I've had five days rest and got back into lifting yesterday. I did cleans from blocks. This is setting the plates on the bar on top of, well, blocks to focus on the range of motion along the mid-thigh of the body. This helped me train the range of motion where the most power is developed and allowed me to lift without bending deep into a full clean where my sore hip would have to use all its flexibility. I worked light as well, with only 40kilos, or about 88lbs on the bar. With a lighter weight, the muscles you've already developed aren't really called "into action" to get the bar up to the shoulders. This means you don't end up relying on where you're strong to complete the movement while you're learning entirely new body mechanics. All the little muscles learn to get in on the action and help coordinate and lever the weights up. I did somewhere between 60 and 100 reps like this yesterday. To someone who enjoys lifting, this is the equivalent of learning to walk. It's exhausting tediousness, but perfecting it is the only way to do anything else.
I saw a podiatrist on Friday about my ankles, calves, and gait. Apparently I have a wide gait, characteristic of many pacific islanders, who coincidentally end up in his office a lot with ankle and calf problems. "That would be great if you were a swimmer or horse-rider!" Shut up. Anyway, I have calves that are so tight they force my heel to come off the ground very early while I walk, and that heel is then pulled to the side by my wide walking gait. This creates a set of running mechanics that pushes my body against itself in opposite directions (think rollerblading, \/\/\/\/\/\/) to the left and right while I run forward, rolling off the inside of my foot. In addition, I haven't benefited from casual stretching because I have less elastic fiber in my muscles.
SO! I have to stretch for more sets for more time after physical activity to make the stretches actually work, and I got some orthotics for my shoes to help my feet get used to rolling through their centers. My podiatrist did several evaluations including video tracking and personal examination, and with the orthotics sale my total visit came to $60.00USD.
I will return to lifting tomorrow and rugby on Thursday. Apparently Colin and Rania will be heading down south on the 14th. I don't believe this, however, because I was told in perfectly spelled English. It's possible Colin has been kidnapped in Wellington by the same people who robbed me at birth of my normal body mechanics.
No comments:
Post a Comment