My doctor called today, he’s pretty confident I have a pulled muscle somewhere in my upper back or neck area. So with that revelation, his prescription was to “suck it up” until it heals in 3 - 6 weeks (I’m on week 2). I’m still a little weary (and in pain), but wanted to lift a little heavier than the standard 5/3/1 deload, especially since I don’t follow the 5/3/1 deadlift anyway. I did the following with success:
Deadlift
- 135 x 5
- 185 x 5
- 225 x 5
- 255 x 1
- 300 x 1 (straps)
- 185 x 5
Hanging Leg Raises
- 10 x
- 10 x
- 10 x
I usually do 5 sets of “good mornings”, but in the interest of still taking it easy, I didn’t.
It all felt pretty good, except for my last set of leg raises. My form suffered a little and I could feel my neck tense as I lifted my legs towards the end. My PR for DL is still 315 and I pulled 300 today with ease, but I didn’t want to push it. Hopefully I’ll be 100% soon because you don’t join the 1000lb club by deloading.
