My neck injury rant

Underground S&C Underground
1

Just wanted to rant a bit about my recent neck injury.

I was doing kelso shrugs last Wednesday. A student recommended it, so I tried it out. It was a very natural feeling movement, so much so that I went to the max on the cable machines (150lbs. on each arm) and it felt great.

I go to do pullups 2 minutes later and BLAMMO!! The right side of my neck feels like someone just shoved a fist through my shoulder, through my neck, and into my head. The right side of my neck LITERALLY feels like a rock. A very nice (and cute) female receptionist saw me holding my neck, and she offers to massage it, and she remarks at how my neck felt like steel! I said "you can only imagine how painful this is."

Regardless, some of the pain subsides, so I proceed to do my push/pull superset, but I couldn't really pull with a compound movement, because my neck was killing me.

So I do weighted dips with 50lbs. added...and seated hammer curls. Yes, yes, laugh away, I was doing hammer curls as opposed to my weighted pullups. Curls are for girls, blah blah.

Anyhow, that was last Wednesday, and the pain has subsided, but it is nowhere near 100%. Still painful, I sleep with a neck brace, and I'm furious because it's hard NOT to engage your neck doing ANYTHING. Even eating a meal engages your neck.

Any advice on pain relief would be extremely helpful. I've been icing, contrast showering, foam rolling, etc., but advice from the S&C forum crew would be greatly appreciated.

2

Too much yoga IMO.

You're doing fine, a strain like this takes a little time to heal, but you're
doing to right things. Stretch it as well. Keep it mobile.

Kelso shrugs are great, but lifting heavy on a new movement in which the
end of eccentric phase is on in which the shoulders are relaxed but
bearing a heavy load spells danger. Keep some tension on the muscles
next time.

-doug-

3

Thanks Doug. I'll remember to keep the tension next time (I forgot Pavel's term for that; I think it was "feed forward tension" or "hyperirradiation" or something). It felt really comfortable, which led to me "sleeping" on the exercise.

"Too much yoga IMO."

ahhhh shaaaddappp!! j/k.

I actually haven't been doing yoga lately. The wife actually made a crack saying "that's what you get for not keeping up with your yoga."

I've also been doing myofascial stuff with a tennis ball on my rotator cuff and my neck. Relieves the pain quite a bit for a time, then it creeps back.

Thanks again Doug!

4

I don't know what you think about chiro's but I had a neck injury that went down to my shoulder blade. It felt like someone stuck a knife in my neck, moved it to my should blade and left it there.

I tried stretching, MSM, cold, heat, massage, and adjustments.

I went to another chiro who took x-rays and my neck (spine) has lost it's natural curve. It juts forward so the base of my neck is supporting my head. I had pretty good space between my bones except at the base which are getting dangerously close. I also had some bone spurs. I didn't know any of this.

He's got me doing neck exercises, he's doing adjustments, and I'm supposed to by some neck pump that will work like braces. I will lie down on it and pump it up and it will literally help to get my curve back.

I'm willing to try it because the other stuff isn't working and lifting and grappling suck with a bad neck.

5

NP. Just remember shrugs = small range of motion = ton of weight feels
comfortable until it's too late :) I've strained my neck at least a dozen
times doing shrugs in the past (usually barbell shrugs). It's not permanent
(for me, anyway) but it can take a good week or two to go away.
Sometimes i can barely look to one side.

Give it time and ease into it next time. Let me know how it goes.

-doug-

6

rooster:

I am actually seeing a chiro. Here's an interesting story.

My usual chiro is a woman who weighs all of 120lbs. I'm 5'9" 200lbs. Back when I was 172lbs., she could adjust me easily. Nowadays, she just bounces off of me, lol! She her adjustments actually made things WORSE.

2 days later, I get adjusted by her husband. The man grew up on a farm, so the ubiquitous "farm strength" really came into play. He's about 6', 190lbs. He adjusted me very easily, and he really worked to get every kink. I literally felt like a new man when he was done. He DID warn me that, although the pain went away, I still should follow my r&r protocol, because I'm still injured. He also attached me to a stim, which eletrically stimulates the neck muscles.

I'm seeing him again today. Still stiff at times, but at least I have full range of motion on my neck again.

Doug:

Thanks for sharing your experiences. I think what killed me also was that I haven't shrugged in 5 months, then attacked the kelso shrugs. Even though it felt easy, I should have warmed up more thoroughly, and not gone up in weight so quickly (even if it didn't feel hard).

At LEAST I'm working with my kettlebells again, which is a good sign.

I'll keep everyone posted.

7

REST!!!! and let your body heal. Like you said it's hard not to use your neck. It's okay to take a few weeks off every once in a while. The fact that you tried to keep working out right after it happened makes me think you have a problem. Either that or that the neck is really not that bad and you just complain too much.

8

"The fact that you tried to keep working out right after it happened makes me think you have a problem. Either that or that the neck is really not that bad and you just complain too much."

LOL!! I love you too.

9

Vicodin

10

Todd:

I'D LOVE some of that, but it interferes with my appetite, which will interfere with the healing process.

I did consider it though...

11

Taking vicodin and resting would be better for your healing process than not taking it and working out while you are still injured.

12

sfbjj:

Vicodin is a high level pain killer that, from personal experience, interferes with my appetite. Bad idea, since I'm trying to heal. Also bad if you work in an investment bank, like I do, where alertness is key.

My training is very light. I believe that, despite being injured, an athlete should always work AROUND an injury, for as long as they follow the proper recovery protocol (ice, anti-inflammatory meds, lots of food and sleep, physical therapy, etc.) AND watch the overall intensity and volume of the session.

I do appreciate your recommendations though.

13

I'm just stating my opinion obviously you know your body best. I've seen some people try to work around injuries and injure another body part in the process, but the neck probably won't react the same way. The most overlook part of training when people are serious is the rest portion and that is what I was trying to get across.

14

"A very nice (and cute) female receptionist saw me holding my neck, and she offers to massage it, and she remarks at how my neck felt like steel! I said "you can only imagine how painful this is."

I thought the story was just starting to get good after reading this.

Neck injuries suck. Ive come to terms that my neck will never be 100% ever.

15

I injured my neck some years back, it sucks incredibly. There's almost no action you do that doesn't cause some discomfort while it's hurting.

I do some things to prevent reinjury and insure that i'm plenty flexible and strong for training:

Neck rolls: from Scot Sonnon's bodyflow, i believe he did an article entitled "the last neck exercise you'll ever need", maybe for t-nation, specifically on this movement.

I feel this helped me more than anything else i did; i normally do very slow, relaxed neck rotations for a minute or two, then do some neck rolls, then some bridging ad neck/shouler balancing stuff to strengthen my neck while helping it's flexibility.

I really recommend you look into this stuff once you heal up, the bodyflow stuff in general is particularly helpful for grappling, imo.

I hope you heal up fast!
-Andrew

16

and I'm supposed to by some neck pump that will work like braces. I will lie down on it and pump it up and it will literally help to get my curve back.

Is tht one of those "braces" you wrap around your neck and pump it up to stretch your neck a little? If so, You should leave that chiro immediately. Such a device will not straighten out your neck & might cause damage.

17

I feel you, my neck is feeling jacked up lately as well, good thread. Might have to go the chiro route soon enough.

C

18

I believe the neck pump brace deal is a cervical traction machine and is fine.

19

Neck is about 95% better now. A little residual tightness that I'm observing, enough to keep me away from my weighted dips/pullups for another couple of weeks. Just keeping it safe.

Here's what I did:

  • Trained only 3 times this week, as opposed to 5

  • Kept things relatively light

  • LOTS of upper body stretching (about 20 minutes at one point)

  • Contrast showers

  • Kettlebell swings, farmer's walk, and cleans (I think these exercises actually loosed up that area)

  • Foam roller

  • Chiropractic visits twice this week

Thanks for all your input and concern guys!