For sure. And the guy in that video actually was fine. Minor bruising. The safeties took the impact. He was right back at it.

His shirt ripping apart is an incredibly unforeseeable mishap though, I'm not a doctor but it seems extremely hard to catch a weight that fast.

Typically we have a guy on each side with his hands clasped together right below the bar collars. The handoff guy will have his hands under the bar the whole time, and when it gets very heavy, we'll have two additional guys on the sides to grab the weights if anything goes wrong. Its not like what you usually see in other videos online.

5/5

DL
245x5x3
335x5
425x2

put on briefs
515x1

put on suit
565x1
610x2 - ez

I just went up to my opener for an ez double (opener will be 606) and called it quits for the night. I'm confident I will crush that and my second lift of 650 or 656.

Anything over 622 will get me on the Nemisis white board for the top DL at 242 bw. That's my only shot to get on that white board, as Priest lifted at 242 in a meet a while ago and squatted something in the 900s and benched something in the 700s.

I'm not confident I will get my goal of 683 at this next meet, but I know I can if I do a few things right. Feeling good about my DL right now

Dear Dr. Cha

Long time reader, first time writer...

Do you have much experience with rib sublaxions?

I seem to be somewhat prone to this (whether through my actions or through some other predisposition), I've probably had this happen 4-5 times over the last few years doing various things. e.g Hitting people and things with my shoulder. Lifting things overhead trying to be an oly superstar. Most recently (a few days ago) while hitting people with my hands. It's happened a couple of times on each side of my spine iirc.

So two questions...

1) Do you think manual adjustments (chiro) are effective at treating this? Each time my chiro has treated me for this I seem to get almost immediate pain reduction and improved range of motion in my neck. The way she describes it is that the rib has popped out of it's capsule and she is pushing it back in. It all sounds too convenient to me, but it sure as hell *seems* to work

2) What are the best preventative measures for this? I guess for overhead movements the obvious solution is better form, and actually I think I'm getting better at this ('packing the neck' seemed to do the trick), but for absorbing/delivering hits in rugby and boxing, what do you think I can do? I'm guessing horizontal pulling stuff is good. How about shrugs? How about simply more/better use of the muscles around there in an isometric way? e.g. better upper back involvement in deadlifts?

1 - short answer is yes. I've had it happen a few times and the chiro adjustments make it better right away too. People I lift with have had it happen and have had immediate relief from good chiro adjustments too.

2 - You have the answers mostly right I think. Form is most important in everything you do. Depending where this is happening, maybe certain movements can/should be avoided. For me, OHPing is no good, so I dont do it at all anymore. I dont think shrugs are a very good exercise for most people. Better form on DLs will cure cancer imo (well, maybe not cure cancer, but it fixes a lot). Get good at DLing heavy and that will help fix a lot of problems imo. It will get your upper back into good alignment and it will pack on muscle. Of course, if you're absorbing/delivering hits a lot, you're probably going to have the rib issue again, but getting stronger by using good form on heavy DLs seems to me to be the best way to avoid having the rib issue as much.

Cool. Thanks, Dr. Cha.

5/6

speed bench
45x15
135x10x2
185x6
225x3
280x3x7 or 8, I forgot.

light cable rows
180x10x3

face pulls
140x15

Cutting back on secondary and assistance stuff til after the meet.

5/8

squat
55x10
145x8
235x5

put on briefs
325x3
415x2

put on suit
505x1
585x1 (opener)
Done.

I'll hit my opener bench on Sunday and be done lifting til the meet.

5/10

bench
45x10
135x10x2
185x6
225x4
275x2
315x1

put on single ply shirt
405 off two boards x 2
455 off chest x 2 - The first rep was a little shaky getting to my chest because I pulled my elbows in too soon. The second rep was pretty good.

I'm done lifting until the meet now.

Good luck at the meet!

+1

Thanks!

Thanks!

Cha.

I've been meaning to stop by for a while. I've got some IT band problems in my right leg/knee. Primarily from running while heavy and lots of volume.

Any suggestions? I've been foam rolling. But getting mixed messages on whether that's even a good idea.

Mixed messages about rolling when you have an ITB issue? What would be any logical reason not to roll it every day?

I'd roll it every day. Just do it once a day, and dont do it so its too painful, but do it somewhat vigorously. When you get on a tight/painful spot, try to hold on that position and kick yourself in the butt with the leg that you're rolling. That will loosen up tissues that are basically glued together. Do the same with your quads and stretch your quads a couple minutes each daily. After you roll once in a day, let the area rest/recover until the next day. Compression (Voodoo) bands along with mobility work will also help. You can stretch and use compression bands several times a day, but only roll once a day.

A Doctor's View of CrossFit
An Interview with Dr. Stuart McGill
by Dr John Rusin

This is a great article.

Amen.

yeah, there are dozens of great quotes in that article. That's one of them.

I have paid a lot of tuition but seem to be impervious to learning. Fortunately I am stubborn and/or dumb.

Read McGill's work imo.

This hit home for me. Since I cleaned up my DL form so that there is no low back movement, and I am now pulling very heavy weights with solid form, I am sure I have made the collagen in my spine tougher. The biggest key to this was getting my core very strong.

Timely response. My back is just over feeling sore for a few days after not very much deadlifting. I suspected you'd recommend reading McGill. Where should I start?

Low Back Disorders first. Its a somewhat difficult read, but its sort of a prerequisite for Ultimate Back Fitness and Performance, which is an easier and more interesting read once you know the stuff in LBD.

Looking through Sensei's log since around the beginning of December 2014 would be a good idea too. He's a good example of someone who was trying to do things he wasnt ready for too soon. Then he figured it all out and got better by doing rehab the right way.

Thanks a lot man. Hope you tear it up at the meet.

Thanks!