Concurrent Strength Training & Running 2015: Eight-Week Workout Cycle IV

Received the barbell yesterday. Bare steel smudged my hands. I wonder how long it takes for the patina to develop?

It is a Rogue barbell, from their closeout section. Some slight surface blemishes on the bar near the center. Many of the Rogue bars appear to have very similar mechanical specs, individuated only by their appearance with various finishes/coatings, so I guess this didn't pass visual inspection.

Drove and picked up the plates today at X Training Equipment in Jacksonville. They have fabricators that make rigs, and sometimes racks. Looked at a j hook, and I'm sure the welds are sturdy, but were not welded all around. So, I'll still go with Rogue.

Spare bedroom mostly cleared. Ceiling fan has a downrod that brings it down to 8' clearance. Don't have the hardware to convert it to surface mount. I happen to have an old fan that is, so I'll just install that one.

Read some stuff online that was anti-squat, but it looks like that's about people who push themselves too much. Same could be said for running, I suppose.

Wow, this is getting expensive. Although, it will be good motivation to clear out the clutter around the house.
 
The bar looks fine as is. I think I'll leave it for now. If rust occurs, I'll take further action.

I looked at the brake pad that I was lugging around a few years ago. Some rust on the sides, but the surface looks good. Rust may be from when it was in the garage for a period of time. So, maybe my bar will be fine.

I was a chem minor, so I have a natural curiosity about this. Though, I'm a bit rusty.
http://mgaguru.com/mgtech/restore/rt106.htm

If the bar get's rusty, I'll use a rust converter. However, rust converter only works on rust. So, first this.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Pro...-on-Iron-and-Steel-Safe/step5/Rust-the-Metal/

Then this.
http://www.theruststore.com/Rust-Converter-Quart-P41.aspx

Results look interesting.
http://ecologicarchitecture.com/SoloHobbit/rust/index.htm
 
Lee, have you considered seeing someone in Sports Medicine?
Yah, the doc I saw on Thursday and will see again on Tuesday, after my MRI tomorrow (Monday) belongs to the department "Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine" at Health Partners. In the bio blurb on his Health Partners web page, he states:

"As a former collegiate runner and now a recreational runner, I know how an active lifestyle can enhance one's quality of life. Whether an injury was sustained on the field or in everyday life, my goal is to help return the patient to their individual activity level through a patient-focused approach using surgical and non-surgical options."

And yet, he immediately tried to convince me that my running days may be over. I guess that's his prescription for all middle-aged patients. In any case, he's probably expert enough to spot something in the MRI if it's there. Then it's up to me to decide if his treatment options are for me. Mainly I'm just looking for a little piece of mind. This niggle doesn't seem to have been caused by anything in particular, although I suspect it was due to running or deadlifting after taking some time off. Just one of those random setbacks that happen when you're inconsistent.

My older brother sees an ART specialist who got him doing squats properly, which in turn has allowed him to run again (intervals on an incline treadmill), so I may see if my insurance will cover a visit to him.

Thursday night the knee really hurt and I had to take some hydromorphone to ease the pain, but the last two days it's been pretty mild, and simply sitting down when it starts to hurt quickly dissipates the pain, so I'm still hopeful it's just one of those mysterious niggles that will come and go on its own. It was probably even more minor before I decided to practice "active recovery" and walked on it while it was still stiff or swollen. Dumb. That's when the pain began.

On the bright side, the post-shingles pain continues its slow decrease, to the point now where I can go long patches of time without really even noticing it. At the current rate of healing, I'll still probably have some pain for at least another month, but it's getting to the point where it's no longer debilitating, and I'm sleeping pretty well at night without having to take the Gabapentin. I'm just taking the Ibuprofen, hoping all the warnings about it screwing up the guts don't apply to me.

I think Rogue is an excellent company, so it's probably good to get everything through them. I was impressed by the quality of the J-hooks I got from them, and I've been real happy with my C-70 shorty bar. I haven't had any trouble with oxidation with my black oxide finish.
 
Spare room mostly cleared. Having a bit of sticker shock about the rack that I want. Will probably wait a bit until my wallet cools off.

In the mean time, I can still do rows, deads, and presses with what I have. The dumbbells are fine for bench for now.

Still working on the squats. Doing bar weight to get the form. Getting used to the movement. Knees started out creaky, but getting better with practice and time. I suppose once I start adding weights, I could just dump it off my back with the bumpers. Though, by then I'll probably spring for the rack.

I read about someone using jack stands to make it easier to load the bar for dead. Fortunately, I already have these for the cars.
http://m.northerntool.com/products/shop~tools~product_200381633_200381633
 
The bar looks fine as is. I think I'll leave it for now. If rust occurs, I'll take further action.

I looked at the brake pad that I was lugging around a few years ago. Some rust on the sides, but the surface looks good. Rust may be from when it was in the garage for a period of time. So, maybe my bar will be fine.

I was a chem minor, so I have a natural curiosity about this. Though, I'm a bit rusty.
http://mgaguru.com/mgtech/restore/rt106.htm

If the bar get's rusty, I'll use a rust converter. However, rust converter only works on rust. So, first this.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Pro...-on-Iron-and-Steel-Safe/step5/Rust-the-Metal/

Then this.
http://www.theruststore.com/Rust-Converter-Quart-P41.aspx

Results look interesting.
http://ecologicarchitecture.com/SoloHobbit/rust/index.htm

an rust-reversal trick i learned from my chemist brother via my dad is to just rub aluminum foil on the rust. apparently, the electrochemistry of it is such that the aluminum is happy to oxide and run the iron reaction backward. obviously, it only works on thin/surface stuff and isn't the fastest thing in the world: you won't be able to restore your entire '32 coupe that way... but it is fun to watch the surface of the rust turn shiny gray/silver again.
 
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Got the bar into the room, and cleaned off some bumpers. They come with grease on them. I had some vinylex for auto care and wiped them down. Put on a pair of 35s to test some deads. Felt nice. Did one drop just to test them, but don't plan any more.

Ordered a pair of Ivanko collars, as I understand that one should have the plates secured, or otherwise risk damaging the bumpers when dropped.
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=153911891
 
"Well, seems like there hasn't been too much drop-off on my Bench, so far. It took a few sets to activate the muscles, but by the fourth and fifth sets things were feeling close to normal. Felt too lethargic to do anything else though. It's just hard to get motivated for a workout without any squats or deadlifts.

Saturday - 06.27
PM
Lifting
N PD: 150 x 5/5/5
S PD: 150 x 5/5

A little priming in anticipation of doing fuller upper body workouts next week."

Funny you say this, with my knee issue I kept thinking that I can't really lift. But now my shoulders feeling better so there is no reason why I cant get a decent upper body workout and maybe do some straight legged deadlifts or something. Weird how that full body mentality can create a block like that.

Since, I'm going to start working out with the barbell, it might be time to get another bar. Was looking at getting one with a zinc coating, but apparently, they wear off.
http://board.crossfit.com/showthread.php?t=87962

So, probably bare steel again.

Just remember that cf'rs are notorious for beating the hell out of their equipment. Yours won't get that kind of treatment so I would probably recommend to focus on the other parts of a barbell before you worry too much about the finish.
 
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I do like using a barbell. It has a nice feel to it. I am learning to use both sides of the body together, rather than independently with dumbbells.

Thank you all for encouraging me to give it a try!
Glad to have you in the fold! Dumbbells are great for certain exercises and/or for achieving a greater ROM, but for activating maximal mass, and for certain exercises like the squat and deadlift, there's nothing like a barbell.

Weird how that full body mentality can create a block like that.
Sorry to hear of your knee issue. Seems like your body is telling you you're doing too much with all these ultras, but I understand the desire to complete the challenge. With my knee issue, if and when I'm running again, I'll be so happy just to run a few miles consistently.

Yah, it would be hard at this point for me to go back to doing split workouts. And then lifting without running also feels incomplete. I really believe there's a lot of carryover for me. The lifting primes the running, and the running primes the lifting. Just as each of the six lifts seems to help prime the other lifts. I thought about pushing my bench press for a while while I wait for my knee to heal, but it doesn't seem worth the effort. I feel like my bench will go up anyway once I'm back doing my full body routine, and with less risk of aggravating my left shoulder.

Got the MRI done yesterday, will see the doc for diagnosis today, but the knee has been feeling a little better each day. I will probably try to start walk-commuting tomorrow if the doc gives me the green light. The plan would be to walk this week, and then next week start running a little at the end of the commute, just a block or two, and build up gradually from there. At the same time, re-introduce squats and light deadlifts.
Just remember that cf'rs are notorious for beating the hell out of their equipment. Yours won't get that kind of treatment so I would probably recommend to focus on the other parts of a barbell before you worry too much about the finish.
Yah, unless you're doing Olympic weightlifting, I don't think you need to splurge on fancy collars either, but if you got the cash, those collars look pretty sweet. I only use collars on deadlifts and rows, because the plates hit the floor after each rep. On the presses and squats, with good form, the bar should always remain parallel to the floor.
 
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Planning on getting another one of the same bar.

The collars are just for the dead, since that's the only one I could foresee dropping. Even then, it's probably unlikely.

I guess that I would want to be able to dump the plates for bench and squat if needed, so no collars. I also plan to connect those bars to the freespotter device, so no dropping.

I don't foresee major problems with the press, so no collars.

So in total, just one pair of collars.

Thanks for the suggestions!
 
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Planning on getting another one of the same bar.

The collars are just for the dead, since that's the only one I could foresee dropping. Even then, it's probably unlikely.

I guess that I would want to be able to dump the plates for bench and squat if needed, so no collars. I also plan to connect those bars to the freespotter device, so no dropping.

I don't foresee major problems with the press, so no collars.

So in total, just one pair of collars.

Thanks for the suggestions!
Some recommend resetting the deadlift for each rep, to ensure proper form and avoid fatiguing the lower back, which means setting it back down on the floor, which means the plates will wiggle and become looser after each deload, so you'll probably want collars for that. Dropping is also a possibility once you work you're way up to heavy weights and grip strength becomes a potential issue.

For a deadlift jack, I made a decent one out of plumbing pipe:

17.jpg

Anyway, excited for you and your new set-up!
 
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Sorry to hear of your knee issue. Seems like your body is telling you you're doing too much with all these ultras, but I understand the desire to complete the challenge. With my knee issue, if and when I'm running again, I'll be so happy just to run a few miles consistently.

Yah, it would be hard at this point for me to go back to doing split workouts. And then lifting without running also feels incomplete. I really believe there's a lot of carryover for me. The lifting primes the running, and the running primes the lifting. Just as each of the six lifts seems to help prime the other lifts. I thought about pushing my bench press for a while while I wait for my knee to heal, but it doesn't seem worth the effort. I feel like my bench will go up anyway once I'm back doing my full body routine, and with less risk of aggravating my left shoulder.

Got the MRI done yesterday, will see the doc for diagnosis today, but the knee has been feeling a little better each day. I will probably try to start walk-commuting tomorrow if the doc gives me the green light. The plan would be to walk this week, and then next week start running a little at the end of the commute, just a block or two, and build up gradually from there. At the same time, re-introduce squats and light deadlifts.

Yeah its definitely a downward spiral for me these days, I am hoping my silly idea of just accumulating my long cardio training on the bike and walking will get me over the next 7 weeks. I started out the race with the plan to run as far as I could and then if the knee stared hurting I would just switch to walking. The running, oddly enough, worked until something snapped at the 35k point and I could barely walk, so not only do I have ITBS but I think I did something else to it? I should probably go see a doc... its getting better very slowly hopefully by the weekend things will be more or less ok. It's hard to tell after these things, between the temporary soreness and what's legitimate injury. Oh well, I still think it was worth it, just wondering if I should have just walked the whole thing?

Yeah look at this little blurb I read about the carryover the other day, I think it must hold true especially if you want to introduce more volume in your lifting.

5. ANOTHER advantage of Zone 2 work are the improved adaptations one gets on their GENERAL work capacity.

General Work Capacity = ability to produce more work over time.

A nice example Alex gave was with a powerlifter he’s currently working with who wants to get his deadlift up to 400 kg’s (<– a lot more in pounds) while improving his general conditioning for health reasons.

[Being able to see your kids graduate high-school is a nice benefit of improved cardiovascular conditioning].

In the beginning the lifter noted he was only able to get three work sets (with wraps) in before he’d be absolutely wiped out.

After only a few months of dedicated GENERAL Zone 2 work (non-specific: bike, elliptical, brisk walk, etc), the same lifter was now able to get SIX work sets in.

He essentially was able to DOUBLE his volume (and thus, work capacity). Not too shabby.

http://tonygentilcore.com/2015/06/a...eakest-slowest-and-smallest-human-being-ever/
 
Yeah its definitely a downward spiral for me these days, I am hoping my silly idea of just accumulating my long cardio training on the bike and walking will get me over the next 7 weeks. I started out the race with the plan to run as far as I could and then if the knee stared hurting I would just switch to walking. The running, oddly enough, worked until something snapped at the 35k point and I could barely walk, so not only do I have ITBS but I think I did something else to it? I should probably go see a doc... its getting better very slowly hopefully by the weekend things will be more or less ok. It's hard to tell after these things, between the temporary soreness and what's legitimate injury. Oh well, I still think it was worth it, just wondering if I should have just walked the whole thing?

Yeah look at this little blurb I read about the carryover the other day, I think it must hold true especially if you want to introduce more volume in your lifting.

5. ANOTHER advantage of Zone 2 work are the improved adaptations one gets on their GENERAL work capacity.

General Work Capacity = ability to produce more work over time.

A nice example Alex gave was with a powerlifter he’s currently working with who wants to get his deadlift up to 400 kg’s (<– a lot more in pounds) while improving his general conditioning for health reasons.

[Being able to see your kids graduate high-school is a nice benefit of improved cardiovascular conditioning].

In the beginning the lifter noted he was only able to get three work sets (with wraps) in before he’d be absolutely wiped out.

After only a few months of dedicated GENERAL Zone 2 work (non-specific: bike, elliptical, brisk walk, etc), the same lifter was now able to get SIX work sets in.

He essentially was able to DOUBLE his volume (and thus, work capacity). Not too shabby.

http://tonygentilcore.com/2015/06/a...eakest-slowest-and-smallest-human-being-ever/
Yah, I was also thinking that running toughens up the tendons and ligaments in a way that lifting does not.

Anyway, I'm screwed. The orthopedist says I have a small, deep meniscus tear and some minor arthritis. He told me to stop running, and stop doing heavy squats and deadlifts. I've got a friend who's a former gym owner and he recommended I get a second opinion from some orthopedists he knows who work with pro athletes. He said the surgical techniques improve every year, and it might be possible to suture the tear. The doc I saw said all he could do was cut the flap out, but it wouldn't improve functionality, it's just something he would do if the pain continued. Fortunately, the pain continues to subside.

So, I might have to take up urban cycling, and start doing higher rep squats and deadlifts, or rack pulls and good mornings or something. It will take me a while to adjust to this new reality. Luckily the Twin Cities is consistently rated one of the most bike-friendly cities in the world.

Realizing I might be screwed, and my running days over, I would strongly advise you to not do anything that might screw up your knees long-term.

Now it's time to start working on my 300-pound bench, and my 200-pound press.
 
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Hey does your knee pop when you straighten it?
Sorry to hear that, I wonder what caused it to tear?
Yeah I hear you. I have never had issues with my knees before so its kind of frustrating to deal with it now. I guess these are the inevitable injuries you have when you have a relatively active lifestyle. I suspect I will curtail my running significantly and maybe stick with half mary distances in the future. Who knows. Right now squatting is completely off the table. I think deadlifting might be ok for now. What really sucks is dealing with the double whammy of a f'd up shoulder and knee. So I can't even have bench aspirations anymore.
 
Hey does your knee pop when you straighten it?
Sorry to hear that, I wonder what caused it to tear?
Yeah I hear you. I have never had issues with my knees before so its kind of frustrating to deal with it now. I guess these are the inevitable injuries you have when you have a relatively active lifestyle. I suspect I will curtail my running significantly and maybe stick with half mary distances in the future. Who knows. Right now squatting is completely off the table. I think deadlifting might be ok for now. What really sucks is dealing with the double whammy of a f'd up shoulder and knee. So I can't even have bench aspirations anymore.
It pops a little, but nothing like it did last fall when I had what I thought was a hammie strain from deadlifting. At that time, I had to massage the quad just above the knee to unlock it.
The doc didn't have any idea about what caused the tear. Might just be getting old. Might be an active lifestyle most of my adult life, as you suggest. Might be the heavy deadlifts last summer. He said it wasn't recent. Seems like the minor knee issues I've had over the last few years when getting back into running have probably been this. I had what I thought was a sore MCL on my left knee almost three years ago. Now I'm thinking that might be the same issue over on that side. But the fact that I've been able to run pain-free most of the time makes it hard to accept that the best thing to do is to give up running. But I will gladly give up mostly pain-free running now in order to be able to walk pain-free 20 years from now, if that's what's at stake. I definitely don't want to do anything that will make it worse, or make it degrade faster. It's just kind of shocking to be confronted with this sort of old age issue all of a sudden. I thought I had at least another 20 years before I would have to start thinking about this stuff. Meanwhile my four-year-old son jumps from a six-foot rock into the sand no problem.

I was so confident yesterday, my knee was feeling better and I thought the doc would tell me he didn't see anything. Still, there's plenty I can do to stay in shape without stressing out the knee. Maybe I'll become really good at Good Mornings and Rack Pulls. I've also been reading a bit and some people think squats can actually be therapeutic, so there's a lot to look into. I hope my insurance will cover a visit to the experts my friend knows. I should be able to transfer the MRI to them, so even if I have to pay out-of-pocket, it will just be a consultation.

I thought the longterm prognosis for your shoulder was good? I know about the double whammy though, with my shingles and knee, and a lingering dry cough for the last few weeks too. Wait, that's a triple whammy. At least everything is improving this week. I thought you could still do presses and pullups, right? I'm already thinking about changing to some kind of upper/lower split, with the lower a mix of rowing, cycling/stairmaster, and light weights on Tuesday and Thursday, and maybe a longer bike ride on the weekends. For the upper, I could add in some more assistance. Still, it will be very hard to say good-bye to that incredible feeling you get from heavy squats and deadlifts, especially after having discovered that thrill so recently. Oh well, life goes on. It's not cancer . . .