r/rhabdo_survivors

normal color pee.

context: first time working out in 6 years. did 7 sets of bicep curls 20 lbs, with the end being a drop set. most of the sets were to complete failure, with 5-10 min rest in between.

had very jello arms from right after the workout. now its the day after and can barely stretch out my arms, theyre stuck in like 90 degrees. so painful i was almost nauseous. ive had doms before but nothing like this. should i go measure my levels or am i probably fine?

edit: went and got a ck blood test today, will get the results tomorrow

Has anyone had rhabdo brought on by severe infection/sepsis? I had sepsis and was discharged from hospital two weeks ago. Yesterday my legs felt very weak, like they were struggling to hold me up and felt like they were going to collapse particularly when going down stairs etc. this morning I woke up with severe muscular pain in my thighs and now it’s moved down to my calves. Pain is about 4/10 laying in bed and 9/10 when moving, even just readjusting my position in bed is painful and walking is crazy painful. My urine is quite dark orange. The best description of the colour is Lipton iced tea that comes in the bottles. I’m very worried about rhabdo but I’ve not done any exercise as I’ve been so fatigued from the sepsis. I do plan on going to the doctor tomorrow but I’m interested in others experiences!

Hi all joined the club unfortunately. CK levels at 87,000 and in hospital for 5 days. Have always done intense HIT workouts consistently, but a glute/leg strength workout after cardio landed me in the hospital. Similar experience as others, not given a whole lot of info about rhabdo by the doc. Curious to know if anyone has any book suggestions they have found helpful? I have read inflammation can also be tied to rhabdo. And while I do say I eat healthily, and whole unprocessed foods, I did have the unhealthy habit of skipping meals from time to time, and not eating until mid-day. Sometimes ate too much sugar too. Curious too if anyone has found any research on the connection between nutrition and rhabdo, doctor declined a connection

27M, ~66 kg, regular resistance trainee.
I recently had a blood test after a hard gym session and I’m trying to understand whether this was simply exercise-induced muscle damage or something I should be concerned about.
Timeline:
Saturday: Hard back workout. I trained close to failure on most working sets.
Sunday: Blood test, approximately 1 day after the workout.
CK: 4,947 U/L (lab range 46–171)
AST/SGOT: 57 U/L
ALT/SGPT: 16 U/L
Creatinine: 0.88 mg/dL
Potassium: 4.17 mmol/L
Routine urine was normal/reassuring.
I saw my doctor on Wednesday.
Doctor advised repeat blood work + urine myoglobin.
Thursday repeat:
CK: 408 U/L (repeat lab range 39–308)
AST: 27 U/L
ALT: 16 U/L
Urine myoglobin: NEGATIVE
So CK dropped from 4,947 → 408 after several days without training, and AST normalized at the same time.
I didn’t have cola-colored urine or major muscle weakness. My kidney function was normal on the initial testing.
My questions:
Does this pattern strongly suggest exercise-induced muscle damage from the back workout?
Is CK 4,947 after a hard resistance-training session something that can happen in trained lifters, or should I be investigated for an underlying muscle disorder?
Does the rapid drop to 408 and negative urine myoglobin make rhabdomyolysis/kidney injury less concerning?
When would it be reasonable to return to resistance training?
Should I wait until CK is completely within the reference range before training hard again?
Can I restart whey protein now?
Can I restart creatine monohydrate (3–5 g/day), and should I wait until CK is normal?
Should I change my training style—for example, use 1–3 RIR instead of taking most sets to failure?
If CK remains mildly elevated after several days of rest, what further testing would be reasonable?
I’m particularly interested in answers from sports medicine doctors, exercise physiologists, physicians, or experienced lifters who have dealt with exercise-induced CK elevation.

Also doctor advised to stay off creatine and keep my training days for 3 or 4 days per week. But all my KFT/LFT were normal no abnormal level found to stay of creatine or keep training to normal.

ANY INSIGHTS WILL BE HELPFUL ;)

As the title explains, I did a HIT class with my partner at a gym that was new to us. I used to do a lot of exercise and sports however stopped for a good few years. Went straight back to it, overdid the squats and long story short I got Rhabdo in my thighs/ quads and could barely walk. Rather than being sensible and taking a break I kept on pushing myself to the point of failure. I went to hospital and capped out the tests with over 100k CK. I’ve had fluids and daily blood tests over the last few weeks and I’m currently back down to 5k CK. All drs and staff were astonished that my kidneys were fine and I’ve felt like a walking case study in the hospital as their previous record was 25k CK.

- How long were other peoples recovery periods?
- How long did you give it before returning to the gym/ light exercise?
- Were there any long term side effects?

Thanks in advance…. Feel like it’s been a bit of a whirlwind….

EDIT- I’ve asked the above because the Drs didn’t really seem to know much about the long term side effects. I feel like my body’s been sweating more- but not sure if it’s due to massive uptake in liquids and that it’s summer!

I’ve had rhabdo 3x in the past 4 months. Been hospitalized 2. Got out of the ER yesterday after getting severe symptoms from a simple walk with my wife.

What makes it really concerning is that I’ve been super active my whole life. I played college football, have lifted 4-5x a week since 10. And in the past few years picked up endurance training running 20-30 miles a week along with my lifts. My body has always been accustomed to a high workload. So it’s really frustrating and confusing that I’m just now developing severe symptoms from minimal activity.

After the first case I was cleared for light activity after a couple weeks so I began some light zone 2 and some easy lifts which spiraled into intense fatigue, muscle pain, urinating Coca Cola and the cramps. I cramp doing literally anything. Because of the reoccurring rhabdo and how easily I get it now I am now being evaluated by 4 different specialists. They’re investigating neurological, genetic, immune related cases and kidney function stuff. While all this is going on I have been told to avoid anything physical including walking….WALKING.

This has been not only difficult physically but mentally super taxing. Exercise has always been a huge part of my life. I love training, going from training 15+ hours a week to struggling to get out of bed has been pretty devastating. Been prescribed hydro for the pain management which probably is t great for the mentals either.

I’m trying to stay patient but I feel like such a burden to my wife and my quality of life is fucking trash. I’m also AD military and may get medically separated and lose my job. Basically rhabdo is fucking trash. Thanks for reading my little rant. I appreciate this sub, so many people don’t understand how it feels. It’s nice to be understood. Has anyone else had reoccurring rhabdo caused by something underlying?

Hey everyone.

Didn’t think I’d be part of this club, but I guess it happens. Went to ride a horse for the first time in 6 years (I used to ride all the time), got on, rode around for a few and started feeling a lot of pain in my legs. Sharp pains.

I stopped and walked for a few, took my feet out of the stirrups and rotated my ankles. Put my feet back in the stirrups and rode a bit more, I felt kinda sick when I was riding. The heat was bad, and the sun was beaming off me. I felt nauseas and just over it. I told my trainer I’m just going to stop. I didn’t ride very long at all.

The rest of the day things got progressively worse. My right leg muscles on the lateral side felt hard as a rock, around 8-9pm that night the top of my foot and part of my leg went numb. I was in tears most of that night, putting off getting seen and the following morning I just decided to go get looked at. Thank god! I went to one of those free standing ER’s, and the doctor immediately became concerned and was worried about compartment syndrome.

Xray showed a bit of fluid, he felt like my pulse in my right leg was weaker than my left. So I got transferred to the hospital. Go to the hospital, they decided to take my CPK/CK levels, they came back at 8000. Obviously this got them moving a little faster, and got them worried. They ruled out compartment syndrome, they did an ultrasound, no blood clots. Once we started aggressive fluids, my Ck started to come down. It got down to 4500, and got angry and shot back up. I have been here since Sunday and it’s now at 24,000 with no improvements and no idea where to go from here.

I’m about to get an MRI of the rest of my spine, an EMG tomorrow. They’ve probably taken 50+ vials of blood since I’ve been here. They took 8 tubes a little while ago. They think it’s auto immune related, like myositis, but it takes a bit to get results back and again, my CK isn’t budging. Neuro thinks my reflexes in my legs are hyper reactive as well, and that I have back and nerve stuff going on in addition to the muscle issues. I’m a mess. I’m a 29 yo female if that makes a difference, 2 years ago I was going to the gym religiously, 2 hours a day, 5-6 days a week, and now I can’t even lift my leg without shaking.

I took a spin class on the 3rd, was admitted on the 6th with rhabdo after my legs were so sore I couldn’t walk and my pee had turned brown that day. I was in the hospital for 6 days, flushing my kidneys. My highest known ck levels were 154,000, and that’s only because they changed the way the did the lab test, before they only showed us it was greater than 22k, so who knows how bad it got!

I am still a little sore, and don’t have full range of motion back in my legs. To clarify, my quads were the only muscle group affected, and I was almost completely unable to bend my legs when I was admitted. I’m wondering how long it might take to feel as strong as I did before. Did the damage actually eat away at my muscles or am I just still experiencing soreness that will continue to fade over the next few days?

Any experiences or ideas are helpful and greatly apprectiated :)

Hi everyone- I just got discharged from the hospital after experiencing rhabdomyolysis for the first time, and I’m looking for insights or shared experiences from anyone who’s been through this (especially fellow lifters/instructors).
Background:
Demographics: 33yo female, overall very healthy, lift regularly, and work as a fitness instructor.
The Trigger: Last week, I did an intense upper-body pyramid workout lifting heavy.
The Symptoms: Extreme arm swelling, inability to straighten or lift my arms over my head, and intense soreness.
Hospitalization: Ended up in the ER, where my Creatine Kinase (CK) levels came back at ~10,000 U/L (normal is usually under 110). Got flushed with IV fluids and discharged after stabilizing. left the hospital at 6k after 2 bags of fluids.
My discharge docs told me to take a full week off teaching/working out and emphasized staying hydrated with electrolytes before, during, and after sessions. However, I’m left with a few specific questions and would love to hear from anyone who has navigated this recovery process:

1. Swelling & Range of Motion Timeline
   For those who had severe swelling (especially upper body), how long did it take for the "puffiness" to fully subside and for your range of motion to return? Right now, lifting my arms over my head is painful and restricted. Is this a 1–2 week recovery issue, or does tissue healing take longer?

2. Recurrence Risk
   Am I more susceptible to getting rhabdo again now that I've had it once? Does the tissue remain vulnerable for a certain period during the rebuilding process, or does risk revert to baseline once CK levels and muscle tissue fully recover?

3. Returning to a Normal Lifting Routine
   I know I need a slow, phased ramp-up, but what did your timeline back to high intensity actually look like? Did you stick purely to light cardio/mobility for weeks, or introduce sub-maximal weights slowly? (I teach classes, so managing my load while demonstrating moves is going to be tricky).

4. Potential Hidden Causes
   I workout regularly, so I’m trying to figure out why an upper-body pyramid day triggered such a massive severe response this time. Aside from muscle exertion:
   Could a specific protocol like pyramid training (high volume/eccentric fatigue) be a primary driver?
   Are there under-the-radar factors I should consider (e.g., mild viral infection beforehand, heat, specific supplements/pre-workouts, NSAIDs, hydration gaps)?

Any perspectives from personal experience, physical therapists, or medical pros would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

Hey guys, sorry if this a time wasting post i just need some advice. About 10 months ago i did a much more intense arm workout, and my arms were super sore and tight for a few days and i was convinced i had rhabdo. I probably didnt, but I mightve had a mild version of it. I haven’t really worked out since then, but I’m trying to now, but I’m super scared of getting it. Even when i do a super light workout i can feel a slight tightness and i think ive got it, when i obviously dont. I just dont know how to get confidence, I feel like just giving up working out. Sorry if its a time wasting post, I just need some advice to gain my confidence back coz rhabdo is pretty freakin scary.

If I go back to lifting in a few months, what are my chances of getting it again?

Currently hospitalized for trying to lift very light weights. I'm extremely skinny and tbh the thought that I may never be able to build significant muscle is making me very depressed