Go to a doctor. You might have a buldging disc. This might have caused a reaction from your sciatic nerve. I could be wrong, but see a doctor about this.
Good luck.
[quote]J.W. wrote:
A few questions for Kroby:(like the name)
- What deadlift style were you using (Sumo, semi sumo, regular)? Regular form-but my grip is left hand under bar and right one over.
- Do you know if you compromised your form at the time the injury occured or were you using correct form and it just happened anyway? When I pick up the weight, my butt goes up because Im just using lower back-Im trying to fix that right now
- How much were you lifting? 240 5 reps and about…3-4 sets
I’m just curious because I love to deadlift, but am always on the lookout for advice/stories that will help avoid injury.–I love it too–
woops…
[quote]julia87 wrote:
J.W. wrote:
A few questions for Kroby:(like the name)
- What deadlift style were you using (Sumo, semi sumo, regular)? Regular form-but my grip is left hand under bar and right one over.
- Do you know if you compromised your form at the time the injury occured or were you using correct form and it just happened anyway? When I pick up the weight, my butt goes up because Im just using lower back-Im trying to fix that right now
- How much were you lifting? 240 5 reps and about…3-4 sets
I’m just curious because I love to deadlift, but am always on the lookout for advice/stories that will help avoid injury.–I love it too–
[/quote]
julia87, my questions were intended for kroby (the OP). Sorry if I confused you. I know why you injured yourself. You answered your own questions already. Deadlifting heavy weight with just your back is asking for trouble. Having your butt stuck up as a starting position is also a recipe for disaster.
oh. woops.
[quote]kroby wrote:
Looking for some input on an injury that happened today.
I was deadlifting and while pulling felt a snap or pop in my lower back. I had immediate, though not severe pain, radiating from my lower back to the middle of my right calf. About fifteen minutes later the sole of my right foot was numb.
It doesn’t feel like a back injury, it feels muscular. In fact I have a feeling it is the piriformis muscle as I have injured it in the past with similar symptoms.
It’s been about three hours and I still have the same pain, no better and no worse. However, if I put bodyweight on my right side my butt and hammie go numb.
Any suggestions on what I might have done or how to treat this would be appreciated.[/quote]
I had the exact same thing happen 10 years ago, except I was doing very heavy upright rows with really bad form (young and dumb). You need to go see a doctor. In my case it was a herniated disk with an anular tear. That means that I my disk is bulging because I tore the inside wall. The bulge was pressing against the nerve causing sharp shooting pain down my leg and numbness. I was down hard for about 5-6 months. I could barely walk. To this day I still aggrivate it once in a while. It doesn’t go away without surgery. After I rehabilitated, my doctor told me to really start working the abs and low back muscles. My recommendation is don’t be a hard-dog, go see a doctor and get it taken care of.
[quote]ddelmast wrote:
Hey man, yeah that sounds pretty familiar. I got an MRI soon after that (which is something i definitely recommend to you) and it revealed i had a herniated L4-L5 disc.
This was devastating to me, cause everyone doctor i talked to said definietly no more heavy anything that involves spinal loading or heavy weight being lifted while bent at the waist. So far ive avoided surgery by conservative treatment ( chiropratic visits including spinal decompression therapy and maintaing good ROM/ flexibility in my piriformis/hams and quads.) I havent done anything heavy in a while but since i have such a bodybuilding mentality i think im going to slowly start incorporating things back into my routine but very light at first and see how my body responds.
A doctor could tell you one thing but ultimately remember only you know your own body. Just let pain be your guide is the mentality ive had to adopt but i definitely think for now your best bet is to take it easy, find out what the problem really is and go from there. If its a serious injury its not worth aggrevating it even more just because you dont wanna skip a couple of workouts. I know its hard to stay out of the gym or not go as hard as you would like, but belive me, in the future youll definitely be better off. [/quote]
If it’s just a herniated disk, I’d take that home and be happy. As it stands, I’m seeing a doc this week. A lot of pain has dissipated; I can walk almost without a limp. My calf, hamm and glute area is still very tight. As the intense stabbing pain in my hamstring has been gone for four days, I’ve been taking it easy. No going to the gym, and I won’t until a week of no pain and flexibility is experienced. I’m hoping this’ll happen in September. All this is just a blip on the road to reaching my maximum potential. No rush.
Much to my chagrin, I’ve had to halt my bulk and my abs are starting to show.
[quote]julia87 wrote:
Do you think you can get injured doing a deadlift when your in a lot of heat? When I do power cleans and my body temp is up-Im really sluggish in the motion. [/quote]
Best to do anything when you feel confident. Especially when you dl. If you’re not bringing your A-game, best not go heavy.
[quote]J.W. wrote:
A few questions for Kroby:
- What deadlift style were you using (Sumo, semi sumo, regular)? [/quote]
I’ve been doing widegrip, wide stance for a long time, and I figured to try alternating grip… and wham.
[quote]
2. Do you know if you compromised your form at the time the injury occured or were you using correct form and it just happened anyway? [/quote]
Yes, my stance was compromised. I had the slightest rounding of my back. I knew it, and still kept going. Had I kept good form, I’d probably not be injured.
[quote]
3. How much were you lifting?[/quote]
I just pulled 405 without even thinking about it, so I went up to 455. But, I also had perfect form at 405, so…
[quote]
I’m just curious because I love to deadlift, but am always on the lookout for advice/stories that will help avoid injury.
Sorry to hear about your injury and good luck getting better.[/quote]
Thanks. I’ll be back.
Kroby,
Your answers to my previous questions really make an awesome point. I hate that you’re in pain and your lifting is temporarily screwed, but maybe you can take a little comfort in the fact that so many others (including myself) are learning from your mistakes. I’ve been known to cheat a little on my DL from time to time, but your experience is a big wakeup call for me. At least your injury isn’t in vain.
I really hope it isn’t too serious and I hope you’re back in the game ASAP. Thanks for sharing this experience with us.
Hey Julia, yeah i think you probably aggrevated your sciatic nerve which pretty much runs right throught the area in which you were describing the pain. As far as the heat thing, i think that if the heat causes you to break form, then i think thats something you need to consider when lifting in high temperatures.
Also, i think that the approach of deadlifting with only your lower back can lead to some serious injuries because of the tremendous amount of pressure that style of deadlifting places on your intervertebral discs. Whenever you back is rounded like that and you attempt to lift really heavy weights off the ground its almost asking for a herniated disc (ie. me)
I wasnt even using poor form and i must have for a split second rounded my back too much while using near maximal weights and i herniated my l-4 l-5 disc in my lumbar spine. its not fun… but back to you… i would just concentrate on getting perfect form down even if it means temporarily decreasing the amt. of weight your lifting.
Make sure you incorporated your quads into the lift at the beginning of the movement and keep the bar as close to your shins as possible while holding your breathe on the “up” portion of the lift to increase intrabdominal pressure to protect your spine. Also think of the reaction of yourself if someone were to put an icecube down the back of your shirt, you would naturally push your chest out and keep a natural curve in you lower back, thats the posistion you need to emphasize throghout the entire lift to decrease your chance of injury. hope this helps 
I once got shin splints so bad that my feet went numb when i ran, had to do with the tendons ripping off of their inserts and cutting off circulation, maybe you overstrained a tendon?
[quote]evansmi wrote:
I once got shin splints so bad that my feet went numb when i ran, had to do with the tendons ripping off of their inserts and cutting off circulation, maybe you overstrained a tendon?[/quote]
Well… funny thing: I was given a new pair of flops. The kind with gel in the sole. I can now stand for an undetermined amount of time (long) without any pain. I also feel the sole of my right foot is swollen.
I still have weakness throughout my right leg, and if barefoot, pain starts in my hammy and then travels up and down the leg. I got an MRI Wednesday, but have yet to get in to see the doctor for the follow-up. I have a feeling that he’ll tell me my back is fine. It’s everything else… I’ve fucked up a tendon (or many) and it’s wreaking havoc up and down my leg. I’m sure more tests will be inevitable. I’d like some cortisone, muscle relaxers and some rehab, if not a staple or two…
MRI results came back and no herniated or ruptured disks. Aggravated nerve roots due to old scar tissue. Damn good news.
Woohoo! Glad to hear it man!
With the urge to do more weight that is especially present with the best lifts (eg: deadlifts), anything that can help us all keep our form will only make mishaps like yours less common. Hope you get back at 'er soon.
Ironically, right here on T-Nation, there is a wealth of help with this. For example, the Deadlift Diagnosis article that I have tried to copy here as a link, below:
Update! Today, I pulled a whopping 225 5x3. Last week, I squatted 265 5x3. Sure, these numbers are far from impressive. My re-hab is still in progress and I can finally do a single-leg calf raise. My upper body strength is at the point of PR’s set this past April or May.
In all, I am pleased with my progress. I eased into it, with no false expectations. I listened to my body. I learned, re-focused and set slightly different goals.