First time weightlifter... felt sudden pain when I bent down my neck before squatting

[mcfieldbryan]

Today was my first day to work out. Ever. I was at a real nice gym with my friends doing their workout.

The incident occurred right before we did squats. Before then we had done an assortment of stuff. I was pretty tired at that point. My arms felt like noodles.

Well what happened was as a I bent my neck down and placed the back of my head in front of the bar, my neck/back suddently hurt.. Almost a muscle pulling sensation. It was like a "holy crap" moment that didn't feel too good. And keep in mind this was before I lifted anything.

I turned to my friends and was like "maybe I should skip the squats." They were all like no way and I went through with them and did three sets.

That awkward sensation went away the 2nd time I bent my neck.

Is this sensation normal? Should I worry about it? I'm sort of on edge because I know when I wake up tomorrow morning, I will probably be in the most pain ever in my life.. That's what happens when a skinny guy does an hour and a half workout with two jacked friends.

You see, I know I'm going to be in pain, I just don't want to confuse the typical after working out pain, with real, serious pain that I got because of bending down my neck before I did my squats.

Should I worry?

[ZenMonkey]

Take your time getting into it. If you have never worked out before you need to try something like SS. Dont work out the way your friends do. It sounds like they have been misinformed. You will make incredible progress if you stick to your diet and give full effort. Do yourself a favor and read around on the forums and the articles on wannabebig.com and definitely purchase and read Starting Strength, you can get it on amazon for about 20 bucks. For another 20 you might want to pick up Practical Programming as well. Both really good investments.

[Joe Black]

Good advice from ZM..

I am the same if I get straight into squat. I need to stretch out my chest quite a bit so I can feel comfortable holding the bar and I always do a few warm up sets working up to full range of motion before getting into a working set.

Remember, don;t worry about your friends so much, they have probably been traiing for a bit. Good form and not injuring yourself is more important

[-JM-]

You will experience a lot of stiffness/pain tomorrow. The day after tomorrow might even be worse. Sitting down and climbing stairs will be fun

Eat plenty of protein and carbs, take some ibuprofen and stay as active as you can. Walking, light stretching etc. The pain in your neck/back was most likely just not being used to training, you may have just tweaked a nerve. You will hopefully know yourself. For muscle soreness, warm baths may help or even try contrast showers.

You should thank your friends for helping you get your feet wet in the gym though as Zen said, try doing a routine such as ''starting strength'' that will help you build a good solid strength base from which you can progress towards whatever your longer term goals are, be that strength training or body building or whatever you have in mind.

GL man.

Oh, and eat a few bananas

[tnathletics2b]

Well what happened was as a I bent my neck down and placed the back of my head in front of the bar

MC,

I don't think I have ever bent my neck down like that to get ready for squats. Albeit, it doesn't really necessarily matter to experienced lifters, but I think that since you are new you should definitely think about your approach to how you are going to lift before you get started. I always get down in a squat position and come up under the bar that way my back and neck stay in a straight line as I go to lift the weights off the rack. I never have a bent neck as I am getting ready to squat. Everyone may have their own preference to where the bar sits on their back/shoulders, but I like the bar to sit pretty high up on the "table," so to speak, that my traps make. This helps me keep my spine in line with where it should be.

I recommend just using the bar for some reps next time so you can get the feel of your approach to the lift, the positioning of your feet, and where you feel most comfortable with the bar sitting. The progress on to adding weight.

[Kastro]

I suspect you had the bar placed ON your neck, or something silly.

That said, get new training partners. Anyone willing to work a new guy to the point that he's crippled with DOMS for the next week is a fool.

[MadScientist]

The incident occurred right before we did squats. Before then we had done an assortment of stuff. I was pretty tired at that point.

Big movements FIRST, not last.

Squat first, do the fooffy small stuff LAST

Warm up with light sets. Put the bar behind your neck, on your traps (may not have big ones for a while)

Dont put the bar on your neck.