2014

Go Until You Rhabdo: The Great Debate Continues

Go Until You Rhabdo: The Great Debate Continues
[box type="note" align="aligncenter" ] Aside from the Moose: There's a great deal of debate surrounding Rhabdo and as it relates to CrossFit, I posed a question for feedback on Facebook a while ago, and here's some of the responses:



Post by Dai Manuel.


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I want to put “Go Until You Rhabdo” on a shirt. Nobody would buy it, but I still think it would be cool. Sales would be especially low due to the recent internet-slaughter brought on by CrossFit hating naysayers  (see " CrossFit's Dirty Little Secret " featuring Uncle Rhabdo).

[caption id="attachment_14280" align="alignright" width="260"]Go until you rhabdo t-shirtWould you wear this t-shirt?[/caption]

If you’re reading this blog, it means that you spend a good amount of time internetting. It also means that you've probably read, or at least heard of rhabdomyolysis.

What is Rhabdomyolysis? (aka Rhabdo)


Without turning this into a med room lecture, I’ll try and briefly explain what “rhabdo” is. When a muscle is placed under great pressure with no oxygen it will break down the muscle tissue into myoglobin, a protein that cannot be processed by the kidney, and then dump the myoglobin into the blood stream. The effects of this are renal distress and muscular destruction. To paint a picture, imagine someone’s muscles blowing up like balloon, but instead of air it’s full of poison. The damaged muscle will stop working, and without medical treatment death can occur.

[caption id="attachment_14291" align="aligncenter" width="501"]What is Rhado?What is Rhado?[/caption]

How do you get Rhabdomyolysis?


You can get rhabdo from things like dangerous viruses, being crushed for extended time, or over working a muscle past exhaustion. The reason CrossFit got a host of hate mail was due to the nature of the internet. Because a few unique people blogged their troubles, the world drew their swords and joined in on the fight. Before these posts, most people didn't even know what rhabdo was. Now, it’s a common word at the family dinner table. It’s like Yolo; nobody cared, and then everybody cared. I can’t really blame anyone for freaking out about it, but more cases of rhabdo occur from the drug statin than from working out.

Getting rhabdo from working out is like winning the lottery; you’re more likely to get struck by lightning on your way to the store than you are to win. But thanks to social media, everyone thinks they’re potential millionaires.



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Causes of Rhabdo:


Many things can trigger rhabdomyolysis.

Anything that damages the muscles can cause this condition such as Trauma, Heat, and Exertion This includes a crush injury when something heavy falls on you. Overly intense exercise, heat stroke, or third-degree burns can trigger the syndrome.

Other causes in this category include:

  • blocked blood vessels

  • lightning strike

  • intense shivering

  • ischemic limb injury

  • marathon running

  • pathological muscle exertion


Other ways that can lead to rhabdo can be from the following:

  • Genetic Disorders

  • Medication and substance abuse

  • Inflammation and infections [/box]


[caption id="attachment_14292" align="alignright" width="275"]CrossFit's Uncle RhabdoCrossFit's Uncle Rhabdo[/caption]

I would wear a shirt that said “ Go Until You Rhabdo ” for only one reason; 99.99% of people cannot push themselves into rhabdomyolysis. It’s not like when you’re driving your car and you miss an exit on accident. You have to try to get rhabdo. It’s like beating down a door, ignoring all the Beware of Dog signs, and then when you get inside you’re mauled by dogs. That’s a special kind of oblivious. Lucky for us, God has given us the ability to adapt to work. When a muscle is pushed it will, over time, adapt to the stress and better overcome it. Unfortunate for us, God has also given us the ability to sacrifice to survive. This means that you can cause damage to your body if you mentally tell yourself what you’re doing is “ life or death .” Doing high intensity work is a delicate ballet between adaptation and sacrifice. You have to know what is tough for your body, and what is traumatizing. If you’re in that elite group of .01% of people who can mentally workout to the point of sacrifice, then you probably need to worry. But if you’re like the rest of us, don’t worry about it – seriously, don’t worry... Nevertheless, there are certain situations that can increase your chance of getting rhabdo during a workout.

Situations that can turn a hard workout into a last workout



  • First off, please don’t get wasted and do drugs before working out. That’s wrong on multiple levels.

  • Second, don’t attach yourself to a stim-machine during max effort squats. Leave that to the Russians.

  • Don’t go 100% when there is a high chance of having a heat stroke. For example, if you don’t do a lot of running and it’s 110 degrees Fahrenheit outside you probably shouldn't run a marathon.


[highlight] So, unless you’re dealing with some of the above, it is very unlikely that you will get rhabdo.[/highlight]You’re reading this post, so you obviously are smart and have an appetite for knowledge. Use those smarts to decide what adaptation is, and what sacrifice is. Thanks to the internet, rhabdo has evolved into this six winged monster when it’s really just a fly. Swat it, and get back to working out.

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DREWbio About the author:


Drew has played sports his entire life, and he used to think he knew everything about fitness. It wasn't until he began getting his degree in Exercise Physiology that he learned the flashy magazines held little truth. Continuing his education, Drew also personal trains and helps as a strength and conditioning coach at his University. Not to be left out, he also competes as a collegiate power-lifter. Happy to help, he also founded his blog ( www.endunamoomechristoo.com ) which gives everything from technical coaching advice, to spiritual guidance all based on his faith in Jesus Christ. Liked the post, drop Drew a Tweet here.
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