Long story short I've been out of lifting for 4 months. Out from almost all exercise for close to two months and just coming back from and inguinal hernia surgery this thursday. This summer I injured my right lower back doing deads. (just a little background. I'm worried about injuring it again and not sure if it has healed all the way for some reason. The pain was not on my vertebrae and as i said was on the right lower so i figured it to be a muscle pull although it's hard to tell because muscle strains can feel so much different than other muscle strains.
So, i have a few questions of what you guys think.
So obviously i'm going to have to come back kind of slow but I also have some big goals I want to hit in the off season before the season starts again at the end of August. I'm one of the taller guys on my team, i play soccer, so one big goal of mine is to gain a bit of weight and strength. Thinking about it now I guess this post will pertain pretty strictly my legs. I'm not sure exactly how relevant the level of competition may be but I play for a top ranked team in division 2 college ball. After not playing for a few years my body was not used to the repetition of competition and games and I think that played a relevant role in my injuries. Unfortunately our season is over now. I'm 21 and about to be 22 in January if that may help with any other questions. We do have an athletic trainer at the school that will most likely want to work with my rehab, and no offence to him, but he is young and while he his educated and can give good advice, i'm looking to get the best advice i can get.
I'd like to put strength in my legs and add a good amount of size as well. I'm looking to be even stronger on the ball and not get hit off. Also a factor that this can benefit is winning air balls and holding my ground. I'm aware of how beneficial squats can be, and my previous habits have not shown me to be one to pamper my legs and not lift hard and heavy. BUT, considering my injury, just coming back, and also considering how important core stability may be, does anybody have some ideas to increase stability, size, and strength? Also, i've always been able to squat a good amount (up to 315x5 this summer) but not very much size comes to my legs. I feel i maybe used my lower back for too much of the lifting for one... :/ I've tried really focusing on full range squats and really focusing on mind muscle connection on sets from 135x12-15 to 225-10-12 THESE LEGS DON'T SEEM TO GROW THOUGH Are full squats necessary? I've heard that going slightly under 90 degrees is enough to engage the muscles looking for improvement and that going ALL the way down can be detrimental to the knees. Any confirmation on this?
So gist of my questions:
What are some good exercises to start with for me when coming back from surgery and injuries while addressing stability? I imagine that at the beginning the size and strength will start to increase dramatically due to muscle memory and how small they have become from being off for so long. Increases seem to be easy right at the start but i'd like to come back right and injury free. I'm not looking to backtrack and take of things that may cause injury later.(I'm also looking to increase flexibility, core strength, and i'm foam rolling to trying and release some of that myofascial tissue tightness.
Any tips on how to make these legs grow after i have gotten back to my previous fitness? (of course i understand how important diet is. everything else seems to grow besides my legs)
Full squats vs 90 degrees vs just over 90 degrees?
Sorry for the novel. I figured I'd try and cover any knowledge I had or false knowledge I obtain to be corrected and move forward rather than you guys having to ask a million questions or make suggestions that maybe I had already addressed. Thanks for any and all help.
So, i have a few questions of what you guys think.
So obviously i'm going to have to come back kind of slow but I also have some big goals I want to hit in the off season before the season starts again at the end of August. I'm one of the taller guys on my team, i play soccer, so one big goal of mine is to gain a bit of weight and strength. Thinking about it now I guess this post will pertain pretty strictly my legs. I'm not sure exactly how relevant the level of competition may be but I play for a top ranked team in division 2 college ball. After not playing for a few years my body was not used to the repetition of competition and games and I think that played a relevant role in my injuries. Unfortunately our season is over now. I'm 21 and about to be 22 in January if that may help with any other questions. We do have an athletic trainer at the school that will most likely want to work with my rehab, and no offence to him, but he is young and while he his educated and can give good advice, i'm looking to get the best advice i can get.
I'd like to put strength in my legs and add a good amount of size as well. I'm looking to be even stronger on the ball and not get hit off. Also a factor that this can benefit is winning air balls and holding my ground. I'm aware of how beneficial squats can be, and my previous habits have not shown me to be one to pamper my legs and not lift hard and heavy. BUT, considering my injury, just coming back, and also considering how important core stability may be, does anybody have some ideas to increase stability, size, and strength? Also, i've always been able to squat a good amount (up to 315x5 this summer) but not very much size comes to my legs. I feel i maybe used my lower back for too much of the lifting for one... :/ I've tried really focusing on full range squats and really focusing on mind muscle connection on sets from 135x12-15 to 225-10-12 THESE LEGS DON'T SEEM TO GROW THOUGH Are full squats necessary? I've heard that going slightly under 90 degrees is enough to engage the muscles looking for improvement and that going ALL the way down can be detrimental to the knees. Any confirmation on this?
So gist of my questions:
What are some good exercises to start with for me when coming back from surgery and injuries while addressing stability? I imagine that at the beginning the size and strength will start to increase dramatically due to muscle memory and how small they have become from being off for so long. Increases seem to be easy right at the start but i'd like to come back right and injury free. I'm not looking to backtrack and take of things that may cause injury later.(I'm also looking to increase flexibility, core strength, and i'm foam rolling to trying and release some of that myofascial tissue tightness.
Any tips on how to make these legs grow after i have gotten back to my previous fitness? (of course i understand how important diet is. everything else seems to grow besides my legs)
Full squats vs 90 degrees vs just over 90 degrees?
Sorry for the novel. I figured I'd try and cover any knowledge I had or false knowledge I obtain to be corrected and move forward rather than you guys having to ask a million questions or make suggestions that maybe I had already addressed. Thanks for any and all help.