Alright, so this is a long post and I apologize in advance for rambling (TL;DR at the bottom of the post). I needed to get this out there, not only to share my story/revelation but also to possibly inspire others who might be like me and struggling to improve. Quick backstory: I’m coming off a back injury that left me sedentary for about 2 years. There was no real diagnosis, as x-rays and MRI didn’t really show any damage. I have mild levoscoliosis of the L4-5 and a mildly twisted sacroiliac, which together caused immense pain with certain motions (bending, lifting my legs, etc.). I couldn’t do any core exercises because it put stress on the hip joint causing pain. I went from doctor to doctor to see if PT would help, and I made some progress but not enough to get me back to the gym.
Fast forward to August of this year: I found a chiropractor who basically told me to get off my a** and start working on rebuilding my body from the ground up. I went on a 12 week, 3-day-a week schedule of heat/manipulation therapy, and by week 4 I stepped into the gym for the first time in 2 years.
Okay, backstory complete. Point of post upcoming.
Look, it’s no secret that getting to the gym and working out will do amazing things not only for your body but for your mind as well. As you improve physically, your confidence skyrockets, thus enabling you to do more of the things you may have wanted to do before (talk to girls, widen your social circle, etc.). This opens up myriad possibilities for your quality of life, whether your goals are to get a great new job, spin plates, find an LTR, take up a new hobby, whatever. I knew this. I had those goals.
But I had no plan.
Sure, I went on the boards and read up on programs, nutrition, supplements. I built my own “program” and went into it full-bore. I suffered through the pain in my back as I pushed out the reps on bench, pull-downs, shoulder presses, even leg press. And I made gains; I started losing the fat that had accumulated all over, was getting stronger, and felt pretty damn good. This lasted about 3 weeks. Then everything collapsed. I hurt my shoulder trying to bench too much, and on the same friggin’ day put my back out again. I felt like it was my destiny to be frail and injured for the rest of my life. And then I remembered the details from the little piece of advice my chiro gave me:
“Rebuild your body from the ground up.”
I had two major issues working against me: my bad shoulder and my bad back. The back was the bigger problem. With a weak and gimpy back I wouldn’t be able to do jack sh*t. Forget about getting bigger, getting through the day would be a major challenge. The shoulder was secondary, but still a problem because weak and gimpy shoulders prevent the movements that contribute to growth and strength gains (bench, dips, chins, pretty much everything upper-body related). So I decided to do just what the doc told me to do, start from the ground up, or in my case, re-build the foundation.
I researched shoulder re-hab routines and built one that suited my injury. I read about back anatomy and how the lower back and core are so closely related. I know, this is “well, duh!” stuff to most of you, but you wouldn’t believe how many people ignore the little things and rush into programs that are “too-much, too-fast.” I spent 6 weeks just working on my shoulders. Three days a week I would do rotator cuff exercises, face-pulls, and shoulder stretches. The other days I would rest or do light cardio. No bench, no pressing, nothing heavy! My whole shoulder structure not only healed, but now it feels stronger, stable, and better yet, looks like it has actually put on some size!
Now here is the amazing part:
For the last 4 weeks, I have incorporated squats and dead lifts into my routine. Hear me on this: three months ago I could not even do crunches without pain in my back! Even push-ups put pressure on that area! I started doing both squats and deads with just the bar. Yeah, I felt like a moron grunting under the weight of an empty bar, but I was going parallel on my squats and will go deeper once my flexibility increases. Deads were incredibly painful those first few times, but I made sure my form was solid and used the rack so I didn’t have to dig as deep on that first pull. After the first two weeks I was able to add weight. Now I’m doing 155 for my squats and deads, which is laughable weight for most of you, but for me, it might as well be a ton considering where I started. Everything just feels tighter, stronger, and more stable. AND….the best part…even though I am not lifting heavy I feel the benefits everywhere. Keep in mind I’m pushing 40 (will be in April). My energy has skyrocketed, my sex drive has gone through the roof. Even my ex-wife commented on how she might not have left me had I acted this way when we were together. Natural testosterone booster? What else can it be? I feel younger, stronger, and primed for anything.
I’m telling y’all: just by adding squats and deads into my routine I have become a new man! It sounds corny, but it’s true. Please do not underestimate or brush off just how important these two exercises are for overall development. And maybe even more impressive, for the first time in 2 years I my back is virtually pain-free! I am a believer in the power of these movements, and I regret not doing them sooner. Everyone that touts squats/deads as staples of any BB/strength program is spot on.
Bottom line is if you start at the very beginning and take things slow, you will improve! Don’t worry about everyone else at the gym gawking at you struggling with the bar. My gym is full of high-school football players who look 25 and are jacked. I don’t care what they think. And why the hell should I? I’ve made more progress in 3 months DOING LESS than I’ve ever done before because I went back to basics and focused on the issues that were holding me back. I know there are other guys out there suffering the same things, and that is why I wrote this novel-length post. Hopefully some of you will get inspired and make the decision to re-build from scratch.
TL;DR Back injury, started squats and deads with just the bar, now an iron man
Fast forward to August of this year: I found a chiropractor who basically told me to get off my a** and start working on rebuilding my body from the ground up. I went on a 12 week, 3-day-a week schedule of heat/manipulation therapy, and by week 4 I stepped into the gym for the first time in 2 years.
Okay, backstory complete. Point of post upcoming.
Look, it’s no secret that getting to the gym and working out will do amazing things not only for your body but for your mind as well. As you improve physically, your confidence skyrockets, thus enabling you to do more of the things you may have wanted to do before (talk to girls, widen your social circle, etc.). This opens up myriad possibilities for your quality of life, whether your goals are to get a great new job, spin plates, find an LTR, take up a new hobby, whatever. I knew this. I had those goals.
But I had no plan.
Sure, I went on the boards and read up on programs, nutrition, supplements. I built my own “program” and went into it full-bore. I suffered through the pain in my back as I pushed out the reps on bench, pull-downs, shoulder presses, even leg press. And I made gains; I started losing the fat that had accumulated all over, was getting stronger, and felt pretty damn good. This lasted about 3 weeks. Then everything collapsed. I hurt my shoulder trying to bench too much, and on the same friggin’ day put my back out again. I felt like it was my destiny to be frail and injured for the rest of my life. And then I remembered the details from the little piece of advice my chiro gave me:
“Rebuild your body from the ground up.”
I had two major issues working against me: my bad shoulder and my bad back. The back was the bigger problem. With a weak and gimpy back I wouldn’t be able to do jack sh*t. Forget about getting bigger, getting through the day would be a major challenge. The shoulder was secondary, but still a problem because weak and gimpy shoulders prevent the movements that contribute to growth and strength gains (bench, dips, chins, pretty much everything upper-body related). So I decided to do just what the doc told me to do, start from the ground up, or in my case, re-build the foundation.
I researched shoulder re-hab routines and built one that suited my injury. I read about back anatomy and how the lower back and core are so closely related. I know, this is “well, duh!” stuff to most of you, but you wouldn’t believe how many people ignore the little things and rush into programs that are “too-much, too-fast.” I spent 6 weeks just working on my shoulders. Three days a week I would do rotator cuff exercises, face-pulls, and shoulder stretches. The other days I would rest or do light cardio. No bench, no pressing, nothing heavy! My whole shoulder structure not only healed, but now it feels stronger, stable, and better yet, looks like it has actually put on some size!
Now here is the amazing part:
For the last 4 weeks, I have incorporated squats and dead lifts into my routine. Hear me on this: three months ago I could not even do crunches without pain in my back! Even push-ups put pressure on that area! I started doing both squats and deads with just the bar. Yeah, I felt like a moron grunting under the weight of an empty bar, but I was going parallel on my squats and will go deeper once my flexibility increases. Deads were incredibly painful those first few times, but I made sure my form was solid and used the rack so I didn’t have to dig as deep on that first pull. After the first two weeks I was able to add weight. Now I’m doing 155 for my squats and deads, which is laughable weight for most of you, but for me, it might as well be a ton considering where I started. Everything just feels tighter, stronger, and more stable. AND….the best part…even though I am not lifting heavy I feel the benefits everywhere. Keep in mind I’m pushing 40 (will be in April). My energy has skyrocketed, my sex drive has gone through the roof. Even my ex-wife commented on how she might not have left me had I acted this way when we were together. Natural testosterone booster? What else can it be? I feel younger, stronger, and primed for anything.
I’m telling y’all: just by adding squats and deads into my routine I have become a new man! It sounds corny, but it’s true. Please do not underestimate or brush off just how important these two exercises are for overall development. And maybe even more impressive, for the first time in 2 years I my back is virtually pain-free! I am a believer in the power of these movements, and I regret not doing them sooner. Everyone that touts squats/deads as staples of any BB/strength program is spot on.
Bottom line is if you start at the very beginning and take things slow, you will improve! Don’t worry about everyone else at the gym gawking at you struggling with the bar. My gym is full of high-school football players who look 25 and are jacked. I don’t care what they think. And why the hell should I? I’ve made more progress in 3 months DOING LESS than I’ve ever done before because I went back to basics and focused on the issues that were holding me back. I know there are other guys out there suffering the same things, and that is why I wrote this novel-length post. Hopefully some of you will get inspired and make the decision to re-build from scratch.
TL;DR Back injury, started squats and deads with just the bar, now an iron man
