training experiment - more sets

[ricksitterly]

ok it's probably been done before but here's the plan:

i'm dramatically increasing the number of sets in my work out- i've been trying it for two weeks and i've been pretty sore. i do 20 heavy sets of 5-8 reps per muscle group. it usually takes about an hour and a half. still sticking to the 7 day resting point before working the same muscle group twice, i hope to work my way up to 30 sets per workout. i'll be spending the next 45 days in saudi arabia - the climate may affect my energy and such, but there won't be much esle to do beside work out. if anyone has any experience with this type of workout, i'm all ears. I'm hoping this type of workout will help my endurance in being able to grapple for more consecutive rounds on the mat. of coarse the best workout for that is doing it, but i won't have that option overseas. i'm not sure how it will affect muscle size/ tone but i'll post before and after pics if i can. below are some details



monday- 10 sets of incline bench, 10 sets of shoulder lifts (dumbells), 3 sets of shrugs, 3 sets of tricep curls

tue- rest

weds - 7 sets of pull ups, 7 sets of row machine/ cable, 7 sets of curls

thurs- rest

friday- 5 sets of squats, 5 sets leg extensions, 5 sets of some other leg crap

sat rest
sun rest

it wont look exactly like that every work out but i posted it just to give a rough idea of what i meant

[IronFist]

Why 20 sets? Why not 19 or 21? Why 5-8 reps? Why not 4? Why not 9? How much TUT (time under tension) do you have for each set? How long are your rest periods? What are your goals?

[ricksitterly]

well as far as goals are... i'm hoping this helps me endure longer bjj sessions on the mat (since i wont be able to grapple for next month and a half).

as far as everything else - it's more experimental. i'm interested in seeing how my body responds to this type of workout. im wouldnt mind putting on a little more muscle but i dont want to lose kick/punching speed. the rest periods and TUT are going to vary... as are the total number of sets, as i'm pushing toward 30 something but i'm often too tired to get there right now.... 20 or so will have to do for now. i like to keep my body guessing so i dont stay too strict about how i'm going to work out


http://www.angelfire.com/clone/rsitterly/musc.JPG
u may have to copy and paste , sometimes an angelfire roadblock screen comes up

there is a link to an image of where i'm at in terms of body composition. not tryin to show off/ just wanted show where i am right now --- in contrast to where i would like to be in two months if i succeed at gaining at least 10 lbs.

[SevenStar]

I remember you now... we had several debates a few years ago because you thought that you could put on muscle and gain mass efficiently by only training bjj...

[SevenStar]

yeah.

http://martial.best.vwh.net/forum/showthread.php?t=18980
http://martial.best.vwh.net/forum/showthread.php?t=19153

[ricksitterly]

hahah i remember that discussion about muscle mass/ bjj

it turns out the bjj was a lot harder on my joints than on my muscles.... given the elbow problem i'm recovering from right now.

but yeah i have since reverted back to weight training in addition to my bjj.... of coarse i'm always trying to put a new spin on things.

[AndrewS]

Rick,

for wrsit and elbow joint rehab, I've found heavy farmer's walks to be really helpful. Whenever my wrist or elbow gets tweaky, I baby them, and add farmer's walks into the end of my workout for a month or so, and things much improve.

If you're nursing an elbow injury, I don't think a lot of volume on curls and bench is necessarily the way to go. Though the abstract from t-mag I'll put at the end of this has some ideas on that. I'd consider doing some hi-rep dumbell or k-bell swings if you're looking for mat endurance.

Andrew

"Tendinopathy: Tendonitis or Tendinosis? Implications for Therapy" Stu Steinman, MD, FACEP

Dr. Steinman came out swinging to destroy some faulty dogma. Since the suffix "itis" means "inflammation," using the term "tendonitis" to describe overuse-related pain at the insertion of tendons is a misnomer. There are no inflammatory cells present upon microscopic examination of the area, so strategies geared toward reducing inflammation aren't really the appropriate course of action.

In reality, tendinopathy is a degenerative process, so we're better off using the term "tendinosis." In this scenario, we actually want to rest the tendon, and then promote an inflammatory process in it to encourage the synthesis and deposition of healthy new collagen. True tendonitis is actually quite rare, and recovery is relatively rapid (one to six weeks) with anti-inflammatory modalities; 99% of patients make a full recovery.

Tendinosis, on the other hand, recovers over a longer period (two to six months) if it does at all (only 80% make a full recovery). Therapy is focused on promoting the deposition of strong, healthy collagen fibers. In serious cases, surgery is warranted to excise degenerative tissue.

Before one can treat tendinosis, the first couple of weeks should be used to control symptoms. With tendinosis, there may be inflammation of the paratenon (known as paratenonitis), the outer layer of the tendon. This explains why non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) may acutely reduce symptoms. Unfortunately, these NSAIDs actually inhibit the long-term healing process. As such, they should be used minimally, if at all. (So don't let your doctor load you up on them for extended periods!)

Once pain relief via NSAIDs and/or analgesics, protection (e.g. bracing), rest, ice and compression have been in place for a bit, one can move on to more aggressive therapeutic modalities aimed at promoting collagen synthesis and deposition. In this presentation, Dr. Steinman examined the background and efficacy of five such protocols:

1) Eccentric Exercise: We aren't talking about your 120% 1RM negatives here, so don't get your hopes up. Typically, eccentric exercise protocols are performed for three sets of 15 reps, twice per day, seven days per week, for twelve weeks. Loading should be to maximum pain tolerance, increasing the loading as symptoms improve.

The stress increases metabolic activity of tenocytes, improves collagen alignment, and stimulates collagen cross-linkage. One study that compared eccentric to concentric rehabilitation found that 81% of the eccentric group returned to baseline activity levels by the completion of the study, whereas only 38% of the concentric group was able to do so.

2) Deep Transverse Friction Massage (DTFM): This mode of therapy is purported to decrease adhesion build-up and increase fibroblast recruitment, both of which would theoretically improve collagen strength. Unfortunately, clinical trials have failed to definitively establish DTFM as a valuable part of a tendinosis rehabilitation program.

3) Extra Caporal Shock Wave Treatment (ECSWT): This modality aims to disrupt tissue on the microscopic level in order to stimulate the release of growth factors and the recruitment of fibroblasts. Its main benefit is that it's a short-term therapy; if it works, you don't need NSAIDs, steroid injections, PT, braces, surgery or even multiple office visits. Unfortunately, little standardization of protocols actually exists, and data in support of ECSWT is lacking, especially with respect to long-term effects.

4) Pro-Inflammatory Therapy (Prolotherapy): This treatment modality is based on the injection of growth factor substances such as hypertonic dextrose, talc and phenol. The underlying aim is to stimulate the release of growth factors, firm up abnormal blood vessels, and up-regulate fibroblast activity. Unfortunately, although prolotherapy has quite a following and has shown promise in a few clinical trials with osteoarthritis, more studies are warranted to determine the optimal methodology of delivery and its overall efficacy.

5) Surgery: This method reestablishes normal tissue structure by removing the degenerative tissue and allowing the natural inflammatory process to kick in and regenerate collagen. Rehabilitation is quite lengthy, and may even incorporate some of the aforementioned techniques. As such, this is definitely a last resort.

All in all, I can't help but think that it's just so much easier to train intelligently and avoid the tendinosis in the first place. If something is bugging you, back off the loading for a bit and get some ice on it. Your body will thank you in the long run.

[ricksitterly]

hey thanks for all the feedback andrewS. That was some interesting stuff on tendonitis vs. tendinosis. i agree that it doesn't make sense to call it tendonitis if there's no inflammation ( i was thinking about that a while ago ). Yet at the same time, you described tendinosis as being accompanied by inflammation as well (of the paratenon - outer layer of the tendon). So i'm a little confused there. Anyways, thank you for the rehabilitation info.