How long would you wait for an injury to heal before aborting cycle?

[thephoenix25]

Hi,
I am pretty gutted right now as an old injury I've had for many years has returned. The injury is located in my lower back, I think it is muscular. It spasms for a long time pushing my posture out of shape and stresses the surrounding muscles. I am 5 weeks into my first cycle and the (re-)injury occurred 6 days ago. Since then I stopped all training for 4 days in a hope it would recover and it seemed like it had. So I tentatively went back to the gym at about 80% volume which seemed ok. Now here is the funny part, I wasn't in the gym, I was at home in bed (sleeping) all I did was turned over and bam... agony. It has been 2 days since then and I am sat here wearing a lifting belt for support, eating NSAIDs (Naproxen) every few hours. I plan to give it 7 days of complete rest and see how it goes.

My questions to you guys is how long would you wait on cycle for an injury to heal? And at what point would you call it a day and abort the cycle?

Assuming I wait it out and stay on cycle, would you adjust your diet while not training?

Thanks for any help

[marcus300]

If you can train hard enough to stimulate muscle growth stay on, if your cant train in the next few days and there is no sign of it getting better come off.

[lovbyts]

I will work a lot better than naproxin with my experience and of course get it looked at to see if it's muscle, nerve or disc.

If its muscle then use ice and maybe anti inflammatory for a while. Ice 30 minutes on, 30 minutes on repeat 3x in a row 3x a day.

If it's nerve such as siatica again ice the same and if that doesn't do much in 2-3 days look into prednisone.

If it's disc then you need to not put pressure on it and try decompression. It could take several months to heal.

[thephoenix25]

Thanks for the input guys

@lovbyts - I guess you mean use Ibuprofen, is that right?

@Marcus - If I can train around it in a few days (which I've successfully done in the past) I should continue (assuming I cause no further damage)?

[lovbyts]

Thanks for the input guys

@lovbyts - I guess you mean use Ibuprofen, is that right?

@Marcus - If I can train around it in a few days (which I've successfully done in the past) I should continue (assuming I cause no further damage)?

Yeah if it works for you. For me I might as well eat an m&m. lol
Before you know if you will cause more damage you need to find out what damage is done or what's wrong otherwise you are just guessing. I wish I would have taken it easy longer on my lower back using ice and rest before I pushed through the pain and ruptured L5/S1 and was 90% paralyzed for 2 weeks until I had surgery.

Better safe than sorry.

[gondolo]

je pense que faire des series plus longue et plus légère en attendant le rétablissement

[qscgugcsq]

je pense que faire des series plus longue et plus légère en attendant le rétablissement

Tres peu ici parle francais alors je doute qu'ils ont compris XD

Traduction: "I think that longer set with lower weight untilrecovery.

I agree. Hypertrophy is only a side effect of training therefore if you get enought metabolic work, youcan still get some hypertrophy.

And like you said 80% seems ok then keep at it.
Train as long as there is no pain. You cant stop completly if its muscular, if its muscular take it light and do more volume.
Metabolic work will be equivalent.
Dont expect huge strenght gain but hypertrophy gain can still be expected.

I had similar recently, i just started my.overload back to almost nothing.
1 plate deadlift for 3x10 just to put a small stress on my lower back and keep the tecnic.
Same with squat I dropped back to 135lbs.

Each training I was upping of 10-20 or 30pounds. Depending of how I felt.

A good indication that you went to hard is if the pain persist hours after Workout, if so get some ice...(not more than 8 minute), after 8 minute the body create a vasodilstator response that would increase the inflamatory process. With ice under 8min.

Getting massage could help alot!
In the beginning smooth massage, to relax the spasm. Over time increase the intensity of the massage.

All of the above if it is muscular. If it is another structure it totally change.

If its a disc you better get it fixed before doing anything!

Good luck

[Times Roman]

only take drugs if you have a clear and present benefit.

if your routines suck because of injury, then come off cycle, and start a healing cycle.

Good luck!
---Roman

[thephoenix25]

Yeah if it works for you. For me I might as well eat an m&m. lol
Before you know if you will cause more damage you need to find out what damage is done or what's wrong otherwise you are just guessing. I wish I would have taken it easy longer on my lower back using ice and rest before I pushed through the pain and ruptured L5/S1 and was 90% paralyzed for 2 weeks until I had surgery.

Better safe than sorry.

Thanks, I'm the same, Ibuprofen don't really do much for me these days. Pretty sure it's muscular, same injury as before which I've been to doctors in the past who diagnosed muscular.

je pense que faire des series plus longue et plus légère en attendant le rétablissement

Tres peu ici parle francais alors je doute qu'ils ont compris XD

Traduction: "I think that longer set with lower weight untilrecovery.

I agree. Hypertrophy is only a side effect of training therefore if you get enought metabolic work, youcan still get some hypertrophy.

And like you said 80% seems ok then keep at it.
Train as long as there is no pain. You cant stop completly if its muscular, if its muscular take it light and do more volume.
Metabolic work will be equivalent.
Dont expect huge strenght gain but hypertrophy gain can still be expected.

I had similar recently, i just started my.overload back to almost nothing.
1 plate deadlift for 3x10 just to put a small stress on my lower back and keep the tecnic.
Same with squat I dropped back to 135lbs.

Each training I was upping of 10-20 or 30pounds. Depending of how I felt.

A good indication that you went to hard is if the pain persist hours after Workout, if so get some ice...(not more than 8 minute), after 8 minute the body create a vasodilstator response that would increase the inflamatory process. With ice under 8min.

Getting massage could help alot!
In the beginning smooth massage, to relax the spasm. Over time increase the intensity of the massage.

All of the above if it is muscular. If it is another structure it totally change.

If its a disc you better get it fixed before doing anything!

Good luck

Thank you for the tips, hypertrophy is the purpose of this cycle so low weight high sets will work for me.

only take drugs if you have a clear and present benefit.

if your routines suck because of injury, then come off cycle, and start a healing cycle.

Good luck!
---Roman

This is the question, at what point would you consider a limited routine cause to abort. It has taken anywhere from 1 week to 4/5 weeks in the past to recover from. 1 week I think I can accept, 4 weeks I think would be too long. It effects squats, deads, leg extensions, leg curls, crunches and overhead presses. Nearly everything else I can work around it.

Update - today (3 days after) is better, up from about 20% to about 45%, less pain and stiffness, icing, rest and support seems to work well.