Every time I work out I hurt myself...help please
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You will learn so much joining the eat train progress group. Personally I have to start very slowly and then work harder gradually. I am only using the bar right now for squats and bench. You are much younger so it won't take you that long. My husband has videos that explain proper form for squats etc. I know you can't take them in the gym but they can be of great help. Good luck to you!0
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Back to the original topic... I also suffer with back, neck, and hip problems. I've gone all out like you and hurt myself as well. Then I decided to start with bodyweight exercises to gain strength and learn technique. Then I started hitting the weights at the gym. I think the sole most important thing has been stated here somewhere. Listen to your body. Listen closely. Write down what you did and how you felt afterward. As excited as I was to join a new gym with a squat rack, I've now realized I cannot do squats. The bar, with no weight, pressing on my vertebrae, causes both my hands to go numb... for several days!! So, I adjusted my workouts. I still do dead lifts, and other leg exercises, just no squats. I have to do the leg press.:( So, start light, get your form down, then proceed cautiously.
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If you can find it I absolutely love YogaZone Yoga for Beginners dvd. It's only about an hour, but he gives 4 different difficulty levels for each pose and manages to be both relaxing and motivating. I sit on my butt all day and avoided P.E like the plague ALL through school and even I can do it.
It doesn't matter if you're flexible or not; like the man says "just go as far as you can, you will get better with practice". 0 -
theutahdesertfox wrote: »UltimateRBF wrote: »OP accuses responder of being hyperdefensive...by lashing out. Oh the irony.
Nah, not lashing out. Just not being a doormat. Do you unpleasant people just go around every thread like this?
name calling = not being a doormat. Got it OP
This was a funny thread. Where exactly is the butthurt in this thread besides for someone trying to be a badass on the internet. The profanity, name calling. Those are qualities of being butthurt.
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theutahdesertfox wrote: »MelissaPhippsFeagins wrote: »Pay for a month with a person all trainer. You need someone to watch and correct you as you go, before you hurt yourself.
Yeah, I think this is as valuable as it gets. I've already learned that youtube trainers can only tell me so much (and they all say different things anyway, go this low for a squat, don't do this exercise it's useless, etc etc) Time to work some overtime and save up I guess....
I just found a trainer through a friend of a friend who will do sessions for $20/hr. So ask around and see if you know anyone who knows any cheap PTs ):
Also try this for some nice, light, stretchy yoga with a super instructor:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5NLfXOpnho 0 -
theutahdesertfox wrote: »Okay, so here's the brief background.
I grew up on a farm and my early life consisted of a TON of manual labor not meant for a small malnourished body. I ended up needing physical therapy at the age of 15 due to already-complicated back problems.
As an adult I derped my way around fitness; I'm an avid biker and that was always my default exercise but I've been trying to get into lifting weights. I love it more than I can tell; I totally zone out at the gym and go into beast mode and all is right with the world.
The problem is that I beast mode too hard. I don't have any training on these things. I end up with a pulled muscle one week, low back pain the next week, and it just feels like everything I do is wrong. I youtube videos on form, but don't really know what else to do to improve. It's so frustrating because I work out for a week only to end up hurt so badly I have to abandon the gym for a week or two, and that just kills my motivation.
My back problems are pretty fun to list; reverse c spine, kyphosis, hyperlordosis, anterior pelvic tilt, and apparently my head leans too far to the right. I do see a chiropractor who does a pretty specific kind of chiropractic (NUCCA) and it's definitely helped, but still...I've seen him for over a year and progress is slow at best on all these issues.
Things like yoga are particularly uncomfortable for me, because of my inflexibility and weakness. I've been thinking about trying pilates because I know a lot of my back problems can be solved by strengthening my core. I want to keep going to the gym because well...I love it there, it's my sanctuary, but at this point I'm afraid to do anything more than run on the elliptical because I'm tired of getting injuries.
Any tips you guys have are appreciated and welcomed. I am a pretty smart person I'd like to think, but in the realm of strengthening my body I fully admit to being a dimwit. But I am a dimwit ready to take advice.
Are you seeing a dr with all these issues? A physical therapist? Do you have a list of exercises you should or shouldn't be doing? If not, this is where I would start. Maybe an appointment with a sport's dr?0 -
Sorry about that yoga instructor :-/ My suggestions: 1) do more machine weights but go much lighter for now. 2) do more core exercises 3) stretch a lot
Every workout for me includes some sort of cardio warmup, core exercising, and stretching my whole body, not just the muscle group I worked that day. Machine weights do a better gob at isolating muscle groups and encouraging form. Don't get me wrong, we can still totally ruin form on a machine, but sit-up, engage your core, and follow the pictures. I am getting back in to shape but was a former athlete, so me squatting a weight I used to lift feels GREAT... Until I can barely make it through the next three days. For me, it's muscle soreness, not back-related, but I think the same principle applies: back off a lot and then try to find your limit.0 -
I had the same issues (as I have a very bad back) until I realized I have to keep my core engaged for all exercises if I don't want to end up with a pinched nerve or any other severe back pain and a lot of stretches, especially back, legs and hips.
Most gyms offer one free personal training session/assessment where they teach you how to use the machines properly and give you advice according to your health condition.
Also most gyms offer FREE classes, some cardio, some with weights that you should try like Group Power, Body Pump etc...
I only do classes at the gym 99% of the time and I absolutely love them
Yoga can be tricky unless its a back care/rehab type of yoga with proper teacher; or if you know exactly what the issue is with your back and what NOT to do. Regular yoga class hurt my back very bad every time I tried.
Hope this helps!0 -
coreyreichle wrote: »theutahdesertfox wrote: »If you have a history of back problems, I'd recommend you see your doctor and maybe get a physio referral. They can advise you on stretches and exercises that can help. At least that might help whilst you save up for a personal training session
The worst thing for you to do is go adding injury to your existing problems
Very true. My chiro has given me exercises and stretches to do in the past, but he's also pretty irritated at me because I don't like any of the advice he gives--running barefoot, not using the elliptical (something about it's an unnatural gait) my mindset has always been to just get up and do SOMETHING because for years I suffered really intense chronic depression. If I'm out and moving, then I feel like a different person. But apparently I don't move correctly :P
Run away from your chiro. Chiropractors aren't doctors, they're a step above a licensed masseuse. It's even a shame health insurance covers them.
Since you're injuring often, firstly, get a referral to a physical therapist. It's possible you have some muscular/skeletal issues causing that above and beyond "beast mode".
Newbies, while prone to hurting themselves, don't usually do so. The pain hits at the right spot, and they stop and don't do it again. A physical therapist can rule out a structural issue.
Then, I'd suggest building a base level of fitness: Doing some treadmill/elliptical stuff to get your cardio health at a good level. For strength training, start on plyometric exercises. It's very difficult to injure yourself using your own body weight. Once you get the base (After about a month or so), then start into free weights and high intensity cardio.
I actually agree on the point of the chiro. I tend to take everything he says with a grain of salt because chiropractic is not really a science, as you said, he's pretty much a masseuse who knows how to move bones. With that said, he is different than your standard hack and crack, and he takes xrays periodically--there IS improvement there, as far as my spinal issues go at any rate.
Still, with the amount of issues I'm having lately, and discussing on this thread it definitely warrants looking into physical therapy. Not sure what to search for--at the moment I don't have a GP and can't get a referral. Just google physical therapists? Any info is appreciated on that as well.
I will continue with cardio, I have made really awesome improvements in my cardio since I started (this all started last September) so I'm hoping the fact that I can still run will keep me motivated. And I'm now starting to look into bodyweight exercises, so we'll see how that goes. Thank you so much for your comment. 0 -
theutahdesertfox wrote: »theutahdesertfox wrote: »macgurlnet wrote: »If you want to do strength training, it sounds like you would really benefit from a few sessions with a personal trainer. That can be a bit expensive, but he/she can help you make sure you've got proper form and don't push yourself too hard. Check with your gym and find out how much it would cost.
It sounds like your main problem is pushing too hard - looking to get results and pushing yourself too far beyond your body's current limitations. I totally get that it's frustrating, but you HAVE to listen to your body and just go a little beyond what it can do right now, not miles past that point. Generally, if it hurts, stop RIGHT THEN and don't do it anymore. Over time, you'll get more familiar with what you can and can't do and will know the difference between "this hurts because I'm not used to it yet" and "this hurts and is going to become an injury if I don't back off."
Pilates and yoga both require some strength, too. Many yoga poses can be modified to what YOU'RE comfortable with and you can gradually work your way towards "proper" form. The whole point of yoga is to increase flexibility so your lack thereof initially is totally ok! Did you go to the class or just workout at home? Attending a class might be the way to go.
My upper body strength is abysmal at present, but I've just been modifying my yoga workouts to accommodate - holding poses for less time, using yoga blocks/benches to modify poses, etc, until I can start lifting and get some strength in my arms!
Best of luck
~Lyssa
Thanks for this. I really don't have the money for a personal trainer but, I should definitely find some way to cough it up. I don't think that my youtubeing is really doing much good. It's just so many things to remember--and I have thyroid disease so my memory is bad to start with. But the thing is it doesn't ever hurt at the gym, it feels great. It's always about three days later that my lower back feels like somebody put a shotgun up to it and pulled the trigger...or I can't lift my left arm...you know...haha fun stuff like that.
I've tried yoga classes and they're just awful to me. Firstly I'm not into the whole hippie thing, I don't know what it means to "breathe into your hips" or whatever, and I've been chastised for not 'ohming' and also for not getting my own brick/blanket--I don't know anything about modified poses and when the teacher came to help me she was flustered and visibly annoyed that she was disrupting class to help a newbie. So yeah, yoga is basically a no go. I do try some classes at home, where I do the poses extra bad but I like to stretch. And the people in the videos don't make a fool out of me so that's always a plus.
Anyway thanks for the advice!
Sounds like you stumbled across an awful yoga instructor. If you go see another one, try to go early, let them know you've not done much yoga and let them know of your issues. They'll need to give you modifications as you go along. I took yoga for a long time in my gym - they had mats, bricks everything. You could bring your own, but it's not expected in all locations by any means
You can do this. Don't let an evil mean *kitten* scare you off...
Thank you for this
The thing is, I've tried going to yoga multiple times, because I know that my lack of flexibility is a problem. That class just stands out as one of many failures. I am self conscious as it is, due to my lack of mobility, but I'm unfamiliar with yoga terms and yoga culture as a whole. And if anyone says "there's no such thing as yoga culture" they're totally full of it. I just didn't enjoy anything about it other than the actual stretches themselves--I felt stressed, anxious, and stupid. And that's in several different yoga centers. Several different "new student" orientations. Basically yoga in a class setting is just not for me.
I can't do yoga either. The beginner class was a killer. Tried other classes, and while nobody was mean to me, lying on my back with soft music doesn't let me see what I am supposed to be doing. Plus it makes me fart. So no go there.0 -
brianpperkins wrote: »AllOutof_Bubblegum wrote: »UltimateRBF wrote: »theutahdesertfox wrote: »brianpperkins wrote: »theutahdesertfox wrote: »brianpperkins wrote: »Learn proper form ... learn self discipline ... combine the two.
No *kitten*, sherlock....
So you don't just lack self discipline in the weight room as evident here.
No amount of lessons from a trainer will help until you learn to operate within limits unless you plan on having somebody there to restrain you every time you choose to go into "beast mode".
The amount of smugness on this site, I always forget about it. Haha. Go run and preach somewhere else.
I post saying "I don't know proper form"
Your response
"Learn proper form"
Genius. Why aren't you running the country?!?!?!
It's generally considered poor etiquette to ask for advice and then insult the people who give you advice.
This would be true if the person had actually offered real advice, rather than suggesting vague, condescending generalities that OP obviously already knew.
So, according to you, she already knows the answer and is willfully acting against that knowledge?
According to YOU, there was no real knowledge offered.
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I can't do yoga either. The beginner class was a killer. Tried other classes, and while nobody was mean to me, lying on my back with soft music doesn't let me see what I am supposed to be doing. Plus it makes me fart. So no go there.[/quote]
HAHAHHAHAHAHAH oh thank god. I thought I was the only person who didn't do yoga there for a second. I totally agree, I guess I just don't have a yoga mindset. And if I had been a little more flexible I probably totally would have ripped a few. I heard it from others in the classes. And smelled it.....
on the plus side maybe it's better that I went in there stiff as a board lol0 -
You will learn so much joining the eat train progress group. Personally I have to start very slowly and then work harder gradually. I am only using the bar right now for squats and bench. You are much younger so it won't take you that long. My husband has videos that explain proper form for squats etc. I know you can't take them in the gym but they can be of great help. Good luck to you!
Thank you so much!0 -
Back to the original topic... I also suffer with back, neck, and hip problems. I've gone all out like you and hurt myself as well. Then I decided to start with bodyweight exercises to gain strength and learn technique. Then I started hitting the weights at the gym. I think the sole most important thing has been stated here somewhere. Listen to your body. Listen closely. Write down what you did and how you felt afterward. As excited as I was to join a new gym with a squat rack, I've now realized I cannot do squats. The bar, with no weight, pressing on my vertebrae, causes both my hands to go numb... for several days!! So, I adjusted my workouts. I still do dead lifts, and other leg exercises, just no squats. I have to do the leg press.:( So, start light, get your form down, then proceed cautiously.
It's nice to hear from someone who suffers similar--though I'm very sorry you have to deal with the pain.
It's become clear to me that I really do need to focus on bodyweight exercises right now. Just because I can squat with 15-20 lbs doesn't mean I CAN do it....you know? Anyway, I think the writing down is a fantastic idea too. It's been something I've never really tracked, I'm pretty scatterbrained, but now's the time to focus on that. so I'll keep a fitness record journal starting now!
Thanks so much<3
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scorpiophoenix wrote: »If you can find it I absolutely love YogaZone Yoga for Beginners dvd. It's only about an hour, but he gives 4 different difficulty levels for each pose and manages to be both relaxing and motivating. I sit on my butt all day and avoided P.E like the plague ALL through school and even I can do it. It doesn't matter if you're flexible or not; like the man says "just go as far as you can, you will get better with practice".
I'll look into it! The only yoga I enjoy is at home video yoga Thanks!
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theutahdesertfox wrote: »MelissaPhippsFeagins wrote: »Pay for a month with a person all trainer. You need someone to watch and correct you as you go, before you hurt yourself.
Yeah, I think this is as valuable as it gets. I've already learned that youtube trainers can only tell me so much (and they all say different things anyway, go this low for a squat, don't do this exercise it's useless, etc etc) Time to work some overtime and save up I guess....
I just found a trainer through a friend of a friend who will do sessions for $20/hr. So ask around and see if you know anyone who knows any cheap PTs ):
Also try this for some nice, light, stretchy yoga with a super instructor:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5NLfXOpnho
Thanks so much for this! And yes I will ask around and maybe google or yelp some locals
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JoReddBowe wrote: »Sorry about that yoga instructor :-/ My suggestions: 1) do more machine weights but go much lighter for now. 2) do more core exercises 3) stretch a lot
Every workout for me includes some sort of cardio warmup, core exercising, and stretching my whole body, not just the muscle group I worked that day. Machine weights do a better gob at isolating muscle groups and encouraging form. Don't get me wrong, we can still totally ruin form on a machine, but sit-up, engage your core, and follow the pictures. I am getting back in to shape but was a former athlete, so me squatting a weight I used to lift feels GREAT... Until I can barely make it through the next three days. For me, it's muscle soreness, not back-related, but I think the same principle applies: back off a lot and then try to find your limit.
Thank you for this. I've been thinking that as well, about the stretching. I have flexibility and mobility issues to start with, and I believe that my squat problem (my lower back always rounds) is due to tight hip flexors. So I will be incorporating a lot of foam rolling and pathetic attempts at yoga into my fitness now....I guess I just thought I could ignore that and lift things but nope....
Also, any physical therapist/anyone who knows about backs would say that core strength is vital for the spine and that's one of my biggest weak spots for certain. So again, thank you for this...I appreciate the advice.
One question though; I use free weights and have read plenty of research on the shortcomings of machines; would they really work in my case do you think?0 -
I had the same issues (as I have a very bad back) until I realized I have to keep my core engaged for all exercises if I don't want to end up with a pinched nerve or any other severe back pain and a lot of stretches, especially back, legs and hips.
Most gyms offer one free personal training session/assessment where they teach you how to use the machines properly and give you advice according to your health condition.
Also most gyms offer FREE classes, some cardio, some with weights that you should try like Group Power, Body Pump etc...
I only do classes at the gym 99% of the time and I absolutely love them
Yoga can be tricky unless its a back care/rehab type of yoga with proper teacher; or if you know exactly what the issue is with your back and what NOT to do. Regular yoga class hurt my back very bad every time I tried.
Hope this helps!
It's so true about the core. I was so out of shape when I started that I literally couldn't even engage my core. I could suck in my stomach but couldn't "harden" my abs, you know what I mean? Now that I have the ability to do that I make an effort with every exercise. It makes such a difference.
My gym does have free classes! I stopped by today and took a pic of the schedule. They have pilates which I'm excited to try, and zumba which I'm less excited about, but as long as I'm moving and doing something I'll count it and try not to look like an idiot.
I'm happy to hear I'm not the only one who had pain with yoga...everyone's all "feel that beautiful magical serene lower back stretch" and I felt like somebody jabbed the tip of a hot poker in between my vertebrae...hahaha. Not peaceful and reflective....
Thank you so much for the reply!
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Well, philosophical aspect of yoga is a lot about self-awareness, giving up judgment, accepting, learning not to overthink. It's not a hippie thing.0
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AllOutof_Bubblegum wrote: »brianpperkins wrote: »AllOutof_Bubblegum wrote: »UltimateRBF wrote: »theutahdesertfox wrote: »brianpperkins wrote: »theutahdesertfox wrote: »brianpperkins wrote: »Learn proper form ... learn self discipline ... combine the two.
No *kitten*, sherlock....
So you don't just lack self discipline in the weight room as evident here.
No amount of lessons from a trainer will help until you learn to operate within limits unless you plan on having somebody there to restrain you every time you choose to go into "beast mode".
The amount of smugness on this site, I always forget about it. Haha. Go run and preach somewhere else.
I post saying "I don't know proper form"
Your response
"Learn proper form"
Genius. Why aren't you running the country?!?!?!
It's generally considered poor etiquette to ask for advice and then insult the people who give you advice.
This would be true if the person had actually offered real advice, rather than suggesting vague, condescending generalities that OP obviously already knew.
So, according to you, she already knows the answer and is willfully acting against that knowledge?
According to YOU, there was no real knowledge offered.
How do you come to that conclusion?
Also, are you ever going to contribute to the OP's issue or are you only here to comment on what I contribute? Two posts from you in this thread, both about me with nothing regarding the OP's issue.0
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