Project HUGE: 2009 Fitness In Review

2009 has been an interesting year for Project HUGE. I have had some personal bests and some major set backs. The first half of the year was great - I discovered Chad Waterbury's Huge In A Hurry program, and enjoyed his diverse, full-body workouts. The second half of the year was rather disappointing as my workouts continued to become more and more impeded by my injuries. Now, at the end of December 2009, I have worked out only a handful of times in the last few months. This has had a negative affect, not only my physical health, but on my mental well being as well.

I really enjoyed long-time T-Nation and Men's Health contributor Chad Waterbury's Huge In A Hurry program. It was less volume than I was used to, but it rekindled my enthusiasm for working out. Keeping large, heavy, multi-joint movements as its bread and butter, it certainly helped me get stronger; towards the end of my "Get Bigger" phase, I was dipping with an additional 135lbs strapped to my waist, I was inclining with 100lbs dumbbells, I was deadlifting 375lbs with complete authority, and for the first time in a long time, I started to see some progress on my pull-ups. I was feeling so good, in fact, I even started to fantasize about getting my deadlift up over 400lbs by year's end - something I haven't been able to do since 2004!

Things were going well, and life was on the up and up; then, one day after a set of heavy incline dumbbell bench press, my left shoulder just started to feel funny. No acute pain - no snap or stinging - simply a feeling of unease. I didn't even give it much thought until my next workout when I found out that I couldn't do anything with my shoulder without pain. And, I'm not talking just about bench press - no dips, no tricep work, no push ups; heck, even pullups felt awkward at the bottom.

X-Rays and an MRI later and apparently I have a "SLAP" tear, or "Superior Labrum Anterior-Posterior" tear in my left shoulder. Of course, to make matters more confusing, the pain that I am presenting with is not typical of a labral tear. In fact, the labral tear might not be symptomatic at all and my pain might be caused by some other injury or muscular imbalance.

I started to go to physical therapy for my shoulder, but I quickly found out that my insurance doesn't cover physical therapy for non-surgery-related injuries. At $75-$150 per visit with a recommended 2-3 visits a week, this simply isn't a cost that I can prioritize at this point. The most frustrating thing about this, however, is that this isn't my only injury. For the last two years, I have had pain in my right palm; and for the last 8 years, I've had patellar tracking problems and pain in my knees. What this means, in layman's terms, is that all three major movements - push, pull, legs - are being hampered by some injury in my body.

But I certainly don't mean this as a plea for sympathy. Project HUGE is a project like any other; and, like all projects, it has periods of progress and periods of set back. With each set back, I need create a plan of attack and set it in motion. My personal failure over the last few months is that I have been throwing myself a little pity party and wallowing in my own sorrow rather than figuring out how to better my situation.

With 2010 just around the corner, I need to get my butt in gear and climb back up on the horse of hugeness. What I need to do is prioritize the pain in my hand and get that sorted out. My hand is how I attach myself to the weight; so, if it's not working well, my workouts aren't working well. Once that is healed, I can then work on my shoulder, and then subsequently on my knees. Bottom line, I have to embrace the fact that parts of me are not working well at the moment and continue to go to the gym regardless, doing what I can with what I got.

Here's to a new year, a new start, and another chance to get back on the right track! And, because you know I love women with curves, a little female muscle inspiration to usher in 2010.