Dumb injuries

No, I didn't hurt myself. Yet. :) Leg day today and for the first time since I've been back in the gym I was able to use a plate-loaded leg press machine instead of that stupid nautilus-type press machine that I'd been using. Thing is with the leg press machine I had a bit too much belly at first to get any kind of a workout so I had to use the other machine. I hated that other machine, it hurt my knees like you wouldn't believe. Plus its a completely opposite motion; the nautilus-esque machine simulated more of a squat type motion whereas with the plate-loaded machine you're pushing the weight with your legs...thats probably not the best explanation, but trust me when I tell you the difference between the 2 is night and day. Plus now I can open up my leg workout a little more and do more sets with my feet placed at different angles to hit the quads better.

Good:

EVIL:

That might make a little more sense out of it.

Anyway, very good leg workout today. It got me thinking back about 15 years ago when I was into the lifting hardcore. I had gone to work that afternoon after a particularly strenuous leg workout and was out in the warehouse looking for a couple cases of materials that had turned up missing. I thought I had found the issue but I didn't have a forklift with me to pull out the pallets in the location I was checking, so instead I stepped on an empty pallet in the location next to it so I could get a better look. No sooner did I apply weight to the slat when it splintered and broke, and my foot landed sharply on the ground 3 inches below it. But because it was such a sharp movement and my foot was on an angle and because my quads were torn up from the leg workout a few hours earlier, I experienced a sharp stabbing pain in the middle of my quad.

No kidding, this was some kind of pain. I hobbled back to the office and got on a forklift and drove across the compound to the nurses office where I had some ice treatment. Eventually I went home for the day because I couldn't walk. (no, this didn't become a comp issue lol) There was immediately bruising in the middle of my quad.

Turns out after seeing my doc I had a tear in my quad. I didn't tear the muscle per se, which is an incredibly serious injury, but rather the stress of the impact on the weakened muscle had produced a small tear in the middle of it. The bruising, caused by internal bleeding, grew into a small pool. I was able to go back to work the next day, albeit a bit hobbled, and over the course of the next several weeks my coworkers and I watched in both fascination and horror as the "bruise" of pooled blood slowly worked its way down my leg, to the side of my knee, down my calf, and eventually disappeared just above my ankle. Thats probably the weirdest injury I've ever had, and believe me...I've had plenty of them.

So anyway...I was able to get in both Saturday and Sunday morning to do 45 minutes on the treadmill each day, so the next phase of my program is off to a good start. I'm doing a cheat meal today but that will be the last one for awhile, and it will be the last truly gluttonous one for a long while. Mentally I'm feeling good. I think its a combination of being able to really notice a change in my body composition and gaining a positive mental outlook and the B complex I've been taking for a few weeks now. Now if I can get a job who knows how happy I'll be?

Throwing up another Maiden video, this one popped up on the playlist during my workout this morning. Its Maiden's first and only acoustic song, performed live. Even if you don't like Maiden I would recommend giving this song a listen. Its absolutely brilliant and probably not what you'd expect from them:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u50TEPa6NNE[/youtube]