As I said, I eventually stopped going to PT and started working out on my own. The problem was, I did not want to pay a gym fee if I was only going to go three times per week and be able to do only a limited number of things. I was watching football one Sunday afternoon when Terrell Owens made a nice play. I started researching him and I eventually found out that to help recover from an injury he had used Bodylastics. After further research I learned that Bodylastics put much less pressure on your joints, tendons, and ligaments while working out. I officially had to have these. I immediately went to www.bodylastics.com and put in an order.
I got them and it was everything I needed and more. From months 5-7 I had a pretty solid work out plan that I followed very strictly. I would use the Bodylastics to do a full body workout three times per week. This was an average workout:
5 Minute Skipping Warm up
Bicep Curls- 4 sets 15 reps
Shoulder Raises- 4 sets 15 reps
Shoulder Flys- 4 sets 15 reps
Rotator Cuff Pulls- 4 sets 15 reps
Lateral Pulls- 4 sets 15 reps
Standing 2 Arm Chest press- 4 sets 10 reps
Shrugs (traps)- 4 sets 20 reps
300 sit ups to be completed throughout the workout
I did a 1 minute rest between each set. I had never worked out at home, so it was kind of weird at first. However I had music blasting and Sportscenter on, so it actually became pretty cool. It was like I had my own personal gym. I also went on sort of a diet where I would only eat healthy foods from Monday-Saturday. Sunday was slack day. I also drank at least 1 Myoplex Protein shake per day.
With this combination I started to see results, and I saw them fast. At the 5 month mark I was 180 lbs, but I had some fat on me from doing nothing for 5 months. By the 6 month mark I was 170lbs, and my strength had increased in every exercise by between 200 and 400%. It was the first time in my life that I was losing weight and gaining tons of muscle. It was awesome.
I then set a goal for month 6-7 that I was going to increase my body weight from 170lbs back to 180lbs, however this time it would be all muscle, no fat. To my surprise, it was early as hell. I decreased reps and ate more food. I still ate very healthy, I just ate more. By the end of month 6 I had reached my goal and I was in relatively good shape. For anyone recovering from surgery, I definitely recommend Bodylastics.
Thanks for reading. Check back later this week for part 6 of my blog, the RETURN TO THE GYM!
Feb 21, 2011
Feb 16, 2011
Part 4: Physiotherapy
Everyone i had talked to about my surgery warned me about physiotherapy. They said it would hurt like hell. It turns out they were absolutely right. The thing about physio is, it is a controlled aggression approach that you must take if you want to get anywhere. If you are passive and don't work your pec/shoulder, you wont get anywhere. However if you go too hard, stretch it too much, and try to start using the pec right in the seventh week, you will find yourself right back in surgery. There was no way in hell i was starting over.
I have read many horror stories about physio where the therapist knows nothing about pec tears and ends up hurting the patient. With this in mind, i made sure to tell my therapist to be careful and take it slowly. Luckily, he had a pec tear protocol ready that moved at a good pace. I started going three times a week, and the routine was always the same. I would start with heat to my shoulder and pec. I would then have my therapist stretch the arm by pulling it back until the point where it hurt. As soon as it hurt he would stop, and would repeat this maybe 20 times. Next i would have cables that i would pull up and down just using the weight of my arms to help stretch the shoulder further. Next i would do wall climbs. After all this was done, i would receive direct ice to my shoulder and pec. This all took around 45 minutes. Here's a good video of the physiotherapy involved with pec tears:
For anyone reading this with a pec tear or shoulder injury, if you are wondering if there are times where you think you may have re injured the pec in some way because it is sore, there are. There were probably 5 or 6 times where i was very worried that i had done something wrong. I soon noticed that this is all part of recovery and that my pec was fine a few days later.
I continued the stretching up until about week 12 when i started doing light weighted movements. They were basically for my shoulder, not my pec, to start undoing the atrophy that had taken place. During weeks 6-12 i went from about 20% ROM to 80% ROM. After starting the weighted shoulder exercises i moved to light pec exercises with cables and medicine balls at week 16. Between weeks 12 and 16 i went from 80% ROM to 95% ROM. I soon realised that i was just about finished with physiotherapy.
I continued this until about month 5 when i stopped going. I had purchased Bodylastics (http://www.bodylastics.com) and decided i would continue with my own rehab.
I have read many horror stories about physio where the therapist knows nothing about pec tears and ends up hurting the patient. With this in mind, i made sure to tell my therapist to be careful and take it slowly. Luckily, he had a pec tear protocol ready that moved at a good pace. I started going three times a week, and the routine was always the same. I would start with heat to my shoulder and pec. I would then have my therapist stretch the arm by pulling it back until the point where it hurt. As soon as it hurt he would stop, and would repeat this maybe 20 times. Next i would have cables that i would pull up and down just using the weight of my arms to help stretch the shoulder further. Next i would do wall climbs. After all this was done, i would receive direct ice to my shoulder and pec. This all took around 45 minutes. Here's a good video of the physiotherapy involved with pec tears:
For anyone reading this with a pec tear or shoulder injury, if you are wondering if there are times where you think you may have re injured the pec in some way because it is sore, there are. There were probably 5 or 6 times where i was very worried that i had done something wrong. I soon noticed that this is all part of recovery and that my pec was fine a few days later.
I continued the stretching up until about week 12 when i started doing light weighted movements. They were basically for my shoulder, not my pec, to start undoing the atrophy that had taken place. During weeks 6-12 i went from about 20% ROM to 80% ROM. After starting the weighted shoulder exercises i moved to light pec exercises with cables and medicine balls at week 16. Between weeks 12 and 16 i went from 80% ROM to 95% ROM. I soon realised that i was just about finished with physiotherapy.
I continued this until about month 5 when i stopped going. I had purchased Bodylastics (http://www.bodylastics.com) and decided i would continue with my own rehab.
Part 3: Weeks 1-6
The first few days were complete hell. I sat on a couch sitting up and watched TV while popping oxycodone every 4 hours to stop the pain. Everything hurt. I could barely even walk, and i had never been in a sling before so i didn't really have it adjusted properly. I slept upright and the sun woke me up around 7:30am every morning. By the 3rd day every muscle in my body ached as i hadn't moved more than 10 feel in 72 hours. It was hell. All i did was watch TV and not only was i in pain, but i was bored as hell. I eventually got my mom to go rent me some movies so keep my occupied. I did not shower for 2 weeks. Every few days my mom washed my hair and gave me a sponge bath, but i still smelt terrible. It didn't help those around me either that i never wore a shirt, just a pair of comfortable Under Armour shorts.
A week passed and some one the pain had went away but i will still feeling it. My friends would come over to hang out at times but it was pretty embarrassing. I was walking so slow around my house, hunched over like an 80 year old man, all at the tender age of 20. I did this for 2 weeks, at which time i was to see my surgeon for my first follow up appointment. It was a 2 hour wait for a 5 minute meeting. He basically just told me that it was a successful surgery and that he is confident that i will make a full recovery. He drew a little picture of what he did to reattach my tear, looked at the wound to make sure it was healing properly, and told me to come back in 4 weeks. He also gave me a note saying that i was able to return to work, which was a blessing 'cause i was really getting bored at home.
At 2.5 weeks i returned to work. I work at a bank so the attire was not a problem to get on. It was just a button up shirt which was easy enough. However i could not actually dress myself, so i now had to come to terms with the fact that at the age of 20 my parents had to dress me. I hope i never get old. Anyway they were great at work in helping me, but it really sucked. I had to type with one hand in a computer all day. Everything i did took literally twice as long. I also went through a daily cycle. I would pop a few oxycodones in the morning to relieve any pain i would suffer at work. The problem was they would eventually make me tired, so i would then have a coffee. I would do this after lunch also. I was basically on some form of drug all day, it was alright though because both forms made me feel good.
I did this for another month and on July 6th i finally met my surgeon to see me out of the sling. He had me take it off and he moved my arm in a way that i had not moved it in 6 weeks. This scared me however he said it is alright to do so. He also said that i needed to start going to physiotherapy and to start trying to move it to avoid shoulder freeze. This felt very weird. My arm was literally half the size of my good arm and i has become dependent on the sling. Anyway, i took his advise and went to see my physiotherapist as soon as i left the hospital.
A week passed and some one the pain had went away but i will still feeling it. My friends would come over to hang out at times but it was pretty embarrassing. I was walking so slow around my house, hunched over like an 80 year old man, all at the tender age of 20. I did this for 2 weeks, at which time i was to see my surgeon for my first follow up appointment. It was a 2 hour wait for a 5 minute meeting. He basically just told me that it was a successful surgery and that he is confident that i will make a full recovery. He drew a little picture of what he did to reattach my tear, looked at the wound to make sure it was healing properly, and told me to come back in 4 weeks. He also gave me a note saying that i was able to return to work, which was a blessing 'cause i was really getting bored at home.
At 2.5 weeks i returned to work. I work at a bank so the attire was not a problem to get on. It was just a button up shirt which was easy enough. However i could not actually dress myself, so i now had to come to terms with the fact that at the age of 20 my parents had to dress me. I hope i never get old. Anyway they were great at work in helping me, but it really sucked. I had to type with one hand in a computer all day. Everything i did took literally twice as long. I also went through a daily cycle. I would pop a few oxycodones in the morning to relieve any pain i would suffer at work. The problem was they would eventually make me tired, so i would then have a coffee. I would do this after lunch also. I was basically on some form of drug all day, it was alright though because both forms made me feel good.
I did this for another month and on July 6th i finally met my surgeon to see me out of the sling. He had me take it off and he moved my arm in a way that i had not moved it in 6 weeks. This scared me however he said it is alright to do so. He also said that i needed to start going to physiotherapy and to start trying to move it to avoid shoulder freeze. This felt very weird. My arm was literally half the size of my good arm and i has become dependent on the sling. Anyway, i took his advise and went to see my physiotherapist as soon as i left the hospital.
Part 2: The Surgery
I woke up the day of the surgery both nervous and hungry. I was not allowed to eat anything before the operation and it was not until 2:30pm. I went to the hospital at noon with my mom and waited patiently. It was not until i got into my gown and slippers and sat in the waiting room that it dawned on my what was about to happen. I was about to be cut into by a guy I had met yesterday who told me that doing so would give me a 50% chance of being able to work out and compete competitively in sports again. It was a damn coin flip. I actually got really nervous, but before i knew it i was on a hospital bed being wheeled into the surgery room. A bunch of the nurses were asking me about my injury and i am pretty sure their toddlers will not be hockey players because of my story. Anyway i got into the room, my surgeon came to see me before i was given the anaesthetic and he told me he was gonna go the best he could. Ten minutes later i was out.
I woke up in a room with a bunch of other beds, though i hardly remember it. I remembered the sling feeling weird. I remember being cold, so cold that i was yelling at the nurses to get me more heated blankets. I think i was satisfied at about 4. They then asked me to rate my pain from 1 to 10. (Note: Before the surgery they asked if i wanted a nerve blocker in my neck so that when i woke up i would not feel my arm. They also said that there was a 1 in 1000 chance it could paralyze me. I said fuck that.) I rated my pain a 10. It might have been an exaggeration, but my pec hurt and i wanted it to end. They quickly put morphine in my IV and i fell back to sleep.
I then woke up in another room by myself with my mom by my side. I was still out of it but i managed to ask her if the operation was successful. She said that she spoke to the surgeon and that it went much better than expected. He did everything that he felt was necessary to attach my pec back to its tendon. He also said it was only a partial tear which made it easier. The nurse then came in and offered me a Popsicle. That is the only fun thing about surgery; the Popsicles taste immaculate after. About an hour later i was wheeled downstairs and my mom drove me home where i just slept for 12 hours. When i woke up i thought it was very odd because in my dreams i could still use my left arm, however when i woke up i was in complete pain and need of oxycodone and ibuprofen.
I woke up in a room with a bunch of other beds, though i hardly remember it. I remembered the sling feeling weird. I remember being cold, so cold that i was yelling at the nurses to get me more heated blankets. I think i was satisfied at about 4. They then asked me to rate my pain from 1 to 10. (Note: Before the surgery they asked if i wanted a nerve blocker in my neck so that when i woke up i would not feel my arm. They also said that there was a 1 in 1000 chance it could paralyze me. I said fuck that.) I rated my pain a 10. It might have been an exaggeration, but my pec hurt and i wanted it to end. They quickly put morphine in my IV and i fell back to sleep.
I then woke up in another room by myself with my mom by my side. I was still out of it but i managed to ask her if the operation was successful. She said that she spoke to the surgeon and that it went much better than expected. He did everything that he felt was necessary to attach my pec back to its tendon. He also said it was only a partial tear which made it easier. The nurse then came in and offered me a Popsicle. That is the only fun thing about surgery; the Popsicles taste immaculate after. About an hour later i was wheeled downstairs and my mom drove me home where i just slept for 12 hours. When i woke up i thought it was very odd because in my dreams i could still use my left arm, however when i woke up i was in complete pain and need of oxycodone and ibuprofen.
Part 1: The Injury
I will start off by saying that I have had many shoulder injuries throughout my life. I played hockey for 15 years and lets just say I never won the most sportsmanlike trophy. Anyway I have separated both of my shoulders many times and dislocated my right shoulder once. Throughout all of that I never even considered surgery and just let time heal them back to 100%.
Then came that fateful game on December 21, 2009. I was in a hockey fight when I was taken down to the ice to end the fight through grappling. At first I though nothing of it, i got up and started to skate away. As i was skating though i started i feel a pulsing pain coming from my left pectoral muscle. I knew absolutely nothing at the time about this type of injury, and i remember thinking " I think i tore my chest muscle", not really knowing the consequences of such a thing. Like any of my other injuries, i went home, took a Tylenol, and went to bed.
I woke up to my arm being completely bruised. Here is a picture:
I immediately went to see a physiotherapist. He told me that i had strained by pectoral tendon and that it would heal on its own, however i was not to play hockey until it was healed and i could do normal things again such as bench press. I went three times a week to therapy receiving things like ultrasound and ice, however after 3 weeks of doing so i did not feel that i was getting anywhere. I was frustrated, so i tried someone different. I tried a chiropractor/sports injury therapist that worked here in Windsor. Apparently he was the official chiropractor of our local major junior sports team the Windsor Spitfires and he was pretty good. I met him, told him what had happened, and he told me that he would use ART (Active Release Techniques) to get rid of the scar tissue and heal my injury. I would also receive acupuncture in my shoulder to help speed the healing. This all seemed great and for a whole 4 MONTHS i went to this guy weekly receiving these treatments. Here is another picture of my injury about 1 month after it happened. Notice i still had some bruising in the actual pectoral muscle even 1 month after the injury:
As you can see, there is clearly a dent in my pec and something is wrong. I was naive enough to think that this would heal on its own. I continued to see my chiropractor thinking that he was actually helping me like i said for 4 months. During this time i started playing hockey again but not without pain. I was not able to do a push up or go to the gym at all. Every time i put stress on the pec i would get a hard cord that formed in my armpit which i though was really weird. Again i was living like this for 4 months and by April of 2010 i had lost 15lbs of muscle mass and was finally fed up. I went to see an actual doctor. I know, it would seem logical that when you hurt yourself you see a doctor right away and don't just skip to the physiotherapist, but i thought i was superman at the time and that nothing could break me. It turns out a pec tear could. Anyway i saw the doctor, who referred me to an orthopaedic surgeon here in Windsor. He also had me get an MRI done. I saw the surgeon on May 19, 2010 and this is a little how our conversation went:
Him "Hi Patrick, i tried to get you in here as quickly as possible. I hear that you tore your pectoral major tendon while bench pressing 6 weeks ago?"
Me "Umm no i did it in a hockey fight 6 months ago..."
Him "Oh my, that's not good we usually like to get these operations done within 6 weeks of injury, that is definitely going to complicate things. I looked at your MRI and there is definitely a tear between the muscle and tendon. I can operate on it but even within the acute period type 2 tears are difficult. The easiest is a type 1 tear between tendon and bone. Take your shirt off let me have a look at it."
(I take my shirt off, he has me do a few things, i put my shirt back on)
Him "Ok well it doesn't look to bad, what do you want to do"
Me "What are the chances you can fix this"
Him "50 percent"
Me "Well the way i see it i cant work out at all right now without it bothering me, life's a gamble, lets do it."
Him "Ok surgery it is. I am going to cut in (points to where along my armpit and pec) and see what i can do. It should take around an hour. You will be in a sling for 6 weeks and then head to physio. Surgery will be tomorrow."
Me "TOMORROW?!"
Him "Yeah if you are able, otherwise i can push it back..."
Me "No I'm just surprised usually people have to wait months for surgery. Ill call my work and tell them i need a few weeks off, see you tomorrow."
NOTE TO ANYONE READING THIS: At the time, i was not aware of the painful recovery of surgery. I am happy i got it, but had i known the pain i was going go endure for the next 6 months i don't know if i would have. I do not recommend to anyone to take chances like this with surgery, its a big deal and once again i thought i was superman.
Then came that fateful game on December 21, 2009. I was in a hockey fight when I was taken down to the ice to end the fight through grappling. At first I though nothing of it, i got up and started to skate away. As i was skating though i started i feel a pulsing pain coming from my left pectoral muscle. I knew absolutely nothing at the time about this type of injury, and i remember thinking " I think i tore my chest muscle", not really knowing the consequences of such a thing. Like any of my other injuries, i went home, took a Tylenol, and went to bed.
I woke up to my arm being completely bruised. Here is a picture:
I immediately went to see a physiotherapist. He told me that i had strained by pectoral tendon and that it would heal on its own, however i was not to play hockey until it was healed and i could do normal things again such as bench press. I went three times a week to therapy receiving things like ultrasound and ice, however after 3 weeks of doing so i did not feel that i was getting anywhere. I was frustrated, so i tried someone different. I tried a chiropractor/sports injury therapist that worked here in Windsor. Apparently he was the official chiropractor of our local major junior sports team the Windsor Spitfires and he was pretty good. I met him, told him what had happened, and he told me that he would use ART (Active Release Techniques) to get rid of the scar tissue and heal my injury. I would also receive acupuncture in my shoulder to help speed the healing. This all seemed great and for a whole 4 MONTHS i went to this guy weekly receiving these treatments. Here is another picture of my injury about 1 month after it happened. Notice i still had some bruising in the actual pectoral muscle even 1 month after the injury:
As you can see, there is clearly a dent in my pec and something is wrong. I was naive enough to think that this would heal on its own. I continued to see my chiropractor thinking that he was actually helping me like i said for 4 months. During this time i started playing hockey again but not without pain. I was not able to do a push up or go to the gym at all. Every time i put stress on the pec i would get a hard cord that formed in my armpit which i though was really weird. Again i was living like this for 4 months and by April of 2010 i had lost 15lbs of muscle mass and was finally fed up. I went to see an actual doctor. I know, it would seem logical that when you hurt yourself you see a doctor right away and don't just skip to the physiotherapist, but i thought i was superman at the time and that nothing could break me. It turns out a pec tear could. Anyway i saw the doctor, who referred me to an orthopaedic surgeon here in Windsor. He also had me get an MRI done. I saw the surgeon on May 19, 2010 and this is a little how our conversation went:
Him "Hi Patrick, i tried to get you in here as quickly as possible. I hear that you tore your pectoral major tendon while bench pressing 6 weeks ago?"
Me "Umm no i did it in a hockey fight 6 months ago..."
Him "Oh my, that's not good we usually like to get these operations done within 6 weeks of injury, that is definitely going to complicate things. I looked at your MRI and there is definitely a tear between the muscle and tendon. I can operate on it but even within the acute period type 2 tears are difficult. The easiest is a type 1 tear between tendon and bone. Take your shirt off let me have a look at it."
(I take my shirt off, he has me do a few things, i put my shirt back on)
Him "Ok well it doesn't look to bad, what do you want to do"
Me "What are the chances you can fix this"
Him "50 percent"
Me "Well the way i see it i cant work out at all right now without it bothering me, life's a gamble, lets do it."
Him "Ok surgery it is. I am going to cut in (points to where along my armpit and pec) and see what i can do. It should take around an hour. You will be in a sling for 6 weeks and then head to physio. Surgery will be tomorrow."
Me "TOMORROW?!"
Him "Yeah if you are able, otherwise i can push it back..."
Me "No I'm just surprised usually people have to wait months for surgery. Ill call my work and tell them i need a few weeks off, see you tomorrow."
NOTE TO ANYONE READING THIS: At the time, i was not aware of the painful recovery of surgery. I am happy i got it, but had i known the pain i was going go endure for the next 6 months i don't know if i would have. I do not recommend to anyone to take chances like this with surgery, its a big deal and once again i thought i was superman.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)