Adhering to goals, not methods

I've been all over the place, gym-wise.   I tried the EDT thing but it was trashing my elbows, messed around with progressive overload on Olympic lifts for a couple months, switched to 6-days per week following the old-school split (chest&back, shoulder&arms, legs&abs, repeat, 1 day off) and got some solid gains in size and strength, but noticed a bit of a gut forming.

Now I'm back to seeking balance and capitalizing on my higher work capacity / recovery ability.

I have been neglecting cardio all summer, ever since the boxing program ended.  So to make time for it, I've decided to lift twice a day on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and run Tuesday and Thursday mornings, with the evenings open for play.  My kids moved with their mom about 2 hrs away, so I suddenly find myself  with a need to fill my evenings.  If I had my kids during the week, I wouldn't be training twice a day.

I've made some solid progress in my strength and am at least as strong as I was before knee surgery in 2013.  But the cost has been decreased mobility and joint pain. So now I'm starting back in the higher rep range and focusing on getting leaner and denser (and marginally stronger).  Basic framework is:

  • Monday
    • AM: whole body lifting
    • PM: shoulders & arms
  • Tuesday
    • AM: running
  • Wednesday
    • AM: Legs and calves
    • PM: shoulders & arms
  • Thursday
    • AM: running
  • Friday
    • AM: whole body lifting
    • PM: shoulders & arms
My arms are definitely a weakness, and I've been pushing the envelope for about the last three months and have gained about an inch on my left arm and 3/4 on my right.  One error I made was to push with my usual powerlifting mentality.  Always trying to go heavier; always adding more reps.  My elbows hurt so bad through May and June that I could hardly sleep.  When I  woke up my elbows would be throbbing with pain.  True to my character, my first response was to just block the pain and push through it.  But after some self-examination, I remembered that my ego is the thing that destroys me faster than anything else.  So now I'm using bodybuilding methods, getting more fatigue out of lighter weights and seeing my arms grow at a solid pace without structural damage to my body.

My legs need a little more volume to respond than my torso, so they get their own day on Wednesday, in addition to the work they get on Monday and Friday.  I'll post a workout or two as September progresses.  For now I'm happy with scheduling some balance into my life, and using methods that keep my ego in check.

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