Between Injury and disease: using starting strength to get strong

[abjude]

Coach Rip,

Tldr: I am young, weak, and have both a lower back injury and a recurrent genetic disorder that forces me into surgeries on a regular yearly basis. I want to get strong and need guidance on how to combat the lower back re-injury.

I've just finished watching Brian Jones talk on his road to recovery. I am no stranger to your philosophy. Two years ago, I bought the book, and got started with learning the squats and the deadlifts. Soon after, I was in a car accident. While the accident wasn't bad it left me with a right, lower back injury that took months to rehab and is still a recurrent injury, easy to relapse to the day. What makes my situation more difficult is that I have a genetic disease, which often leaves me having periodic surgeries in different parts of my body. I can never predict when I will be sick and where. Getting strong helps me recover from these surgeries if/when they happen, but it also means that often times I am building myself back up from nothing. Because of that, I've spent most of my young life skinny and weak.

In the past two years, I've tried going back to squatting/deadlifting. My lower back injury seems to never go away, and a month or two of working out, my back starts spasming again, and all my body feels out of balance. Hearing Brian, I am motivated again to give it a try. I want to be as strong as I can be, and work hard to preserve my strength despite the circumstances

Question: Every time I squat, my right lower back pain gets worse, and in few weeks, the pain goes from tightness to acute pain. I have done an MRI - no signs of discs. Previous P.T believes its due to right hip rotation, and lower back muscle compensation/misalignment. I just had surgery, and in 10 weeks, I can workout again. to maximize my time, I need to make sure my back doesn't hold me back.

[Mark Rippetoe]

More details on the surgery. Where and why?

[abjude]

I have Von Hippel-Lindau disease. I've had two surgeries in the past for tumors that were caused by this genetic disorder. My recent surgery was a partial nephrectomy. It was done laparoscopically. The surgery was due to a renal tumor. I am 1 week post surgery now, and doing pretty well. No complications so far which is awesome.

Lucky for me, the tumors i've had so far were all benign, and I haven't had any tumor in the CNS, Heart, etc. The difficult part about this disease is that I can't predict what will happen tomorrow, but I have a wonderful medical team, and I've developed a great mindset around this. I live a normal life, studied college, and work a full-time job. When things get bad, I take the time off and deal with it.

[Mark Rippetoe]

Post a video of the squat and deadlift.

[abjude]

Thanks coach. It will be another 10 weeks before I am allowed to lift above 6 pounds. I will come back here and post it then.

If you know anyone in the Boston area that you recommend I work with, let me know. I searched the SS directory and it came up short.

[Mark Rippetoe]

Noah Milstein is in Boston. Look him up.