Break even weekend

I am getting ready to go to a Chiefs game; I saw a good Bradley Baseball game yesterday. That is for my next post.
What I will report is that using an orthopedic seat cushion and my Bears stadium blanket as a lumbar cushion helped me forget about my back/piriformis for a while.

The big news (in my saga) is that I returned to swimming on Saturday and decided to try the following routine:

Swim: Sat, Mon, Wed, Friday, lift: Tu, Th, Sunday with short walks (1 mile or so)

Saturday: swimming: 200 free slow, 100 kick drill with fins, 4 x 50 0n 1:10 (55-57 each), 100 kick drill with fins, 200 drill/swim with fins 100 side stroke, 4 x 50 on 1:10 free (56-57 each). Sad but it is a start.

Then I walked 1.25 miles outside; same old story; went great for 0.6-0.8 miles, ok at mile 1, then kind of tough. PT on the grass before the walk, then on my porch when I got home.

Today: long workout broken up by:

28 minutes inside PT (laying stuff)

42 minutes outside with PT (including banded walks) and 5 x 10 pull ups, 5 wide, 6 chin.

Push ups: 40 sissy, 30 feet elevated, 20 flat, 10 deficit

Then 56 minutes inside (2:10 total) which included:

bench press: 10 x 145, 10 x 150, 10 x 150 (feet on a stool to relieve back pressure)

curls: 3 sets of 10 with 50

high incline back: 3 sets of 10 x 103

deadlift: 10 x 134, 10 x 184, 10 x 224 being very careful. Next deadlift session will be handle work.

Note: McKenzie afterward didn’t yield that left side leg/butt pain like it did before, and I wore a light belt.

Then some stretching (10 min) and a 16 minute walk (1 mile) to finish it all up.

Note: the walk was not GREAT but…one interesting sign: the pain..was mild and it seemed to migrate upward..I could feel my glutes working. Getting the pain to localize to the back would be a major step forward for me. For some reason: back pain is easier to deal with that deep glute pain.

Note: weight is 205 (Riverplex): too heavy. I really need to be 195 or lighter, but pull ups are going ok. Go figure.

Back: who knows; I don’t know if I am willing to risk back surgery or if I even need it. But I think I am ready to try shots.