What’s up everybody?! The Strength Mob took a little a hiatus after I injured my back at a trampoline park at the end of last December. It’s all good though, and I’m getting into the swing of things again.
If you’ve ever been laid up with an injury, I’m sure you can appreciate the desire to stay fit. It’s maddening to watch your strength waste away. With that in mind, I thought it would be fun to share one type of workout that I had been able to do while on the mend.
Given the injury, my back was intolerant to heavy loading and compression for a good 3 to 4 months. Thus, I had to come up with some alternatives. I should mention however, that this was well after I was out of the acute phase. There was a good 6 weeks of taking things VERY easy. Lots of gentle mobility, light aerobic work, and some classic lumbar exercises.
Heavy squats and deadlifts were out. Even shoulder pressing and handstand development were off the table for a while. No squats, deadlifts, or pressing – what was an athlete to do?!
For the lower body, the workaround was to add in more single leg work, like step-ups, single leg hinging, and lunges. For the upper body, it meant lots of pulling movements, as well as plenty of the isolation exercises that bodybuilders use.
Have a peek and let me know what you think. What are some of the ways you work around an injury?