Bye Bye Rowing? Herniated Disk And Cracked Meniscus

[[old] guasaman]

Hi All,<br />This is my first post here and right now i am just looking for some encouragement. Through my 34 years of my life I have worked out in different discilplines and have always considered myself very careful about avoiding injures. So, after five year of not rowing, but of doing other activities and keeping in good health, I started again. Five months later I am diagnosed with a discus hernia in the lumbar 5, and a crack on my right leg meniscus. What did i do wrong? Well, obviously I over did it, also I went gradually up with the resistance in the machine and for the last three of the five months i rowed in resistance 10. (I discovered later that that is not recommended at all, too late i guess)<br />Bottom line, right now i cannot row as, although my right knee does not hurt when I row or do other things, when I get out of the machine I feel a killer pain in the right knee when I try to stretch my leg. I have done all the studies with doctors, and for my knee is either avoid the activities that make me hurt or get an operation.<br /><br />So, its seems I will have to sell the rowing machine that has accompanied me for a lot of years. Its not that bad, I am swimming now and doing some regenerative yoga, lucky me I dont live out of rowing!.<br /><br />Anyway, any advice or sharing of similar experiences are welcomed, as I would love to row again but now it seems like an imposible task, and I have to admit that I feel a little bit depressed when I think about the fact I wont be able to row for a long long time.<br /><br />Thanks all <br />Regards from Buenos Aires<br />Gustavo

[[old] PaulS]

It sounds as if you discovered some of your errors already. (Drag too high, technique probably needs improvement)<br />If you can get the knee fixed through surgery, that may be a great path, I had a shoulder problem that was corrected so fast and easy through surgery that it made other decisions to avoid the surgical approach earlier in life looks pretty bad by comparison.<br /><br />If you do want to return to rowing, just take it very slow and progressive, do not try to duplicate your best efforts too quickly. It takes a lot of patience and discipline, but also get good advice and feedback on technique and make it a priority to get that right. It will be difficult to change the habits already established, but it will be worth it to you if you like rowing as an activity.<br /><br />All the best.

[[old] feldspar]

I my self am coming back from a lower back injury(over use) back spasms related to work.<br /><br />Rowing can be tough on the lower back discs, and it sounds like your technique put a lot of stress on the discs in your back. During the catch phase the forward spinal flexion combined bya strong drive can be rough on the lower back. <br /><br />Also rowing in the morning can put extra stress on the discs in the back since they swell with fluid while you sleep, and take a few hours to equalize.<br /><br />Here is a good article on lower back rehab.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.fitpro.com/fitpro/mag_pdf/162.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.fitpro.com/fitpro/mag_pdf/162.pdf</a><br /><br />Both of these books are a good read, the ultimate back fitness is probably the better.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.backfitpro.com" target="_blank">http://www.backfitpro.com</a><br /><br />His books dispell alot of myths about excercises, and be careful as alot of excercises to strengthen the core can put a tremendous compressional and shear load on the spine.<br /><br />Becareful on those yoga stretches some can be bad for your back. <br /><br />Once your getting better maybe once you get better hip and knee flexibity your be able to row with a light drag with good technique(sitting more upright) and abdominal bracing.<br /><br />Good luck on your rehab.<br /><br />Feldspar<br />

[[old] FrankJ]

Gustavo,<br /><br />I was diagnosed as having a herniated disk at age 27 and am now 60 so I've lived with it most of my life. I relearned how to move and lift things and sit in chairs and cars that really fit me. Most of those years I was a runner and cyclist. At 55 my right knee gave out and I could no longer run. At 57 I took up indoor rowing on a Model C and have logged 8,250,000 meters in the past 3 1/4 years. I race online frequently and have rowed several marathons. Most of my rowing is done with a DF from 110 to 130. I am certain that rowing can help the back but it has to be done properly. I would suggest you keep the erg and think about getting slides. Once you've recovered a bit you may be able to pick up easy rowing again. <br /><br />Good luck!<br /><br />Frank

[[old] grams]

Good questions. My grandson (19 yo) was diagnosed with a herniated disk last year caused by on-the-water rowing. He is getting cortisone shots to reduce the inflammation and hopes to get back on the water. I'm not crazy about cortizone shots (another story) however it might do the trick for him. I hope so.<br /><br />I believe his biggest hurdle will be to recognise that he isn't invincible and pay a lot more attention to the feedback his body is giving him. And reset his priorities about the sport. Health first-speed second.<br /><br />Coincidentally I just found out that I have a torn ACL and a broken meniscus. I did the damage 25 years ago. The doctor then said I was fine. Thanks to MRI its is easier to diagnose now. Other doctors throughout the years didn't check for it-probably because I was sailing, hiking, etc and they didn't even consider it. The meniscus tear has 'healed' but not repaired itself. I'll have the surgery in September when I get back from several long trips.<br /><br />I keep my abdominal muscles pretty tight during the catch to reduce the strain on my lower back. Erging doesn't seem to irritate my knee if I don't race. I erg for an hour every other day. Not fast, not at a high drag factor (95-105), and at Paul's recommended 20 spm 10 mps. I can get my heart rate up to max even using this routine.<br /><br />My advice: let the herniated disc and meniscus heal or have surgery to correct it/them. When you get back into it go for long slow stuff less stressful stuff. You may not set any records but your body will look and feel great. Over the long haul your good health is the most important thing. <br /><br />grams

[[old] guasaman]

Thanks all for your replies! Its nice to see light at the end of the tunnel. I will take it easy, process the learning in all this, and maybe go back to rowing again in some time.(so thanks to your advice, I wont sell the RC2 ). Regarding the meniscus surgery, I will do a deep investigation and see what the possibilities are, but is good to know that it can work sometimes.<br />For the rowing technique, I thought I had a very good one, but after breaking into pieces maybe I should review that, I will probably post a video here and receive killer feedback . <br /><br />Thanks again all for your support, its time to do some inner healing but, paraphrasing the governor: I´LL BE BACK...<br />