Exercises that are "safe" to do during shoulder recovery

[brollickby06]

Background: I have been lifting seriously for the past 2 years. Never had an injury. About a month ago, I started having a minor pain in my right shoulder. It only happened during shoulder presses. Foolishly, I kept working out my shoulders, as heavy as usual. Then it started hurting on chest day. Again, I kept working out normally..not the best idea.
Now my right shoulder is in pain for any shoulder/chest exercise.
I realize that I need to rest it and will not do anything shoulder/chest related for at least a month.
Right now, my shoulder hurts if i attempt to do any chest work (even push ups), any anterior delt work, dips, or weighted pullups (only when I drop down to a dead hang).
I looked up some shoulder stretches, and my shoulder hurts when I try doing the towel/broomstick stretch (around where my arms are above my head)

Anyway, I was wondering what exercises are safe to do while my shoulder is healing. This is what I am considering:

Day 1: Back/traps
Bodyweight pullups (not lowering my body all the way down completely)
Dumbell bent over rows (with one arm/1 leg resting on bench)
Deadlift
Barbell shrugs
Dumbell shrugs

Day 2: Biceps/triceps
Standing dumbell curls
seated curls (elbow resting on knee)
preacher curls
skull crushers (on a slight incline)
tricep pushdowns
overhead tricep extensions

Day 3: Legs/abs
Squat
Leg Press
Hamstring curls
Leg Extensions
Calf raises

Day 4: Shoulder Recovery workout with light weights for rotator cuff muscles
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/dorian1.htm

Day 5: rest
repeat


What do you guys think? Will any of these exercises potentially hinder my shoulder recovery? The only one I am unsure about is the pull ups. I am pretty sure it is safe to workout legs as well as biceps/triceps. Not too sure about back though. Any comments?
My primary goal is to recover my shoulder. But I would also like to retain some mass

I read some tips from this page: http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=529968

[TheStreetKing]

Take a month off from upperbody and do only Legs/Lower Back and Abs! You have to give it time to heal or it will only get worse!

[brollickby06]

Not even bis/tris are safe to do?

[Tommy W.]

Do whatever doesn't bother it. Unfortunately so many things do. Don't work through the pain and dont mask the pain with drugs. You may want to take a rest period or just concentrate on abs and legs and cardio. Squats can be painful due to hand position on the bar. If it hurts don't do it!

[ProTec]

Anyway, I was wondering what exercises are safe to do while my shoulder is healing. This is what I am considering:

Do light to moderate shoulder excersizes for the stabilizer muscles only for a while. Sounds to me like a rotator cuff problem.

So internal and external rotations with light weights twice a week and mild stretches might be your friend.

When you start exersizing regular muscles again, do not skip these exersizes!!! But do them at the end of your workout if you do not want to get injured.

[brollickby06]

Thank you all for the input. I will not do any exercises that cause even the slightest bit of pain. Fortunately, there is no swelling. My guess that it is a minor RC injury.

I will also stay away form the pullups. Weighted pullups may even be the exercise that damaged my shoulders. I go very heavy on weighted pullups and dips.

Anyway, I have been doing this exercise every night
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tjA0YNAQI7U

For stretches I have been doing the following
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rvwOypiZUi0


any other suggestions?

[stillspringwate]

Dont do anything till youve got it checked out by a specialist. Dont listen to people when they tell you "its prob a rotator cuff injury" because its impossible for anyone online to tell.

[ramrod63]

i have a shoulder issue too which bothers me when i shoulder press and on chest day

i did some mobility work for my shoulders, alot of stretching (pecs, arms, shoulders, back...)
some RC and lower and mid trap work
and i took a joint supplement (glucosamine, msm)
also doing more unilateral work to work out any imbalances (alternating db press, 1 arm db push press)

i have tendinitis in the long head of my bicep (where it connects to the shoulder) and my bad shoulder is a little more rounded than the other causing an impingement

check out shoulder savers on t-nation.com, very good articles

[brollickby06]

I got an MRI and the results are worse than I had hoped for...
Mild ac separation. impingement of rotator cuff, replacement of fatty tissue, partial tear of rotator cuff, subarcomial bursitis

I didn't see an orthopedic yet...but im assuming this is the end of going to the gym for me...im so upset right now

[ProteinSupreme]

Take a month off from upperbody and do only Legs/Lower Back and Abs! You have to give it time to heal or it will only get worse!

This

[brollickby06]

im wondering if I could work out atleast biceps/triceps after maybe 2 weeks of rest. I still wont do upper body (chest/back/shoulders) of course

[grumble1]

Sounds like your shoulder's a mess. I'd leave it totally alone for a couple of weeks then do some rehab work. Will you need surgery?

[tilted1]

im wondering if I could work out atleast biceps/triceps after maybe 2 weeks of rest. I still wont do upper body (chest/back/shoulders) of course

based on that laundry list of problems you have.. i wouldnt do anything upper body. what you do going forward is dependent on what corrective action(s) your going to take for the issues you have.

first of all go see a specialist and determine whats next. your not going to shrink to nothing in the next 2-4 weeks so relax and concentrate on healing.