1/22

speed bench
135x10
185x5
225x3
275x3
315x3
I felt like pushing myself any harder might make the illness come back, so I took it easy and just did some rows and face pulls after this.

1/24

I saw my PT for MAT the day before (1/23) and she did some of the best work ever on me. Between her being excellent at what she does and me giving her feedback on everything, she somehow got my low back and pelvis and upper back and neck aligned so that my right hip and right TFL/VL & gracilis felt better, even though she didnt work on the right leg directly.

She worked on my left adductors, and all kinds of low back, mid back, upper back & neck stuff, mostly on the left side, as well as obliques and some obscure abdominal muscles I had never heard of before.

This should help my bench a lot, as I was not pulling the bar evenly for a while due to upper back muscle imbalances. Moving for DLs and everything else last night felt better than usual. I hope I can figure out how to make this stuff hold up now.

She gave me a couple side plank modifications to do, which I did as part of my usual warmups last night. I also swapped out glute bridges for ball hamstring curls with a glute squeeze at the top. I'll continue doing this stuff for a while.


DL
225x5x2
315x3
425x2
all raw, double overhand

suit
515x1
605x1x2

Everything moved a little slower than I would have liked. I felt a little bit in the middle of the left hamstring on the heavier stuff, but it wasnt bad. This work was enough to make me break a sweat. I decided pulling as secondary work wouldnt be the best idea. I dont need to push myself now. I have lots of time before the meet and I still feel minor effects of the cold.

belt squat
2 plates per side x 10
3 plates x 10
4 plates x 10
4 plates + 25 x 10

GHR
20 - done slow and controlled. It felt pretty good.

That sounds like a very productive visit.

The best yet!

1/26

bench press
95x10
135x10
185x5
225x3
275x2
315x1

blue shirt
2 boards
545x1
585x1

tight black shirt
2 boards
615x1


raw
225 + 4 chains x 3
275 + 4 chains x 3
275 + 6 chains x 3
275 + 8 chains x 2, near miss on 3rd

cable rows

rope pushdowns

face pulls

It looks like to you dropped the attempted weight a little but got all the planned lifts. Nice work, coming off a cold and all. Is the black SDP fitting better now?

Thanks! I'm having a (hopefully minor) relapse now. bleh.


1/28

squat
65x5
155x5
245x1 - quads felt knotted up. I tried loosening them up and put on briefs. The briefs helped some.

335x3
425x2
515x1, 1, 1
Teammates said I looked very shaky and suggested that I not do more. I didnt know wtf was going on. I decided to DL.

DL in squat suit (didnt have DL suit with me)
385x1
455x1
545x1
605x1
Everything was pretty good, but my left knee felt a little off on the last pull, so I moved on.

DL vs bands
a few sets of 405x3 vs more bands as I went. The last set was a bit challenging, but not too bad.

GHRs
20
I felt run down, so I stopped.


I take a lot of supplements, so I figured something I was taking probably had something to do with the leg knots. I think it was probably from too much DMAE. I stopped caffeine a long time ago and havent found a good substitute. I read some stuff about DMAE, most of it sounds very good - mental clarity, good for skin, etc. I've been using it for a while now, but recently I've started taking more of it. I did some digging and muscle cramps can be a side effect. I have noticed I was jittery on some heavy bench presses lately. I'm pretty sure this is also either contributing to, or causing the knots in my quads. I am going to go off it for a week or two and see what happens. From what I read, it can take a few days to clear this stuff from your system.


1/29

speed bench
45x15
135x10
185x5
225x3
275x3
315x3
I felt kind of run down and my muscles were still feeling weird, probably still from too much DMAE the previous day. I stopped benching and did some 1 arm cable rows and face pulls. As mentioned above, I think I'm having a relapse of the cold, so that probably had me a little run down as well.

I wish you well in clearing all that out soon (both the cold and the DMAE).

Thanks. The cold went away shortly after that last post. I'll know more tonight about the muscle pains - squat night.

I was in Cancun for a week destroying my digestive system, lol. I came back weighing about the same (251.8 as of Saturday) despite eating all the food and averaging about six margaritas a day on top of that. I have a colonoscopy scheduled in a couple weeks (once every 5 years), so I think I am going to try eating to maintain 250 - 255 lb bw until then. I'll probably be in the 3500 - 4000 calorie range, still trying to keep protein 250 - 300+ grams per day.

We got a lot of cardio going up and down stairs at the hotel, and also we climbed the pyramid at Coba all the way to the top. That's the tallest pyramid in Mexico. I didnt start getting very winded until I was about 10 - 15 steps from the top. I remember a little over a year and a half ago climbing the slightly shorter pyramid at Ek Balam, which is slightly shorter - I didnt get to the top and I got extremely winded. Plus my left knee wasnt as solid then as it is now - that was about six or seven months after my first PRP & stem cell injections. The difference between the two climbs felt like night and day as far as both knee health and conditioning. I only did light pushing and pulling stuff in the gym one of the days we were there. It was good to deload.


2/8

DL
225x5x2
315x3

suit
405x1 - I was having stomach issues, so I had to stop DLing. Also, the right side of my low back was spasming a little. I carried around a light KB in my left hand for a while, then Mrs Cha massaged the back later. It felt better the next day.


2/9

bench press
95x10
135x10
185x5
225x3
275x2
315x1

blue SDP
2 boards
545x1
585x1
615x1
I got a video of the 615. The right elbow was wobbling all over. Also, the right side has been getting harder and harder to lock out on anything 6+ plates lately. I asked doc, PT and coach about what's going on. The coach says more shoulder & tricep work. PT says the issue could be neck nerve entrapment affecting scapula or triceps. Doc said it could be a dozen things. I see PT next Thursday and chiro this Friday. Hopefully between what they do and doing a little more accessory work, I can fix this.

band floor press
2 short bands & bar x 3 - way too light
same bands the rest of the way - we just added weight
225x3
275x3
315x2 - the lockout of the 2nd rep was hard. Time to move on.

medium wide cable rows
160x15
200x12
260x6

face pulls - 2 sets

tricep pushdowns - light & about 20 or 25 reps 1 set. This hurt my right elbow a bit.

Sounds like a great trip.

Aside from the digestive issues, it was

2/11

squat
65x10
166x5
256x5
346x3

briefs
436x2
526x1

suit
666x1

knee wraps
726xf I got forward
726xf weak

My legs felt like ****, but thats no excuse. I was using my old two ply looser briefs because I had sent my good briefs in to get them tightened up a little. That didnt help. I still shouldnt miss this weight.

belt squats

reverse hypers

ghrs

2/12

floor press
135x10
185x5
225x3
275x3x2

Back side of left shoulder felt tight, so I stopped.

push ups
20 - felt very good
+ 2 chains (~22 lbs per chain) x 10
+ 4 chains x 10
+ 6 chains x 8 - challenging

My right elbow felt bad, so I put the voodoo band on it in couple places and did a couple more sets of 20 pushups. That made it feel a bit better.


cable rows

face pulls

2/14

I saw chiro and he did stuff to about a dozen different things that had me feeling much better.

DL
225x5x2
315x3
405x2

suit
495x1
585x1
645x1 (post hamstring tear pr + 30) - form was spot-on
645x1 - I was very slightly forward. It felt slower than it looked on video. My hamstrings shook a bit. weak.

conventional rack pulls ~2" or 3" below the knees
405x2 - silly light
585x2
675x2
725xf - weak hamstrings- it never left the pins
705x1 - slow and difficult. Weak hamstrings.

standing 1 leg hamstring curls
2 sets, slow and controlled

GHRs
20x2 - slow and controlled

seated band hamstring curls
2 sets

2/16

bench
95x10
135x10
185x5
225x3
275x2
315x1

opener shirt - sleeves tightened 1/2" (which is a lot)
2 boards
545x1
605x1 - lockout slow on right side

tight SDP - sleeves tightened 1/2"
2 boards
635x1 - pretty smooth & solid

raw
3 boards
315x3
365x3
405x2
425x1

seated machine rows
hands wide
200x15
~250x10

moved hands in
300x12, held last rep as long as I could


PNF D2 flexion
2 x 15

hammer curls with big sledge hammer
lots



My friend who had the heart attack got his ejection fraction checked recently. Its up to 49. Its supposed to be at least 55 if you're healthy. His was 30 in early December, so it has come back quickly, but its still not where you want it to be. He weighed 235 at the time of the heart attack. He's down to 199 now. He's been doing light (for him) lifting and lots of cardio.

Looks like the chiropractor and the tailor have you nicely on track.

Glad your friend's recovery is progressing.

yup, thanks!

Awesome lifts Cha, way to heal up and keep lifting big weights!

I’m curious about what you did to heal up your neck, from your log I see stem cells/prp, graston, face pulls, and cable rows? Is that all you did or is there more rehab stuff not mentioned? Would you recommend neck harness work or is the risk not worth it?

Thanks!

I generally try to keep decent posture, keep my thoracic spine mobility good, and avoid movements that aggravate the neck. For me, basically any overhead work screws my neck up.

The biggest thing for your neck with regards to form on any lift is to keep the neck so its in a neutral position during lifts, ie, dont let your neck crane forward or your head hang forward during any lifts.

I did have PRP and stem cells injected into my neck by one of the best docs at doing regenerative medicine. That helped a lot.

I do mid and upper back exercises like face pulls and rows regularly to try to keep the muscles supporting my spine in balance.

I've read all kinds of stuff on the neck and had a lot of physical therapists work with me on my neck as well. I get adjusted regularly by a very good chiropractor who also does ART on me. That helps a lot. Within the past year, I started seeing a PT who does MAT on me. That is pretty amazing stuff if you can find a good provider, but its not cheap.

I would not recommend a neck harness because that loads your spine while you're flexing and extending it, which leads to disc injuries.

I got behind on logging again.

2/18

squat
legs felt like **** again, and I missed 725 again once, but I smoked it the next time I tried it. I think I figured out that I was not sitting back for my heavy squats and that's why I was missing 725.

Also my hamstrings are weak. I did a bunch of hamstring stuff.


2/19

floor press
up to 315x3
back side of left shoulder and right elbow felt like ****, so I stopped. Pushups didnt feel very good either. I did a bunch of pulling stuff.


2/20
MAT by my PT - she got a new toy. Its some kind of super high tech muscle stimulator that is supposed to work slow twitch fibers only, and it works them at something like 10x a regular TENS unit. I didnt feel a lot while she was working on me, but I felt pretty good when she was done. Whatever she did, she got my back working again like its supposed to.

2/21
I did bench & DL because I was going to miss lifting Sunday because it was colonoscopy prep day, yay.

bench
raw up to 365x1 - this felt way easier than it has in months due to whatever my PT did to me the day before.

blue shirt
2 boards
585x1 - smoked
635x1 - pretty solid, but right elbow was sore at lockout.


DLs up to 585x1
Left knee felt a bit unstable at 585. A teammate noticed I gripped the bar unevenly and that probably caused a bit of bar shifting and knee cave. I stopped there to be safe, knowing that I wasnt going to be eating anything two days later. I did a bunch of posterior chain stuff, including GHRs, hamstring curls and RDLs up to 455x5. That stuff felt good.


2/22

Helped out 4 lifters at a beginner meet. When that was over, we went to another meet that was still going on about 5 minutes away. Saw a 22 year old dude who weighs 210 smoke his DL opener of 760. He missed his 2nd attempt of 810 because the bar turned in his hands and ripped the **** out of his skin. He lost so much skin that he couldnt attempt his 3rd. I talked to him a while about grip. He grips the bar too low - he's trying to reduce ROM, but when you're pulling 800+, a solid grip is necessary. I guess it isnt important for "only" 760, lol. That kid is a beast. I think he has 850 in him when his hands heal up and if he sharpens his form just a little bit, and if/when he gains some more weight, he's got a legit shot for 900+.


2/23
colonoscopy prep, bleh, no food for a day and a half, and up half the night shitting

2/24
I was half asleep when I had to get out of bed, go down stairs and drink my last dose of laxative 4 hours before the procedure. When I got to the second to last stair, my right foot slipped out, missed the last two stairs and hit the floor. I caught myself on one leg, but it gave me a jolt of nerve pain down my calf and up the side of my leg. Its related to the proximal fibula/tibia joint that I've been having problems with. Doc shot me with PRP in this joint a year and a half ago, which helped a lot, but its not 100%. It still causes this nerve pain sometimes, but its never hurt so bad before.

They found nothing bad in the colonoscopy procedure, yay for that, but my leg felt very bad. I couldnt use the outer part of my right hamstring without jolts of pain in the leg. I got pain from sitting down, standing up, putting on clothes and shoes and even just rolling over in bed. I did not sleep well last night. Doc said I should get an xray.


2/25

I had an appointment today with my chiro, so he took an xray and examined the ligaments today. Good news. No broken bones and no ligament damage. He says the joint capsule got irritated and he thinks it will feel a lot better in a matter of days. I just need to rest it for a while. He did a bunch of ART and other stuff on me. It feels somewhat better now, but I'm still a long ways from being able to squat. I am hoping to be ok to DL Friday.

Glad the colonoscopy went well. Given the five year schedule, I imagine they're being vigilant about things. Sorry to hear about the stairs...hopefully that will heal up quickly.

Congrats on colon and no broken ligaments or bones. And at least you didn't **** yourself when you fell?

yeah, my dad died from colon cancer, so I started at age 40 and have them every five years.

lol, no ****. In hindsight, that part was pretty lucky.

Thanks and hope the leg heals quick!

I already do a bunch of face pulls but I’ll try out some sort of horizontal row. I do a lot of jiu jitsu and the neck harness is seen by that community as helpful, especially the extensions but I didn’t think the risk was worth any additional strength. Thanks for confirming!

I am very sorry to hear that.

I mentioned it only because you posted earlier about being on a five year schedule. I am on a five year schedule as well (nothing major...or even minor, at least IMO), so it caught my eye. Again, glad you checked out all clear.