Reconditioning Part II

For my previous injury-related post regarding knees, shoulders, and hips, read this.

Back

When initiating a back rehabilitation routine, it is important to remember a few key spinal qualities.  Firstly, and perhaps most importantly, the spinal extensors are static muscles.  Unlike other skeletal muscles, which stretch and contract in order to facilitate movement, these extensors are only meant to hold a static, stable position with a (relatively speaking) very limited range of motion.  To perform this function, the spine is held in place not by one or two pairs of extensors, but by many overlapping pairs of varying lengths.  This network stabilizes and supports the spine, while myriad other skeletal muscles use this layered foundation to rotate, extend, lift, and lower the shoulders, arms, neck, and legs--there are almost no activities which do not affect the back.  This means that this musculature can both withstand and exert an extreme amount of force, making it highly resilient but also highly susceptible to injury--especially if the spine is not supported properly.  And in spite of this strength and resilience, the back is still fairly delicate, so working around an injury involving the back may contraindicate lots of exercises, even for non-affected areas.  Sharp pain is usually a good indicator that an exercise or stretch should not be performed—this is not to be confused with muscular “discomfort” that needs to be explored and pushed!

Reconditioning Part I

My last post covered injury prevention techniques and can be read here.

Let's say it's too late for prevention and you've already hurt yourself in some way.  Whether the injury is severe or mild,  a proper rehabilitation protocol needs to be implemented immediately in order to prevent further regression and inhibition.  You'd be surprised how many people have "life changing injuries" that could have been just "injuries."  Immediate effort to restore function and mobility can be the difference between complete restoration or lasting disability.  Here are some basic rehab techniques for common problem areas.

Injury Prevention 101

When people think about lifting weights, they primarily think about becoming more muscular.  But the benefits of weight lifting extend far beyond that.  As I've discussed previously, weight lifting can have positive effects on both the endocrine and metabolic system.  But pumping iron also aids bone density and strengthens connective tissue--a desirable side effect that is often overlooked.  Working at a physical therapy office, I see a wide range of patients with a wide range of injuries that need to be rehabilitated, but the one trait they share is that their injuries could have either been prevented, or at the very least ameliorated, by strength training.  I'm not saying people don't hurt themselves doing stupid things; I am saying that doing stupid things won't hurt as badly if you develop your body.  Here are a few more ways to help keep yourself from going under the knife.

Work It, Just Not Too Hard

Tendonitis and tendinosus are two very common symptoms of overuse.  They are slightly different, yet overlapping; meaning that one could very well be misdiagnosed as the other, and vice versa.  In most cases, varying degrees of both would occur in the same individual, even in the same injury.  For most people, these are symptoms of chronic over-use, but for a few, these can simply be the aches and pains associated with a new training regimen.  In untrained individuals, some initial joint pain is to be expected, in addition to the usual delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS).  When new training elements are introduced, or when a sharp increase in activity occurs, acute tendonitis and tendinosus are common--untrained skeletal muscle and connective tissue exhaust more quickly than trained tissues, so even a daily workout will seem like over-use to a muscle that is accustomed to doing nothing.