SCJP

I developed some sort of sciatic problem last year that has been steadily getting more painful & frequent. It's got to the poitn where I think a trip to the docs is necessary.

Whilst I'm getting myself sorted, I will not be doing any proper squats or deads - unless anyone has some solid contrary advice.

Are there any upper leg exercises that it will be safe to do without putting additional stress on my lower back?

I've no idea how long this problem will take to fix & I don't want what little leg strength I've built up to waste away completely.

Thanks.

ONE SMART COOKIE

Try doing some lying leg curls on a flat bench with a dumbbell held between your feet..

Or try doing some glute/ham raises...

As for you sciatica I would suggest looking into some daily light stretches and hip mobility movements to loosen up the area..

Jimmy

i get it also

the doc will prescribe diclofenic which reduces the inflamation...and allows the treatment physio/osteopathy to work

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Porky Pie

Some leg press machines will be okay, it depends on the set up of the machine and how far "down" you let the weight come. Front squats can also be okay believe it or not.

GPs aren't the greatest source of advice on back pain. Lay it on a bit thick about the pain and discomfort - tell him its making you depressed and insist on a referal to a specialist for a scan - its the only sure fire way of seeing what's up in there.

SportDr

Depending on cause, an osteo would be better than your GP. I caused myself months of pain years ago with sciatica through doing sit-ups incorrectly. I went to my GP who luckily had practised osteopathy and one cringe worthy crack later and the pain was completely gone. All it took was to manipulate the vertabrae that had become slightly mis-aligned back into place.

Nowadays I can do this myself but I wouldn't recommend it to anyone, go see a pro!

hth

SD

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SCJP

Thanks guys, some useful advice there.

The plan is to get a referral letter from my GP (who is pretty useless for anything but this) & get treated privately through my work cover.

colrob1

had the same problem and ended up needing surgery last year.stay well away from load bearing exerscises until you find out if it is a disc problem or you will make it worse.if your core is not up to scratch then your lower back has no natural support.stretching hams and piriformis helps but do this lying down so your spine is not "loaded ".I am still not right due to me carring on training through the pain.i went to a chiro and it made it worse and there was no going back from then on.if i had my time again i would knock the weights on the head until i had a mri done try concentrating on stretching and core work but remember to watch your form .

mickus

LAd,

stay away from squats and deadlifts, personally I would not do legs at all while you are suffering from sciatica. I blew two disc in my lower back last september and the side effect was server sciatica continually I had it for 10 months and now still get bouts if i dont do my stretches in the mornings and at night. I give some advice i seen chiro osteo and gp and had actupunture and all of them worked for a bit but nothing solvered the problem except time and treating the injury with respect. Stretching is your best bet, need to losen your glut where it has the scitica running through it.

check out the injury forum for backs and you will see in there, that there has been some posts for different types of stretches to help relieve sciatica and they do work

SCJP

Thanks again chaps.

Saw my GP yesterday who has prescribed Co-Codamol for the pain & Diclofenac for pain/anti-inflammatory. Still hurts like buggery tho', but I now feel a little drowsy too & seem constipated, which is fckuing great.

I'm being referred to a physio as the Doc is certain the problem is muscular. Hopefully this will work.

I've pretty much decided that the only leg exercises I will do are calf raises for now.

I'm still going to do my upper body routine, but might ease off on the rows - I think I'll just have to see how it goes.

I started Thai boxing again last week & I think this aggravated things. I don't propose not doing this but will have to be careful.

invisiblekid

I wouldn't do anything until you've got a diagnosis. You may well make a mess of your back. I continued to train with a similar sounding injury and I'm still receiving treatment 18 months on.

I also wouldn't take the anti-inflammatories. They stop the swelling which is actually a crucial part of the repair process. If you can afford it, I'd also see a private physio. The NHS physio is only interested in making the pain go away, not allowing you to keep lifting. See what they say, but I'd consider seeing a sports physio who is sympathetic to your lifting.

Just my 2p.

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Jimmy

sometimes the dicloflex is the only thing that cuts the pain

some injuries never go away...and its the only thing that works

codene does nothing for inflamation pain like you have

not even opiates helped me...but diclo works wonders

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SCJP

I've more or less decided not to lift a single weight until I've seen the physio. Hopefully I'll have the discipline to follow this through if/when the current pain subsides. When it eases I'll start doing some sensible cardio again, possibly some basic 'core' work also (I'll stand on my little girls space hopper ;)).

After today I don't think I'll bother with the co-codamol as I've not been to the loo (no. 2) all day & I don't think it's done anything other than take the edge off the pain slightly.

Thanks all.

Slamdog

diclofenac works but be careful with the dose as it sends you to sleep and can cause big stomach ulcers...

I'm in the same boat with tendonitis so i'm doing nothing really with my arms until it gets better...

bumps n lumps

I have the same thing going on right now, waiting for physio but while I was waiting had to take time off work as it was that bad, and next thing I know they laid me off! so now I cant workout, I dont have a job, none of the pills help the pain at all, and to top it all they told me I need to wait 4-5 months for the physio, and due to not having a job any more I cant pay to go private! life is treating me so well at the moment I dont think I can take it!

invisiblekid

bumps - why did they lay you off? Surely it wasn't because of the injury?

How did you injury yourself?

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Most bodybuilders are actually insane. Albert Einstein defined insanity as "Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results".