yeah i think your 10 reps is the #1 problem. i find that with pressing movements i improved a huge amount by doing tons of it but more sets and more times per week, not as many reps. also do my favorite exercise the dumbbell bench press. you will be so strong.
― forensic plumber (harbl), Sunday, 3 March 2019 18:27 (five years ago) link
Welp, kettlebell squats were going great, but then I deadlifted and strained my lower back. Something def felt off about my form/alignment and I should have listened to my body and stopped.
― longtime caller, first time listener (man alive), Monday, 4 March 2019 05:09 (five years ago) link
yeouch. commiserations
― illegal economic migration (Tracer Hand), Monday, 4 March 2019 08:36 (five years ago) link
i did that a few years ago and it took 6 months to feel normal. buena suerte.
― forensic plumber (harbl), Monday, 4 March 2019 12:15 (five years ago) link
it was almost like a blessing in disguise though. so much stuff can be done that does not involve the lower back! i learned a lot! can i go to the gym instead of work today pls
― forensic plumber (harbl), Monday, 4 March 2019 12:20 (five years ago) link
So far it doesn't feel severe -- it's on one side and it makes it a little hard to put on socks but it's not constantly bothering me. Here's hoping.
― longtime caller, first time listener (man alive), Monday, 4 March 2019 16:04 (five years ago) link
i did something quite similar about a year ago. felt like the "belt" of muscles around my waist/lower back had strained on one side. it took maybe a month and then it was totally better.
― illegal economic migration (Tracer Hand), Monday, 4 March 2019 17:24 (five years ago) link
Trying to figure out what I should avoid during recovery -- it feels like I could still do lunges but squats might be a bad idea. Upper body stuff shouldn't be a problem.
― longtime caller, first time listener (man alive), Monday, 4 March 2019 17:39 (five years ago) link
Yeah that's a good description -- it kind of runs from my right lower back into my right hip. That hip has been tight before fwiw, and I also get tightness in my right shoulder blade. I feel like it all relates and probably all conspires to fuck up my deadlift form.
― longtime caller, first time listener (man alive), Monday, 4 March 2019 17:41 (five years ago) link
this my current routine, everything is 3x10:
Push (Chest/Arms)bench press (barbell)incline bench press (barbell)overhead/shoulder press (dumbbell)skullcrushers (ez bar)
Pull (Back/Biceps)seated wide-grip cable rowpull-up (this isn't actually 3x10, it's more like 3x4 bcz that's really the most I can do)lat pulldownconcentration curl
Legsgoblet squat (kettlebell)lunges (dumbbell)leg presslying leg curl
should I swap some of these out? overhaul it entirely? Dips are fun and would be cool to work back in, also I feel like the pull ups are kind of pointless bcz basically for the past year i've been able to do 3-4 per set and have not improved whatsoever
― vision joanna newsom (Stevie D(eux)), Monday, 4 March 2019 18:26 (five years ago) link
xp
Lower back problems suck! I'd recommend a "first do no harm" approach for at least a day or two ... I think you're right to suspect tightness on that side as affecting your deadlift form, but it will also affect your form on other lifts, especially while it is aggravated. I'd suggest doing workouts other than lifting for a little while until your back feels closer to normal.
I hurt the same part of my back several years ago. Stretching helps, but bodyweight exercises have done the most good, particularly the bird dog, superman, prone leg lift, single-leg deadlift (unloaded), and similar moves; also general core exercises like planks and side planks.
I guess this is conventional wisdom in 2019, but it's worth repeating that doing a lot of sit-ups, crunches, back extensions, good mornings, Russian twists, etc. -- any exercise that requires repeated spinal flexion under load -- is basically asking for back problems. Google "Stuart McGill" for way too much info about spinal biomechanics, rehab, and fitness.
― Brad C., Monday, 4 March 2019 18:31 (five years ago) link
Stevie -- I think part of the question is whether your main goal is strength, bodybuilding or some combination of both. For example arm curl exercise have very little added strength benefit but will make your biceps bigger. Similar with leg press and leg curl, and leg curl.
Also, is that the full routine you do at the gym every time, or are you doing different things different days?
― longtime caller, first time listener (man alive), Monday, 4 March 2019 18:37 (five years ago) link
for pullups, try adding incremental weights (weight belt, ankle weights, etc...), or add additional sets, more rest between sets, fewer sets-higher reps, etc...
― Philip Nunez, Monday, 4 March 2019 18:42 (five years ago) link
oh I should also state I do a 2 minute rest btwn each set of everything
xp I'd say maybe both but leaning slightly more towards bodybuilding? like I def don't want to just get stronger w no physical results but I also don't want to just have huge muscles if I can't actually like lift things better and stuff, though fwiw I don't play any sports or do anything else athletic (except bicycle commuting). Also that's a 3 day split and I (try to) go 3x a week
― vision joanna newsom (Stevie D(eux)), Monday, 4 March 2019 18:55 (five years ago) link
Ok so you have a push day, a pull day, and a leg day? I would recommend changing it up then. At the amount of weight you're lifting, you will get better results lifting more frequently. Maybe do an A/B alternating split and cut one or two exercises from each muscle group. You could do a push/pull day and a leg/core day. At least with the major lifts (bench, squat, OHP) do more sets, heavier weights, and fewer reps. Consider adding deadlift or some variation.
― longtime caller, first time listener (man alive), Monday, 4 March 2019 19:16 (five years ago) link
I'm not a trainer, so take this with a huge grain of salt, but I'd consider cutting the skullcrushers. Also doing bench, incline bench, and OHP all in the same workout seems unnecessary, maybe just bench and OHP.
For pulling, I'd cut the curls.
For legs, the squats and lunges are best. Doing leg press too doesn't seem like it would do any harm, but I'd cut the leg curl.
― longtime caller, first time listener (man alive), Monday, 4 March 2019 19:27 (five years ago) link
I had a deadlift but I took it out bcz it was hurting my lower back but I think I could reintroduce it again
― vision joanna newsom (Stevie D(eux)), Monday, 4 March 2019 20:12 (five years ago) link
I am also doing deadlifts in a corner w a mirror in front of and to the side of me and my form is as A+ as I can get it
― vision joanna newsom (Stevie D(eux)), Monday, 4 March 2019 20:13 (five years ago) link
if it's hurting your lower back something is not right so I wouldn't do it. Maybe a session or two with a trainer first.
― longtime caller, first time listener (man alive), Monday, 4 March 2019 20:17 (five years ago) link
to be fair my lower back *always* hurts, and I started doing physical therapy for it a few months ago and it's gotten much better (and a couple of the PT exercises work on building core strength) so I think could safely revisit it
― vision joanna newsom (Stevie D(eux)), Monday, 4 March 2019 20:45 (five years ago) link
happy to hear about ppl recovering from lower back problems... in october I dove to catch a football and landed weird, and ever since then I have had a ton of lower back pain. Squatting and deadlifting hurts so bad, I haven't been able to do either since this happened. I was at my strongest ever in october, but I've since plateaued or gotten weaker in all my lifts. Even benching hurts sometimes...
I cry about it a lot, it's just so frustrating. And I'm only 23 years old! This should not be happening! I have been doing extensive stretching and foam rolling but the pain has been the same since the incident. I am terrified to go to a doctor. What if they tell me I need surgery? Or, perhaps worse, that they have no idea what's wrong with me?
Beyond the gym, this has been affecting other important aspects of my life - work, sports, sex, sleep - and it has me in a serious rut. If anyone has suggestions for stretches or exercises or just general advice about this, please let me know. Just to describe the pain, it's like a sharp, shooting sensation that radiates from the vertebrae of my mid-lower back whenever i strain the muscles in that area.
― boobie, Monday, 4 March 2019 21:18 (five years ago) link
you gotta go to a physiotherapist asap bud. :/
― illegal economic migration (Tracer Hand), Monday, 4 March 2019 21:32 (five years ago) link
Yeah you need to see someone about that. Could be a disc issue.
― longtime caller, first time listener (man alive), Monday, 4 March 2019 21:48 (five years ago) link
advice from a doctor >>>>>>> advice from strangers on a message board, go to the doc, it is the 1st correct step to dealing w this pain, doctors are great
― vision joanna newsom (Stevie D(eux)), Monday, 4 March 2019 21:54 (five years ago) link
a doctor is not going to say "I don't know what's wrong with you" but even if he did that's already exactly where you're at now, so
― vision joanna newsom (Stevie D(eux)), Monday, 4 March 2019 21:55 (five years ago) link
^ Yes, you need to see a doctor ... it's much better to get a diagnosis and a treatment plan than to not know what's going on and to be in pain all the time. Most doctors are good at what they do, and if they don't know how to treat something, they'll send you to someone who can figure it out.
Extensive stretching and rolling might be reasons why your injury is taking so long to get better. I have hindered the healing of a torn hamstring through over-enthusiastic stretching; when I tore the same muscle again last summer, I left it alone longer before I resumed stretching, and it healed much faster. When tissue is damaged, it needs time and rest to knit back together before you can do it any good with stretching.
It's great that you are 23! That means you're going to heal fast when you get treatment.
― Brad C., Monday, 4 March 2019 21:59 (five years ago) link
Yeah, I guess in the back of my head I've known for a while that I would have to bite the bullet and see a doctor. I was just blindly hoping that it would get better on its own eventually, like the other injuries I've sustained so far in my life. Anyway, thanks for the replies - it helps to have some rational, outside opinions to push me in the right direction. Like I said above, i'm pretty scared of what a doctor might tell me, but it's ultimately the only path to recovery at this point and I would be foolish to let my cowardice get in the way of actually feeling better
― boobie, Monday, 4 March 2019 22:24 (five years ago) link
Are you in the USA? If you have access to a physiatrist, I prefer that specialty to orthopedics when it comes to lower back diagnosis and treatment (oh hi I have a degenerating L disk and have seen all the doctors and done all of the things except surgery).
That's supposed to be Lfive disk, but my numeral five (and six, and the dash) are all broken on my circling the drain chromebook.
― mom tossed in kimchee (quincie), Monday, 4 March 2019 23:31 (five years ago) link
With regard to both training issues and injury issues: if Internet-informed doing it yourself isn't helping, there are folks who make a living at helping you with this stuff. This is also true with regard to every other thing in the world.
― Three Word Username, Tuesday, 5 March 2019 14:29 (five years ago) link
hey stevie, two things i would do which have already been said i think, plus one thing no one has said:
experiment with fewer reps, more weight and more sets on your barbell bench press. i.e. 10-8-6 with heavier progression then drop a bit for a set of 8.do a dumbbell bench press instead of your incline bb benchimagine you're shoving someone you love into an upside-down bed
keep your concentration curls imo, they're great. fuck the curl-haters.
― macropuente (map), Tuesday, 5 March 2019 17:30 (five years ago) link
think about adding some dips or push-ups
― macropuente (map), Tuesday, 5 March 2019 17:33 (five years ago) link
also one thing i'm learning way too recently is that your lats should be engaged when you bench and your elbows should be close to your torso. i connected with this article about it:
https://www.bodybuilding.com/content/the-biomechanics-of-a-safe-strong-bench-press.html
― macropuente (map), Tuesday, 5 March 2019 18:17 (five years ago) link
this article is VERY LONG but the basic gist of it has really helped my bench: https://www.strongerbyscience.com/bench-press-bar-path/
― adam, Tuesday, 5 March 2019 18:38 (five years ago) link
Quincie, I am in the US. San Francisco to be exact - shot in the dark, but if you happen to be in the bay area I would appreciate a physiatrist recommendation
― boobie, Tuesday, 5 March 2019 18:45 (five years ago) link
I’m on the other coast, sorry!
― mom tossed in kimchee (quincie), Tuesday, 5 March 2019 18:49 (five years ago) link
Alan Thrall vids helped me a lot on bench bar path/form. The idea that the bar path is not straight up and down is counterintuitive at first yet makes perfect sense once you learn to do it. Thrall says it helps to think of the way you would naturally shove someone away from you -- your hands would start below your chest but wind up at your chest level when fully extended.
― longtime caller, first time listener (man alive), Tuesday, 5 March 2019 18:53 (five years ago) link
Or I guess more accurately starts around your lower chest and ends at/slightly above your upper chest.
― longtime caller, first time listener (man alive), Tuesday, 5 March 2019 18:55 (five years ago) link
I am very far from stole right now. In January I detached my tibialis anterior ligament in January and after nearly a month stubbing around thinking it was gout or a sprain ended up having surgery to reattach it. Am seriously missing any kind of exercises. I've been flat on my back for the last week but even before that I was unable to do anything. Positively champing at the bit to get into physio but that's still three weeks away.
― American Fear of Pranksterism (Ed), Tuesday, 5 March 2019 21:47 (five years ago) link
imagine you're shoving someone you love into an upside-down bed.
― vision joanna newsom (Stevie D(eux)), Tuesday, 5 March 2019 23:30 (five years ago) link
as part of the bench press! sometimes it's even a good idea to hold them there for an extra second or two.
― macropuente (map), Tuesday, 5 March 2019 23:42 (five years ago) link
so your suggestion would be:
flat barbell benchflat dumbbell benchdumbbell shoulder press
and then no incline?
― vision joanna newsom (Stevie D(eux)), Wednesday, 6 March 2019 16:02 (five years ago) link
map may disagree, but I think it's better to do the dumbbell press on an incline, it's just easier and less risk of injury that way.
― longtime caller, first time listener (man alive), Wednesday, 6 March 2019 16:15 (five years ago) link
it’ll help your over head press as well.
― beard papa, Wednesday, 6 March 2019 16:26 (five years ago) link
uh oh I guess everyone's going to have to have a lift-off to determine whose advice I'll take
― vision joanna newsom (Stevie D(eux)), Wednesday, 6 March 2019 16:28 (five years ago) link
Big time lurker here, but just wanted to respond to the guy with the lower back injury: I had a massive lower back injury when I was about 23. Ended up being a slipped disc. Kept me off my feet for a month, took me a long time to recover. Was just as emotionally devastating as it was physically.
I'm 32 now and in better shape than I've ever been. Lifting weights helped me strengthen my lower back again, and now it's like it never happened. Still irritate the injury once in a while, but keeping myself in shape has kept my recovery time down to a week or two at most.
BUT, I had to take a lot of time to recover to make sure my back was totally okay. For me it took a year or two (had never been to the gym when the injury happened, was pretty out of shape). You've gotta be really patient with yourself, better to take the time to heal now in your 20s, than push yourself and mess up your back for life.
Definitely go see a doctor, first. The news won't be as bad as you're expecting, I'm sure. I ended up getting some pain killers and anti-inflammatories that I took for a couple weeks. People injure their backs all the time. You should get any medical help you need, and just take the time to recover. It might seem frustratingly slow, but be patient with your body. Take the time to recover now so you don't pay the price in the future.
― Travisssss, Wednesday, 6 March 2019 16:54 (five years ago) link
I do incline, bench, and flies. Different muscle groups on each.
Have a similar disc story to Travissss above, but as I FUCKIN' HATE pain pills, I went out of pocket to an anestheologist/pain specialist and got a spinal so that I could start strengthening PT right away (this was with doctor approval -- I lived across the street from a sports ortho clinic at the time and them dudes knew what they were doing.). That was absolutely the right decision for me -- remaining sciatica is minor, and only shows up when the weather is changing the day after I do my back work-out.
― Three Word Username, Wednesday, 6 March 2019 17:30 (five years ago) link
eating a pit beef sandwich and fries for lunch and leaving work early is the recipe for the best bench press sesh
― forensic plumber (harbl), Wednesday, 6 March 2019 23:04 (five years ago) link
that sounds delightful
― macropuente (map), Wednesday, 6 March 2019 23:26 (five years ago) link
i should add that this beef was very rare, it was still moving, it made me as strong as a bull
― forensic plumber (harbl), Wednesday, 6 March 2019 23:42 (five years ago) link
damn Ed that sounds awful! i hope you mend soon
peace and light to all your lower backs
― goole, Thursday, 7 March 2019 20:40 (five years ago) link