I had an extremely painful sensation that persisted for a week, it was the start of an hernia and had I push through the pain it would have required additional surgery.

My surgeon had a look at the training program and told me to skip the initial exhaustion test, do it in 18 weeks instead of 6 by increasing the number of reps only once a week and remove the plus from the number of reps in the last series.

It's crazy how fast unsed muscles atrophy when you're past 40, I only stopped for 8 months (the recovery from my surgery) and I had to start back at day one.

I had a serious hernia, but I was in jail, so I couldn't get it fixed for six years. I decided to be careful and just continue working out. I can't recommend it for everyone, but I think the body is capable of more than most people would realize. I assume hernia surgery is a fairly modern invention.

After surgery it was fairly painful for a few weeks. Since recovery I've worked out hard and not had any trouble. I'm a sample size of one.