I assume we’re talking about the long head of the biceps (shoulder) and not the distal tendon (elbow). My response will be dependent on which of the two it is.
Creatine and glutamine won’t do much for you. The glucosamine is never a bad idea. In this instance, though, because it’s an acute injury, I wouldn’t have a problem with a few days of higher dose NSAIDs in conjunction with a ton of icing for the affected area.
Fill me in and we’ll see what we can do.
[quote]TroyMcClure wrote:
Hi Eric,
I recently came down with some major pain in my bicep tendon and I am suspecting it is slightly torn. I hurt strained it last week training jiu jitsu, and the next day I tried to throw a football and it floored me.
I’m going to start taking creatine, glutamine and glucosamine/msm to try and speed up the rehabilitation process.
Any training advice from here? I plan to take a minimum of one week off then do a lower body day and see how I feel. After that I want to try to bench and see how it feels. I figure I can play it by ear and sort of try to listen to my body. Any other advice for this type of injury?[/quote]
Your reply to Nate Dogg got me thinking on the structure for a conjugate program. You state that you like the following approach: Wk1-High, Wk 2- Med, Wk 3- Very High, Wk 4- Low.
What would some of these days look like in regards to ME+Rep work.
Something like this, prehaps
(for ME Bench)(obviously not using your score system, just volume)
Wk 1 - 3Board Press to 1RM, 4x6 DB Press, 4x10 DB Rows, 3x12 Face Pulls
Wk 2 - 3Board Press to 3RM, 3x6 DB Press, 3x10 DB Rows, 3x10 Face Pulls
Wk3 - 3Board Press to 1RM + 3-4singles @90%, 5x5 DB Press, 5x10 DB Rows, 4x10 Face Pulls
[quote]Dboy wrote:
On your ME days do you time your RI between sets? Or just wait 'til you feel ready for your next set to begin?[/quote]
The latter. As a general rule of thumb, smaller guys will take shorter rest periods than bigger guys; I’m not an exception to this rule.
[/quote]How do you work the spacing on your grip for the bench? Change it on each set? Change it from workout to workout? Work most with the grip you’ll be using in competition? etc. etc.[/quote]
I won’t change it between sets (although that’s common in a Westside dynamic bench approach, which uses submaximal weights for speed). I don’t do a speed day, so it’s not an issue for me. I change it session to session with minimal variation. The only time I’m in my competition set-up is when I’m in my shirt. The rest of the time, it’s ring finger on the rings…unless I’m doing close-grips.
[quote]brotzfrog10 wrote:
there have been alot of specilization articles here are T-Nation lately. I was just wondering what your thoughts were on them and also most importantly what are your feelings are maintaining certain strength abilities. I am right now trying the 60% rule that is mentioned in the science and practice of strength training. With the remaining 40% i was hoping to to maintain two strength qualities. Each phase, about 4-6 weeks in length, would focus on either strength,power, or hypertrophy and then the remaining two would be maintained using the the left over 40%.
How much would it take to maintain each of the three qualities( would a certain weekly volume/intensity score be needed to gain or maintain) or does it just depend on the individual when considering how much it would take to maintain. Would it just be better to first figure out my weekly volume score and then just break up the percentage and what ever is left over is what is left to maintain whereas the bigger number, the 60%, would be what it takes to gain.[/quote]
You’re right on the money with this:
Then again, it will depend a lot on the individual.
FYI, “hypertrophy” isn’t so cut and dry. You’ve got sarcoplasmic and sarcomeric hypertrophy, so you need to consider them in different contexts.
You’re really just dabbling in conjugated periodization; all qualities are trained, just in different proportions depending on the goal of the training phase at hand.
I wouldn’t be able to tell you; all my clients and athletes train movements, not muscles. I don’t believe in magic numbers.
Your final question is just inquiring about frequency vs. fatigue phases. I use both in my training approaches…more of the frequency version, though.
[quote]brotzfrog10 wrote:
hi eric i had a third question to go along with my first post. Do you believe there is a daily amount limit to the amount of stimilus you can give to a particular muscle group. say we use 8 sets of 3 with a 5rm for seated rows as our example(i know how much you love rowing). since the magic number of twenty four has been achieved would it be best to just move on to another muscle group or, assuming the added training volume was not abover what one could handle, could you come back and hit the back with another different exercise in a different rep range, and still achieve maximal results. My basic question is would it be better to train a muscle with more volume in each session, say two, or would it be better to just train the muscle more often with less volume in each session?[/quote]
At your experience level, the last thing you need is a specialization program (no offense to CT, obviously).
Get stronger all over. Row, chin, dip, bench, do loads of core work, train the uninjured leg, and do reverse hypers and leg curls with both legs.
[quote]The Rover wrote:
Hey Eric,
I broke a toe on my right foot Saturday night and went to the doctor yesterday. They taped it, put it in a boot, and told me to use crutches for at least ten days. So, I asked the doc about working out and she said doing upper body stuff is fine. This injury really doesn’t bother me too much, I’m not even using the crutches, but I don’t think it’s a good idea to do leg stuff for about two weeks.
Anyway, I’ve been looking around in the archives for an upper body training article. I figured I would make the most of this leg off-time and focus on boosting my bench. Here’s the problem:
I’m a beginner and pretty much weak all around (My current bench is about 170, Squat and Deadlift more than that, but haven’t tested them yet)and I need to focus on bringing EVERYTHING up. So, I don’t necessarily think following an 8-week program for just my bench is a good idea.
So, my question is: Should I perform CT’s 8 week Bench Program (or a similar one), or perform it for two weeks, then go back to full body (I was on the last week of ABBH II when this happened). Or do you have any other reccomendations?
Would wave loading be alright to do in season to keep strength and possibly get stronger? Along with accessory to keep the posture and muscles in balance?
I have been doing a 2 rep max and staying heavy for the big lifts but I feel my posture or muscle balances getting out of wack because of sport…
Anything new I would like to do as long as it keeps my muscles balanced and strong.
It’s unfortunate that people don’t realize that there is no such thing as an absolute when it comes to training. There are times and places for almost anything.
[quote]buckeye75 wrote:
EC,
I’m currently taking a class on fitness at school and today we were talking about weight training and program setup. There were quite a few things that the teacher said that I didn’t agree with. He isn’t a strength coach at all, rather a baseball coach so I understood going in that I wasn’t going to be getting a ton out of it. It’s just an elective cake class anyway, I’m almost done with my major. Anyway, back to my question.
He said that you want to be working toward failure quite a bit because it forces the muscle to overreach.[/quote]
Working toward failure and hitting failure are two different things. Likewise, failing on the tenth rep of a set is a lot different than failing on a 1RM attempt.
Depends on the sport, doesn’t it? Also, you need to take into account time of year with respect to the competitive season as well; nobody wins awards for being conditioned in the off-season! I don’t buy all this work capacity stuff that so many coaches hang their hats on, especially when you consider that they don’t realize that work capacity is activity-specific (see my “Cardio Confusion” article for elaboration).
I’m not sure what you’re asking. Be careful how you define strength, too.
You can improve maximal strength with virtually any percentage of 1RM. 80% could be used for the dynamic effort method or repetition method, both of which can improve maximal strength indirectly. In terms of pure maximal strength loading, 80% is enough to initiate neuromuscular changes that favor strength gains…90% is just a quicker means to an end, especially in experienced lifters. Lifting heavier weights and/or lighter weights as fast as possible improves overall fiber recruitment, rate coding (firing frequency), and summation potential (how many motor units can fire at once, which is also related to how long the fiber is activated).
Just a word of advice: there are going to be times in your education and your athletic career that you need to play the game. Whether it’s putting up with a misinformed coach or teacher, sometimes it’s best to bite your tongue…your call, though.
I might go with a scoop of Grow! and an apple, then start sipping the Surge as you begin your session.
Hit the shower to get your body temperature up and get some dynamic flexibility in before you train.
[quote]brotzfrog10 wrote:
hi there eric one last question i think. if someone has to train first thing in the morning or within 30 mintues of waking up what kind of snack or meal should i have. would a serving of Surge be appriopate along with drinking a second serving during the workout or should i try a light snack of toast, fruit, whey[/quote]
Would wave loading be alright to do in season to keep strength and possibly get stronger? Along with accessory to keep the posture and muscles in balance?[/quote]
Sure; no problem.
[quote]I have been doing a 2 rep max and staying heavy for the big lifts but I feel my posture or muscle balances getting out of wack because of sport…
Anything new I would like to do as long as it keeps my muscles balanced and strong.
Soo… I want to be hard as an anvil… really EC.
Don’t leave me… EC… I made a rhyme
-Get Lifted[/quote]
Just use your supplemental lifts to account for your volume. You don’t necessarily have to be hitting maxes on your core lifts; just make sure that you’re straining pretty good. If you’re going 4x2 on the bench, go 4x6 on your rows. It won’t extend your time in the gym, but you’ll be able to get enough volume in to stay in balance.
Eric,
Is there any supplement out there other than creatine which is a given, that would give a person that slight anabolic edge to bust through a size plateau? I’m thinking the answer might be Carbolin 19. But i guess you might not even be able to suggest anything on this site that isn’t Biotest.
It may also be a reflection of the build of many powerlifters, particularly the big guys. They are often short in the arms and legs, long (and thick) in the torso. Hence they are relatively better at the squat and bench than deadlift. Because it’s the big guys who tend to get most attention, more attention gets paid to the lifts they tend to excel at.
[quote]Eric Cressey wrote:
I’d say that it depends on who you ask! As I recall, in a recent Atomic Dog, TC actually said that the dead was a better indicator of overall strength than the squat or bench press.
Actually, I think the main thing holding back the DL’s proper coronation as king is the fact that Joe Weider insisted that squats were king on several occasions. I believe it was right before he parted the Red Sea and invented the polio vaccine.
O.C. wrote:
Hey Eric,
With the benefits of the DL to Athletes, PL, BB (i.e. improved speed, a better barometer of total body strength, a move used in everyday life) why hasn?t it passed the Squat as King? ?O.C.
[quote]sharetrader wrote:
It may also be a reflection of the build of many powerlifters, particularly the big guys. They are often short in the arms and legs, long (and thick) in the torso. Hence they are relatively better at the squat and bench than deadlift. Because it’s the big guys who tend to get most attention, more attention gets paid to the lifts they tend to excel at.
Eric Cressey wrote:
I’d say that it depends on who you ask! As I recall, in a recent Atomic Dog, TC actually said that the dead was a better indicator of overall strength than the squat or bench press.
Actually, I think the main thing holding back the DL’s proper coronation as king is the fact that Joe Weider insisted that squats were king on several occasions. I believe it was right before he parted the Red Sea and invented the polio vaccine.
O.C. wrote:
Hey Eric,
With the benefits of the DL to Athletes, PL, BB (i.e. improved speed, a better barometer of total body strength, a move used in everyday life) why hasn?t it passed the Squat as King? ?O.C.
[/quote]
Seriously? I’ve noticed that the guys who do the best and get the most attention excel at the deadlift and the squat. (Goggins, Chucky V, Coan, G Frank) Generally the guys with huge benches are bench specialists.
When you say they excel at the deadlift and squat, remember that these guys generally squat quite a bit more than they can deadlift. Lighter lifters (who have higher relative strength levels) are usually the other way round.
I agree with you on bench specialists, although this is probably more the case in federations where more extreme bench shirts are allowed. Also more so in the SHW class, where just being fatter is a huge advantage in pressing. (I wonder if Gene Rychlak can even get far enough down to reach the bar for a deadlift?)
Thanks for the response Eric. It’s actually the distal (elbow) tendon. I started the glucosamine today. I decided against the glutamine but picked up some creatine because I planned to start using it anways. I was thinking that since it helps with recovery it might help with this but maybe not.
I’m have already been icing it a ton and doing 20 minutes of sauna followed by 20 minutes of ice after energy systems training right now. I think I’m going to try taking some high doses of ibuprofen for a few days as well.
hey eric… . is it bad that I only train deadlift for 1RM attempts? Im still gaining strength in it getting roughly 5kgs more each week (currently only training DL on monday’s) but I wonder if I could be selling myself short by attempting maxes each week instead of switching it up with higher rep work. …
Thanks for the answer Eric - I’ve got a couple of ideas on how to approach someone as a trainer beyond the “Do You Know blah blah blah” approach.
The issue came up because I was at the gym on my own the other day and this Argentinian guy offers to spot me on the bench if I need it. When I took him up on the offer, he had me putting my thumbs on the bar instead of wrapping around them around it, telling me to lower it to the upper chest instead of down, so I was a bit put off by that initially. But it turned out he had competed years before, and won a few benching competitions (although I wouldn’t say it was in the same league as Westside, maybe a local club) so at least he was practicing what he was preaching.
We’ll keep an eye out for this Mike guy - it’ll be really funny if he turns up here in a few years as a contributor and us old farts can say things like “Heck, we were here before you were knee-high …” and “Eric? I remember when …”.
I don’t particularly like the question, as most people need to get everything else in line first. A good training and nutrition program with appropriate lifestyle habits will do more for you than any supplement out there.
With that said, you’re on the right track with the Carbolin 19 thought. Another area in which some people can make tremendous progress is with general health supplements. If there is an existing deficiency or something along those lines, the “little things” can really make a difference. Many athletes have deficiencies that can easily be corrected with a ZMA supplement; others may have GI problems that warrant digestive enzymes; and even more still may have anemia or something else. This is why semi-frequent bloodwork is never a bad idea.
[quote]binford wrote:
Eric,
Is there any supplement out there other than creatine which is a given, that would give a person that slight anabolic edge to bust through a size plateau? I’m thinking the answer might be Carbolin 19. But i guess you might not even be able to suggest anything on this site that isn’t Biotest.[/quote]
[quote]sharetrader wrote:
It may also be a reflection of the build of many powerlifters, particularly the big guys. They are often short in the arms and legs, long (and thick) in the torso. Hence they are relatively better at the squat and bench than deadlift. Because it’s the big guys who tend to get most attention, more attention gets paid to the lifts they tend to excel at.
Eric Cressey wrote:
I’d say that it depends on who you ask! As I recall, in a recent Atomic Dog, TC actually said that the dead was a better indicator of overall strength than the squat or bench press.
Actually, I think the main thing holding back the DL’s proper coronation as king is the fact that Joe Weider insisted that squats were king on several occasions. I believe it was right before he parted the Red Sea and invented the polio vaccine.
O.C. wrote:
Hey Eric,
With the benefits of the DL to Athletes, PL, BB (i.e. improved speed, a better barometer of total body strength, a move used in everyday life) why hasn?t it passed the Squat as King? ?O.C.
I don’t buy all this work capacity stuff that so many coaches hang their hats on, especially when you consider that they don’t realize that work capacity is activity-specific (see my “Cardio Confusion” article for elaboration).