Fairly bored 16:42

This is just a quick post for me to throw in before I go eat more :D

Well today concludes my two week attachment in ENT. I enjoyed it and learned quite a bit. Next week I've to move up to Derry where I will live on the hospital site. I'll be doing general surgery then general medicine up there. I've heard it's good craic, so kinda looking forward to it, although it will be a pain having to shift a load of stuff up there.

Training-wise I am going to take a look at Pro Gym on the Strand Road in Derry. I have heard this is a nice spot and from what I have seen on the Facebook, looks like it has quite a few weights to throw about. I'll be doing deadlift and accessory in there. Going to drop in, have a look and probably a workout on Tuesday. If it's got what I need then I'll be training there for the next while, along with my usual session in Lisburn every Saturday.

I was farting about on the internet and decided to search for the definition of the word "powerlifter" on Urban Dictionary. What I found was pretty funny:

"Fat hairy white guy who shaves his head and grows a goatee while binging on McDonalds and listening to heavy metal music but can put up massive weight in the squat, bench press, and deadlift.

Said lifts are done with the smallest range of motion possible while wearing suits with hydraulics.

Said McDonalds is offset by anabolic steroids which build a massive amount of muscle. You just can't see it though because all that muscle is behind a layer of fat because powerlifters weigh 308+ pounds.

Nonetheless, powerlifters are strong as hell and could kick your ass.

Skinny guy: Look at that fat powerlifter benching with a 2 inch range of motion.
Skinny guy's Friend: He could still kick your ass and rape you until you love him though."

Link: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=powerlifter

Funny shit in my opinion. Rings true in a lot of ways! lol

Also, this week I heard there was an article in the Newsletter, Belfast about a powerlifting event which went on the other weekend. I will have to try and dig it up and give a review :P

Thought for the Day:

"A just and reasonable modesty does not only recommend eloquence, but sets off every great talent which a man can be possessed of"

Joseph Addison

Peace

bEn

Training Update 12:36

Managed to get a few videos yesterday. Second day in Boss briefs. I'm finding them far easier to squat in than a suit. For now, in competitions I'll just be in briefs, knee wraps and belt.

I think this was 287.5kg:

I know I'm not quite making depth on these, but that will come. A very ugly 307.5kg next. I came forward on this then attempted to push my ass down. Result = feeling as if my head was going to explode. lol.

After ballsing that up I decided to go for it again and this time I nailed it pretty well. Likewise, depth still not there.

Did 280kg x3 after this. Didn't quite catch it on video. Did some board presses next. I put this up as 200kg on youtube, but I've since realised it's 220kg:

The next video is 240kg:

The following is a complete balls up of 260 and shows why spotters are important. lol

After that I made sure I didn't chicken out and went for it again. Got it, although my wrists took a bumming and I didn't quite manage to hold it at the top. But anyways, happy enough!

That's it for now. Been ages since I took any videos, so thought I was due to add a few!

Peace

bEn

The usual 18:04

This week has been going quite well. Back to the clinical teaching again and managed to get my boring dissertation and shitey presentation out of the way. lol. This week I've been in ENT in the Royal Victoria Hospital (RVH). I like the way this attachment has been coordinated. Normally we have stupid attendance logs to fill in and get treated like kids. In this attachment we have tutorials scheduled every day for 12.30 and they don't seem bothered if we turn up to them or not. The rest of the time in the week is up to us to fill. I like it this way, gives me the chance to seek out stuff to watch/observe and don't feel like I'm being treated like a child. I've heard that attendance is taken by QUB right up to 5th year. A complete joke in my opinion. Taking attendance of 23-25 year olds who will be qualified doctors in a few months time is a bit of an insult. But anyway, I'll just continue to jump through the hoops.

Training wise, started a couple of different things this week and I feel pretty sore for it today. Hoping my hamstrings and elbows ease up for Saturday. At the moment I feel like a dog on a leash. It seems that as soon as I'm out of the gym I want to be back in it wrecking the place. lol. It's a great feeling. For a few months I really lost my spark. Training felt like a chore and my enjoyment of it had really decreased. I'm convinced that was something to do with my back pain. In the last week I haven't had any of the back pain I associated with my injury. It's unreal, I just hope it continues. I also think that I'm enjoying the training a bit more because of the people who are around me when I'm training. We're all very like minded and just want to be strong as fuck, so it works well. They know who they are. Doing all my training in the PEC on my own was becoming soul-destroying.

As regards competing this year, after a few months of thinking about it I've decided to leave the IDFPA and WDFPF. I have no issues with the IDFPA, they are a fantastic association and I have met some brilliant people there. The problem is the WDFPF, they obviously don't listen to their lifters or address issues raised. I want to compete at an international level and I'm not going to hand my money over to the WDFPF so I'm going to look elsewhere for international competition. It will also mean I will be able to travel with a group of guys from the powerlifting club as they compete GPC. IPO is looking very promising at this stage, I've heard fantastic things about that association and it seems a good step to take in my equipped lifting. In my opinion I don't nearly have the strength required to go multi-ply.

Started squatting in briefs last weekend and love love love them so far. (For those that don't know, the above picture = the briefs I'm talking about, NOT y-fronts!) Much easier than a squat suit. For my first comp this year I reckon I will just have tight briefs with a loose as hell squat suit or even just leotard over them. I have been meaning to take training videos the last while, but always totally forget. Weight-wise I'm probably sitting at about 110kg, will be hoping to get up to about 113-114 then I can make the most of the weight class and make an easy cut to 110.

Not long now until I've to move up to Derry for a few months. Looking forward to it. Don't think I'll have too many distractions, so I can just spend my time learning, training and getting my grow on. lol.

It's my birthday this week, turning 22 :S I think 22 is the age where you start to sound older. It's weird, 21 still sounds young, but 22 just sounds waaaay older. Don't get me wrong, I don't think I'm old, but it's weird how life moves on.

Thought for the Day:

"As you get older, you're always maturing, you're always learning something new about yourself"

Troy Vincent

Peace

bEn

This essay is doing my brain in... 22:48

Well, it's coming to the end of this student selected module and I've landed myself in a fairly crappy position. I've ended up writing about sleep and dreaming. I thought this topic would be really interesting, turns out its been a nightmare to find any sort of useful information and basically the topic has bored the nips clean off me. I've just about scraped over the 5000 word limit and so I'm going to tidy it up and make out my list of references. It really has been painful to write. I think maybe because last semester I got to write about injuries in weight training, which meant I really did fly through that assignment.

I ran into another quality video this week for your viewing pleasure. It's another skit on the Hitler scene from some movie. This one has a powerlifting spin on it. I apologize to anyone who has no clue what it's about! I think it's absolute quality!

As regards training, all going steady since I've been back from this chest infection. Squats fairly light at the moment, just 230kg and the suit I'm wearing is pretty loose. Tightened up the knee wraps a bit more the other day. Can't remember if I mentioned my first workout in my new Super Katana before, but it was hell getting it to touch. I just need to break that shirt in and get the strength up and I shouldn't have too much to worry about. Deadlifting tomorrow with some accessory stuff. Should be a quick and easy workout. Pulls are for speed at the moment, the strength will follow. Doing my best to keep my lower back healthy as I've had quite a bit of pain with it the last week or so, although pain free since yesterday, so that's good :)

Tomorrow will consist of my trailing myself out of bed to finish this smelly scrote of an essay and then make up a presentation on it. I'll use training to break the time up.

Nothing too much else for me to go on about at the moment. Oh, got Facebook today. Eventually gave in to it. So far, not impressed. The server was crap today, loadsa things didn't work when I clicked them. Got over 60 friends already, so I couldn't be as much of an arse as I thought I was :P

Thought for the Day:

"Boredom is rage spread thin"

Paul Tillich

Paz

bEn

A fairly random post 16:57

Just doing a bit of reading here today and thought I may as well make a quick post here to break up my time. I know it's been a while, but I think I've got lazy with the posting because so many of my entries are quite long winded. I'm going to try and make shorter posts which will hopefully encourage me to do so more consistently!

Training wise the last few months have been up and down. I managed to win the WDFPF unequipped juniors. Lifts as follows:

Squat: 215, 225, 232.5, 240

Bench: 135, 145 failed for early press, 145 (Annoyed at this as the 145 was easy, if I had just been more disciplined on my second attempt I could have pushed on a bit more)

Deadlift: 250, 265, - (Didn't make a third attempt as I was exhausted and the 265 was a grind anyways)

My back is still giving me bother, I've just come to accept that it probably will be messed for the rest of my life so I will just try and deal with it. I get some shocking cracks and crunches out of it every day, but they definitely help release some pressure.

At the moment I'm doing a student selected module in university on history of neurosciences. I'm reading a book for this called, "Making Up The Mind" by Chris Frith. There is some very heavy stuff in it, but interesting nonetheless. I could probably do with reading it twice to really get my head around it. I've to do a dissertation, but as of yet I'm really not too sure what neurologically related topic I will choose.

Something to liven this post up:

I will give the guy this, he has some balls posting up this video on youtube. His description is as follows:

"I started strength training a month before this video was taken. When I started, I was able to deadlift 245 before my grip gave out.

It wasn't my intention to do a stiff-legged deadlift, but that came out of my deadlift attempt. You form worshippers can feel free to post your current gains in the last month before your criticism of my surely damnation worthy form.

I know my form breaks and I lift partially with my rounded back which I'm sure sends me straight to hell. I lifted the next day and will continue to get stronger. Passing out had nothing to do with form and everything to do with getting stoked to a previously unimaginable level. You should try it sometime. I was still high off of the endorphins after my chin was stitched up."

Got to admire his determination, although I don't think it had too much to do with endorphins, moreso his blood pressure plummeting... Looked like a fairly painful faceplant though!

Training not so great at the moment. Got ANOTHER chest infection and feel seriously poo, so holding off on the gym side of things. This year I'm going single ply equipped and I'm currently awaiting a custom fit super katana from Titan. It should be some fun. It will cut the hell out of me though :(

That's me for now. Hopefully I won't be so lazy and will get round to posting more often. I'm always on and off with this blog thing nowadays!

Thought for the Day:

"How do you know, right now, that you are aware of being aware, or conscious?"

Henry Reed

Peace

bEn

Something I have always had trouble understanding 18:07

This post isn't really a blog as such. I have spent the last week in neurology in the RVH and I have realized I am in dire need of a revision or at least basic understanding of the spinal tracts. For a start I never had a great understanding as I found neuroscience and neuroanatomy quite poorly taught in comparison to other aspects of physiology and anatomy in Queen's. I've found it hard to access a source online that puts what I want to know together. I have also found it difficult finding a basic guide that doesn't get too in depth. I remember making decent notes on this before, but misplaced them, so if I put it up here it can't be lost.

First I'm dividing things up into:

Motor Tracts

Sensory Tracts

Next I'll focus on Motor Tracts. These run down the spinal cord. They are named as follows:

1) Corticobulbar Pathway

- Begins in cerebral cortex and ends in the brainstem

- Runs through the internal capsule of the brain

- For simplicity, this pathway decussates in the midbrain (I think)

2) Corticospinal Pathway also known as the Pyramidal Motor System. It has a medial and lateral part.

- Cortico = cortex

- Spinal = spine

- So, this pathway runs from the cerebral cortex to synapse in the spine.

- Runs through the internal capsule of the brain

- For simplicity, this pathway decussates in the medulla, therefore will end on the opposite side of the spinal cord to its origin in the cortex

- Controls muscles of trunk and limbs

Sensory Tracts

These run up the spinal cord

1) Dorsal Columns

- Fine touch and vibration sensation

- Decussates in the medulla

2) Spinothalamic Tracts. These have anterior (ventral) and lateral parts

- Temperature and pain sensation - Lateral

- Coarse Touch - Anterior (Ventral)

- Decussates at level of entry in the spine

3) Spinocerebellar Tracts

- Proprioceptive Sense

- Decussates in medulla (I think)

In summary:

Motor

Corticobulbar Pathway

Corticospinal Pathway

- Medial corticospinal pathway

- Lateral corticospinal pathway

Sensory

Dorsal Columns

Spinothalamic Tracts

- Anterior (Ventral) Spinothalamic Tract

- Lateral Spinothalamic Tract

Spinocerebellar Tract

I did the above quite quickly, so I'm pretty sure there may be a few mistakes. Any corrections would be welcomed, as they would definitely make things easier clearer to me.

Peace

bEn

It's been aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaages 17:05

A looooooooong time since I have updated this. No excuse apart from being lazy, so I'll just get straight into things.

The last two weeks I've been back to uni and doing a sports medicine module in Musgrave Park Hospital. It's been very interesting, covering stuff like ankle, knee and shoulder injuries and things like diabetes and its management in sport. Today, in particular was very interesting and inspirational. Two disabled athletes spoke to us about their experience. Both were 27 years old, one had suffered a spinal injury at the age of 17 in a rugby match and the other a spinal injury at the age of 20 after falling from 10 feet. Their dedication and commitment really was something. When you hear how much they have to work through in order to just train it really puts most people to shame. These athletes really need to make sure everything is in place just to get to training. For example, making sure someone is at hand to help them in and out of their car, house, bed etc. The amount of rehabilitation they went through just to be able to gain some sort of function was unbelievable, and that's before they even began their training for sport. Besides the obvious mobility problems acting as an obstacle to sport there were then other things that added to the difficulty. Pressure sores and hand injuries that can go undetected due to lack of sensation, for example. Apparently there is a film called murderball about wheelchair rugby that gives a real insight into the sport. It's something I will check out.

In terms of my training, things have changed greatly. I am making the move into equipped lifting. I now train once a week at The Gym in Lisburn. I'm now lifting for this club, as Centaur Powerlifting Club sort of just fell apart. There seemed to be a lack of interest there. I'm loving training with like-minded people in Lisburn and I'm learning a lot. In my first day in the gear I couldn't get the straps up on the squat suit as it tended to throw me forward. lol. So I've been squatting straps down with light wraps and a belt. My first day I took 270kg off a box about an inch above parallel. Since that I've moved into a much looser suit and squatted 250kg for a few singles. I've ordered a pair of heavier Inzer wraps from Andy Bolton and these should arrive this week. When I learn how to squat equipped and learn how to control my strength in the gear I have no doubt 300+ is on the cards. Getting there will take a lot of patience and practice.

I had my first equipped competition yesterday and quite honestly, it was a disaster. I had to cut weight at short notice to make 110kg. I weighed in dry at 108.6kg. The lifts went as follows:

First attempt. 210kg, tough to touch, but my form was shite. Got about half way up and the bar went wonky. No lift

Second attempt. 210kg, easier to touch, felt tighter, again, off the chest then stalled. No lift

Third attempt. 210kg, felt great coming down, got my line and felt the shirt tighten up. Came off the chest well and thought I may have had a fighting chance. Due to the traction I was putting on the floor with my legs through my arch etc the bench slid along the floor. That was the end of that. No lift

Personally, I was embarrassed and disappointed by this performance. I don't understand why I underperformed so badly. When I got my hand offs and the weight settled on me it felt lighter than it ever has. By the time it got down and came to pressing I just felt gassed. I can only put it down to lack of practice and fatigue. It was only my sixth time in a shirt, so maybe I am being hard on myself. I know I can do better, two weeks prior I pressed 230 and I've had a good solid lockout with 240. At least now I know I'll be hitting the gym next time like a man possessed. lol

That's all for now. Hopefully won't be so long til I update again.

Thought for the Day:

PRACTISE MAKES PERFECT

Peace

bEn

Blehhhhh 20:47

Straight after my last exam I headed into the town to train. I was squatting. Here's how it went:

These squats totally wrecked me, considering there were more sets of 160kg unbelted mixed in with them and to be honest I did probably push myself too hard. All the 160 were unbelted, the 220 belted. The week and a half or so since that I've only trained once or twice. Just taking it easy for a while. I've been working full time and sitting at a desk and I've found my back has locked up a little. I phoned to make an appointment with the guy I usually go to, but unfortunately he wasn't working either of the two days that I'm free, so I'm going to have to be careful with my back until I can find time to get to Dunmurry to see him and have my back looked at.

I took today off and I'm working all day tomorrow and then heading out to dinner with Laura, so I'll do a bit of accessory work on Saturday. Goodmornings are up to 130kg unbelted, so I may take a video of them, only if they don't look exceedingly ugly though... :P

This is just a quick entry, should be making another in the next few days.

Thought for the Day:

"Are you tired of sand being kicked in your face? I promise you new muscles in days! "

Charles Atlas

Peace

bEn