# Sassy69 2013: Physique in the Midwest



## sassy69 (Feb 4, 2013)

After 2 years since my last show, downsizing, a relocation from the West Coast to the Midwest Coast (of Lake Michigan), a move from suburban living to city living, and a new group of people / clients to work with, I'm on the track to my first Physique show after 10 years in bodybuilding with the help of PJ!

My target show is the NPC Illinois State in Chicago, May 11, 2013. Currently just short of 14 weeks out.  I have a lot of details to bring together and learning to work around my various tendonitis and foot problems , but for the purpose of getting a log going, here we are 


*Mon, 2/4/12*

*Training: legs*
(training in my building tonight to work w/ an early schedule I have tomorrow)

Active / DeFranco leg warmup

leg curls (only had seated available - this should be lying): 75/20 x 2 (1 set finding starting point) 90/15 x 2 105/12
wide stance Smith squats: 135/12 185/12 205/12 225/10
alt reverse Smith lunges: 95/12 x 3
cable butt blaster (no real buttblaster available): 20/15 25/15 x 2 30/12
leg ext: 75/20 x 4

10 min foam rolling


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## so1970 (Feb 5, 2013)

good luck


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## ctr10 (Feb 5, 2013)

Can't get much better help than PJ, good luck


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## IronAddict (Feb 5, 2013)

Luck! Although I know you wont need it.


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## s2h (Feb 5, 2013)

good luck..will be following along...


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## D-Lats (Feb 5, 2013)

Good luck! I'm doing men's physique for the first time. I'm subbed for tips


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## sassy69 (Feb 5, 2013)

D-Lats said:


> Good luck! I'm doing men's physique for the first time. I'm subbed for tips



Practice a sexy walk, smiling and tossing your hair...


lol kidding

This is a whole new experience for me - actually working to keep muscle OFF and not encourage my existing muscle memory. Very weird. But not a bad thing - my body is showing the wear & tear of > 30 years of lifting and I want to reduce my general 'set point' down a good 10-15 lb if I can so going forward (i.e. aging) I'm not carrying extra mass that my metabolism will have to work harder to keep from getting sloppy. Its funny how a life of goals of BIGGER! STRONGER! BETTER! is now more about just "preventative maintenance" LOL!

I'm also very excited to get my new posing suit! I can't help it.. I like good bling and w/ the help of George Ann from Decked in Diamonds, I think its going to be KICK FUCNKIN ASS!

ITS TIME TO GET SMALL!


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## sassy69 (Feb 5, 2013)

*2/5/13 - Tues*

*Training: back*

active WU
shoulder WU
lat pull downs with v bar grip- 90/12 80/15 x 3
1 arm dumbbell rows- 65/10 x 4
Underhand Barbell rows - 95/12 115/10 x 95/11
Seated pulley rows with rope attachment- 70/15 x 4
Behind the neck pull downs- 50/20 x 4


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## Valkyrie (Feb 6, 2013)

Wow.  I have a girlfriend that has been dropping size due to the ridiculous judging inconsistincies in our state and the rapid shift in size preference for Figure (smaller and smaller to push the more muscular girls into physique I think)  Probably one of the trickiest things to pull off - I'm sure you're up for the challenge.


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## sassy69 (Feb 6, 2013)

Agentyes said:


> Wow.  I have a girlfriend that has been dropping size due to the ridiculous judging inconsistincies in our state and the rapid shift in size preference for Figure (smaller and smaller to push the more muscular girls into physique I think)  Probably one of the trickiest things to pull off - I'm sure you're up for the challenge.



I think it would make me nuts being a figure competitor w/ the variety of judging shifts over year to year, contest to contest, region to region.  The downsizing is sort of a perfect timing for me because the years are just taking their toll and everything that I loved about the gym that drove big lifting in the past, now just sorta hurts LOL!  What I look forward to the most is getting into a regular routine in the gym + cardio + leaning out to where I "hurt less" - not that I'm totally broken up, but its more like when I take time off from the gym, I get stiffer. Just simply the consistent activity goes a long way towards getting that feeling back when I was younger where it didn't feel stiff all the time LOL!.. Seriously ... age sucks. I'm great once I'm warmed up, but dang... until then I move slow.


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## sassy69 (Feb 6, 2013)

*2/6/13 - Wed*

Cardio - 35 min


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## Valkyrie (Feb 6, 2013)

sassy69 said:


> I think it would make me nuts being a figure competitor w/ the variety of judging shifts over year to year, contest to contest, region to region.  The downsizing is sort of a perfect timing for me because the years are just taking their toll and everything that I loved about the gym that drove big lifting in the past, now just sorta hurts LOL!  What I look forward to the most is getting into a regular routine in the gym + cardio + leaning out to where I "hurt less" - not that I'm totally broken up, but its more like when I take time off from the gym, I get stiffer. Just simply the consistent activity goes a long way towards getting that feeling back when I was younger where it didn't feel stiff all the time LOL!.. Seriously ... age sucks. I'm great once I'm warmed up, but dang... until then I move slow.



You're preaching to the choir!  I'm only 23 online LOL.

I am honestly at the point with state level comps that I only recommend girls compete if they really love it and will have a fun and fulfilling experience regardless of what the judges act like on that particular day.  What is especially frustrating is that state level the judges DO NOT WANT the girls to look like the big international Figure girls (Larissa Reis for example).  If a competitor can't look at international champions as the goal she should strive for how the hell is she supposed to know what she should look like to win?  Its ridiculous.  

The particular friend I mention was one of the best just five years ago.  She won the governors cup which is the largest competition in our very large state.  Now they tell her she is much too big and should do physique.  I wish she would her body is just beautiful and I love the women's physique look but for her if has always been about the high heels.

State level many comps don't even have entries in the female BB category anymore!  Meanwhile 347 girls per class in bikini *sigh*

Is there any difference between women's physique and women's BB as far as the posing routines?  Or is the difference only in the judging?


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## baby1 (Feb 7, 2013)

Good luck to you!!!!  Maybe we will have to come and see you at the show!


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## sassy69 (Feb 11, 2013)

Agentyes said:


> You're preaching to the choir!  I'm only 23 online LOL.
> 
> I am honestly at the point with state level comps that I only recommend girls compete if they really love it and will have a fun and fulfilling experience regardless of what the judges act like on that particular day.  What is especially frustrating is that state level the judges DO NOT WANT the girls to look like the big international Figure girls (Larissa Reis for example).  If a competitor can't look at international champions as the goal she should strive for how the hell is she supposed to know what she should look like to win?  Its ridiculous.
> 
> ...



The figure girls of 5 years ago were harder than they are now. At least there is Physique to go for those who were building up to the size they used to reward and don't want to downsize - but it is distinctly more like BB and less like Figure. And I agree w/ you - the state level shows reward softer, but at the national level, harder generally gets rewarded - the girls who would kill it at a national show can't get the qualification at the local show because they are too hard. But then the winners at the local /state level go to the national show and get their asses handed to them for being to soft. Some amount of consistency would be nice. 

I LOVE the Arnold Amateur & the the North Americans because they allow more of the international competitors, and THEY BRING IT! PEELED! I love that. I'm not saying it needs it needs to get ridiculous, but I don't see the point in handing a pro card to someone who is soft. It just looks "unprepared" to me. But then I'm old school.

Physique leans more towards BB, or maybe the look is more "classic BB" from the early days. The required poses are mostly the same as BB, with the exception of the rear lat spread which is not required. The poses are more "feminine" - e.g. open handed front dbl bicep. Side tri is mostly the same. Side chest is an arms extended, leg extended - eh - it sorta approximates a side chest. Watching some competitors, I don't feel like they even know why they are doing that pose and are just doing the form of it for presentation purposes. And then a rear dbl, again w/ the open hands. And abs & thighs.  I think generally the 60 sec no-music routine has been tossed for bodybulding, but both physique & BB have  the symmetry & comparison rounds and, depending on how much time allocated, somewhere between a 30- 60 sec free pose routine w/ music. And of course, no heels or props.


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## sassy69 (Feb 11, 2013)

baby1 said:


> Good luck to you!!!!  Maybe we will have to come and see you at the show!



Would love to meet anyone in the Illinois circuit! I'm new coming to the midwest competition arena so whole new group of people I need to meet!


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## sassy69 (Feb 11, 2013)

*2/11/13 - Mon*

So I'm catching up - I've done training since the last entry, but I forget which days - work w/ some late database time cut into a couple days of training, but I got some cardio in every day. Add in hiking to work & back in frozen slush made for a bit of a workout a few days.

Training: chest / bis / tris

shoulder wu
incline db press: 50/10 (got a spot to set up) 40/10 x 3 ... jeebuz I'm weak... big contributor was left wrist tendonitis that has been irritated lately and was definitely a weak link
incline db fly: 25/15 x 4
rope tri pressdown: 70/12 60/12 x 3
bar tri pressdown: 50/20 x 4
BB curl: 40/12 x 4 30/10 (burnout)
DB incline curl: 25/20 20/20 x 3

Cardio: 40 min treadmill - alt 5 min fast walk / 5 min angle 15 lunge walk --- working up to full 5 minutes on the lunge walk and holding on w/ a couple fingers so I don't fall over... biggest challenge - adjusting the length of the lunge to avoid going off the back of the treadmill LOL!

PWO stretch & enjoying my new lacrosse ball for "foam rolling" my right shoulder & right IT / piriformis


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## sityslicker (Feb 11, 2013)

sassy69 said:


> *2/11/13 - Mon*
> 
> So I'm catching up - I've done training since the last entry, but I forget which days - work w/ some late database time cut into a couple days of training, but I got some cardio in every day. Add in hiking to work & back in frozen slush made for a bit of a workout a few days.
> 
> ...



Sassy is there any others reason to do this other then to break up the monotony and work different leg muscles? I've never tried anything like this, just curious.


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## sassy69 (Feb 12, 2013)

sityslicker said:


> Sassy is there any others reason to do this other then to break up the monotony and work different leg muscles? I've never tried anything like this, just curious.



I'd have to get details from PJ, but my bet is that its a couple things. HIIT (tho not literally running), for one. Also esp for women to get ye olde booty tight, lunges, lunges, lunges.  For myself I have a bit of a challenge w/ running - I have a boatload of food issues, including 3 bunion surgeries and now have plantar fasciitis in my left heel and neuromas (inflamed nerves in the area where the toes come into the foot, at the ball of the foot) - so running is painful.


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## sassy69 (Feb 12, 2013)

*2/12/13 - Tues*

Training: legs

20 min DeFranco wu
lying leg curl: 90/20 105/15 90/15 90/12
wide stance Smith squats: 185/15 225/15 x 3
Smith reverse lunges: 95/12 x 4
cable "butt blaster": 23/15 27/12 x 3
leg ext: 90/20 x 4

PWO stretch / foam rolling


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## sassy69 (Feb 13, 2013)

*Wed - 2/13/13*

AM: 35 min cardio

PM: Back
15 min WU -- stoopid tight hammies
shoulder wu
lat pulldowns: 90/12 x 4
alt DB row: 60/12 x 2 --- major tweakage in right lower back so stopped these
underhand grip BB row: 60/15 x 4
cable rope seated row: 80/12 x 4
**ended here due to tweaked back **

foam / lacrosse ball rolling


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## sassy69 (Feb 14, 2013)

Thurs - 2/14/13 - Happy Valentine's Day!

PM: 40 min treadmill + lunges

Followed by 30 minutes of ice packs on my poor feets! 

I made what the recipe calls "Basic Paleo Spinach Quiche", but what it really is is anything green I could shove into my food processor, then blend w/ egg whites and slap into a pie pan to bake for 30 minutes. The "anything green" includes kale, spinach, broccoli, a little onion & garlic for taste.  LOL!


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## sityslicker (Feb 14, 2013)

sassy69 said:


> I'd have to get details from PJ, but my bet is  that its a couple things. HIIT (tho not literally running), for one.  Also esp for women to get ye olde booty tight, lunges, lunges, lunges.   For myself I have a bit of a challenge w/ running - I have a boatload of  food issues, including 3 bunion surgeries and now have plantar  fasciitis in my left heel and neuromas (inflamed nerves in the area  where the toes come into the foot, at the ball of the foot) - so running  is painful.



Thanks Sassy, I think I'll give this a try to change things up. What  I've been doing switching back and forth b/w treadmill to elliptical  throughout my cardio sessions so I don't go crazy just doing one. What  you mentioned above should be a nice change of pace.

And btw, sorry to hear about the foot. Your tough as nails to train like  you do, esp with that kind of debilitating injury. Much respect.


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## sassy69 (Feb 16, 2013)

*Fri - 2/15/13*

15 hours at work, but I walked 1.5 miles home, straight to bed.

*Sat - 2/16/13*

AM: 
Posing: 30 min getting some insight to Physique style posing from one of our Chicago local pros at the world-famous Quads Gym - Nola Trimble! Awesome!

Hams
(warmed up from posing)
lying leg curl: 75/20 x 4
DB SLDL: 30/15 x 4
seated leg curl: 90/20 x 4
super:
- walking lunges: bodywt/15 10/15x 4
- DB plie squat: 80/15 x 4

Adding for S&Gs
Smith vertical leg press: 270/10 x 4
reverse hyper: 20 x 4


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## sassy69 (Feb 23, 2013)

Catching up... with a little redesign of the workout schedule - 2 day split w/ yoga classes incorporated where they fit. Cardio goal is 5x/week or better. This is a work in progress - working up to more HIIT, w/ the interval lunges but working w/ my foot problems. I'm also working w/ my chiro on the foot issues and some re-flair of my rotated pelvis and shoulder that likes to tire out. And I generally walk to/from work - total about 2 1/2 miles/day.

Here's the two day split:

Upper body:
complex 1 - repeat 3-4x, 30 sec rest between cycles
- bench press: 8-12
- DB lateral raise: 8-12
- flatbench fly: 8-12
complex 2 - repeat 3-4x, 30 sec rest between cycles
- alt DB rows: 8-12
- decline pushups: 10-15
- DB curl presses: 8-12
complex 3:
- DB military press: 8-12
- DB OH tri press: 8-12
- DB bent over reverse flys: 8-12

Lower Body:
complex 1:
- smith squats: 8-12
- smith calf raises: 15-20
- jump squats: 8-10
complex 2:
- reverse BB lunges: 8-12
- BB bench step ups: 8-12
- Bulgarian splti squats: 8-12
complex 3:
- Russian lunges: 12-15
- bodywt squats: 25-30
- leg press: 8-12


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## kristaleigh (Feb 23, 2013)

sassy69 said:


> Would love to meet anyone in the Illinois circuit! I'm new coming to the midwest competition arena so whole new group of people I need to meet!



I'm in Indiana so we may run into each other at a show. I'm bikini though lol


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## theCaptn' (Feb 23, 2013)

late follower, long time admirer


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## sassy69 (Feb 25, 2013)

kristaleigh said:


> I'm in Indiana so we may run into each other at a show. I'm bikini though lol



Ya never know! I'll be doing the happy dance if I can hit this target show date. Then I just have to see where I stand...


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## sassy69 (Feb 25, 2013)

theCaptn' said:


> late follower, long time admirer



Hopin' to keep the following interesting! And like the Bartles & Jaymes guys .. "Thank you for your support!"


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## sassy69 (Feb 25, 2013)

*2/25/13 - Monday*

PM training:
- 10 min cardio _+ DeFranco Wu
- lower body complexes 
- 60 min yoga
- 20 min posing


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## Valkyrie (Feb 25, 2013)

kristaleigh said:


> I'm in Indiana so we may run into each other at a show. I'm bikini though lol



In for pic of this sessi meet up!


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## kristaleigh (Feb 25, 2013)

Agentyes said:


> In for pic of this sessi meet up!



I'm debating on the May 11 show actually.


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## sassy69 (Feb 26, 2013)

kristaleigh said:


> I'm debating on the May 11 show actually.



In Chicago? The closer I look, there are a bunch of regional shows scheduled on 5/11!


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## sassy69 (Feb 26, 2013)

*2/26/13 - Tues*

Holy snowstorm Batman! It was sleeting this morning so weird suiting up for a snowstorm and going outside and the first thing you reach for is your umbrella. And then its been snowing since noon. Yay slush!

PM Training:-
- 10 min stretching - between the bump up in training and return of my rotated pelvis issue a few weeks ago - my right lower back and IT bands are STOOPID tight... 
- 60 min PiYo (pilates / yoga)
- upper body complexes
- 20 min posing
- 10 min stretching


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## sassy69 (Feb 28, 2013)

*2/27/13 - Wed*

PM: Cardio -- had to work late so missed my yoga class 

*2/28/13 - Thurs*

AM: 35 min cardio - alt HIIT (where HIIT really means walk 2 min, fast jog 90 sec -- I'm not a runner so I'm working on getting this better.)


Afternoon: chiro adjustment. I originally found a chiro in my building and saw her because of a raging 3-day headache I developed (I get those occasionally...). And as I've been working with her, I mentioned all my foot issues and she basically said, sure there's a bit of a genetic contribution (I can attest to at least 3 generations of bunions on my mom's side of the family..), but the functionality of your foot is heavily dictated by your overall stability & balance and is driven by pelvis / hips / knees / ankles / etc. Given that I have a plantar fasciitis & neuroma issues in both feet, it would follow that I should be looking above my feet for the origin of my balance & stability. So, as of this afternoon, I've been informed that there is an actual strategy that her "team" (a couple different chiros and an LMT in her office) will be following for me in the coming weeks. I also really appreciated that she totally took my competition schedule into consideration and actually said she would email everyone on the "team" so they were aware. 

So this weekend I'm getting a full "foot evaluation" and we'll go from there. If there's any chance in hell that I can get my feet back to a state of "standard functional", I'm all over it like a cheap suit. Seriously!

PM: 
20 min DeFranco wu
lower body complex
stretching


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## flynike (Mar 1, 2013)

Looking forward of following your journal till may 11'th.. can't wait to see some pics!


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## sassy69 (Mar 7, 2013)

Well, based on the ongoing amount of pain I've been experiencing w/ my couple of foot issues, and the amazing taping technique my chiropractor came up w/ to help them - I felt I was too far behind in prep to make a reasonable (i.e. nondesperate) run for a May 11 show date. But I also wanted some time to let this taping technique help my feet heal up a bit before I start beating on them for a show date (yet to be determined later this summer. 

For anyone interested - I've been dealing w/ intense pain for about 10 months from 2 Morton's neuromas in my right foot - basically inflamed nerves in that little area where all your toes (metatarsals) come together at the ball of the foot. It feels like all the padding has been ripped out of the ball of my foot and I have to walk barefoot across a field of golf balls. It burns when I'm just sitting and hurts like a muther when I walk. And keep in mind I live in downtown Chicago, so I walk everywhere, including work every day. I also have 2 neuromas on my left foot, but the only real 'pain' I experience is randomly I'll get a pinch / numbness in my middle toes. Its not so bad in terms of pain, but I've been experiencing that for probably 3 years and the extreme case of neuromas is the nerve is dead and has to be removed. From what I've read it seems like about half the surgeries actually leave the patients worse off than they were before. And if you've ever had any sort of foot pain, its humbling and you get a really good appreciation for the mobility that you might otherwise not half. It is life-affecting.  I also have plantar fasciitis in my left heel - that's been going on for about 5 years - had it in the right heel but its taken care of itself. The left foot has been present for quite a while.  Not as bad as the neuromas but also burns occasionally and generally feels like someone has been tapping on it w/ a ball-peen hammer all night. 

So the corrections I've used in the past and what I'm doing now:

Neuromas:

- using orthodics (higher arch) - have been doing this for the last 25 years related to genetic bunions (had 3 surgeries for those)
- using neuroma-specific orthodics - they have a dome in the center / ball of the foot area designed to help take pressure off that neuroma - sorta helps, but not making it go away
- ice / ibuprofen - like after training - helps a bit but not making it go away
- got 2 cortizone injections back in October. Didn't do anything At this point my podiatrist started talking about surgery. In my mind, I told him to go fuck himself.
- My chiropractor came up w/ a way to tape my 2-4th toes to promote stability and take the pressure off that area. The idea is the same as if you've ever twisted up a paper towel or kleenix and laced it between your toes to spread them out (e.g. to let toenail polish dry). Using some muscle testing techniques (applied kinesiology), she determined that the direction of the lacing should be a certain way to improve the balance & stability of my foot during the transition of balance from one foot to the other while walking. Here's the lacing method & orientation of the toe taping that I am using. (Sorry I really need a pedicure - I had a 25 lb plate drop on my big toe a few years ago and the nail is just finishing growing back (a second time) so it all looks a bit rough.)







The end result is that I am using standard "coach tape" (cuz its cheap - since I'll be taping like this for a while) - take 3 strips that are hall of the tape width (~3/4") and ~4" long. Tape the 2nd toe to pull it up - wrap the tape around the back of the toe, anchor on the top of the foot, 3rd toe goes down - wrap the tape around the top of the toe, anchor on the bottom of the foot, 4th toe, same as 2nd. And then wrap another piece of tape around the whole foot to hold each of the little pieces down. (And make sure to step down and stand on the foot before securing the tape so it doesn't strangle your foot when you try to stand on it.) 

Here's the prototype tape job using the stretchier tape my chiro likes - but I haven't found where I can actually buy it yet -and also found it is too bulky to really wear comfortably in shoes). I like the coach tape better.






And voila!  The amount of pain is nearly negligible. I also notice that I am walking w/a normal gait - in other words, I'm not anticipating the pain w/ the way I walk, because I forgot about the pain. And the extra push/pull of the tape is helping get my foot to the structure it should be while taking some of the pressure of the area where the neuromas are. Also by getting my gait back to normal, my balance and stability is closer to 'normal' all up & down my body. It is also helping reduce some of the exaggerated pelvic rotation I'm experiencing right now. I've been getting adjusted like 2x /week for the last 3 months for this.

Plantar Fasciitis

This is more of "d'oh shoulda thought of this earlier", but the whole tape approach to the neuromas inspired me to go search youtube for some Kinesio Tape methods to help deal w/ this as well on the off chance I might actually get myself to a point of being pain free in my feet for the first time in many years.






I used this video because the person does the taping on herself instead of needing someone else to do it. I found the KT Tape comes off in the shower, at least on the feet so I'm experimenting w/ coach tape as well - again - its cheaper but it doesn't have the stretch that KT Tape does. I'm also finding the 3 pieces of KT Tape works better than only 2 for pain, and at $12-13/roll of 20 pre-cut pieces, I can go thru that in a week. (Yes I can put a bag over my foot in the shower, but I'm just not real excited about doing that. I like my feet clean!)

So anyway - wanted to give myself a couple of weeks using these methods to let my feet start healing. I know feet aren't the sexiest thing in the world, but when they hurt, it really does affect you. For me, this is huge!  If you have any sort of structural instability in your feet, as you get older you can probably plan on experiencing at least one issue w/ your feet. It seems plantar fasciitis especially starts to show in around mid-40s.


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## sassy69 (Mar 7, 2013)

Short video on what exactly a Morton's Neuroma is:


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## sassy69 (Mar 7, 2013)

Short video on what exactly plantar fasciitis is:


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## Valkyrie (Mar 8, 2013)

Wow that sounds painful!  Hope this technique beings great improvement.


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## Nightowl (Mar 26, 2013)

Good Luck Sassy,  we wish you the best!

I trust you like the snow, as I remember those horrible Winters with the roads blocked and no school. 

All well on my end, just busy as a beaver.


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## sassy69 (May 13, 2013)

Nightowl said:


> Good Luck Sassy,  we wish you the best!
> 
> I trust you like the snow, as I remember those horrible Winters with the roads blocked and no school.
> 
> All well on my end, just busy as a beaver.



Ha - this winter was sorta easy peasy for me! I walk or take the train to work so no roads to deal w/ and honestly there just wasn't that much here. Minnesota, on the other hand, managed to collect > 3 ft at the end of April... dang that state's weather is F'd up!  

Glad to hear you're busy tho!


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## sassy69 (May 13, 2013)

*5/13/13 - Monday*

Figured its time to get back into this.... As mentioned above, some foot problems I've been dealing w/ for a while now, really started to get aggravated so I decided to take some time off and really try to treat all of it while not continuing the aggravation. I did a pretty targeted protocol of massage / chiropractic / accupuncture. I was making some progress, but a couple hours of volunteering at the local animal shelter, basically just taking the dogs around for a 10 min pee /poo break, was literally setting me back a week at a time. I took time off from the volunteering (with much sadness - love doing it!). I wasn't getting good enough results from all the time & money I was spending on the massage and all that to justify continuing so I'm just doing 1 accupuncture / week for a couple more weeks. 

The one thing that seems to have made the biggest difference is getting a pair of the Vibram Five Finger shoes. I currently only wear them around the house, but the way the seperate my toes (which are naturally close together) helps relieve a lot of the neuroma issues. I still have all of the issues, but to a much lesser degree and I'm still being very careful about it.

That said, I felt like it was time to get back in the gym. In my mind I want to target a show here in Illinois maybe in October, but my immediate focus is getting my body, mind and feet back in operating order. I think this next week will be about seeing where I'm at and what I need to work on. I'm also following a keto diet during the week and relaxing it on the weekend - again just as a place to get things rolling again.

Training: legs
20 min Defranco WU
giant:
- bodywt squats: 15 x 4
- bar squats: 95/15 95/20 95/15 x 2
- russian lunges: 10/side x 4 (KICKED MY ASS!!!!!!)
leg press: 360/15 x 4
leg press (alt legs drop rep sets): 180/7 -> 5-> 3 x 2
DB SLDL: 25/15 x 4 --> need to work on my lower back..
seated leg curl (no lying leg curl machine): 120/15 105/15 x 3
super:
- abductor: 130/15 x 4
- adductor: 130/15 x 4
super:
- lying leg raises (strict focus on pulling w/ abs): 20 x 3
- oblique v-ups: 15/side x 3

Ima be in pain on Wed I think..... :c/ Feet did pretty good today. Gotta see how they survive the cardio when I add that in ...


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## sassy69 (May 16, 2013)

*5/16/13 - Thurs*

LONG ASS week.. dangit I've worked a lot. And YES I am still doing the leg day shuffle. A friend gave me a big fat challenge this afternoon doing a 15 mile trail ride on a borrowed bike. Aside from falling off the bike twice because I'm so rusty using clip-based pedals (my first ripped up knee in 35 years....), it was awesome. We didn't really ride fast or take any crazy jumps but I was pretty happy I had the energy and my legs didn't poop out on me. I also finally got around to getting an MRI of my right shoulder which has been bothering me since a week before my last show 2 1/2 years ago. I regularly have to see my chiropractor to get my scapula and a rib or two pushed back into place after doing anything that works that shoulder. Reviewing the MRI w/ my doc on Saturday. And happy to say feet are doing reasonably well. They were burning a little after the bike ride today but relatively speaking, pretty good!  My goal is really to get all of my major issues dealt with during this summer so I can actually consider getting to a regular training schedule for a competition and just generally be able to go to the gym w/o being crippled or jacked up every time I do anything other than pink weights.


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## sassy69 (May 18, 2013)

*5/18/13 - Saturday*

I'm realizing I'm a bit spotty getting going if I'm going to be serious about this. This past week was ultra heavy w/ work, and even tho I took half a day off, I still managed to work 43 hours by Thursday noon. And I even left a bunch of processes running (e.g. large file transfers and a couple database queries), so technically I was still getting stuff done while I was off.  The time off was really needed and I loved every minute of it!  Next week I'm flying to San Francisco for work, so I am hoping to get into the gym at the hotel too. I can feel the peer pressure already from my team to go out drinking w/ them :cO

Today I also had a follow up w/ my chiropractor after getting an MRI on my right shoulder. I had arthroscopic surgery on it in 2008 and it healed beautifully. However a week before my last show I was doing 30 lb Arnold presses and managed to tweak it - basically lifting too heavy for how depleted I was. Its been annoying ever since. Gets tired very quickly and after every back day I have to go see my chiro to get a few ribs and my scapula pushed back into place on the right side.

I'm posting a thread in the Training forum about the whole MRI results and recommended protocol for anyone interested. I have an appt on Monday for full torso x-rays and an evaluation including measurement of the push / pull strength & ROM of all the muscles managing the balance of my upper torso as a place to start.

*Link: http://www.ironmagazineforums.com/t...ues-mri-subsequent-treatment.html#post3081732*

Training: chest / tris

1.5 mile walk to the gym
shoulder wu
super:
- incline DB press: 40/10 x 4
- incline DB fly: 25/10 x 4
HS low iso press: 45s/10 x 3
cable x-over: 40/10 x 4
tri cable pressdown: 100/15 x 2 85/15 x 2
Oprahs/Dr Phils: 15/10 x 4 (These are alternating supinated & pronated grip DB kickbacks - one of my trainers used to call them Oprahs & Dr. Phils - it makes me laugh so I still use it 
super:
- lying leg raises: 20 x 4
- oblique v-ups: 15 x 3
seated pulldown ab vacuums: alt side - 30/10 x 3 center: 45/10 x2

20 min posing practice 

1.5 mile walk home


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## sassy69 (May 20, 2013)

*5/19/13 - Sun*

5 mile walk.


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