Quote:
Originally Posted by Leozinho
Two weeks or so in and I have a little tendinitis in one elbow (never had it before.). I suppose its easy to go overboard with the volume. I've certainly done more reps with GTG than if I would have done a more typical pull-up program of 3 sets of 10 reps threemdays a week.
I've voodoo flossed it, which makes the elbow feel great but I'm not sure if flossing actually cures the tendinitis. If the tendinitis doesn't clear up I'll drop GTG. No sense developing a bad case of tendinitis.
Voodoo flossing = wrapping a bicycle inner tube very tightly around the elbow and then working the elbow through the range of motion. No one knows why it seems to work. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=GZG_9O_mAgM |
Cut the volume in half for about a week.
Week three is where most overuse injuries happen.
Another strategy employed by the Soviets/Russians with great success was volume variation.
I use it with everything and have no joint/tendon soreness or issues anymore.
In the case of my weight training, it's just alternating a low volume "core" workout with a progessive workout (progressing in volume and/or intensity).
Scheduled rest weeks (every six weeks or so) seem to help, too.
A way to do volume variation with pull-ups might go like this:
Figure out the total number of pull-ups you'll be doing over a period of training (say 4 weeks) allowing for progression by the end.
As an arbitrary example, call it 4000 pull-ups (number is probably more appropriate for a push-up program, but it makes the math easier).
Divide that volume into 4 unequal parts, with a zig-zag progression.
An example would be 700 for week 1, 1100 for week 2, 800 for week 3, and 1400 for week 4.
Then, within each week, do the same thing (except here, you can repeat the same volume on light days).
An example would be for week 1: 70 on days 1, 3, and 5, 140 on day 2, 160 on day 4, 190 on day 6, rest on day 7.
Do something similar with each of the remaining weeks.
This assumes all of the sets are of the about same size (IIRC, it's half your max on that program).
Take a rest week, test your new max somewhere near the end of that week, and program a new training schedule.
The Russians found that this volume variation was much easier on athletes' bodies and helped to avoid "staleness".
It's worked well for me in avoiding joint/tendon issues.
HTH.