Training update

Up until now I've been following the strength programming Starting Strength (SS) for the squat and deadlift, and the 531 powerlifting program for the overhead press and bench press.  I like the starting strength because it produces linear gains, my squat working sets have been going up 15 pounds a week.  When I was finally given the ok to squat by my PT back in Durham, I was doing 65#, and even that wasn't done very well (was quite rusty).  The other week I did work sets of 225# with the front squat. That's a 160# gain in a couple of months.

Thing is SS requires that I squat 3 times a week.  Now I'm not really complaining about that, I like squatting, and I don't mind squatting all the time.  But the thing is, trying to do SS with 531 takes a lot of time.  ...A LOT of time.  Like suddenly I'm spending 2 hours at the gym.  Perhaps there's some other way I can incorporate the two and still be in the gym under an hour, but I don't see it.  So I've decided to do 531 for every lift except for the deadlift, which I only do once a week under SS anyway.

It has freed up quite a bit of time at the gym, so now I've decided to do the big but boring challenge with the 531 program.  After you finish the strength part of the lifting you do 5 sets of 10 reps of lighter weight.  Well I decided to do with with dead lifting as well. So on Wednesday I decided to do 5 sets of 10 reps of 135#.  This definitely raised the heart rate, and definitely wore me out, like I was expecting.

What I was not expecting was to wake up the next day with stabbing pain in my back.  It's seriously painful.  I can tell it's my QL, but the weird thing is that it's on my right side.  In the past I've always has a hard time with my left QL, hell four years ago I thought it was a kidney infection.

Not too sure that this change is a good thing or a bad thing, but I believe change is good, no matter what. Perhaps I'm peeling one more layer of the onion of pain.

Know Thy Enemy. Meet, the Laberal Tear!

So I finally got the MRI images of my shoulder mailed to me.  I looked through the images until I found the one that the PA used to show me the tear. I've added the yellow arrows to help highlight the labrum and its tear.  It's actually really nice to finally put a "face" to the source of all of my neck/shoulder problems that I have had for years.

Again, the tear in the labrum seems to be unique for two different reasons. First, it was causes by just one case of blunt force trauma.  Back in high school I was thrown to the mat on my shoulder so hard I cracked my collarbone. Never knew about the tear in the labrum until 15 years later.  Second, the tear is near the back of the shoulder. It's not in the front or top, so it's not a SLAP tear, which is much, much more common.  It's funny, I never thought I had a tear in my labrum in my shoulder because I had a tear in the labrum in my hip. I figured the odds of having a torn labrum (some piece of anatomy I had never heard of until like 6 years ago) in two different joints was just too high.  I didn't want to be the guy who was seeing labrum tears everywhere. Guess I was wrong.

Seeing the damage has re-motivated me to get something done about it.  I've been training to get stronger using 531, a power lifting program.  I've noticed that no matter what weight/rep scheme I use my calculated one rep max is about 228. Perhaps this is as heavy as I can lift with an unstable shoulder. So given my success with prolotherapy for the hip laberal tear, I'm going to try prolotherapy for the shoulder as well. I've decided I will begin treatment in January, when my flex spending account is replenished.  Although I'm seeking the same treatment- prolotherpy- I am going to see a different practitioner, Dr. Fullerton down in Austin. Now that I've moved from Chicago to Dallas, I want to see someone who is within driving distance. Besides, I've always wanted to visit Austin.  So in about three months expect me to start blogging more frequently, documenting the recovery process.  I'm not looking forward to being unable to bench or press during the time of recovery, but if this is the only way to stop being in pain all the time, so be it.

Sprinting??

So right now when I start to squat heavy (front squat over 200#, etc.) I start to affect my groin. This has be kind of treading water, or making gains at a very slow rate. I’m also not too happy with the almost 20% body fat reading I had a few weeks ago, so I want to do something that will burn off some fat, keep muscle, and be fun.

I have decided to try sprinting.  I like feeling fast (whether I am or not is another story), and I want to be faster.  I’ve thought about trying out a soccer league or something, and it would be nice to not be that guy wheezing the whole time. I do like running, just in real short bursts. So sprinting it is.

Thing is, I’ve never done track sprinting in my life. Soccer was about it. So I have no knowledge of technique or training programs. Thankfully there’s ton out there on the internet, so I’ve been doing my research.  Since I’m such a noob I’ll be doing my sprints at 50% to start out with while I try to work out on technique. I also don’t want to overtrain. I’m squatting 3 days a week right now with starting strength. I’ve thought on switching over to 531 with legs so that I can sprint more, but first let me try this combo out and just see how it works, especially since with my lack of technique I can’t push myself THAT hard on the track.

This should be interesting to see how it plays out.

New Game Plan, Going to try Rolfing.

So I’m going to try dry needling less often, and I’m now going to try squatting to less depth.  I always figured that if I got everything in my hip working correctly then I would be able to squat as deep as I want. Problem is, I might never have everything in my hip working correctly.  I’ve done so much to address my issues, FAI, torn labrum, just instability in general, that I figure I should be good to go.  Talking to the PT, though, he does make a good case that perhaps with my issues I just might not be able to squat to depth.  Squatting as low as I am doing is putting a massive strain on my adductors, and that is why they are forming trigger points (at least that’s his thought).  I have my doubts, partially because everything everyone seems to tell me is wrong in one way or another.

My counter argument is that perhaps there is something off with my hips that is causing my right adductors to for trigger points.  I have also noticed that as I start to squat heavy my left knee starts to ache. Well, not the joint itself like the patella, but it feels like the quad/tissue just surrounding the knee.  Front squats require a lot of knee strength because you start off the squat with a knee break in an effort to keep the torso upright. (If this doesn’t make sense just ask in the comments), so I’m just chalked this knee discomfort up to learning the front squat, to getting my knee used to the movement.  But, perhaps this left knee discomfort is more than just getting used to front squatting, perhaps it is a symptom of some kind of twist in my pelvis. I still experience some sort of anterior pelvic tilt, although I recently got back to doing my PT exercises that help quiet down my spinal erectors.

So to test this theory, to see if everything is in its proper place, I’ve decided to go see a rolfer.  I almost went to one back in December of 2009 but the cost was a bit steep for me. Now that I’ve been promoted a few times, I am ok with seeing one.  I have offered rolfing as an option to people who come to me for help, so I also have that as motivation to try it.  I figured a good massage therapist was the same as a rolfer, even got into an argument with someone about it in the comments section.  My old massage therapist also told me the same thing, that all rolfing really is is steady applied pressure until the muscle relaxes.  Since he was so good, I was inclined to believe him.  But perhaps he was wrong, perhaps I there is still something off that hasn’t been addressed yet.  The only way for me to know is to find out, so I’m going to go see the rolfer on the 18^th.  I am very excited to see what he has to say.

Things that drive me crazy

Normally I try to write posts that are full of content, and less about opinion. I mean, who really cares about my opinion on something? You don't see me on news TV being interviewed on subject matter. Regardless, things are going fantastic on the injury front so things have been quiet on this blog. I decided to spice it up with a "grinds my gears" piece, so enjoy:

I’m not sure how my personality comes across on this blog.  A lot of the times I think these posts are boring (at least to anyone other than myself and my mom who loves anything and everything her darling son does) updates on my physical well-being and don’t contain that much useful content, though I try to put out as much content as possible.  Anyway, I like to think of myself as a nice, easy-going guy. I take whatever challenge that is placed in front of me, and I don’t wig out, I just try to figure out how to deal with it. I think the barbell Buddha would be proud.  Anyways, through facing my own personal challenges I know that we all have our own ways of perceiving and dealing with the world.  If I tried what would work for most of the population with pretty much any challenge I’ve faced, I would not have been successful.  So when I see other people doing things differently, I try very hard to just accept them as they are.  Even though I would take a completely different approach to achieving whatever goal, I will never tell someone they are doing it wrong.  You want to lose weight so you go Vegan? Fine. You want to lose weight by eating breakfast? Hey whatever works for you. Different strokes for different folks.

Ok, so now that I’ve buttered you up, telling you that I’m a nice guy, I would now like to tell you the ideas/concepts that annoy the absolute shit out of me. In no particular order:

• Squatting below parallel is bad for you. This idea is complete horseshit and needs to change. If anything, partial squats have been shown to place a lot of shearing force on the knees.
• Something like a Nutrigrain bar is good for you.
• Protein bars are good for you. Saw an episode of Good Eats explain how they are made. The protein from protein bars come from horse hooves, so basically you’re eating glue. Never again.
• Eating small, frequent meals “stokes the metabolism”.
• Cardio is the ONLY way to lose weight.
• The idea that you can out train a poor diet.
• ALL red meat is bad for you.
• Dietary cholesterol will increase your risk for heart problems
• Take anti-inflammatories to deal with muscle pain.  Although there really isn’t a pro-NSAID movement out there, it just bothers me to hear people taking something that is making them weaker, not stronger.  Here is another article explaining inflammation.  Really try to get the word out.
• Lifting heavy will make you bulky (I especially don’t like this one with regards to how it scares women off from lifting).
• People who take their own personal experience and think it then applies to everyone else.  “I’ve lost 10 pounds by going vegan, so you should too!”  “You don’t eat meat? You are an idiot because that shit is just unnatural.”
• Cholesterol is the marker for heart health. No it’s not, High Cholesterol isn’t bad for you, it’s high cholesterol and eating sugars.
• Juice Cleanses. Honestly what good comes from a "cleanse"? Just do intermittent fasting instead.

Alright, end rant.  I'm going to have some more stuff up here, all not necessarily exercise related, just things I would like to share with the world.

Dry needling for hip and shoulder.

So this week I got the PT to dry needle both my shoulder and my hip.  Concerning the hip, it seemed that the adductor magnus, a usual suspect, was fairly quiet. However, I had quite a few trigger points in the anterior part of my hip, so some small hip flexor muscles of which I forget their names. I imagine the fact that my body presented itself with new/trigger points to be a good sign, but also I must figure out why the change, to see if there is anything I can do to prevent the trigger points from forming.

Concerning the squatting, This past week I went up to Chicago to celebrate the one year anniversary with my wife, and we followed that by driving a U-Haul full of stuff from Chicago to Dallas.  Needless to say, I didn’t do very much squatting.  Once I got back home to Dallas, however, I did three sets of five reps of 170, and I could tell that my technique was a little rusty.

Right before the move, I had made a revelation with regards to my technique.  When coming up out of the hole, I was leaning forward a bit. After leaning forward, I then had to compensate and straighten up my torso. This was something that was not comfortable, and I think it is the motion that strained my adductor.  I also noticed that I was keeping my weight in my mid-foot, although occasionally on a bad rep I would feel my weight shift towards the balls of my feet causing me to have to take a step or two forward.  What I figured out I could do was really keep my weight back. At first it almost felt like I was going to fall over backwards, but after a few reps I started to get the hang of it.  …I record all of my reps on video, and when I reviewed the tape I felt like my pelvis was more stable than it has ever been coming in and out of the hole.  This is great news, really felt like I made a breakthrough.

However, it seems that I lost my feeling for it because when I came back I noticed that I was once again leaning forward just a schotch, and it was affecting my groin, although not too badly.  I just have to shake the rust off from not squatting for almost a week and just get back to it.

Concerning the Shoulder, when he worked on my trap oh my lord did that jump while he was poking it!!!  Afterwards my shoulder was super sore, but it did feel better.  However, almost 48 hours later I work on overhead press and my shoulder feels… more injured?  It’s like now that the muscles that were tight protecting the joint are relaxed, the joint feels more vulnerable.  I did get a new rep max though (eight reps of 115# woot!) but it was my first experience where the shoulder just didn’t feel right.

I am still looking at prolo as an option, but I am going to do it in 2014 at the soonest.  I’ve found a doctor here in Texas, down in Austin, who seems to do it right, he's method is similar if not the same as Dr. Hauser up in Chicago.  I have wanted to visit Austin again as an adult (went once as a kid) for some time now, so I would be excited to make a trip of it.  Not going to lie getting my shoulder fixed would be amazing, much like getting my hip fixed.

My friend Bobby said it best:

You’re a handsome young capable man in the flesh. Underneath, you’re for shit.

You’re like a low miles BMW that’s priced to sell on the used car lot.  Little does the hapless buyer know you spent a week underwater during your “Katrina days”.

I think about how messed up my body has been, and now think about how much progress I have made, and I know I should be happy, but all I can think about is that last little bit that I need to be 100% whole.  Like always, I feel so damn tantalizingly close I can almost taste it to be injury-free.  So close, yet so far.

Dry Needling Update and Shoulder Treatment Decision

Ok so I’ve been trying out dry needling, four times so far, and it seems pretty legit.  The process is a very strange sensation, and not at all comfortable, but it seems to work, so I’m all for it.  Each needle feels different, and the bigger the trigger point, the bigger the response. For example, yesterday when he addressed my sartorius (which makes a lot more sense than what I thought it was: my rectus femoris) it wasn’t really a big deal, didn’t really feel anything.  Then the PT worked on my adductor magnus and wow it was sensitive.  Each needle prick felt different. One time when he put the needle in it felt like I was hit by a Taser in four different places on the back of my hamstring. Another needle and it felt like a hot wire of pain up my leg.  Each one was different, and each one was significant.  Thankfully, the pain/discomfort is very brief.  He also worked on my tensor faciae lata, and that almost felt like nothing.

The Physical therapist really worked me over yesterday, and when I got up off the table I walked with a bit of a limp I was so sore. But I also felt better, strangely.  Now a day out, I feel much, much better. I will also be seeing him on the Fourth, two days from now.  Based on how I feel from that we’ll decide to keep up the twice a week or go down to once a week.  This guy I’ve found though is amazing, like he is hitting exactly where I’m feeling the pain.

Oh yeah, I’m still squatting. Yesterday before seeing the PT I went and front squatted 170 five times for three sets.  My ultimate goal is to front squat 315 without pain.  If that happens, not sure how I’ll celebrate but it will be awesome.

Concerning the tear in the back of my shoulder’s labrum, I’m going to see if I can convince the guy to needle my tricep, and just keep lifting.  I am in some discomfort, but for the past two weeks or so it has been really, really tolerable. I would be tempted to try prolotherapy, but it means I would have to give up pressing for like 2 months at least.  I’m still making some good gains on my lifts, and my neck/shoulder is feeling ok, so I’m going to just wait.  Maybe if I start benching 300 and then stop seeing gains I’ll consider prolotherapy, but right now there’s just not enough upside for me to try it right now.  …Although I do have to say, for the record, that there is a big part of me that wants to treat this injury.  I am so damn close to being whole, to no longer having these lingering issues, that it is tempting to give up pressing for two months just to be no longer injured.  Anyways, I’m going to keep lifting.

[UPDATE: I've started prolotherapy for the torn labrum, and am now doing PRP injections as well as continuing to see a PT for dry needling. Here's my Vlog entry:]