Neck strain?

[aes]

In last night's warm up we were doing squats where you hold a weight out in front of you and squat swinging the weight down between your legs then swing it back up and stand.

 

At about 60 of these, I suddenly got the most excruciating pain in the back of my head ever. My wife had to drive me to emergency and after a couple hours of waiting, the doctor checked me out.

 

It appears that I have strained hte muscles in the back of my head. They gave me a strong anti-inflammatory and it finally let up.

 

I have had some bad migraines in my life but this was the most gut wrenching pain I have ever had.

 

Has anyone had a similar problem?

[aes]

Well as it turns out my GP doctor thinks I snapped a few muscle fibres in my trapezium near the base of my skull.

 

No big deal but will take time to totally heal. I can continue with my training but should avoid exercises that work this muscle for the time being and take Ibuprofen 3 times a day for the next 10 days or so.

[Sasori_Te]

Whenever I layoff training for a couple of weeks and go back to it, if I do a heavy kata workout with lots of full effort punching, I find that my trapezius muscles will tighten up and pull on my cervical vertebrae. This in turn causes a pinched nerve which gives me excruciating pain in, usually, my right shoulder and neck. This effect has worsened in the last couple of years I think due to a car accident that I was in. I was rear-ended while I had my head turned to the left. I had quite a nasty whiplash because of it.

[White Warlock]

This effect has worsened in the last couple of years I think due to a car accident that I was in. I was rear-ended while I had my head turned to the left. I had quite a nasty whiplash because of it.

Hehe, i've been the victim of 13 car accidents (9 of which were drunk drivers, 4 'supposedly' sober... none my fault), including a motorbike accident where i was struck from behind and dragged forty feet before being run over (ankles used to have tire tracks embedded in them).

 

Imagine my pains...

[Sasori_Te]

warlock maybe you need to think about walking or taking the bus!

[Red J]

WW, This is why they say flying is safer.....

 

I hate neck pain.....Although I can't compare, I can sleep funny and wake up with that "stiff neck" feeling that usually takes a few days to go away. I can't imagine how you feel. I hope you heal quickly.

[White Warlock]

lol guys.

 

aes, i just reread your post and i must say... that was not even remotely a safe exercise to do. "Bounce" exercises do cause tears... so, it wasn't your body that failed you. Please be aware that not all exercises are created equal. Many are actually very unhealthy, where the possibility of injury far outweighs any potential gains. The one you described is one of them.

 

This is one of those things i've had a lot of unhappiness about. Far too many martial arts instructors fail to educate themselves on proper stretching, lifting, and aerobic exercises. This, in my opinion, is one of the main reasons we have so many 'warm-up' injuries.

 

/rant

[Sorynn]

... that was not even remotely a safe exercise to do. "Bounce" exercises do cause tears...

 

WW,

 

You are right that bouncing into a stretch will cause muscular tears. However, this exercise, dumbbell swings, is not intended as a stretch. It is a great exercise to develop total body conditioning and power, and it is safe if it is done properly without overdoing it.

 

With that being said, I do think this is an excerise that should be done after a comprehensive warm-up, not during a warm-up.

 

http://www.trainforstrength.com/ex-4.shtml

 

aes,

 

I am sorry about the injury and the pain. Had you done those types of exercises before? Perhaps 60 repetitions was too much or the weight was too heavy. I know if I do too many olympic type lifts in a row, I become fatigued and my form suffers. I will start to pull with my arms and shoulders instead of driving with my legs. I wish you the best in your recovery.

 

 

 

Respectfully,

 

Sorynn

Edited March 9, 2004 by Sorynn

[aes]

I think the issue here for me is I am not 20 years old and it was done without adequate warm up of the muscles in this part of my body.

 

We did the usual running, some pushups and crunches for about 10 minutes then jumped into these and because we have to do them fast, I was over swinging the 5 lb weight.

 

I don't blame anyone really for the injury but it was a pain I would rather not feel again.