#12 Changes In My Workout Routine

Had a tough week and at least one more is comming up. Besides working late and getting up in the middle of the night to work even more (on-call duty) and cut my sleep I burned both hands today in a stupid accident in the kitchen. I hope this will get better fast, otherwise I can't grip any kind of bar until it heals. Don't cry for me argentina, or something and now to the point of this post.

I started my current routine about two months ago (only two months! feels like a year). Everything looked good on the paper:

Mon: 3*5 Squat, 3*5 Bench Press, 3 * Pull Up / Chin Up Failure
Wed: 3*5 Squat, 3*5 Press, 1*5 Deadlift
Fri: 3*5 Squat, 3*5 Bench Press, 3 * Pull Up / Chin Up Failure

The pressing exercises alternate each week. I still think this is a great beginner routine - for a healthy athlete which I'm not right now.

Problems I'm struggeling with:

• hamstrings tight like a Monster Mini Band
  
• lower back rounds crazy in back squats below parallel (either because of the mentioned tightness or a freakish long spine)
• stretching the hamstrings hurts my right ITB like hell, especially lifting my left leg hurts bad on the right side
  
• all pressing exercises give my shoulders a hard time, no matter how much I focus on light weight and technique
• increasing Pull Up strenght seems to be very slow if you only can do two or three in one set to failure

Whew, glad you made it to this point. Now to my ideas how to solve the problems:

• start using the foam rollers every day combined with dynamic flexibility drills (best I start now, eh?)
• replace low bar back squats with front squats (need to buy straps soon)
• replace pressing exercises with pushups (doens't seem to work, still pain and stiffness)
• starting a Pull Up routine on my free days (e.g. like this )
• perhaps see someone who will look at my shoulder and spine again

What about you, how do you motivate yourself when things are not going well?