Saturday, January 06, 2007

Ah yes, training partners.Snatch day.

One of my all time pet peeves is when training partners, let's really say alleged training partners, would not show up for squat day. Almost nobody ever bailed on bench day but on squat days there were are a lot more tummy aches and overnight colds.The worst was not showing up AND not calling. The training equivilant of quitting a job by not showing up for work one day.

The kettlebell equivilant for me now is not showing up on Saturdays, which is snatch volume day.of course that is what happened today and none of them were unexcused abscenses. Plus, no phone calls. The most important role a training partner plays, in my experience and opinion, is that of creating and keeping the energy of the training session up. When one guys is beat or flagging the energy of the others bring him up and make his life easier. It trades off as everyone has off days when they fight for every second of every rep.
This became especially apparent, and important, in the world of powerlifting where you really can't come close to your potential alone. You can certainly train alone, and get stronger alone and compete even by training alone. BUt you can't come close to your potential alone.Hell, you can't even get your gear on without help and spotters and hand off guys are not only nice to have but can really save your ass, too.
I got this latest shoulder injury when my partners had to change schedules on our weekday workouts and I took way too many bench presses off the rack myself. It was going fine unracking things myself til it wasnt.It was my fault as I didnt adjust to the new stresses soon enough.
You never really know where the edge is til you step off it but guaranteed the next step off a peak is DOWN.
BUt I had really gotten dependent on them as I have now for getting through cold and early saturday sessions. I have to be especially careful in these workouts as to not break things on myself when I get too pissed and the adrenaline lets me push too hard. well, thats kind of what happened today,although it's not too bad.
I re tweaked my left biceps, the one I had torn fascia in last year snatching the two pood by breaking a cardinal rule: DONT DO NEW STUFF WHEN YOU'RE PISSED.

My partners and I are going to have a long discussion about committment very soon. It may just be easier to train mon/ wed/ fri myself and leave saturday ams for clients and soon to come workshops/seminars.

Since I didnt feel like snatching first, and my press and chin practice has been going so well I decided to press and chin first, then snatch. THis went both good and bad.
Good in that I did 4 sets of 5 chinup with NO bosujump help.THe first full chins in many years.
The presses also went very well and my right shoulder felt good.

I decided to minimize snatch volume today since I had done all that stuff before and only do 100 reps in sets of 5/5. Pretty conservative I thought. Snatches dont go well for me unless I do them first. I know this.
Tweaked the left biceps a bit on the 60th rep for no good reason.Just was too fatigued from the chins I think ,to handle the stetching out of the descent in the snatch. Stopped statching but I'm not happy. Did some light two handed swings that didnt hurt but it's weird.
I had a bad mind set and should have just snatched light, first, as was planned, or just skipped the workout altogether.

Almost to the day my right shoulder sets in my left goes out. A twilight zone kind of balance for sure.
Perhaps my mixed grip pull/chin is the way to go. WHo knows?

KB PRESS
26x5/5x2
36x5/5x2
44x4/4x2

supersetted with chin ups
4 sets of 5 reps in the FULL CHINUP. These were very easy and felt almost like I was using the bosu to jump off. NO strain in the bicep left or right. even the wrist felt good.

snatchs
36x5/5x2
44x5/5x2

53x5/5x6 sets

felt slight pull in left bicep on last set.stopped there.

two hand swings
44x10x 5
53x10x5

30 sec rest between sets. these were easy but very fast and explosive.

Rack walks
400 set laps with the 16 kg.200 feet per arm.

2000 feet

these went very well.Being pissed about my biceps helped :)) At least my knee didnt hurt.

datsit. where's my emu oil?

update
found some SERIOUS trigger points in my left forearm that were adirect connect to the shoulder. releasing them has already helped get the shoulder to reposition right. with that there is less impingment. thank you God.

8 comments:

Tom Furman said...

Think about your training partners skipping on you and your bicep pain. Now think about the opening several chapters where another doctor sees that Dr. Sarno has a migraine. He says to him, "What is making you so mad to give you that rage?" When Doc Sarno thought about it,..the migraine started to go away. You are a textbook of training and bodywork,..as Bruce Lee said, "You must find the cause of your ignorance." Orthopedic trauma is real,,...pain isn't always real.--Tom
Ps.-My worst back aches were after my mom died and when my sister in law died. I found the cause of my ignorance.

Mark Reifkind said...

as usual Tom you are right on the money. I was even saying to tracy not momements before that I had to be very careful about not being stupid.The last thing she said to me before the set was "swing safe".
No big mistake,just got a little loose but the anger and rage was there. I should know better. BUT I am Sarno'ing it away as we speak.

Unfortunately I know all to well the cause of my ignorance. I just have to keep remembering it,lol.
thanks for the insight,always appreciated.

Royce said...

Sorry Rif about the training partner. I have never bailed on anyone without a damn good reason and a phone call. I have had only one who never missed a workout with me.
8 months with no workouts missed and we both doubled our strength.
We were beginners of course, but still. Never had a partner like him afterward.


Sorry about the bicep that's rough, the chins is cool though man.
Keep up the good work!!

Mark Reifkind said...

royce thanks, its cool. its not bad, just a tweak. I got off with a warning today. Just a slap to let me know I aint that tough and to remember what's really important. I got the message and yes the chins were cool!right shoulder feels the best it has in eons.
training partner thingy is anotther story. still pissed.

Tommy Shook said...

Rif, that's what happens when we depend on other people, in my experience they will sometimes let you down. I used to get frustrated waiting around for several training partners then I said F@%$ it and did my own thing. Hang in there, hopefully they'll come around. Too bad I don't live closer, it's not in my nature not to show up.
I agree with T. Furman. My back injury had a lot more to with it it than lifting the wrong way. I quit my job pretty soon afterwards. As Bruce Lee also said "Hack away all that is unessential.."
Keep at it!

Mark Reifkind said...

thanks tom, we'll see how they respond to me calls and email.it's more than just showing up for me, its showing up prepared and readu to rock.as well as to give something to the workout, not just take my energy.
its a sad statement to how far I've fallen; years ago I wouldnt even let these guys WATCH my workout let alone train with me.Desperation makes for strange arrangements.
I used to NEED partners for bench handoff and spots and for serious energy on heavy squat days; now it's different and i've been hanging in as much for them as for me. If they arent gonna "bring it" then that will change,fast.

Geoff Neupert said...

That's the beautiful thing about KB lifting--you don't need training partners. They're good for PL and WL, but again, don't need them for KB. And that's a good thing. Cause with KBs, it's easier and safer to go in the wilderness--those places that are unfamiliar and uncertain--alone. The problem with you, my friend, is that people just can't keep up with your "intensity." They'd rather stay in the concrete jungle of familiar and easy training than go with you. That's OK, though, just more wilderness for you to explore alone.

Mark Reifkind said...

thanks geoff, its the last vestiges of my powerlifting squat saturdays when we all were a tight group of committed lifters and that group energy and great lifting was the highlight of my week.
I still look forward to it even at this less intense level. I already got a 'mea culpa, mea maxima culpa" from one of them.the other one probably hasnt checked his messages.
I like your metaphor of the wilderness and know what you mean. some things are better discovered when one is alone; some things can ONLY be gotten that way.
Given the choice I would like to have this once a week pow wow but these guys gotta bring a lot more.

we'll see if this really wakes them up or it's just talk.

ANd its also sad to think of this level of training being intense. how far I've fallen,lol.

190 x 1 x 12,210 static hold, 225 static hold, bodyweight squats 3 x 15

 What a freaking great day! This is without a doubt the best group of heavy reps I have ever done! Every set was just about perfect. Plus I ...