Nice.
It’s great to see you analyzing what’s working and what’s not and seeking solutions for it.
1 Like
Better late than never! 
Well yeah I’d say back off back work, arms work and climbing for 2 weeks.
Probably hamstring work as well ahah…
Not leaving me with a whole lot hahah. And I have the patellar tendon in a fit as well so I can’t go hog wild on quads 
and a bum shoulder. Shieeet.
1 Like
Time to become the Quadfather.
1 Like
See above. Also, that’s @kleinhound s second name
3 Likes
Fuck ahah! Hmm reverse sleds (or drag sleds) are amazing for working an achy knee. I’m sure there are some stuff you can do without pain. I’d say, first treat either the lower or upper body, then when it’s healed, the other ahah
I appreciate that suggestion. Definitely something I’ll test and see how it feels.
I think so too, or at the very least, things that don’t actively set me back. For instance, back squats can place strain on the elbow, but it’s not a guarantee. I’ll have to walk around to a few machines and try a few things. It’s not fool-proof though as sometimes the painful area gets better intra-session but the feedback comes after. Therefore, it’s not like I can take an “experiment”-day in the gym and have a safe/unsafe checklist for the following sessions.
Backing off yes, but a complete lay-off no (not yet). I have bad experiences from my youth (teenage years)* with complete lay-offs, but it’s not an option I’m going to exclude completely either.
If my amendments turn out to be inadequate, as in I cannot tell things are getting better and healthier, then I may very well have to take one or two complete weeks off.
For now I’ll wait and see how the elbow feels on Sunday. If it’s not markedly improved, re-assess on Tuesday.
The patellar tendon is getting better, it just takes time.
The shoulder does not hurt when I get my arch set-up properly on the bench. But, I believe my shoulder will be a persistent problem for me. It’d appear as if there’s some unevenness between my arms. Very evident if I sit on the floor leaning back on my hands. One shoulder is higher than the other by some centimeters. There are some other asymmetries there too. If I raise my hands overhead I have a bump inside one armpit that’s not a bony protrusion but is something.
I have had the hamstring get better before while continuing to use it.
* I was squatting as a teenager, and my hip hurt. Before then my knees were giving me shit as I practiced Wushu. Back then I didn’t find any good PTs, and only ever got the advice “Don’t”. Well, my hips turn out okay if I squat in a certain way. Knees 
we’ll never know.
Look at these awesome Wushu youths:
1 Like
Well yeah exactly why I don’t do low bar anymore. Wrecking my elbow and over time, my shoulders (and I’m super mobile!). Embrace the high bar! Sure it’s less weight, but more quads and general athleticism and carryover!
Well if you do legs 3x a week it’s not a layoff ahah but I feel you.
When I had this I just did reverse sled, and various deadlift things. But if you have hammies problems hmmm…
Perhaps you should go to the osteopath/chiropractor, it’s not normal to have such a shoulder discrepancy ahah. Like with my hips, sometimes you don’t even think you have something!
I’ve asked my gym to get a SSB for this reason. And a trap-bar. Seen neither yet. Will have to remind them.
Touché. Anyway, sometimes I just wake up magically feeling good with regards to the hammie so I’ll wait until tomorrow before I decide what I pair my bench with.
The analgesic split squat isometric hold from @j4gga2 has been helping. I haven’t been jumping though. Should I have continued to jump @j4gga2 or was that just for the screen? Patellar tendon pain to remind you without having to read to catch up.
Also, 100 rep leg press has been doing me favours as well.
I asked my physio, he said I’m just unevenly built but a second opinion couldn’t hurt.
I am a huge fan of the box squat because I find it’s ‘easier’ to find a style that’s comfortable and replicate it, eg bar position, stance width, speed of descent etc.
Hell, if you need to bail you just set the pin heights high enough that you just lean forward once you’re sitting on the box and no problems.
Give them a whirl, they are my #1 quad builder (against all text book and article advice)
2 Likes
Haha, I absolutely love this reasoning. I have been thinking they was going to be my next assistance lift (I’ve been doing high bar for a while but I try to rotate assistance now and again). As soon as my hammie feels up to snuff, I’ll do it and holler back at you. Thanks for visiting. Just couldn’t have anyone call anyone else the Quadfather without you knowing.
1 Like
Re-read
Will adjust my weight a tad and build back up.
Hahaha I appreciate it mate
This was a nice little highlight at the end.
1 Like
I’ve written some in the past about how I was maybe raised in a way that makes me somewhat tardy in responding appropriately to pain and such.
Today offers another illustrating example from my big sis. She recently had a hernia operation and runs a dog day care center. Ordinarily she’d walk them by having leashes attached to a belt around her hip but can’t do that at the moment and have instead been holding them in hand which has now worn down her wrist substantially over the last two weeks. Her solution? Wrap the joint with tons of bandages to stabilise it. I approve. Wrist wraps but outside of the gym.
It’s a good idea to reintroduce plyometric activities, but only do it in that pain-reduced period after the isometrics. You don’t have to do them straight away either. I’d recommend reintroducing them once your symptoms have reduced ~50%
RE hamstrings: keep your your squats and deads, but consider deloading deads. Do a shit ton on lying leg curls and heavy glute bridges, which fully shorten the hamstrings. As your symptoms improve, start to reintroduce seated leg curls and RDLs/DLs off a rack, and progressively increase height
RE quads: leg extensions are actually a great idea to help out with tendinopathy. I’d suggest 40X2 tempo or similar, with a single leg leg extension
1 Like
I can eat a trillion sandwiches.
Returning to the gym today after a few healing days. Been feeling a bit overwhelmed with the fat I’ve gained recently. Should’ve waited until getting some contact with the eating disorder clinic before starting that exploration I think. Learning moment: don’t change too many variables at once. Now I just got to figure out how what’s the right course of action when you’ve rocked the boat too much.
2 Likes
Monday 2020-11-02
A few healing days have passed. Tried to do a whole-body workout today to make up for some lost ground but didn’t manage to do everything I set out to do. Some 3s and 6s benching, some 3s squatting (painful everywhere but predominantly not anywhere where I’m injured). Some push presses.
Might not log a lot for a while, I am motivated to log when things are going bueno, not so much when I’m just working around a lot of stuff. We’ll see.
2 Likes