In two days it will be one year since I fractured my T8 vertebra. I am mostly recovered and back to my normal routine which includes lifting weights 3X/week, stair elliptical 3X/week, walking 3-4X/week, running 2X/week, and doing drops from a height of 18 inches 3X/week.

I was quite fit before my fracture, having incorporated similar types of exercise into my lifestyle 13 years ago,

I had pain for months and didn’t seek medical attention for two months after my fracture, thinking it was a muscle injury. I think this set my recovery back because my back muscles weakened significantly during that period.

I did 12 weeks of physiotherapy starting 4 months after my fracture. It was a slow process to recover and around month 9 I saw significant improvement with pain reduction and endurance increasing. I kept a pain and activity log for months to track.

I still have occasional pain if I am not careful about my posture or I neglect to do my back exercises for a couple of days but the days of all-day pain are thankfully gone.

It does get better with time, hang in there.

Edited to add that I did not fracture from exercise. I bent over a bathtub to rinse my hair (extreme flexion) then pushed down very hard on my ribcage attempting to get my head under the tap. I remember thinking about how hard I was pushing down on my bottom rib when I felt a searing pain that radiated to the left side of my back.