Everyone who bodybuilds gets injuries. It is part of life. However, not everyone deal with the injuries in the same way and this is where the real problems happen. Here is a lesson I learned about bodybuilding and injuries.

Why you should never lift weights when injured

As I said, everyone who bodybuilds gets injuries. The real test, however, is how you deal with that injury and it seems to me that not many people deal with them very well.

Take me for example. I got a shoulder injury doing a heavy shoulder exercise without warming up properly. The ligaments got damaged and the doctor said I shouldn’t use the muscle for about two months. Pffft! Two months! Yeah right.

So I gave it about a week (if that) and I went back to the gym. I didn’t hit my shoulder directly but it got used in exercises like the bench press, chin up, etc. After a while I reduced the weight because I realized how much it actually hurt. Must be serious I thought. What an idiot!

After about a month I went back to the doctor saying it was a lot worse than it was. He asked me all the usual questions including whether or not I had rested it properly. I told him I hadn’t.

The result?

I now have a shoulder injury that is never going to go away. The rotator cuff has been damaged as the ligaments are not attached correctly. Surgery might fix it or it might not. Pretty annoying for someone who loves to workout.

So what should all bodybuilders learn from this experience?

It is pretty simple. Never train through an injury. Taking a month off training to let an injured muscle recover is a lot better than having a chronic problem for the rest of your life. The time off might even do you good! A lot of bodybuilders grow a lot after giving their body a months rest.

Even a mild injury can turn out to be serious. The pain is your body’s way of trying to tell you something and you should listen to those signals. There is no prize for training even when you shouldn’t be. No body’s training is that important.

The deadlift is one of the greatest muscle building exercises on the planet but not many people seem to use it. Perhaps it is because it is hard work and takes a lot of time to learn the technique. In this post I want to look at some reasons why you should start using the deadlift and give you some tips on how to get the most out of it.

Why everyone should deadlift

We have all heard of the three kings of bodybuilding; the bench press, the squat and the deadlift. Isn’t is funny how everyone does the first two but seem to forget the deadlift. I find it very odd because it is the deadlift that packs on the most muscle to your back, shoulders and even your legs. So why ignore it?

When was the last time you did a deadlift? I better it isn’t something you do regularly. So why don’t people do it? I know it is hard and you need to use a lot of weight but the results are quick and they are amazing. Your muscles grow.

And this is the main reason why everyone should be doing the deadlift - it works. After a few weeks you can master the technque and start packing on the weight. Your back and legs will grow like never before.

Some tips for getting the most from the deadlift

Perhaps the reason you haven’t been giving the deadlift much attention is because you aren’t really sure how to do it. If this is the case you need to read as much as you can about it and get the help of a professional. If you do the deadlift incorrectly you can cause yourself some serious damage. Damage that often cannot be undone.

1. Always lift slowly
When you are picking up a barbell packed with hundreds of kilos you want to make sure you go slow. If you go too fast a part of your back might not be ready and then there goes a disc. Or, you might jerk a muscle in your neck and end up with some long term pain. However, the slow motion also helps you contract your muscles and this very important.

2. Tense that back
Tensing the muscles in your back at the top of the deadlift is one of the most important aspects of the exercise. It completes the move and allows you to get a deeper contraction and a better stretch. It also helps you learn how to tense the muscles during the other parts of the exercise. Continue Reading

No one try this at home. This is one of the stupidist things I’ve ever seen. This is not what martial arts is about. Funny though!