Becoming Stronger without squats & deads

C

Chthonian

New Member
Due to three herniated discs, I'm avoiding squats and deads now. Luckily, the herniations are minor, and as of now I have no pain shooting down my legs, which is odd. That being said, I want to still lift, but just avoid those two compounds, along with military presses.

Can I still get bigger/stronger without them? I mean, I know deadlifts expose your body to a great deal of load, but with dips/pullups and incline bench/rows I should be able to build upper body mass and strength, right?

Then, of course, my legs will suffer, unless I do some sort've movement for them. What can I do or what should I do for my legs to get stronger? Yes, size is pertially a goal, but I want to be able to fight more effectively, deliver stronger strikes, etc. Sure, technique and conditioning are key, but strength will always help.
 
I have no dang idea. I work for UPS, could be the box moving there. I also lifted these past four years now (since beginning of highschool) and probably had poor form in the beginning. I could've also just threw something out of alignment grappling over the course of these past two years, not to mention flexion core exercises. To me, a big no-no. I'm sticking with isometric stuff for the abs, now.
 
Yep, I'm pretty sure you will still get stronger and bigger, perhaps just at a slower rate than if you did those big 2 compounds along with them.

As for the legs... well, I don;t know, how about leg extensions? Leg curls? Calf raises? I suppose whatever exercise you can manage for the legs without aggravating your injury. Maybe calf rasises and leg extensions could do. Better than nothing at all, unless they also aggravate your injury.

Have you tried asking a good sports doctor?

Regards, and good luck buddy!
-JV
 
I'm in the same boat - no deads, rdl's, good mornings or squats (my back has been injured 10 times due to these exercises).

Pistols are definitely worth trying as are dumbell lunges if you can manage them.

Unfortunately, if you do leg curls without squats then you may end up with muscular quads around the knees but not around the hips.

In my opinion, it should still be possible to build a significant amount of muscle on the upper body without doing these leg lifts.
 
Chtonian

I'm with JV on this, extensions and leg curls, add up some lunges and it should be dandy.

Have you tried hack squats (on the machine) or even leg presses. Both of these if done on a machine should be good as the back is protected, get yourself a brace too (I use an elastic double brace and it sure works!

My back moans after ATG squats, deadlifts well
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I am paying a visit to the romanian Dracula for my next program and hopefully he won't suck all my blood
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I had dropped these sometime ago due to the aggravation to my back, but they are such darn good back builders, actually overall. :confused:
 
I also have problems with my back 2 bulging discs. I have been able to do leverage squats without too much trouble. The leverage squat machine is the main reason I have stayed at the same gym so long. You can also try leg presses but not on the 45 degree version. There are also other ways of doing leg exercises that may not hurt your back. You can try
Super Squats Hip Belt

For the lower back you can try hyper-externsions.

Just start out slow and light and maybe you can strengthen your back enough to try squats and deadlifts.
 
That super squats hip belt is pretty cool. I might invest in one to try it at some point.

As of now, I got the green light to do squats again from multiple credible sources. I don't feel like getting into detail, but I think I'll be okay. Should I feel any pain (which I never have with squats) then I'll stop.

I workout at home, so I can't do hack squats or leg presses. I wouldn't want to, anyway. I want my lifts to carryover to functional sports performance. Nothing will get transferred over like good ol' full olympic style backsquats will.

I'm still weary of deadlifts, though. I think I can get away without ever doing them - I'll just stick to cleans, high pulls, snatches, and other pulling movements that are done explosively.
 
Dips and chins/pullups will take care of your upper body for strength I think.

Personally, I've found that compressing exercises such as standing presses and some of the leg presses cause more soreness/stress in the lower back than deads...but that's just me.
 
I'd say the guys are right - the upper body excercises should do the trick, and then do legextensions, legcurls, and donkey calf-raise for calves - but I wouldn't do the lunges as Fausto suggested, since the back is also exposed here...
 
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