A mother of one was rushed to hospital with a life-threatening condition that causes muscle breakdown after a man at the gym told her to lift weights that were too heavy for her.
Incident Details
Nicole Sepe, 34, returned to the gym after a six-month break and trained with a man, which she said she would not normally do. The man encouraged her to use the heaviest weights, despite her being out of practice.
After the workout, Nicole went to sleep wearing a waist trainer, a compression garment similar to a corset. She woke up the next morning in excruciating pain but initially dismissed it as a sign of a good workout.
Medical Emergency
When a pouch of fluid formed on her stomach, she went to the hospital, where blood tests revealed she had rhabdomyolysis. This condition causes muscles to break down and release harmful substances into the bloodstream, potentially leading to organ failure or death.
Nicole believes the combination of overexertion at the gym and wearing the waist trainer to bed triggered the condition. She stayed in the hospital for a week, receiving IV fluids.
Recovery and Warning
Over the past year, Nicole has been recovering at home, engaging in light exercises like yoga and hiking. She has only recently returned to strength training. She has not worn the waist trainer since the incident and advises others to gradually build up their strength when returning to the gym.
Nicole said: I would warn other people to gradually work your way up to strength training. When you're getting into it, don't go heavy weightlifting - work your way up to doing it, you don't want to force yourself into it.
