REHABBING YOUR INJURIES

Powerlifting Articles

REHABBING YOUR INJURIES

  Every lifter gets to meet Mr. Injury before their careers are over. Mr. Injury is an unforgiving man. He takes your pride, your self-esteem and even sometimes your dignity away from you. He comes at times you least expect him and he can be as nasty as the stomach flu that leaves you with cramps, fatigue and wriggling in pain.

  Powerlifting is a process of climbing the personal ladder of greatness. Each of us has our own ladder length of success that we try to climb. Some climb higher than others, and some don’t really care how high they climb, it’s just being on the ladder that makes it fun. But anytime lifters climb that ladder or personal improvement to better their lifts, they push their bodies to the limit of exhaustion, over stimulation and extreme soreness and pain. And, when we push too far, Mr. Injury shows up and wreaks havoc on our plans for competing.

  Mr. Injury visited me recently and took me down with him to a deep, dark place that every lifter fears to go-it’s called “the land of the weak and humble”. As I visit this place and attempt to go home, I am reminded of the lyrics from the Eagles song Hotel California... ”you can check out anytime you like, but you can never leave...” Below are some things I have learned and offer as experienced advice. Some of it is new that I have learned and some of it is drawn from when Mr. Injury visited me years ago when I tore my bicep and nearly ended my career. Take from it what you can and may Mr. Injury stay away from you for as long as possible.

DECIDE IMMEDIATELY AFTER MR. INJURY VISITS IF YOU ARE GOING TO COMPETE AGAIN OR NOT. The hardest part of injury to the average powerlifter is the thought of knowing you are out of commission for a while. The physical pain isn’t fun either. The body will do what you tell it to. If you mentally quit, decide that competing isn’t worth it, then that’s ok, but at least rehab yourself so you still have normal everyday function. Little injuries need not worry about that last remark, but for serious injuries requiring surgery or months of rehab, that is extremely important.

  Truthfully, rehab to compete again and rehab to just get healthy will require a different plan of attack in your efforts to take Mr. Injury out. Rehab from surgery and major trauma will at some point become painful. I have been there-I know. Some lifters simply aren’t willing to go through the pain and discomfort it takes to get back into competition mode. Some lifters aren’t even willing to go through the pain and discomfort it takes to just get back to normal everyday living and they now live their lives in pain with limited range of motion to the affected body area and sometimes lack of function.

  The greatest thing you can do for your family and yourself is put yourself through the pain and work it takes to get back to normal function for everyday living. It pays off big dividends down the road. It pays off even greater if you can compete again and overcome the very thing that took you down. Live and learn and get over the anger that is inside you from Mr. Injury. Channel the anger into the drive for your workouts and your improvement. When the times get tough, and they will, you will need it.

GO SLOW! A beginner or average powerlifter may understand this part better. As you get better and more competitive, this will be very hard to do. Can you imagine going to the gym each day, training relentlessly, exhausting yourself and then putting the brakes on and half-assing it? That’s what you do after a major injury. You will have to answer questions from other people about why your strength has dropped, and whether you’re still competing and what happened and how long until it’s better. It never ends. Everyone means well, but it just drives you nuts.

  Don’t push yourself to the point where you re-injure yourself and set your recovery time backwards. Of all the things you do, this you will most likely fail at least once. Active recovery is good and certainly better than just doing nothing, but only if it doesn’t make the injury worse.

USE A VARIETY OF EXERCISES WITH MORE REPETITIONS. One good thing about being injured and out is there isn’t a better time to try new exercises, use lighter weights and more reps. Educate yourself about your injured area and come up with different exercises you can use to strengthen, stretch and get blood flow to that area.

  Remember, no one cares but you about how much you lift in the gym. If you have your own place to train, you won’t have to deal with the mental issues there, but in a populated gym, you may experience the frustration of people seeing you lift lighter weights. So, go light, with lots of reps and a variety to target that affected body part. Common sense says consult your physician and/or your physical therapist.

SPEED UP RECOVERY WITH ICE, HEAT, MASSAGE AND ULTRASOUND. When in doubt you are always safe with ice. Use ice to control swelling and pain and try to use it after workouts. A general rule is to avoid heat in the first 48 hours of injury. For major injuries, that rule doesn’t apply. It may take weeks or in some cases, never, to use heat.

  Massage helps blood flow to the affected area and in cases of major trauma, helps remove excessive pooling and reduces clotting which can lead to heart attacks. Major injuries require this. If you have a good health plan take advantage of it and use this portion of your plan to help you get better. In dire times of poverty, ask the spouse for help in this area. Who knows, it may lead to more added benefits!

  Ultrasound is an added benefit if you are under the care of a PT. This procedure helps deep tissue repair. An added benefit of seeing a PT is being able to use muscle stimulation to muscles so severely torn that you cannot use them normally. This is a must to prevent atrophy and to help speed up your strength.

  Consult with your physician before using anti-inflammatories to further reduce swelling and pain.

SET MINI GOALS DURING THE REHAB PROCESS. The ultimate goal, of course, is to come back just as strong or stronger, but on the way there, you need mini goals to keep you on track and to keep your head in it. For example, in 1997 I tore both my hamstrings and calves at the same time in a freak accident for a school relay. My first goal was to be able to sit down comfortably after one week. I set further goals down the road like being able to actually do a leg curl with no weight all the way up to my glutes. That took 4 weeks to do, but I made it a goal and it happened. My next goal was to be able to walk normally without a cane or limping. That goal was set for 4 weeks but didn’t really happen for 6. I also had to set goals of when I could go back to work and when I could be completely normal again. All the while, the ultimate goal was to come back and come back stronger. It even forced me to stop deadlifting for nearly 6 months.

  Goals help your mind set a timetable for expected results. These are times to test yourself to see if your rehab is going well. Sometimes these “tests” come in the form of doctor’s exams and feedback about your recovery.

I tore my bicep in 2001 and had surgery to reconnect it. The surgeon told me that once my arm came out of a cast, that it would take nearly 8 weeks to get full range of motion back in my arm and that the possibility of lifting weights should not even exist in my mind for at least 6 months. I told myself, almost willed myself not to believe that. I set a goal of 4 weeks for full range of motion with my arm when the casting was done and I actually did it 2 weeks. My surgeon was stunned. I began training with weights after 3 weeks-2 pound dumbbells!

  I am not suggesting to ignore your surgeon and do what you want, but you must ultimately decide if your body will do what you want it to and whether it is safe. In my case, I believed it was so I went for it.

  The accomplishments you make in your recovery at first will be a big deal. As you approach your final goal, you’ll notice a big difference in your state of mind and attitude.

GET THE SUPPORT OF YOUR FRIENDS AND TRAINING PARTNERS. One of your best tools for recovery is your training partners. Can you imagine how hard it is to load weights on a squat bar after reconnective bicep surgery? My training partners had to load my weights for 6 weeks before I could do it myself. Serious trauma injury people will have similar needs. Training partners and friends can load weights for you, give you extra spotting, watch your form as you re-learn the movement you may have lost in the recovery time and also give you the encouragement you need to get through it.

  There is something to be said about being in the hospital or at home laid up and having your training partners and friends stop by to let you know they are thinking about you and that they want you to come through the ordeal ok. It’s a wonderful feeling to know you’re not alone.

  If you have a training partner going through rehab, step up your work for him. It will not go unnoticed. The encouragement you show him/her is priceless to your partner.

MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU. One thing a major injury teaches you is that we are all human. Each of us is prone to breakdowns, destruction and humility. Humbleness is a great quality to possess in a person and major injuries give you that quickly. If you are striving to be a top quality lifter, at some point in your career you will most likely meet Mr. Injury and how you react to him shows your character, your fortitude and your life-force. To me, life is a journey of tests and measures and how you measure up in those tests is a testament to your being. Overcome your injury setbacks with humility, humbleness and self desire. May the force be with you!