[dom]

Hi i am thinking of starting weight training excercises again but i am worried about my back,as some may know i am a walker with L1 injury,i am sure sit-ups are out of the question but what about lat pull downs/squats etc or anything to do with back exercises

[In The Wind]

I do seated exercises for my back. There is a spinal rehab place trying to start-up near me (http://www.victorywalkinc.com/ , That's me on the handbike.) I've found that the handbike is good, seated one arm rows are good, and just sitting with my arms extended in front or to the side.

You can try putting a pillow in your lap and laying foward on it and lifting your arms straight out, squeezing your shoulder blades together.

I do some mat execises also. With the help of a therapist, laying on my back, bend my legs and do sort of a crunch type setup, with my arms pointing at my knees.

Squats are out of the question for me, and they would certainly concern me in your case but it's up to you. There are a lot of execises you can do to really strengthen your back with risking further injury. I can really feel the one arm rows after I do them. And my posture has gotten a lot better.

This post has been edited by In The Wind: 17 January 2010 - 06:33 PM

[Wheelsonfire]

With bad/weak back muscles your are better off to strengthen them first.
For the lower back an exercise known as good mornings will strengthen them,no need to apply weight, use the weight of your upper body before weight is applied, squats are a killer on the back when using heavy weight so make sure you strap on a belt for support.
I recommend very light weight to start if and when you are able to progress.

[Zoo]

Started out with building endurance in muscles, high reps-low weight, for about 4 wks. Using a cable pull down machine. I also used dumbells to increase balance in muscles with the same high reps-low weight. Important to build endurance before hitting weights real hard especially after recent SCI... All of these excercises I do are seated. Also when I first started I was worried about my back too but after doing the excercises it helped to reduce pain. The stretching that lat pull downs do especially...

[ADP-10-08-63]

Look at disabilty gb site as they bench press where you are safely strapped and secured to to the bench before comencing lift you are under strict supervision at all times.

Good luck.

[DellFan]

Do you have a PT? If so, I would ask them because you do not want to risk doing damage. I know for me, without supervision from my PT I am not to lift weights due to spasticity.

Hope This Helps