Is this too hard? Mostly girl-related.

[Cheesepuff]

I know this has nothing to do with your reply to the OP, but I saw this was compelled to comment.

My father was told to have his knee replaced at your age. He put it off until 72. He wishes he'd have done it when the doctor first told him to.

Like everything else, recovery gets worse with age. My father is 6 months post op and still struggling for ROM, and it's not lack of work ethic.

If you've gotten a second/third opinion and the doctor(s) don't have a consensus, then I can understand the decision to delay. If, however, there is a consensus, it might be worth considering in the near future.

@MGilchrest
Thank you for your advice / concern, and sharing your experience.

MY STORY (aka skip unless you're really bored)

I had knee surgery at 20, career ending college football injury, and was told I would need knee replacement in my 40's. That was 1974, so I've had some time to think about this.

I had tried a number of things to avoid this fate. But about 7 years ago I began seeking a surgeon. His advice was rather good. (I know we have a tendency to "doctor bash" on this forum, myself included).

About that time the "lifespan" of knee surgeries was about 10 years, and they had recently come out with a "20 year knee". My strategy was to try to hold off surgery until I could "get it only once". But, at about 56, I was in pain, gaining weight, losing mobility and thought I had run out of options.

My doctor then advised me that I'd be lucky to get 8 years out of a knee at my weight an activity level. You think you want to be out of pain, but you really want your life back. Why don't you try this corrective knee brace. If it works fine, if not we'll do surgery.

The brace looked like an offensive lineman's knee brace (required in college ball). But the difference was that it adjusted your alignment (in my case right toe in) so that I "rode" on a better part of the knee.

It worked. I started walking again, relatively pain free. But progress on other fronts was nil or I was still going backwards. (weight gain, walking speed etc)

I started researching, (and managed to NOT FIND STARTING STRENGTH), I was working on "walking form" and discovered that I was "fighting the brace". It occurred to me that I could "be the brace" so I relearned to walk like the brace wanted me to.

The result was I could now walk just as well without the brace. But I was still VERY WEAK, (Starting Strength where are you???).

My "FINE research efforts" came up with trekking poles which were quite popular in Europe and with hikers. I proceeded to Cabellas and broke the best set they had. I then studied the concept and designed my own weight bearing trekking poles. This improved my walking quite a bit. But I was still slow and weak, but was no longer "losing my mobility". All I was effectively doing was not losing any more.

Then my brother came across Starting Strength. I got to page 4 of the blue book and started lifting immediately. I have not looked back. I no longer "need" my treking poles. My doctor would not recommend replacement now. No more poles, no more "remembering how the brace wants me to walk", no more brace, oh and no more canes. I used canes before the trekking poles... but they made my back hurt.

I went from being unable to squat, even with assistance, to a 5RM of 232.5. Which at a body weight of 270 is hardly a "heroic lift". But it is a big deal to me.

So I encourage people to do the program whenever I can. I'm very grateful to Rip and Sully, who's guidance has affected me directly.

Did I make the right call 6 years ago? Well I'd be 2 years from needing replacement surgery again. I sort of doubt I'd be as well off as I am now. But had I not found Starting Strength... I probably should have gotten the surgery.

Finding Starting Strength changed everything for me. Gratitude does not even begin to describe my feelings. Now I doubt I'll even need knee replacement. And I haven't been this mobile in many years.

This song still brings a tear to my eye, but the reason has changed.
Grand Funk Railroad - Walk Like a Man - YouTube
No regrets.

[57bergstrm]

@MGilchrest
Thank you for your advice / concern, and sharing your experience.

MY STORY (aka skip unless you're really bored)

I had knee surgery at 20, career ending college football injury, and was told I would need knee replacement in my 40's. That was 1974, so I've had some time to think about this.

I had tried a number of things to avoid this fate. But about 7 years ago I began seeking a surgeon. His advice was rather good. (I know we have a tendency to "doctor bash" on this forum, myself included).

About that time the "lifespan" of knee surgeries was about 10 years, and they had recently come out with a "20 year knee". My strategy was to try to hold off surgery until I could "get it only once". But, at about 56, I was in pain, gaining weight, losing mobility and thought I had run out of options.

My doctor then advised me that I'd be lucky to get 8 years out of a knee at my weight an activity level. You think you want to be out of pain, but you really want your life back. Why don't you try this corrective knee brace. If it works fine, if not we'll do surgery.

The brace looked like an offensive lineman's knee brace (required in college ball). But the difference was that it adjusted your alignment (in my case right toe in) so that I "rode" on a better part of the knee.

It worked. I started walking again, relatively pain free. But progress on other fronts was nil or I was still going backwards. (weight gain, walking speed etc)

I started researching, (and managed to NOT FIND STARTING STRENGTH), I was working on "walking form" and discovered that I was "fighting the brace". It occurred to me that I could "be the brace" so I relearned to walk like the brace wanted me to.

The result was I could now walk just as well without the brace. But I was still VERY WEAK, (Starting Strength where are you???).

My "FINE research efforts" came up with trekking poles which were quite popular in Europe and with hikers. I proceeded to Cabellas and broke the best set they had. I then studied the concept and designed my own weight bearing trekking poles. This improved my walking quite a bit. But I was still slow and weak, but was no longer "losing my mobility". All I was effectively doing was not losing any more.

Then my brother came across Starting Strength. I got to page 4 of the blue book and started lifting immediately. I have not looked back. I no longer "need" my treking poles. My doctor would not recommend replacement now. No more poles, no more "remembering how the brace wants me to walk", no more brace, oh and no more canes. I used canes before the trekking poles... but they made my back hurt.

I went from being unable to squat, even with assistance, to a 5RM of 232.5. Which at a body weight of 270 is hardly a "heroic lift". But it is a big deal to me.

So I encourage people to do the program whenever I can. I'm very grateful to Rip and Sully, who's guidance has affected me directly.

Did I make the right call 6 years ago? Well I'd be 2 years from needing replacement surgery again. I sort of doubt I'd be as well off as I am now. But had I not found Starting Strength... I probably should have gotten the surgery.

Finding Starting Strength changed everything for me. Gratitude does not even begin to describe my feelings. Now I doubt I'll even need knee replacement. And I haven't been this mobile in many years.

This song still brings a tear to my eye, but the reason has changed.
Grand Funk Railroad - Walk Like a Man - YouTube
No regrets.

Great story, you should post it in the testemonials blogg

[Prunesquallor]

Pulling heavy deadlifts twice a week may be getting to be too much from a recovery standpoint and you might benefit from setting them up on a high/low or high/low/medium setting. You could do light pulls one day and a couple of heavy pulls on another or split them up more and work in some rows or another pulling variant, too.

Agree with this part, at least from my experience. The only lifting setback I've had so far was when I was trying to do too much volume of deadlifting. Just once a week but after my work weight, I'd drop back to one of my heavier warm-up weights and do 3X5. Eventually I couldn't recover week to week and one more attempt gave me a strain. (I've just this month gone past the weight that blew me out last year, and it felt fine).

Also agree with getting some variants in, as something to consider or try. Maybe replace one of your current DL days with straight leg deadlifts or Romanian deadlifts at a lighter weight. I'm not doing it currently because I'm making good progress with just the main lifts. In the past, not sure if it helped me or not, but it felt good physically (Romanian dl especially is more of a stretch than a lift if you go with a lighter load) and mentally (forward progress).

[Culican]

The only lifting setback I've had so far was when I was trying to do too much volume of deadlifting.

I decided to try one of Andy's programs(8/5/2) back in May and started doing sets across on deadlifts. I didn't make it through two cycles before I came down with a bad cold (first bad cold in two years). Recovered from the cold and resumed the sets across on the deads and two weeks later got the first flu I had had since 2006 (and I got the shot this year).

I blame the deadlift volume for this.

After that, I am back to one top set, one backoff set, and no more than 6 reps top.

[SJB]

I decided to try one of Andy's programs(8/5/2) back in May and started doing sets across on deadlifts. I didn't make it through two cycles before I came down with a bad cold (first bad cold in two years). Recovered from the cold and resumed the sets across on the deads and two weeks later got the first flu I had had since 2006 (and I got the shot this year).

I blame the deadlift volume for this.

After that, I am back to one top set, one backoff set, and no more than 6 reps top.

The 852 program I got from Andy specified that Deads should always use Backoff sets not sets across.

[Culican]

I was going from the KSC Method for Powerbuilding and it gives the option but doesn't say they should always use backoffs. And if I were 21 or 31 instead of 61, it might have worked.
I actually did have a warning that I was not recovering from sets across in that I started to dread deadlift day but I ignored it.

Lesson learned.

For deadlifts it is recommended that straps be used on the second
and third set each week. If the lifter cannot perform or recover from
sets across on the deadlift then sets 2 and 3 can be done as back off
sets at a 5-10% reduction from the 1 st work set of the day