Back Pain Forum - Lower Back Pain Noticed (spasms Or Lower Back "lock Ups

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Q: Lower Back Pain Noticed (spasms Or Lower Back "lock Ups

asked by: GusW. on December 29th, 2005

New User

This is the gist of my problem:
lower back pain noticed (spasms or lower back "lock ups") brought on by taking high amounts caffeine, diet pills, supplements containg green tea extract, taurine, ephedrine.

Here is a more detailed explanation:
recently I had begun working out again (2 months ago) after taking a couple years off. I had developed a pretty good routine 4-5 days a week that was a healthy mixture of cardio and weight lifting.

My wife for christmas wanting to "help" my work out routine, went to the local gnc and talked to the clerk there. He recommended I take two supplements that would help my workout. These supplements are heavy in taurine, green tea extract and protein. One was a shake, the other were pills (2 pills a day is the recommend dose).

I took both supplements in the morning (i do my workouts at night) and on the drive home from work I noticed a dull ache in my lower back and kidney region. This lower back pain progessed until it was time for my workout, which is right around 8pm at night (i took the supplements almost 13 hours earlier at 7am). I began with a mile jog, went to three sets of bench press and began to run again. During my second run my lower back spasmed heavily and "locked" up on me. I could barely walk. I ended my routine, went home and noticed an hour later that the lower back spasm tailed off to a dull ache. This was two days ago and this dull ache in my lower back kidney region has been with me ever since.

My history:
this is not the first time this has happened to me and I wonder if my abuse of ephedrine pills when I was in my early 20s (taking 10-16 pills a day off and on for a month or two) has played a part in these lower back kidney pain episodes. I noticed after two months of this on and off abuse of ephedrine I was starting to get lower back pain - this bothered me because my grandfather had passed away in his 50s as a result of kidney disease. I immediately stopped taking the pills. The lower back pain went away.

When I was 27 I began working out pretty heavily. I was a bit overweight (50 pounds heavier than I am currently) and I mixed my workout with diet pills (hydroxycut to be exact). I did not abuse the diet pills, but in fact followed the daily recommend dosage. While using the stair climber during one of my workouts my lower back spasmed exactly like it did two days ago and I was out of operation then (no workouts) for days, if not a week or two if I remember correctly. The lower back pain stayed with me for a week.

My questions:
is this lower back pain brought on by heavy amounts of caffeine stimulants? If so, why days after i've taken these supplements do I still have a dull ache in my lower back? Did the heavy spasm I experienced during my workout pull the muscles in my lower back?
-or-
is there truly something wrong with my kidneys? I have no blood in my urine (it's always been dark in color though)

my doctor's opinion:
i told my doctor about all of this a year and a half ago because I was worried I may have damaged my kidneys because whenever I take high amounts of caffeine I would get lower back pain. She was not concerned. I have searched high and low on the internet and I can't find any legitimate connection between ephedrine abuse, caffeine consumption, and diet supplements that lead to lower back pain.

Your input would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance.

Replies(6)

Tamadrummer

replied on December 29th, 2005

Active User, very eHealthy

Imho you have already done enough research. There probably are not any studies about the connection between back pain and supplement use because the fda does not regulate "supplements" and so there is no use in there being studies for derogotory effects from the junk being sold.

If you know that this pain is coming only when you started taking these meds and when you do not take them you do not have pain. Stop taking them, they are not necessary for you to use and in may cases can and will caue heart and other major organ diesease. I am not an advocate of the supplement market and I am totally opposed to anything gnc has to offer. They litterally sell all of the necessary ingredients to make anabolic steroids and even tell you how to mix the stuff. They sell this stiff to anyone thats wants it whether high school or even younger and these kids get sick and some die.

Working out is a great way to be healthy but taking medicines that are not prescribed and in fact havent even been studied in humans or animals because there is no regulation on the stuff.

Hopefully you trash the stuff you have and do not buy any more, just eat right and live a healthy life not including a bunch of supplements.

GusW.

replied on December 29th, 2005

New User

Tammadrummer - I appreciate the feedback.

I am not a big advocate of supplements and I was a bit dissappointed my wife did not purchase the whey protein diet drink I wanted (i gave her the links online). For some reason she thought it would be better to go to gnc and purchase the whey protein version with extras. I know my sensitivity limitations with high doses of caffeine, diet pills and anything ephedrine related - this going back to my shortsighted abuse of ephedrine in my early 20s and something I wished my wife would have consulted about with me before she purchased them.

My point is before I took the supplements, this time around I read the ingredient deck and the nutrition facts tables and was a little bit alarmed to read some of the ingredients mirrored the diet pills I had taken. I took them anyway, one dose of each and my fears came true those 13 hours later as painful spasms racked my lower back!

I have definitely decided against the use of the supplements my wife had gotten me, although expensive, they are garbage for me.

As I sit here writing this with that dull ache in my lower back, I am just curious how I became so sensitive and what is the connection between my lower back pain and these stimulants.

Tamadrummer

replied on December 29th, 2005

Active User, very eHealthy

My best recommendation for a cure all remedy would have to be to:

1.) get in your car.
2.) drive to the closest anderson's
3.) order a big beef on weck and a root beer float.
4.) eat and drink that
5.) order a banana split and eat that
6.) go home and take a nap.

If you dont like beef on weck then go over to garden park and have some of buffalo's finest wings. And then go over to la bellas for an anti-pasto salad for the rest of the ingredients that are needed for a balanced meal.

Just kidding, my wife is from cheektowaga and we go there once or more a year to visit family and friends. I would move there in a second but she hates the snow and with my back injury, I would not be able to shovel or snow blow the drive.

As far as needing added protien, you do not need that in your diet either. I have a lot of reference material from my science 110 human nutrition class I took last semiester. As long as you have a well balance diet including good lean meats and legumes such as peanuts, peas like black eyed and pinto( mighty taco bean burritos are a great source for pinto beans) and many other types of beans/peas. The added protien actually adds alot of unecessay stress to your kidneys as they try to process it out of your body.

As I said in the earlier post, many and actually almost all of the supplements sold are not only unnecessay for your diet but in many cases very dangerous too. If you would like, you can private message me your address and I will burn my text book from that nutrition class in pdf format and send it up to you. You will find much of the info in the text deters you from using supplements other than a multi-vitamin and they only recommend that for someone that does not eat a well balanced diet.

Good luck,
brian

GusW.

replied on December 29th, 2005

New User

Lol! Well, well what a small world this is. I'm actually at work right now in cheektowaga n.Y. Typing this out. Shh don't tell the boss.

I am huge beef on weck fan, will eat just about any chicken wing (one of my main vices), and spent many a lunch at mighty taco.

I've changed my diet quite drastically in the last year and a half and I appreciate the offer of your nutrition class text book. I went from eating all crap (as you know the buffalo area has many vices if you love food) and I was 50 pounds overweight, a smoker, a snoring mess (i began snoring as soon as I hit the 50 pound overweight mark), had lower back pain from both carrying the extra weight and drinking multiple cups of coffee a day.

I am now pushing 31 now and never felt better in my life - aside from this old back pain that popped up again. I quit smoking at 27, toned down the alcohol consumption, started eating greens and less hot pockets.
By changing my diet my lower back pain was non-existent.

I eat tons better and keep the junk to minimums and special occasions.

It's nice to meet someone that is familiar with the area. Next time you are up bocci's pizza and a cold labatt blue on me. :)

ADenverDC

replied on January 19th, 2006

New User

They litterally sell all of the necessary ingredients to make anabolic steroids and even tell you how to mix the stuff. They sell this stiff to anyone thats wants it whether high school or even younger and these kids get sick and some die.

You dont know what your talking about. They do not sell the ingredients to make steroids. Trust me, this guy doesnt know what he is talking about. Anyone that knows anything about strength supplements, and I know alot, knows that taking pro-hormones like"andro" is not the same thing as taking steroids. You should learn a little bit about what you are talking about before bashing something.

Sounds like you are taking too many stimulants, which is not good, it trashes your adrenals and saps your energy. Could be a possible explanation for the back pain.

ADenverDC

replied on January 19th, 2006

New User

Recent studies have shown that extra protein does not tax the kidneys. That is an old wives tale, usually passed down by some nutritionist who still thinks a low fat high carb diet is a good diet.

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