MR: TIME to Get It On!

Training Powerlifting
81

Dear Mike (and anyone else who might have any suggestions)

I apologise for the length of this post but I’d like to give you all the info.

In February of this year I suffered a back injury. Although I didn’t feel anything at the time, 36hrs after training (I deadlifted on a Tuesday evening and the pain began when I woke on Thursday morning) my back, particularly what felt like my spine, was very stiff and sore. I have been lifting for 11 years and I think (and hope) my technique is reasonably good – certainly I did not let my back round at all. With that in mind, I assumed that it was nothing major and kept away from the weights for a few days. Unfortunately 2 weeks later, although the pain had decreased, it was still there so I went to a sports injury clinic and was treated by an osteopath. She was not sure of the diagnosis but performed massage, stretching and vertebra cracking (manipulation?) unfortunately to no effect (I stretch very regularly aswell).

Not knowing exactly what the problem was (she initially thought that maybe I had a bulging disk but quickly decided that that was not the problem) she referred me to her superior, another osteopath who is very highly regarded and works with a number of professional athletes. By this point I had pain only upon waking in a cd-sized circle in the exact middle of my back just below where the traps finish. It was still very sore, but the pain dissipated very quickly one I got in the hot shower and was completely gone by 9am every day. This second osteo thought that I had ruptured one of the spinal erectors (left side) and performed massage etc to break down any scar tissue. The weeks went by (saw each osteo 4 times over 4 months) and what he thought was a rupture gradually “filled-in” (good news) but the pain continued and he couldn’t understand why.

Having become increasingly frustrated as I have been advised not to train at all during this time, I went to see an ART/sports injury practitioner. He diagnosed an unusual kink in my spine (very slight) which he felt was being caused by over-tightness in the muscles of the mid back. He treated me with massage and myofascial release and gave me a stretching program which I have followed but the problem persists (still only on waking). As that did not work he has subsequently tried spinal decompression stretches and stretches/massage for the psoas but still to no avail. I’m not saying for one second that these people do not know what they are doing and I have been very impressed with each of them and their expertise but the fact remains that I’ve still got a problem and its been six months! Added to that neither of the osteos seem to think that mine spine has any sort of “kink” (on the contrary both said my alignment/joints/movement was very good) so I don’t know what to believe.

I am planning to visit a chiro who will also do an x-ray. I’ve not had any scans/x-rays as yet but all three people that have treated me seem fairly confident that there is no bone fracture or anything of that nature.

As further info, I’m 27 years old. I train like a powerlifter mostly. The pain does not appear if I sleep less than 6hrs in a night. I bought a new bed 2 months before the pain began but I don’t think this is causing the pain as I’m usually sore when I sleep away from home aswell.

After six months of no training I’m pretty fed up to put it mildly and any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Will-of-iron

82

Malinda,

I absolutely think gear can get too tight. However, it depends on if we’re discussing this from a philosophical standpoint, or simply a training standpoint.

The way I look at it is that gear should provide a somewhat smooth transition for your raw technique; however, this is rarely the case anymore. Bench shirts are so tweaked out that if you aren’t working on a consistent basic to “learn” the shirt, you’ll be left behind by those that can.

I always suggest that people start off in VERY LOOSE gear that allows them to get used to the feel and that hopefully doesn’t mess with their form too much. As they become more advanced, they can begin to tweak their gear and get it to a point where they get more out of it.

For instance, when I switched to the Titan stuff I used a basic squat suit for the first meet. The gear was tight but didn’t affect my groove, so for the next meet I took a little out of the straps. In the future I may start to take a little out of the hips immediately before the meet to account for weight loss. As you can see, this can become very cumbersome and tedious.

I think it’s really imperative that you start off with something that you are comfortable in and that gives you a little support. As you become more and more comfortable, you can start tweaking and altering the gear to get maximum benefit.

Stay strong
MR

[quote]firebug9 wrote:
Hey Mike,

I have a gear question for you – do you think it is possible for the gear to become too tight? The reason I ask is I am training for Bench national and master worlds – starting to put gear on and my form seems to go to Hell in all of my lifts. My total is not much more in gear than it is raw? Any suggestions?[/quote]

83

Will,

So you haven’t had an MRI or X-ray taken yet? If not, that would be my first priority.

As well, tell me more about your bed and pillow. How firm are they? When you sleep is your neck in line with your spine, or kinked up/down? How do you sleep? On the side? Back?

Regardless, I would get the films/scan done ASAP, especially when you consider the time you’ve been dealing with this. Good luck!

Stay strong
MR

84

Mike,

In your Superior Circuit Series, you recommend that low intensity cardio be done prior to lifting, and list beneficial reasons for doing so.

Any negatives to putting it after the lifting component? I generally do a short warm up, followed by about 20 minutes of a total body lifting program, ending with about 30 minutes of a “phire” circuit (hitting core, prehab, and general movement patterns with 3-5 high rep circuits). I hate traditional cardio. Just wondering what benefits I lose / negatives I incur by putting it at the end.

Thanks,

Nathan

85

To be quite honest, there’s nothing inherently “wrong” with doing it at the end.

We wanted to make it a point to destroy some dogma and show you that low-intensity work prior to training can be beneficial; however, putting it at the end shouldn’t affect your results much at all.

Glad to hear you are using the program!

Stay strong
MR

[quote]vitruvian wrote:
Mike,

In your Superior Circuit Series, you recommend that low intensity cardio be done prior to lifting, and list beneficial reasons for doing so.

Any negatives to putting it after the lifting component? I generally do a short warm up, followed by about 20 minutes of a total body lifting program, ending with about 30 minutes of a “phire” circuit (hitting core, prehab, and general movement patterns with 3-5 high rep circuits). I hate traditional cardio. Just wondering what benefits I lose / negatives I incur by putting it at the end.

Thanks,

Nathan[/quote]

86

Hi Mike,

I am training WSSB style at the moment. On my upper body reps day I am focusing on increasing my push-ups number - doing 5 sets of 20 for now, reduce RI every week so it becomes 1 set of 100 reps eventually. However, I suspect it might give me too much shoulder internal roration and would like to do some rowing (and perhaps external rotation as pre-hab) to balance it out. Questions:

  1. What exercise would be good as an antagonistic exericse for high rep bodyweight push-ups?

  2. Could you give me an set/rep example?

  3. Do you have any front:back ratio in general?

Thanks in advance for answering.

Geek boy

87

1 - Any kind of rowing; I don’t necessarily think that since you are donig high-rep push-ups that you need to do high-rep rows.

2 - I would just make sure you are doing plenty of rowing. 5x10-12 would work well.

3 - I always lean towards doing more rowing than horizontal pressing, but that’s just me. It just seems that d/t our current lifestyle and affinity towards pressing movements, we could all benefit from performing more rows.

Stay strong
MR

[quote]geekboy wrote:
Questions:

  1. What exercise would be good as an antagonistic exericse for high rep bodyweight push-ups?

  2. Could you give me an set/rep example?

  3. Do you have any front:back ratio in general?

Thanks in advance for answering.

Geek boy[/quote]

88

Sorry, I was going to provide a link for this article as well. Quite a few rowing variations are included.

http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do?id=505125

Stay strong
MR

89

[quote]Mike Robertson wrote:
Sorry, I was going to provide a link for this article as well. Quite a few rowing variations are included.

http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do?id=505125

Stay strong
MR[/quote]

Thanks Mike - I am aware of the article, that’s actually why I ask you instead of the other T-coaches. Just that I wasn’t sure what the antagonistic approach would be in terms of high-reps. Thanks for the example given.

Geek boy

90

All right all, I’m out for the evening. Have a great weekend!

Stay strong
MR

91

Thanks – I have been using the same gear for a couple of years now, and well shall we say a few pounds ago as well. So when I first got the gear it “fit” and was more of a help than it seems to be now. It seems to hinder my range and set up alot. So, thank goodness Titan and Inzer are both sponsoring the Masters team, as it seems I need some new gear! LOL

Malinda

[quote]Mike Robertson wrote:
Malinda,

I absolutely think gear can get too tight. However, it depends on if we’re discussing this from a philosophical standpoint, or simply a training standpoint.

The way I look at it is that gear should provide a somewhat smooth transition for your raw technique; however, this is rarely the case anymore. Bench shirts are so tweaked out that if you aren’t working on a consistent basic to “learn” the shirt, you’ll be left behind by those that can.

I always suggest that people start off in VERY LOOSE gear that allows them to get used to the feel and that hopefully doesn’t mess with their form too much. As they become more advanced, they can begin to tweak their gear and get it to a point where they get more out of it.

For instance, when I switched to the Titan stuff I used a basic squat suit for the first meet. The gear was tight but didn’t affect my groove, so for the next meet I took a little out of the straps. In the future I may start to take a little out of the hips immediately before the meet to account for weight loss. As you can see, this can become very cumbersome and tedious.

I think it’s really imperative that you start off with something that you are comfortable in and that gives you a little support. As you become more and more comfortable, you can start tweaking and altering the gear to get maximum benefit.

Stay strong
MR

firebug9 wrote:
Hey Mike,

I have a gear question for you – do you think it is possible for the gear to become too tight? The reason I ask is I am training for Bench national and master worlds – starting to put gear on and my form seems to go to Hell in all of my lifts. My total is not much more in gear than it is raw? Any suggestions?

[/quote]

92

Osgood Slaughters question:

My 13 year old daughter’s cross country coach told her she has Osgood Slaughters. Don’t you love these folks that label everything.

She has pain below her kneecaps in the tendon; her kneecaps (her older sister had the same condition at this age) ride high because her quads, in my belief, are overpowering the hamstrings. She plays select soccer and runs cross-country in the fall, she runs track in the spring.

The pain comes and goes but hasn’t kept her from playing soccer or running.

She should hold her stretches longer than she does but, I believe she should add some specific hamstrings exercises, such as light stiff-legged deads, to balance out her upper leg strength - try to get closer to the 75% ratio in quad/ham strength.

Suggestions please! Thanks!!! It’s hard to get a therapist to recommend something other than stretching that really seems practical and effective.

Dave

[quote]Mike Robertson wrote:
I believe EC discussed this in one of his areas, but a huge part of it is bringing your hamstring and gluteal strength up to par. Are you currently weight training?

Beyond that, foam rolling/stretching of the hip flexors, quads, TFL/ITB and adductors will help take excessive stress off the knees. Finally, common sense stuff like not running for extended periods and icing after activity can go a long way.

Good luck!

Stay strong
MR

lefty04 wrote:
Mike,

Your very knowledgable in the area of knee injuries, and I was wondering what you think of Osgood Slaughter Disease? I have it in both of my knees, especially during soccer and basketball season.

Thanks!

[/quote]