Athletes often struggle with how to train through injury.  A lot of folks get trapped in an all-or-nothing mindset.  Life is a contact sport and whether you like it or not, she plays rough.  Inside or outside the gym, you are sometimes going to get hurt.  If you stop training every time you encounter a setback you will never develop consistency and you will fail to progress.  Of course, if you try to train as per usual while injured, you will only make things worse.  It sounds like a damned if you do, damned if you don’t situation.  Well, lucky for you I have some self-inflicted experience in this department which provides me the opportunity to detail for you exactly how an experienced coach trains through injury.

Let’s face it, sometimes even though you know better, you develop a momentary superman complex and let your ego grab the barbell.  You know you tweaked something but it doesn’t seem too bad, maybe you can just push through it.  Don’t feel bad for me, I’ve been in this game long enough to know better.  If you’re going to be foolish in the gym, you’re going to get hurt.  And you will repeat the painful lesson until you get it right.  What I’m trying to say is that I had it coming.  And now I get to share the lesson.

Anatomy of a Back Tweak
This is one of the most debilitating and frightening things that can happen because it causes such a loss of function.  And yet, in most cases, it is really a very minor injury.  What happens is one of your vertebral discs begins to bulge and the bulge presses upon an adjacent nerve.  You will feel that lightning bolt of pain that tells you it is clearly a nerve.  If it is minor and you stop immediately, you will probably go on to have a great day and be no worse for the wear though I recommend caution for a few days.  If it is a major bulge or you ignore it and think you can tough your way through it, you’re going to have a rough couple of weeks.

To protect the disc, the nerve will signal all the surrounding muscles of your trunk to contract in order to prevent further irritation of the disc whilst it heals itself.  This in effect immobilizes you making it difficult to perform simple tasks such as getting out of bed or putting on your shoes.  This muscular spasm feels like a major injury but it is simply a protective mechanism.  It will release all on its own in 1-2 weeks.  Of course, that is a long time to be incapacitated.

If you go to your doctor, they will simply prescribe a muscle relaxant to release the spasm but, I do not like to deactivate warning signals from my body.  That spasm is there to prevent me doing any more stupid things.  And fool that I am, I won’t survive long without some stern warning signals reminding me not to destroy myself.

So, now you are injured.  Your first instinct might be to stop moving.  Wrong.  This not only delays your recovery but derails your consistency and progress.  How do you continue training without making things worse?  Here is an example of my training journey with a back tweak:

1) 5 Rounds:
400m Run
1600m Airbike

Lucky for me, biking is one thing I can do without aggravating the back.  The upright posture of the airbike is perfect.  Running, however, is out of the question as the impact aggravates the disc.  Sitting on the rower is also a no-go as the spinal flexion is excruciating.  I planned to use the ski erg but it was my unlucky day because Motor was using it for her PT client.  I would have loved to push the Torque Tank but cannot lift it on or off the wall in my current condition.  What could I do?

5 rounds:
1200m Standing Airbike
1600m Seated Airbike

Standing closely mimicked running (minus the impact) and allowed me to maintain a vertical spine.  Worst part of the workout was bending over to take the seat on and off the airbike.

2) HeroWOD of my choice
JT
21-15-9
HSPU
Ring Dips
Push Ups

Fortune smiled on me again as the next workout was a choose-your-own-adventure.  I scanned the entire list of HeroWODs to find the workout that would require the least modifications for a tweaked back.  Upper body dominant JT was the perfect choice.  Of course, I had to do everything strict, no kipping HSPU or ring dips.  This made for the slowest JT in history but when you are injured, speed is not your friend!

My version:
21-15-9
Strict HSPU
Strict Ring Dips
Push Ups

3) Jackie
1000m Row
50 Thrusters @45#
30 Pull Ups

This time the ski erg was available.  Hinging still hurt so I used it gingerly, primarily engaging lats.  Squatting to depth was going to be a challenge.  Holding the barbell in the front rack position put too much load on my low back at the bottom of the squat so I substituted two pink kettlebells.  The kettlebell front rack position puts the load further back on the heels allowing a more upright posture.  Pink was plenty challenging.  I worked in slow sets of 10 kb front squats to kb press with a focus on regaining my pain-free squat depth.  Rests in between were necessary to maintain core engagement and midline stability.  Unlike every Jackie that came before, the pull ups were the easiest part of this workout.  I used a minimal kip from the lats keeping my low back out of the movement.  It took 23 minutes instead of 12 but that is par for the course when you are using the WOD as active rehab.   

My version:
1000m Ski erg
50 Double KB Front Squat at Press @pink
30 Pull Ups

4) 7 round E3MOM
5 Squat Snatch @185#
15 Burpees

We were sharing barbells so I shared a 45lb bar with Doc Disc.  He started with the snatches so I started with 1 minute of full body rocks.  I got 5 per minute or 12 seconds per rep.  Then I moved to the platform to perform 5 hang muscle snatches and 5 OHS.  Slow and light, my focus was not strength and conditioning but reclaiming my pain free range of motion.  This isn’t always fun but it is a necessary part of allowing your body to recover.  Motion is lotion.  The more you move, the quicker and more completely you will heal provided you do not aggravate existing issues.  Today the squats felt easier than in Jackie the day before so I felt like I was making solid progress.  That was my win for the day: 1% better than yesterday!  As long as I remain patient, I’m on track to a complete recovery.  

My version
7 round E3MOM
1 min Full Body Rocks
5 Hang Muscle Snatch @45lbs  
5 OHS @45lbs

5) 1 Round
30 Push Jerks@115lbs
15 Ring Dips
3 Rope Climbs
2 Rounds
20 Push Jerks
10 Ring Dips
2 Rope Climbs
3 Rounds
10 Push Jerks
5 Ring Dips
1 Rope Climb

For this workout I did double kettlebell shoulder presses with the yellow kettlebell, strict ring dips and 3 rope climbs from ground to standing for each prescribed climb. It changed the workout from a metcon to a muscular endurance workout slowing me down and keeping my back safe while I worked on strength endurance.  I found my adapted version satisfyingly challenging.

My version:
1 Round
30 Double KB Shoulder Press@yellow
15 Strict Ring Dips
9 Rope Climbs from ground to standing
2 Rounds
20 Double KB Shoulder Press@yellow
10 Strict Ring Dips
6 Rope Climbs from ground to standing
3 Rounds
10 Double KB Shoulder Press@yellow
5 Strict Ring Dips
3 Rope Climbs from ground to standing

Of course, in addition to the WODs, I have done several Original Strength Resets to keep moving and reclaiming my pain-free range of motion.  Navy SEAL belly breathing has been particularly helpful as it engages both the diaphragm and pelvic floor, muscles that play a large role in stabilizing your core.  It also helps calm down the nervous system encouraging the muscles to release their spasm freeing up a greater range of motion.

Ben Bergeron suggests 20 training sessions back after injury or vacation before you return to your pre-break baseline.  According to his timeline I still have 15 workouts (3 weeks) to go.  It took me a long time to realise that setbacks are not interruptions to the process, they are the process.  Setbacks will arise, it is best to be mentally prepared to adapt to accommodate them.  This is called resilience.  When you learn to accept the reality of this and roll with it, you will become unstoppable and you will see your results accelerate accordingly.

Learn how to navigate setbacks.  Ask your coach for help adapting the workout to work around your limitations while preserving the intended stimulus to the greatest degree possible.  Part of the discipline of being a coach at Empower is learning how to train through our various setbacks.  This is how we prepare ourselves to coach you through the same.  Let us help you stay on track!

Monday
HeroWOD of Your Choice.

1) JT
21-15-9
HSPU
Ring Dips
Push Ups  

If you missed Sunday’s shoulder-intensive workout, JT is a great option for you today!

2) Michael
3 Rounds
800m Run
50 Back Extensions
50 Sit Ups

Last time Michael was programmed many athletes avoided the back extensions then turned around and told me the workout wasn’t that hard.  Back extensions are a great exercise for bullet-proofing your back but they are not easy.  Because they are an unloaded, open-chain movement, they are very safe but do not cheat them to do them correctly and reap the benefits you must perform them in a slow and controlled fashion.  Here is your opportunity to redeem yourself!

3) Arnie
21 Turkish get-ups, right arm
50 swings
21 overhead squats, left arm
50 swings
21 overhead squats, right arm
50 swings
21 Turkish get-ups, left arm

Swings, Turkish Get Ups and OHS, I love these movements.  If you don’t love them it is probably a clear sign that you need them.  Rx’d at 1.5/2 pood, Arnie is no joke!  Adjust loads according to your fitness level.