Friday, January 25, 2013

Another week gone by

Luckily, the cold that hit me last week wasn't too severe.  I skipped CrossFit all week and I was able to ski on the weekend.  Conditions were somewhat marginal, given that we've had a major thaw and very little new snow since the first of the year.  We also had tremendous winds throughout the weekend, especially Sunday afternoon.  Things got so windy that trees were being blown over onto ski trails.  That kept the Ski Patrol staff very busy in the afternoon.

On Monday, I was able to get back to CF.  It was my first gym workout in 11 days, so I took it really easy, especially the shoulder work.  Despite the easy effort, I didn't sleep well Monday night due to my shoulder hurting, no matter how many sleeping positions I tried.

Tuesday, I spent the day with my daughter.  She is trying to move from her current public high school, where she is a freshman, to a more rigorous school.  She simply isn't challenged at all at her current school, and many or her classmates make no effort at all, which dumbs things down even more.  Regretfully, she has been focused on very expensive boarding schools, rather than some parochial schools that might address the problem much more cheaply for her parents.

So, on Tuesday, we did a tour and an interview at a private boarding school in southern Vermont.  This school appears to be her first choice and it seems likely that she'll be accepted.  After that, it's up to her mom and dad to come up with the cash for the next three years.

I had a really fun day with my daughter and it was great to see her so excited about the prospect of attending this school.

Wednesday and Thursday, it was back to work and back to CrossFit.  I saw the chiropractor for my shoulder on Wednesday and every visit seems to be helping.  It's just taking a long time, it seems.  And, as long as it hurts, sleeping has been difficult.  I have considered going to see a non-surgical sports medicine doc that I've worked with before.  He could do a cortisone injection, which might help.  But, I don't want to rush into that.  He might also want to try a platelet rich plasma treatment, which can be very expensive.  Or, he might give me pain meds so I can sleep better, but I'd rather try to sleep without drugs.  So, I'm going to stick with the chiropractor for now.  If I haven't made significant progress in the next 6-8 weeks, I'll consider the other doc.

Monday night, we did snatches and clean and jerks at CF.  I had to drop the weight to accommodate the shoulder.  We also did pull-ups, but dead hang pull-ups don't seem to bother the shoulder.  Kipping pull-ups would be an issue though.  Wednesday night, we did snatches and clean and jerks again.  Once again, I had to drop the weight.  We also did single arm dumbbell push presses.  My right arm could have handled a 50 pound DB, but the left was only up for 35#.  Last night, we started with 5x5 bench presses.  In September or October, I set a new PR on the bench press at 190 pounds.  Last night, I never got above 120 pounds for a set, again, due to the shoulder.  And then we added Turkish Get-Ups, a movement I really like.  But, to protect the left shoulder, I again had to drop to a very low weight kettlebell, which you use as part of the movement..

So, I think I'm being smart about what I do.  A complete rest week last night didn't help the shoulder at all, so I'm not sure that rest is the answer.  I limit the amount I lift so that I can complete the lifts without pain.  I am doing lots of mobility work, foam rolling, using a lacrosse ball for massage, and seeing the chiropractor.  But, I wish I could simply sleep through the night right now.  And, I wish I could lift heavier.  But, for now, I think I'm following the best track.  In 6-8 weeks, I may re-evaluate.  If things get worse rather than better, I may re-evaluate sooner.

Today is a rest day.  This weekend is going to be cold with challenging snow conditions.  I want to be as rested as possible for my ski days.

No comments: