Improper Deadlift Results

I went to the gym yesterday and attempted to do some sumo deadlifts...I didnt use proper form...I thought I did, but I know obvisously that I didnt. So I did one rep and felt a terrible pain in my back.  Now I have this kind of knot in my lower back on the left side of my spine.If I massage it it moves around kind of like a ball under a tight piece of rubber. 

Its hard to explain but my whole lower back hurts, and this ball in my back is disheartening. Im not sure what it is, or if I should go to the doctor. what do you think it is? Has this happened to you before?

[quote]davidh019 wrote:
I went to the gym yesterday and attempted to do some sumo deadlifts…I didnt use proper form…I thought I did, but I know obvisously that I didnt. So I did one rep and felt a terrible pain in my back. Now I have this kind of knot in my lower back on the left side of my spine.If I massage it it moves around kind of like a ball under a tight piece of rubber.

Its hard to explain but my whole lower back hurts, and this ball in my back is disheartening. Im not sure what it is, or if I should go to the doctor. what do you think it is? Has this happened to you before?[/quote]

Ok, I’m not a medical doctor so take all of this with a giant grain of salt, but the basic rule that I’ve always ran with is this: If it starts getting better after 1-2 days, then odds are you don’t need to go to the doctor.

It sounds like you just might have pulled something, i.e. you tried to lift too heavy, and something got pulled out-of-wack. If it really, really hurts, definitely go to a doc, although odds are they aren’t going to be able to magically fix it.

Try and gently stretch your back, ice-it, and take a break from any spinal-loading lifting you’re doing until it gets better, and you have a full ROM with your back.

Use this as a reminder to warm-up properly, and remember that form is key to this sport. If you’re unfamiliar with a lift, ask someone who knows how to do it. Just reading things doesn’t get you a real idea of how the lift should look.