Sassy's TB-500 Experiment - 6 weeks to no pain??

[sassy69]

Excellent post! My wife has virtually all the same problems + menopause. If this works I will be a hero! She might even like me again? In between hormonal episodes! lol Thanks Sassy!

Wishing your wife well w/ all of that .. and you too! Hopefully I can share a positive experience here that will help at least the joint stuff!

 

[sassy69]

Week 1 / Day 3: Thurs, 11/15/12

AM cardio got replaced by some stuff for work, but I enjoy getting up early. I've never liked training early in the morning, but cardio is a different story. I have this other goal of working towards something like a 5K or at least good interval cardio. Also to further enforce this - thinking of trying to run after training tonight, I'm pretty sure I would've fallen on my face. I also got some cramping in my left foot - I ran out potassium a few days ago, so I guess it was reminding me to restock.... (which I did immediately after training...)

PM training: chest & tris
short stretch session
shoulder warm up:
-3 sets: front, angle side DB raises, each 10 reps
-3 sets: inside / outside w/ cable, 4 directions per set, each 20 reps
* I do this religiously before any upper body workout & will be referred to simply as "Shoulder wu" going forward.

Chest - where all exercises have the same number of reps, I'll super or giant set them
- incline DB fly: 25/20 x 4 20/10 x 2
- cable x-over: 30/15 x 3 25/15
- incline DB press: 35/10 x 2 30/10

Bis - again where I can super or giant set, I will
- ezbar curl: 45/15 x 5
- machine preacher: 40/15 x 2 30/15 x 2
- standing alt cable curl (would do DBs but someone took the 15's, 20 is too much for the right arm tendonitis): 15/15 x 4

Observations:
I'm not going very heavy so I can keep up the super / giant sets. Normally my bum right shoulder will start to get tired and then I'm kinda done... I noticed I was struggling thru the last couple reps of the DB presses. And right forearm tendonitis would flare up in the last couple reps of the ezbar curls, and then less than full ROM reps on the last couple of the cable curls on the right side. Left side was pain-free and strong all the way to the end. Possible I'm not getting a lot of issue because I'm really just getting back into a regular lifting schedule and not currently still recovering from a previous work out or any DOMS. But by the same token, not sure I should expect "results" from the peptide this early yet.

Feet - my poor feet. Amazing how my left foot feels a small pinch and numbness in the middle toe and I"m noticing a little numbness going up the outer part of my shin. And my right foot has soreness in the same place but it feels more like a really sore bruise someone keeps putting their finger in the middle of and pushing. Blah. Anyway .. since I didn't do any leg or cardio stuff today, no additional stress on my feet - but the above description is the typical feeling on them at any given time of day. As a follow up to my visit to the podiatrist a couple weeks ago, he said if the cortisone shots didn't change anythign w/ these supposed neuromas, I should go get an ultrasound done to get a true diagnosis. I believe I'm going to get that ultrasound scheduled...

 

[sassy69]

An addendum to the above - later last nite I noticed some tendonitis pain in my left wrist, and also woke up with it. Sort of annoying because the left arm was doing great while lifting.

 

[Times Roman]

It's been (I think) a month and a half since my last maint dose of the TB. Feeling fine, and half way through this cycle, really starting to add some weights. And I'm a low dose of deca 200mg/week so that sometimes can mask trauma from heavy weights. But so far, I still feel good. My shoulders have been warming up as the weight increases on the MP. The next milestone is how i feel post cycle, after the new year when no longer taking the deca. I'm hoping I wont have to start with the TB again?

 

[Rockcandy]

good post I have has some shoulder bursitis and wondering if this would work?

 

[Times Roman]

good post I have has some shoulder bursitis and wondering if this would work?

I don't know since I don't have bursitis. But it's a swelling of the bursa so not sure if that constitutes an "injury" within the parameters of what TB zeros in on. Only one real way to find out........?

I'm assuming you've already went the anti inflamitory route....?

 

[sassy69]

I'm also watching my knees - I've had bursitis there before but w/ all the time I've had off, and my extremely religious Joe Defranco lower body warmups before any leg work, I've been able to control a lot of the pain. Basically nearly every joint I have, has some random tweak in it. The lack of random tweaks is an indicator of doing something right!

RE: Bursitis - I also agree, there's not much to be done except get the inflammation down. Heat, Ice, and I have a hand-held ultrasound thing. I'd say the biggest failure in my treatment of that type of thing is just being consistent with it. It takes time to do all that and I never seem to be able to sit down long enough to really do it. Booo me.

 

[sassy69]

Week 1 / Day 4: Fri, 11/16/12

As noted above, left wrist was sore when I woke up but settled down over the course of the day.

Training: back / calves - didn't have all the right eqpt so improvised a little.

shoulder wu - felt good!
super:
- cable row: 80/20 x 5 70/20
- assisted chinup - no assisted chin machine so subbed reverse pushups on the smith: 20 x 4 - ROM started to decrease towards the end due to elbow pain
Super:
- hyper ext (had to rig up a couple Reebok Step platforms and a boxing punch pad on the cable row LOL!): 20 x 4
- row machine (no row machine so used the seated machine press, but pulled instead of pushed): 80/20 x 4 - ROM decreased towards the end due to elbow pain - seemed any of the wide grip pulls strained things
close grip cable pull-downs: 80/20 x 4
Super:
- leg press calf raise: 270/20 x 5
- alt standing calf raise (unweighted but worked on isolation): 20 x 4

Observations:
Today (next morning) feeling a bit of DOMS, elbow joints feel like they got a workout but still more DOMS-type soreness than actual pain. This is another big PITA I've noticed about getting older - everything tightens up so quickly each day - just a huge reminder of how critical regular stretching and just general full-body physical activity is to keep things loose. When I do stretch, I quickly get back to as much flexibility as I ever had so it is there, but it seems it just isn't as readily usable from a cold start.

Along those lines, I also feel tight in my neck shoulders - I need to pick up the schedule w/ my new chiro - had started 2 weeks ago w/ him to address the general realignment of everything after completing my move here. I can feel the need for an adjustment in my neck. I'm also noticing my right rotator is sore - but interestingly, it didn't flare up or get tired as quickly as usual on back day and its more of a DOMS type soreness than a true pain. I think that's a bit significant. Typically after back day I need my whole upper right back readjusted and massaged because of its tendency to spaz out - i.e. the secondary muscles always start to kick in to cover the primary movers that get tired quickly. Not so much this time.

I'm also feeling a lot of DOMS at the elbow insertion on both forearms & biceps - most obviously due to biceps the day before so not too worried about that. I should schedule a massage and have those points worked on! They're sort of hard to foam roll, but it would feel good to get it relaxed more.

 

[sassy69]

I'm also feeling a lot of DOMS at the elbow insertion on both forearms & biceps - most obviously due to biceps the day before so not too worried about that. I should schedule a massage and have those points worked on! They're sort of hard to foam roll, but it would feel good to get it relaxed more.

Scheduled for this afternoon! 90 minutes of agony & ecstasy!

 

[Times Roman]

Scheduled for this afternoon! 90 minutes of agony & ecstasy!

sassy,

I've never had a sports massage before. does it really help, or is it just a way to relax?

regarding the TB, i would venture to guess that by the end of the first week of December, you should be getting a hint that something is going on with the therapy. When I was at a similar point, I was not sure if it was the TB or just normal healing, but I was beginning to notice a slight pain reduction. But it's really hard to tell, you know? It doesn't jump up and hit you telling you it's working. More subtle than that......

By the way, i've been very very slowly trying to strengthen my tendons/tendonitis. this is going to sound like a ridiculous small amount of weight, but I was able to reverse curl 50 pounds (yes, both arms) 21 reps (not to failure) yesterday. Each time i add 1 rep, and a few weeks ago I went from 40 to 50 pounds. Reverse curls are murder on my tendonitis, but I really love em as I've been doing em all my life. I may never be able to come close to the weight i used to reverse curl, but they have a very noticeable effect on forearm size and strength. So far, no pain whatsoever. Is it the TB? I don't know, but thisis the first time in quite the while I've been able to even pick up a bar and do any.

 

[sassy69]

sassy,

I've never had a sports massage before. does it really help, or is it just a way to relax?

regarding the TB, i would venture to guess that by the end of the first week of December, you should be getting a hint that something is going on with the therapy. When I was at a similar point, I was not sure if it was the TB or just normal healing, but I was beginning to notice a slight pain reduction. But it's really hard to tell, you know? It doesn't jump up and hit you telling you it's working. More subtle than that......

By the way, i've been very very slowly trying to strengthen my tendons/tendonitis. this is going to sound like a ridiculous small amount of weight, but I was able to reverse curl 50 pounds (yes, both arms) 21 reps (not to failure) yesterday. Each time i add 1 rep, and a few weeks ago I went from 40 to 50 pounds. Reverse curls are murder on my tendonitis, but I really love em as I've been doing em all my life. I may never be able to come close to the weight i used to reverse curl, but they have a very noticeable effect on forearm size and strength. So far, no pain whatsoever. Is it the TB? I don't know, but thisis the first time in quite the while I've been able to even pick up a bar and do any.

I can't speak highly enough of massage therapy. Normally I try to do it before seeing my chiro - my guy in California had a 5'4", 125 lb older lady who could have you crying for mercy, and then once you're all nice and loose, go get adjusted. LOVED IT! I'm not one to get a massage to "feel good about myself" or "relax" or experience aromatherapy. I go because I've got a boatload of knots and, more these days, very tight tendons - particularly IT band. Because of my right shoulder, when I train, my whole upper right back gets knotted up and regularly I need to get a rib pushed back in place and get my shoulder blade to go back where it belongs (the muscle knot up and push it out). More recently I've been getting more work done on my wrists, forearms and ankles - basically all the places I have aggravated tendonitis. Let me tell you about EFFING PAIN when they work on those little areas. But it feels soo good afterwards. You feel like you just finished the heaviest workout day of your life and you're just drained. But so much of the tightness just releases. At least for me its a huge part of ongoing maintenance. If I let any of those areas continue to knot up, I find it starts to propagate to the peripheral muscles and just creates new aches & pains.

I actually get pissed off if the massage therapist doesn't go hard enough.

I've also had ART done - hurts like a mutha but works. And myofascial release is a very subtle approach that does great release work but compared to a deep tissue massage, is almost anticlimactic. Lots of different ways to approach it but mostly its just one of the things that helps me keep doing what I'm doing. I find I need at least 1 adjustment / month, but I don't like going to a chiro to jack my bones around cold. Massage helps support that.

 

[Times Roman]

I can't speak highly enough of massage therapy. Normally I try to do it before seeing my chiro - my guy in California had a 5'4", 125 lb older lady who could have you crying for mercy, and then once you're all nice and loose, go get adjusted. LOVED IT! I'm not one to get a massage to "feel good about myself" or "relax" or experience aromatherapy. I go because I've got a boatload of knots and, more these days, very tight tendons - particularly IT band. Because of my right shoulder, when I train, my whole upper right back gets knotted up and regularly I need to get a rib pushed back in place and get my shoulder blade to go back where it belongs (the muscle knot up and push it out). More recently I've been getting more work done on my wrists, forearms and ankles - basically all the places I have aggravated tendonitis. Let me tell you about EFFING PAIN when they work on those little areas. But it feels soo good afterwards. You feel like you just finished the heaviest workout day of your life and you're just drained. But so much of the tightness just releases. At least for me its a huge part of ongoing maintenance. If I let any of those areas continue to knot up, I find it starts to propagate to the peripheral muscles and just creates new aches & pains.

I actually get pissed off if the massage therapist doesn't go hard enough.

I've also had ART done - hurts like a mutha but works. And myofascial release is a very subtle approach that does great release work but compared to a deep tissue massage, is almost anticlimactic. Lots of different ways to approach it but mostly its just one of the things that helps me keep doing what I'm doing. I find I need at least 1 adjustment / month, but I don't like going to a chiro to jack my bones around cold. Massage helps support that.

damn! never been to a chiro either. for years, i thought my lower back pain was alignment related, maybe even a disc problem. Sometimes I'd go to work and when i'd go to get out of my chair, could take a minute before able to stand fully erect. So i had the inversion table, but no relief. Finally had the xrays, and realized all the various problems I have that there really is nothing I can do anything about (to correct it).

When I hurt, and all cramped up, I'll take two alleve and hop in the hot shower. I'm usually g2g (almost) after I get out.

It's amazing to hear how other people's conditions evolve based on training, and the treatments they take to help resolve these issues.

And then, every once in a while, you will find someone that seems immune to the degredation the rest of us seem to accumulate to our bodies over the years of doing this.

Some of my buddies look at me like I'm stupid. Why would i subject myself to this trauma, especially at my age? I really don't have a good answer for them, except that when i feel good, I feel really good, like walking around with a body buzz..............