Fortune Favors the Bold

Training Over 35 Lifter
421

[quote]SteelyD wrote:

[quote]LittleStrick wrote:

I have read in several places that chiros are not the best option for spondy. Mainly because the techniques they use to realign things can actually make it worse. Pushing, or applying force, on the area that is already shifted forward, could cause the shift to increase. Even if there was a way to reach inside an pull it back into alignment, given the pars defect, it would just shift back once a load was applied, because there is nothing to hold it in place.
[/quote]

FWIW, my back injury was officially recorded as “Lumbo-sacral spondylosis without myleopathy” (L5-S1) plus spondylosis in L-something and L-something.

The early recovery was ‘flexion-distraction’ on a special table where the legs drop at the hip and they ‘pump’ the legs (table has hydraulic assist). Plus some other techniques to help realign the disc/vertebrae. She didn’t adjust me on my side for almost 6 months.

Just my experience. I still go once a month, sometimes more if I get a tweak or spasm.[/quote]

I didn’t realize that you have spondy. I guess it is true that it isn’t that rare.
If you think that a chiro can help, it is worth a try. I will start looking around the beginning of August, once the visit is over.

422

Chest and Triceps -

Good day… I hit my reps on bench and got my 365# 2 board press. Also, I have discovered that I feel stronger and ache less when I skip the dislocates, windmills and YTWL, before lifting, and just stick with some light static stretching.

Static Stretching

Bench
barx15x2
95x10
135x10
185x5
225x3
275x2
305x1
315x5x2

2 Board Press
345x1
365x3x2 - PR +10# @ +1 Rep (355x2 was previous)

Skullcrushers - really hurt my elbows, but was a great pump.
95x10
115x10x3

Tricep Pushdowns - Rope
90x10
100x6
80x10

Face Pulls
100x12x4

The skullcrushers really hurt my elbows. So I tried standing tricep extensions. Those were excruciating, so I went back to skullcrushers.
I was almost frustrated with how difficult 5 reps felt with 315#, since I had recently gotten 7. After looking at the video, though, I realized that I paused between each rep, as opposed to a continuous motion…and I used much less rebound off of my chest. So it is all good.

423

Skip,great benching. Skull crusher are tough on the elbows. Have you tried them with dbs? Use a neutral grip. Much less stress on the old joints.

424

Strong lifting and good work on the conditioning… I should try to figure out something to for that aswell!

425

Big benching, as usual. Great work in here, Skip.

426

Thanks, gents.
Steve - I am using an EZ curl bar for the skullcrushers. I am hoping that my elbows adjust and that it is just tight triceps or not being used to them. Failing that, I will have to go back to DBs.

427

Thats some fierce benching dude.

428

[quote]LittleStrick wrote:
Thanks, gents.
Steve - I am using an EZ curl bar for the skullcrushers. I am hoping that my elbows adjust and that it is just tight triceps or not being used to them. Failing that, I will have to go back to DBs.[/quote]
Good idea.i guess you got to ask yourself if gains from skull crushers is worth the risk of elbow damage.

429

Thanks Joe. With everything going on, the gains in presing are a great boon.

Bulldog, you are dead on. The discomfort felt like it was the coming from the tricep tie-in. My gut tells me that my triceps are just tight and need to loosen up. If it starts feeling wonky, though, I will ditch them fast. I have enough elbow aches…

430

Back and Biceps -

Had to blast through this one. Wife rented the new “Alice in Wonderland”, and no one wanted to watch it without Daddy. My back and bicep day is more of a BB workout, which is okay The pump felt really good.

Lat Pulls - Close Neutral Grip
100x10
160x10
210x10x2
210x8

Seated Rows - Wide Neutral Grip
210x10x4

Lat Pulls - Wide Neutral Grip
210x8
210x7
160x10

Seated Rows - Close Neutral Grip
210x10x2
160x10

DB Preacher Curls
40sx8
40sx7
30sx10

DB Hammer Curls
50sx8
40sx10

Now to bizarro AiW…

431

have fun with AiW - and it really is bizarro!

432

[quote]soldog wrote:
have fun with AiW - and it really is bizarro![/quote]

Yes it was/is. Of course, all his movies seem to be. My daughter wants us to buy it :slight_smile: She’s a little freak…but comes by it honest.

433

[quote]ecogenx wrote:
Skip,great benching. Skull crusher are tough on the elbows. Have you tried them with dbs? Use a neutral grip. Much less stress on the old joints.[/quote]

I have the same problem with skulls. I’ve been shying away from them recently because of this. Dips and hirep pushdowns work for me.

434

[quote]soldog wrote:
have fun with AiW - and it really is bizarro![/quote]

I went and saw it in IMAX 3D. That is a cool way to see 3D movies.

435

[quote]ruglayer09052000 wrote:

[quote]ecogenx wrote:
Skip,great benching. Skull crusher are tough on the elbows. Have you tried them with dbs? Use a neutral grip. Much less stress on the old joints.[/quote]

I have the same problem with skulls. I’ve been shying away from them recently because of this. Dips and hirep pushdowns work for me.[/quote]

I tried going back to dips, months ago. They made my shoulders feel like they were coming out of the sockets. And I hate that. I always loved dips.

436

Question for the masses…

Shoulders… On Thursdays, I hit shoulders. Usually this includes Military Press, Shrugs, DB Laterals and Reverse Flyes/Rear Delt Raises. Noteiceably missing is a front delt isolation exercise, such as plate raises or DB forward/front raises. I do not include these because I think I work the front delts enough via bench press and military press.

For strength, and size (as I am trying to fill out my shoulders a bit more), is this sufficient? Or should I throw in one of the aforementioned?

437

Take this for what it’s worth from a relative newby-- If your front delts are not growing like you think they should be from the pressing you’re doing, then add an isolation exercise.

I can only speak for myself, but doing low rep, low volume mil presses did not do much for me in terms of muscle growth, although I did get better at military pressing. If you look back in my log, I throw in front delt raises intermittantly, but I do 2 different shoulder pressing movements that hit front delts pretty hard weekly.

If you’re not a ‘delt bencher’, then bench may not be doing enough for front delts.

If you think your shoulders can handle the extra sets, add them in for a cycle or two (however long that is for you) and see what happens!

Oh, yea-- eat!

438

[quote]SteelyD wrote:
Take this for what it’s worth from a relative newby-- If your front delts are not growing like you think they should be from the pressing you’re doing, then add an isolation exercise.

I can only speak for myself, but doing low rep, low volume mil presses did not do much for me in terms of muscle growth, although I did get better at military pressing. If you look back in my log, I throw in front delt raises intermittantly, but I do 2 different shoulder pressing movements that hit front delts pretty hard weekly.

If you’re not a ‘delt bencher’, then bench may not be doing enough for front delts.

If you think your shoulders can handle the extra sets, add them in for a cycle or two (however long that is for you) and see what happens!

Oh, yea-- eat!

[/quote]

Thanks, SteelyD. I think the reason I dropped any direct front work was based on where my soreness was/is, after bench day. I would have thought that I was more of a delt bencher when I 1st started back and that I have migrated from that as I have modified my technique. 14 months ago, when I was benching, my elbows would flare almost immediately and the bar hit me just below my nipples. Now, it hits me around the xyphoid process and I don’t flare as quickly. BUT, the area that is most sore, after the workouts, is my front delt/pec tie-in area. That had me concerned about developing an imbalance.
I never thought about the reps, though.
My rear delts get hit on back day, chest day (face pulls) and shoulder day (rev. flyes or rear delt raises). Those are all 8-12 rep sets. My medials get hit doing millies and DB lat raises, on shoulder day. Again, 8-12 reps on laterals.
Maybe the best course is to throw in a couple of sets of forwaard raises and see how it goes. CGB might be an option as well, but I am not including that at present.

I’ll give it a go and see what happens.

And eating a surplus is iffy, at best. I really want to drop a few pounds. Okay, more than a few, but at a slow rate. That goal is in direct opposition with wanting to up my bench and millies, though. I am trying to watch total intake, while making sure that a higher percentage of that intake is protein. If I just start eating for size, I will be back over 300# before I know it. So I gotta balance it to some degree. But I am not skimping, just being mindful not to go overboard.

439

You gonna be getting on stage soon with all those curls?

Seriously though thats really nice work.

440

Strick: I’m in same boat… trying to re-work body comp… So far if I drop calories, I loose more strength and energy, but little weight…

Hope your recomp is more successful then mine. SO far, weight is hovering in the 270 range, but making progress on body comp, just slow…

Do you have any energy systems work?