Slipped disk and workouts

[dalila]

Ok so Spike was right, I have a mild case of slipped disk... now after 2 week the pain is almost gone, and I only feel a bit of stiffness when I bend over to my right.

My dr. ( who doesn't work out himself), says that I should lay out cardio ( other than swimming or cycling) and weigths for 6 weeks, and that feels like forever to me... guys any thoughts? Should I really lay off my workouts for so long, or can I at least do some exercises with my back supported ( seated /laying on the bench) and what exercises could I do for my legs and shoulders ( as most of shoulders exercises I know are done while standing)?
thanks!

 

[johnpar]

Slipped Disc

Be very careful with your back. If you reinjure before full recovery you'll make it much worse. I've had three major back operations, the last was fusion and steel reinforcing rods being implanted. Don't take the chance of lifting too soon. Do stretching exercise like good mornings and follow your Doc's instructions. Good luck!

 

[SPIKE1257]

Ok so Spike was right, I have a mild case of slipped disk... now after 2 week the pain is almost gone, and I only feel a bit of stiffness when I bend over to my right.

I have a couple herniated discs myself. You definitly need to give it a rest, from what I understand a slipped disc can always slip back into place, but if you herniate a disc it never goes back. When you do start to lift again, you may want to stay away from exercises that compress the spine to a great degree, or put to much stress on the lower back, such as squats, bent over barbell rows, any high impact cardio. I have been dealing with this problem for many years. I have learned how to work around my injuries. you will have to listen to your body, you will need to pay close attention to your form when lifting. Good luck..

 

[Saturday Fever]

You may need to reevaluate the way you lift (ie, form) and make sure you're lifting with your back in a protected position.

 

[Erik]

SPIKE,
I have 3 ,countem 3, herniated discs...My insurance is great and I have had MRI's so its not a hunch. BUT...yes they do heal. The Jelly like matter in the disc can return to the disc and the disc itself repair.
Rest at first is key, but DONT rest too much, one needs to get back in the gym, even if its with a cane, and start doing what you can. Resting too long is just as bad as not letting it heal.
Ready for my therapy program.....
Squats
Deads
Leg press
Never with a belt.
Insanity you say?
I was going to check into the VA hospital at one point and I was seriously considering adult diapers. That was in January
Right now, I am almost pain free, my squat is just south of 500 lbs, and I expect that I will be totally pain free in less the a year.
You gotta get Medievil on a bad back and slap that bad boy around

 

[SPIKE1257]

SPIKE,
I have 3 ,countem 3, herniated discs...My insurance is great and I have had MRI's so its not a hunch. BUT...yes they do heal. The Jelly like matter in the disc can return to the disc and the disc itself repair.
Rest at first is key, but DONT rest too much, one needs to get back in the gym, even if its with a cane, and start doing what you can. Resting too long is just as bad as not letting it heal.
Ready for my therapy program.....
Squats
Deads
Leg press
Never with a belt.
Insanity you say?
I was going to check into the VA hospital at one point and I was seriously considering adult diapers. That was in January
Right now, I am almost pain free, my squat is just south of 500 lbs, and I expect that I will be totally pain free in less the a year.
You gotta get Medievil on a bad back and slap that bad boy around

This is good to know, although I was told by doctors and chiropractors alike that although with rest the pressure on the nerve will be alleviated, once herniated always herniated, but I'm not a doctor. More power to you if you can still squat and dead. I prefer to stay away from them like the plague, but good luck. Goes to show one mans meat, blah, blah, blah.

 

[Erik]

There is such a "back racket " out there. Billions of dollars in the economy depend on it. The best advice I got through the whole thing is....."dont do it if it hurts...just do something find out what that thing is"
It will heal...I wont be competing in Olympic freestyle wrestling ever again, but I am 38 (almost) but I will be splitting wood, running, jumping and kicking the crap out of my cocky sons for a few more years.
I think lifting is the key for us 34 million bad "back" people

 

[SPIKE1257]

There is such a "back racket " out there. Billions of dollars in the economy depend on it. The best advice I got through the whole thing is....."dont do it if it hurts...just do something find out what that thing is"
It will heal...I wont be competing in Olympic freestyle wrestling ever again, but I am 38 (almost) but I will be splitting wood, running, jumping and kicking the crap out of my cocky sons for a few more years.
I think lifting is the key for us 34 million bad "back" people

I agree about the lifting, and the doctors and chiropractors I consulted with both agree that exercise is important especially with a bad back. If you've seen my avatar you can see I still exercise, but I'm in no hurry to put myself in a wheelchair by squating and deadlifting. I powerlifted for 4 years, I know all about the squat and dead. I also agree with you, and I train by what you said, "don't do it if it hurts".

 

[dalila]

Thank you so much for the feedback guys!

Erik I am very impressed to hear, that even with a "bad" back your workouts still include squats and deadlifts... almost unbelievable. Spike thanks for the words of caution, I guess I will give it full 4 weeks before I go back to the gym ( might do some swimming meanwhile), although, mine is not a herniated disk.

I've always been so active, its killing me that a) I can't do much now, and b) from now will always have to be weary of very heavy weights, avoid certain exercises, blah, blah, I hate not being able to do what I want to do.. man this is depressing!!

 

[John H.]

Regarding a bad back - you MUST find a Physician(s) who KNOWS what they are talking about - NOT just anybody! ASK, ASK, ASK, ASK - QUESTIONS of EVERYONE AND EVERYBODY! Before you do anything you must make damn sure of what has been injured with your back - you must get an MRI and a CATSCAN to really get a real picture of your injury. You do not want to make your injury worse!

READ ALL YOU CAN on the subject from ALL sources - on the internet, books, magazines, etc. Go to your local bookstore and see what CURRENT information is in print that you can read - you do not have to buy all this - just look at what each has to say.

There is a book: BEST EVIDENCE, by Dr. Bob Arnot (c1985 I think) (it is NOT current unless it has been updated and I am not aware at this writing that it has been) - he sought the advice of every knowledgeable Doctor in their respective fields of expertice he could find on various subjects - the back being one of them - and wrote down in this book what the BEST had to say about each subject he discusses in this book. Look at this book and then go from there to seek current information. DO NOT DO ANYTHING UNTIL YOU KNOW FOR SURE what IS wrong with you and what is NOT. THEN seek the best advice from those in the know. Talk with Sports Medicine Doctors also. DO NOT go into this blind and cause yourself more injury - and permanent injury! The back that has been injured is one of the most serious injuries a person can suffer and can most definitely be a permanent thing and something you will have to adjust and live with. BE SMART - do your homework BEFORE you do anything - and be THOROUGH! Take Care, John H.

 

[SPIKE1257]

^^^^ Priceless advice..

 

[dalila]

John thank a lot, apprecite the advice very much, and I completely agree with you! That's why I am asking here as well, to see what people with a simliar problem have done, and yeah reading tons about it. I tend to have an attitude " nah, bad/serious things happen to someone else" but this time I am really careful! Exercising is supposed to give you better quality of life, I don't wanna be in my 30s and on constant pain medication...

 

[John H.]

John thank a lot, apprecite the advice very much, and I completely agree with you! That's why I am asking here as well, to see what people with a simliar problem have done, and yeah reading tons about it. I tend to have an attitude " nah, bad/serious things happen to someone else" but this time I am really careful! Exercising is supposed to give you better quality of life, I don't wanna be in my 30s and on constant pain medication...

Hope I can help. BELIEVE ME the back IS NOT something you want to screw up because once you do IT IS (more often than not) DONE! And it affect your WHOLE BODY! NOT just the back! All you will be able to do thereafter is "live with it" and "adjust" and you WILL HAVE PAIN - a lot of it and your entire life will be changed forever! Everything you do subsequently WILL DEPEND ENTIRELY on "how you feel" -- got to go for now, will get back to finish this...

Take Care, John H.

 

[John H.]

Hope I can help. BELIEVE ME the back IS NOT something you want to screw up because once you do IT IS (more often than not) DONE! And it affects your WHOLE BODY! NOT just the back! All you will be able to do thereafter is "live with it" and "adjust" and you WILL HAVE PAIN - a lot of it and your entire life will be changed forever! Everything you do subsequently WILL DEPEND ENTIRELY on "how you feel" -- got to go for now, will get back to finish this...

Take Care, John H.

I was wrong on my memory - see my above original post - I revised it to reflect the correct title and information on the book I was talking about. While it is outdated, see it anyway (borrow it from your library or have them get it for you) - it is worth reading - THEN seek any new information that may be available subsequent to what Dr. Arnot wrote in 1992...

To continue... Every person and every back is different. No one therapy is necessarily going to work on all people or even some - or at all. Surgery IS THE VERY LAST THING you will want to have done - all other options MUST be tried first!!! and it can very often NOT help and can actually end up making things worse - WHO does the operation and HOW is VERY IMPORTANT!!!! It is not an exact science and not all that much is really known on what to do and how to do it - yet. PROTECT YOUR BACK - and your total health - BE WISE AND USE COMMON SENSE! Many times when your health is lost or ruined that can be it - while miracles can happen it is not something that is "always" and "for sure"...

With regard to drugs to relieve pain: THINK FIRST before taking ANY!!! BEFORE TAKING ANY!!!!!!!!!! Aspirin CAN work well if you can take it to help relieved pain - AND STRICT BED REST!!!! The VERY BEST is DO NOT - DO NOT - TAKE ANY (high-power) DRUGS AT ALL unless it is absolutely necessary and GET OFF AND AWAY FROM THEM AS SOON AS POSSIBLE AND TAKE ONLY THE LEAST AMOUNT, take the MILDEST thing first and honestly so and work up to something stronger IF HONESTLY NECESSARY- you do NOT want to mask all the pain - the pain is your body and Mother Nature telling you what you can and can not do - LISTEN to what your body is telling you - BE SMART - DO NOT MASK ALL THE PAIN - you will end up causing yourself MORE INJURY!!! Drugs for pain ONLY work for a short time and DO NOTHING TO CURE THE PROBLEM - the body will adjust itself and you will need to INCREASE pain medication to a point where NOTHING will work because your body keeps "adapting" to pain medications. BUT THE INJURY IS STILL THERE!!!!!! LEARN to live with the pain and how to do and what to do everyday things. You will end up having to watch what you do, how you do it and when you do it - it is a life-changing thing BUT you can do it and succeed IF YOU ARE SMART ABOUT IT AND USE COMMON SENSE and BECOME KNOWLEDGABLE about your injury and your condition. You will find you MUST adjust and that you are "not the person you once were" ... It is NOT the end of it all but you will have to adjust and use common sense - you can continue on for sure - but in different ways and you will have to use your imagination - or develop one...


When having back pain of any kind - KNOW - or find out - what it REALLY IS. PREVENTATIVE MEDICINE could be just resting for a few days on "minor" back problems - but something major YOU ARE GOING TO KNOW ABOUT REAL FAST and by then IT MAY BE TOO LATE - the BEST MEDICINE IS PREVENTION AND COMMON SENSE.

A Medical Doctor (Physical Medicine Specialist) I spoke with regarding back problems (DAMN GOOD MAN now retired and VERY KNOWLEDGABLE!) told me he practiced Medicine for over 30 years and HE THOUGHT HE KNEW what pain was because he dealt with people in pain daily for all this time - well he went on vacation in the Gulf Coast and ate raw shellfish and it ended up poisoning him and nearly destroying his kidneys and killing him. He told me HE THOUGHT HE KNEW what pain was since he dealt with people who were in pain on a daily basis for more than 30 years - he said NO ONE KNOWS - NO ONE KNOWS - what it is like UNTIL IT HAPPENS TO THEM - NO ONE!!! He told me that if he survived this near distruction of his kidneys and his life that if I thought he was a good Doctor before wait and see - because HE NOW KNOWS HIMSELF WHAT PAIN REALLY IS!!!!

Take Care, John H.

 

[Rich46yo]

""""""HE NOW KNOWS HIMSELF WHAT PAIN REALLY IS!!!! """""""

A pre-requisite of medical school ought to be a period of induced severe pain students have to endure. Maybe then some of these doctors would stop acting as if their patients are trying to buy smack on the street when they ask for pain meds. Ive been in pain bad enough to have killed myself if I'd had a gun handy. The kind of pain where you count the seconds until the ambulance gets to the hospital. Its not good, not good at all.

As to backs? Ive had 7 surgical procedures, uncountable steroid injections, years of chiropractic care, and over a decade of misery and heartache. I still do squats and fairly heavy lifts. I'd bet Im in better shape, even tho, then 90% of the 47yo men out there.

And Im still kicking!

Two things to understand,#1 If you have a bad back you will always have a bad back. #2 Everyone is at risk of having a bad back. Heres the thing about disc's, they do heal themselves. However you can blow one bad enough to have to consider surgery. Its sounds like yours is responding to conservative treatment Dalila. But I didnt read if your diagnoses was a "bulgeing disc" or a "herniated disk"? A herniation is much more serious, its when the disc actually ruptures and the nucleus pulposis comes out. I suspect yours is simply bulging. Did you have an imageing study done? One or two? And your straight leg test? How was that?

Do yourself a favor and go to a chiropractor whos into sports medicine. Much of the healing and maintenance of the disc's depends on properly hydrateing them. Exercise, spinal manipulation, heat therapy, electric therapy, all hydrate the disc. Theres a therapy out called Vax-D thats a form of traction and what it does is gently stretches the spine causeing the disks to hydrate which promotes healing. Of all the therapies however the most critical one is excerise. And I believe weightlifting is critical too. I would certainly suggest a series of stretching/strengthening floor exercises prior to any lifting session. Avoid back surgeons. They are the pirates of the surgicle field and bone cutters are the worst offenders.

12 years ago the doctors all said I'd be in a wheelchair in 10 years. You'll be fine, just be patient and get back into it easy. If your a runner its probably a good idea to find another cardio to do. 6 weeks with doing nothing seems an awfully long time to skip rehab. Its funny how so few doctors know anything about rehabbing backs.

Your going to be fine, try and quit worrying. From here on out tho slow and steady wins the race. Your just going to have to be more carefull thats all..................take care................Rich

 

[Cinnabon]

Hey there...
Well I have to say I have a slipped disk and some seriously pinched nerves. I have been in Physical therapy for almost a year now, and I have to stress to you.. NOTHING on the shoulders!!! PLEASE. After 3 months I went back to leg presses, squats, lunges, SITTING calf raises and everything else except for anything that had to do w/ shoulders carrying weight. Where is your injury? mine is L5.

 

[Rich46yo]

Squats dont have weight on the shoulders? Ive had a low back "Peyton Place" and I do sitting overheads all the time. Never say "no" to an exercise unless its your back saying it. People would be surprised at what someone with a bad back can accomplish once they set their mind to it.........take care..............Rich

 

[dalila]

Rich and John thank you so much for your extensive posts, it really meant a lot! Especialy so, since I don't even know you guys and you understand how I feel right now ( having to forego gym) better then most of my very close friends do. They keep telling me " why are you so eager to get back to gym, you look good as you are" ... they just don't get it! Your own stories are also very inspirational!

As for my case, I haven't done any imaging yet, as my doc was positive that it wasn't a herinated disk, and my straight leg test went actaully pretty well, I didnt feel any pain till about 60 degrees up, and even that wasnt a bad pain. But it comes and goes ( without a reason), some days I could swear it's completely gone, and then other days it can get quite bad, hitting more to my left side...

Anyways, I've finally scheduled myself for an MRI exam on the 21st. Then will know for sure. And once I do I'd appreciate if you guys with injured backs could outline your routines. Of course I am gonna clear it with the dr. first, but I'd like to know what exercises you are avoiding and which work fine.

P.S. weird, are there no other girls here with bad backs?

thanks again!
Dal.

 

[wayne99]

Hi,

I just recently had to have 3 disks popped back into place. I use the Bow Flex and I think I used it wrong. My pain is now gone. Can I start using this machine with less weight and more reps ? I don't want to give up excersising or I will start to gain lbs.

 

[wayne99]

Is anyone home here ????

 

[GFR]

Ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
ask your Doctor

 

[wayne99]

back to where I was months later with no pain. I just listened to my body and I stretch more and I have zero pain. The pain I had will make me remember to be safer...