Got a very rare 8-1/2 hours of sleep last night - got up had my standard 2 cups of float a horse shoe coffee dessert - Coffee - 1 tsp brown turbinado sugar - 1 tsp sweetened condensed milk - 1 drizzle of Hazel nut flavored Vanilla Extract - Sprinkle of Cinnamon.....
If that don't wake you up and jolt your heart to a 130 beat then you're probably beyond help.
Threw together my workout gear, threw on my bike gear and jumped on the Red Mule - my tried, true and Tour Tested Trek 3700 - and motored, I mean, pedaled up Agua Fria as fast as lights, laws and life would allow me.
Rolled up to Praxis 5 minutes late as usual - but Hell after a 20 minute Ride at 25 mph on a Bike on Agua Fria - I had already saw my Life flash before my eyes several times, was warmed up and ready for anything the Workout had to offer.
As usual, the Warmup was tougher than most non-Crossfit workouts.
I had a short consult with the Praxis trainer for this class, Andrew, and explained I was 7 weeks (surgery was April 4th) post - Left Knee Total Knee Replacement and had not done a real squat workout for over 6 months.
I took it easy working up to 155# for 5 reps which I realize isn't much, but again, given that my left knee is no longer a left knee but a chrome moly upper joint and a high density polypropylene cup bottom with a poly cup on the back of the knee cap, I wanted to make sure I took it slowly and let the muscles, tendons and ligaments around the left knee prosthesis tell me what was what.
I'm real big on Visualization and use it in my workouts by visualizing the "Mind-Muscle" connections beginning with the synapses / electrical impulses from the brain traveling the neural network to the specific muscles being engaged and then using knowledge of anatomy and my own body's feedback, to actually visualize or "see" the muscles, ligaments and tendons working in / around a specific joint.
It's how I kept my 30 year arthritic left knee together as long as I did prior to my Total Knee Replacement (TKR) and it's how I recovered so quickly from the surgery, walking without crutches the day of surgery and doing full 2 full Rx CrossFit workouts with my sister in Eufaula Alabama 5 weeks after my TKR.
During the last 2 sets of squats - at 135# and 155# - I had my mind really locked in on my left knee for any bio feedback and what I "saw" and felt inside / around the left knee prosthetic, was that the outside quad muscle was under stress and I could feel a strain on the attachment of that quad at the top outside of the knee joint.
I have been monitoring the development of this muscle group post-TKR surgery and see that it is still lagging the right side (normal knee) significantly. What this means is that this muscle / tendon connection at this point, just above the prosthetic joint, is still developing and needs to continue to develop and hypertrophy to support the new, artificial knee. In my next squat workout, I'll increase the weight slightly to a high of 175# or 185# and compare how it feels to how it felt this time.
That is the "Mind - Muscle" connection approach with a dose of biofeedback to control / adjust the current workouts and plan future workouts.
In my pre-TKR surgery consult with my Knee Replacement Surgeon, Dr. Gregory Stocks of the Fondren Orthopedic Group in Houston Tx, we talked about what was reasonable in terms of squat weight with the New Knee. We agreed that the max I should ever do is 225# so I will be working up to that and then just do reps with that weight.
I'll be 54 on July 4th and frankly, I just don't need to be squatting more than that. I can work the leg, hip and back muscles just fine at that squat weight and can build the quads and hamstrings with other ancillary exercises such as Overhead Squats, Lunges and Front Squats with much lighter weight.
Back to the Workout.... I was watching one of the She-Beasts knocking out a set of heavy squats and I turned to Andrew and said....
"They oughta take a picture of that and put it on the cover of Women's Day.... ain't nothing much better than a strong woman doing a heavy set of squats".
True That.
And then the Top Cat knocked out a 7:06 on the Rx Fran 21-15-9 of 95# Men /65# Women Thrusters and Burpees.
I think there's a word for that and in my vocabulary it's WOW!
I huffed, puffed, bitched, cussed, sweated and slobbered to a 12:33 Rx..... WTF?
With the workout done and on the ride back up the hill on Agua Fria, my Black Label Society Radio station on iHeart Radio cued up one of my favorite Rob Zombie offerings with one of my favorite hook lines of all time....
"I don't try anything..... I just do it..... Wanna Try Me?"
My Philosophy is that the Workout is only 25% of the Whole Fitness / Lifestyle Optimization Picture....
The remaining 75% is 25% diet and nutrition..... 25% Sleep and Recuperation..... 25% Schedule, Stress Management and Lifestyle Management.
Let's work on the 2nd 25% right now.
Smoking Hot Cast Iron Skillet -
A huge patty of my amped up ground beef consisting of:
Trader Joe's All Natural 96% Lean Ground Beef
Seasoned with Salt and Pepper and a mix of Garam Masala, Hot Madras Curry Powder, Allspice and Cumin
Then "moistened" with a wet mix of a seasoned, beaten egg, Honey Mustard, Sriracha, Worcestershire, Soy Sauce, Tabasco, EVOO and Balsamic Vinegar
Fortified with seasoned and diced sweet onion, red bell pepper, jalapeno pepper, carrot sticks.
It's a Meal in a Patty!
A square of TJ's Tomato-Olive Focaccia Bread - Yeah I know it's not Paleo but I've found if I throw a few simple carbs in the mix, I sleep a little better and have a helluva lot more energy for the workouts.
Call it a customized Paleo.
Anyway, put a good grill on the Focaccia bread on both sides and please don't kill the Ground Meat twice - 2 minutes on each side will get it to Medium in the Middle - that's where you want it Meat Lovers!
Now back to the rest of the Symphony - A nice Spring Mix salad with tomato, radish and carrot sticks and some sweet onion on the side with some sliced fresh Japs, tomato and fresh basil waiting on the burg.....
Oh yeah - we gonna build something Mighty and Special for this Post-Workout Meal!
Flop that beautifully browned, veggie filled patty and throw a couple of pieces of turkey bacon in the skillet....
Cause everything's better with bacon!
Generously coat the Focaccia with my favorite sweet - hot combo..... Honey Mustard and Sriracha!
Finish the salad with fresh blueberries and a drizzle of EVOO and Balsamic and a sprinkle of S and P.
Let's Build this Beast....
Tomato and Jalapenos on one slice of bread.....
Patty and Bacon on the other slice of bread....
Mango slices coated with chili powder and cayenne and fresh basil with a drizzle of EVOO waiting on the side.
That's a Bad Looking Burg and we ain't even put it together yet!
Now that Sports Fans is a High Protein, Low Fat, Pretty Good Carb Hot - Sweet - Savory - Juicy - Crunchy Body Builder!
Do Try This at Home!
You know - you gotta be a little fucking crazy to do some of these CrossFit style Workouts -
And I love the whole concept and history of the Viking Berserkers -
I sure wish Zakk Wylde would've made a video for this one...
Cause he kinda looks like a Berserker!
Between that workout and that meal.....
I'm feeling a little Viking Berserker myself.
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