Working out with back pain
Hello everyone: I am 14 months post op and have lost about 160 lbs. I joined a gym 09/2006 and have been going pretty regularly (4-5 days per week) doing 30 minutes cardio and 30 min abs and weights. My problem is that 11/2006 I hurt my back and have been in pain ever since. I had an MRI which stated I had mild problems and a herniated disk which was not touching the nerve. The problem is the pain is not going away. It is so bad this week that I have not been to the gym in four days straight which is not like me. Does anyone have any suggestions for how to get around this probem as it mandatory for me to continue my workouts.
Sorry to hear about the back problems. They can take forever to heal properly. I've had various pinched nerves and sprained back issues over the years, some more severe than others. I even broke vertebrae in my neck once.
First, if it hurts…don’t do it. I’m not a doctor and can’t see how it’s affecting you first hand so if you feel extreme pain…stop. There will be some pain, I don’t see any way around it. But I’ll tell you some things that worked for me.
Walk. Not treadmill on level 15, huffing and puffing and swinging the arms stuff. Just do a slow walk, shuffle if you have to, around the block or yard or on a low incline treadmill. Simple walking is probably one the best rehab exercises there is. Don’t pu****; just getting the movement in is the important part.
Abs stuff you’ll have to experiment with. I like an exercise called standing abs or pull down abs. I use it every day as part of my warmup, it decompresses the spine a little, hits the abs hard and bonus…you don’t have to get up and down off the floor or bench, which is a major issue with a back injury. I found a description but no pictures. Then there’s always the standard crunches or Hanging leg raises would also help to decompress the spine. I like to just hang from a chinning bar to decompress my spine after a squat workout.
“Pull Down Abs: Begin by placing a rope or leather tricep handle on the lat pulldown machine. face away from the machine and grab the rope behind your head with both hands. Perform the movement in the same motion as a deadlift. Start by pushing your abs out then tighten them as hard as you can. Bend over at the waist until your torso goes below parallel to the floor. Reverse the motion in the same manner.”
I had good success with broomstick ab work when I had my back issues too. Like good mornings or side bends with a broom stick on my shoulders. The good mornings (bend overs) are a great rehab exercises.
As far as general conditioning, try more machines. When I hurt my back the last time, I couldn’t lay down on a bench, so used machines bench press where you just sit in the machine. You’ll have to experiment and see what works and what doesn’t.
Good luck.
Earl
