What you can't do with a back injury

[Adrian Tan]

Well, just had another lifting injury yesterday, just before the day's shoot (a children's birthday party) started. Kind of lower back, near hip. And I was surprised how much it affected my performance the entire day.

-- Can't bend -- even simple tasks like going into bag to change battery become a chore.
-- Can't run. So, can't get into position fast enough if something unexpected happens. But, generally, everything just happens slower during the day. Can't run to bag to change lenses.
-- Can't spin fast. For instance, I spot someone about to laugh to my right -- can't spin fast enough to catch it.
-- Can't crouch easily. In the context of a children's birthday party, where you want to get close to the ground to film children at their own height, this was particularly annoying.
-- General agility -- no hanging off the children's playground equipment to get an unusual angle.
-- General fatigue / wanting to rest, etc. So, just demotivated to do anything.

Moral of the story, if it needed to be said in the first place: take care of your back! Maybe don't even buy big big bags, or the temptation is there to fill them.

[Dave Baker]

As someone who has had lower back pain for years, I concur. Everything you say is true.

The only difference between you and me? I've had to get used to it and act accordingly. Oh, and hopefully yours will get better soon. Mine won't.

There's a fine line between hurting your back and having chronic back pain, if this is not your first injury, you may have crossed it already. I heartily suggest you take your own advice. Every time. The temptation to move something too heavy or add just one more thing to a lift is always there.

Dave

[Noa Put]

Join the club, I was 17 when I had my first hernia and from there it has only got worse over the years, I"m approaching 50 now. Had to forfeit 2 weddings this year because of a hernia. I always have to be careful with how I lift stuff and even the slightest wrong rotation of my upper body can cause a hernia. If I get out of the car I have to move my whole body, legs included at the same time towards the left to get out.

I have gotten used to it but every now and then it goes wrong, it has been a few years now that I have had such a bad hernia like the one about 2 months ago and I am still suffering from the consequences, looks like it will take a few more months before I"m ok though I have been able to shoot a wedding yesterday on my own. I took a small roller with me to place my backpack on but I still take too much with me, my bakcpack is also too big :)

[Chris Harding]

Hi Adrian

My wife often has that and the doc told her it's not a back problem as such but a related issue with her sciatic nerve .... For her it's a bummer!!

Seriously do you do birthday parties as paying gigs or was that just a family thing? I wouldn't have thought people would pay for a kids party videographer or photographer.

Hope it gets better as this is our busy season !! I purposely take a week off in December after the September - November chaos otherwise I end up physically exhausted by December ... a week in the islands snorkelling and shooting fish instead of brides works wonders for me!!

Chris

[Chris Medico]

Know the feeling well. When I was 18 I was run over by a car. While riding my motorcycle. Shattered knee, messed up back and shoulder. Ended my military career before it started.

Every morning I wake up and step to the floor is a reminder.

[Adrian Tan]

Originally Posted by Chris Harding

Seriously do you do birthday parties as paying gigs or was that just a family thing? I wouldn't have thought people would pay for a kids party videographer or photographer.

Well, this was a sort of two-day event: one-year-old birthday party on the Sturday, christening on the Sunday.

[Arthur Gannis]

Being also a photographer for many years, I learned to lighten my gear since my rheumatic arthritis years. Used to carry well over 40 lbs. of gear back then, alone. It didn't make any sense to kill myself for a few shots that needed a tripod or light stands. If it was't for my tiny shoulder bracket when I'm doing video, one would think I'm a guest with a camera since I never wear an all black attire.

[Jeff Harper]

Excercise excercise excercise. Adrian, if you don't have any debilitating injuries, excercise.

I am nearly 59. I go to the gym almost daily. In summer I walk at least an hour a day if not two hours. Try push ups, sit-ups, chest excercises, arms, legs. Sit-ups or any ab excercises are really, really important.

I do routinely do 12 hour, 4 camera shoots alone. After the shoot I go to a nightclub and go dancing, then I go out to eat. Then I go to the gym in the morning!

You likely injured your back because you are out of shape. Hopefully you will start out an excercise routine and build your strength. To start with you might try very gentle squats, just go down a little ways. Over time increase how far down you go till you can easily go to floor and back up, don't bounce.

Good luck.

[Noa Put]

You likely injured your back because you are out of shape.

Back injuries come in all shapes and sizes and being in shape often has not much to do with it, when I got my first hernia at the age of 17 I was doing some intense powertraining several times a week, I have worked for 8 years in a coalmine in the 80's and my job required a very good physical condition as we often had to unload heavy parts by hand, it was there where I first injured my back because of a wrong lifting technique and ever since I have been plagued by back problems. What Adrian describes can be strained muscles because of a wrong move and being in shape could help in such a case but it will not always prevent a injury, there are enough people that do intens sports that have muscle injuries.

[Jeff Harper]

Noa, I'm sorry about your hernia, very unpleasant condition. I have had one and my brother suffers from one as well. However, I was addressing Adrian's back issues, not hernias. Totally different issues.

I have had four bad car accidents. Back inuries and neck injuries galore, so I understand the issues with injuries. I was hit by a car going 60 miles per hour while I was at a stop light, it was not pretty. In the end it was the excercises that allowed me to maintain my mobility and that allowed my injuries to heal properly.

I can only share what has worked for me.

My doctors tell me that most common back injuries are the result of being out of shape. When I am out of shape my back is prone to hurt from the simplest things, as well as other parts of my body.

If you bend over to pick something up and you hurt your back, you are likely in pretty poor shape, or you used very bad form, or you were trying to pick up too much.