[haaraari]

Hi guys,

I had surgery a while back and wasn't allowed to work out because of it. I've lost a shit ton of muscle and am pissed off about it because I was decently ripped before the surgery. I want to beef back up--and fast--and about to head back into the gym, but was wondering if anyone could advise me on 3 questions I had.

1-Before I stopped, I was doing high reps, lower weights (4-6 sets of 12 reps). This seemed to keep me maintained, but I want to gain back my muscle, and pump up to a bigger size. Is it more constructive to cut the reps/sets and up the weight or do I go back to what I was doing before? I don't want to shock my body and get injured, overtrain and get too sore, etc.,

2-Which workouts are the best? I have a gym a few feet away from me without a barbell, but with dumbbells and a pulldown machine, so I neglected legs, and did all my presses and curls with dumbbells. That said, I also have access to another gym 2-3 times a week, but including a bar bell, and many more machines and what not, so I could do squats and dead lifts, etc., even though I haven't done those in years (I was always a pussy when it came to those two).

3-I was taking creatine when I stopped, and had finally found a brand that seemed to work well for me. Do I start up again, or do I wait until I'm settled into a routine and have a few workouts under my belt?

Thanks in advance for any help.

[Isaac Jordan]

I'll attempt to answer your questions, although more information on your injury/surgery will help us give you better advice.

(12-26-2015 03:44 AM)haaraari Wrote:  

1-Before I stopped, I was doing high reps, lower weights (4-6 sets of 12 reps). This seemed to keep me maintained, but I want to gain back my muscle, and pump up to a bigger size. Is it more constructive to cut the reps/sets and up the weight or do I go back to what I was doing before? I don't want to shock my body and get injured, overtrain and get too sore, etc.

I'd keep your reps in the 8-12 range. You want to avoid heavy weight if you've just finished surgery. You're better off taking your time and erring on the side of caution rather than pushing too hard and digging yourself into a deeper hole by aggravating old injuries.

Quote:

2-Which workouts are the best? I have a gym a few feet away from me without a barbell, but with dumbbells and a pulldown machine, so I neglected legs, and did all my presses and curls with dumbbells. That said, I also have access to another gym 2-3 times a week, but including a bar bell, and many more machines and what not, so I could do squats and dead lifts, etc., even though I haven't done those in years (I was always a pussy when it came to those two).

Go to the better gym. You need to be doing squats and deadlifts*. If you do a full-body workout 3 days/week is plenty. For each day, pick an exercise for your legs, your chest and your back. Just make sure they're compound lifts that utilize a range of muscle groups. For example:

Day 1: Squats, Bench Press, Pullups

Day 2: Deadlifts, Dips, Chinups

Day 3: Lunges, Military Press, Rows

Quote:

3-I was taking creatine when I stopped, and had finally found a brand that seemed to work well for me. Do I start up again, or do I wait until I'm settled into a routine and have a few workouts under my belt?

I don't see why you couldn't start taking it your first workout back. Again, if there's something specific about your injury/surgery that would prohibit creatine use, that information would be helpful.

*Assuming your injury/surgery allows it. Consult a doctor first, of course.

[The Lizard of Oz]

(12-26-2015 03:44 AM)haaraari Wrote:  

I had surgery

What kind of surgery? Depending on what it was, your approach to rehab could be different.

(12-26-2015 03:44 AM)haaraari Wrote:  

I want to beef back up--and fast--

NO. Forget about "fast".

Trying to come back "fast" is very dumb and is the way to make sure you get a serious injury and don't get to go back to the gym for months.

There is no rush. If you lift right, you should be lifting for your whole life. What you need to do is get back and start building good habits in the gym, so you can have a solid foundation that allows you to train hard, safely, and effectively for years and decades to come.

Think of this surgery and the forced time away from the gym as an opportunity to rebuild your weight training from the ground up, and do it right this time around. This is an approach that will pay off big time.

(12-26-2015 03:44 AM)haaraari Wrote:  

and about to head back into the gym, but was wondering if anyone could advise me on 3 questions I had.

1-Before I stopped, I was doing high reps, lower weights (4-6 sets of 12 reps). This seemed to keep me maintained, but I want to gain back my muscle, and pump up to a bigger size. Is it more constructive to cut the reps/sets and up the weight or do I go back to what I was doing before? I don't want to shock my body and get injured, overtrain and get too sore, etc.,

Again, do not worry about "pumping up" just yet. Start by using light weights at moderately high rep counts, with emphasis on perfect form. That is the best way to rehab from an injury and to lay a good foundation. Be patient and methodical. Focus on forming good habits.

(12-26-2015 03:44 AM)haaraari Wrote:  

2-Which workouts are the best? I have a gym a few feet away from me without a barbell, but with dumbbells and a pulldown machine, so I neglected legs, and did all my presses and curls with dumbbells. That said, I also have access to another gym 2-3 times a week, but including a bar bell, and many more machines and what not, so I could do squats and dead lifts, etc., even though I haven't done those in years (I was always a pussy when it came to those two).

See, this is why you should treat this as an opportunity. Your lifting was bad, but now you have a chance to start from the beginning and do it right.

Lower body -- squats and deadlifts -- is the absolute foundation of all weight training. If you are "a pussy" when it comes to it, then your weight training sucks, no matter what. If you put some muscle on your upper body while never working legs your body is ill-developed, not really strong, and prone to injuries.

Go to a gym where you can do squats and make sure that is the first thing you do when you get back in the gym. Start building good habits from day 1.

Just take the bar with no weights on it, and do deep (well below parallel) body weight squats with perfect form, for sets of 10. Do that for 4 sets. That can be your entire first workout. You will feel it -- believe me.

The next thing you add is pullups. Can you do one bodyweight pullup with perfect form, locking out completely at the bottom and getting high above the bar at the top? Do as many of these as you can. It's a safe and effective exercise and it will neurologically wake up your upper body.

For the first two months, make squats and pulls the absolute foundation of your lifts. Increase weights very slowly, focus on perfect form on every single rep of every single sets. In squats, focus on getting down DEEP and coming up strong and straight. In pulls, focus on locking out completely at the bottom and clearing the bar very completely at the top.

Over time, you can add a few other large compound motions, like bodyweight dips, standing shoulder press, bodyweight hyperextensions, maybe some very lightly strapped calf raises. Higher rep sets and perfect form. It's all about building good habits and a good foundation for long-term success in the gym.

If you do this for a full 2-3 months and do it right, you will be in great position to start thinking about pushing more weight. But not before then.

(12-26-2015 03:44 AM)haaraari Wrote:  

3-I was taking creatine when I stopped, and had finally found a brand that seemed to work well for me. Do I start up again, or do I wait until I'm settled into a routine and have a few workouts under my belt?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Forget about that nonsense. Again, this is your chance to start from scratch and build great habits, and part of that is taking very few supplements and not treating your body like a guinea pig for all kinds of junk. Get rid of all that, and over time you can think about adding a small number of high quality, well-chosen supps.

To the extent you want to think about supps, they should be ones that help you with rehab and recovery. There might be a couple to consider but this depends on what the surgery was.

[haaraari]

Wow. Thank you VERY much for the pointers, and for taking the time to write that out for me.

The surgery was dental, so nothing serious at all, and I've got a clean bill of health to return to the gym in full force. I'm going to bite the bullet and man up with squats and deadlifts, as you advised.

Just one issue: I can't do pull ups for the life of me. I've sincerely tried, and I suck at them. I just can't do them well. Maybe 1-2, max.

Any further advice there? Again, thank you for your attention.

(12-26-2015 11:26 AM)The Lizard of Oz Wrote:  

(12-26-2015 03:44 AM)haaraari Wrote:  

I had surgery

What kind of surgery? Depending on what it was, your approach to rehab could be different.

(12-26-2015 03:44 AM)haaraari Wrote:  

I want to beef back up--and fast--

NO. Forget about "fast".

Trying to come back "fast" is very dumb and is the way to make sure you get a serious injury and don't get to go back to the gym for months.

There is no rush. If you lift right, you should be lifting for your whole life. What you need to do is get back and start building good habits in the gym, so you can have a solid foundation that allows you to train hard, safely, and effectively for years and decades to come.

Think of this surgery and the forced time away from the gym as an opportunity to rebuild your weight training from the ground up, and do it right this time around. This is an approach that will pay off big time.

(12-26-2015 03:44 AM)haaraari Wrote:  

and about to head back into the gym, but was wondering if anyone could advise me on 3 questions I had.

1-Before I stopped, I was doing high reps, lower weights (4-6 sets of 12 reps). This seemed to keep me maintained, but I want to gain back my muscle, and pump up to a bigger size. Is it more constructive to cut the reps/sets and up the weight or do I go back to what I was doing before? I don't want to shock my body and get injured, overtrain and get too sore, etc.,

Again, do not worry about "pumping up" just yet. Start by using light weights at moderately high rep counts, with emphasis on perfect form. That is the best way to rehab from an injury and to lay a good foundation. Be patient and methodical. Focus on forming good habits.

(12-26-2015 03:44 AM)haaraari Wrote:  

2-Which workouts are the best? I have a gym a few feet away from me without a barbell, but with dumbbells and a pulldown machine, so I neglected legs, and did all my presses and curls with dumbbells. That said, I also have access to another gym 2-3 times a week, but including a bar bell, and many more machines and what not, so I could do squats and dead lifts, etc., even though I haven't done those in years (I was always a pussy when it came to those two).

See, this is why you should treat this as an opportunity. Your lifting was bad, but now you have a chance to start from the beginning and do it right.

Lower body -- squats and deadlifts -- is the absolute foundation of all weight training. If you are "a pussy" when it comes to it, then your weight training sucks, no matter what. If you put some muscle on your upper body while never working legs your body is ill-developed, not really strong, and prone to injuries.

Go to a gym where you can do squats and make sure that is the first thing you do when you get back in the gym. Start building good habits from day 1.

Just take the bar with no weights on it, and do deep (well below parallel) body weight squats with perfect form, for sets of 10. Do that for 4 sets. That can be your entire first workout. You will feel it -- believe me.

The next thing you add is pullups. Can you do one bodyweight pullup with perfect form, locking out completely at the bottom and getting high above the bar at the top? Do as many of these as you can. It's a safe and effective exercise and it will neurologically wake up your upper body.

For the first two months, make squats and pulls the absolute foundation of your lifts. Increase weights very slowly, focus on perfect form on every single rep of every single sets. In squats, focus on getting down DEEP and coming up strong and straight. In pulls, focus on locking out completely at the bottom and clearing the bar very completely at the top.

Over time, you can add a few other large compound motions, like bodyweight dips, standing shoulder press, bodyweight hyperextensions, maybe some very lightly strapped calf raises. Higher rep sets and perfect form. It's all about building good habits and a good foundation for long-term success in the gym.

If you do this for a full 2-3 months and do it right, you will be in great position to start thinking about pushing more weight. But not before then.

(12-26-2015 03:44 AM)haaraari Wrote:  

3-I was taking creatine when I stopped, and had finally found a brand that seemed to work well for me. Do I start up again, or do I wait until I'm settled into a routine and have a few workouts under my belt?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Forget about that nonsense. Again, this is your chance to start from scratch and build great habits, and part of that is taking very few supplements and not treating your body like a guinea pig for all kinds of junk. Get rid of all that, and over time you can think about adding a small number of high quality, well-chosen supps.

To the extent you want to think about supps, they should be ones that help you with rehab and recovery. There might be a couple to consider but this depends on what the surgery was.

[The Lizard of Oz]

(12-26-2015 02:08 PM)haaraari Wrote:  

Just one issue: I can't do pull ups for the life of me. I've sincerely tried, and I suck at them. I just can't do them well. Maybe 1-2, max.

Any further advice there? Again, thank you for your attention.

Great. You've identified a weakness, and now you can work on it. That is how you get stronger. If you're weak at something -- especially something as fundamental as pullups -- you don't avoid it; instead, you concentrate on it and keep working until you get strong.

Here is what you do:

If you can do any pullups at all, make it the first thing you do every time you enter the gym. You go in and head straight for the pullup bar and you bang out as many as you can. If it's one or two, it's one or two. Then wait 3-4 minutes, and do more, even if it's one more. EVERY TIME you go, it's the first thing you do. And sometimes, if you feel it's possible, it can also be the LAST thing you do -- if you can squeeze out one last pullup before you leave? It will be hard and it will make you stronger both physically and mentally. But only do them with great form -- don't twist your body in stupid ways to get over that bar, that is how you get injured.

Next. Does your gym has an assisted pullup machine? It's a machine that allows you to do pullups with less than body weight. If it does, you can use it in the initial stages to train the motion. It's not ideal but it will help to get you going. Find a weight that you can do 8-10 good reps on per set with the assisted pullup machine, and make it a part of one of your lifts of the week (but NOT every time).

As soon as you can do 3 perfect unassisted pullups, you don't need to use the machine anymore. Just concentrate getting stronger on them and keep them the first thing you do when you get in.

If you're really ambitious, you could think about getting a home pullup bar, as well. I had one, and it made me strong on pullups because I kept using it.

Concentrate on squats (like I described) for lower body and pullups which are the "squats of the upper body" and you will get strong in the right way and your body will develop well. There is no magic to it, just prioritizing the thing that you're weak at and working on them until you get stronger.

Being strong on pullups is what gives you a well-developed and good looking upper body because it OPENS UP your back and gives you a good taper, and opening up your upper body is what allows you to get stronger on other exercises. That's why pullups are precious and are the second most important thing you do in the gym, after squats.

[Isaac Jordan]

(12-26-2015 02:08 PM)haaraari Wrote:  

Just one issue: I can't do pull ups for the life of me. I've sincerely tried, and I suck at them. I just can't do them well. Maybe 1-2, max.

If the gym has an assisted pull up machine, start with that. Add just enough weight to where you can bust out your desired rep range, and then work on decreasing the weight every time until you can handle your body weight unassisted.

If they don't have that, you can do lat pull-downs (assuming the gym has that too). Work on increasing the weight every work out, and then after a few weeks try body weight pull ups again.

If your gym doesn't have either of those, you can focus on rows (which will strengthen your back) or try negatives (jumping up to the top position of a chin up and then slowly easing your way down). Deadlifting with proper form will strengthen your back as well, so be sure to keep up with those too.

[haaraari]

Thank you for your reply. I appreciate your pointers. Re the creatine, the only reason I was hesitant to immediately start back up again was because I took it just before the surgery and it helped so much that I started doing newer and more difficult things to make up for the extra strength it seemed to give me.

One of those tweaks was to go lower on db bench presses, and for several days, I had soreness and pain in my chest because I was hitting the exercise in a different way. I figured that if this happened when I was in the working out groove, making several workouts a week, that it would be a disaster to attempt going straight back into working out after over a month off, you know?

Again, thank you for any further pointers.

(12-26-2015 11:25 AM)Isaac Jordan Wrote:  

I'll attempt to answer your questions, although more information on your injury/surgery will help us give you better advice.

(12-26-2015 03:44 AM)haaraari Wrote:  

1-Before I stopped, I was doing high reps, lower weights (4-6 sets of 12 reps). This seemed to keep me maintained, but I want to gain back my muscle, and pump up to a bigger size. Is it more constructive to cut the reps/sets and up the weight or do I go back to what I was doing before? I don't want to shock my body and get injured, overtrain and get too sore, etc.

I'd keep your reps in the 8-12 range. You want to avoid heavy weight if you've just finished surgery. You're better off taking your time and erring on the side of caution rather than pushing too hard and digging yourself into a deeper hole by aggravating old injuries.

Quote:

2-Which workouts are the best? I have a gym a few feet away from me without a barbell, but with dumbbells and a pulldown machine, so I neglected legs, and did all my presses and curls with dumbbells. That said, I also have access to another gym 2-3 times a week, but including a bar bell, and many more machines and what not, so I could do squats and dead lifts, etc., even though I haven't done those in years (I was always a pussy when it came to those two).

Go to the better gym. You need to be doing squats and deadlifts*. If you do a full-body workout 3 days/week is plenty. For each day, pick an exercise for your legs, your chest and your back. Just make sure they're compound lifts that utilize a range of muscle groups. For example:

Day 1: Squats, Bench Press, Pullups

Day 2: Deadlifts, Dips, Chinups

Day 3: Lunges, Military Press, Rows

Quote:

3-I was taking creatine when I stopped, and had finally found a brand that seemed to work well for me. Do I start up again, or do I wait until I'm settled into a routine and have a few workouts under my belt?

I don't see why you couldn't start taking it your first workout back. Again, if there's something specific about your injury/surgery that would prohibit creatine use, that information would be helpful.

*Assuming your injury/surgery allows it. Consult a doctor first, of course.

[haaraari]

Thank you very much, sir. That was immeasurably helpful. Cheers!

(12-26-2015 02:28 PM)The Lizard of Oz Wrote:  

(12-26-2015 02:08 PM)haaraari Wrote:  

Just one issue: I can't do pull ups for the life of me. I've sincerely tried, and I suck at them. I just can't do them well. Maybe 1-2, max.

Any further advice there? Again, thank you for your attention.

Great. You've identified a weakness, and now you can work on it. That is how you get stronger. If you're weak at something -- especially something as fundamental as pullups -- you don't avoid it; instead, you concentrate on it and keep working until you get strong.

Here is what you do:

If you can do any pullups at all, make it the first thing you do every time you enter the gym. You go in and head straight for the pullup bar and you bang out as many as you can. If it's one or two, it's one or two. Then wait 3-4 minutes, and do more, even if it's one more. EVERY TIME you go, it's the first thing you do. And sometimes, if you feel it's possible, it can also be the LAST thing you do -- if you can squeeze out one last pullup before you leave? It will be hard and it will make you stronger both physically and mentally. But only do them with great form -- don't twist your body in stupid ways to get over that bar, that is how you get injured.

Next. Does your gym has an assisted pullup machine? It's a machine that allows you to do pullups with less than body weight. If it does, you can use it in the initial stages to train the motion. It's not ideal but it will help to get you going. Find a weight that you can do 8-10 good reps on per set with the assisted pullup machine, and make it a part of one of your lifts of the week (but NOT every time).

As soon as you can do 3 perfect unassisted pullups, you don't need to use the machine anymore. Just concentrate getting stronger on them and keep them the first thing you do when you get in.

If you're really ambitious, you could think about getting a home pullup bar, as well. I had one, and it made me strong on pullups because I kept using it.

Concentrate on squats (like I described) for lower body and pullups which are the "squats of the upper body" and you will get strong in the right way and your body will develop well. There is no magic to it, just prioritizing the thing that you're weak at and working on them until you get stronger.

Being strong on pullups is what gives you a well-developed and good looking upper body because it OPENS UP your back and gives you a good taper, and opening up your upper body is what allows you to get stronger on other exercises. That's why pullups are precious and are the second most important thing you do in the gym, after squats.

[haaraari]

Thank you very much. We've got lat pulldowns, which I've been doing (which is why it's so frustrating that I can't do pull ups!), but I'll focus on upping the weight there, to prep me. Thanks again for your help!

(12-26-2015 02:34 PM)Isaac Jordan Wrote:  

(12-26-2015 02:08 PM)haaraari Wrote:  

Just one issue: I can't do pull ups for the life of me. I've sincerely tried, and I suck at them. I just can't do them well. Maybe 1-2, max.

If the gym has an assisted pull up machine, start with that. Add just enough weight to where you can bust out your desired rep range, and then work on decreasing the weight every time until you can handle your body weight unassisted.

If they don't have that, you can do lat pull-downs (assuming the gym has that too). Work on increasing the weight every work out, and then after a few weeks try body weight pull ups again.

If your gym doesn't have either of those, you can focus on rows (which will strengthen your back) or try negatives (jumping up to the top position of a chin up and then slowly easing your way down). Deadlifting with proper form will strengthen your back as well, so be sure to keep up with those too.