We all know it can happen but we think it won't happen to us. The big injury that stops us in our tracks. We all get those smaller injuries that set us back a little bit every once in a while. The injuries that are more annoying than anything else, they just kind of make working out less enjoyable but at least we cam still get in a good workout when they happen.
When the big one comes, at first you're not so sure what to think? Did I really just hurt myself that bad? Is this serious? How is this going to effect my training now and long term? It took me a little bit for it to kick in and for me to accept the fact that yup, that was more then just a little pull or strain and I'm going to have to take some time off training! And yup, this is going to effect my gains :(
So the big one happened to me last night during my Heavy Deadlift session and no I was not going for any PR's or even that crazy high of a weight for me. I have deadlifted 500 pounds with no hint of injury in the past. The weight on this day I had worked up to with lots of warm ups involved was 405 pounds for reps of 5+. I am very familiar with repping out 405 pounds. I'm pretty sure my 405 PR was 15 reps so we are not talking about anything I am not already accustomed to lifting. The only warning sign on this day was that the weight felt unusually heavy to me, why I don't know? I had already finished a set of 5 reps and was working on my second set of 5 when half way through I felt it. It was like a rip and a pop at the same time and it felt really gross. It even made my leg jerk a little like you would except if strands from a rope had let go but the rope had not completely torn in half. The memory of it happening is the worst part, not the pain, I can deal with that part!
I immediately dropped the weight and knew this workout was over. I was kind of in shock and disbelief at what just happened to me. How could this have happened on a weight I had lifted so many times in the past with no problems at all? What was this going to mean now for my current training and future training? Will it effect my upcoming Physique Contest in July? So many thoughts going through my head...
I am now seriously reevaluating what my workout goals are and how I am going to train in the gym moving forward. What good is lifting heavy ass weight when in a split second you can literally set yourself back months with an injury. I am not a power lifter, I am more into body sculpting so perhaps I need to rethink how I lift and how I train because I do not want this to happen to me again.
So what if I don't have a 4 plate squat, or 5 plate deadlift or 3 plate bench press! It would have been nice but I would rather have my health and be able to train at the end of the day! So be it, I will heal up and I will carry on and I will still compete because that's who I am.
I wanted to discuss the subject of TRT (Testosterone Replacement Therapy), because it seems that anytime a person on YouTube is somewhat fit and/or lean then it is assumed by many people that they are on some sort of performance enhancing drugs - since there is no other way this can be possible ;)
I get comments from people listing a bunch of drugs I’m supposedly taking that enable me to be lean and muscular and they claim that I’m for sure on a bunch of performance enhancing drugs. Again because there is no other way this is possible (like hard work and a strict diet), and since there is an easy way to get these results, then I must be getting an advantage somehow.
I also get questioned a lot about if I am on TRT and so I wanted to address this in a YouTube video to explain the purpose of TRT because I feel most people think TRT will give a person this huge advantage in the gym over a person who is not on TRT.
First off, what is TRT or Testosterone Replacement Therapy?
TRT is a therapy usually prescribed by a doctor to replace the hormone Testosterone in a Man or Woman that is not naturally producing enough of their own Testosterone, and yes a Woman can also be on TRT since women can be low in both Testosterone and Estrogen!
What are some of the symptoms of Low Testosterone?
Low sex drive
Difficulty with erections (Men only)
Fatigue & lack of energy
Loss of muscle mass
Increase in body fat
Decrease In bone mass
Mood changes
Hair loss
What are normal TRT prescribed dosages?
Testosterone can be prescribed in the form of Injections, pills and jells. Prescribed injectable levels of Testosterone for the purpose of Testosterone Replacement Therapy can range drastically from person to person. In Men a dose can be as low as 100mg every two weeks right up to 300+mg per week. It all depends on how each individual reacts to the Testosterone replacement therapy and at what point they start to see positive changes in their symptoms.
As a point of reference: A starting does for a person using testosterone for enhanced body building purposes is generally no lower than 500mg per week and can be as high as 2000mg per week. Keep in mind the Testosterone is usually stacked with other injectable and oral steroids at the same time compounding the effects.
This should give you an idea of how minimal the effects are at least for the purpose of body building a normal 100-200mg per week TRT dose really is. No you will not get huge and ripped on TRT! If you don’t workout you will not look any different than anyone else with normal levels of Testosterone. If you do workout you will look the same as everyone else working out to the same level as you.
Is a doctor the only one that can prescribe TRT?
Usually but not always, there are hormone replacement clinic and there are also location where Testosterone can be purchased legally without a prescription. For example here in Canada it is not illegal to buy and use Testosterone without a prescription. It is however illegal to sell Testosterone, go figure ;)
What am I getting at? There are people on TRT programs using various methods to do so. Doctor prescribed and regulated, Clinical, and even self prescribed (with or without doctor monitoring).
What are some possible TRT (Testosterone Replacement Therapy) Side Effects?
Increase in DHT and Estradiol which can cause: Acne, Prostate enlargement, increase in male patten baldness, fluid retention, breast tissue changes.
Reduction in testicle size and suppression of fertility.
Thickening of the blood from increased red blood cells which can cause high blood pressure, possability of a stroke.
Will a person on a regulated TRT program have an advantage in the gym over a person who is not on TRT?
Keep in mind that this is based onthe assumption that both subjects have levels or Testosterone that are within normal and natural ranges.
The short answer is no, there is no difference, for the simple reason that the person on TRT requires a Testosterone supplement in order to bring them back up to natural and healthy Testosterone levels. The person who is not on TRT already has enough natural Testosterone in their body so both subjects are on a equal and level playing field in this example.
Why do people who are on TRT claim to see strength gains, fat loss and recovery improvements when they go on TRT?
This is because the person in this situation was Testosterone deprived before going on TRT, they where not on an even playing field with a someone who has normal natural levels of Testosterone in their body. When the TRT program increases their levels of Testosterone they obviously would feel the benefits of normal healthy levels of Testosterone which include muscle gain and fat loss as compared to their Testosterone depleted former self.
Example: Let’s use a race car engine and a turbo charger as an example. A turbo charger is a device that increases air pressure in a cars engine. The higher the turbo pressure the more air is compressed into the engine which in turn allows more fuel to be mixed per engine stroke which provides a bigger boom and more power. If the turbo is not outputting enough pressure, then the potential power of the engine is reduced. When a turbo is producing optimal air pressure, then more power is provided to the engine.
Car A in this example has an engine with normal race car turbo pressures and normal power output for that race division. Car B has the exact same setup but for some reason the turbo settings are not producing enough air pressure so power output has been limited and not up to race performance levels. In this example the doctor would be the mechanic and by manually increasing the air pressure output of the turbo in Car B, the mechanic can in turn bring that engines power output back up to the same race performance levels of Car A.
So of course the owner of Car B is going to notice a significant power increase after his Turbo performance has been optimized, but his car will not be faster than the owner of Car A as they are both now on an even playing field. Would it be a fair race if one engine was more powerful than the other? Is the owner of Car B cheating in any way now that his engine is performing up to normal race standards?
When would a person on TRT (Testosterone Replacement Therapy) have an advantage over a Natural athlete?
The only time this is possible is if the individual on TRT was taking more Testosterone than necessary. So similar to my engine turbo charger example, the mechanic or engine doctor turned the turbo settings up higher than they should be causing the engine to have more power than normal race setup. Relating this example back to our Testosterone discussion, this would be similar if a doctor was prescribing too much Testosterone for that individual making his levels higher than what they should be in a normal healthy situation and creating an uneven playing field with the person on TRT having an advantage in the gym over a person not on TRT with normal Testosterone levels.
How can this TRT over-prescribing take place?
As with all good things, even TRT can sometimes be manipulated or taken advantage of. Some athletes will use a TRT program to get an advantage over their competitors in sports, some people simply just want all the benefit of TRT plus a little boast since additional strength and increased recovery time is a benefit when workout out.
Are you lying to people about your gains if you are on TRT?
Not at all if you are within normal ranges, again we are talking about everyone being on an even playing field, there is no advantages or disadvantages for anyone if all parties have similar Testosterone levels at the end of the day.
Is a person obligated to tell others about their TRT program?
This is really up to each individual and how they feel about sharing it with others. Do you expect people you know in person or on YouTube to simply tell you about all their medical history and all prescriptions they may be taking. Or perhaps any legal matters they may have been in. How much money they make each year… What a person decides to share with others is totally up to them and they are not obligated to share if they are on TRT unless they want to.
In this Preview video I talk about some super high end fitness aids from Work Hard Athletics! Work Hard Athletics caries a high quality line of products design to help athletes improve their performance by accelerating recovery time, prevent injury and enhance mobility.
The Work Hard Athletics products I am reviewing are really well made and the performance is outstanding, much better than I had expected!
Many top Athletes around the world use Work Hard Athletics Products to help them with recovery time and injuries so they can get back to training and performing at top level..
I do want to point out that Work Hard Athletics Products are not cheap by any means in price or in quality! But as we all know, you get what you pay for. If you want the best you have to pay for the best :)
Here are the products Work Hard Athletics was kind enough to send me for review…
First off I want to thank Adam from Athletes Collective for providing me with these really great athletics shirts!
All shirts are unbranded, so you can wear a nice quality athletics shirt without being a walking advertisement for some company. After all you more than likely had to pay for your shirt so why do you need to advertise for them too?
All Athletes Collective Shirts are Pre-shrunk, you can dry on high heat and wash and dry them as often as you like and Adam has promised they will not shrink no matter what! Mind you Adam has not met my wife...
Another awesome fact about Athletes Collective is that they are Canada based and all products are made just outside of Toronto Canada - eh!
Adam boasts that his Athletes Collective Shirts have an Athletic fit, not a compression shirt and not too lose, true to size. I am a large in real life and so I asked Adam to send me all large shirts trusting him that this was true and they are a perfect fit. They are also super stretchy so you will not feel constricted at all while working out and as you get even more huge, the Athletes Collective shirts will accommodate your new massiveness :)
Pricing is very competitive as compared to other similar major brands, and that’s in Canadian funds which is good for us here in Canada and for all everyone in the US since your dollar is so strong right now!:
Sleeveless $22.50
Short Sleeve $25
Long Sleeve $30
Athletes Collective also offers Free Shipping to Canada and the US on orders over $50 which is a great deal since you only need to buy a couple of items to take advantage of the free shipping.
And if that was not enough already, every first purchase comes with these free items:
In a world of Fitness Trackers where everyone seems to be tracking steps, distance, active time and even sleep, there seems to be a void or hole for people that like to simply lift weights or do activities where counting steps is not applicable.
I am talking about people that lift weights, perhaps do Crossfit or even simply exercise by using their own body weight movements. Again all of these types of workouts do not track so well when steps are being counted since few steps are performed in these kinds of workouts.
To the rescue comes Atlas with their Atlas Wristband Strength Training Fitness Tracker! This is not a step counter, it is not interested in how much sleep you got or even how much activity you got during the day. It could not care less if you stayed on the couch for 12 hours straight! But if you do actually get off the couch and go to the gym to lift a bunch of heavy weights, well that's when things get interesting with the Atlas Wristband Strength Training Fitness Tracker because the Atlas Wrist Band is all over that!
All the Atlas Wristband Strength Training Fitness Tracker does at least at the moment is monitor your heart rate and count reps and sets automatically! Oh yah, it also tells the time and date! You might be thinking that's it? Yup, but it does it really well, well at least that is the claim and that is what I am going to find out!
Friday, February 12, 2016 at 5:38PM ;)
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