Status Quo

February 8th, 2009 kNuke

My knee is status quo right now, but I did have one exciting moment.  After running about 10 sprints, I was able to sit in the squat position for the first time since my surgery.  I haven’t been able to do it since, but I take that as a good sign.  I’m hopeful that my knee is returning to its normal flexibility.

My hamstrings and quads still feel like they’re going to cramp up at any moment.  I think after a couple of weeks of training, that cramping feeling will go away.  I still get odd pains in random places when I wake up in the morning, but as long as it’s not my knee, I don’t worry about it.

One thing that I have noticed is that my feet seem to be pronating outwards when I run.  Does anyone know what that’s about?

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Fatigued Legs

February 6th, 2009 kNuke

All week long my legs have been pretty tight.  I’ve been working out my legs pretty hard this week with deadlifts and leg presses, but this level of tightness is a bit odd.  When I tried to sprint last night, my quads and hamstrings felt like they were going to cramp up.  It’s such a weird feeling; I’m not sure the cause.  Hopefully I’ll be fully recovered next week.

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New Workout Update

February 3rd, 2009 kNuke

I outlined my new workout framework in a previous post, but I’ve since updated it.  I felt that squeezing 4 main exercises into 3 workouts a week was going to be too long and taxing.  Instead, I’m going to be working out 4 times a week, but with only 3 main exercises.  I’m going with a Quad/Push and Hamstring/Pull split.

Quad/Push
Exercise 1: Bench Press
Exercise 2: Leg Press
Exercise 3: Military Press

Hamstring/Pull
Exercise 1: Pull up / Lat Pulldown
Exercise 2: Deadlift
Exercise 3: BB / DB Row

I’m keeping the same rep and weight scheme; lifting a 4-6 rep weight as quickly as possible till I get to 25 reps.

I plan to workout on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. I’ll be doing a 15-incline treadmill walk at 3-4 MPH on Wednesday and HIIT on Sunday. I also plan to walk on the treadmill while watching TV or surfing the Internet while at home as much as possible.

I’m pretty excited about this new workout! If you have any questions or want to join along, let me know.

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Weird Pains

February 2nd, 2009 kNuke

I had some really weird pains last week…  One night, my left foot became extremely sore to the point that I could barely walk around.  A couple of days later my right ankle became extremely sore to the point that it hurt when I merely flexed it.  I’m still trying to figure out what would have caused both pains, but nothing comes to mind.

Both of my knees feel in pretty good shape.  My right knee was a little sore after doing Power Cleans on Friday; I’m pretty sure I’m still compensating for the injured left knee.  I’m trying to get my quads and hamstrings back to the strength level I was at before the ACL injury, but if anything feels off, I’ll be sure to drop the weight down.

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Tender Hamstrings

January 31st, 2009 kNuke

After my workout on Wednesday my hamstrings have been SUPER tender.  I can’t even bend over a little bit or sit down without feeling my hamstrings. I had to really loosen up before my workout yesterday.

I did a workout of bench, pullups, and power cleans yesterday.  After finishing the power cleans my right knee was a little sore, but other than that I was feeling pretty good.  I am starting to feel good about my workouts again.  I’m not lifting nearly the amount of poundage I was lifting before, but I can feel the strength coming back!

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Workout Transition

January 29th, 2009 kNuke

I started my transition to a new workout a little earlier than planned.  I made the early switch for two main reasons; I was mentally burned out with the old program and I really need to strengthen my hamstrings and quads as I’ve recently noticed how weak they are.  Before I move on to the new workout, I’ll give a brief recap of my former program.

Advantages: A total body workout with a great cardio effect.  Short workout time. 3 sessions a week, which left 2 days for extra cardio.

Disadvantages: Not enough muscle stimulation.

Final Word: This was a good program to help elevate my fitness/cardio level, which was my main goal, but it got redundant pretty quickly.

Now that my fitness level is back to normal or close to it, I’m ready to move back to a muscle building workout.  I’m going to be utilizing a workout based off of the Huge in a Hurry book.  The book is about speed, which means lifting a 4-6 rep weight as quickly as possible till you get to 25 reps.  Here’s how my workouts will look:

Exercise 1: Pull up / Lat Pulldown / Row
Exercise 2: Bench Press / Military Press / Push Press
Exercise 3: Deadlift
Exercise 4: Leg Press

On days where I feel tired, I may do Power Cleans as a substitute for Exercises 3 and 4.

I’m pretty sore today as I haven’t really lifted any weights for the last three weeks. Yesterday I did all 4 exercises but used the conventional 3 x 10 scheme to ease into it. My upper and lower back along with my hamstrings are extremely tight today. I have to admit, this is the feeling I was craving!

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Sore Arm and Knees

January 26th, 2009 kNuke

My workout sucked today and I only completed two circuits.  As my P90X buddy would say, “I DID NOT bring it!”  While doing the lunges both of my knees got a little sore/tight so I decided to drop down to bodyweight, which felt fine, but greatly reduced the effect of the workout.   Combine that with the fact that my right arm was still screaming sore from yesterday’s baseball game and you can see why the workout sucked!  Even though my workout sucked, it was still better than my buddy’s workout as he didn’t even make it to the gym.  Let’s hope for a better Wednesday…

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Good Workouts

January 23rd, 2009 kNuke

My workouts from the past week have been very productive.  Even my buddy is making progress in his workouts even though he uses inferior substitute exercises.  Today I was able to complete all 3 circuits using normal weights.  I’m ready to switch routines, both mentally and physically.  I’m currently researching more weight-training oriented routines.  If any of you have recommendations, please let me know!

On the diet front, things haven’t been that great, but I did find an excellent breakfast option; Muscle Milk Root Beer Float.  Check out my review!

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Feeling my Hamstrings and Quads

January 22nd, 2009 kNuke

Now that I’m starting to play full force I can really feel my hamstrings and quads.  Everytime I try to run full speed they start to tighten up and it almost feels like they’re going to cramp!  I can’t wait to start working out my hamstrings and quads with some weights.

While pitching yesterday I had to cover first base on a squibbler down the first base line.  I have to say that I was pretty afraid of running into the runner!  I know I wanted to try playing in the field and running the bases this season, but that may be a little premature.  We still have about 9 games to play in the regular season, but I’m not sure I’ll be able to get over that mental hump.

Good news is that I pitched 3 innings and I don’t feel that bad this morning.  My left knee is a little more stiff than usual, but nothing that I’d really worry about.  I had a little knot in my trap during the game; I feel that area today more than anything else.

Final line: 3 IP, 1 ER, 1 K, 5 BB

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Tight Hamstrings

January 18th, 2009 kNuke

I had a baseball game today, but I only batted once.  My hamstrings were pretty tight so I elected to sit out for most of the game.  I didn’t perform well as I weakly popped out to first base in my only at-bat, but the good news is that I wasn’t worrying about my left knee.  The next step will be running the bases and fielding.  I’m still a little hesitant to run the bases where contact could be possible.

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