Fiftyfit Seeking Some Feedback

[fiftyfit]

Hey guys, first of all, "Yes, I'm Still Alive", and I'm looking for some feedback from the "chronologically-challenged crowd"! Up until mid-July of this year I had been pretty much sticking to the SS templates, and continuing to make progress. I did the following lifts in early July, at a bodyweight between 193-195: Squat-245x5, BP-200x3 and 215x2, Press-144x1(a recent high for me), DL-315x5. Then, on July 18, I strained the area around my injured ribs again and I've been struggling to even workout at all ever since. I had to drop the squats and deadlifts, and have been basically trying some old basic whole-body routines I did years ago.
Then, on Saturday, Aug 27, I was lying in bed stretching a little before getting up. There was a loud "pop" in the middle of my back, followed by pain radiating across the area where I injured my ribs when I fell a year ago. I saw my chiropractor to get his opinion, and he felt the rib cartilage must have pulled loose again. The area was red, and he said that it might bruise over the next day or so, and sure enough, it did. Since then, the area has been extra-sensitive, and I have to be cautious with anything I do. I have a Dr appt tomorrow, but I just don't know where I can go from here as far as my training goes. Any suggestions would be appreciated, thanks for listening.

[Mark E. Hurling]

Is the doctor you're seeing an orthopedist? They'll have the best advice, but once the diagnosis is made, I'd say ice for the swelling and bruising around the ribs with lots of ibuprofen to take down the swelling and inflammation.

[Jonathon Sullivan]

Is the doctor you're seeing an orthopedist? They'll have the best advice, but once the diagnosis is made, I'd say ice for the swelling and bruising around the ribs with lots of ibuprofen to take down the swelling and inflammation.

+1. And for God's sake don't despair. This too shall pass.

[Bean1871]

Hang in there, Fifty. Best wishes for a speedy recovery.

[Oldster]

+1. And for God's sake don't despair. This too shall pass.
+1.

What was the Docs opinion?

[fiftyfit]

My Doc's opinion was not one I wanted to hear. After explaining what had happened last month, and having her examine my ribs, she basically said, "It's going to happen again, and you're just going to have to find out what you can and can't do." I discussed trying to continue to workout, and she said, "You just want to maintain, don't you?" "Just use lighter weight for higher reps."

Since the accident happened, I've been hoping that I'd recover to at least nearly as good as before, but I realize now "IT AIN'T GONNA HAPPEN!" I've been trying to juggle exercises(with embarrassingly light weights) to find what I can continue to do, and what I have to let go of. I'm trying to hang in there and train as well as I'm able to, but it's pretty discouraging. I'd just like to get close to my old condition without continually irritating the injured ribs, I'm just forced to use extreme caution in the process. I don't plan to give in without a fight, I'll let you all know how the next workout goes. Thanks, guys.

[Mark E. Hurling]

With your bad ribs maybe dips might be a good possibility. Chins too, like you were doing. At least there's no direct load on them.

[ColoWayno]

Sneak up on the numbers you want. Start very conservatively and resetting at the hint of pain. The next time you'll have an idea if you can push further, maybe tolerating just a bit more pain. Rinse and repeat.
You might also consider a two day per week schedule to give everything more time to recover.
Also, eat like a boss a couple of meals before and after working out. You can eat much less on rest days, but don't skimp on lifting days.
Like Sully said, this will pass. It might take a long time and a lot of frustrating resets, but it really should.
Be sneaky, very, very sneaky.

Good luck,
Wayne

[fiftyfit]

Mark, thanks for the suggestion. I have continued to do either chinups or pullups, but I'm afraid the dips are out. My fall caused injury in the vertebrae in my mid, and upper back, which gives me pain down the right side of my neck and trap, at times radiating down the back of my right arm. I've tried doing dips a few times, but it just increases the pain in those areas.
With your bad ribs maybe dips might be a good possibility. Chins too, like you were doing. At least there's no direct load on them.

[fiftyfit]

Wayne, I think your two workouts a week suggestion might be a good idea for me, and I'll try approaching my meals a little better also. I like the sneaky quote...sneakier could be the ticket. Thanks so much for the tips, guys, I'll keep you posted!
Sneak up on the numbers you want. Start very conservatively and resetting at the hint of pain. The next time you'll have an idea if you can push further, maybe tolerating just a bit more pain. Rinse and repeat.
You might also consider a two day per week schedule to give everything more time to recover.
Also, eat like a boss a couple of meals before and after working out. You can eat much less on rest days, but don't skimp on lifting days.
Like Sully said, this will pass. It might take a long time and a lot of frustrating resets, but it really should.
Be sneaky, very, very sneaky.

Good luck,
Wayne