  He has helped me quite a bit over the last year, allievating some soreness and a pinched nerve.  However, he thinks only Olympians should bother with squats. I know that squats are making me bigger and stronger, he wants a promise of not doing them. Felt like telling him I am paying for a service and keep your not so flat belly opinions to yerself….

At any rate, I am still sore and have had a couple of spasms this week, but fully plan to be back (pardon the pun) next week.  I will modify the plan.  I think the low to high is probably pretty good after one or two good warm up sets, but certainly not before.  I like the 12 reps for finishing … it does seems to make a real difference.

Congrats to the "ladies" competing this weekend.  You have my admiration and respect.  Maybe some day I’ll have the nerve (and size!) to do what you are doing.

I have recently been blessed with a "part time" training partner.  What a difference that makes!  Having a spotter and a cheer leader is really something wonderful.  They can also help you with habits you didn’t even know you had, or worse, have and are quite bad and counter productive.

So I had a habit.  I hold my breath during excertion.  I didn’t realize until I was being spotted on a dbell chest set.  Struggling to get the last rep out … I suddenly hear "breathe" (quietly at first) and the much more urgently: "BREATHE YOU IDIOT, YOU’RE TURNING PURPLE".

Next set, same thing… "BREATHE: You’re forgetting".  I must say it took some work to get over this… I mean, I just thought that was the way you did things.  So I am doing abs this morning … using a ball and a 40 pound weight and after the first set of thirty, I’m graced with a lactic build up on my second set at around 15… And I hear it again .. BREATHE YOU MORON … So I muster all the discipline I can .. breathe through the third set and reach a good failure point over 30 reps - without the build up.  I think that’s the first time ever.

This probably seems silly to you … but without a partner I would have had no idea. I think this is really going to make a difference from now on.

Other new thing was today was the first use of NO XPLOD and Glutamine. I working on that low/high rep Muscle and Fitness routine (which i will cover next time cus so far I’m really likin it!).  Had a great pump and really worked hard throughout the set. Seems like a good things so far.

And finally, thank god for air conditioning.

Best, Rob

Friday nite I had planned a shoulder set and some abs, then off to meet the boys.  I was just finishing up when the strongest gal I personally know came into the gym.  Taking one look at someone who has put that many years into their body was motivation enough for me to stay and push it as hard as I could.  So as this person was doing some HIT, I was started to work harder then I think I ever have before.

So the "simple shoulders" turned into shoulders, tri’s, wrists, abs and traps.  I felt very inspired and took everything as heavy as I could, and doing single and double drops on final sets. It felt wonderful and I could hardly lift my arms once done.  I breathlessly thanked this person for the inpiriation (without goin over the top, and she sure seemd pleased that I felt it) and headed home.

So I now realize that state of mind might be the more important part of the workout.  I will endevor to find that space again where nothing seemed to matter but getting on with it, making it heavy and just tryin hard.  How do you get into that zone I wonder?