Whaddaya think about starting a thread were we post about champions, former champions, record holders, and people who DLed or squatted AT LEAST 440 lbs for a LOT of years and still didn’t injure their spines? Pulled muscles and accidents don’t count. Disk herniations and ruptures, fractured vertebrae, spondylolisthesis etc. do.
Also, statistics about spine injury in weight-lifting compared to other sports and activities, personal experience etc. People with f’ed up spines who still DL/Squat a lot also count, since for both the common man and the avid weight lifter it’s great to know that you can still continue living at a “high quality of life” (and lift a shiet-load)
No, 440 isn’t very strong, but for >99% of the population, it’s more than they dream of, and it’s more than they will lift. At the same time, reaching such a weight doesn’t take the dedication/sacrifice/genetics required for, say >660, and many more weight-lifters might go to this point.
So that next time when someone says it’s bad for your back they can be pointed at a lot of (high-quality) data. And…it’s for the children. It can help convince parents world-wide that junior won’t break his spine by lifting heavy stuff (at least if he doesn’t lift drunk)