Jeremy C Kester

I threw my back out.

It is not always obvious the importance of stretching and warming up. Normally, I exercise later in the day (often right after work), so I’ve already warmed up. Last week, though, that was not the case.

I was traveling for work, and due to my schedule, I knew that if I was going to exercise at all, I needed to do so first thing in the morning. So I did. Straight out of bed, right down to the gym in the hotel where I lifted weights before jogging and walking on the treadmill.

But wait, there’s more.

Coupled with the above, the bed I slept in was not great, I didn’t sleep much at all compared to normal, and the chair I sat in at the office was terrible. Needless to go into any more detail, it should come as little surprise that Thursday I stood up and found a sharp pain run through my lower back. By Thursday evening, I couldn’t even stand.

Slowly, I got myself upright and moving, made it home, saw a doctor, and started the directed orders to rest.

I used to stretch before exercise and found that it had no great effect. Getting older changed this somewhat. I made myself follow a routine of stretching every morning and I found that my muscles were not as sore by the end of the day. Great! Except… that I stopped.

For the last six to eight weeks I got back into weight training. Heavy — how I like it. Back in my 30’s, I was pushing towards a 400lb deadlift as a goal — without any plans beyond being just a casual lifter. Now in my 40’s, my goal is more for overall health. Getting to that 400lb deadlift would be nice, but is not necessarily something I aim for. All this without the routine of stretching in the morning.

Now, even as old as I am, the decision to pass up on stretching hasn’t been a problem. Given the workouts were in the afternoon/evening, long after being active through the day, I was sufficiently warmed up. This last week, not so much.

Being forced to take a minimum on 1 week off of exercise other than walking is a tough sell. The positive mental benefits of hard exercise — or any difficult physical activity — is hard to dispute. My back says otherwise. Still. Lesson learned. Stretch. Warm up. Take 5 minutes to walk ahead of the weight training and stretch in the mornings at the very least. My back will thank me for it.

---

Copyright © 2023 by Jeremy C Kester – all rights reserved
Do not copy or reproduce without written permission.

If you enjoy the content from me and this site, please consider purchasing one of my books, or if you prefer another way to help support my work, consider donating by clicking: PayPal.Me/jeremykwrites