Rehabilitation High-Intensity Training

This workout is based on what I've been going through with physical therapy and "High-Intensity Training" (John Philbin). The overlying goal is:

• Time under tension 48 - 72 sec
  
• Increase weight 3-5% @ 12 reps or time under tension > 72 sec
  
• 75 - 90 sec recovery time

Theoretically these workouts should take less than 90 minutes to complete. Based on my current restrictions I plan the following

Lower body

1. 15 minute warm-up on stationary bike
   
2. 10 minute dynamic stretching
   
3. Leg press (less than 60° flexion)
   
4. Leg press (less than 60° flexion)
   
5. Calf extension
   
6. Calf extension
   
7. Hip abduction
   
8. Hip abduction
   
9. Hip adduction
   
10. Hip adduction
    
11. Hip extension
    
12. Hip extension
    
13. Hip flexion
    
14. Hip flexion
    
15. Hamstring curl
    
16. Hamstring curl
    
17. Hamstring extension (less than 40°)
    
18. Hamstring extension (less than 40°)
    
19. 10 minute cool down stretch

Upper body

1. 15 minute warm-up on stair master (or equivalent with upper body movement)
   
2. 10 minute dynamic stretching
   
3. Pull Up
   
4. Dip
   
5. Lat Pull Down
   
6. Lat Pull Down
   
7. Seated row
   
8. Seated row
   
9. Dumbell Bench Press
   
10. Dumbell Bench Press
    
11. Seated Dumbell Press
    
12. Seated Dumbell Press
    
13. Shrug
    
14. Shrug
    
15. Back Extension
    
16. Back Extension
    
17. Abdominal Extension
    
18. Abdominal Extension
    
19. 10 minute cool down stretch

Dynamic stretching

1. Ankle rotations
   
2. Knee circles
   
3. Straight leg swing forward
   
4. Straight leg swing lateral
   
5. Hip circles
   
6. Trunk twist
   
7. Front/back bends
   
8. Side bends
   
9. Arm circles
   
10. Arm wrap
    
11. Wrist circles
    
12. Grips
    
13. Neck circles
    
14. Shaking head "no"
    
15. Nodding head "yes"

Cool down stretch

1. Feet shoulder width down, left and right
   
2. Feet twice shoulder width down, left and right (shoulder width, wide, wider, widest)
   
3. Feet as wide as comfortable down, left and right
   
4. Down into Cobra
   
5. Back up and as far hand walking backwards without sitting down
   
6. Up and stretch left lunge
   
7. Switch to right lunge
   
8. Back to center and down into Cobra
   
9. Back up and hand walking into sitting position
   
10. Stretch middle, left and right
    
11. Leg’s together stretch middle
    
12. Left reverse hurdler stretch, stretch along leg and between
    
13. Left pretzel
    
14. Left leg pull over back stretch
    
15. Right reverse hurdler stretch, stretch along leg and between
    
16. Rigt pretzel
    
17. Right leg pull over back stretch
    
18. Crowd pleasers
    
19. Up and do ham string stretch
    
20. Picking high fruit
    
21. Forward bend
    
22. Rear lean
    
23. Forward bend
    
24. Stack vertebrae
    
25. Wrist In Turn
    
26. Wrist Out Turn
    
27. Wrist Press
    
28. Wrist Reverse Press
    

I plan to mix the machine/free weight programs with the body weight high-intensity training (BWHIT) program I proposed in the past.

Technorati Tags: conditioning, rehabilitation

GNP Drills

Coup de Grace

Using a standard boxing round at the end of a random combination drop the level of a focus mitt to mat level simulating a downed or injured opponent. The mitt should generally be placed somewhere that the momentum of the previous strike would have put an opponent and it helps to create a little distance as a stunned opponent rarely has the common decency to fall invitingly to the ground. The fighter can finish with an overhand lead or rear, hammer fist, or stomp.

Fall and Stand

Using a standard thai pad round, the command "fall" is randomly called. If the holder does not encroach the fighter should stand as quickly as possible. If they encroach with pads against their belly, the fighter kicks away and stand. If held perpendicularly at head height the fighter stands by throwing a head round kick and standing with the rotation.

Sidemount GNP

Stack two thai pads on top of one another, the fighter places their chest on the pads to simulate the sidemount. The fighters have numerous options, such as the hammer fist to the face, belly, or far lateral thigh. They can punch, essentially an upper cut to the face or body. Also available is the knee and downward elbows. Make them stand and immediately sprawl for variety.

GNP conditioning

Series of cross-hook-cross or pitterpat followed by sprawl and "horizontal skip knees" essentially mountain climbers without placing the foot nearest the face on the floor, simulating a knee. Spiderman with punches added for variety.

Technorati Tags: martial arts, MMA

Fall goeth before the pride

"I'm strong, fast and mean. Hell on wheels." -- Frank Miller's Wolverine

I've been theoretically aware that having bilateral ACL replacements would greatly diminish my athletic capacity both prior to and following my surgeries. I have daily experienced the indignities of limbs that are weaker and stiffer, ready to betray me without notice. I thought I had accepted these as part of the recovery process. I am...was a good athlete I have won national and international titles in different combat sports and sparred professionals to a draw (and sometimes better). I was...am prideful in the physical gifts I possess and arrogant in my contempt of the small things that are a lot more difficult than we think they are.
I was made acutely aware of my weakness with a lower extremity high-intensity training / rehabilitation workout I did today. I started with leg press, doing two sets of warm-up with only the sled, my thighs already protesting a weight that I would formerly have found laughable. During my heaviest weight training I was able to leg press over half a ton for reps, today I found my legs twitching and trembling after three sets of 12 x 180# (that's right a weight less than my body weight), these were also leg press keeping my knees bent less than 60° (or when you don't need to bother setting the safeties because you don't have to undo the brake). I couldn't even do the hack squat at the gym, even on its most liberal setting my surgically altered anatomy couldn't bend itself into a position capable of doing the exercise. I worked my abductors and adductors with three sets of 12 x 50#, embarrassed by the shaking induced by what had previously been minimal effort. One set of 12 x 10# LLE hamstring curls concluded my shame, I went to teach and stretch. If anything this injury has already made me a more grateful person, it will probably also make me a humbler one. Everything we have is a gift, take none of it for granted.

Technorati Tags: martial arts, philosophy, rehabilitation

May have to join Endorphins Anonymous

Today marks the first day of conditioning training for me. I actually did an upper body High-Intensity Training circuit today with the goal of a 7 second per repetition for 12 repetitions. My goal in lifting is to augment my combat sports training (such as it is at the moment) so I focus on quality biomechanical movement and I'll let the amount of weight worry about itself. Everything attempts to be a smooth motion without using the momentum of the weight to move.

Exercise	Set #1	Set #2	Set #3
Dumbell Bench	40 x 12	52.5 x 11	50 x 8
Machine Flys	70 x 12	90 x 12	90 x 12
Lat Pulldown	90 x 12	110 x 12	110 x 12
Bentover Row	70 x 12	70 x 12	70 x 12

Strangely my legs felt like jelly after the work-out indicating my lower extremities still have a long recuperation ahead of them and how globally fatiguing HIT workouts are. I did some pool exercises like "jumping" off the bottom of the pool. I also put in an hour on the bike (while watching a Bas Rutten instructional) and then did the mogul (shifting my weight from knee to knee) and step-ups.

I'm coming down from the endorphin high...and looking for my next fix

Technorati Tags: conditioning, rehabilitation