Trinity and I went to a Halloween party at our friends Meg and Josh's last weekend after running the meet (I hope to have the results up within the next couple of days). Meg and Josh regularly attend Comicon and Megacon so they and their friends go all out which is cool to see. They also had great decorations including the wall from Stranger Things. If you grew up in the 80s then I highly recommend you watch this series on Netflix. Anyway, this was the best we could do with our costumes.
I have been competitively powerlifting for over 20 years. Within that time I have competed raw, single ply and multi ply. I hold the highest all time total of 1930 at 148, the third highest total of 2045 at 165 and have broken over 35 world records, over 25 of which I still hold. Through the years in this sport I have learned a great deal from various training methods, met and formed long lasting friends, as well as learned the importance of balancing life, work, and training.
Elitefts accepted me as a team member over ten years ago and I am currently the longest standing still competing powerlifter on the site. I appreciate Dave Tate and Elitefts for giving me the opportunity to learn from and teach others through the Q&A and my training log.
In 2005 I opened Orlando Barbell – a 24 hour powerlifting friendly gym. As well as running Orlando Barbell I designed and sell the Home GHR and Doorway Home Gym, wrote the 12 Weeks to a Bigger Bench EBook, and produced the 12Weeks to a Bigger Bench DVD.
My latest contribution was writing the M2 Method EBook, designed to be the quintessential Raw Powerlifting training manual for beginners to advanced lifters looking to get stronger and prevent injury while incorporating the powerlifts.
A couple laps around the block for a warm up
Prehab
PVC rolled on:
Lower back, shifted to right and left
Upper back, shifted to right and left scapula w/hips up
Armpits
Hamstrings
Glutes
Adductors
My inflammation and joint pain has been getting progressively worse, so bad that I haven’t even been able to train. Thankfully I think after a year of dealing with this I may actually have figured out the cause.
TKEs on Cybex Rotary Hip-
150x15
170x15
180x15
Close Grip Cable Pulldowns-
135x10
150x10
165x10
Leg Press-
200x10x3
Leg Curl-
70x10x3
After having severe joint inflammation and pain for the last year, I finally went to my GP a couple of weeks ago to get blood work done, assuming that I most likely had rheumatoid arthritis. It made sense to me that since I already had one autoimmune issue, my body would be more susceptible to others. The blood work goes through Quest diagnostics, so I was able to review it online before my follow up. I researched the out of range results that I wasn’t familiar with and it showed that I was negative for rheumatoid arthritis, but positive for friggin Lupus. To give you an idea of the kind of discomfort I’m in, one of the measurements is for inflammation. Anything over 15 is considered high and I’m at 65. When I visited my GP he confirmed my thoughts and, although we weren’t able to schedule an appointment with a Rheumatologist until December, he was so concerned that he got me into one right away.
So I went to a Rheumatologist for the first time this past Monday. He was an abrupt Middle Eastern doctor with a horrible bedside manner, but I don't give a shit if he gives me a straight answer. He said "You don't have Lupus, only women get Lupus,” then alluded to the Humira I'm on for my UC causing Lupus-like symptoms. They drew about 10 vials of blood, took urine, did about 100 x-rays and a bone density scan. I have a follow up next Wednesday so I'm hoping they'll be able to tell me something useful. The day after the test they called to tell me that my hemoglobin was low and that I need to get into a hematologist. I'm tired of this bullshit of going to doctor after doctor to treat the symptoms without getting to the root cause of the problem.
Then I started reviewing the Humira side effects and it all started making sense. Chills, fever, joint pain, joint inflammation, muscle weakness, increased urination, bloody phlegm, and even “immune reactions including a lupus-like syndrome.” These are just a few of the hundreds of the potential side effects of Humira, but these are the ones I was experiencing and they are all considered severe. I just never thought that the drug that was supposed to be helping would cause so many negative effects. I should have confirmation from the Rheumatologist next Wednesday, but it looks like there’s a pretty good chance that Humira has been the cause of my suffering for the last year. I’m not saying that no one should take Humira, but it definitely doesn’t seem to be the drug for me. Now I just have to wait a couple of months for it to works its way out of my system. If my UC symptoms return, then I’ll have to discuss other options with my GI doctor.
I have to admit that this whole experience has been so depressing that I had thoughts that I would never compete again as my body seemed to be deteriorating. Now I have renewed hope.
The M2 Equipped Training Ebook
The M2 Method Raw Training Ebook
The Affordable and Effective Floor Based Home GHR
Buy your own Doorway Home Gym and never miss out on your accessory work again
12 Weeks to a Bigger Bench EBook
Many physicians suffer with poor interpersonal skills. I'm sure some may say the same of me. Particularly when we add patients to the day when no available appointment exist. We just say come in.We can all improve in our professional work, no excuses.
I own several of your books and follow your training log. Always helpful
Best of luck.
I honestly don't mind that the doctor's people skills weren't great. He's the most informative doctor I've been to thus far.
Thank you.