17-year-old Clear Lake student diagnosed with deadly illness caused by working out too much

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Summer is fast approaching and many people are hitting the gym, but that soreness the next day could signal a bigger problem.

Jared Shamburger, 17, said he was "super duper sore" after a 90-minute weightlifting session last week.

"Everything hurt. It hurt to the touch. It was swollen," Jared said.

Jared just got a new gym membership with his family. His dad and older brother have been lifting for years.

"I gotta catch up to them and get as big as them," Jared said. "I have to go hard fast."

But the soreness and swelling wasn't going away.

Jared's mom Judy searched the symptoms online. She said she knows that can sometimes cause more harm than good, but this time it paid off.

"The mama bear in me kind of took over and I called the pediatrician and said, 'I really think my son has rhabdo,'" Judy said.

She was right. Jared was hospitalized for five days with rhabdomyolysis. It can be caused by many things including injury, infection and hitting the gym too hard.

The potentially life-threatening condition causes a breakdown of muscle tissue, releasing a damaging protein into the blood and possibly damaging the kidneys.

"In extreme cases, it can also cause death," Judy said.

Jared is expected to make a full recovery. He says he plans to get back in the gym soon, but his family hopes others will be aware.

Muscle pain, weakness and severe swelling after intense exercise may warrant a trip to the doctor.

"If he hadn't caught it, if he hadn't told me, if we had just gone out of town about our way," Judy said, "I can't even imagine. And I don't want to, about what could have happened."

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