UKBouldering.com
the shizzle => diet, training and injuries => Topic started by: shark on January 12, 2022, 10:18:20 am
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After a hard day at the crag I always feel wrecked in my back as if I’ve been trampled on but scarcely any noticeable soreness in my arms (still feeling it this morning after yesterday). My impression is that’s unusual but what does that mean either about the way I climb or my physical make up…?
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I used to get this when the volume I was doing was much higher and I wasn't eating enough, once I gained some weight and the volume reduced a little I didn't notice it so much.
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I never notice it in my back, it's always in my forearms, biceps and lats if I'm really pushing myself. Is it in any particular part of the back?
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After a hard day at the crag I always feel wrecked in my back as if I’ve been trampled on but scarcely any noticeable soreness in my arms (still feeling it this morning after yesterday). My impression is that’s unusual but what does that mean either about the way I climb or my physical make up…?
What do you do after a hard day at the crag?
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I used to get this when the volume I was doing was much higher and I wasn't eating enough, once I gained some weight and the volume reduced a little I didn't notice it so much.
For sure it’s worse from volume rather than short intense sessions. I’ve always had it and not noticed any difference between when I’ve been under or overweight
Is it in any particular part of the back?
All of it
What do you do after a hard day at the crag?
Typically nothing other than drive home though did do some back stretching over a yoga block last night
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Maybe stems from my various back issues?. One climbing physio said I had the tightest back he’d ever come across.
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Does "wrecked" mean sore or tired? For me these can be different...
From my experience:
The day after (or at the end of) a long bouldering session my forearms will feel tired and "dead", but usually not very sore. The day after (or at the end of) getting pumped my forearms will feel sore (i.e. painful, tender to stretch). Conversely if I notice my shoulders being sore/tired, I will almost only ever notice the soreness (pain/tenderness) - I would say I usually can't pick up on the tiredness feeling without trying to do something and then realising they're tired. For my shoulders soreness can easily happen after bouldering as well as after getting pumped. That said, I almost always notice my shoulders the next day - it's usually a DOMS thing, they're rarely that sore at the end of the day unless I've been doing something v shouldery (unlike forearms, which often are sore or tired both at the end of the session and the next day).
I don't notice my back being generically tired - more specific muscles/areas (e.g. traps or a lat) but this may partly be because my mid/lower back is always a bit sore/tired feeling as a chronic issue.
No idea what the cause is for your issue I'm afraid, but your guess sounds likely if it's the whole back...
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Feels both sore and tired.
Somethings not right.
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What do you do after a hard day at the crag?
Typically nothing other than drive home though did do some back stretching over a yoga block last night
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As an experiment try doing some mobility work afterwards. Stretching over a yoga block is fine but add in rotation, side flexion and forward flexion, dynamic and static. Do some hip mobility stuff too. Warm down exercises really. See if it makes a difference. Perhaps it's just tightening up and then you're pretty static and immobile for quite a period of time afterwards. Try doing the simple things first.
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Maybe stems from my various back issues?. One climbing physio said I had the tightest back he’d ever come across.
:lol: might have answered your own question there!!
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Aren’t you climbing at an area where you’ve got to walk into crags carrying sport climbing gear after a long period of climbing nowhere but the Tor Shark?
Could just be that your body’s adjusting to carrying the gear more than a few metres. I’ve always felt like a lot of the full-body knackeredness rock climbing creates as opposed to the more specific feelings from a similar amount of indoor climbing or training is down to walking in and out, covering uneven ground, lugging gear from one place to another etc. I’m hardly a perfect control when it comes to back pain but now I train exclusively in the winter I really notice it when I burst back onto the crags at the start of spring
Also never fails to amuse me how we all have the specific medical terms to hand when talking about finger injuries but when it comes to the complexities of the back it’s just “my back” :lol:.
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As an experiment try doing some mobility work afterwards. Stretching over a yoga block is fine but add in rotation, side flexion and forward flexion, dynamic and static. Do some hip mobility stuff too. Warm down exercises really. See if it makes a difference. Perhaps it's just tightening up and then you're pretty static and immobile for quite a period of time afterwards. Try doing the simple things first.
Thanks. I’ll give it a go. Does feel like I’m seizing up after. Think I’ll also force myself to do an easyish route at the end the day as well.
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As an experiment try doing some mobility work afterwards. Stretching over a yoga block is fine but add in rotation, side flexion and forward flexion, dynamic and static. Do some hip mobility stuff too. Warm down exercises really. See if it makes a difference. Perhaps it's just tightening up and then you're pretty static and immobile for quite a period of time afterwards. Try doing the simple things first.
Thanks. I’ll give it a go. Does feel like I’m seizing up after. Think I’ll also force myself to do an easyish route at the end the day as well.
Any twitching, tremors or noticeable weakness; in your back or even down into your legs? And how hard are you hitting the deadlifts these days?
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Aren’t you climbing at an area where you’ve got to walk into crags carrying sport climbing gear after a long period of climbing nowhere but the Tor Shark?
Only 5 mins here and Duncan seems keen to carry the rope. Think he is prepping for yomping in Scotland
Also never fails to amuse me how we all have the specific medical terms to hand when talking about finger injuries but when it comes to the complexities of the back it’s just “my back” :lol:.
It’s a tricky area even for the medical profession according to Duncan. The concluding comment of something I’ve just read says “ Because of the dynamic, complex nature of the back and its system of nerves and muscles, not all causes of back muscle tightness are well understood”
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Any twitching, tremors or noticeable weakness; in your back or even down into your legs?
None from climbing. But I get a sore back from sitting for too long and have to monitor my posture on long drives to keep it at bay
And how hard are you hitting the deadlifts these days?
The answer to everything is deadlifts 😉
I only did a proper stint of deadlifting over 10 years ago as a way of strengthening my core to help with back issues which along with yoga and following some postural advice worked a treat. Since then I’ve done the occasional lift and it’s usually just below 2x which in my mind is completely satisfactory for climbing. Also going on Bens is a hard core workout for me. However, I have mentally pencilled in doing some specific longer duration core work as training for Bens later in the year.
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Also never fails to amuse me how we all have the specific medical terms to hand when talking about finger injuries but when it comes to the complexities of the back it’s just “my back” :lol:.
The introductory slide (https://twitter.com/drdjcritchley/status/1176420748023554049?s=21) for my back pain module 2010-2019. Also, by far the most popular tweet in my brief engagement with twitter.
(Alf Nachemson was the founding editor of Spine journal).
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Any twitching, tremors or noticeable weakness; in your back or even down into your legs?
None from climbing. But I get a sore back from sitting for too long and have to monitor my posture on long drives to keep it at bay
And how hard are you hitting the deadlifts these days?
The answer to everything is deadlifts 😉
I only did a proper stint of deadlifting over 10 years ago as a way of strengthening my core to help with back issues which along with yoga and following some postural advice worked a treat. Since then I’ve done the occasional lift and it’s usually just below 2x which in my mind is completely satisfactory for climbing. Also going on Bens is a hard core workout for me. However, I have mentally pencilled in doing some specific longer duration core work as training for Bens later in the year.
I went to grumble to my physio once about a similar thing. He said "you're in your late 30s, you're trying really hard at a physical sport, and you're complaining that you're trashed afterwards? Right. Have a hot bath and a rest"
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I went to grumble to my physio once about a similar thing. He said "you're in your late 30s, you're trying really hard at a physical sport, and you're complaining that you're trashed afterwards? Right. Have a hot bath and a rest"
If I was trashed in the same way as everyone else seems to be I wouldn’t be concerned
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I have been getting some tightness in my back (although I think as much from sitting as from climbing) and have found the stretches in Beastmaking (pg 168) the ‘supine spinal stretch’ and ‘roadkill stretch’ made a huge amount of difference. As usual with stretching it needs to be regular and consistent to really make a difference.
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I went to grumble to my physio once about a similar thing. He said "you're in your late 30s, you're trying really hard at a physical sport, and you're complaining that you're trashed afterwards? Right. Have a hot bath and a rest"
If I was trashed in the same way as everyone else seems to be I wouldn’t be concerned
Climb faster? Yoga session each day post climbing?
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Do you use any of the following for your back; regular sports massage, muscle hook, foam roller, hockey ball, zen viber massager?
FWIW after a hard session i often have soreness from lats through shoulders and down to middle back, but nothing in the rest of the arms, but often stiff and clicky fingers.
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Any twitching, tremors or noticeable weakness; in your back or even down into your legs?
None from climbing. But I get a sore back from sitting for too long and have to monitor my posture on long drives to keep it at bay
And how hard are you hitting the deadlifts these days?
The answer to everything is deadlifts 😉
I only did a proper stint of deadlifting over 10 years ago as a way of strengthening my core to help with back issues which along with yoga and following some postural advice worked a treat. Since then I’ve done the occasional lift and it’s usually just below 2x which in my mind is completely satisfactory for climbing. Also going on Bens is a hard core workout for me. However, I have mentally pencilled in doing some specific longer duration core work as training for Bens later in the year.
I find that the long drive to Spain and living out of a van can cause my back issues to return. On recent tips I have found that Romanian Deadlift (RDL) work for me. I look for the perfect boulder either at the crag or at our regular parking spot and do high reps rather than heavy weight. My soreness is in the lower back, your issues may be different.
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Thanks guys. I’m going to try some mobility stuff at end of day at the crag and then the massage ball when I get home (rather than slumping on a sofa) to see if it stops my back seizing up. If that doesn’t work I’ll go through the other suggestions till I hit gold.
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I've just watched a good detailed video about the The Romanian Deadlift (RDL) which states that it isn't really a deadlift at all as the weight should never touch the floor. Try it, what could possibly go wrong?
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Start very gentle with the massage if you have any chronic pain issues in the back, otherwise you'll just piss it off.
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I've just watched a good detailed video about the The Romanian Deadlift (RDL) which states that it isn't really a deadlift at all as the weight should never touch the floor. Try it, what could possibly go wrong?
I’ll look out for a suitable rock at the crag
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The Si O'Connor workout :)
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I went to grumble to my physio once about a similar thing. He said "you're in your late 30s, you're trying really hard at a physical sport, and you're complaining that you're trashed afterwards? Right. Have a hot bath and a rest"
If I was trashed in the same way as everyone else seems to be I wouldn’t be concerned
I always get this and did throughout my 30s. If I go for a hard day climbing my back and shoulders are always super sore the next day. Feel stiff and tired. Doesn't feel like DOMS to me which I was used to from weightlifting days.
I think it is to do with tightness/instability in some postural muscles leading to over-compensation from other muscles.
I've never solved the problem and tend to just live with it but I am one of the most injury prone people I know so not a good benchmark. The mobility exercises people are suggesting seem like a good shout.
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I’ve been doing a few mobility exercises before leaving crag and when getting back to our accommodation and it seems to be working