Dad has neck pain. Could training resolve it?

[SS2016]

So my Dad is almost 63, ~5ft 9 (was 5ft 11 but is on the way down) and is at least 100kg. His bodyfat percentage is definitely over 40%. About 6 months ago, his blood pressure was fine but a few days ago, his doctor said it is getting dangerously high so he told him to lose some weight.

The main point of this thread is that he has recently been having neck pain. The pain is:
- throughout the cervical spine
- started about a month ago and has got progressively worse
- is present constantly throughout the day
- he describes it as a "dull, throbbing pain"
- doesn't radiate anywhere
- he started taking an NSAID (naproxone/esamaprazole) a few days ago but his pain hasn't been relieved at all yet
- there seems to be nothing obvious that makes it worse since the pain is constant. However, I think that him sitting on his ass all day either at home or work is not helping the pain at all
- a few years ago, he was told he had arthritis in his neck. However, this is the first time that his neck has been hurting him for longer than a week.

Since he has to lose weight by both altering his diet and by exercise, I think doing an LP along with HIIT would be the best prescription. He is currently untrained (never lifted weights ever) but occasionally uses a stationary bike.

My main q is:
- Have any of you guys seen clients/yourselves improve their neck pain by training? Is it appropriate to train with an arthritic neck?

I suspect that if my Dad gets a stronger deadlift and his OHP, the musculature and other structures surrounding his neck will get stronger and his neck pain will decrease. Does that make any sense?

Thanks

[Daniel Cavallari]

OP, it is hard to say without an actual diagnosis. I can tell for a fact, however, that when I train, shit hurts way less. This is anecdotal, but many people have the same experience, so I don't see how lifting with good form would be detrimental. This last part is important, I certainly have hurt my neck due to bad form in the past.

Getting a guy who occasionally uses a bike to do a LP might prove to be a challenge though. Best of luck with that.

[I_iz_a_fatass]

Obligatory disclaimer: Not a doctor.

I don't see how lifting with good form would be detrimental.

Add my +1 to the whole "barbells make things hurt less" parade that'll be incoming shortly. I've had horrific back pains starting from feeling the lower lumbar POP when slowly and carefully moving a heavy-ass fixture in a retail store when i was in my early 20's. It's aggravated me most of my life, to the point where one day turning with an EMPTY plastic milk jug had me riding Darvocet and Percocet for two weeks. Multiple car wrecks and lift in general made it worse.

It hasn't done as much as lightly whine since I got my deadlift above body weight. Sure, I get annoying aches and pains, but I didn't start until I was 45, and it's five years - and unrelated multiple surgeries - later and it still doesn't hurt unless I spend the day sitting on my ass.

Take from this what you will.

[Charlie Davies]

Your dad has lost two inches in height, and has neck pain.

Maybe he is getting more and more hunch-backed (kyphotic), forcing him to carry his head forward of his center-mass, stressing his arthritic neck.

Maybe deadlifts would help him maintain better posture, and make his spine feel better. They have that effect on me.

[Fiddler]

Your dad has lost two inches in height, and has neck pain.

Maybe he is getting more and more hunch-backed (kyphotic), forcing him to carry his head forward of his center-mass, stressing his arthritic neck.

Maybe deadlifts would help him maintain better posture, and make his spine feel better. They have that effect on me.

+1. I work at a luthier's bench or at a desk all day, and I was definitely getting kyphotic. Deadlifts and presses have helped a Lot.

[Aaron Montgomery]

I'm no doctor, but I can say that lifting has definitely helped with my random aches and pains. I used to get migraines every couple weeks, tension headaches, "pinched nerves" in my back, and lower back aches a lot. Got put on prescription headache meds but they had some weird side effects (lost weight, would space out when thinking or talking), so I got off of those, and used motrin not infrequently. I used to see a chiropractor 1-2x a week, because it would help the headaches for a couple days. The chiro said the "cause" of my problems was my spine was curved (scoliosis). Then I got in a car accident, and started getting pain in my neck and clavicle area. More chiropractor visits, which would help with pain for a day or two. But nothing ever helped long term.

Since then, I've put on some muscle mass, and strengthened my back with deadlifts and other compound lifts. I'm not very strong, but I'd say that once my deadlift got above ~250lb and my weight got above 180lb I observed that I no longer needed chiro visits, had almost no back issues, and rarely got headaches. I don't get migraines anymore. Of course, I was uber underweight before (130lb), so gaining weight also helped a lot.

TLDR; yes, I have found that lifting (especially deadlifts) significantly helps with neck, back and other pains. You'll experience muscular soreness from time to time, but that's way better than back or neck pain.

[Culican]

I'm a year younger than your dad. 20 years ago I had a bad problem with my cervical discs in my neck. From time to time I get neck pain but I always find that training, especially deadlifts resolves the pain rather than making it worse.

By the way, anytime I go to a new doctor and give him the MRI report about my neck he or she will look at me funny and say, "You have the neck of a 90 year old." The MRI report is 20 years old; I must have the neck of a hundred ten year old now.

So I have a horrible MRI report from the radiologist but very little pain. Training definitely helps.

[SS2016]

Thanks for the responses guys.

I've been trying to get him to start training for the last year or so. Given his personality, I know if he does a few weeks of training and sees his progress, he will become hooked. The main issue is convincing him to go. Would forcing him to read the Barbell Prescription be a good starting point? How have you guys got your folks to start lifting? How did you older guys get into lifting after 50?

Unfortunately there are no SSCs in my country. There is not a hope in hell would he do SSOC. I would definitely coach him myself, however, my gym is pretty busy up until 9/10pm, so I couldn't coach him until after that. Luckily, my gym is 24hrs so I could do late night sessions with him, but I doubt he would be receptive to this idea. Any ideas on how to sway his thinking to train late in the evening for a few nights?

Thanks guys.

[Charlie Davies]

A few years back when I was a new barbell enthusiast (and wouldn't shut up about it), I showed the lifts to my dad who was then about 70.

He refused to deadlift, but took to goblet squats, and has done them on and off since then. They help his knees. I don't coach him, he goes to the YMCA in his neighborhood.

My mother is not receptive to strength training, and I've similarly had no luck with my wife. It's a shame, but I've learned to not push them.

My 17yo son lifts in my garage with me though, and I'll start the 11yo soon -- he's interested.