3 Woes of Recovery, and 3 Ways of Resilience

As many of you know, I've been out of commission for a month due to the left Ankle Brostrom surgery in early November. The recovery process included wearing a protective boot over my left leg, walking around in crutches, little to no exercise, a lot of sitting at home and crusting away in my bed (just kidding, although that is pretty much what people think of when you tell them you're recovering from surgery). I definitely watched my left calf muscles atrophy and turn to jello, but there really was nothing I can do about my left leg during recovery.

Anyway, now that the hard part is over, I'm done crying about muscle loss and solitude. Recovery wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, but there were several struggles and life adjustments that I had to make.

1. Solitude and FOMO

The hardest woe of recovery to swallow was being alone and missing out on everything. I chose to do my surgery in the Winter, after all of my traveling settled down. There never is a good time to schedule surgical procedures, but the Winter particularly sucked because that's when all of the holiday celebrations and social events took place. Thank goodness I didn't miss Thanksgiving in Vegas with my family, but I had to miss out on a lot of work bonding events that I wished I could have been a part of. For example, a team-building event, and our Holiday Party (mostly because I didn't want to walk around in a robotic boot in a dress). Even though I felt distant from my co-workers and friends, I was super appreciative that my manager was nice enough to let me work 100% at home during this time. And I'm even more grateful for my co-workers not judging me for showing up on video conferences with the same gray shirt 3 days in a row. Other than that, I didn't miss out much on weekends. I was still able to go out and grab a beer or drink occasionally as long as I had a driver (Thanks, boyfriend), and as long as there were seats (no clubbing kthx).

2. Immobility

Even though I was able to be driven around to attend events, I still felt somewhat immobile and limited. If you know me, I NEED to be outdoor. I NEED fresh grass, salty ocean air, and I NEED the swooping feeling of looking down from a peak of a mountain. The beginning of my recovery was particularly shitty because I would be at home, sometimes 3 days in a row without ever stepping out for fresh air. However, towards the end of my recovery, my boyfriend and I flew to Vegas for my family's 'Thanksgiving in Vegas' tradition. I was on one crutch and I said "FUCK IT." We visited the Red Rock Canyons, Valley of Fire State Park, and we even went out clubbing (Shout out to Drais Night Club for seating this crippled sis). These trekks were hard, although they were around a mile long. I couldn't hike without my sweet parents telling me to turn back every 10 mins. Towards the end of my recovery, I wanted to make immobility my bitch.

3. Muscle Loss

So this is where a lot of disappointment happened. I've been working out for about 5 years now, and to see my entire left leg waste away into a smaller size than my right leg was pretty heart breaking. Before surgery, after every workout, I would rush home to drink my whey protein to feed my muscles. But during this month, I saw all that effort just go to waste. Earlier this week as I was taking off my left boot, I felt my left calf, and it felt like a puddle of jello. Muscle atrophy is real, and I didn't realize that completely not using your left leg to walk can really change the way your body balances itself.

Although post-surgery was a drab, I looked back on the month and was glad to have experienced it all. Through every inconvenience, one gets stronger through learning how to take control of the situation. Today is the first day that I'm out of the boot, and off of crutches. I'm now FWB (full-weight-bearing), and on two feet. Although there was a lot of staying-at-home, I appreciated the alone time, because it allowed me to focus on what I want in my future. And despite my legs turning into jello, I've been doing banded upper body work outs and rock climbing in my boot to keep my strength.

1. Grateful for kind hearts

Looking back, I really appreciate everyone who were supportive of my recovery process, and those who accommodated and took care of me. When you're helpless, you start to realize how kind people are to take time out of their day to make yours a little less difficult--it stunned my somewhat cynical view of the world. My selfless boyfriend was the person I saw most. He was the most patient, since he grocery-shopped and cooked on demand for me, drove me to places, and gave me all of the attention I needed. Everywhere I went-- restaurants, bars, and even on the hikes-- people offered help and words of support. I even received strength comments such as "Daaamn, who did you kick, or beat up to be in that cast?" (These make me lol). These supportive actions, words, and jokes made me realize that when you're vulnerable, people will offer what they can to help make the situation better.

2. Use Your Extra Time

Time was a valuable gift during recovery. Instead of using your time for unproductive leisure, make it count. Use the extra time to try something new, or do something that you've been wanting to do but have been complaining that "there is no time" for. I decided to dive headfirst into a Data Analytics Bootcamp I've been wanting to do for the longest time. I've been seeking a career change for months now, and this was the perfect opportunity, since it's a 3-4 month remote program that teaches business intuition, hands-on skills, and technical abilities. I could not stress how happy I am to learn new skills, especially one that will take me towards the next step of my career-- and this all came from making time during recovery.

3. Rebuild

I mentioned a lot about lost muscle, and I've been stressed about how I am going to create a work out plan to get my fit body back. During the time of recovery, I did not completely fall off of the map. When my legs wouldn't support me, I bought workout rubber bands to do some upper body resistant workouts. When I was on one crutch, I had my boyfriend take me to the climbing gym (lol where I tore my ligament) to use the weights and the pull up bar. When I felt a bit more comfortable walking around without the crutch, I had my boyfriend spot me while I did some easier bouldering problems (V0-V2s). Fitness is my life and a part of my identity, and I refuse to let it waste away and die out. People will think I'm insane for hiking in crutches, or even bouldering with a boot, but it'd be crazy if I completely pull away from it. Being careful and methodical with movement during the recovery period is important, but so is holding on to what gives you life. That is what's going to motivate you to continue rebuilding your muscles and drive you to get back on your feet.

Heel hook, toe hook, whatever you do, hang the fk on at 6,000 ft off the ground. Just playing, this is 6ft off the ground and the strength exerted is 100% upper body 🙃🧗🏻‍♀️

A post shared by Grace H - San Francisco (@grraceface) on Nov 30, 2017 at 6:47pm PST

The biggest takeaway through this process is that there are definitely setbacks when it comes to surgical recovery. There are going to be times of frustration where you're going to miss out on events or places you would like to have gone to, or even miss out on the workouts and gains you could have had. But there are also a lot to appreciate during this process. Those who care for you and love you will support you no matter what. You will realize that the time you have is up to you to make worthwhile. And despite lost social time and muscle, you will light an inner fire and plan your own recovery.

Being Efficient About Cardio - Enter HIIT

When it comes to working out, the amount of time and effort you exert is precious. Unless you're addicted to long distance running, do know that there are more efficient ways to lose fat and get shredded. High Intensity Interval Training is going to be the best cardio you're ever going to do.

HIIT, for short, includes balls-out interval workouts with periods of rest. Your work outs are so hardcore that even when you're in the rest stage, your heart is beating so fast, and working so hard, that you're still burning calories. And not only that, these fast-twitch muscle movement workouts will help you build muscle during your session. Research shows that HIIT is able to increase 24-hour mitochondrial biogenesis, and increase testosterone levels, which is so necessary to build muscle.

HIIT is also very flexible-- you can change up your workout sequence and try out new routines. One of the biggest mistakes I've made this year is stick to the same routine for a WHOLE year. This made my body get used to the movements, and that promoted very little growth. I then slipped into a plateaued state where I basically wasn't building muscle and shredding fat as much as I'd like. I highly suggest changing up your HIIT workouts every two weeks to a month for variety and to "shock" your body.

Here is a sample work out I started doing for this month. I got this routine from Anne Phung's Instagram. Make sure you have a timer on:

30 Second BURPEES
30 Second Mountain Climbers
30 Second Ham String Walk Outs
30 Second Jumping Lunges
REST
Now do this 4 times, with only 1 minute rest in between each circuit. DO NOT rest between those individual 30 second sets-- it'll defeat the purpose of intensity.
LOL DEAD. I know.

On top of my HIIT, I also like to add other smart workouts. My inspiration comes from another Insta-famous Coach, BFITLIKEVANE

She calls these two routines the "Bulgarian split squat/ clean/ press/ one legged RDL" and "Bridge with weighted leg lift and tricep extension." Whew, what a mouthful. Whew, this workout freakin' killed me. Please check out my attempt in the video below.

A video posted by Grace H (@grraceface) on Apr 10, 2016 at 5:45pm PDT

I'm hoping to create my own routines next month. This month I'm only borrowing from others because I couldn't find the inspiration to do my own workouts since I've been hitting them hard for one year straight. Keep in mind that with any kind of workout, it's key to change it up once in a while to give your muscles a pleasant surprise.

As a recap, let's REVIEW THE BENEFITS OF HIIT!
- TIME EFFICIENT
- MORE VARIETY
- BUILDS MUSCLE
- BURNS FAT
- BURNS FAT WHILE RESTING
- INCREASES METABOLISM

Cheers to you and enjoy your workout!

Upper Body Party - Chest and Lats

I'm all for upper body days since they're my favorite. They're also my weakness because truth be told, I don't have too much of a variety of workouts that I do for upper body. I usually break up my upper body days into two parts-- chest/ lats, and chest/ tris. I understand that doing so much chest in a week will result in lesser boobs, but whatever. I had none to begin with anyway.

Lat/ Shoulder Day and Bench

Let's start off with Benching. Benching is SO necessary to perk up your chest, to build your shoulders, and strengthen your lats. 

Bench- warm up 65lbs x10

85 lbs x5

95 lbs x5

100 lbs x5

105 lbs x5

Wide grip bench (targets your lats)

65 lbs x8

85 lbs x5

95 lbs x5

3 sec pause wide grip bench (targets lats, improves bench form)

75 lbs x5

85 lbs x5

95 lbs x3

Bent Over Back Rows (targets lats)

65 lbs x10

75 lbs x10 x 2

85 lbs x 8

Dumbbell Rows (targets lats)

35 lbs x 10 x 5

Dumbbell Shoulder Presses (duh, shoulders)

20 lbs  x 10 x 5

Dumbbell Bicep Curls

15 lbs x 10 x 4 

Pull Ups (targets ego. jk. Pull ups are great for upper body overall)

10 x 3

Dumbbell delt raises (delts)

10 lbs x 10 x 4

Medicine Ball Twists (targets middle back and abs)

10 lbs ball x 30 x 4 

Afterwards, you'll feel so jacked that you are tempted to take a douchey selfie like this

With my hip injury, I've upped the amount of times I work on upper body in a week. I've seen drastic changes in the sculpting of my shoulders and chest during this time. 

What's a Diet? What?

The favorite topic of every bodybuilding enthusiast-- D I E T.

Sometimes when I think of dieting, I want to shoot myself. Well.. not really but some people see it as torture to know you can have great food, but not choose to eat it.

I had a hard time figuring out which diet is right for me. I tried the simple "low carb" diet, IIFYM (If it fits your macros), high protein diet, and I found that it was so hard to stay consistent. 

This past weekend my friend and I were talking about the paleo diet-- one in which you cut out processed foods, and any other food that cavemen won't eat (LOL literally, cavemen). The concept behind this is that our natural bodies are not made to run on processed foods. Our bodies are built to survive, not.. indulge. Back in the cave days, early men and women ate what was accessible to them-- meat, vegetables, nuts, and fruits. These basics were enough to survive on. 

I've been doing some reading, and finding that part of the reason why people are obese nowadays is due to processed foods that are high in carbohydrates, sodium, sugar, etc-- our bodies don't take and break down what we're eating very well, which is why processed foods can cause us to become obese or can lead to cancer.

All of this is based off of brief research I did on the paleo. I know that I myself have a hard time sticking to any type of food restriction, so I decided to personalize my diet plan. 

If you're going to put together a plan for dieting, know what you can and cannot give up. Also make it so that it's doable and is something that won't make you hate your life:

- Know your limits

- Have a clear fitness goal in mind

- Do this with friends and keep track of each other

- Stay consistent-- but give yourself a cheat meal once a week

I chose the paleo diet because I'm not a huge fan of bread and carbs anyway (except for dessert-- so this is going to be kind of hard). It's easy for me to eat healthy and make salads because my workplace offers great salad options (kale, spinach-- none of that iceberg lettuce shit), and they also have unlimited amounts of protein choices. Sometimes I'd swing by the asian noodle/ pho counter and ask for a boxful of shrimp and chicken and it'll be chill. But if your workplace/ school does not offer healthy options, meal prep is a must.

Graciously tossed salad by the salad chefs at my work place. I was able to choose my own ingredients: Herbed chicken, boiled eggs, kale, edamame, almonds, and Zinfandel dressing. Oh and a sprinkle of parmesan (totally not paleo at all). 

Being able to control the source of where you get your food is very important-- so if you're on a specific diet, there will be a lot of meal preparation and cooking involved.

Since sticking with Paleo was a goal set with my boyfriend and my friend, we are able to keep each other accountable for what we're eating on a day-to-day basis. It's also refreshing-- we send each other pics of our food, and it's sort of like a knowledge sharing chat of different things we can eat.

And of course.. cut yourself some slack for one to two meals out of the week. It's hard to eat the same stuff over and over again without anticipating something delicious later on.

Accommodating Injuries - Volume Leg Day

The recipe to that desired big booty is to build mass-- which means for your work outs, increase volume and use heavy weight. I'm accommodating my leg days to the fact that I cannot squat. Check this routine out:

Hip Thrusters
- Bar x 12
- 85 lbs x 15
- 85 lbs x 15
- 85 lbs x 15
- 115 lbs x 12
- 115 lbs x 12

Deficit Romanian Deadlifts
135 lbs x 10 x 4

Leg Press
225 lbs x 12 x 2
275 lbs x 10 x 2

Hamstring Curls 
weighted at 60 lbs x 12 x 5

Quad Leg Extensions
weighted at 55 lbs  x 12 x 5

Curtsey Lunges (These feel SUPER weird to do. But you'd be surprised that it works wonders on your gluts)
20 lbs x 20 x 2
30 lbs x 20 x 2

Walking Lunges
30 lbs on your back x 20 x 3

Bent Over Calf Raises (Body Weight)
Body Weight x 25 x 3

Quite a hefty amount of workouts to do, and quite a lot of volume. But hey, you're not going anywhere with just body weight work outs. Sure you can have a butt, but why not work a bit harder to gain an ASS.

Cheers to n00b beginnings

Hi. I'm new.

New to the blog, not so much new to the fitness game.

Four years into the my fitness journey, I still consider myself a novice. Why? Because it is so important to constantly learn new things throughout the journey to increase workout variety. The variety is what makes your body change and it is what constantly helps your body grow.

I started off bodybuilding and aspiring to achieve an aesthetic build (Think typical girls and their desire for abs and a rockin' booty). I then got addicted to strength and fell in love with powerlifting-- every time I stepped into the gym, it was a rivalry between me at the time, and me the day before. Not only was it fun competition with intentions to be better every time, it was also stress-relieving to throw plates around. It was all good for a year, and then I started to feel pain in my left hip. This searing pain activated when I was in squatting position, with my quads below parallel to the floor.

This pain was sharp, and was an indicator that something was wrong. I went to an orthopedic doctor, whom mentioned that I have a torn hip labrum. To my surprise, he told me that I won't be able to squat again. Surgery won't get me up to 100% either. Well, that sucks.

During this time, I was unmotivated with my work outs, and I stuck to my old routines, but I cut out squatting. At this point, I found no progress in strength nor body building. It was as if my fitness game slipped, and I had no motivation to recover it. Knowing that I will not be able to squat again meant that I won't be able to compete in any powerlifting competitions at my best. Since the squat is an integral workout that helps build muscles to drive the strength of the deadlift, I knew that the deficiency of squats will impact my deadlift strength negatively.

After a couple months, I found the motivation to take fitness seriously again. Sure, I'll have to rule heavy lifting out of the equation, but that doesn't mean all hope is lost. That phrase-- that one cliche-- "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade"... what do you do?

When life takes away your squats... you find alternative workouts.

I guess I'm writing this blog to showcase my alternative workouts for not only myself, but for others who experience the same type of body struggles. My intention is to track my routines, and to help me constantly change my workouts to "shock" my body so that it doesn't get used to the same movements.

The well-roundedness of different routines will allow you to build not only a healthy body, but also an aesthetic one.

Mobility will prevent injury and promote better range-of-motion
Bodybuilding will help you build muscles to handle increased strength
Strength will make you stronger as an athlete overall.

These components, along with diet, are what I'm implementing into my life so that I may fill that void until I can powerlift again. Fitness is a lifestyle that I chose, and hopefully I can learn to love what more variety could do for my life.