I suppose there are degrees to the severity. My wife and daughter are both allergic to morphine - they break out & get terrible itching from that. They also get reactions from less potent narcotics.

No I wouldn't do GOMAD with these stats.

O.K.

I think I'm stalling in my press and close to stalling on my squat doing 5/3/1. I couldn't complete 5 reps in the first week of the third cycle on the press. Do I complete the cycle and then deload the numbers by 1-2 cycles for the fourth cycle, or do I recalculate for the second week with numbers from 1-2 cycles ago?

What's my play here?

sounds like you're having a ****ty week, so give it another week to complete the cycle. if it blows chunks again, reset it.

been having some achilles soreness and discomfort after just walking (right achilles worse than left), walk around 7 miles to/from work each day. never had these before, is this an issue of shoe support wearing out, too much volume, or both?

i've been stretching it and i'm beginning to do ART on it w/ the barbell thing, but it kind of scares me.

other than ice and stretch, and exercises i can do in the downtime?

and is it ok to continue doing other lifts/bw exercises (i don't box jump or anything insane).

I read something (or maybe I heard it on a podcast) by Mike Robertson recently about achilles issues. Running is not good for it, and I'm sure jumping is bad too - probably worse. I'll post a link if I can find it, but dont hold your breath waiting for it. It might be hard to find.

Definitely do soft tissue stuff on your calves. Roll the bottom of your feet with a lacrosse ball. If you can afford it, find a chiropractor who does both Graston Technique and ART. My wife had achilles issues (she likes to run) and my chiro made it better mostly with Graston on the achilles and a little ART to the calves.

http://www.grastontechnique.com/LocateaProvider.html

http://www.activerelease.com/providerSearch.asp

Both flare ups of achilles tendonitis I've had (the first one severe, the second one mild) were both solved by getting new workboots and/or socks. Rest definitely helps since I had a well timed vacation to help with the second time.

Taking off my shoes as often as possible helped with the one time I had an inflamed achilles which was really hard to shift although how much was to do with the timeframe I dunno.

Hiya guys

Happy new years first of all!

Its time to crush 2012 so im planning on doing lots of mobility work as well. I already have a foam roller but i wanna order a lacrosse ball as well. I have no experience with those and the sport isnt really well known so i have to order them online. Ive finally found a site but there are a lot of choices, could any of you guys take a look please?
http://www.prolaxshop.com/advanced_s...?keywords=Ball

Thx already

It might be easier to go to a local sporting goods store and get one if theres one nearby. They're like $2 max and you'd prob pay more than that in shipping if you order it. Also, for SMR purposes, one lax ball is going to be the same as another. I'd just grab a cheap one.

As far as I know, the only difference in lacrosse balls is the color. Just get one (or several - I have ~10 lying around the house) and start using/learning to use one. They're very useful.

Dick's Sporting Goods carries lacrosse balls. I assume Sports Authority does too. I bought three. Keep one upstairs, one downstairs with my weights, and one at work. I get funny looks leaning up against the wall outside my cubicle rolling my upper back, but it's worth it.

I'd like to thank you guys for sharing the lacrosse ball + wall massage on these forums. It's pretty damn amazing!

I love the way it hits spots I could never reach effectively on my own.

So I'm trying to improve my basic body weight workout routine to start using my new dumbbells. I'd like to split it into seven different body parts, and work out every day, 2-4 sets per day. Something like:

Chest
Abs
Arms
Back
Glutes
Shoulders
Legs

1. Is there any real downside to doing this as opposed to working out only three times per week (basically doing the exact same sets per week, only split into three workouts instead of seven)? Time isn't a concern, and I feel like it's easier to get the workout done if it's scheduled every day, so it becomes a part of the daily routine.

2. I'm not trying to get huge instantly, just gradually building a little muscle while getting stronger. There seems to be conflicting information out there, but if I've understood correctly, cardio for weight loss is best done in the morning before breakfast, while weight training should be done after eating something, is that right? I like to exercise early and don't feel hungry in the mornings, should I still push the workout between breakfast and lunch? Or just try to drink a protein shake while waking up and stretching, then workout, shower, breakfast?

Mr. Underscore,

I would suggest reading the faq.

I've been to the FAQ a couple times but didn't really see information related to scheduling. Are you saying the answers are there (if yes, a little hint as to where would be appreciated), or suggesting that I should be on SS like everyone else?

I would suggest getting on a novice program like suggested in the FAQ, e.g. Starting Strength, Greyskull LP etc. Your workouts sound very suboptimal for your goals. More is not better.

Something like lifting 3/week and cardio of some kind 2/week is ok.


You can largely ignore timing of both lifting and cardio and nutrition. Do it whenever it suits you. Getting some food in will probably be better for performance though. A protein and carb shake is plenty.

ETA:
the most fundamental concepts you need to understand are:
- You need to eat at a caloric surplus to add muscle mass AND get the proper amount of protein (1-1.5 g/lbs of LBM)
- Do something non-******ed for lifting, barbell lifts are preferable due to easy measurement of progression and being able to do compound lifts, i.e. hitting lots of muscle groups simultaneously
- Your programming needs to include progress of some kind. This and the above is why barbell novice programs always will be suggested.

Dwarrior,
trolling the beginner thread is FROWNED UPON.

I see, thank you for your reply.

I've considered SS before, but it looks like something I wouldn't enjoy doing very much, so I doubt I would keep it up for long. Plus I don't have access to barbells right now anyway.

Could you maybe recommend another good forum to get some basic info from? Perhaps one that isn't quite so hell bent on Starting Strength.

I'm looking for a good workout that takes 20-30 mins twice a week. I was thinking 10x10 of a lower body exercise one day and an upper body exercise the other. For instance:

Week 1
Tuesday- Squat 10x10
Thursday- Bench 10x10

Week 2
Tuesday- Deadlift 10x10
Thursday- MP 10x10

My goals are weight loss/maintenance and some hypertrophy and strength increases. On the weekend I would probably run some sprints or do some circuits.

I think most guys here who's done SS or any other decent novice program wouldn't have guessed how much they would enjoy it beforehand. There's something about going in every time, knowing exactly how much you're gonna lift and increasing said lifts each and every time. Simplicity is a good thing.

Basic info on what? There's a link to bodyweight stuff in the FAQ somewhere. No matter what implements you use, the concepts I laid out need to be followed anyway.

I imagine there's a way for you to get access to barbells if you wanted right?

Oh, of course. I could buy my own, for example, or move to near a gym.

But for now I'd just like to know what to do with the dumbbells that isn't a complete waste of effort.

Maybe try bodybuilding.com. I don't know any DB exclusive programs. There's a bunch of db lifts at elitefts.com --> exercises.

Ok, thanks again. =)