Former World’s Strongest Man Competitor ‘In Tears and Straight Agony’ after Popular Fitness Challenge Goes Awry
“I should have died.”
A former World's Strongest Man competitor landed in the hospital recently after a popular CrossFit challenge went awry.
Michael Congdon, who was just 32 at the time, started the intense Murph Challenge, a grueling workout that involves completing two one-mile runs and hundreds of pushups, pullups, and squats in honor of Navy Lieutenant Michael Murphy.
Given that he was in shape at the time and a top finisher in the World's Strongest Man competition just a few years prior, he felt he would be up for the challenge.
However, halfway through the grueling workout, Congdon told Daily Mail he was “puking and delirious,” with his arms becoming inflamed soon thereafter.
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While a pump during an intense workout is not unusual, Congdon felt there was something seriously wrong, and two days after the challenge, he was “in tears and straight agony” after his arms “blew up.”
"I felt unsafe in my own body, like something was seriously wrong, but I thought, 'I've never done this before, I'll be fine,' " he told the outlet.
At this point, his fiancée rushed him to the hospital, where doctors determined that he had unsafely high levels of creatine. While you wouldn't think high levels of creatine would be cause for concern, given that millions of people use the supplement to increase theirs, when it's too high, it can indicate a bigger issue.
In Congdon's case, it signaled he had developed rhabdomyolysis—a rare muscle injury where your muscles break down. This condition can occur after an injury or excessive exercise and is life-threatening.
Per Cleveland Clinic, this condition can cause your muscle tissue to break down and die. This leaves space for "toxic components of your muscle fibers" to enter your cardiovascular system. When this spreads, kidney damage can occur.
"I was really scared for my life," Congdon told the outlet. "That moment alone terrified me so much that I rescinded any need to find any of my physical limits ever again. I'd never experienced that sort of pain in my life. It was uncontrollable shaking and crying because my body hurt so bad."
Related: 20-Year-Old Bodybuilder Dies While Traveling to Attend Competition
