I know sometimes it is okay to workout with a little bit of DOMS. However, on Monday I did my second workout B of Stage 1 and I attempted proper deadlifts for the first time. My form going up was pretty good I think, but bringing the weight back down I knew I was putting stress on my back. I think I was rounding it, and although I stacked a couple of 25lb weights to raise it up higher, it still didn’t hit mid shin.
Anyway, I wasn’t lifting too heavy, just 65 lbs, so I don’t think I injured myself… I could tell my back was going to be sore when I finished the deadlifts, but there wasn’t any sharp pain indicating injury. Anyway, so Tuesday I woke up VERY stiff and sore in my lower back. Couldn’t hardly bend over and definitely felt it when I lifted anything. It stayed sore all day and I stretched and applied heat for a little bit in the evening. Woke up this morning and I’m feeling a little better, still a little stiff and sore but not as bad.
Today I’m due for workout A, not B, but I’m not sure if I should be doing squats with lower back pain? Should I just stick to body weight today? I really don’t want to get behind on my workouts, but I will if I have to.
Hmmmm.....I'm always a bit more cautious with back pain. Are you reversing the movement on the way back down (ie bending your knees back to the start position?). If you were rounding your back, that's not good. The deadlift should not hurt your back.
I'd be very careful and watch your back pain to make sure it isn't more than DOMS. You might want to watch some videos on DLing, too, to make sure your form is right.
So should I do bodyweight for squats today, or just reschedule my workout?
And I've since been researching more deadlift videos and I think I understand better now, I know I was going back down wrong, I was bending my knees way too late. I also wondered if it was okay, next time I deadlift, to pause a little longer between reps so I can reset and make sure I get it right. I figured form over speed, right?
Also, watch your posture in the hours that follow your workout. NO SLOUCHING while watching TV or sitting in front of the computer! (Lesson learned the hard way...)
Also, I know I had a few episodes of lower back soreness in the beginning because I wasn't keeping the bar against my legs as I was coming down. I kept wanting to have the bar a couple inches away from my body on the descent and it put too much strain on my lower back. Once I cleaned up my form, no more soreness.
That does help I've heard about keeping it close to my legs, how exactly do you avoid hitting your knees? I keep hearing "don't do it" but if I'm going down my legs.... Hope my questions aren't too dumb. I really have researched, and I still don't understand fully.
Wow, you really keep the bar against your legs the whole time? I keep trying not to hit my legs, maybe that is why I can squat more than I DL. I increased my DL to 85 lbs (bar + 20 on each side) and I am definately sore in my lower back and there is no way I could have lifted more. I don't have back pain but I am VERY stiff today. I am very careful to squat below parallel and I hit 115 lbs during my last A workout. I feel like if there were less reps (which there will be) I will easily be able to increase my squat weight even more.
Jane suggested that I take a movie of myself, but I don't have the equipment to do that. I really hope I'm doing this right...
Wow, you really keep the bar against your legs the whole time? I keep trying not to hit my legs, maybe that is why I can squat more than I DL. I increased my DL to 85 lbs (bar + 20 on each side) and I am definately sore in my lower back and there is no way I could have lifted more. I don't have back pain but I am VERY stiff today. I am very careful to squat below parallel and I hit 115 lbs during my last A workout. I feel like if there were less reps (which there will be) I will easily be able to increase my squat weight even more.
If you're trying not to hit your legs with the bar, you're off-balance for a DL, with the weight too far in front of you, which would definitely put too much stress on your lower back.
I'd also suggest double-checking your definition of parallel - it's not the bottom of your thigh (hamstring area) that goes parallel, it's the top-line (quad area). So it actually looks like you're way below parallel if you look at the butt and back of the thigh.
Not saying you're not hitting parallel - just confirming that everyone is using the same definitions
Good news... today at the gym, as I was just finishing my last set of deadlifts, one of the personal trainers came over because he saw me lift my heels on the very last rep (I had increased the weight to a new record for me bar + 50 = 95 lbs). He told me that he just happened to look over and asked if I lift my heels up on every rep. I told him that it was just that last rep due to the increase in weight. Anyway, I told him I wasn't sure if I was doing them right in the first place and he offered to watch my form. While I rested for a minute, I had time to talk about the program. I told him I was doing the New Rules for Women and he seemed pleasantly surprised. He said that he had noticed me lifting last week and it looked like I was pretty "serious". He asked me if I was eating enough and also wanted to make sure I wasn't doing too much cardio. He mentioned that if I do any cardio, I should be doing intervals. Basically the things he said were right in line with the book.
So now for the good news... he said my form looked great. Then he demonstrated for me so I could see him do it. I feel so much more confident about it now. The tip he left me with was to take a breath in and tighten my lower stomach to create a "block" before standing up. He said that would take alot of the stress off of my lower back.
So my faith that there are some great trainers out there has been restored. He was friendly, helpful, not cocky, and nothing he said contradicted the book (which I consider my bible).
ugh! Too true for sooo many hordes of people. So glad I live w/in 5 miles of my office.
You know, I lived in Austin for 10 years, then moved to Orange County. Everyone I have ever talked to complains about the bad traffic in OC. Well, after I moved here, I decided that these people have never driven in rush hour in Austin; they have no idea what bad traffic really is. The traffic in OC is non-existent! I have never seen roads and highways that flow like they do here; there are so many lanes that even when there's a wreck there are enough lanes to go around, and even in the worst rush hour, the traffic still moves at 35-50 mph. The worst I have ever been tied up is for about 10 minutes one morning due to a wreck that literally just happened.
Maybe it's different in north county, but where I live in south county, it's a breeze. You don't know what traffic is until you've driven Mopac at rush hour and gone 5 miles in 45 minutes!
DOMS lower back?
I'll see how I feel later, and maybe I'll try to fit my workout in tomorrow instead (thursdays are tough!)
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