What is everyone on this thread consider to be superslow?
I’ve been reading this thread, but haven’t chimed in. My personal definition is a
4-5 sec POSITIVE is slow. Anything slower than that is SuperSlow. To me, it applies only to the positive phase, not the negative.
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I guess most people do 6 to 10 second positives and negatives? It might be safer on the joints but given a choice I like going a speed just slow enough so my turn arounds feel smooth. 30 10 30 is the only slow reps workout I have found to be effective because it does seem to allow me to dig a deeper inroad each set and still requiring a much shorter recovery time to the next workout compared to a going to failure workout at regular or slow speed reps.
Scott
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From my time browsing on various forums dedicated to barbell training, I recall that adductor strains are a fairly common injury for power lifters doing heavy squats. I don’t remember many such strains from leg presses. Do you use an unusually wide stance/knees out style when leg pressing? That might increase your risk.
In the barbell world, you frequently see the “Starr Rehab Protocol” touted for muscle belly tears. You can undoubtedly find discussions of it in many places. Below is a description that I took from the Art of Manliness web site:
Here is the tried-and-true injury rehab method for muscle-belly injuries we got from Starr and that has worked for years better than any other method I’ve ever used. It also works well on orthopedic injuries in general, and should be tried before anything more elaborate is used. Wait 3-4 days until the pain starts to “blur,” which indicates that the immediate process of healing has stopped the bleeding and has started to repair the tissue. Then use an exercise that directly works the injury, i.e., that makes it hurt, in this case the squat. Use the empty bar and do 3 sets of 25 with perfect form, allowing yourself NO favoring of the injured side. If it’s ready to rehab you will know by the pain: if the pain increases during the set, it’s not ready; if it stays the same or feels a little better toward the end of the set, it is ready to work.
The NEXT DAY do it again, and add a small amount of weight, like 45 x 25 x 2, 55 x 25 x 1 [weight x reps x sets]. Next day, 45 x 25, 55 x 25, 65 x 25, each for a set of 1. Continue adding weight every day, increasing as much as you can tolerate each workout. It will hurt, and it’s supposed to hurt, but you should be able to tell the difference between rehab pain and re-injury. If you can’t, you will figure it out soon enough. This method works by flushing blood through the injury while forcing the tissue to reorganize in its normal pattern of contractile architecture.
After 10 days of 25s [reps], go up in weight and down in reps to 15s, then to 10s, and finally to 5s. During this time do NO OTHER HEAVY WORK, so that your resources can focus on the injury. You should be fixed in about 2 weeks, squatting more than you hurt yourself with.
This method has the advantage of preventing scar formation in the muscle belly, since the muscle is forced to heal in the context of work and normal contraction, using the movement pattern it normally uses. The important points are: 1) perfect form with, 2) light weights that can be handled for high reps, 3) every day for two weeks, and 4) no other heavy work that will interfere with the system-wide processes of healing the tear.
I haven’t used it, and can’t vouch for its safety or effectiveness. But I have seen in recommended many times for lifting related muscle tears.
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Thanks Al!
From a medical standpoint I can see nothing wrong with the Starr strategy in rehab, re already trained individuals who can differ “bad” pain from “good”. Thanks for sharing - I will take it into serious account!
That being said, I have already adopted this aggressive strategy, since I decided to play with my kids and run the daily errands as I use to regularly. You were supposed to rest completely during the first two days - according to guidelines - and I did not do so (because I couldn’t/can’t due to my daily commitments and responsibility). Also, I have never had much for passive strategies, which most often doesn’t work.
The only way to know in which direction anything goes, is to carefully challenge your boundaries. I am quite surprised to have even gotten subjectively better during “resting time”. Bear in mind though, I did not do anything over the top during these days.
Look forward to trying unweighted leg presses tomorrow, to see where I stand. Combined with the lying squeeze of a medicine ball between your knees - There is my leg workout. Will probably add leg curl if manageable and my regular other body part HIT routine for the sake of mental health (but don’t tell anyone in Starr camp I did so)! LOL
Re SuperSlow I am thinking that it can work out well, when combined with other alternated cadences/protocols. I must have been nagging enough previously about my rotation of 4/4, 30-10-30 and 30-30-30. I made some great strength and hypertrophy gains there - where 30-30-30 served as the workout when I progressed in heavier loads/weight (but at the same time FELT like an easier workout than the others).
There is a time and place for SuperSlow protocol. I can remember an earlier question of mine to Dr Darden, when he explained the reason for doing slower positives served to perfect the form. There is always a place for that in training (but not only)!
The slowest I can go on a positive is 4 seconds…anything more than that I kinda lose focus and give it up…however, I love the 30 second negatives…I might be too addicted to the negatives, lol
I’m young and haven’t been injured *knock on wood * but personally, if I have something that just isn’t feeling right or has been bugging me, I just try to work around it. Do all You’re Upper Body stuff the same and play around with what you feel comfortable with on the legs. If you’re feeling good enough to squat, try the bar on your back and see how that is, then try adding some weight and see if you still feel good, and I dare say try to slowly work your way up to your working weight. It may take a lot of warm up sets, just to make sure you aren’t taking too big of a jump.
If you’re suffering too much even for that, I’d say give the quads a little longer of a rest and just work Upper Body, calves, and hamstrings (assuming they feel okay to train as well)
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