Intro and a quick qn for esplendido

[MrAust92]

G'day fellow "older athletes"

I have been browsing through the threads in the Masters BBing section here and have been impressed with the information and quality of discussion. I just finished reading the AAS usage thread and the one on lagging b/parts, both of which were very informative.

By way of introduction I am 41, live in Australia and have been training 24 years. I compete with NABBA who are quite strong here in Australia and won a national Mr Australia title way back in 1992 at 24 years of age (hence the user name). Have competed on and off in the years since then.

I am still banging away at 41 and looking to compete as a Masters athlete. I actually prepped for a show in May this year but suffered a serious injury (torn supraspinatus tendon) requiring surgical repair only 15 days out from the show. I was tempted to "limp" through to the show but all the medical advice was to not make it any worse and get it surgically fixed ASAP.

I posted a thread in the Injury & Prevention forum detailing the extent of the injury and the medical response to this (surgery/physical therapy/nutrition/AAS etc)

http://forums.rxmuscle.com/showthread.php?t=10657

What really caught my attention is reading how esplendido bounced back from a tricep re-attachment and benching heavy within 6 months of surgery and then competing a few months later. This has raised my expectations about speeding up the rehab process and getting back to a point where I can train with sufficient intensity to consider competing in 2010.

If you have a spare 5 min I would really appreciate your opinions/insight on what I have outlined in the thread and what you would recommend based on your 2007 experience.

I usually only come to RxMuscle to read Dave's thread but will make a point of frequenting this forum as well. Great to see older athletes competing well into their 50's and sharing information without any bullshit and attitude.

Nice work.

MA92

:beerbang:

[esplendido]

G'day fellow "older athletes"

I have been browsing through the threads in the Masters BBing section here and have been impressed with the information and quality of discussion. I just finished reading the AAS usage thread and the one on lagging b/parts, both of which were very informative.

By way of introduction I am 41, live in Australia and have been training 24 years. I compete with NABBA who are quite strong here in Australia and won a national Mr Australia title way back in 1992 at 24 years of age (hence the user name). Have competed on and off in the years since then.

I am still banging away at 41 and looking to compete as a Masters athlete. I actually prepped for a show in May this year but suffered a serious injury (torn supraspinatus tendon) requiring surgical repair only 15 days out from the show. I was tempted to "limp" through to the show but all the medical advice was to not make it any worse and get it surgically fixed ASAP.

I posted a thread in the Injury & Prevention forum detailing the extent of the injury and the medical response to this (surgery/physical therapy/nutrition/AAS etc)

http://forums.rxmuscle.com/showthread.php?t=10657 (http://forums.rxmuscle.com/showthread.php?t=10657)

What really caught my attention is reading how esplendido bounced back from a tricep re-attachment and benching heavy within 6 months of surgery and then competing a few months later. This has raised my expectations about speeding up the rehab process and getting back to a point where I can train with sufficient intensity to consider competing in 2010.

If you have a spare 5 min I would really appreciate your opinions/insight on what I have outlined in the thread and what you would recommend based on your 2007 experience.

I usually only come to RxMuscle to read Dave's thread but will make a point of frequenting this forum as well. Great to see older athletes competing well into their 50's and sharing information without any bullshit and attitude.

Nice work.

MA92

:beerbang:

I started GH at 4IU within a week of the reattachment. I ran it for 3 months. I also kept lifting without using my left arm. The body has a mechanism (if you're already in shape) where it will cause some growth on an opposite limb by working the good limb. I trained my right arm and delt and pec every week....just dropped the poundages a little, and lost nothing in size on my left arm/delt. My injury was the end of September, 2006. I competed twice after in May and June 2007, winning the Masters 50-over in the second show. My left triceps was a little differently shaped due to the surgery, but my arms were essentially balanced.

When I started training my left arm again (January 2007), I only used weight for both arms that my left arm would do without to much tightness/pain. by March, I was benching heavy again, but since I was in contest prep, did not do my max weight.....just weight I could do 10 reps with (around 345).

The reattached triceps had some tightness in it that lasted for a year. It still inserts about a 1/2 inch higher than the right, and that will never change. But there's only 1/2 inch difference between the two arms, which is typical even for non-injured bbers.

[MrAust92]

Thank you, that is very encouraging.

I have been warned not to do any unilateral work with me good arm, at least not yet, but I think the Dr is worried I will bang the injured shoulder or pick up a 20 kg plate etc that may impair the recovery. I am keen to start doing at least some leg work (my calved could certainly use it LOL).

Did you do anything different nutritionally to speed things up at all?

[esplendido]

Thank you, that is very encouraging.

I have been warned not to do any unilateral work with me good arm, at least not yet, but I think the Dr is worried I will bang the injured shoulder or pick up a 20 kg plate etc that may impair the recovery. I am keen to start doing at least some leg work (my calved could certainly use it LOL).

Did you do anything different nutritionally to speed things up at all?

Other than my usual supplements, I increased my protein to 2g per lb of LBM. I also was on AAS from January to June 2007. Injuries eat up protein, constantly replacing tissue in the healing process. I wanted to be supersaturated with protein.

[MrAust92]

Thanks again, this has helped re-set my expectations.

:)

[esplendido]

Thanks again, this has helped re-set my expectations.

:)

BTW, welcome to the Masters Bodybuilding forum! We look forward to hearing about your experiences beyond the injury. We all learn something from one another :)

[sassy69]

Welcome & be careful so you do heal solidly!

Congrats on your Mr Aust 92 title!

[HeavyDutyGuy]

Welcome to the geezers forum! Lol. You know you touched on something. Take this time to bomb the chit out of your legs. Not only will they improve, but due to the indirect effect, it will cause muscle gains (to a lesser extent) throughout your body. Tom Platz exploited this. Already having awesome legs, he could have backed off. Instead he trained even harder, and added 15 lbs of muscle to his body, improving his upper body significantly, and arguably should have won the 1981 Mr Olympia. Take a cue from the Golden Eagle and yoiu may come out of this BETTER than before.

[Rocco1943]

Always nice to have another voice on the forum. Welcome and hope you enjoy being here as much as the rest of us.

[MrAust92]

Thanks for all the info and the warm welcome folks.

I thought I would toss up a couple of pics FYI, I was err....younger when these were taken.

I am to present a much improved package once I get this crappy injury sorted out.

:)

[esplendido]

Thanks for all the info and the warm welcome folks.

I thought I would toss up a couple of pics FYI, I was err....younger when these were taken.

I am to present a much improved package once I get this crappy injury sorted out.

:)

Beautiful conditioning! It helps to put a face and body on members here. Most everyone in this forum has posted a pic of themselves somewhere.

Hope you get that injury healed up quickly. You really don't go backwards very much even with that severe a tear.

[MrAust92]

Here is another one (I am having trouble with attachments for some reason)..... :confused::confused:

[tattoo timmy]

Mr. Aust,

Your physique kicks ass! All the best to you!

[sassy69]

Fantastic back!

[MrAust92]

Thanks for the positive comments, a little good vibe is nice right now while I am feeling a little low.

I went back to the gym today (9 days post-op), first time in nearly 6 weeks and against Drs orders but sitting around is driving me insane.

Just trained calves (no standing raises as it presses on the wound which is still sutured), some abs, couple of rounds of my shoulder rehab exercises (not allowed to use handweights just yet) and did some cardio.

Felt 100% better afterwards, even a pansy workout like this makes me feel like Im doing something productive.

Going back again tomorrow, I guess it will be calves again............ God knows they can use the work.

I see the sports physician Wednesday and have the sutures removed and the repair assessed, I am hoping to surprise him with the ROM I have gained so far and get clearance to ramp up the rehab exercises (maybe he will let me use 1 kg dumbells....??).

So far so good.

:)

[Sledge]

Good to see you here MA92.

[MrAust92]

Good to see you here MA92.

Thanks mate, nice to hang with some BBers in my age bracket.

:beerbang:

[Sledge]

So has this ended the top secret contest prep? Or has it just set it back a year? Or less?

[MrAust92]

Yeah mate, it puts me back 12 months............

Such is life.

:)

[MrAust92]

I saw the sports physician yesterday for my post op check up and to have my stiches removed etc.

This was really interesting as the Dr was assisting the surgeon during the op and gave me a blow by blow explanation of all they did. While I was expecting the supraspinatus repair it turns out he actually fixed a few things while he was in there.

Including:


Repair of small tear to the subscapularis tendon.
Removed the bursa (soft tissue sac that supports the tendon) as it was basically rooted. Apparently our bodies can regenerate a new one in 4-6 weeks.
Performed a release (removed a bit) of the coracoacromial ligament as it was impinging on skeletal bone.
Performed a 2-stage acromioplasty (shaved some bone and smoothed it out so the ligament wont catch on it.
Repaired the major tear in the supraspinatus tendon that was started all this.

I was pleasantly surprised when he told me that the joint was (apart from the acute injury) very healthy and in good shape for someone who had been BBing for 20+ years and showed zero signs of the onset of arthritis.

He reckons that if I follow my rehab to the letter it will be better than new and there is no reason I cant be training at 80% within 4 months. He also said that he expected to give me an all clear to commence training at 110% (ie contest training) in 2010 which was nice to hear.

The only down side is that he informed me that the sling has to stay on for 4 weeks instead of 2 as I was originally advised in hospital (I thought 2 weeks was too bloody good to be true, it turns out I was right).

I have already regained 50% ROM without discomfort in the arcs that directly effect the 2 tendons that were repaired which surprised him a bit. I wasnt surprised at all, I have focussed all my efforts on improving from one day to the next.

I am keeping my b/weight down while undertaking rehab and sick to death of people remarking "Gee, you've lost so much weight" including the fat chicks at work (I am still 107 kg and very lean, not exactly emaciated.) One of them asked me how anyone could possibly stop exercising and LOSE weight. I advised her that the trick was to stop shoving so much food in your mouth.................. :D dopey cow.

Like all long journeys this will be one of many small steps.

:)

[sassy69]

That's awesome! That sounds like a little of the little clean up stuff my doc did when I went in to have a bone spur removed 9 months ago. I did have a little arthritis in my shoulder, along w/ the bone spure & a lot of general tendon wear & tear. They did the whole surgery via scoping so very little invasive work. I did the PT religiously for the first month, and Jan 1, I met w/ my trainer and said I want to do a show in July - let's get to it. So I upped my cals and worked around the shoulder. So far so good.

But that's awesome they're giving you what sounds like some really 'realistic' prediction on when you'll be almost all functional. You'll definitely find ways to work w/ what you have to. And I bet you'll find the time off will pay off when you are fully operational and can hit it refreshed & hard again!

[serratus]

Mr. Aus, looks like you really nailed it in '92, those are some great shots. Best of luck with recovery. It sounds like a challenge but you have a good approach to working with it.
As for stepping back into the game after years off, it can totally be done. 40+ guys are kicking major ass all over the place. I was at a show last weekend where the overall winner was "one of us" who had been out of competition for 10 years, and the runner up (who's about to turn "masters" age) had been out of competition for 20 years. They were the two best pre-pro physiques at the show.

[Sledge]

Great to hear your on the road to recovery. And the bonus to having the sling on for 4 weeks is it'll be like sleeping with a new mistress when you can use that arm freely again.:)

[MrAust92]

Great to hear your on the road to recovery. And the bonus to having the sling on for 4 weeks is it'll be like sleeping with a new mistress when you can use that arm freely again.:)

LOL, sleeping is actually one of the hardest aspects right now, I am supposed to sleep on my back with the crook arm immobilised across my chest in the sling.

This sucks because I find it hard to sleep on my back and when I do I snore like a freight train so the wife is belting me all night as Im keeping her awake.

Havent had a decent nights sleep in 2 weeks.

:confused:

[sassy69]

LOL, sleeping is actually one of the hardest aspects right now, I am supposed to sleep on my back with the crook arm immobilised across my chest in the sling.

This sucks because I find it hard to sleep on my back and when I do I snore like a freight train so the wife is belting me all night as Im keeping her awake.

Havent had a decent nights sleep in 2 weeks.

:confused:


Brutal! I'm a stomach sleeper too. I was miserable for a good 6 months after I got my implants. (You don't have that issue.....) I even try on my side and I continually jack up my shoulders.

Have you tried melatonin or any of the sleep aids? Not sure about the snoring...

Or sleep aid & ear plugs for the wife?

[MrAust92]

Maybe the wife needs a sleeping pill??

:p

[MrAust92]

A little example of my surgeons handiwork..........

The open repair wound at 3 days and 3 weeks post-op respectively.

I have to say I am pleased with the result, my ROM is improving daily and I only have 3 more days till I can stop wearing the damn sling. Doesnt sound like much but I am soooo sick to death of the damn thing. Havent had a decent nights sleep in nearly 4 weeks.

I have my 4 week check-up this Saturday and I am hoping I can start doing some (very light) resistance work.

:)

[Sledge]

Looks pretty neat mate. Not much of a scar at all for only 3 weeks recovery. Hope it goes well on Saturday.

[MrAust92]

Time for a quick update.

Saw the Dr last Friday for my 4 week post-op check-up. He was surprised at my rate of recovery and improved ROM, I have been OK'd to ditch the sling and drive a motor vehicle which is a huge step in the right direction.

My rehab exercise protocol have been stepped up and I am now using up to 3 kg dumbells for remedial exercises and Therabands for added resistance in ROM moves.

Progress will now be reviewed weekly and my objective is to increase the resistance each week and exceed the Dr's recommendations.

Funny thing is I need to do the rehab exercises 3 times per day which means I am doing them in my office at lunchtimes (I have a stretching mat, assortment of light dumbells and Therabands etc), makes for great amusement for my colleagues who think its a great joke.

Funny thing is if you REALLY concentrate you can ALMOST get a pump with a 3 kg dumbell............OK, thats sad I know.

:)

[Sledge]

I just had a mental picture of you in your office doing concentration curls and as your workmates walk past counting aloud 998 999 1000.

[MrAust92]

Sad thing is you are not far from the truth mate.

:)

[MrAust92]

Time for an update.

I am now 6 weeks post-surgery and the advice from my surgeon was that my tendon repair would achieve "structural integrity" after 6 weeks (those are his words).

In light of this today I attempted my first bit of very light resistance work over and above the rehab protocol that I have been performing religiously 3 times per day.

This morning I completed my rehab exercise routine after which I did the following....

Lat pulldown (curl grip) 5 x 15
Straight arm cable lat pulls 3 x 20
Hyperextensions 3 x 20
Flat dumbell press 5 x 20 (avoiding the bottom 20% of the movement so as not to engage the rotator cuff too much).
Cable crossovers 3 x 20
Dumbell shrugs 3 x 30

Plus abs and cardio which I have been continuing to do 4 times per week.

I was very careful and started out ultra light and progressed to fuck-all-more-than-ultra-light but it felt good to move some resistance through those planes of movement again and I actually got a moderate pump (you dont know how good this is until you have had a 10 week layoff forced upon you, take it from me).

My shoulder actually felt pretty good, a bit "fragile" but no pain that prevented me from doing these movements with a sensible amount of resistance.

While I havent been given an explicit clearance to do this from my sports physician I know my body better than anyone and I think that actively engaging in resistance movement (provided it doesnt cause unacceptable pain/ discomfort to the repaired joint) actually speeds the healing process.

My plan at this stage is to do this twice per week, I have also started to train legs twice per week with just extensions, light legpress, walking lunges (with bodyweight) and a little ham work. I intend to continue this for the next 6 weeks gradually increasing resistance after which time I will be 3 months post-op and will be reviewed again by the Dr. At this time I fully expect to be cleared to start ramping up the resistance to something more respectable.

Overall I have to say I am very happy with my progress to date, never satisfied of course but I think I am doing everything I can to expedite the healing process and its starting to pay off.

:)