So since around April of this year I have been training hard for some contests this year. I had the Minuteman Muscle Challenge in West Virginia in July, South Carolina's Strongest Man in September and in the preliminary stages of planning to toss my hat in the ring at the Lee Haney Classic in Atlanta in October. And then...
Well I don't care for going to the doctor, like most guys. Doctors usually suck, they don't care for patients that know their bodies well and few understand the stress that training and competing take on the body. I trust my chiropractor and that's about it. So I visited him and he gave me the usual 'yeah you're falling apart but I can try to help you' and then I asked about this odd protrusion in my belly...well, long story short I spoke with him and then saw the doctor affiliated with him and they were of the opinion that I probably had a hernia and needed to pump the brakes on everything. Needless to say I was concerned and then referred to a specialist who advised that not only did I have a hernia but I also has a condition called diastastis, which is a separation of my abdominal wall.
Very not cool.
So now I'm sitting here, waiting to get a CT scan done and kind of in limbo. Not my favorite place. Preliminarily speaking, the specialist thinks the hernia is not so severe I'll need surgery but will get worse in time whether I compete or not. From what I can tell diastasis just doesn't go away, but can get really worse if you let it, and very much can lead to hernias or make them worse! So far the only good news is that both hernias and diastasis are helped tremendously by losing weight; I say 'good news' because unlike most people dieting isn't a big deal for me.
Just yuck.
So I'm guessing competing this year is out the window whether I have to have surgery or not. Guess I'm looking at a couple months of dieting and then see where I'm at. Truth be told I could lost a bunch of weight and still be stronger than 90% of people in the world, but it just goes against my nature. Through the last two weeks this whole ordeal has really made me cling to what I mean when I say there's a difference between being a 'strongman and a strong man.' I could easily ignore the condition I'm in, continue competing, continue having pain and discomfort and essentially make it worse and continue to degrade my quality of life and training. Or I could make the hard decision and walk away, take care of myself and come back later. Not an easy thing to do.
Most people can't walk away from their routine because it's 'what they do,' but for me it goes deeper than that. I call this website 'Muscle Church' for a reason, lifting weights and being strong is not just what I do, it's what I feel I'm called to do. When I wake up in the morning my purpose is to be stronger, not just of body but of mind and soul. I think this summer I've been failing in those regards and my body just began to suffer as a result. I haven't always listened to my body or my better judgment and now I make the decision to do just that. In this situation, it takes a lot more effort for me to step away from the routine and the gratification that comes with training, and reassess where I am physically and make the best decisions for my future.
There's a lot more in front of me than behind, but sometimes I tend to overlook how many miles I've put on myself in 33 years. I'm very fortunate that I learned about nutrition and proper supplement use early in life so I think I've mitigated a lot of damage but after time it just is what it is. A couple hundred prowrestling matches, thousands of grueling workouts, a handful of boxing matches and many, many hours on the mats with BJJ and wrestling...well, I mean, what could I reasonably expect?
So now for the very first time in my life I am electing to take time away from the hardcore training and I'm going to focus on some serious recovery. For me surgery is a nonissue, if I need I'll get it and not I won't, my plans are the same regardless really (obviously the rehab will be different though.) Going to settle down, put my nose in a few books and ramp up the cardio I guess. Do some bodyweight training and really make my diet a thing of beauty.
That might not sound hard to some people, but there's no squat, deadlift or truck pull I've ever done that feels as hard as walking into the gym and not lifting my ass off! I just have to remember that preparation promotes performance, and right now I'm not performing, I'm just preparing.
Well I don't care for going to the doctor, like most guys. Doctors usually suck, they don't care for patients that know their bodies well and few understand the stress that training and competing take on the body. I trust my chiropractor and that's about it. So I visited him and he gave me the usual 'yeah you're falling apart but I can try to help you' and then I asked about this odd protrusion in my belly...well, long story short I spoke with him and then saw the doctor affiliated with him and they were of the opinion that I probably had a hernia and needed to pump the brakes on everything. Needless to say I was concerned and then referred to a specialist who advised that not only did I have a hernia but I also has a condition called diastastis, which is a separation of my abdominal wall.
Very not cool.
So now I'm sitting here, waiting to get a CT scan done and kind of in limbo. Not my favorite place. Preliminarily speaking, the specialist thinks the hernia is not so severe I'll need surgery but will get worse in time whether I compete or not. From what I can tell diastasis just doesn't go away, but can get really worse if you let it, and very much can lead to hernias or make them worse! So far the only good news is that both hernias and diastasis are helped tremendously by losing weight; I say 'good news' because unlike most people dieting isn't a big deal for me.
Just yuck.
So I'm guessing competing this year is out the window whether I have to have surgery or not. Guess I'm looking at a couple months of dieting and then see where I'm at. Truth be told I could lost a bunch of weight and still be stronger than 90% of people in the world, but it just goes against my nature. Through the last two weeks this whole ordeal has really made me cling to what I mean when I say there's a difference between being a 'strongman and a strong man.' I could easily ignore the condition I'm in, continue competing, continue having pain and discomfort and essentially make it worse and continue to degrade my quality of life and training. Or I could make the hard decision and walk away, take care of myself and come back later. Not an easy thing to do.
Most people can't walk away from their routine because it's 'what they do,' but for me it goes deeper than that. I call this website 'Muscle Church' for a reason, lifting weights and being strong is not just what I do, it's what I feel I'm called to do. When I wake up in the morning my purpose is to be stronger, not just of body but of mind and soul. I think this summer I've been failing in those regards and my body just began to suffer as a result. I haven't always listened to my body or my better judgment and now I make the decision to do just that. In this situation, it takes a lot more effort for me to step away from the routine and the gratification that comes with training, and reassess where I am physically and make the best decisions for my future.
There's a lot more in front of me than behind, but sometimes I tend to overlook how many miles I've put on myself in 33 years. I'm very fortunate that I learned about nutrition and proper supplement use early in life so I think I've mitigated a lot of damage but after time it just is what it is. A couple hundred prowrestling matches, thousands of grueling workouts, a handful of boxing matches and many, many hours on the mats with BJJ and wrestling...well, I mean, what could I reasonably expect?
So now for the very first time in my life I am electing to take time away from the hardcore training and I'm going to focus on some serious recovery. For me surgery is a nonissue, if I need I'll get it and not I won't, my plans are the same regardless really (obviously the rehab will be different though.) Going to settle down, put my nose in a few books and ramp up the cardio I guess. Do some bodyweight training and really make my diet a thing of beauty.
That might not sound hard to some people, but there's no squat, deadlift or truck pull I've ever done that feels as hard as walking into the gym and not lifting my ass off! I just have to remember that preparation promotes performance, and right now I'm not performing, I'm just preparing.
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