Damaged back improvement.

[ScentlessApprentice]

Hi all,

 

I seem to have damaged my back. I'm sure it's muscular.

It happened just before christmas with some intense tension and was better for awhile. I was doing pull-ups and was able to do about 15 comfortably. Then I must have overdone it.

 

Now it has been about a month and the pain comes and goes. It's a sharp ache in the muscles and has recently moved down the spine. I refrained from exercise for a few weeks but my job doesn't seem to do it any favours.

 

Anyway, I seem to have lost almost all strength in my back and can hardly do more than a few press-ups and one pull up just sends me into pain again.

 

Does anyone have any advice for building the strength back up without ongoing pain?

 

P.s. I'm only 20 so don't really want to be crippled just yet

[carhill]

Since this hasn't resolved IMO get a professional opinion on it. The reason I suggest that is that, unmanaged, small problems in your youth can become bigger ones when older. Treating this may impact your job if your job demands use of parts of your body which aren't healthy right now. Still, better to find out what's up and deal with it.

 

I'm an old guy, comparatively, and I still work physically in the shop and out on construction stuff and do get aches and pains, the worst of which usually resolve within a week of 'don't do that!'. If they didn't, I'd be seeing the doc.

[dichotomy]

unless you don't have insurance coverage a trip to an orthopedic doctor for xray or MRI are in order.

 

A massage therapist might also be helpful in recovery and a foam roller.

 

I have had back issues on or off since I was a young man. I mostly have them managed now with certain routines and changes in my life and exercises

[Brady375]

Scent look no further lol. I have been working out hard core since I was a teenager. Crossfit, gym, Bjj etc.

I had an mri n was told I had 2 herniated or maybe just buldging dics. Years before going to a dr I pushed through pain and trained through it and managed until it got to a point I was in 2 of the Best Neurosurgeons offices in my states trying to get help and maybe surgery. I could no longer train at a High level wo my back spasming or having severe pain.

I have Never had surgery or PHysical therapy. And today I can happily say I am 95% healed almost 100%. I train full tilt rolling w guys again who outweighs me by 100lbs and get stacked up w no problem. I train like I used too Chiropractors and decompression therapy and acupuncture l, stem therapy, inversion table didn't do much and supplements or vitamins didn't do anything. I researched Everything. I read everything. I found out about every supp or vitamin I could take. This is what fixed me......

 

It was a long process, first thing first LISTEN to your body. If your back hurts Back Off! Do not mess w it until the pain subsides. If an Exercise that you are Doing bother it use common sense and Stop doing that exercise, atleast for now.

 

Stop Loading your Back and Stop Doing Olympic style lifts. Stop power cleaning and back squating. Do not do Any Heavy Loading of your spine. You only have 1 spine and it needs to last you a lifetime. You can still get super strong by working out SMARTER not harder by back squating 350 like I USED too. Body weight exercises and exercises that are Natural for your body are best. I don't dead lift I do Tire Flips, I don't back squat I do Goblet squats and one legged pistols; though I like front squating as it doesn't load my spine. I basically hardly ever Touch the 45lb barbell. I call my exercises mainly "hood" lol meaning I can go to a normal park and get after it w just a pull up bar.

 

 

Most important in doing any workouts when coming back from an initial back injury is to Gradually increase Intensity and Workload Very Slowly and Gradually. gradually push it inch by inch each work out. If After the workout you feel pain, back off and next time pull back some. Gradually increase workload; meaning amount of reps and how long your working out for, as you go and only increase if After your workout you do not have any Real pain. Some days I would try to push it more than I should and I'd pay for it. Next day lower back sore. Not hurt so that I couldn't workout again but sore, instead of pushing past it like I normally would I would take a break until the pain subsided.

 

#####now most important. After this pain your having subsides and Before you start working out go on YouTube and look up "foundation Training". There is a 12 min vid i found. It's free and No I do not own stock in the company. This 12min vid is what I credit about 90% of my recovery too. I started doing the video 2-3 times a week and started slow, initially only being able to do 6min of video and now I'm up to about 10min. This dumb video and these exercises basically cured me. It Strengthened the hell out of my lower lumbar. Now I can work 10hrs driving in a car. Wake up next morning and train for 2hrs and do it all over again w no pain. It's a miracle compared to what I was dealing w. Abs are great but the real core that needs work is the lower lumbar n up the back.

Now if I neglect the video and maintain my high workout regimen I can feel low back pan creeping back up. Start the video and I'm back in black! I bought the guys book but haven't had the need to crack the thing open as the vid has done the trick for me. What he discusses and does on the vid strengthens the Lower lumbar deep in the tissues and Correctly stretching the hammys and Glutes etc.

 

 

Do Not Load your Spine. If you back squat 300lbs and dead lift a ton of weight long enough What do you think will happen to a persons back putting it under that kind of stress. Look up Bar Brothers on YouTube. Real power.

Do not Bend Over at your spine to stretch your hamstrings. People lean foward when sitting or bend over when standing to stretch their hammys and Hinge at the spine making their back Look like a Question mark as they bend forward or down. That puts Pressure on your Discs. The correct way to stretch the hammys is like in the foundation vid where u hinge at the Hips w a Slight bend in the knee. Your back Never Bends. Notice when you bend down to stretch your lower back may hurt and when u do this w ur Knees Locked straight the stretch transfers more to your Calves and behind the knee. Instead hinge at the hips do not bend ur back but bend forward at the hips w a slight bend in your knees. You will not feel back pain and you will feel the stretch Deep in the belly of ur hammys helping your back.

 

Workout Functionally, be open minded and not glued into the I must Squat and bench mentality. These exercises can be good but are not the end all be all. I do mainly body weight stuff. W weighted pull-ups, box jumps, med ball work, PROWLER SLED PUSHES AND PULLLS MY FAV. , Muscle ups, etc. Did I make big Strength gains when i was your age by back squating heavy?? Sure did but it was at a cost. Since I have stopped and haven't back squatted in years I'm still super strong and cut up in my 30s. I could bench 250 tomorrow and I just front squatted 250 the other day though I haven't touched a bar bell in the longest time. I'm 5'7 165lbs. I can do 25 consecutive dead hang pull ups, bang out 80 push-ups w no break and run a 6min mile. Are their guys in the gym squatting 400 and dead lifting and power cleaning a ton? Yes....and it looks good but is it functional? How much do you have to lift and what is the purpose of lifting that weight. How does it Translate to real life, a sport or fighting. I know guys who front squat 325 over my 250 but when I get my hands on them you wouldn't be able to see a strength difference. So is the juice worth the squeeze? I have found out it is not. I have more info if interested but this should get you started. I Wish someone told me this stuff when i was your age. Best of luck. Invest in a Good foam roller and get a Lacrosse ball to use on back nots and get a Back Ice Pack you can Strap on after hard workouts from Amazon. I have an inversion table but it's just collecting dust. The basics of foundation training and not loading my spine were key.

Edited January 29, 2016 by Brady375