Kk, let’s get down to it.
The list of limiting factors reads as follows:
- right wrist: TFCC lesion, surgically repaired ligament (with tendon graft)
- left wrist: ECU subluxation
- hip/lower back:
-pain in the right iliosacral joint (induced by bad dead-lift technique)
-the right side sits a bit higher than the left
-very tight hip flexors
- shoulders: weak external rotators => slouching look
- left ankle: sprain (since April 2008, getting slowly better)
It took me some time to identify which exercises don’t actually aggravate the aforementioned ailments.
What’s funny is, that I just started with a few exercises, stuck to them and over time could add
additional exercises that would’ve bothered had I introduced them right from the start, but didn’t then.
*** November ***
neutral-grip pull-ups
back squats
good-mornings
behind-the-neck press
I did a 5x5, twice a week.
I’ve had my wife make vids of my technical execution and was pretty aghast at my shitty technique. So, I threw back squats out, since I couldn’t go below parallel without seriously arching my back.
The behind-the-neck press proved to be dishonoured by me, too: I wasn’t able to bring the bar back behind my neck without placing my chin on my chest. No go!
So my plan changed to
*** December ***
neutral-grip pull-ups
one-arm dumbbell presses (sitting on a bench with my back supported)
one-arm bent-over dumbbell rows
Again, 5x5, twice a week.
Additionally, I decided to re-incorporate some cardio which I had to be very careful with concerning my ankle.
Unfortunately, I had to ditch the good-mornings, since my lower back / hip area gave me hell and I’ve been fed-up with trying to locate the causes (different physicians, trigger point therapy and stretching had all been tried - to no avail).
So, I had some 20-25 min steady state cardio on my stationary bike every morning prior to work on an empty stomach. It was at this time that I started to get very serious about my nutrition, again.
*** January ***
neutral-grip pull-ups
one-arm dumbbell presses (sitting on a bench with my back supported)
one-arm bent-over dumbbell rows
one-arm dumbbell curls (without curling the wrist in)
5x5, twice a week. Except for the dumbbell curls which I only performed 1-2 two sets of, since I wanted to
kinda test-drive my wrists.
*** February ***
Come February a few things changed.
I’ve re-included good-mornings, since I’ve found out that stretching the shit out of my hip flexors actually improved
my posture and alleviated my lower back pain. Adding super-mans helped even more. So, I’ve been doing both of these exercises for about two weeks, twice a day for two sets each side.
super-mans: 35 reps per side
hip flexor stretch: 30 sec per side
Besides, my training changed a bit:
good-mornings
one-arm bent-over dumbbell rows
one-arm dumbbell presses (sitting on a bench with my back supported)
neutral-grip pull-ups
one-arm dumbbell curls (without curling the wrist in)
one-arm floor presses
pull-ups
5x8, three times a week.
- shoulder rehab
dumbbell scap retractions
external rotator work
I’m also planning on doing the ankle rehab protocol by Dick Hartzell ( - YouTube ).
Slowly working into all of it seemed to work, since my body can once again take more and more.
My energy systems work consists of:
- 50 min steady state cardio on empty stomach
2.interval training in the evening on non-lifting days
A tabata goblet squats: 1. set: lightest weight, 2. set heaviest weight, 3. set medium weight
B stationary bike: 5 min drive-in, 10 x [30 sec interval + 30 sec pause], 3 min drive-out
I alternate A and B.
With the plan laid out like this, let’s take a look at the weights currently used:
good-mornings: 132 lbs | 60 kg
one-arm bent-over dummbell rows: 143 lbs | 65 kg
one-arm dumbbell presses: 99 lbs | 45 kg
neutral-grip pull-ups: 44 lbs | 20 kg
one-arm dumbbell curls: 55 lbs | 25 kg
one-arm floor presses: 77 lbs | 35 kg
pull-ups: no additional weight, currently at about 24 technically correct reps; when switching grips from pronated to neutral and back again during a set, I can knock out about 31 reps
I’m aware of the fact that the weights I use are kinda light, especially for my size, but true to the adage “You can’t run to get fit. You need to get fit to run.” I’m totally sold into slowly work my weights back up.
Come the time my shoulders and the rest will be fit for heavy duty again, I’m planning to add some quality mass.
Luckily, I’ve been able to get rid of some excess 17 lbs since December. I’m 200-ish right now and want to drop my
weight to something in the lower 180-ish.
I’ll have my wife shoot photo updates each weekend.
The photos below are from yesterday, unpumped and right before breakfast.
Concerning nutrition I’m using a low-carb approach with some ‘slow’ carbs added in.
Here’s the breakdown:
-post morning cardio: 30 g of whey protein in water, one slice of whole-grain bread with low-fat ham (2% fat, 21 % protein) and low-fat cheese (9% fat, 27 % protein) and lots of lettuce
-lunch: 150 g tuna, 1 egg, some low-fat mozarella, lots of lettuce with a dressing of balsamico and olive oil
-same as breakfast, without the shake
-dinner: either some form of salad similar to lunch, but with grilled chicken instead of tuna or some diet-friendly dish based on ground-meat and vegetables (I skip the side-dish and gravvy and such)
-post-evening workout shake: 60 g (lifting day) or 30 g (non-lifting day) of whey protein in water
I’m averaging about 1800 kcal a day.
Additionally, I’m drinking about 3l of green tea and 5-6 l of water.
That’s it.
