Pain, Gain and Injuries

In short

All in all, a good week.  I’ve successfully upped my calories, predominantly through increased protein intake, I’ve worked out hard and I managed a 5k PB, albeit only 1 second better!  But hey, a win’s a win!

…and…injuries!

The Grub

This week I needed to increase my calories by way of extra protein.  Whilst having a small appetite, I have noticed that with this gradual increase over the last few weeks, I’m having moments when I feel ready for my next meal, almost hungry, whereas previously I was stuffed and having to pretty much force feed.  This obviously means my body is adapting to the increased activity and is requiring more supporting energy.  Tom’s made this increase really gradual and I think it’s paid off doing it this way.

I don’t think I could do this without the help of whey protein powder, because the idea of blending chicken breasts to drink (which I believe Zac Efron did for his regime whilst working towards his Baywatch physique), quite frankly sounds disgusting, but I get it, there’s only so much chicken chewing you can do!

The Grind

As I mentioned earlier, I achieved a PB in my 5k.  To a lot of people I know, this is a gentle stroll (28:24), but to me, someone who hates running, a second taken off is everything!

It was hot on Saturday, nowhere near as hot as Monday and Tuesday (thankfully I wasn’t running on those days) but uncomfortable running.  I was tired and my motivation to go out and run was pretty damn low!

The only option for me was to just put the shoes on and get out.  I hated it; I was uncomfortable, struggling and hearing my split times parroted through my headphones, gradually getting worse was tough, when in my mind, I was speeding things up, but I dug deep and managed to eke out the slightest of improvements.

I’m now already dreading Saturday’s run, so watch out next week to see how that went!

In the gym, I’m now nailing the 20 minute stair master sessions at the end of each workout and managing to really see gains in my strength and stamina overall.  Things never really get easier, they just get longer, heavier or more repetitive, but this is how I know I’m achieving my gains.  The minute something feels easy, I’m being too easy on myself, so have to shift gears.

The Injuries

Here we go…so far I’ve been really lucky having not injured myself, but in the space of a week, I managed to find myself with a peculiar hand injury when pressing with heavy dumbbells or any movement which puts pressure between my thumb and first finger.  When it struck, it rendered my hand useless, so despite being able to manage the weight with my arm/chest muscles, the hand just gave way.  In my last session, it was ok thankfully.  I was being particularly careful when gripping the weights, so hopefully that’s the end of that!

Next, on Sunday during my lower body workout, whilst increasing the weight on the 45 degree leg press, I felt a twinge in my right groin area.  It was uncomfortable, but didn’t prevent me from carrying out the exercise.  However, given that I’m no spring chicken, and keeping the bigger picture in mind, instead of raising the weight to 90kg which is what I was due to lift in my last set, I decided to maintain the 75kg to avoid causing any further problem.

I also dropped out of 6-a-side footy on Monday, just to make sure I wasn’t going to cause a real injury.

After doing some daily stretches to help the groin out, so far it feels ok, so my cautiousness and stretching seems to have paid off.  When I was younger, I probably would have ignored such niggles, but I think a much more sensible approach to possible injuries is required whilst I’m pushing my body so hard in my 40’s.

Finally, through no lifting, after a terrible sleep on Monday night due to the heat, I must have slept funny which caused me to wake up with a terrible pain down the left side of my neck.  This actually hindered my Tuesday morning session slightly (which really angered me), though I tried to work through it as best as I could, knowing that this shouldn’t be anything serious given how it occurred.

I can still feel it today, though it has eased quite a bit, but I’ll still be careful when lifting and continue to stretch it out.

I’m actually surprised it took so long to start getting niggles here and there, but like busses, they all came at once.  As Tom reminded whilst he “at your age” me (sad times!), I’m pushing my body really hard and need to be to see the gains we’re seeing so far as muscle doesn’t tend to be so easy to pile on and store at my age!

I’ll continue to take a measured approach to my training, because with the intensity and the timeframe I’m working towards, I have time to be able to back off a little if required and focus on the long game.  The last thing I want is to end up with serious injuries that will put me back months.

Wrapping It Up

Everything is still moving in the right direction.  I’m navigating the obstacles thrown at me on my journey and just making sure I’m doing the best I can do given the circumstances on any given day, as life still has to be lived and we all have many other responsibilities to take care of.

Looking at the pics below, I think there’s further progress; my upper body and arms showing the most of it and what’s that, is that a hint of a 3 pack?!  I’m honestly not fussed about a 6 pack, I just want to be trim and I know this will come later once I’ve conditioned my body and added the necessary muscle where required.

Next week, I may discuss a typical day’s food, supplements I’m taking and how I’ve fared during a week away and the inevitable disruption to my routine, so if you’re interested, check back next Thursday.

If you’ve managed to get to this point, thanks again for taking time to read, and if you have any questions, please fire away in the comments below or message me on Facebook or Instagram.  I’m by no means approaching this blog as any sort of authority on fitness just cause I’ve got a few weeks in the bag, but if I’m able to answer anything from my own personal view point, I will.

Have a great week!

Zach