i had a question about swimming and recovering from back surgery. i just wanted some input from anyone that is in or has been in my position. i am 30 and had a microdiscectomy in december 2007 on l4/l5. i was a competitive swimmer until college and that's when the back problems started. ok so enough with the boring stuff, i have finished therapy after about 9 months and i began swimming again. my questions are more related to fears about rehernaition as i am not really sure how my back got messed up so bad in the 1st place. do i need to be worried about reherniation by swimming hard or doing flip turns, or really anything i used to take for granted in the pool? i have had some back spasms this past week on my 'good side' so i am beginning to worry a bit. its been tough because i literally think about every step or movement i make on dry land because i dont want to end up back on that operating table. as you could imagine its stressful :)
any input is appreciated.
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Former Member
I had L5/S1 microdiscectomy surgery back in September 2003 (I was 35) after developing numbness and losing partial use of my left leg. I was swimming a little before the surgery and began swimming a lot after the surgery.
I was told that I should start walking the day after surgery and start swimming within a month. When I asked if there was anything that I should not do in the pool the doc said "no". Then I described what a flip turn was like. He suggested that I hold off on that. But he said that I could pick that up as I started to feel stronger. That didn't take long. I am guessing that I was swimming normally under two months after surgery.
Within 5 months, I was competing in all strokes. I was doing starts, turns and kickouts like I had prior to the surgery.
Since nerves take so long to heal, I had subtle problems like spontaneous cramping of the calf and numbness with my left leg that lasted for years, but as time has passed, I have gotten pretty close to normal.
I have had no additional herniation and have had a lot fewer low back pain problems since my surgery.
I had L5/S1 microdiscectomy surgery back in September 2003 (I was 35) after developing numbness and losing partial use of my left leg. I was swimming a little before the surgery and began swimming a lot after the surgery.
I was told that I should start walking the day after surgery and start swimming within a month. When I asked if there was anything that I should not do in the pool the doc said "no". Then I described what a flip turn was like. He suggested that I hold off on that. But he said that I could pick that up as I started to feel stronger. That didn't take long. I am guessing that I was swimming normally under two months after surgery.
Within 5 months, I was competing in all strokes. I was doing starts, turns and kickouts like I had prior to the surgery.
Since nerves take so long to heal, I had subtle problems like spontaneous cramping of the calf and numbness with my left leg that lasted for years, but as time has passed, I have gotten pretty close to normal.
I have had no additional herniation and have had a lot fewer low back pain problems since my surgery.
