Pulled BW on the 2HP

I did some 2HP tonight.

150x1
160x1
170x1
180x1
190x2 singles
180x5 singles
170x5 singles

I weighed 184 today making me one of a handful who have pulled over BW on the 2HP. Yay me.

Getting back into Grip

I've really been neglecting my training these past few months. This whole ACL thing put me in a slump that I'm just now able to come out of. I had originally figured I'd train grip and pressing while unable to use my leg for much, but I just felt like crap when doing that. I didn't want to be there. My grip felt the same way. I just didn't feel like doing it. School started up, and I really enjoy it and I want to focus on it this year. Last year I had a 4.0 and this year I plan to have the same, but with the difficult subjects I'm taking, it will require more focus. You only have so much "focus" in you. The saying goes "Give it your all." If you do that, you have very little left for anything else. I'm learning to shift focus more frequently, but it's tough. Switching from Academics to Strength Training to teaching my precocious little sister the math that her school refuses to teach her. It's just plain tough. Slowly but surely I'm doing it though. Come Gripmas Carol time, I'll know just how successful I am at it right now. The semester ends around that time, Gripmas is the contest I am currently training and my little sister will be in the tougher courses she needs(and wants!).

My #1 strength goal right now is to break the hammer-to-face lever record at the Gripmas Carol. That means doing 23.51lbs or better. I feel I can do it, but I probably wont even win the event even if I do lift 23.51!!! Going to be an incredible group this year.

A long awaited update...

Well, it's been 1 month and 2 days since my ACL reconstruction. I'm recovering VERY quickly, far ahead of the standard timeline and faster than I could've hoped for. My knee could barely move near 90 degrees and nowhere near lockout 2 days post-op, but now I can fully lockout under my own strength and have at least 143 degrees of flexion. 150-160 is my natural range, so I still have a good bit to go, but I've talked to some people who didn't even reach 90 degrees until 3 weeks. I still wont be able to jump, squat, deadlift or run around for another month at least.

Surgery on 8/12

Squats today

135x10
135x10
225x8
275x1
275x1
135x10

Decided to test my knee today and see what I could do. Wanted to make sure I wasn't being held back mentally yet. I am. The weight was reletively easy but on the 2nd rep of 275 on both sets I dropped it while halfway up. I think it was a combination of strength/being afraid. Either way, I got a tiny taste of what I'll be in for in a few weeks when I can start squatting again. I'm not happy to say the least. Physical therapy will begin around 8/26, by then I, according to what I've read, should have 90 degrees of flexion in the knee and be able to extend it a bit. My goal is to be at 95+ degrees and exceed the expected extension by that date.

It's weird, I'm forced to play the waiting game right now as surgery is next week. I have gone from being slightly worried, to anticipation, and now to excitement. I'm excited to get to work and get my leg back to 100%, damn the pain involved. From what I've read, you almost get what you give in the rehab. If you bust your ass hard, you reap the rewards. Then again, if you get lazy, you reap only consequences. I plan on surprising a few people.

Don't worry, I wont be stupid about this. I'm serious about coming back 100%. Serious enough to exercise self-restraint if I have too, not something I'm used to.

Bummer

I may have torn my ACL on an Axle C&J attempt at WNY's strongest man today. I'm not in pain, I can put weight on it, but the knee is wobbly and has just the very slightest hint of soreness at the moment. Wether that will change tomorrow or not, I do not know.

Squats again

Back squats today
225x10
245x8
265x6
285x4
305x1(was going for 2 as you probably guessed, wasn't to be)

My next attempts were going to be 325x1 and see how many singles I could get. I've decided to stop trying to go heavier every workout and to just build up strength in the 3-8 rep range for the next month or two to see where it gets me. The 10 and 8 rep sets were pretty easy and the 285x4 took a bit out of me. I could've made this 20, 10, 5, 5 with the same weights if I hadn't wanted to hit 300 in this workout.

I never listened to Micheal Jackson's music...

I remember the first time I saw Micheal Jackson. It was on TV during news coverage of one of his events in the mid 90's. I remember my parents talking about him, I asked, "THAT is a guy?". My parents responded with an understanding "Yup." From that point on, I always saw him in the way that was popular. I regarded him very much so as a joke and couldn't for the life of me understand why it was that people were so enamored with him. I saw quite clearly just how loyal his fans were, the legions of people, young and old, screaming outside his concerts and appearances. I never understood the love affair for what I saw as some kind of freakshow milking his once epic stardom. When I first heard he died, I was in a bit of disbelief. Not that it could've happened, but that it did happen. How could such a figure, a household name, someone only months older than my own father, pass? My first thoughts went to remembering how tragic a figure he was. Pummeled in the media, talked about as a pedophile, turned into some kind of sad joke but still, his fans were there. It's true, I've heard his music before many times over, but as wives everwhere can tell you, "hearing" and "listening" are hardly the same thing. I remembered songs from the Jackson 5 like "ABC" and knew that Micheal was an impressive singer, but it took his death and the heartfelt words of his daughter Paris to actually get me to sit down and listen to one of his songs. Sitting here in my chair, I listened to the song "I'll be there" as sang by a pre-pubescent Micheal in the late 60's. It's true, I had never listened to Micheal's music, and for the first time I asked myself "Why?" I always saw and heard the joke of a man that had been built up slowly by the media and the countless people willing to take aim at an easy target, but never the music. For the first time, I understood why it was that so many people were willing to stand behind him even as he was berated and looked upon as some kind of oddity. I understood why his fans were so loyal, why Micheal Jackson became what he did. It's true, I never listened to Micheal's music, but I will be from now on.

Rest in Peace Micheal