Learn from me...stay focused

I've never hurt myself lifting weights...until today. I was squatting 225 using the Starting Strength program, and was concentrating on keeping my knees out and achieving proper depth. Too bad I forgot to keep my chest up and lower back tight. The end result was a muscle pull in my back that makes it hard to even walk or sit up that well.

I'm learning the hard way to respect the weight I'm lifting and to keep everything tight at all times.

I hope I'm good to go again in a week's time, but it could be two. This really sucks, as I was really starting to make some good progress.

Another thing...in Starting Strength increases of five pounds per workout seem to the standard. That worked for a month or so but I think fractional plates and one to two pound increases are the way to go from here on out. I just think it's safer to progress slowly.

That sucks man. I thought I tore something in my shoulder while doing my OHP's a couple of days ago. I was seriously pissed. Turns out it was fully healed within 10 minutes and I was able to do the power cleans afterwards. I was pretty happy about that. Look up some rehab exercises and get a lot of food and rest.

Thanks man. It's actually already starting to feel a little better. Right after it happened I could barely get the weights off the bar.

I'm definitely gonna drop back down to 215 and inch my way up with my new fractional plates though.

I completed my 225x5x3 albeit with a pulled muscle, which probably doesn't count as successful. I find that it's pretty hard to keep all the points of the squat straight in my mind when the weight gets heavy (225 is heavy for me).

If it makes you feel better, I added 10 lbs successfully today.

yeah i remember listening to some michael jackson whilst squatting.

i think it was beat it and my body just loosened up as if ready to dance. lol.

Funny, suffered the same injury myself last Sunday, albeit at a lighter weight. I was back squatting by Wednesday and lifted again today at 10lbs below my highweight. Your strain sounds a little more serious so my advice would be to wait until you're fully healed.

With you on the progression too. The plates are in kgs over here and the lightest are 1.25s, so I have little choice but to go in 5lb increments. It may be going against the advice of SS, but I've been staying on the same weight for a couple of workouts before progressing.

Who said if you don't get hurt you aren't training hard enough?

Originally Posted by LS7

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Funny, suffered the same injury myself last Sunday, albeit at a lighter weight. I was back squatting by Wednesday and lifted again today at 10lbs below my highweight. Your strain sounds a little more serious so my advice would be to wait until you're fully healed.

With you on the progression too. The plates are in kgs over here and the lightest are 1.25s, so I have little choice but to go in 5lb increments. It may be going against the advice of SS, but I've been staying on the same weight for a couple of workouts before progressing.

That's exactly what I was thinking of doing until I found the fractionals at Iron Woody (ridiculous name I know). That way I can keep adding weight, even if it's just a pound at a time. They sell them in kilos too.

Originally Posted by Deluks917

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Who said if you don't get hurt you aren't training hard enough?

Well, if I wasn't pushing myself I probably wouldn't have gotten hurt, so I can see the truth in that.

Also it's good that I learned this lesson at 225 and not 315+. I know a guy who does his sets across (last time I saw him lift) with 435lb/deadlift and 400lb/squat. He gets hella focused before the lift and won't talk to anyone. I actually see the usefulness in that now, as a fuckup in form with 400 pounds on your back could have dire consequences.

Originally Posted by william

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I've never hurt myself lifting weights...until today. I was squatting 225 using the Starting Strength program, and was concentrating on keeping my knees out and achieving proper depth. Too bad I forgot to keep my chest up and lower back tight. The end result was a muscle pull in my back that makes it hard to even walk or sit up that well. I'm learning the hard way to respect the weight I'm lifting and to keep everything tight at all times. I hope I'm good to go again in a week's time, but it could be two. This really sucks, as I was really starting to make some good progress. Another thing...in Starting Strength increases of five pounds per workout seem to the standard. That worked for a month or so but I think fractional plates and one to two pound increases are the way to go from here on out. I just think it's safer to progress slowly.
Erm, progression isn't linear. Stop thinking that way. Starting Strength is not a complete program, it's just a way of learning exercises and basic programming until moving onto other things. Most basic strength programs just adjust volume and total weekly workload. In other words, something like five weeks progressing with the weights being incremented and then an off week or week with reduced volume (something like 3x3 or 1x5) before adding weight again. It depends where the trainee is at, the exercise, other goals, etc. I'll also add that most people add weight and don't actually do any extra work -- they just don't go down as far or mess with their form to wiggle the weight up. This is usually how injuries occur. When I used to train people these exercises there was always a benchmark for them to reach -- if it wasn't reached, no weight was added. I suggest people use something like the safety bars on the full cage to judge depth and incrementally add weights each time they lift instead of tossing on the plates their program calls for and getting started. Most people don't squat far enough at all and end up placing the majority of stress on their spine instead of the much stronger and more elastic hip and knee joints. EDIT: Oh, and you probably have a herniated disc.

Originally Posted by why

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Erm, progression isn't linear. Stop thinking that way. Starting Strength is not a complete program, it's just a way of learning exercises and basic programming until moving onto other things. Most basic strength programs just adjust volume and total weekly workload. In other words, something like five weeks progressing with the weights being incremented and then an off week or week with reduced volume (something like 3x3 or 1x5) before adding weight again. It depends where the trainee is at, the exercise, other goals, etc. I'll also add that most people add weight and don't actually do any extra work -- they just don't go down as far or mess with their form to wiggle the weight up. This is usually how injuries occur. When I used to train people these exercises there was always a benchmark for them to reach -- if it wasn't reached, no weight was added. I suggest people use something like the safety bars on the full cage to judge depth and incrementally add weights each time they lift instead of tossing on the plates their program calls for and getting started. Most people don't squat far enough at all and end up placing the majority of stress on their spine instead of the much stronger and more elastic hip and knee joints. EDIT: Oh, and you probably have a herniated disc.
Interesting. I've actually been at SS for about five weeks. How would you approach SS? I see your recommendation above but would you use the five week then break protocol with any program you used? Also...how long might a herniated disc take to heal?

^ might never be the same.

i see this every day. guy on the incline bench did 20 "reps" at 225 today, each rep ROM averaging about 6 inches

Originally Posted by why

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Erm, progression isn't linear. Stop thinking that way.

Starting Strength is not a complete program, it's just a way of learning exercises and basic programming until moving onto other things. Most basic strength programs just adjust volume and total weekly workload. In other words, something like five weeks progressing with the weights being incremented and then an off week or week with reduced volume (something like 3x3 or 1x5) before adding weight again. It depends where the trainee is at, the exercise, other goals, etc.

I'll also add that most people add weight and don't actually do any extra work -- they just don't go down as far or mess with their form to wiggle the weight up. This is usually how injuries occur. When I used to train people these exercises there was always a benchmark for them to reach -- if it wasn't reached, no weight was added. I suggest people use something like the safety bars on the full cage to judge depth and incrementally add weights each time they lift instead of tossing on the plates their program calls for and getting started. Most people don't squat far enough at all and end up placing the majority of stress on their spine instead of the much stronger and more elastic hip and knee joints.

EDIT: Oh, and you probably have a herniated disc.

Originally Posted by why

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Erm, progression isn't linear. Stop thinking that way.

Starting Strength is not a complete program, it's just a way of learning exercises and basic programming until moving onto other things. Most basic strength programs just adjust volume and total weekly workload. In other words, something like five weeks progressing with the weights being incremented and then an off week or week with reduced volume (something like 3x3 or 1x5) before adding weight again. It depends where the trainee is at, the exercise, other goals, etc.

I'll also add that most people add weight and don't actually do any extra work -- they just don't go down as far or mess with their form to wiggle the weight up. This is usually how injuries occur. When I used to train people these exercises there was always a benchmark for them to reach -- if it wasn't reached, no weight was added. I suggest people use something like the safety bars on the full cage to judge depth and incrementally add weights each time they lift instead of tossing on the plates their program calls for and getting started. Most people don't squat far enough at all and end up placing the majority of stress on their spine instead of the much stronger and more elastic hip and knee joints.

EDIT: Oh, and you probably have a herniated disc.

This is spot on and something I've noticed in my own experience with SS. I was making what I thought was remarkable progress until I hit a wall in some exercises. My form was a little off on the DL, squat, BP, and OHP (not to mention power cleans which I think I'll never perfect). I had to go back and relearn almost all of it. Now I feel a lot more comfortable with the lifts and I'm very strict on form and ROM. You want to eliminate as many variables as possible and keeping strict form will give you a better indication of how your body is responding. Now I'm making slower progress, but I know for sure that it is progress and not me cheating myself.

Originally Posted by RedLantern

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^ might never be the same.

Actually it's a muscle on the right side of my back so I doubt it has anything to do with my spine.

Originally Posted by william

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Also...how long might a herniated disc take to heal?

It took me 6 weeks to get back to 100% the first time; it took closer to 6 months the second.