19 Sept 2016 - 4 Months and feeling Strong(er)

9 Sept
0325 hrs

Squats 5 x 10 x BW
KB Swings 5 x 15 x 16 kg
Lunge 3 x 5 x BW
SLDL 3 x 5 x BW
Pallof Press 3 x 15 x 60 lbs
Monster Walk 3 x 20 m x Red & Green Thera band
Plank 3 x 15 sec
Side Plank 2 x 15 sec
Cobra Push Ups 2 x 10

10-11 Sept
Working 3 mid shifts. Decided to take the night off on the 10th In between sleeps during the day i did the usual rehab and stretching. The 11th I only worked a half shift due to an appointment.

12 Sept
Drove back home. Decided we were doing a Hike the following morning I simply relaxed, hydrated, and stretched. Solid night's sleep.

13 Sept
1000 hrs

Tetsmine Trail 11+ Km
3 hrs 30 min
Set a fast consistent pace. A little too fast as I was feeling it by the last Km. Later in the day the hip started to stiffen up and feeling weak from fatigue.

14 Sept
Spent the day on the couch and floor alternating between stretching, ROM exercises, Foam Rolling and Lax ball smashing. The piriformis felt really stiff and semi-painful. Overall my left hip felt weak and semi un-stable which is why I kept moving around to a minimum. I had nothing else really planned as it was a day off any how. Ate some food with Turmeric in it for the anti-inflammation properties and drink Litres upon litres of water. I think part of the problem was not simply the pace, it was the lack of rehydration post Hike.

15 Sept
Woke up still feeling stiff. I felt alot better than the previous day. Got out to do groceries and dog walking. More stretching and Rehab.

16 Sept
0900 hrs

I went to bed early in prep for Hike today. Unfortunately i slept 5 hrs and then spent the rest of the night searching for sleep. I rolled out of bed re-thinking my decision to hike. I kept moving, had breakfast then simply decide to go anyhow. Laying in bed the previous night I did have a simple thought.

3ft beside the trail, at head height, nearly invisible due to colouring, I did not stick around long to see how active it was.

"Surgery put me on a ticking clock. Eventually one day the decision to hike would be gone. The next surgery is going to change everything and something as simple as a hike in the woods will be gone for me. Depressing thought for some, motivating in my head. Until then, I need to do everything I CAN do. No regrets when sand in the hour glass runs out."
So with all that being said I got in the car and drove out to the park.

The Yellow Sign has the Mystery Phrase on it. this is what you look for while out hiking the marked trails. (I have whited out the mystery phrase.)

Gibson Lake Trail 15+ Km
4 hrs 20 min

The Beautiful, yet sort of creepy Fen. Possibly the home of Swamp Thing or a Mutant Snapping turtle?

It is great getting out in the fall air and hiking. This trail completes the half way mark of the Hiking Challenge. The Fen was cool to see if not a little creepy, hearing distant sounds without being able to see the animal that made them. I can only suspect it was Swamp Thing or a mutant Snapping turtle. I started out much slower than Tuesday. As I got warmed up my pace naturally increased. My hydration during the march was still a little lax, which I have been making up for the last few days.

I spent the weekend making sure to Rehydrate and stretch. Oh and eat. Plenty of food.

19 Sept
0800 hrs
Physio Notes: 
-Still doing extremely well.
-I explained the Glute tightness /pain. She checked it and replied "yeah there is a divot here". A joke saying the muscle is so small and weak it is non existent.
-Which means even more clamshells in my future.
-Moved to Blue theraband for Clamshells. I will be waving loading thorugh the multitude of Therabands.
-she also moved my leg around, jacked me in an odd position, stretching my glute.
-a quick use of the cups on my thigh
-off the table and BAM! able to squat almost fully. Exciting day indeed.

1850 hrs
Warm Up: 
KB Swings 3 x 15 x 16 kg (feeling better everytime out)
Band Pull-a-parts 119 reps in 4 sets w/ EFS Pro Mini Band

Pull Ups (done throughout) 10 x 7 reps
OH Press
1 x 10 x Bar
1 x 10 x 85
1 x 5 x 95
1 x 3 x 125
1 x 3 x 145
1 x 1 x 170
That was a grinder of a single. It is time to use 5/3/1 to rebuild my OH Press. Combat Chassis, Hips, and glutes all felt solid tonight. Now that things are stable I will stop simply trying to increase every time out and apply a lifting template.

OH Press 
2 x 5 x 115
2 x 5 x 105
2 x 5 x 95
Side Laterals 2 x 11 x 30lbs
Rear Laterals 2 x 11 x 20lbs
Plate Raise 
1 x 50 x 10 lbs (Oly Plate)
1 x 100 x 10 lbs
Banded Pull Downs 1 x 87 x EFS Monster Mini


At this point I did a set of OH Press and then one or two of the exercises in between sets and /OR a set of Pull Ups if I felt ready. The goal with Pull Ups is complete the 10 sets in under an hour. No timed rest just moved from exercise to exercise. Finished up the session with non-stop side plank, 30sec L&R then 15sec L&R then 10sec L&R.

8 Sept 2016 - Hiking, Kb's, and the never ending stairwell....

2 Sept
0930 hrs
Yoga - Hot Yin & Yang Class
I was dripping sweat midway through this class. Not so much challenging as the movement just induced sweat. Almost all of my movement now is becoming smooth. A few minor transitions still to figure out, yet compared to when I started in July I am doing outstanding if I do say so myself. The work the physio did on my hamstring /thigh earlier this week I could tell paid off, still a tiny bit of "gluey" muscle in the hip, nothing the Lax ball and foam roller cannot smash on until I see physio again.

3 Sept
Hiking Noon
Akron Lake Trail
11 km (approx 4 hrs)

This was challenging to put it lightly. We still have longer trails ahead of us. Thankfully and quite by accident we started on the harder part of the trail and finished on the easier section. We stopped for 20 min just past the half way mark as well as a few 5 min breaks along the way. My body overall held up. i could tell that my Glute and leg were smoked near the end. I did adjust my climbing technique just a little to put more effort through my right side as my left glute after 9 km was not always up to the task. Thank goodness for my walking stick. Barely any of the trail felt entirely flat and parts of it were a pretty rugged climb up or down, no rope required, the rocks do make you consider your steps and balance though. The canopy overhead kept most of the heat at bay except for a few small sections where we came out along a pond and another on the ridge line above the lake.

04 Sept
1020 hrs

Recovery day from yesterday, trying to balance everything out and get the blood flowing.

Lying Leg Curls
1 x 30 x 50
4 x 10 x 75
Face Pulls 3 x 21 x 37.5 (weird cable machine)

Rev Hyper 
1 x 25 x 50 lbs
1 x 20 x 100
1 x 15 x 150
1 x 15 x 100
GHR 5 x 8
Scarecrows 2 x 17 x 5 lbs (super slow tempo and pausing throughout the movement)
TKE's 2 x 23 x EFS Medium Band (Grey)

Battle Rope 10 x 20 Sec on /20 sec off x 50 ft 2 inch Rope

Finished up with a ton of Clam shells, Bird Dogs, Cat-Camels, Boat Pose, Plank, Side Plank, and Monster Walks. I hit the sauna for 20+ min and did some Dead Bugs and McGill sit ups

5 Sept
0920 hrs

TKE's 2 x 23 x EFS Medium Band
Face Pulls 1 x 50 x EFS Monster Mini

Incline Db Press (slight incline)
1 x 15 x 20
1 x 8 x 30
1 x 8 x 40
1 x 8 x 50
1 x 8 x 60
1 x 8 x 70
A reps were fast and explosive today. Everything felt tight, solid, strong and explosive. great feeling. no issues sitting or getting up with the Db either which was awesome.
Db Pullover
3 x 10 x 35
Demonstrated these and ended up doing a few sets because they felt good doing them
Hammer Curls 4 x 8 x 45 lbs
Side Laterals 4 x 8 x 25 lbs
Plate Raise 3 x 20 x 25 lbs
Moved through these three exercises with intent. Just kept cycling through them until all sets were completed. Rest was transition or stopping to scribble in my trg log.
OH Cable Tricep Ext (Rope)
1 x 10 x 120 lbs
3 x 10 x 110 lbs
Rolling Triceps
1 x 5 x 35
2 x 10 x 20 lbs
I always feel stronger going into these and then crash and burn hard.
Head Harness 1 x 35 x 16 kg
I simply wanted to do some head harness today and ran out of time so I did one giant set to failure and called it a day.

Finished Up with a Ton of Monster Walks, as well as Lying Clamshells, and Planks. 

6 Sept
0905 hrs

Head Harness 5 x 15 x 20 kg
Lunge 10 x 5 reps
Single Leg DL 10 x 5 reps
Neck Crunch 5 x 15 x 25 lbs

The Lunges and Single Leg DL were done as a superset along with either a set of head harness or neck crunch in between. Left Hip /Glute is still weak. I can feel improvement over last week though so I am headed in the right direction.

Shrugs  5 x 15 x 135 lbs
Rear Delt Laterals 5 x 11 x 15 lbs
A fast superset. Testing out the low back /glute with a bar in my hands. Stable for the most part, glute is not quite strong enough to brace properly on the left just yet. Little steps.

Cable Rotation 2 x 10 x 50 lbs
Pallof Press 
1 x 10 x 50
3 x 10 x 60
Single Leg Calf Raise 
3 x 15 x Bodyweight
2 x 10 x Bodyweight
One more odd superset. Single leg calf raises seem to challenge the glute almost as much as the single leg deadlifts.

Step Mill 
5 min /64.8 Cal /29 Floors /Lvls 12-16

Just a little conditioning work to prep for more trail hiking next week.

07 Sept
1820 hrs

This was a session that was pure garbage. They are going to happen from time to time. I shut things down early so as not to do something stupid. I got a little frustrated because as is human nature I want everyday to go smooth and progress. Today progress was simply realizing my Glute needed a rest. I went in wanting to train and smash the world, instead my body had other designs.

BW Squat 5 x 25

I started out using the EFS light bands as handles for balance. By mid way through the 3rd set I let go of them and simply squatted free. All reps were to parallel if not lower. So that is definite progress. Stiffness through the glute and hip sucked, at times slightly painful, not damaging, simply uncomfortable. I will be ready to squat soon. I finished every set fighting off pain and then semi limping as the muscles were fighting me and trying to stiffen up. The one giant take away thinking about it now, there was no pressure on my lower back or through my sacrum. Just have to keep digging for those pieces of gold in every session even the crappy ones.
This is a movement I will be doing daily now.

KB Swings 2 x 15 x 16 kg

This challenged my glute like it has not been challenged since surgery. The Hip feels stable enough to perform the motion. The issue is that to push the hip through it directly challenges my glute in a fashion that causes stabbing like pain directly in the glute. So i will keep the volume low and push this daily as well. Not really ready for any other KB movements until I squat a little deeper, i know they will return.

Dead bugs and Foam rolling my hip /Leg to finish up. Overall this session was frustrating because everything seemed to cause some sort of pain. Nothing was easy. Metaphor for life sometimes I guess. I made a point of focusing on how far I have come already, I am still excited for how I still have to go. Just some days I wish i could pick up the pace a little bit.

Sticking to the plan. Everything is going as it will. Everything is improving daily. I just have to keep putting in the work.

08 Aug
1140 hrs

It’s in your moment of decision that your destiny is shaped. Choose well. -Tony Robbins

Lax Ball on Glute, hip, and hip flexors as well as stretching with a few Split squats (BW)  to get things feeling loose. My morning Rehab has fallen off of late which is part of the reason I think for last night's craptacular session.

1740 hrs

Motivation was high going into this session. Especially after yesterday's humbling. When you lose a fight and survive you re-group, clean up, re-load and get back at it asap. The earlier session with the Lax Ball paid off a little.

Pull Ups (completed throughout) 10 sets of 6 reps (wide neutral grip)
Reps were quick and strong. Excited to have these get back closer to sets of 10 reps.

Warm Up: 
TKE's 2 x 23 x EFS Medium Band
BW Squats 10 ,10 (things are still stiff, movement is starting to be smooth on the first few reps though)
Kb Swings 2 x 10 x 16 kg (less pain than yesterday so progress)

So to explain the Glute pain think of doing an extremely high rep set of arm work. That burning and stabbing from the muscle fatigue and acidosis in the muscle? yeah that is what most reps feel like when I say pain. I have spoken to my Physio about this, she explained it the muscle "waking up" /being turned on while being re-trained to fire correctly.
So far Single leg DL, Split squats, clam shells and Kb swings cause this sensation the most intensely and most often. Everyday it feeling less intense or I can get more reps completed before it starts. So as I keep saying PROGRESS.

OH Press
2 x 10 x Bar
1 x 5 x 95
1 x 5 x 115
1 x 3 x 135
1 x 3 x 145
1 x 1 x 165

OH press felt great. Combat chassis is feeling strong(er), still some work to go until it feels mountain-like solid, definite improvement on a few weeks ago. Even though I felt like there more reps and weight in the tank I decided to call it there. This was an increase of 20 lbs from last time so that is what matters. No need to tempt fate by entering the red zone just yet.

So at this point I jumped into a circuit of:
3 rounds of
Step Mill 5 min x Lvl 14 (67.5 Cal /30 floors)
Pull Ups (these counted toward the 10 sets mentioned above)
OH Press 10 reps x 105 lbs

This was not crippling by any means, I would say I was in the 70% range throughout. Lots of sweat pouring off me. By round 2 i stopped breathing heavy even though I did move quicker between exercises.

Finished up with Side Laterals, Rear Laterals, Banded Pull downs, Banded OH Ext, and Plate raises.  This was definitely the session I needed to have after yesterday.

Thanks for reading.

Keep Moving Forward, Keep Getting Strong(er)

1 Sept - Summer is fading, Winter is Coming.

26 Aug
1700 hrs
Yoga - Hot Yin /Yang class
After spending 3 hrs driving this is exactly what my body needed. My lower back felt a lot better. The hot room is not that bad and my ROM is still improving. It is still odd to be able to do some things with ease and then other positions I look like I am a thousand years old with centuries of arthritic build up in my joints.

27 Aug
 Day off to eat food, a lot of it and relax. 

28 Aug
1010 hrs

Leg Curl 
1 x 20 x 50
1 x 15 x 75
1 x 10 x 100
Back Ext 3 x 10
Side Hold 3 x 25 count

GHR (completed between Prowler) 5 x 10
To say I am feeling solid and smooth on the GHR is an understatement. This movement came back back very quick. I am hoping now this will hep with opening my hip and strengthening my lagging glute.
Prowler (HH:High Handle, LH: Low Handle, P: Posts)
2 x 20 m x 90 lbs (HH)
2 x 20 m x 90 lbs (LH)
2 x 20 m x 140 (HH)
1 x 20 m x 140 (LH)
2 x 20 m x 140 (P)
1 x 20 m x 140 (LH)
My goal today was simply to not let the Prowler bring me to my knees. Mission success! Still hot so I did take my time between sets but not an exorbitant amount.

Rev Hyper
1 x 15 x 50 lbs
1 x 15 x 100 lbs
1 x 15 x 120 lbs
The weight is still creeping up on these. I did have a good snap crackle pop on my first few reps. My lower back felt even more in place and settled after that.
I finished up with some Cobra Push ups, Hip bridges and McGill Situps before hitting the sauna for 15 min.

29 Aug
Traveled back to the city. Stretched but not much else. My lower back, glute and body needed bit of a rest after Sunday. The Glute especially, something I talked to my physio about. It is extremely weak and endurance in it sucks so when I push it afterwards it almost feels like a mild glute strain. This effect is fading after each passing session, still something I have to manage though.

30 Aug
0230 hrs Cobra Push Up 3 x 10
Cat-Camel 2 x 10
Bird dogs 2 x 2 (15sec Hold)
Pull Ups (completed throughout) 10 sets x 5 reps x Bodyweight
OH Press
2 x 10 x Bar
1 x 5 x 85
1 x 5 x 95
1 x 5 x 115
1 x 5 x 135
1 x 5 x 145
Side Laterals 3 x 17 x 20
Head Harness 5 x 20 x 16 kg
Plate Raise 1 x 53 reps x 25 lbs
Neck Crunch 2 x 20 x 25
Rolling Triceps
1 x  8  x 35 lbs
1 x 10 x 30
1 x 12 x 25
1 x 14 x 20
1 x 16 x 15 lbs
OH Tricep ext 4 x 17-20 reps x 90 lbs
ITWY 1 x 5 x 5 lbs (ea movement)
Rev Incline Bench SCARECROWS 1 x lots x 5 lbs

This session was tremendous for me. Ignoring the Devil's hour timing which is always fun to train when your mind is weakest. This i counted as a precursor to putting a barbell on my back. In short I was testing my low back and hip to handle a load. Feedback I got was maybe another week or two. Everything felt strong and solid. Afterwards though i could my "Comabt Chassis"(Harry Selkow) was fatigued when I went back to work. Being away from OH Pressing for as long as I have I am ok with the weight, it moved fast and strong. I actually called it at 145 lbs not because of upper body strength but I could my support structure was fatiguing /too weak to handle more. Also decided that heavier tricep work is in order for the next month or so.
31 Aug
0800 hrs

PHYSIO NOTES:
-Extension in hip is great, still a little gummy though. ROM is almost equal
-She suction cupped my outer thigh /Hamstring, it was like majic the discomfort in so many movements disappeared instantly.
-I will have to foam my out thigh /hamstring for the next few weeks to keep things loose.
-I asked her to check my pelvic alignment because things still felt off. Sure enough my right leg needed a quick 2 sec adjustment (yank my leg) and i felt fantastic.
-Lower back is feeling a lot less stiff already and getting better.
-There is not too much for physio to do at this point. I will see her in 2 weeks approx to maintain everything.
-Glute strength is key, I have to be doing a lot more Clamshells, Monster walks and Hip bridges.         -Sitting at a desk for an 8 hour work day is shutting my glute off.
-the ball is still in my hands for this recovery which is exactly where I want and need it to be.

0310 hrs

TRX Lunge 3 x 5
TRX Squat 3 x 5
TRX Single Leg DL 3 x 5

So at this point I decided to slip in a high rep set of Rows with the TRX. It snapped at rep 11. I have had this TRX for over 8 yrs. I will be emailing it back. On a side note: I AM OK. When it broke i was at the bottom of the Row motion so I was about 24" from the floor. I crashed hard as you do when you unexpectedly fall. Hip and back hit as one, I laid there for about a minute doing a systems check in my head waiting for pain, no pain, check, nothing feels out of place, check, hip is good, check, double check, triple check.
I got up and carried on, i figured it would be the only way to truly know if i was good to go.
The take away from all this, I proved to myself I am not so F'n fragile after all.

Completed in Squat Cage (Bodyweight)
Lunge 7 x 5 reps
Squat 7 x 5
Single Leg DL 7 x 5

I prefer the TRX version because i have noticed in the past I do have a tendancey to over use the cage for support and balance. I did shorten the Single Leg deadlift ROM on the last few sets as the glute got grumpy and stiff.

Barbell Rows 3 x 15
Barbell Push Ups 3 x 15
Something quick and easy to help recover from the previous day.
TKE 1 x 40 x Medium EFS Band
1 x 25 x Medium EFS Band
Seated Clamshells 2 x 30 x Green Theraband
Called it a morning at that point. Almost no rest except to record numbers or sip BCAA's throughout.

Not starting a diet. I just found this extremely funny, like almost pee'd my pants funny

1 Sept
0625 hrs
Back Ext 3 x 10 (slow tempo, hold at top)
Side Hold 3 x 30 count
Knee Raises 1 x 20 reps L & R

Football Bar Bench
3 x 10 x Bar
1 x 5 x 65
1 x 5 x 95
1 x 5 x 115
1 x 5 x 135
1 x 5 x 155
3 x 10 x 125
I will not get into all the messing around I did with using plates under my feet. Just know that I am using standard 35lbs to put my feet onto as my hip extension /ROM is coming along. Still not any real leg drive while Benching. My stability is better and there is no weird discomfort in my hip, I attribute that to the work my Physio did on monday.
Rev Hyper
1 x 20 x 100
1 x 20 x 140
Not really a Bench assistance exercise. doing these because I have access to the RH, I need to do them for my low back healthy and my back felt like it needed these this morning.
CSR 
1 x 20 x 45
1 x 10 x 100
1 x 8 x 110
1 x 8 x 120
I am doing a ton of Pull ups which is great. I have decided that I need to start making my Rows heavier without frying my low back just yet.
Face Pull 1 x 83 x 37.5 lbs
Rope Curls 1 x 50 reps x 32.5, 22.5 lbs
Scarecrows 1 x Lots & Lots x 5 lbs

Hiking in Frontenac park 
1700 hrs
2 trails x 4.5 km total 
Registered for the Frontenac Challenge. It is 11 Trail loops that when completed will total 108.5 Km. today we took on to of the smaller trails, Doe Lake (3km) and Arab Lake Gorge (1.5km) as a warm up. It is fun being out in nature and just having nothing but silence around you.We have from 1 Sept till 31 Oct to complete all the trails.  More on this as we complete more trails.