Weight Training and Calisthenics

Injuries

Herniated Disks (Slipped Disks)
This is so far my most serious injury. Once my disks slip, my lower back or rather my whole body hurts like crazy.

I�ve had this injury even before my army days. But army training aggravated this injury. Carrying heavy backpacks and parachute jumping strained my already-injured lower back. I saw the army�s Medical Officer but he thought that I was faking injury. (That army officer was very inexperienced and highly incompetent).

A few years later, MRI scans revealed that two of my lower back disks (L4 and L5) had been severely damaged. Another disk was starting to become worse. I have had several therapy sessions for my lower back; most of them at Stanford Hospital. (The orthopedic - bone specialist - who reviewed the scans certified that I was unfit for parachute jumps in the army. On one hand, I felt relieved. On the other hand, I missed the thrill of parachute jumping).

Once, I sneezed and immediately my disks slipped. But often, my disks slip without any apparent reason or for reasons that I am not aware. The slipped disks sometimes affected me so much that I could not get out of bed without help.

Today, I do lower back exercises and stretching about once a week. I know I should do them more often and so I am trying to be more consistent. I also wear a belt when lifting heavy weights at the gym. I don�t know when my disks will slip again.

Fractured Arm

My arm was badly fractured when I was eight in 1972. I fell off the swing and my left forearm hit a cement block. My forearm was visibly crooked. (My Dad said that he �died a thousand times� when he saw my arm). X-rays showed that my left forearm bone was completely broken and severed. The two broken pieces even overlapped each other.

It took several months for my arm to heal, and I had frequent nightmares because of the accident during that time. (I shouted so loudly during some of these nightmares that neighbors heard my shouts and asked us what was happening.)

My arm eventually recovered fully. But even today, my left forearm, especially the area near the wrist, is slightly smaller than my right forearm.

Sprained Ankles

One of my ankles had been sprained twice and the other just once. The more badly injured one was my left ankle. My left ankle was sprained when I tried to kick a soccer ball but missed, landing awkwardly. (Yeah, I was like the Peanuts cartoon Charlie Brown who always did that. But then he had Lucy to blame. I had no one to blame but myself).

Ever since the sprain, my left foot tended to land on the ground with my outer foot (the side of the little toe) first before the inner foot. It felt awkward. I have since tried to consciously alter the way my foot landed. That helped a little, but till today, my left foot still lands a little too much on one side.

Torn right hamstring

My right hamstring was torn during a company sports meet in 1997. I described this incident more fully in the story about my marathon runs. (Read the story here). A red patch of blood, due to internal bleeding, was visible on my right hamstring.

The pain due to this injury is off and on. But it is especially active when I run long distances. Thus, I am always afraid of this injury when I run marathons.

Unlike my lower back injury, the frustrating thing about my hamstring injury is that there�s not much I can do about it. The doctor said that it should heal by itself. But it obviously hadn�t.

Bodyparts I Emphasize for Strength Training (May 2006)
Neck, Lower Back, Forearms, Biceps, Obliques (Abs), Glutes

Bodyparts I DO NOT Emphasize for Strength Training (May 2006)
Chest, Upper Back, Triceps, Traps, Abs (except obliques), Quads, Hamstrings, Calves

Cardio
I run for cardio. I love running more than weight training. I started running long before I started lifting weights - at age 9 or 10 for running compared to age 26 for weight training.

Types of running I do include Long Slow Distance (LSD), tempo runs, and stair climbing.

Long Slow Distance
I've been doing LSD ever since I started jogging in 1973 or 1974. During the 1970's running boom, I read a running book by Dr. Kenneth Cooper. He was a great advocate of LSD, and I was very much influenced by his ideas. So until recently (about 2004), this was the only type of running I do on my own. I find LSD enjoyable. My normal distance is only 8 km. When training for the marathon, this distance is increased drastically. I usually wear running shoes for LSD.

Tempo Runs
I started doing tempo runs in 2004. Just wanted to try something new and I like it. Since then, I've added tempo runs to my training, with a typical distance of only 4.2 km. I run barefooted for most of such runs. (Other joggers give me strange looks because of this).

Stair Climbing
Started stair climbing in 2005. I use the real stairs of my apartment building which has 22 stories. A typical workout consists of running up my apartment block 2 or 3 times. I either run down or take the elevator down. I climb stairs barefooted.

Why do weight training

It is not for vanity that I do weight training. I do it for fitness and health. I want to be a good steward of the physical body God has graciously given me. This physical body of mine is imperfect and temporary, but while I still have it, I want to take care of it.

Another reason is balance. Long before I started lifting weights, I�ve been running. But running does not do much for the upper body. Hence, weight training comes in.

Also, I am a former commando still in the army reserve. Who knows? One day I may be called upon to fight terrorists and to defend the innocent? Even the terrorists knew the importance of weight training. Witnesses saw some of them training hard at a gym before the September 11 attacks. The terrorists knew that they might encounter resistance during their hijacking. And they did encounter resistance in one of the flights.

My philosophy

Talking about his martial arts, Bruce Lee said, �I am no style, but I am all styles.� I approach weight training with the same philosophy.

For example, some advocate multiple-set training while others vouch for one-set training. I do both. When I have time and feel like it, I perform multiple sets per exercise. But if I have limited time (like the gym closing in 30 mins, or a hot date coming up etc.) or just plain tired, I may do a one-set training.

Another example is the debate about the number of reps. Some say that high reps are a waste of time and do not built strength. But I don't think so. I do high reps too. For example, I still do the good old fashion pushups, which is basically a high rep exercise. I found it effective. So the number of reps I perform varies greatly depending on my mood. The number of reps varies from 3 to 30.

The same applies to the various bodybuilding techniques and training methods I come across. I take what I like, and discard the rest. That�s Bruce Lee�s way in martial arts.

The Effect of Cardiovascular Training on Muscle Mass

It is often said that doing too much cardio may be detrimental to one�s muscle mass. Former bodybuilder Franco Colombo (one of my favorite old-time bodybuilders) advised limiting one�s cardio session to 45 minutes or less. Some bodybuilders even refuse to step on a treadmill for fear of losing muscle.

They are probably right. But when training for the marathon, how could I not do too much cardio? A single �long run� may take 3 hours.

I accept that I am sacrificing muscle mass by running marathons. I take that as just one of the sacrifices for the marathon. I am not as massive as all bodybuilders, but I don�t mind. I am not competing with them. I am just happy with myself and my lean small muscle mass (if I can even call it �mass�).

How did I start weight training?

It all started in 1991, when I was 27 years old. I was almost done with my undergraduate courses at Hawaii Pacific University. I lived in a condo with a gym. So I decided to try the equipment. Also, about that time, I came across a book (owned by my landlord) about bodybuilding. It was written by High Intensity Training (HIT) evangelist Arthur Jones. For some reasons that I can�t recall now, I didn't follow any of his advice except working out to failure.

At first, I trained haphazardly with no system or routine at all, going from one machine to the next. Soon I began browsing through some bodybuilding magazines and books. I learned about sets, repetitions and other terminology.

Or you could say that I started weight training in 1979 (I was only 15 at that time), if you consider pushups as �weight training�. (After all, one�s body is also a �weight�). Back then, I did pushups almost everyday. Not knowing any weight training principles at all, I did one and only set, and that was to failure. I usually did about 75 reps. That was my only �weight training� exercise. After about six months, people began noticing that I had added mass. Relatives who had not seen me before I started doing pushups were astonished.

Since then, I�ve always maintained faith in good old fashion pushups. When I don�t have time to go to the gym, I fret not. I do pushups at home.

Favorite bodypart: My calves. They have given me many miles of jogging and mountain climbing (in the army). I have perhaps trained my calves more than all the rest of my bodyparts.

Least favorite bodypart: Lower back. I have three slipped disks which makes training my lower back very difficult and painful.

Favorite bodypart to train: Biceps. My biceps are small compared to my triceps. So I like to train them. Also, they can be done standing and looking at the mirror. I find that motivating.

Least favorite bodypart to train: Calves. Sounds strange since calves are my favourite bodypart. But when it comes to doing weight training for the calves, it is excruciatingly painful. And my calves can feel sore for days afterward.