NaterMania

Didn't end up doing the strength work. Will do some today, but I am very limited on elbow flexion for a while... darn brachialis! As it heals I can't do weighted pull ups withthe right amount of weight, so I expect to lose some strength there. I will be focusing more on multiplane work like yewkis and some OAC training, which bizarrely doesn't seem to bother my arm at all. I will be keeping that at a minimum though, so I expect to lose some progress there. Better to take a few steps back now than to be forever stuck where I am... I just hope this isn't one of those long term injuries. I am doing what I can for it.

Current brachialis treatment routine: Limit elbow flexion to pain free activity, perform high rep rack runs up to 20 lbs (18-20 reps per set, switching from one arm to the other without any other rest). 4 sets, 20x5 20x10 20x15 20x20.

This reminds me that I need to get back into the habit of doing heavy singles and doubles once a week or so to make sure my body can safely handle the force it can produce... I think this is the most bizarre injury I have ever had.

It is, however, really neat that the straight arm work completely protected my biceps... haven't felt one little twinge there.

Any relation to this brachialis stuff and tennis elbow?

I don't think $10-11 is bad at all considering the sheer health of what you're paying for.

I've been having some elbow pain. How do you recommend activating lower traps? I already to controlled single arm shrugs as well as Ido's shoulder and scapula stuff.

jl5555 said:

Any relation to this brachialis stuff and tennis elbow?

No, tennis elbow is wrist extensors. This is completely different, not forearm related at all. I feel it around the deltoid tuberosity, actually... freaking weird. High rep hammer and reverse curls are helping, but it's going to take a good bit of time.

Pat: I suppose I should make a video for this, but in general you need to "set" the scapula before each rep of anything you do with your arms. Specifically lateral raises in the plane of the scapula (scaption), and any other lateral raises or front raises that you do. Also bicep curls and pull ups (makes pull ups VERY hard at first, but it really makes a difference long term in strength). You can also try setting the scaps before putting any weight into your XR support or PB support.

Setting the scaps means full retraction and some depression. KEEP them there, don't let them drift at all. This is pretty tough for me at the moment. Your mileage may vary.

slizzardman said:

jl5555 said:

Any relation to this brachialis stuff and tennis elbow?

No, tennis elbow is wrist extensors. This is completely different, not forearm related at all. I feel it around the deltoid tuberosity, actually... freaking weird. High rep hammer and reverse curls are helping, but it's going to take a good bit of time.

Pat: I suppose I should make a video for this, but in general you need to "set" the scapula before each rep of anything you do with your arms. Specifically lateral raises in the plane of the scapula (scaption), and any other lateral raises or front raises that you do. Also bicep curls and pull ups (makes pull ups VERY hard at first, but it really makes a difference long term in strength). You can also try setting the scaps before putting any weight into your XR support or PB support.

Setting the scaps means full retraction and some depression. KEEP them there, don't let them drift at all. This is pretty tough for me at the moment. Your mileage may vary.

Slizz, can you post a video on how to do this?

Lower trap activation really does increase the difficulty of the exercise a lot at first. I concentrated very hard on keeping my shoulder blades down and back while I was doing chin ups, dips, military presses, and curls this morning and now they're really sore. I haven't even slept yet, lol! I guess it just shows how much I've not been using them.

I will probably have to post a video in order to properly describe what I mean by setting the scaps.

You don't have to do EVERYTHING that way but it's a good idea to do quite a bit so that you develop superior strength in the long run.

Mine are sore too, Pat! It's a pretty neat feeling, I have to say

In other news, my glutes are sore from Bulgarian split front squats. I also did some unilaterally loaded reps which was weird and different, I like it. I'll keep those in too.

Well, front squats are improving. 13x135 (easy), 8x175(easy,) 2 sets of 5x195. Those sets were fairly difficult for the last rep, but rest periods were short, 60-90s. 195 is also the most I've front squatted in a long time, but it is easier than I thought it would be. I will probably stick with 195 for a few weeks, maybe a bit longer, before I go up again.

Arm rehab is slow, there is a large palpable defect in the right brachialis. This is just so weird to me...

Anyhow, straight arm work is going well, as is muscle up work. I have been experimenting with the dumbbell versions of straight arm work and I have to say, I really like them. I guess my form is just good enough now to where I am doing them correctly which is why they feel better.

I am re-introducing push ups, which is going quite well. I'm doing sets of 15-40, depending on how I feel, and range of motion is improving from workout to workout. At this rate I will probably be the best I have been in years with the push ups by summer.

Dips are weird, I feel some impingement in the left shoulder right around the middle deltoid attachment on the acromion. I HAVE been doing tons of raises in the scapular plane so it might be a swollen supraspinatus, but I am hoping it's just a slightly irritated bursa. I made up a shoulder opening stretch on my power rack today that worked fantastically well, and that significantly decreased the impingement sensation immediately upon the next set. That's good, I don't feel like developing new problems lol!

I am slowly working back into HSPU, I have left them alone for far too long. I think I am more balanced than I have been in a long time with my training though.

11/29 Update: I do think it was just soreness and some swelling from all the shoulder and scapular work that caused the sensation during dips. I will know for sure tomorrow, as I should be more or less healed from my last workout and ready to do a slight big of exercise. It will just be some bodyweight dips, perhaps some pull ups/chins, and push ups followed by my ring strength simulations and finally scapular work again. By starting with the dips I hope to isolate the issue by performing dips when I should have less inflammation in the tissues, meaning before all the rings work.

I am weighing 219 lbs. Clearly getting bigger.

How's the brachialis doing? Any brachiordialis issues?

No brachioradialis issues that I can find, and the palpable defect in brachialis is not as big as it was. It is supremely weird to feel the defect fill in. My brachioradialis, however, has historically been under-developed compared to other parts of my arm (IMO) and I am now fixing this as a part of my rehab(see below).

Brachialis is doing a bit better, thanks for asking! I can do my sets of 30 reps with 20 lbs now for curls. I do pronated grip for 10 reps, hammer grip for 10 reps, and supinated grip for 10 reps back to back with no rest, both arms at the same time with 20 lb dumbbells and focusing on the eccentric. I do this for 1 set 5-6 days per week. I am finding that this approach is working well for me, it's what I did years ago in Virginia Beach to get my elbows well enough to deal with BUDs. Haven't found another protocol that yields the same results for me. I'll probably keep this up until I'm doing sets of 20-30 total reps with 40-50 lbs in each arm, so I would guess through the end of summer but who knows... if I was fully healed I could do at least 12 right now with 45. I am performing the curls with set scapula, meaning retracted at a neutral height. Perhaps marginally elevated, as I find this to be the natural position for the curls, but it might actually just be a neutral position and my shoulders might be hanging too low during daily life at the moment. This is the only exercise where I keep the scaps set for multiple reps at a time, though I do occasionally reset them in the middle of the reps, often with each grip switch. I will probably use 21 lbs today if I can make that happen at home. Will probably use two 10 lb plates per hand + wrist weight. Not the same as dumbbells, but it's what I've got.

At this point though, I am starting to realize 2 things:

1) a few more months of proper rehab actually contributes more to my strength than a quicker return to pain-free regular training

2) Rehab isn't rehab. Rehab is actually how we are supposed to be training, period. That's why it works so well yet is so different from what is normally done. Coach's guys essentially do rehab on a daily basis.

Keeping this in mind, and knowing that I am slowly fixing my scapular dysfunctions (I appear to be moving backwards through my shoulder injuries again and now the bursitis that reappeared is starting to fade, slowly), I am just going to keep using very slow weight increases and just treat this as my regular training program from now on. I will make slower progress over the next 5-6 months than one would expect if just looking at the training weights used, but my progress over the next 2-3 years will be far beyond what is usually experienced. I'm going old-school all the way, training like the old timers with ounce by ounce progression.

As my shoulders get better I will begin a shift towards all the BtGB work again, I am already using it for parts of my scapular rehab. Foot supported scapular retractions and proper rows are rather difficult, as are proper pull ups. I am starting with push ups on the floor for pressing, and that is coming back nicely. I can do sets of 20-30 before losing my scapular positioning. There is no muscle fatigue at all in the prime movers (no major surprise here).

HSPU is coming back strong, surprisingly. I'm doing handstands almost every day along with my scapular work and I definitely feel the back of my neck and my upper back working much more than I used to. I am slowly learning to use all that stuff properly, though flexibility is still a bit lacking. Probably because I am lazy about my shoulder stretching... but I am at least doing it occasionally now and that is helping a lot! I figured out a way to use the rings for a nice chest opener.

Well, today was interesting. Finished my last final and then worked out for 4.5 hours or so. All I did besides 2-3 sets of ring strength sim on the free motion was 3 sets of 12 deadlifts with 225 and the entire rest of the time was devoted to scapular work.

The majority of that were scaption lifts, or lifts in the plane of the scapula, and handstands. All of this work has made it possible for me to support my handstand with my upper back, and this has made balance a breeze! I can shift my weight most of the way over to one hand at a time, hold it, shift to the other, start bending and straightening my legs, do straddles, etc without coming down. I didn't expect that.

At some point I will teach what I am doing but I will probably wait a few months at least because I want to make sure I have time to experiment a bit and also let the results really roll in and build up.

I can do push ups pretty regularly now, which is nice. I have bursitis to some degree in both shoulders, which will probably subside substantially and disappear as I continue to work backwards through my list of shoulder problems... feels much better today than yesterday despite doing far more work today.

I will be doing a lot more rotator cuff stuff during this month as well, partially because I know I need it and partially because I know rotator problems will pop up as I get past the bursitis and I may as well get a head start on treatment.

slizzardman said:

The majority of that were scaption lifts, or lifts in the plane of the scapula, and handstands. All of this work has made it possible for me to support my handstand with my upper back, and this has made balance a breeze! I can shift my weight most of the way over to one hand at a time, hold it, shift to the other, start bending and straightening my legs, do straddles, etc without coming down. I didn't expect that.

Interesting. Could you elaborate more on this topic? My handstands are terrible and I don't absolutely know how to balance them. Your approach seems very promising.

It won't work very well with words. I have 28 days off so I am planning on doing a bit of writing in that time, hopefully bringing my site a bit closer to coming online. This will be one of the foundational things I talk about, simply because it leads to such enormous increases in upper body strength.

I for one cannot wait until your site is up and running Slizz. I think it's going to be another site I will graft myself to, much like GB. Congrats on finishing your finals btw and enjoy having a month off! I'm a little jealous there, I've only got the the couple of days over xmas

Slizzardman, do you have any studying tips? I'm one of those people that you mentioned before(don't have to try too hard to do well in school), but lately it's been catching up to me. It's really only in the classes that I don't enjoy, but I'd rather keep my GPA high. I'm trying to work on my study habits, but am not sure where to begin.

Thanks

I have to tell myself that my personal relationships will not work if I don't study. For me, the personal relationships are the single most important thing in my life so that is sufficient motivation for me. I can make myself believe it to be true, and so it is a powerful motivator. It works for me.

Everyone has to find or be confronted by the things they are unwilling to lose, no matter the cost. Most people don't make lifestyle changes until a cancer or diabetes diagnosis is delivered even when they see the piano falling from above for years on end... What you have to do is make yourself believe that piano is going to land square on your head if you don't study.

Well, I don't want to jinx it but I simply have to say: My arm is getting better! The defect is palpably smaller, and I can do tuck front pulls and tuck front lever rows (slowly) without pain which means they get to be part of rehab! yay! Same goes for pull ups.

Been doing a set of push ups, HeSPU most of the scapular work (retractors AND serratus), and starting yesterday slow SLS down to below 90 but not rock bottom several times throughout the day. Feels good. Pretty much all reps are fairly slow, 4-6 seconds.

214.4 lbs.

I am running an experiment in a few days for a week, I will not explain all the details but there will be before and after pics + video + skinfold measurements as well as approximate caloric breakdowns for the day. This will probably end up being the foundation for some research in the future. If things go as I expect, this will be controversial to say the least.

Arm is still doing better but has a ways to go. traps are getting stronger and it is easier to move correctly with 4.5 lbs.

Have been very lazy with pulling, largely from necessity. My arm can't handle all the stress.

slizzardman said:

214.4 lbs.

I am running an experiment in a few days for a week, I will not explain all the details but there will be before and after pics + video + skinfold measurements as well as approximate caloric breakdowns for the day. This will probably end up being the foundation for some research in the future. If things go as I expect, this will be controversial to say the least.

Sounds exciting. Will you post the results of the study when it's done?

Results of the case study will be up in the first week of the new year. Methods will not be explained publicly, but pictures and video as well as skin folds and circumference measurements should be up. It is possible I will have hormone testing results available as well. Depends on money, but I think it can be arranged.

You've picked a funny time to conduct a fat loss/athletic study! This is usually the time everyone is eating more junk food!

By the way, I sent you a message just so you know. You don't need to respond if you don't have the time, though.

Edit:

How much does the hormone testing cost in your area?

Best price I could find is 200 bucks for full estrogen profile(estrone, estradiol, estriol) + full testosterone profile (Bioavailable + total). I am going to check with the VA in the morning as I MIGHT be able to get it done for free through them, but that may just be what I do in the first week of January as I kind of need these tests done NOW. There goes the birthday money hahaha!

I know, it's a crazy time of year to do this sort of thing but it's my break and my girlfriend is back in sweden for 10 days so I have an easy 7 days to be ridiculously myopic and obsessive with this short term case study.

Update: for the past week or so I have been maintaining a diet more or less identical to my planned diet for the upcoming case study. This is to avoid possible results skewing from water retention or shedding as well as any metabolic adaptation. This is a short study so my metabolism needs to already be adapted to what I am planning... There IS one element to this that will change significantly but that is part of the study.

Getting tests done tomorrow morning! 208 bucks for complete estrogen and testosterone profiles. Should be interesting.

Tests done at 0845 in the morning, I went through http://www.healthtestingcenters.com/ and had no problems. There are other websites but this one had the best descriptions of the tests, the most tests available, and the overall best prices on my tests.

I bought these two tests:

http://www.healthtestingcenters.com/estrogen-levels.aspx

http://www.healthtestingcenters.com/testosterone-free-total.aspx

I was in and out in 10 minutes, including the time it took to park, go up the elevator, sign in, have blood drawn, and be on my way home. It was so fast I didn't even have to pay for parking. I used LabCorp for my blood lab, which I believe is the only option with that website.

https://www.health-tests-direct.com/index.aspx?GS=3440852776942 is another site, has many tests as well and some are different.

I should have my results by tomorrow evening. Excellent experience overall.

I am starting my experiment Saturday morning... only one more day until the madness begins! I will probably provide daily updates.

Notable strength updates for today:

I have been doing some HeSPU daily, just a few sets of 2-3 randomly throughout the day. While planning my exercise program for the case study I discovered that I can now do full ROM HSPU quite slowly. I did not expect this. The scaption lifts I have been doing are making a big difference in strength already. I am still using 4.5 to 5 lbs but it is getting somewhat easier. It will still be a while before I move up in weight, but I have already noticed a notable difference in how my pull ups work my body. It is much better than it was.

I am down to 212.2 lbs, I am a bit leaner than I was at the beginning of the week. I expect to experience something of a shrink-wrap effect over the next week that I think will be very, very visible. We shall see. I am still a bit dehydrated but I dont think I'm over 214. Of course, this is with a fairly empty bowel too... my current diet has had a large liquid component for the past 8 days or so as all my protein is coming from protein shakes in an attempt to adapt to what I will be doing during the next week. I have essentially been on my experimental diet for a week now, though the final changes have been made starting today so that everything is optimized nutritionally for Saturday morning! It's going to be a crazy week.