I'm going to take you through a timeline of what happened, what I had been eating, drinking, etc. that lead up to my fun little dance with Rhabdomyolysis. For starters, I DID NOT GET IT DOING CROSSFIT! This is something that I was asked no less than ten times during my ordeal because of the recent hoopla. Anyone can get rhabdo if all of the conditions are just right.
Let's begin with: What is Rhabdo? Take a look at this article written by Jeff Barnett, Owner of Crossfit Impulse. He hits on all points perfectly. Pay close attention to his first thought, "Why should I care about Rhabdo? Because it can kill you"
http://crossfitimpulse.com/rhabdo-and-crossfit
Now - My Story:
I had been out of the gym for almost three months. Yep. Those of you who know me know that this is totally out of the norm for me. I used to be in the gym two times a day when preparing for competitions, but life happens and priorities get rearranged. After some dust cleared and I regrouped (found my footing, if you will), I decided to get myself back to where I wanted to be both physically and mentally. I joined up at my favorite gym and was excited about getting back to the grind of the weights. I had been eating like absolute crap for weeks and had finally, once again, found my groove in the nutrition department. I was going to be kick starting my plan with the Eat to Live diet. Ergo, I was eating a lot of vegetables, some fruits and beans for protein (although I did continue to implement my protein shakes everyday). I was drinking a gallon of water and had on Sunday, Monday and the Tuesday I was injured. On Tuesday, I worked out with Rachel Winn (an NPC Figure Competitor) and we did nothing that we hadn't done previously. It was a leg workout complete with a myriad of different squats and super-sets - basically no rest through the duration of the workout. It was a total of eight exercises (4 super-sets) - three sets each. I knew it had been a while before I worked out, so there were times when I would tier the reps from 15-15-15 to 15-12-10. If needed, I also dropped to just my body weight.
I have learned from research that people susceptible to Rhabdomyolysis (let's just called it Rhabdo from now on) are beginners or former athletes/competitors who take a break and then immediately jump back in to training where they left off. That was me. My friend, Michelle Simpson (CF box owner, trainer and Body for Life Champion), put it best to me when she said, "Mentally, you knew you could do the workout and you were already determined to finish it. Physically, your body had lost strength but you knew you could push through because of the mental aspect." This is it, perfectly. I didn't care if I had to drop weight of a couple of reps, I was going to finish this workout. Post workout, as Rachel was doing some sprint work, I was steady state walking on a treadmill for 20 minutes and my left leg almost gave out on me. As you can see from some of my posts, I was joking about how brutal the workout was! Her and I went for coffee after the workout - just black with some half and half. On the way home, I had a protein shake. I got home and took an Epsom Salt bath as I heard that it could help with inflammation. I drank about 30 ounces of water by the time the workout ended to the time I crawled in bed. The next day it just felt like I had regular DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness) and I didn't worry about the feeling. I went to work and even walked around a store with Jake later in the day. By that night, however, things had changed. Jake sat on the couch with me and his thigh hit mine sending a sharp pain in my leg. This wasn't just normal post workout soreness. By the middle of the night, my legs started to tighten up. I honestly just thought that I had slightly overdone my workout and it would take another day of recovery. We all know that usually DOMS are the worst on day 2. I was thankful that it was Thanksgiving so as to not have to be in an office. I woke at 5 am and thought I should maybe take another Epsom Salt bath. My legs were now shot. They would not function. I had to negotiate getting up and off the couch (where I was determined to stay for the entire day) and made sure that I did everything that needed to be done while I was standing before I had to once again sit. If I even bent my leg slightly, my quads would feel as if they were on fire and I could feel a very hard pull on the muscles. I drank a lot of water and just thought that maybe I needed to stretch them out. So long as I was laying on the couch - I was fine. That's where I stayed all day. Come Friday, I was now walking like a stork. I recognized how ridiculous this was and I just needed to probably stretch out my muscles. (I have since learned that this is a BIG no-no). My knees would not bend on their own. I'm pretty flexible, but could not so much as lift my heel off the ground. I forced my knees to my chest and even attempted to lay on a foam roller. As I lay on the roller I immediately knew it was not a brilliant idea. Oh, the pain. I made no attempt as rolling so much on the thing as to roll off of it in the fetal position. I used my hands to then massage them and I was feeling a cold rush making its way through my thighs almost as if blood was flowing in them again. It was an odd sensation. I had to step up on a stool to reach something and I remember thinking how the heck I planned on negotiating the movement. I physically forced my knee to bend by using my hands to lift my foot on to the stool. I thought I was going to snap my quad in half it was so tight and the pain was horrible. I drove myself to Walmart and bought some muscle pain medication. The security footage of me getting in and out of the car is probably golden. I remember letting out a little yell when I sat back in my car. I decided to reach out to a friend who is versed in rhabdo as he had it as well this year. I was to monitor my urine color. Fun stuff. I did so and, to my dismay, it was turning a slight brown. I had only been drinking water for the past three days, so this was a huge red flag.
Yeah - I know. But it's a visual that may help! Workout was on Tuesday.
This reflects (from left to right) 2:00 pm, 3:00 pm, 4:40 pm and 5:20 pm)
"There is something in the blood - muscle enzymes called CPK. A normal range is 20-140 micrograms per liter. The most I've seen in my fifteen years as an ER physician is 10,000-15,000. I ran your panels twice to make sure. You have a level of 132,000." And, with that, I was admitted. The doctor on the floor who took over my care thought I may have been in a crushing car injury. I had brought my iPad with me and started researching the numbers they were telling me. It doesn't do anyone any good to read how someone had a level of 40,000 and they were in danger of kidney failure or death. I was thinking, "I have you beat by more than triple!" I really did a number to my quads, I guess. They put air compressions on my lower legs so as to avoid any blood clots. They had to put an IV in my bicep (that's a happy little placement) and a heart monitor. I was in the hospital until Monday morning. My care consisted of pushing a ton of sodium bicarbonate through my body via I.V. and drinking at least a gallon or more of water per day. Minimal movement was requested but when one has to use the restroom from the influx of liquids, it doesn't bode well.
My CPK Levels:
Friday Night: 132,000
Saturday Morning: 128,500
Saturday Night: 95,800
Sunday Morning: 80,150
Monday Morning: 53,000
*UPDATE: Wednesday - eight days after the workout. Levels are 16,700. Still high and will follow up again in a week. I still do not have full range of motion in my legs
My liver enzyme levels were high as well (he said in the thousands, but I have yet to see the actual report) and sent me to have an abdominal ultrasound before I was released. All came back clear and there was no noticeable damage to my kidneys. The doctor was comfortable with my leaving the hospital on Monday so long as I followed up with my doctor by Thursday. Today I've been at work and am not feeling so bad. My legs are just the normal post workout soreness and I can actually sit and stand without seeing stars. I've been drinking a ton of water and will just make sure to take it easy once I get back to the gym. I'm not to do a lower body workout for two weeks, but I know that I must start off slowly and not try to hang with a figure competitor for a while!
Seeing as how I'm not allowed to workout until the New Year - I shall continue blogging until said time and then it is on!
