Let's bench 4 plates

[Mobster]

Friday
Puked again after taking meds and only eating half my breakfast. I'll drop the one I think was doing it. I vomed like 1 minute later. Then off to the gym I go @Powerhouse Gym. Cos I'd been so poorly I took my sweet time (like hours)
Close Grip Bench Press
to 192.5kg/423.5lbs x 2 x 1 reps. If I'd have been 100% I'd have aimed for 3-4 singles

Mid-Iso Row
to 80kg x 8 reps. Too long chilling as I wanted to go to 120kg and zero need to push my recovery

New 60mm Handle
New, chromed and slick so just a tester session. Needed to chalk my fingertips more
to 85kg x 1 reps @

[Mobster]

I'll see if I can string together a few words together about my recent and ongoing, for now, illness.

Sunday 14th as we drive back after a trail walk (ironically to work the lungs better instead of more gentle flat walking) I started to get a tickling type cough. I had zero idea of what was coming. The next day or two if moved up to something I thought would be 24-48 hours of annoying. Take a few paracetamol and I'd be good to go. Sleep wasn't good and I was struggling Wednesday.

It quickly became to where I could hear the mucus on my chest as I breathed and it was fkin with my sleep. I have here and have mentioned as a way of not needing to go to the docs amoxcilliin for pets. But, as I wrote, I took my daily supps plus a single daily pill late last week and both times spewed in very short order. I've used them before with zero issues (pushing my body on cycle made a gland in my jaw swell - an indication of over training and or stress on my immune system). Oh and yet I killed it both days in the gym. Looking back... how I managed this is beyond me and was a bad idea.

Saturday and Sunday I was f**ked big time. Zero appetite, minimal liquid intake and a LOT of time resting. Monday the GF, who has a LOT to deal with (not the least of which is asthma and her mum is now on end of life palliative care) went into ass kicking mode and made me (I needed this) go to a walk in at a local hospital. That was not good although they could see how ill I was. Apparently I was lacking in color ( a grayish pallor) which indicates oxygen issues. I literally looked up my symptoms that morning - fkin Pneumonia. Even now untreated and un-diagnosed it has a 30% mortality (death rate).

Off to the docs then. Now you're supposed to call and book and appointment but I knew I was now properly ill and we rolled the dice. One person waiting and me. Receptionist was on point (they were amazing when my back was in bits in 2016) and I only go when I'm ill. Zero need to see the doctor. Outside with the script and I start coughing as I hang off the side of the car and I was about ready to collapse there in the street spewing. One side issue of coughing, poor diet etc is ya gotta watch you don't sh*t at the same time. You're unwell so you don't care but still... eeek!

The chemist/pharmacist said to double up (so 1500mg becomes 3000mg of amoxicillin) day 1 and that I'd feel better by day 3. Exactly so. I'm on that today. I had some properly low days and felt very sorry for myself (who will come save my ass behind my steel street doors etc etc) and naturally felt very weak. I'm by no means recovered - needed to rest 2 x today - but I am a LOT better and feel like I'll improve daily.

I'll try some very light (which if ok will quickly get pushed up) training Monday after coaching (see below)

Bonus: I'm sick and yet 2 things happened that week or so. 1) I had a leak from a pipe late last week and my neighbors sons are plumbers and fixed it, for free, as per. One asked me to coach him for a title fight so I'll be doing (at fkin 7am lol) that for the next few weeks. The other was a former lifting buddy who wants to put a competition on and asked me what events I wanted (as in pick what I like hot damn lol).

[Mobster]

My latest Purity Source Labs - EuroPharmacies touchdown

[Mobster]

Monday
@ my gym. First time back at it. I've deliberately held back from ba**s out training so as to not knock myself back recovery wise. No straps, belts etc used. On my top set of leg presses I had a sense of ''grrrrr.... c'mon kick ass'. Nutso mode complete with me chest bumping the plates lol. No let's see how recovery goes. The plan is to see how that goes and then, if ok, ramp it up.

Power Squat Machine
warm up x set up, 80kg x 8 reps, 160kg x 8 reps, 250kg x 8 reps (all about 1/3rd my usual weights)

Leg Press
192.5kg x 8 reps, 317.5kg x 8 reps, 437.5kg x 8 reps

Lying Leg Curls
4p x 8 reps, 6p x 8 reps

Leg Extensions
4p x 8 reps, 7p x 8 reps

[Mobster]

Tuesday
@ my gym. Still holding back. I'm coughing the crap out now I think. Still recovering. I weighed myself for the first time since before the Pneumonia - down at least 11lbs. No straps, belts, etc used.

Seated Press
Mores strength available but no need to impact recovery
warm ups, 20kg x 8, 40kg x 8, 50kg x 6 (easy) and 60kg x 6 easy

Saxon Bar
bar x 8, 42.5kg x 6, 72.5kg x 3, 3 and 6. Again more there but holding back.

Bwt: 319lbs with a lot of clothing on (cold here) so 316lbs - from 327lbs or so

If recovery goes well then I'll ramp it up to 75% of previous numbers asap

[Mobster]

Recovery etc
So I've referred to many times the 2016 issue I had. A 16 week out of the gym back issue. I'd had little tweaks and injuries which came from pushing hard in the gym and competing to world record levels previously. It's a price you pay and world records come with risks. What I'd learned from that and from hitting the gym right after competitions was you CANNOT go back in, especially post cycle, at the same level. Seems fkin obvious top me now but I had to learn the hard way.

In 2016 I KNEW there was no fkin way I'd be able to go back to the gym at anywhere close to 100% of where I'd been before. Even 70-80% might have had a bunch of risks for injury and putting myself back. So I deliberately went in at 60%. So a 300lb bench for reps MUST start at 180lbs. It took me about 4-6 weeks to push to 90% (270lbs) and then get back on the grind where I'd been before and aiming for new PB's and the like.

This bout of Pneumonia is the same. With, perhaps, the added issue of wanting the immune system to be working. There's ZERO point, even if I can (and I have felt I can go harder), going hard and slowing down full recovery. It might be both tempting and frustrating to go hard but you'd only slow everything down and so take even longer to get back to where you wanna be.

That said the plan is 60% week 1 (this week),. 80% week 2 (next week) and back on the plan week 3. I MIGHT see where I am on the bench Friday. Letting the cards fall how they want. I DO have the advantage that unlike 2016 and 16 weeks (4 months) this is just 2 or so weeks. So the process can be a little quicker.

[Mobster]

Thursday
@ Powerhouse. Feeling 80% today and only kinda glad I held back a notch (just starting to feel the effects at the end). Nice to see my gym buddies (a few who had offered to do sh*t for me when I was full blown ill)

Dumbbell Curls
to 30kg x 8 reps easy

Tricep Pressdown
to 15p x 8 reps easy

Standing BB Wrist Curls
to 100kg 8 reps

Bwt: 315lbs!!

[Mobster]

Friday
@ Powerhouse. The plan was 'see what happens'. If nothing else seeing what effect the Pneumonia has had on my numbers. We (Ken and and Chris) flew along on the bench press only slowing down when we got close to max numbers. That said it went well
Close Grip Bench Press
to 185kg x 1 rep

Iso-Mid Row (Hammer style machine)
to 120kg a side x 6 reps @

MiraFit 60mm Rolling Handle
to set up + 80kg x 3 x 3 reps @ hand

Bwt: 317lbs (filling up on loads of carbs the last few days)

[Mobster]

Monday
Held back a little as I'm still lacking in 'wind'. Recovery between sets was a little harder than normal so it wont kill me to take another week. I DID do some steps earlier (before 9am)
Lever Squat
100kg/220lbs x 8 reps, 200kg/440lbs (tweaked down from a planned 220kg) x 6 reps, 320kg/704lbs (tweaked down from a planned 340kg/748lbs) x 4 reps

Iso lever Leg Press (one leg at a time)
didn't bother using 50kg. Straight to 100kg/220lbs x 8 reps, 180kg/396lbs x 5 reps @

Lying Leg Curls
4p x 8 reps, 8p (down from a planned 9) x 4 reps (more there)

Leg Extensions
1/2 stack x 8 reps, stack x 4 reps (more there)

Bwt: 315lbs (eating well enough so...)

[Mobster]

Tuesday
@ my gym. Usual post leg day slow to start. Still off as far as wind is concerned but getting back to normal
Seated Press
to 80kg x 6 reps

Saxon Bar Work
to 92.5kg x 3, 3 and 6 reps (wanna add soon another set but dropped it for today)

Bwt: 317lbs