JManDetroit's Workout Log

Got my rings a few months ago and have been using them for upper body work once a week, adding dips, pull-ups, and rows to supplement my workout. Started working progressions on L-Sit and RTO support position at the same time.

I soon fell in love with the ring work and have since decided to end my gym membership and use gymnastic training as my primary form of strength training for my upper body.

Last week, BtGB arrived and I did a few things:

- moved my rings to regulation 50cm distance

- used Killroy70 template to design combination of FBE and FSP work.

Everything had been going perfect until I tried turning my palms down on a whim during a BL progression, and that's when I learned the true of meaning of "straight arm work" as I aggravated my tendons in my left elbow. At coach's suggestion, I'm taking 7 days off of all upper body work and then restarting again with a focus on building some base strength in my straight arm progressions. I'm frustrated with this because I really had some momentum going, but I don't want to lose patience now and pay the price in two weeks. I guess moving the rings out, doing the inverted curls, BL progressions, and dips with straight arms in support was just too much too fast...especially with the rings now wider than I had become accustomed over the last 2 months.

So when I return, my cycle will look like below. Let me know what you think.

Jerry

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FSPs, 4 days per week

Planche - 5s Frog x 12

Inverted Hang (Straight Arms Rings Neutral) build to 60s

Handstand - 20s to wall + as long as possible off wall.

Support - 7s x 9 Straight arms against waist

L-Sit - 6s x 10 (lower than parallel)

When I can hold a 60s inverted hang in full lay position with rings neutral, I'll move to an inverted tuck and turn the palms down, building to 60s there and slowly progressing until I can hold an inverted hang in full lay with the palms down. Right now even a German Hang with palms down is too much stress on my elbows, which seem easy to hyperextend.

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FBE, 6 days per week

Mon

MU Seated MU Transitions (negative only) - 5 x 5

360 Curl Bent Arm/Tuck Position - 5 x 5

Tue

Curl Neutral Position, Feet on Platform - 5 x 5

Dips Straight arms, arms at side - 5 x 5 (no RTO until I build up to it in the FSP)

Wed

Legs Pistols, unweighted - 5 x 5

Thu

Rest

Fri

Ring Rows Feet at ground - 5 x 5

Ring PU Straight arms at support (No RTO yet) - 5 x 5

Sat

Legs - Olympic Lifting

Sun

Pull-up Tuck-L position, Full ROM - 5 x 5

HeSPU Feet on platform for assistance - 5 x 5

So forearm splints are my enemy. Inflammation of my extensor tendons at the elbow is killing me. It's the support work and the dips. Resting from rings completely for one week, then lowering volume again by dropping support work FSP and reducing to 3 x 5 from 5 x 5 on all exercises. Dropping dips to an earlier progression...from full ring dips, to assisted dips with feet on platform. Gotta let them tendons heal.

Argh.

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Prehab, 6 days per week

Wrist Stretches

Wrist Push-Ups

Rice Bucket, 50 circles, each direction, each hand

RIce bucket, 2 x 10 Hand opening and closing

FSPs, 4 days per week

Inverted Hang (Straight Arms Rings Neutral) build to 60s

Handstand - 20s to wall + as long as possible off wall.

L-Hang - 6s x 10 (lower than parallel)

I'm dropping the support work right now because between it and my dips, i'm overtraining my forearm tendons. Boo. Next round, I'll add the ring support work but then cease progressing on the dips for one cycle.

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FBE, 6 days per week

Mon

MU Seated MU Transitions (negative only) - 3 x 5

360 Curl Bent Arm/Tuck Position - 3 x 5

Tue

Curl Neutral Position from Inverted Straight Hang.- 3 x 5

Dips Assisted with legs on platform, Rings Turned in. - 3 x 5 (no RTO until I build up to it in the FSP)

Wed

Pistol FSP at bottom position, build to 40s

Thu

Rest

Fri

Ring Rows Feet at ground - 3 x 5

Ring PU Straight arms at support (No RTO yet) - 3 x 5

Sat

Legs - Olympic Lifting

Sun

Pull-up Tuck-L position, Full ROM - 3 x 5

HeSPU Feet on platform for assistance - 3 x 5

All I have to say is WOO-HOO!

Tendon soreness killed me 9 months ago, and I didn't have the knowledge or experience on what caused it and how to deal with it/prevent it. Out of frustration, I finally took 6 months off, and then the holidays were chaos, and finally in Janaury I gave it another shot. Here's what I did different:

(1) Changed to the WODs. Good move. The program cycle makes more sense and I'm hitting more muscles from more angles and at different modalities. Love it.

(2) Learned about tendon strength. Biggest thing I learned was that for me, tendon strength is the limiting factor, not muscle strength. So as soon as I saw the first signs of muscle soreness around the joints, I backed off.

(3) Straight arm strength. Another huge thing I learned was that my bicep tendons do *not* have the strength to keep my arm from hyperextending. Not by a long shot. I learned that the hard way, trying to see if I could do an XR Support, with my feet on a box for assistance, with my arms turned out. I also tried to do the basic chin hang FSP with my arms turned out. Bad idea. It wan't a violent hyperextension...but nevertheless, my bicep couldn't keep pressure off the elbow. Result was 5 days of hypertonic tricep tendons and lots of soreness.

New rule. All exercises are with the WOD and the FSPs are done with very slightly bent arms (my elbows naturally hyperextend, so at 0 degrees, I'm actually "bent"), and I will gradually work the bicep strength with plank leans and increasing pull-up volume a la Slizzardman's workout as part of my warmup. Right now my hands are directly under my shoulders. As I get closer to a planche position, I'll try again on the XR Rings.

(4) Prehab/Rehab. Not optional. They never really were, but I just didn't know how/when/frequency/etc. Well, I know now. 5 days a week gets Rice Bucket, Wrist Pushups, Wrist Hops, and Dorsal Push-Ups. Trigger point massage and stretching are done every day. Usually multiple times per day. Going to meet with a physio to talk about getting regular ART until my forearm and tricep muscles stop resembling wire cables and bumpy pebbles.

(5) Supplementation. Also not optional. 1 Tbsp Fish Oil with a morning and evening protein shake, 700mg Magnesium throughout the day. 1000mg Vitamin C.

(6) Lastly, and I think this is the most important: Intensity and Volume. When I first started, I was doing frogstands, XR supports, and BL/FL for my FSP. Now I'm doing the 6 basic FSP that Slizzrdman outlined. (Thanks, btw...lifesaver.) Moreover, instead of running Killroy's FBE plan, I'm doing the WODs. When I first started doing the WODs I tried doing 3-4 sets as pX'd along with the basic FSPs at high intensity. (I was hitting the point of failure right around 58 seconds.)

I got soreness in the forearms again.

So this time I dropped the FSPs down to half intensity, do a set of pull-ups to continue focusing on building the bicep strength, and then I do ONE set of the WOD. This may look almost infantile, and sometimes it feels like it. But it's the right dose for me right now. I've been on this plan for 10 days, and forearm soreness has been decreasing every day. So we now have a sustainable volume of work for my tendon health. (And besides...between the set of pull-ups, the straight arm plank, and the WOD, I'm plenty tired even though I'm not totally exhausted.

Someone on the board wrote that going slow and steady is the way to go, and in 2-3 years you won't even recognize yourself. Well I'm tired of starting and stopping. So, even if I need to stay at this volume for 2-3 months before adding the 2nd set of pull-ups or 2nd set of the WOD, fine.

I'm having fun, I'm definitely working hard on the sets I do., and I will start tracking the WODs here now that I think I've got a system that's workable.

Thanks to all of you for your support...it's fun to be working out gymnastics-style again.

DYNAMIC LEG DAY!

Glad it's a leg day. Upper body still kinda wrecked from last four WODs.

FSP Plank 2 x 15s

FSP Reverse Plank 2 x 15s

FSP Assisted Chin Hang 2 x 15s

FSP XR Support RTI 2 x 15s

FSP Arch 2 x 30s

FSP Hollow Arch 2 x 30s

FSP Diamond Push-Up Hold 3 x 20s

Tricep Extension (2lbs.) - Each Arm 30

Rice Bucket Circles (each arm, each direction) 2 x 25

Rice Bucket Squeezes 2 x 10

Pull-up Sets - 1 set, 5 rounds, 2 reps each 2-2-2-2-2

Much easier when starting with the wide grips and moving inward. Get chin clear over bar before adding reps.

Didn't have tire or sled...will have to work a contraption.

Subbed 10m squat jumps

20m more squat jumps

10 depth jumps from 2' high

2 x 60s kneeling toe stretches

Wrist Conditioning

Dorsal Push-Ups (against wall) 10

Wrist Push-Ups - Fingers In (against wall) 25

Wrist Push-Ups - Fingers Out (against wall) 25

Finger Push-ups 10

Finger Hops 10

LEG DAY

Subbed static work on legs...still trying to work up tendon strength for SLS.

FSP Plank 2 x 15s

FSP Reverse Plank 2 x 15s

FSP Assisted Chin Hang 2 x 15s

FSP XR Support RTI 2 x 15s

FSP Arch 2 x 30s

FSP Hollow Arch 2 x 30s

FSP Diamond Push-Up Hold 3 x 20s

Tricep Extension (2lbs.) - Each Arm 30

Plank Leans 60s

Rice Bucket Circles (each arm, each direction) 2 x 25

Rice Bucket Squeezes 2 x 10

Hold SLS static just above bottom. 5s each leg x 5 rounds

Wall Squats static 15s x 4 rounds.

Dip Routine 1 Rounds, 5 Sets x 2 Reps 2-2-2-2-2

Dorsal Push-Ups (against wall) 10

Wrist Push-Ups - Fingers In (against wall) 25

Wrist Push-Ups - Fingers Out (against wall) 25

Finger Push-ups 10

Finger Hops 10