earle's training journal

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1

Still recovering from reconstructive surgery (Jan. 28/03) to repair a torn ACL. My injured leg is finally growing and getting stronger. I was doing weights a couple of times a week up until January, but my left leg was still relatively small and even jogging was difficult. I decided to start biking again (20min/day, 4-5 times/week) and doing the same passive exercises the PT had me doing immediately post-op, such as: Wall squats, lying leg raises, step downs, standing calf raises with just body weight, etc. On alternate days I still lift weights. I have made more progress in the last month following this routine than I did in the previous 4 months.

Monday, Mar.15/04:
Bike 20min
Squats - 3x6x225lbs
Leg Press - 4x10x450
Leg Curls - 4x10x(4plates?)
Leg ext - 4x10 (light)
Left leg step ups with a barbell - 4x10x135
Abs - various low intensity exercises for 250 reps
stretch

Too much for one workout? I don’t know, felt fine.

Tues., Mar. 16
Physio exersises to regain size and function in injured leg:
wall squats - 4x10
lying leg raises, standing ham curl, standing hip flex, standing hip ext, standing abduction, standing adduction - all 3x30
Petersen step ups - 3x70 seconds
standing calf raises (bodyweight only) - 10 x 30

Wed., Mar. 17
Bike 20min
Front squats - 2x8x135 - I tried these for the first time in years today, they are supposed to really work the VMO (which is very small on my repaired leg) but I really didn’t feel anything in my legs. I felt a lot of stress on my lower back, more so than with regular squatting. I will omit this exercise from future workouts for now, I am not sure if there is any benefit over regular squats as I can’t use nearly as much weight.

Leg press - 4x10
Ham curls - 4x10, 1x15 (left leg only)
Stiff-legged deadlifts - 3x15 - Another exercise I haven’t tried in years, supposed to be good for the hamstrings.
Left calf press - 3x25 in leg press machine
abs - 250 reps
stretch

Thurs., Mar. 18
Bike 20min
Upper body weight workout
Physio exercises, abs, stretch

2

Fri., 04/03/19
Bike 20 min
squats - 3x6
leg press - 4x10
leg curl - 4x10
step ups - 3x10
abs

Sat.
Warm-up 1
Med-ball throws - 2x10 each
hyper complex 3x10
stretch

Sun. off

Mon., 04/03/22
Same as friday

My knee was really swelling this weekend, probably due to the extra work on Saturday. I will go to the sports doctor this week and get a prescription for Vioxx, (it seemed to help with the swelling before).

3

ACL, do you mean Achilles tendon? Are you saying you’ve been recovering for over a year? I was just curious because I heard about a guy who tore both Achilles tendons. Then I never heard about him again.

Sounds scrary to me. It’s one of the reasons why I’d rather do it in a more gradual way now.

4

No, by ACL I mean Anterior cruciate ligament. Yes, an achilles injury is a potentially career ending injury. Though Donovan Bailey did come back from a torn achilles, but maybe not quite the same.

5

Tues. 03/23/04
Passive leg exercises for ACL

Wed. 03/24
Bike 20 min
Stiff-legged deadlifts - 3x15x135lbs
Left leg press - 3x10x270lbs
Leg ext - 4x10x 4 plates
Hip ext - 2x10 (each leg) x 9 plates
Leg curls - 4x10x7plates
Left calf press - 3x30x90, 100, 110 lbs
abs
stretch

Thurs. 03/25
Elliptical machine 20 min
Bench - 2x225lbs
Shoulder press - 3x5x95 lbs, (whoa, those actually felt really heavy, I guess I need some shoulder work)
Lat pull downs - 3x8
ACL exercises
abs, stretch

Fri. 03/26
Bike 20 min
Squats - 3x6
Left leg press - 3x10
Leg curls - 4x10
Left calf press - 3x36
all weights, same poundage as mon
abs, stretch

Sat. 03/27
Bike 5 min
Light upper body workout
Hyper complex
Shoulder raises
close grip bench

Warm up 1 (jogged 10 min, relatively pain free)
Med ball throws - 2x10 each
ACL exercises

Sun. 03/28
OFF
knee is really painful and swelling today, took some advil.

Mon. 03/29
Took some celebrex today, it really helped the swelling and pain in my repaired knee.

Bike 20 min
Squats - 3x6x235lbs
Leg Press - 3x10x360
Leg Curls - 4x10x 8, 9 plates
Leg ext - 4x10x 4, 5 plates
Left calf press - 3x24
abs, stretch

Wow, what a difference one day (and some Celebrex) makes. My knee felt so good today I had to test it out. I ran from the gym to my car, which is only about 100m, but I had no pain (except my lungs, I am still in bad shape). Still, last year I never thought I would get to this point.

6

Tues. 3/30
Elliptical 20min
Upper body weights (I loosely follow a Westside barbell protocol)
Bench - 3x2x225
Tricep ext - 6x8x50lbs (ez-bar)
Front plate raises - 3x20x25lbs
Dumbell Cleans - 3x10x40lbs
ACL exercises - 6-way lunge, mini hops (left leg only), step downs,
Jog - 800m, 6x60m strides

Wed. 3/31
Bike 20min
Old style Hack squats - 3x8x185lbs
Leg ext - 2x10x6 plates
Leg curls - 4x10x9 plates, left leg 1x15x5 plates
Stiff legged deads - 2x8x185
abs

Thurs. 4/01
Elliptical 20min
Speed Bench 8x3x115 (fast)
Elbows out ext - 4x8x40lbs
Lateral shoulder raises - 3x12x20lbs
abs
ACL exercises, 6-way lunge, mini hops, step downs,
Jog 800m, 6x60m strides

7

Just trying to get in shape for touch football

Tues. 07/04/10

Short Warm up 1

Tempo: 60m reps for 8 min, 30 sec b/w runs

Hindu squats (bodyweight)
Hindu pushups

abs, about 200 reps

easy stretching

Explanation:

Why 60m reps? Well, I have a bad knee (no cartilage) so I keep the reps low. This distance seems to work well for football, where most plays last 10-15 sec. Once I get up to 20 min of 60m reps I know I am ready.

8

Wed 07/04/11

Warm up 1+2, 3x 60m strides

short hills, short recoveries

Weights

Bench 2x 225lbs
Tricep ext (with ez bar), 6 x 8 x 50lbs
Chin-ups 8 x 3 in 8 mins
Face pulls 3 x 8 x 5 plates

abs 220 reps

microstretching

9

Thurs. 07/04/12

Long Warm-up 1

Hindu pushups and squats, various reps (card workout)

Med ball throws and abs, 2x10 various, about 200 throws

more low intensity abs about 220 reps

microstretching

Left calf is very sore, probably because I have been off so long. I will probably just stretch tomorrow.

10

Monday 07/04/16

WU 1 and 2

Short hills, short recoveries

Weights

Bench (ultra-wides) 2 x6 x 155lbs
Tricep ext- 6x8x50lbs (ezbar)
Close-grip tricep pressdowns - 4x10 x 45lbs
Front plate raises - 3 x20 x 15lbs
Dumbell cleans - 4 x 10 x 35lbs

abs 220

Microstretch

11

How will your knee cope with the changes in pace and direction of touch?

12

Well it’s not ideal to be sure but I figure I will play for a couple more years hopefully. I can’t push off my bad knee very well, so my lateral speed isn’t that great. Fortunately most touch football guys are not that fast in my division so even with a knee with no cartilage I am still one of the fastest guys in the league.

13

Tues 07/04/17

a.m. dynamic stretching (trying to get that flexibility up!)

p.m.
WU 1

Tempo: 60m reps for 5 min, 30 rest b/w. (Left calf was very sore so cut it short)

Med-ball accels 10x each with run out

ov. backwards, hops etc.

Jim Bradley Circuit x 2

curl-ups, chin-ups, chinnies, dips, hindu squats, push-ups all done in a circuit fashion

stretch

Wed 07/04/18

a.m. dynamic stretch

p.m.
WU 1 and 2

Hills, short with short recoveries as per GPP DVD

Weights:

Bench: 6 x185lbs, 4 x 205, 2 x 225
Military press: 3 x 6 x 95lbs
Chin-ups: 8, 6
Alternate dumbell curls: 3 x 10 x 20lbs

220 abs

relaxed stretching

14

Thurs 07/04/19

WU 1 (3x30m all drills)

Med-ball accels: 10xpushup, 10xrollbacks, both with run-out.

Tempo: 2 x 8 x100m with core and back exercises b/w runs, 10x each exercise. 4 min b/w sets

(That was tough, I am really out of shape!)

Weights:
squats: 3 x 6 x 185lbs (I know, I know, I bench as much as I squat, sad but the squat will come back fast, though maybe not as heavy as pre-injury).

Rev leg extension (machine): 3 x 10 x 13 plates

abs 110 reps

stretch

Well I survived a tough week of training, man am I sore! I will take Friday off and hopefully do something on Saturday.

e.

15

Took Fri, Sat, Sun off.

Mon. 07/04/23

WU 1 and 2

Hills

Weights

Floor Press: 1 x 205lbs
Ez-bar ext: 2 x 5 x 60lbs, 2 x 3 x 70lbs
close-grip tricep pushdowns: 3 x 6 x 50lbs
rear-delt raises: 15lb dumbells
chin-ups: 2 x 8

abs 220

16

Tues

WU 1

Med-ball accels

8x pushup
8x rollback

Tempo:

1400m of 100’s and 200’s (most of Charlie’s “big circuit”)

weights: leg ext, leg curls, 2x 10 each.

abs 220

Wed

WU 1 + 2

Hills: 4 x (4x40m)

No time for weights today.

at home later:

Karl Gotch bible:

using a deck of cards, red cards are squats, black cards are pushups. Made it through about half the deck. Ouch, talk about out of shape!

abs 220

Med ball throws and abs, about 100 throws

stretch.

Thurs

First football practice of the season, woohoo!

Felt okay, our quarterback says I look pretty fast this year. I was very sore for a couple of days.

Fri: OFF
Saturday, 07/04/28

Hills: 4 x (5x40m) tough!

Weights:

Bench: 3 x 6 x 185lbs
Squats:3 x 6 x 185lbs
Shoulder press: 3x6 x 95lbs
upright rows: 3x6 x 95lbs
hyper-complex: 3 x 10 (with ez-bar), what a great exercise, even with hardly any weight!

Rev-leg ext: 2 x 10 x 13 plates
chin-ups: 1 x 8

Plyo: 3 x 10 squat jumps

another tough workout, quads are still sore from football.

Sun 07/04/29

WU 1

Med-ball accels:

6x pushup
6x rollbacks

Tempo:

Big circuit: 2200m of 100’s and 200’s.

depletion pushups

abs 275 reps

relaxed stretching

17

Still sore today, I am not used to those tempo volumes yet. I have football on Thursday, so I did tempo on Monday and will do tempo again on Wednesday. My speed day will be Tuesday. Although, football is not pure speed work, I still find it taxing so I consider it a CNS intensive day.

Mon 07/04/30

Extended WU 1, 4 x 30m all drills

Tempo:

4 x 250m RR = 2.5 min

abs 275

Hindu squats x 50
Hindu pushups x 20
Back bridge x30sec
Front bridge x 30sec

stretching

18

Tues, May 1

WU 1 and 2, with 2 x 60m accels

3x10m from flat
3x10m from push-up position
3x20m rollovers
1 x 4 x (20m easy, 20m fast, 20m easy)
1 x 50m rollover

Plyo: 2 x 10 pit jumps

No time for weights today.

at home later:

Hindu squats x 50
Hindu pu x 20
bridging

abs: 275

isometric stretching

Wed, May 2

a.m. dynamic stretch, deep breathing exercises

p.m. off, very sore

Thurs, May 3

Football scrimmage.

Everyone was a bit flat, not the best scrimmage we’ve ever had but got to run some of our offense. Hurt my thumb on the last play, our quarterback has a cannon! It’s definately sprained.

Fri, May 4

a.m. dyn stretch, deep breathing

p.m. off

my thumb and hand are bruised up.

Sat, May 5

WU 1 and 2

4 x 10m from Pu
4 x 20m from Pu
4 x 20m rollovers
2 x 3 x 20m easy, 20m fast, 20m easy

Plyo: 2 x 10 pit jumps

The weightroom was closed so did some strongman stuff outside, mostly sandbag lifting and farmer’s walk.

abs 275

19

Sun, May 6
Off

Mon, May 7

First football game!

We won by three scores. I felt really fast off the line but I was exhausted by the third quarter. My speed is there but I don’t quite have that football endurance yet.

Tues, May 8

a.m. dyn stretch, deep breathing

p.m.

WU 1
Tempo: big circuit, 2200m of 100’s and 200’s. 50m walk b/w reps, 100m walk b/w sets.

Med ball throws and abs: about 200 throws

after
abs 275

relaxed stretching

still very sore, I might do tempo again today (Wed) and hopefully speed Thurs.

20

Well, every few years I update this journal so hear goes. When I last left off, I was just starting my touch football season in the summer of 2007. I’m sad to say that season ended in disaster for me. Everything happens for a reason, I really believe that, but my stubborness really gets me into trouble sometimes, that I know.

In early May of 07, I got hit from behind after making a jumping catch, and rolled my ankle, that thing swelled up like a cantaloupe. I went and saw the doctor, and x-rays showed no fracture, but he said it was sprained and I should to RICE, the physio. I did rehab for a few weeks, then returned to playing with an air cast. I felt fine and had two great games. During my third game back, I felt like the air cast was hindering me, so I took it off, big mistake. I rolled it bad again, this time the pain was even more intense. Out for another month.

At this point you’re probably thinking, can’t this guy take a hint? Apparently not, because I returned to play again in August. Things felt fine my first game back, but I had lost some proprioception in my injured ankle. In my second game back, I misjudged a step and crack! I had injured my right knee this time. Doctors says probably a torn ACL again. CRAP!

Well, the MRI confired a torn ACL, medial meniscus, and sprained MCL, the terrible trifecta. I had surgery to repair the ACL and meniscus in September 2008 and it still does not feel great.

The saga continues.

Today, I did:

Bike 25 min
Wall sits 3 x 1:30
Single leg partial squats with 5lb dumbells - 2 x 10/leg

Pushups - 4 x 20
Various abs x 20 - 25 reps/exercise ~ 200 total