Compressed disc L-4/L-5

[guest589745]

Anyone know some good exercises to strengthen my lower back and how often I should do them?

[GirlyGirl]

Ha-just replied to your shoulder! Google "lumbar stabilization" and do them anytime you do abs-listen to your body-back pain is never good! Also-I hope you not squatting heavy....

[guest589745]

uh not too heavy. I only have pain when I sit or lay in one position too long.

[Sanecrazy]

Hey man Im going through the same thing now. I had two herniated disc. One at L5-S1 and the other at L4-L5. The one at L5-S1 was pinching my sciatic nerve and causing constant pain in my left leg. Anyways I had surgery which eliminated the sciatic pain but now after a few months of working out since the surgery my back is starting to really bother me again. I guess that IOm gonna go through some physical therapy starting this Friday. My surgery was in Feb of this year. Good luck.

[guest589745]

you too

[SPIKE]

you too

I guess I should say "us too." L5,S1 for me. Really limits my workouts but luckily my daily activities.

I hate cardio but find that if I warm up with as little as just 5-10 minutes that it really makes me feel better when I work out. Gets the blood flowing and can prevent further aggravation.

Best of luck guys!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Doc.Sust]

traction and lumbar stabilization exercises can help alot with nerve impingement and compressions of the intervertebral discs. other great loewr back exercises, that work that must be done extremely light would be goodmornings and stiff leg deadlifts, rep range between 8-12 LIGHT WEIGHTS!!!!!!also working your abs may also help alleviate pain. i wiould do this 2 to 3 times a wk, no more than that. listen to your body, if an exercise hurts, stop immediately. also if one had access to a reverse hyper machine it would be very benneficial in strengthening your low back and entire posterior chain while keeping the muscles more isolated therfore decreasing the risk of furthur injury

[guest589745]

I wish I had one of those reverse extesnsion machines. I have been squatting and deadlifting and crunches which seem to help.thanks doc

[Doc.Sust]

I wish I had one of those reverse extesnsion machines. I have been squatting and deadlifting and crunches which seem to help.thanks doc

you can use Bands to mimic the reverse hyper extension,(if you have some bands, ask me and i will explin two waysto set it up) also, you gan use a Glute ham raise,if you don't have access to that, then a roman chair for extensions. here is the easiest one, LIGHT weight stiff leg close stance deadlifts, for higher rep,10-12.

[juicyup34]

i have the same compresiioon, but also in t 11 and 12. i cannot kick the pain

[tbloom09]

I have L-4, L-5 herniated discs. I no longer lift back or legs, just because when I do any type of exercises with my legs with a good amount of weight, I stiffen up. You need to loosen your back up first, here is what I recommend.

4-6 weeks
Stretch legs, back, abdominal area for a good 15-20 minutes. No lie this can help tremendously. Do a number of back stretches, and then legs. Obviously legs will help your back as both are correlated.

As far as exercises, I would not do anything with free weights. Use machines, so you are working a specific muscle. If you work with free weights you can use other muscles, and they will compensate for your back problem and could result to injury.

Use as little weight as possible and just stretch it out. It is a pain for the first 4-6 weeks, because in the back of your head you know you can do more. Trust me!! I would look up some exercises on a training ball. I use it a lot, and it helps tremendously.

I would definitely keep a reliable chiropractor/message therapist. Both work hand in hand, the message therapist can relax the muscles around the damaged back. The chiropractor will attempt to readjust it. The longer you wait the better! Meaning if you don't need back surgery, I wouldn't go for it. It is so hard to come back from a back surgery, the longer you can put it off and keep it stretched and somewhat healthy the better the chances a scientific breakthrough will come up. From what I have read, in the next 5-10 years it seems that they will solve back injuries, but who knows. That's a chance you have to take I guess. I have had back problems for nearly two years now. When I was on the last rep of my last set of squats I just felt pain go through my whole body. Luckily I was able to finish the set, and then I was hunch backed for a day or so. I like to use a mixture of heat/ice. Ice will stiffen the back, but it can help. Heat will obviously loosen it up. I always have a thing of ICY Hott on me for the night, because at night you can really do a number. Hopefully this stuff helps. Stay on top of it and you will be in better shape.

[guest589745]

thanks man, actually my back is doin real good now since i STARTED more squats and good mornings. thanks man I appreciate it.

[ludakris9]

Anyone know some good exercises to strengthen my lower back and how often I should do them?

I would start out lit and build up my weight.

[guest589745]

I have improved drastically.

[Doc.Sust]

I have improved drastically.

what worked best for you? what changes have you made to training?inform the people!!

[guest589745]

well kind of been busy.

I have been workin with this guy from another board, FUTURE. And he has been kickin my ass pretty good. I would say working my way up in squats, t-bar rows, bent rows and good mornings have all helped get me to about 90% pain free in my back. I just worked my way up and kept strict form. I was afraid to do them at first just cause my back always had so much problems but, after 2 weeks I started to feel better. Squats probably helped it the most. I know that may sound weird but,it really did help me. I wasnt squatting or deadlifting too much before cause of the pain, but I can do em fine now. any more specific just ask.

[Doc.Sust]

give the stiff leg deads a whirl!!! i would credit the good mrnings for alot of your help too. keep up the recovery.

[guest589745]

yea, I do those, just havent done them a LOT. I never thought my back would be as good as it is now. Not to say it is GREAT but I feel a lot better. If I can improve from this injury just about anyone can IMO.

[Doc.Sust]

yea, I do those, just havent done them a LOT. I never thought my back would be as good as it is now. Not to say it is GREAT but I feel a lot better. If I can improve from this injury just about anyone can IMO.

do you have access to a glute/ham raise or a reverse hyper?

[guest589745]

do you have access to a glute/ham raise or a reverse hyper?

no, I wish I had a reverse hyper thing though. I do ham curls...?

[Doc.Sust]

no, I wish I had a reverse hyper thing though. I do ham curls...?

not the same thing.glute ham rasie is like a roman chair but alows you to continue the motin furthur to hit the hamstrings and actually the entire posterior chain. neither execise is neccessary, you can work the sam muscles with free weights, it is just nice to have a few more variations to choose from.

[KDRLINUS]

i found that with my injuries, Herniated disks L4-L5 and L5-S1 keeping my core strength up is vital for pain reduction. excess weight around my waist causes pain, so i eat very clean and make sure my technique is perfect. the last thing you want is to spend 2 weeks in the hospital like i did last feb. becasue you push past your limits.... it can happen in an instant so go lighter and keep good form, then kill the abs if you can. combine that with a good diet and you should be golden.......except when it rains, like today here in NJ OUCH

[Doc.Sust]

i found that with my injuries, Herniated disks L4-L5 and L5-S1 keeping my core strength up is vital for pain reduction. excess weight around my waist causes pain, so i eat very clean and make sure my technique is perfect. the last thing you want is to spend 2 weeks in the hospital like i did last feb. becasue you push past your limits.... it can happen in an instant so go lighter and keep good form, then kill the abs if you can. combine that with a good diet and you should be golden.......except when it rains, like today here in NJ OUCH

good advice as wel. what part of jersey and what happened exactly that put you inthe hospital for that long/ what was the natre of the injury and/or diagnosis

[KDRLINUS]

good advice as wel. what part of jersey and what happened exactly that put you inthe hospital for that long/ what was the natre of the injury and/or diagnosis

i live in northern NJ, morris county, work in passaic county.
i would love to share my horrible experince with ya, but its gonna be a book if i write it, if ya wanna hear it i will gladly share, i dont mean to hijack the thread tho.....

long story short, i used poor judgement, ended up in the hosital and the docors there were useless. their idea of fixing my prob, was to admit me and keep me sedated for 8 days..... bastards! sorry 2 weeks was an an exageration, but i did miss an additonal week of work after i left the hospital.... so it was 2 weeks total

i never once saw an orthopedist (as i was admitted to the cancer ward), or had an MRI..... eventually i signed a release waiver, without the doctors consent.

i was able to see my orthopedists and was givin an MRI and a diskography,
they confirmed the diks are the source of the pain, and now i await advancements in TRD total disk replacement (5-10years prob) and hope for the best....

[Doc.Sust]

i live in northern NJ, morris county, work in passaic county.
i would love to share my horrible experince with ya, but its gonna be a book if i write it, if ya wanna hear it i will gladly share, i dont mean to hijack the thread tho.....

long story short, i used poor judgement, ended up in the hosital and the docors there were useless. their idea of fixing my prob, was to admit me and keep me sedated for 8 days..... bastards! sorry 2 weeks was an an exageration, but i did miss an additonal week of work after i left the hospital.... so it was 2 weeks total

i never once saw an orthopedist (as i was admitted to the cancer ward), or had an MRI..... eventually i signed a release waiver, without the doctors consent.

i was able to see my orthopedists and was givin an MRI and a diskography,
they confirmed the diks are the source of the pain, and now i await advancements in TRD total disk replacement (5-10years prob) and hope for the best....

good idea, don't settele for the vertebral fusion, it may even make the pain worse. if the disc replacement surgery does become successful, it would be wonderful for those with cripiling back pain because of herniations. sounds like one hell of story you have. i won'r pry more than that. be glad that eventually they got to the root of the problem.

[liftergirl]

sorry you had to go through that! did they ever discuss spinal injections with you?

[KDRLINUS]

sorry you had to go through that! did they ever discuss spinal injections with you?

if you mean epidurals, i have had no less than 3-4 per year for the last 3 years.... they are like a small bandaid on a big cut...... it works for a lil while but eventually it fails, not to mention they hurt like a @#$%*. takes a few days to walk after they shove a needle into your spine, not fun.

[Doc.Sust]

not fun at alll!!!!!!!!

[liftergirl]

3-4 per year??? that shouldn't be allowed with the type i'm referring to....the docs that i deal with only allow a max of 4 in a lifetime! what meds are they using? and are they ever doing facet injections?

[KDRLINUS]

3-4 per year??? that shouldn't be allowed with the type i'm referring to....the docs that i deal with only allow a max of 4 in a lifetime! what meds are they using? and are they ever doing facet injections?

im not exactly sure what type you might be referring too by FACET injections but the injections i have had went like this......

1 stop eating 12:00pm the night before.

2 get into the doc's office.

3 placed on IV and taken into the OR.
i had to roll over onto a elevated table that puts you into a position where your knees are bent and your leaning foward onto your stomach.

4 i was then givin anesthesia and using a mobile x-ray or mri machine they find the disk and inject into it. takes about 2 min.

what meds they used, i dont really know. i know its suppose to reduce the inflamation and in turn ease the pain. this could be different from what your referring too.... i know it wasnt cortizone, if thats what you mean. they simply called it an epidural.

5 i then was taken to a recovery room for about 45 min where i get fed animal crackers and apple juice, plus percocet.....

6 then after they release you, but not to drive, you must bring soemone to drive you home.

every 3-4 months seems not to be a prob for them... but after about a year they start recomending other methods of treatment like surgery, pain management ect.... guess they feelyou recieve deminishing returns after a while.

my .02$ is that they are way more trouble then their worth. they hurt like hell, then take days to fully recover then only last a few months.

maybe they work better for others, Liftergirl are these like the injections you were describing??????

[Doc.Sust]

sounds like they are trying to rehydrate discs, i am not surem but it must hurt like a bitch! liftergirl where are you?

[liftergirl]

sorry. i'm back. had a crazy day of call....basically at the hospital for past week.