The Post-Long COVID Lifting Journey of a Middle-Aged Man. LOL

[Bim]

Well, this weekend was a shitshow. Had to remove a bunch of old, crappy metal cabinets out of the upstairs of our shop because we're going to have to replace the roof to start and then mitigate mold. So to save time, I just did like 5 sets of heavy bench presses with a relatively close grip to hit by chest and triceps. Will probably do that again this weekend for my second chest/tricep day.

Today was a good day for legs. Less so for my shoulders. I'm cutting back volume on my delts because I did fewer reps at the same weight today as I did on my last day last week. So we'll see how that goes.

11/4/24. Legs and Shoulders
Front Squats: 8,8,7,6,6 @ 50
RDLs: 10,10,10 @ 115
Arnold Press: 13,11,10,10 @ 25
DB Shrugs: 15,14,13,13 @ 45

 

[Bim]

11/5/24. Chest/Triceps/Core

Flat Press: 12,10,8,8,7 @ 130
JM Press: 13,10,9,8 @ 40
Planks: 4 @ 90 seconds
Vacuums 3 @ 1 minute

 

[Bim]

11/6/24. Back/Biceps/Rear Delts

BB Row: 13,11,9 @ 100
DB Row: 13,11,11 @ 40
Rear Delt Fly: 20,16,16 @ 17.5
EZ Bar Curl: 12,11,10 @ 50

 

[Bim]

I'm in the middle of week 2, and so far, everything is feeling good. Think I'll switch to regular DB shoulder presses next week. I've been doing Arnold presses because I read they're good for the shoulder tendons and joints, but I'm noticing the most growth in my front delts, and I don't need it there.

11/7/24. Legs/Shoulders
Front Squats: 9,8,8,7,6 @ 50
RDLs: 10,9,9 @ 120
Arnold Press: 14,12,11,11 @ 25
DB Shrugs: 14,13,12,12 @ 50

 

[Bim]

11/8/24. Chest/Triceps/Core

Flat Press: 11,10,8,8,7 @ 135 (Back to a full plate! WOOO!)
JM Press: 13,10,10,10 @ 40
Planks: 3 @ 90 seconds
Vacuums: 4 @ 1 minute

 

[Yano]

11/8/24. Chest/Triceps/Core

Flat Press: 11,10,8,8,7 @ 135 (Back to a full plate! WOOO!)
JM Press: 13,10,10,10 @ 40
Planks: 3 @ 90 seconds
Vacuums: 4 @ 1 minute

Nice job on hitting the pr at 135 man !

Rome wasn't built in a day , keep on grinding !!

 

[Bim]

Nice job on hitting the pr at 135 man !

Rome wasn't built in a day , keep on grinding !!

Thanks, man. I was pretty excited about that. It's were I was before I got hit with COVID last December, so it feels like now I'm back to forward progress.

 

[Yano]

Thanks, man. I was pretty excited about that. It's were I was before I got hit with COVID last December, so it feels like now I'm back to forward progress.

We all go through set backs , injuries , times we feel weak. Way to carry on man.

It never matters how many times we stumble and fall

It's even ok to lay there and bleed a while

As long as we rise up one more time than we stumble and fall


We Win.

 

[Bim]

We all go through set backs , injuries , times we feel weak. Way to carry on man.

It never matters how many times we stumble and fall

It's even ok to lay there and bleed a while

As long as we rise up one more time than we stumble and fall


We Win.

You, sir, have a future in motivational posters for gyms.

 

[Bim]

11/11/24. Legs and Shoulders

Front Squats: 10,10,8,8,8 @ 50
RDLs: 12,12,12 @ 120
DB Shoulder Press: 15,14,13,13 @ 25
DB Shrugs: 15,15,12,12 @ 50

 

[Bim]

11/12/24. Chest/Triceps/Core

Flat Press: 13,10,9,8,7 @ 135
JM Press: 15,11,11,9 @ 40
Planks: 4 @ 90 seconds
Vacuums: 4 @ 1 minute.

This is a particularly exciting update for me today. As I stated in my intro post in the new member's thread. I was a fat kid and a fat guy for most of my life. I topped out at 315 pounds, and I had some nice, perky tits. Like tit-TAYS.
Today, I checked the mirror after my workout, like any good lifter does, and the boobs are almost gone. They have been gradually flattening out as I've dropped fat and built more muscle, but today it was a marked difference. The titties are almost gone! WOOOO!

 

[Bim]

11/13/24. Back/Biceps

BB Row: 11,10,10 @ 105
DB Row: 13,13,13 @ 40
Rear Delt Fly: 18,16,16 @ 20
EZ Bar Curl: 18 @ 45 (no strategy, just grabbed the wrong plates); 13,11,10 @ 50

 

[Bim]

I really need to get around to taking a few pictures of myself. I've become a bit obsessed with tracking my progress in the mirror, and today, I could see every single muscle in my back. Am I shredded? God, no. Can I at least see my rhomboid, all my traps, and my lats? YES! Exciting stuff happening on this journey for me.

11/14/24. Legs/Shoulders

Front Squats: 11,11,9,9,7 @ 50
RDLs: 10,10,10 @ 130
DB Shoulder Press: 13,12,12,12 @ 30
DB Shrugs: 12,12,12,11 @ 50

 

[Bim]

11/15/24. Chest/Triceps/Core

Flat Press: 11,10,8,8,7 @ 140
JM Press: 10,10,8,8 @ 45
Planks 4 @ 75 seconds (was counting too fast when I called it 90 seconds)
Vacuums: 4 @ 1 minute

 

[Bim]

Mixed bag today. Got some more reps in on squats, so that's progress, but I was totally gassed afterward. Made a little progress with shoulders, but I felt very drained and weak. Didn't even do shrugs. Just didn't have it in me.

11/18/24. Legs and Shoulders
Front Squats: 11,10,10,8,8 @ 50
RDLs: 3x10 @ 130
DB Shoulder Press: 17,16,15,14 @ 25

 

[Bim]

Another rough day. Dragged through the entire workout. Said fuck it on the rear delts because the DB rows pumped them up a little anyway.
I know protein synthesis is best at 48 hours, but my systemic fatigue seems to be amping up quite a bit on a 6-day split. I'm going to try to see where I can tweak sleep or re-asses volume, but I feel like my volume is more than reasonable.
Depending on how things go, I may or may not go back to the good old bro split. I know scientifically, it's not optimal for muscle growth, but my fatigue is getting out of control, and I'm only 4 weeks into this cycle.
Also looking forward to my doctors appointment in January to see where my testosterone is.

11/19/24. Back/Biceps

BB Row: 11,10,9 @ 110
DB Row: 3 x 13 @ 45
EZ Bar Curl: 15,13,12,10 @ 50

 

[Bim]

As crappy as I feel about posting this, I'm going to keep the accountability train rolling on this log.
I woke up feeling like dog shit. Not sick, just tired. Set up my weights and started lifting. I felt so weak. I just didn't have it in me today.
If you follow my log, you know my weight and volume are not the issue here. If they are, I'm just not aware of it, but I feel like they are definitely not the culprit. I'm getting sleep. My diet is not the best it could be, but it's definitely not something that would limit me in this way.
I train hard, but I have this fucking ongoing issue with fatigue that I just cannot seem to figure out. So anyway. That was today. No training.
Also, I'm all about powering through when you just don't want to lift, but this is different. This is a level of exhaustion that is hard to articulate. It's all the fatigue of being really sick without actually being sick. Fun shit.

 

[Diesel59]

A few days off could definitely do you some good. The combination of work, working out and stress can go a long way towards weighing you down.

 

[Bim]

A few days off could definitely do you some good. The combination of work, working out and stress can go a long way towards weighing you down.

Probably. I know I'm in my mid-40s and have a high-stress job, but shit. This still doesn't feel right. I"m only 4 weeks into my cycle, and as you can see in my log, it's not like I'm doing a shit-ton of volume. I am EXTREMELY eager to get my test levels checked at my appointment in January.
I understand aging takes a toll, but I can't believe this is normal for a healthy guy in his 40s!

 

[Yano]

Probably. I know I'm in my mid-40s and have a high-stress job, but shit. This still doesn't feel right. I"m only 4 weeks into my cycle, and as you can see in my log, it's not like I'm doing a shit-ton of volume. I am EXTREMELY eager to get my test levels checked at my appointment in January.
I understand aging takes a toll, but I can't believe this is normal for a healthy guy in his 40s!

Definitely not "normal" I'm gonna be 56 and while I have an off day now and then , I don't ever feel dead dog tired like that. Bloodwork might give you some clues.