Gains’o’clock ep. 5 - Overcoming Adversity
Today, I was nearly brought to tears in the gym. Probably not because of what you think. I also state NEARLY because no one makes me cry my own tears and all that macho man randy savage shit. But for real, tears of joy accumulated in my eye sockets before I sucked them back in…for science. Why? Because today I tapped into strength I have been STRUGGLING to tap into for the first time since September 2024. Yes…you read that date right.
If you recall in my previous blog article, I had an injury from a deployment to the middle east that flared back up in September 2024 which completely shut down almost all power I had in my right arm, shoulder, etc. It has required me to completely adjust how I live. Immediately after the flare up, if you asked me what my pain was on a scale from 1 to 10, it would peak at 8 or 9 at its worst multiple times a day, every day of the week. I did physical therapy, trigger point injection, C-spine nerve blocks, epidural steroid injections…all of which helped some, but it always reverted.
After a C5, C6, C7 nerve block last year.
Why is all this important and relevant to what happened in the gym today? Well let me give you some REAL numbers. Prior to my flare up, I was really pushing my strength to its limits. I had worked back up to working sets of 315 lbs (or 143 KGs for my non MURICAN peeps) for sets of 5-10 on Decline barbell benchpress. These are good numbers for me, lifetime strongest working sets. Sets meaning PLURAL. Two weeks after the flare up, I attempted bench to see where I was at. I couldn’t press 135 lbs (62 KGs) for reps. I couldn’t hit 5-10 rep range on even 1 set. My right side just would not ‘fire’. I couldn’t activate the muscles with my mind…it just wouldn’t go.
After my initial visits to the doc which included MRI’s, x-rays, etc – they recommended me to a surgeon. They said I needed 2 discs replaced in my c-spine (neck) from the deployment injury. This means they would cut into the front of my neck, extract the old discs, shave off some bone spurs, and replace the discs with prosthetic ones. Yea…hell naw - here’s why:
1) Surgeries have never gone well for me. I’ve had 3 and all 3 had major problems, 1 near death experience, 1 I had to get done twice because they messed the first one entirely because of a skill issue…yea.
2) Hell naw…no one is cutting into my neck, especially doctors of the caliber I was dealing with. Hence why I elected the non-invasive route of Physical therapy, etc.
While it may have helped, I still progressed in a slow linear fashion until today. If I counted the amount of time I’ve spent stretching, nerve flossing, correcting posture, etc…it would be absolutely astronomical. I kid you not, this injury and the flare up has changed something about my life in every way of nearly every minute of every day. Even as I write this small blog, I’m pausing after 2-3 sentences, stretching, nerve flossing, re-adjusting my posture, etc…its habitual.
I say all this to say, I was unsure if I’d ever get full use of my right side ever again. While I’m still far from what I’d consider full strength/use/power on my right side, the significant jump in progress gives me hope. Sometimes, listening to the so-called experts isn’t always the right choice. Sometimes people willingly trust ‘medical professionals’ after a single interaction with drugs, prescriptions, surgeries, etc because people can only think of the NOW, the short game…not what will be happening to their body in 10-50 years from now. Fast forward years later, the same people are struggling to live daily because they are so reliant on the bajillion prescriptions from pain , botched surgeries, poor health etc when all they had to do in the beginning was LISTEN. LISTEN to their bodies, not be impulsive with decisions that can screw their health up later in life for some relief. I’m only realizing now that my previous blog article was centered around NOT listening to your inner voice sometimes. To clarify…that one is centered around not listening to your inner self when you’re being a wimp!
You may be thinking, well everyone’s different and you got lucky and blah blah blah…yea maybe. But I know, for a fact, that I have peers, friends, family, of all ages that are significantly in worse predicaments because of the decisions they made. Decisions they made to trust someone else instead of learning about their body and how to trust it instead. I’m no expert, nor am I giving medical advice, I’m simply telling you my observations and my personal experiences. If I would have listened to every doctor, I would have had WAY MORE than 3 surgeries. I was told at least one time in my life by a ‘medical professional’;
“You’ll need full knee replacement before you hit 25” (when I was about 14 years old) – I am now 37 and don’t even think about my knees because they are 100% painless.
“You’ll need surgery to repair your rotator cuff in your left shoulder” (from a fitness related injury in 2009 on my first deployment). My left shoulder is now my good shoulder…believe it or not.
“You need this medicine or that medicine for the rest of your life because blah blah blah”…yeah no.
Maybe I’d be better off in some of those situations if I had listened, but I chose not to. EVEN WHEN it was pitched in a way that made it sound like I had no other choice. Sometimes, the pain and suffering can seem so intolerable and you would take any sort of relief. I get that, I’ve been there. Like I mentioned previously, I was hitting 9’s out of 10 on pain with my neck flare up. I couldn’t exist without the pain nearly making me want to end it all. If I’d have taken up the doc’s advice back then, I may feel better now but I would bet that in 10-50 years from now, I’d regret it.
I always think of the long game…strategic thinking. I think that’s what has saved me a lot. I don’t see many other people nearing 40 training 6-8 times a week in vigorous activities without any issues. There are times I run circles around ‘adults’ half my age. The other day after sparring with a soon to be pro MMA fighter, he asked me “Hey man, how old are you?” after we went full bore for 5x5 minute rounds. “37”. He said “No fucking way…my dad is 37!” I was like…you have got to be kidding me. He continued with “But you’d kick my dad’s ass up and down the block every day of the week…and probably everyone else’s dads too!” An odd way to compliment me but I took it in stride.
The bottom line is – think long term and don’t give up. Progress is progress…take what you can get when it comes. I’m far from 100% but I am happy to see some progress that is quantifiable finally…after several months. It pushes and drives me to work harder, continue what I am doing and look forward to a brighter future. Much love Iron Disciples!
NOW GET AFTER IT, Iron Disciples!
-Iron Dad
