Pins & Needles, Needles & Pins . . . . . .

I just woke up after a 4 hour nap and 3 Aleve. My back is still sore, but at least a little less so.

I was testing on 10" low box squat, not an aerobic step with risers but an actual square box of fixed height. After my last front squat workout with 165 lbs for 5 sets of 4 wiped me out, I had a suspicion that I was wrong in basing my working weight on my non-box max of 245 lbs. So I decided to test today. I worked up to a 195 lbs single, which moved slow but steady. Slow enough, though, that I should have stopped right there. Instead, I decided to load 215 lbs on the bar and set the pins, since I had no spotter. I was going to go for it.

Let me tell you why I hate pins: I always worry about touching them and losing my tightness. Sometimes, how low I can go on a squat surprises me and the pins fuck it up.

So, I rack it, go down, get to the box, can't turn on my muscles from a dead stop to push it up (195 was my max, I guess), glanced at the pins, lost my tightness, and felt a pain that took the breath out of me. I threw the bar off of me in a hurry, cause I saw stars and felt the room spin. OH SHIT!!! I had an injury like this in 1994 so I know I'll get past it. I managed to get the rest of my workout done, even the good mornings, since this was not a lower back thing. But I could barely breathe, so (to quote Donald Rumsfeld) this was a long, hard slog. . . . . .

Arched Back Good Mornings (280): 65x4, 85x4, 105x4, 135x4, 155x4, 185x4x5. I was watching my form so much this time that all my reps were slow!!!!

Bodymaster Lying Leg Curls (170): 40x4, 50x4, 65x4, 80x4, 95x4, 115x4x5.

Pull Throughs (120): 60x15, 65x12x2, 75x10. The pump I got from doing these brought me some relief. Hmmmmm..........

Standing Calf Raise (125): 45x4x3, 55x4, 65x4, 82.5x4x5.

I tried abs but dropped them. Just couldn't. Didn't do aerobics, either. Just ate lunch, took some pills, and took a nap. Sometimes, you have to know when to quit!!! All this, for 20 more lbs!!!