Form check (really long post)

[NickRaslan]

Coach,

I want to preface this post by thanking you for the program.

I'm not really sure where to begin, so I'll start by saying that I've read the 2nd edition of the book and watched the DVD, and got a lot more out of the DVD then the book. Maybe everyone else that posts here has a PhD in kinesiology but... I don't understand a fair amount of the book. I understand (a theory that will be tested here shortly, I suppose) the parts of the book that tell a person how to do the movement, and not much else.

I have a pretty pronounced rounding of the upper back, which in the understanding I've cobbled together from our friend Dwayne in the 2nd ed. of the book, the board's search function, and wikipedia, is called "kyphosis" and can be either postural or skeletal... it doesn't seem as bad as Scheurman's kyphosis, which is good because you don't seem to have many recommendations for that specifically. The takeaway point is: deadlifts and power cleans are fucking hard. They make my back and neck hurt. I'm not certain that I'm doing them exactly right, and I'm willing to accept the fact that doing them may make my back and neck hurt every time, but only if that pain serves a purpose... making me stronger.

I'm also pretty sure that my legs are different lengths and/or different angles... I also always feel like there's more pressure on the right side of my body then my left, and people have told me that my shoulders and knees are a little uneven, which calls to mind scoliosis, and I was told (a caveat: by a lady trying to pitch me a Pilates program) that my left foot is pronated, and that may be the cause of the other asymmetry. I don't have a doctor's diagnosis or x-rays to confirm anything and I don't have health insurance at the moment.

The reason I'm giving you all this information is not to bore you with my life story, it's to aid you in answering a question I have. In threads about scoliosis, you generally seem to take the stance that if a person has mild scoliosis, they should just collar the weights and keep training. But in threads about different leg lengths, you recommend getting a shim before training any further. My question is this: what should I do now? I've gotten the impression from other posts you've made that training with different leg lengths can exacerbate scoliosis, but I'm not sure that I have either the former or the latter... I've gone to doctors before because the right side of my body (knee, back, shoulder, neck) hurts but they've never done anything other than take x-rays/MRIs of the specific areas and refer me to physical therapists.

I've attached some pictures in hopes they might clear up any confusion. I apologize if this post is long and unclear, it's the culmination of a few weeks of confusion and self-doubt and I just... want everything to be resolved. I know that, being 28, I don't have a whole lot of time left to get really strong. I want to keep lifting weights. I'm fucking horrible at it, but it's one of the few things I have in my life right now that makes me feel good and I don't want to stop.

Any help or advice that you can give would be greatly appreciated.

I apologize for the long-winded post and for the delays in the videos, I have asthma and have a hard time catching my breath between reps.

Squat videos: (2nd set had worse form, as I recall)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SVqRMaBQ7gA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pEzLIf4S5F8

Deadlift videos:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFjNWEJXPto
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xDoS1kUSAMs

Press video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xJ3R7kMaMM8

Row video: (if you have time... I realized too late that the power clean video doesn't have the bar in it)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYFm7PaolR0

[Mark Rippetoe]

What did the MRI actually show?

[NickRaslan]

Multiple x-rays and MRIs of my right knee taken between the ages of 12-17 showed that, according to a general practitioner, there was nothing wrong with it.

And then X-rays of my neck, taken when I was 27, revealed (again according to a general practitioner) that there was nothing wrong with it.

I've never discussed scoliosis, kyphosis or leg length asymmetry with a doctor. Neither have I had X-rays nor MRIs of my whole back, or both legs, taken at any point. In truth, I was only vaguely aware that any of the conditions existed until I started lifting weights and started noticing worsening neck pain after lifting.

[Mark Rippetoe]

There is nothing really wrong with your back position -- you are NOT excessively kyphotic. You tend to shit around too much before and during your sets. But there is nothing wrong with your back, as you have now confirmed from multiple sources. The problem is that you are simply too fat, not strong enough, and out of shape. Training through the pain will fix these things, as well as the pain. All of us hurt at some level. Not all of us let it matter.

[NickRaslan]

You know Coach, this is going to sound weird but... that was exactly what I was hoping you'd say.

To be certain though: nothing wrong with my legs either?


Again, thanks for the program. And for your time.

[Mark Rippetoe]

I can't see anything. You're in Oakland: find Tom Campitelli, you fool. He can deal with this first-hand.

[Thomas Jones]

I can't see anything. You're in Oakland: find Tom Campitelli, you fool. He can deal with this first-hand.

Having recently worked with Tom, I wholeheartedly second this. . .