TweetWhat About DMSO?

By: Dennis B. Weis

For those of us power bodybuilders who lift the heavy iron as a means of acquiring more muscle size, strength and power the topic of training injuries, to the muscles, tendons and ligaments, will demand our attention at some time in our life.

There are a number of things that cause injury; Improper warm-ups, lack of flexibility, adding poundage [to the bar] too rapidly, unbalanced strengths [quads versus hamstrings etc.], fatigue during the workout and under recovery be between workout sessions. These causes, either individually or collectively, can create quite a bit of trauma to the muscles, tendons and ligaments in the form of strains and sprains. This seems to be even more evident as a power bodybuilder gets older [30's, 40's and 50's] compared to being a teenager or twenty year old. For example I can remember when I was in my 20's and performing Dead hang cleans for 4-.6 sets of 10 reps with 225-pounds. I received a lot of direct trapezius stimulation plus it boosted my pulling power in the conventional dead lift. Now 30 plus years later if I attempt to do this exercise I always seem to end up with a severe case of elbow tendinitis on the inside of my right arm near the elbow. It always gets very sore and the thing I notice most of all is that it dramatically affects my exercise performance in exercises like Lat machine pull-downs to the sternal pectoralis [regardless if I use a supinated and/or prone hand grip], Pull-ups, Barbell curls and sometimes Barbell wrist curls. I suppose I should shy away from the Dead hang clean with the barbell, but the truth is I like the movement enough to keep it as one of the exercises of choice I have a two pronged attack that I use to accelerate the healing process of the elbow tendinitis First I start ingesting 200 milligrams of the mineral Manganese every three hours fox three days [72 hours I learned about this mineral mega-dose trick from the late Vince Gironda "Iron Guru".

Secondly I use a special solvent called DMSO. DMSO [dimethylsulfoxide] was discovered around 1866, but it didn't perk much interest until almost a hundred years later, when in 1966 a Chemist at the University of Oregon Medical school discovered it potential values. DMSO is basically a solvent made from the sap of trees. Its value is threefold in nature in that as an anti-inflammatory agent or analgesic it seems to reduce swelling, heat and pain and at a very quick rate. This of course is accomplished only if a medical grade of DMSO that is 90-95% pure. Anything less than medical grade [industrial or un-pure] can lead to some toxic reactions due to the cadmium, lead and other toxic metal contaminants found in non-medical DMSO solvent. Many health food stores carry DMSO as part of their existing product mix, so it should not be a problem securing a bottle of it. Personally, I purchase my DMSO from Cain's Muscle World Unlimited [1.800.272.0051]. At 90-95% pure, DMSO is very concentrated, to say the least, and can cause major skin irritation to many individuals. It is therefore a good idea to dilute it down with distilled water, [Not tap water!!!] to at least a 70% solution and more probable to a 50/50 ratio of distilled water to solvent for best results.

Prior to the actually application of DMSO carefully wash the area of the body where it will be applied, with a mild, non-detergent soap and water. Rinse with water and dry the area. The reason for washing the : inflamed area is that DMSO has the unique capability to carry substances on the skin surface, such as dirt, into the body. It can also carry the fibers from cotton or cosmetic puffs into the body as well. Your best bet here is to use a gauze pad for the application of the DMSO. If you want to eliminate the fuss of gauze pads simple use a DMSO roll on.

I have personally felt, and you may more than likely, the therapeutic relief of DMSO in a matter of minutes and at most one hour after an application. Always remember though that DMSO is not the answer to a professional medical and sports evaluation!!! Stay flexed.

TweetThats a pretty common reaction to the DMSO.. it burns and looks like some sort of skin funk going on.

I'v never used it for transdermal delivery but have used it by itself for strains/sprains. It works VERY well for me. Just have to deal with the skin reaction and being stinky for a while..