u/Global_Carpenter9899

I’ve never done any kind of stretching or flexibility work, but it’s something I’ve been wanting to get into for a while. I have no idea where to start however: there are so many different stretches, and I can’t do them all. How would you go about creating a simple, not too time consuming routine that I could start with?

I have no specific flexibility goals, except that I could use a bit more shoulder flexibility because I do a fair bit of heavy low-bar squats, and I sometimes have a hard time getting my shoulders and upper back into the right position, leading to form breakdown. I also do a lot of sitting (desk job) and tend to have forward neck position, so something to target that would be good. But apart from that, my hope is just that it could help with recovery from lifting and just reduce some aches and pains in every day life (driving can be hard on my lower back…).

Any programs or recommendations?

For the last few months, I’ve been waking up between 4 and 5 every day, no matter what time I go to bed, and it’s been very frustrating because I aim to get up more like 6, so I’ve been getting just about 6 hours most nights.

I can sometimes get a bit more light sleep if I stay in bed, but I can’t fall back asleep entirely. And it’s weird because I never used to have this problem.

It started with jet lag in April, after a trip to France. I’m in Boston, so after the flight back, waking up a little early is to be expected. But I never managed to readjust my rhythm.

So, do you have any tips for fixing my circadian rhythm so I can get enough sleep?

The last 2 times I’ve squatted, I noticed a slight elbow pain in my left elbow, and it’s been nagging over the last week or so. It’s not too bad, but I’ve had this much worse before, so I want to get ahead of it before it happens again.

Last time I had this issue (last summer), I fixed it by switching to a thumbs-around grip. A month or so ago, I switched back to a thumbless grip, because it makes it much easier to get my upper back right, and it’s helped my squat form a lot. Unfortunately, the elbow pain is starting to come back, so I want to figure out what is causing it exactly so I can avoid it.

I get the impression that it is less of an issue the higher I raise my elbows, presumably because if they go down too much, they must end up taking some of the weight at some point. So I’m wondering if it’s a shoulder/upper back flexibility issue that’s making it hard for me to maintain the right position.

Any idea what exactly could be causing this? Any stretches or exercises that could be worth trying for fixing it?

I’ve been struggling with recovery for a while now and I’ve been wondering what to do about it. It’s not terrible, but I feel like I’m right at the edge of my ability to recover sufficiently: I’m sore all the time, my HRV (according to my Garmin watch) is not recovering very well during sleep, much less than before, my average resting heart rate has increased from 60-70 to 75-80, and I’m generally not feeling 100% rested.

Having said that, I’m still, slowly eking out a bit of progress in my lifts, and I’m not too keen on backing off any more than I strictly need to.

An idea I’m toying with would be to back off from the lower-body lifts for a few weeks, and use my time to give more focus to the press and the bench, as well as to learning the power clean, which I haven’t been using at all. My squat and deadlift are already disproportionately strong compared to my upper body lifts: 395 squat, 465 deadlift, 240 bench and 130 press, so if I had to reset the weights a little on the squat and deadlift when I restart, it wouldn’t be a big deal, and those are by far the most taxing of my lifts, so I’m hoping it might have a positive effect on recovery across the board, and enable me to come back with more stamina later.

As previously discussed, I’m also currently still trying to lose fat, which is moving very slowly, and that’s still my primary concern at the moment. So I’m thinking it could make sense to limit my training, especially the lower body lifts, to something more minimal aimed mainly at not losing too much of my gains.

What do you think? Should I maybe continue with the squats and deadlifts but at a much lower weight, using the time to improve my form, while making sure I don’t lose too much strength? Or just drop them altogether for a few weeks?