How should I treat my first injury?

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1

Hello, everyone, I’m new here and relatively new to strength training.
I started training last Sept, did it for 4 months, had to take 4 months off and now I’ve been lifting again for almost 2 months. Basically just barbell movements, similar to a 5x5 workout.

Just some generals stats:

90kg/180cm (198lbs/5’10"), 25 years old.
DL: 128kg5reps, Low bar SQ: 80kg5, OHP: 50kg*5reps (282,176,110lbs)

Yesterday I did my first push workout of the week and this includes the PushPress. I slowly ramped up to 70kg (which I managed to hit before) and I felt it going up really ok on the first try, so after a few minutes, I tried it again.
Problem is I was not rested/strong/braced enough and technique can really be improved and I lost balance and the bar fell behind me before I could safely dump it, and I heard a crack around the area where the Lumbar and the Thoracic Spine meet. I can’t say it was really painful or anything, more like an annoyance.
I even have video of it: https://photos.app.goo.gl/hhYQTvQfznDYhZWe8 (first one felt ok, and you can tell the second one is the fail - this is the only exercise I dump the bar, ever).

12h after the fact I went to work, came home and did some pelvic extensions that I saw online like here: https://youtu.be/dfMiuFsM1o8?t=4m55s
It made the area feel better and I went to sleep

24h after the incident I woke up and the same pain was basically there. I went to the gym and tried to foam roll that area, but it seems to not have done very much, maybe the pain has extended to my lumbar spine more

36h after the “injury” is now and the pain did not get any better yet and the area has from around T11 down to almost all my lumbar. Life is not impeded much, and the pain is about 2/10 when I want to have proper posture.

I have also done my homework on what Austin has to say on pain and how we sense it (article + videos + podcast). I do not want to panic too much, but I have never injured myself before, as I always try to brace the best I can before any lift while keeping good form and it has worked thus far. I have also never used a belt.
My objective is to work up to as strong as possible, in a natural, unrushed way and to avoid injury.

So can you please let me know how I should proceed at this time? Let it rest? Work out with lighter weight/not at all? Work around it? See an orthopedist? Do some “rehab” exercises? Any specific active recovery tips? How long should I expect this to last?

I understand that how we view the “injury” affects the general outcome, but it can be difficult to face the unknown for the first time with a jolly mood.

Thank you for your patience in reading this, I hope I have structured my thoughts well enough.

2

I don’t have any personal experience with this but Alan Thrall does. Check out his YouTube channel for a video that covers deadlifting and a cracking sound from the back area.

3

Yes, I went to the orthopedist and he basically said that if I do not have pains that go down to my legs/feet or that are keeping me up at night, or that make it had to walk/sit/stand/lay in bed, it’s just a sprain.
He has prescribed me some muscle relaxers and some gel to apply for better blood flow. Did this a bit reluctantly for 5 days as prescribed but I am not sure if it was just the time or the treatment that helped a bit. Did my first active recovery workout yesterday with RDL + Pull-ups, Low Bar Squats + Dips and some hanging leg raises and everything feels better. I think I will do this for around a week more, and hopefully, I will be back to at least 90% by the end of it. Oh. And I also went swimming for 400m a few days back (maybe it helped, maybe it didn’t but felt pretty good). And yes, Alan’s video on that is good and encouraging; helped me get the confidence to get under the bar.

Also, I am considering getting a belt, but I am still looking for options on when I should wear it (weight percentage-wise) and on what exercises (if it should be on the power-clean and push-press alone)

4

Hello everyone

I just wanted to say that if you find this thread and are in the same predicament as I was half a year ago, I just want to reassure you that although you may feel really crappy now, it will get better really quickly.

So I basically did and upssie on the 1st of August, was panicked for around 2 weeks, did some stretches and foam rolling all for nothing.

I got some courage to touch the barbell again after those 2 weeks and everything in the healing process accelerated from there.

I started conservatively, with Dips and Pullups as a superset for upper body and Low Bar Squats + RDLs for lower body movements. This lasted about a week, where I really built my confidence back up.

So I started to do the main movements again, and really, the only place where I felt discomfort was is the OHP due to spine extension. What seemed to solve the issue is if I used a belt on my mid-back while doing the lift. Mind you, I had never used a lifting belt ever in my lifting career. Then I kept using it for bench also because of the mild arch I use.

After this, I started the SSLP and made serious gains on all my main lifts. DL 128 → 175kg for example.

So get under the bar, train smart and use the principles explained here: https://youtu.be/mdwj5ORPmX0

I know you may feel crappy now, but it’ll get better, no worries.