Beginner Tendons

[pedro01]

Hi all

Just started getting back in shape after a layoff (like 12 years).

I'm 170cm tall - was 85kg of flab, now down to 69kg & looking to build some muscle.

I got back into the gym doing rehab work on a knee injury incurred during wakeboarding - that was April & I'm still hitting the gym now 4 times a week.

The thing is - every attempt at piling up the weights seems to result in injuries flaring up. For instance - I started dumbell press at 35lb - went up to 60lb but then my elbow tendons started to scream - same with most tricep exercises.

Pains I get are in the upper forearm & deep in the elbow joint. All towards the end of the muscle. No mid-muscle pain at all. I also have knee pain but this is under control.

As you can imagine - the forearm/elbow pain is preventing me from going heavy on a lot of exercises.

I have cut back on the weights to 15 reps/set to failure but all attempts to go heavier result in pain.

So - is there anything i can do ? just stick with it ? Any medication/supplements that will REALLY help with this.

It's a real pain in the ass.

Thanks for any advice.

Pedro

 

[xcelbeyond]

I'm 170cm tall - was 85kg of flab, now down to 69kg & looking to build some muscle.

Glad ya decided to join us - Welcome!

For those of us that are metrically challenged: 170cm = ~5' 7", 85kg = 187 pounds, 69kg = 152 pounds.

I have trouble with my elbows a lot. Doing exercises that isolate my triceps seems to be the greatest cause of any aggrevation. Sticking with basic compound movements does not bother elbows as much. Heavy skull crunches and pushdowns (for example) have bothered my elbows - Dips don't (but I need to careful of "form" doing dips as I have bad shoulders too )

I'm a strong believer in basic compound movements using a "bar." While some may argue that you use different/more muscles for say a "heavy" flat dumbbell press versus barbell press - I argue the difference is negligable. Any injury is much more prevelant with "heavy" dumbbell work versus barbell. I don't believe the "action" on muscles is very different between dumbbell or barbell. I consider a huge difference between any free weight versus use of machines.

 

[Big A]

Do lighter weights with higher reps until tendon strength increases.
Tendons take much longer than muscles to get stronger.
Have deep tissue work at least once a week on the whole body.
Take GH as that will greatly speed up your tendon recovery/strength.

 

[pedro01]

Thanks

Guys - I very much appreciate this.

1 - I have been working dumbells almost exclusively - I'll give barbells a try & switch to other tricep exercises. Perhaps assisted dips.

2 - for lighter weights/higher reps - this'll sound silly but I'm having trouble putting a routine together.

Last week I did 3 x fulll body workouts. 1 exercise per body part 3 sets of 15, 30-45 seconds rest. That was cool but I'd like to spend another day in the gym, (I enjoy it) so this week I split it into 2 workouts with 2 exercises per body part - this seems OK.

Last weeks workouts went well, this week I upped the weights a little now I have a shoulder pain (not soreness) - tendons I guess. I took someones advise that on my sets of 15, I should still be going to failure on the 15th rep. The shoulder will be OK if I back off it for a week - I have a good feel for that by now.

So - on lighter sets - should I still go to failure ? Any rule of thumb for setting the weight ?
Is 15 reps the right amount or should I go up to 20-30 ?
Should I minimise rest between sets to make it more intense ?
Can I split the workout so I still get 4 sessions.

I've been at this since April - going hard for 3 weeks, then having to back off. Just last week I went lighter but this week going to failure seems to be aggravating things.

BTW - is it likely that a doctor would prescribe GH for this or would I have to go the other route ?

Sorry to ask so many questions.

Cheers

Pete

 

[Big A]

Pete, read in the Article's Forum my thread called 'Growth principls for beginners'. It's one of the Sticky threads.

That will answer a lot of your questions.

The kind of training I advocate there is very non stressful on the joints and ligaments, as it promotes a mind muscle link which stresses the muscles to failure without endangering anything else.

To get a doc to prescribe you GH you have to find a VERY open minded one. They are around, but you have to search for them.