Injured Physio Diaries – Part Two

In part one I described the initial injury and circumstances that may have lead to my back pain, as well as how I dealt with the injury/symptoms on day one. You can find part one here.

The next day, movement in the back had improved but was still sore. Simple things such as drying off after a shower, or putting a seat belt on were twingey. I continued to do lumbar extensions and apply heat.

I saw Deb / Will for some joint mobilisations which did not alleviate symptoms.

Over the following days there was continued improvement. I would stretch my hip flexors, continue to do half push-up / extension movements, and try not to slouch when sitting.

I took the week following the injury off of deadlifting and squatting, in order to avoid further aggravation. About a week afterwards, I did some squatting up to 180kg and felt a twinge. Because of this, the following week I modified my squats to use the safety squat bar which allows a more upright position, to reduce strain on the area.

By the end of the second week post injury, I was back to squatting and deadlifting with no restrictions (other than being careful and listening out for twinges).

Listening to my body from the get go and taking it easy helped me recover quickly and get back to what I love doing.