It doesn't stop me from doing my cardio warm up. I'm already used to having my feet go numb towards the end of a 35-minute "run" on the cross-trainer. Pull ups only ever bother my fingers and sometimes my left elbow, which is why I restrict myself to just 26 reps. Push ups feel okay. But bracing myself on the oversized inclined bench, while doing Smith Inclined Presses, causes a bit of discomfort. Because my feet don't really sit flat solid on the ground and the seat itself is not adjustable. I have short calves and that makes life difficult. I have to skew myself forward with my right leg extended to have my foot lay flat. My left foot is actually on tip toe. Maintaining this position for reps is painful because it puts a lot of pressure on my right butt. (And when you have sciatica, you don't want to sit on hard things, or press against hard things. Like toilet seats. Especially if you have short calves. I have long thighs, but the pivot point is the knees, so with short calves, I'm stuck not quite reaching the floor.) Back of the thigh pressure hits the sciatic nerve directly. Ugh.
Well, at least I get my sets in. The shorter flat bench is available but I'm leery of testing out my stability. To properly flat bench, both feet should be planted flat on the floor. I can plant my feet on the cross-bar foot of the bench because I don't quite reach the floor. My whole body tenses and I put a lot of downward pressure on my feet. Not ideal if you're trying to baby the sciatic nerve. The recommended therapy is ice and inflammation relief, which of course means something like ibuprofen. Ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin) is a wonderful drug. Which I try really hard not to take because it's been associated with an increase in cardiac issues, interferes with bone and muscle regeneration, and is probably toxic to your liver but just not as bad as acetaminophen (Tylenol).
I grab the 20 lb solid barbell and a pair of magnetic disc weights to do the shoulder supersets: front raises and upright rows. The upright rows seem easier so I do more reps for them. Instructional videos for front raises state to keep arms straight in front of you, but I have to keep a slight bend at the elbows, otherwise they hurt. Small joints are weak joints, and mine are tiny. There's no strengthening joints, only the muscles surrounding them. I arch my back slightly when doing the upright rows to get a better range of motion. At this light weight, these seem okay.
My arms are also bent when I do DB Lateral raises. If the weight is light enough for me to do raises with my arms straight out, I'll be doing sets of 50 reps. So not productive. My arms from the elbows to my fingers are disproportionately, structurally smaller than my upper arms and shoulders. But there's nothing I can do about it, so I work around all these issues. I've done heavier weights with this super-set, but inevitably, my elbows start to complain. I can't make them stronger so I'll just do what I do until I find something else that might work better. Gotta work within your limitations!Lastly, there's triceps. I did Rip Skulls last week. I could do them again, except that this movement puts a lot of stress on my hamstrings. As I drop the barbell past my forehead, I need to brace my body on the bench, which means my bent legs are rigidly clenched as well. It's hard to force yourself to relax your legs while tensing your core AND focusing on not dropping 40 lbs on your face. I opt to do V-bar cable press downs instead.
The sciatica really bothers me when I sit, not so much when I'm walking around. Laying down is okay too. Well, at least it's not shingles. But my throat feels a tad scratchy and it is flu & cold season. Ugh. As much as I like the idea of a flu & cold tonic, my body has had a negative reaction to the apple cider vinegar. It gives me massive heartburn in spite of chasing it with a glass of water. In spite of following it directly with food. In spite of taking it WITH food. The discomfort is such that I feel like I'm perpetually eating something to quell the nasty feeling. Not what I need. Today, I take some extra zinc. And I mash 3 cloves of garlic and mix it with olive oil to spread on a slice of ciabatta bread. Normally I'd make a 1/4 cup (dry) of oatmeal and mix in a scoop of whey powder. But I need to address this impending head cold. A scratchy throat is usually due to post-nasal drip and that could be allergies, or it could be a blossoming head cold. Ugh.Today, I also get a preliminary jury duty questionnaire in the mail. Well, at least it looks like it's from the county court and not Federal court in NYC. I pass by the county court every day I drive to the gym. But with sciatica, the last thing I want to do is sit in one of those hard, uncomfortable wooden jury seats. I've done jury duty in Putnam County before, but it was before I was married with a school age kid. I'll fill out the paper, but I'm prepared to get myself disqualified....
Monday
35 x-trainer
Calories 171
Miles 4.80
Average Heart Rate 151
HGPU 26
Push Ups 50
Smith Inclined Press
Bar (30) x 15
50 x 12
70 x 13
90 x 8 x 3
60 x 25
50 x 25
BB Front Raises s/s Upright Rows
20lbs x 12/15reps
25lbs x 12/15reps x 3 sets
DB Laterals s/s Rev Inclined Flyes
20/25 lbs x 12/15reps x 3 sets
V-bar cable press down
40lbs x 12reps x 3 sets
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