isaias53_5’s BodyBlog

 I have a slightly herniated disc, tennis elbow, and a mild case of carpel tunnel. All hurting my right extremity. I guess it was too mush weight training and Body Space sessions LOL! But it’s a lot better now. Ortho says i’m in the recuperative stage.

It seems as though when you are in pain it feels like the pain will never ever go away. My shoulder has been flaring up again lately. It’s not an inner pain but kind of an overall trapezius muscle pain. It’s now pinching my right upper back by my shoulder blade. So I decide to go to the chiropractor again. After a few tests and xrays later he discovers a couple of stiff vertabrae. He makes me lie on my belly, sinks his knee in my lower back, then my mid back, then my upper back. Then he makes me lie on my side and twists me forcefully. Then I lie on my back and he grabs my neck and gives it a yankin twist. Through the whole time I feel my bones pop and crack. Then I got a soothing massage therapy. After a nice afternoon nap today I finally feel some relief in the area. Hopefully this procedure willFINALLY get me back up and running in the gym. I guess time will tell.

Well, I made it back to the gym today after a voluntary week off. I needed the rest. I got to the gym all psyched up and ready to pump. Started with slightly-inclined db flyes, 12 reps and increasing the weight till I could fly no more. Then I began pressing on the same bench, again increasing the weight with each set. Then I followed with light close-grib barbell presses. Next was shoulder pullups, geat for overall shoulder burn. And then db lateral raises to peak out the delts. Finally I topped it all of with 10 min on the elliptical. First day back felt good! Gotta keep it goin, gotta show the iron who’s still in charge!

Well it’s day 5 of my no-weights active rest. So far, no weight training and only a good jog or 25 min run. I am still watching what I eat though: grazing on high protein and low carb, plenty of water. So far I feel great, rested, and relaxed. Because I’m not getting up at 4 am to workout I’m getting at least two more hrs of sleep per day. The knots on my shoulder and upper back are loosening up. I’ve gained about 2 pounds, but I look in the mirror and see no extra fat accumulation, muscles still look fine. I’ll stick to it for about 3 more days. I should be back and strong at the gym for a good iron pumping by the weekend. CAN’T WAIT!

This week I decided to take a break from weights. I’ve been doing fine, changing up the routine, doind plenty of cardio and HIIT training and seeing good results. But my shoulder and upper back is turning into a knot. It’s not easy to get up at 4 am to get to the gym and get a good workout going. So I decided to take a good rest this week, sleep in till 6am. In the afternoon I enjoy the weather and do some cross-country running. That’s a whole lot of fun! I think my body was just trying to tell me to stp pushing so hard for so long and relax. So, I’m listening. I’m sure next week I’ll be back at the gym rested and as strong as ever.

Run one mile less: When it comes to cardio "Your body can interpret excessive exercise as stress, causing you to retain fluid and become constipated," says Diana Taylor, R.N., Ph.D., at the University of California-San Francisco Center for Reproductive Health. But moderate exercise, such as yoga or walking, can speed things through your system and help nix the problem.

 Found this interesting on the web:

 1. Myth: To get rock-hard, you have to work your abs every day.
Why: Abs need rest and recovery: It’s only during rest that your muscles build. “Three to five days a week of consistent, dedicated abdominal training should get you strong, sleek abs,” says Kathy Kaehler, trainer and author of Kathy Kaehler’s Celebrity Workouts.

2. Myth: A good ab workout takes half an hour.
Why: “If it takes you that long to feel them working, you’re doing something wrong,” says Kaehler. “I trained Jennifer Aniston about three days a week, and we did no more than five minutes of abs each time.” Check your form, don’t use momentum and focus on quality rather than quantity.

3. Myth: Super-slow crunches make you stronger.
Why: Taking as much as a minute per crunch doesn’t make you stronger than regular crunches do. In fact, ultra-slow ab work is less effective. Ideally, your workout should help you do everything better, from kickboxing to picking up a suitcase - neither of which you do in slo-mo.

4. Myth: The best time to train your abs is at the end of your workout.
Why: “It makes no physiological difference when you train abs, it only matters that you do it consistently,” says abs researcher and physical therapist Gilbert Willett, M.S., associate professor at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. So the best time to work them is simply whenever you’re most likely to do it. “But if you do abs at the beginning of your workout, make sure you warm up first. Getting blood moving prevents many types of injuries during a workout.”

5. Myth: You can’t get a six-pack by doing Pilates.
Why: “Pilates exercises your core, so if you practice it regularly and combine it with diet and cardio, it can give you a six-pack,” says Kimberly Lyons, a personal trainer in L.A. But Pilates isn’t a six-pack guarantee. “How your abs look has a lot to do with your genes, how lean you are, how long your torso is and how tall you are.“

6. Myth: You won’t get firm without a weight machine.
Why: You don’t need weights to build sleek and sexy abs, although some competitive athletes do use them to build extra strength. "Many weighted ab machines aren’t designed for women," says Lyons. "If you don’t fit into the machine properly, you might stress your body in the wrong spot." Her advice: Stick to the floor - it’s cheap, effective and available everywhere.

OK On my regime of weights one day and cardio the next, looking good. Have lost 3 more pounds, don’t think I’ve lost any muscle.

Here’s what my cardio day looks like this week:

4am Wake up, down some black coffee, 3 tbs liquid Amino Fuel, glass of water.

5:45 am Elliptical HIIT training: 5 in warmup, then alternate one minute sprint, one min slow. Continue for 20 min straight increasing the difficulty level by one with each rep.

I hit 170 heart rate almost immediately when compared to treadmill or regular cardio workouts.

10 min on a spinner medium speed.

Close with 15 min in the sauna.

Today was a good co-workers birthday. So for lunch break we all gathered in a classroom and had our meal. Then someone walks in with a 5 lb scrumptuous chocolate cake! It was huge! It had three layers with fudge in between them, frosted with more rich chocolate frosting, and topped with shavings of dark chocolate.

As they began serving the cake I just sat peacefully and passed to next person the enormous slice that was handed to me. "You aren’t eating cake?" they asked. I said, "No, I’m quite full. Thank you." They could not believe I just sat there, enjoyed the gathering and company and not have a single little slice.

But that’s just me. I’m as surprised as they are about how disciplined I’ve become when it comes to this type of food. I don’t know, I just imagine how log it would take me to burn it off at the gym and how sluggish I’d be after eating it. I guess I have just learned to resist, so it flees from me.

For the past month I’ve been debating on whether or not to do early morning cardio on an empty stomach or after a meal. So far, the research is mixed. I did learn that if you want to look slim, then cardio on an empty stomach is the sbest bet. But if you ar elike me, you want to look lean and build muscle at the same time, then cardio is not the solution. After a 6 to 8 hour fasting period while you sleep your body craves energy and protein. Not finding any sources to tap on your body begins consuming the protein from your muscles before it begins to tap into your body fat storage. That’s something I do not want!

So I started having a protein shake before cardio but, ugh!, I felt so sluggish and sick. See, I get up at 4 am, down my coffee and head to the gym before work. i don’t have time to digest any kind of meal no matter how simple.

Then I went to a vitamin store that opened up in town and I found something that I hadn’t seen in a while: Liquid Amino Fuel. That was my "AHA!" moment. Liquid amino fuel is very easily digested and, needing only 3 spoonfuls, it does not fill the stomach. It has all this good stuff:

So I bought it and decided to give it a shot. Today at 4 am I got up, had some black coffee, and downed three spoonfuls of liquid amino acids. I headed to the gym and man did I have a great cardio workout! I felt so pumped and full of energy, not nauseated, and not hungry at all. I burnes about 4000 cal in 40 minutes.

It felt really good. Though it is too early to tell what the real results might be. I will post results after about a month to see if this new method really works.