A Squat-less routine??

[speed dawg]

Well, I got the news from my orthopaedic surgeon. "Do not do squats ever again. If you choose to do leg presses, which I don't recommend, do not load up the weight and don't bend your knees past 90 degrees." quoting my doctor.

Well that sucks. I'm healed from knee surgery, but I've injured my right shoulder and bicep, so I need to lay off those. Yes I've been fukked up lately. I was really looking to getting back in the gym. I want to work out about twice a week, do really strenuous exercises as to maximize my workouts, but minimize my time in the gym. These are my constraints:

1) No squats or leg pressing past 90 degrees or heavy weight.
2) No barbell pressing (bench, incline, or military), shoulder is still sore.

This is what I see my workout shaping up as:

- Machine bench and incline presses
- Deadlifts
- Power Clean (still hurts my shoulder a little)
- Lunge (I did these for therapy, shouldn't hurt my knee)
- Core and Forearm workout (Situps, Farmer's walk, etc.)

Any of you know how to get a good shoulder workout without doing presses or jerks? I can still do lateral raises, but can I build any real mass doing these?

 

[iLoveCookies]

Well, I got the news from my orthopaedic surgeon. "Do not do squats ever again. If you choose to do leg presses, which I don't recommend, do not load up the weight and don't bend your knees past 90 degrees." quoting my doctor.

Well that sucks. I'm healed from knee surgery, but I've injured my right shoulder and bicep, so I need to lay off those. Yes I've been fukked up lately. I was really looking to getting back in the gym. I want to work out about twice a week, do really strenuous exercises as to maximize my workouts, but minimize my time in the gym. These are my constraints:

1) No squats or leg pressing past 90 degrees or heavy weight.
2) No barbell pressing (bench, incline, or military), shoulder is still sore.

This is what I see my workout shaping up as:

- Machine bench and incline presses
- Deadlifts
- Power Clean (still hurts my shoulder a little)
- Lunge (I did these for therapy, shouldn't hurt my knee)
- Core and Forearm workout (Situps, Farmer's walk, etc.)

Any of you know how to get a good shoulder workout without doing presses or jerks? I can still do lateral raises, but can I build any real mass doing these?

I am going to give you my $.02 here and will actually not be rude and useless like alot of people here.

You have knee problems and shoulder problems yet you want to work out. Well given that almost all the things you will be doing are related to either joints I would stay away from anything heavier than a milk jug. Just take it easy, try swimming. BABY STEPS. Try body weight stuff and plyometrics. Look at Bernard Hopking. Winky Right or Jermain Taylor or any pro boxer. They have not lifted a single dumbell in god knows how many years and they are still big and hit hard.

 

[speed dawg]

I've built my body through lifting weights, and I enjoy it, that's why I want to keep doing it. I know I should lay off, though.

I'm thinking about bringing weak parts up, like forarms, calves and core. Deadlifts don't hurt me at all.

 

[grr]

Hmm, still do squats but do less weight and why were you going past 90 degrees in the first place?

The shoulder thing is a pretty bad showstopper, time I guess.

 

[Skilla_Staz]

Theres a kid on our football team recovering from shoulder surgery. During out workouts he was doing a lot of core and leg work. As he's been improving, hes been starting out light on some of that upper body stuff, but still isn't healthy enough to even do pushups.

Ease your way into it. If it hurts, stop. Simple as that.

As for squats, if your knee holds up, you should be absolutely fine. When I got petellar tendinitis, one doctor told me to quit football, quit sports, and that it would eventually go away, but that I wouldn't be able to compete again. Bullsh*t. Another doctor told me that the WORST thing you could do with that sort of thing is to quit sports.

Shows how much some doctors know.

 

[Phoenix_of_the_ashes]

I would also recommend swimming, but check with your doc first.

Another good idea would be to look into isometric exercises. Isometrics give very good gains and, being isometric, they require no net joint movement.

 

[Un-Aru]

Originally posted by iLoveCookies

Try body weight stuff and plyometrics.

Ummmm... I'm gonna give iLoveCookies the benefit of the doubt and assume he doesn't realise exactly what plyometrics involve. (Maybe some confusion with calisthenics?) Anyway, please DON'T do plyometrics...

 

[reyalp]

If you can, you might speak with a physiotherapist regarding the knee issue. It definitely doesn't hurt to get a second pair of eyes on it.

Given your injuries, soliciting advice for workouts on an anonymous internet forum is probably the least productive of any course of action you have available.

Even if, by some chance, we WERE qualified to respond to your query, we can't gather enough information via the Internet to address the situation properly and recommend a safe course of action.

 

[EFFORT]

Deadlifts will be key for you, can you do hack squats?

 

[speed dawg]

Deadlifts will be key for you, can you do hack squats?

Hmm, don't know what a hack squat is. But I can do the sh1t out of some deads. The main thing is MAINTAINING my chest and shoulders. I guess machine presses and lateral raises can do this?

 

[mrRuckus]

Hmm, still do squats but do less weight and why were you going past 90 degrees in the first place?

Do you do only half of other exercises?

 

[grr]

I just took a quick look at this:

http://www.theministryoffitness.com/mof/library/anims/squat.htm

If 90 degrees describes the shape his calf + thigh make then ok I see your point, that's pretty weak. I was thinking the point his thighs are parallel to the ground. The animated bodybuilder only goes a couple inches below that, and that's what I meant.

 

[deadaim89]

I would still do VERY VERY light squats maybe with just the bar. squats are just plain awesome.

 

[mrRuckus]

I just took a quick look at this:

http://www.theministryoffitness.com/mof/library/anims/squat.htm

If 90 degrees describes the shape his calf + thigh make then ok I see your point, that's pretty weak. I was thinking the point his thighs are parallel to the ground. The animated bodybuilder only goes a couple inches below that, and that's what I meant.

Paragraph 5.

http://www.elitefitness.com/forum/showpost.php?p=5124176&postcount=825

 

[MetalFortress]

Hmm, still do squats but do less weight and why were you going past 90 degrees in the first place?

Because only people who don't know how to squat correctly go to just 90 degrees/parallel. Real squats go rock-bottom. And rock-bottom squats are easier on the knees, to boot.

 

[iLoveCookies]

I've built my body through lifting weights, and I enjoy it, that's why I want to keep doing it. I know I should lay off, though.

And now you are broken so what does that tell you about what you are doing. Fix the problem from the start and dont just put a bandaid on it

 

[Cloud-uk]

Hey, I sympathise with you.

I got diagnosed with chrolm's disease just as I was really getting into lifting, and about to start bulking. Being a condition that results in rapid weight loss I doggardly tried to work through it by eating more, when all I was really doing was rubbing dirt into a wound.

Trust me, I know how it feels to have the means and conviction to do something, but are confounded by illness or injury.

Don't rush into anything- the knee joint is probably the most unstable in the body. You have to train SMART. Realise squats rock. However to do squats your knees must be well. Therefore your first port of call is to strengthen and rehab your knees. Swimming sounds like a damn good idea, but get in touch with a physiotherapist or a qualified trainer and get some advice as to how to strengthen the joint. BABY STEPS are the key here.

I'm neither a physio or a trainer (yet) but I can suggest that three things will mess up your knee a treat:

1) Big weights
2) Bad positioning
3) High Impact work

In explanation, you want to keep moving your knee, but not damage it. It cannot take large stress, so I'd stick away from weight lifting all together. If you accidentally rotate your knee you again risk aggrevateing the injury, so football etc are risky. High impact work such as running is also a bad idea. This leaves... swimming and things like cross trainers.

If I were you I'd ignore the docs advice: You will do squats again, he's just being negative. However, to prove the **** wrong you need to come up with a rehab programme, not a programme to make gains.

Oh yeah, and down to the grass all the way.