Chronic Back Injury

Training Bodybuilding
1

ok, i dont usually post much, but my back is killing me.

origionally, i was interested in this stuff to look good and be strong… through high school i picked up stunt biking and it kinda took over, i trained all the way though, but it was largely to get better at biking…through crashes and poor training and not eating/sleeping i accumulated many injuries, and much of what i do now is trying to undo damage and unpinch nerves and just get myself functioning like i should

a year and a half ago, i started training legs consistantly, and trying to make up for lost time, i probably was stupid about it…long story short, wether it be from that or biking, i dont know…but my back is Fucked

ANY time i flex my back over, either weighted or unweighted for period of time (ie sitting in a car) my back is done for, i have hurt it over and over and over since then, as its never fixed, its just bothering me less sometimes than other times…it hurts alot, and it made me stop biking (which is a whole other thread), but still, sometimes i have to stop training legs, i havnt been able to do olympic lifting for about half a year (something i picked up ago shortly after legs and was having a hayday with) and its fucking killing me

-i took a whole month off in the summer and came back and not much had changed, i am strict with warmup, form, i’m more flexible than most 9 year old girls (k not quite, but i’ve worked very hard at it and am immensly better at before, although even in stretching i CANT let my back flex over)

(althoguh i find it very odd that if i stop stretching for even just 2-4 days, my back, legs, hips and every thing will tense right up as if i never stretched 1-5X per day for the past year, and my knees will give me hell etc)

basically, today after my first heavy set (after warmups/dynamic stretching/glute activation etc) my back was done for, and i had to do stretching and cardio instead, my buddy (going for Canadian nationals next year, -not a bad source) suggested i may have to take off 6 months and just do unilateral or some shit until who knows what…i’d just hate to do it w/out guarentee it’ll be absoluletly fucking brilliant, because oftherwise thats just a half year of wasted training potential

-i’m already pretty cautious with what i do and volume and whatever, but its kinda tempermental obviously, and i’d liek to just not have to worry about it so i could actually go and play sports or basically do anything but live a 70’year olds life basically

Any and all help is greatly appreciated, sorry its so lengthy, i’m just bummed out (the # of injuries is just getting rediculous) but i should stop feeling sorty for myself and do something, i just want to take the right step…doctors have not done well so far

thx again

2

im getting my back fixed by an ART practioner right now, simple tip, sleep on your side with pillows on your belly and between you knees, never on your stomach

3

thx, so far i found with a small sweater rolled under my head and something a little smaller rolled under my hips and then a pillow or something under my legs works best-sleeping on my back

(sides good, but my shoulders cant take it haha-thx though)

4

First off, I understand how much a back injury sucks, I injured my back about 8 months ago (apparently an annular tear) and have yet to be able to perform squats or deadlifts without pain.

You have talked about your back injury a lot, but haven’t actually referred to any underlying pathologies. My first piece of advice would be to go to a doc and get your back imaged (CT/MRI). Although these are often false positives (disc bulges often dont cause any symptoms) they can give you at least a starting point for management/treatment.

Secondly, I would highly recommend low back disorders by McGill. It contains a lot of useful info on what to do to minimise the risk of injury as well as rehabilitation techniques.

Finally, if you do decide to take 6 months off to recover (which may or may not be a good idea depending on the injury) make sure you do something to maintain the endurance in your back extensors/“core” musculature. I completely avoided any and all loading of my back for a long time after I injured it, thinking that it would be good to let it “completely recover”. I now realise that was a mistake and has probably made things a whole lot worse. In Low Back Disorders, McGill proposes a “big three” group of exercises (bird-dog, side bridge and curl-up) to maintain (or build) endurance in the core muscles while loading the spine minimally. Check them out, they may save you a lot of grief down the track.

5

Colin 5989 makes some really good points. Dr. Stuart McGill is a fantastic reference for low back troubles.

Dr. McGill’s books (I also strongly recommend Ultimate Back Fitness and Performance-it’s less clinically oriented) can be found at www.backfitpro.com

One of the most important things you can do for your back health is to find someone who is qualified and able to teach you neutral spine. For anyone with a back injury, it is probably one of the most important neuro-motor habit to develop.

Good luck.

6

find an ART therapist ASAP. A few quick visits, and you’ll feel a lot better. also search for “feel better for a buck” article. Good Luck!

7

dra, i’ve been working hard on mobility so i’m able to maintain a neutral spine (and its probably my stupidity for not wanting to drop the weights so much that i dont have to worry about losing that), but i find its almost like my body’s confused, as it can bend and flex as i’m trying to remember where its “supposed to be” rahter than where it “wants to be”…does that make sense?

why is it So vulnerable as soon as its only flat (not a hard arch)? - i mean, of course everyone is to a point, but withough weight it still hurts a fair bit to be in that position, and its much harder to maintain arch than it should be (this is why i think i may have stretched ligaments/have tendonitis back there- would that make sense?-if so (or not), any other suggestions?

thx so far

8

(i guess i just want to be able to lift and play without being in constant fear