8 weeks out from comp, feeling a pec tear coming...

[JimRat6969]

-8 and a half weeks out from competition, supposed to be big about 200 sum lifters.
-Currently in 3rd week of sheiko, 1 and a half weeks left before I deload (full break from gym for 1 week)
-Never had any serious injuries
-my max seven weeks ago, was 265lbs, paused
-jumped to 295lbs as of 3 weeks ago
-still hitting all my numbers with good speed and finishing the workout (check my training log).
-feeling tight/sore in my pec minor region
-want to hit 315+ at the meet

-Wise to take a week off, then resume right where I started?

-Or finish the 4 workouts I have left then deload?

Should I risk it brahs?

My most recent bench press session a couple days ago
265lbs 4x2, 250lbs 5x2

[NorthStrong]

Look at your options...

Go hard, don't tear pec, do well at meet, and in future - best
Go hard, tear pec, do awful at meet, and in future - worst
Backoff, don't tear pec, do ok at meet, and well in future - good

I mean it's up to you but I'd prefer to be lifting big weights for years to come and not be that guy who was like yeah I had a good bench cycle and tore my pec and it's never been the same.

[JimRat6969]

Look at your options...

Go hard, don't tear pec, do well at meet, and in future - best
Go hard, tear pec, do awful at meet, and in future - worst
Backoff, don't tear pec, do ok at meet, and well in future - good

I mean it's up to you but I'd prefer to be lifting big weights for years to come and not be that guy who was like yeah I had a good bench cycle and tore my pec and it's never been the same.

Very good advice, I've only been powerlifting 7 weeks. Words coming from a man with years of experience I presume?

And do pec tear injuries usually put your powerlifting days away for good? or have people usually rehabbed it easy?

[NorthStrong]

Very good advice, I've only been powerlifting 7 weeks. Words coming from a man with years of experience I presume?

And do pec tear injuries usually put your powerlifting days away for good? or have people usually rehabbed it easy?

No I am definitely not the strongest, smartest or close to the most experienced guy on here but it just seems like common sense to me, however I understand that when things are going well it's really addicting and almost impossible to let yourself backoff even when you need to.

And I'm not sure, I would assume it depends on how bad the tear is, if it's the tendon from the bone, or just the muscle belly, etc.

[scotpak1979]

Take week off. In that week off try and massage the sore areas of your pec to break down scar tissue. (Golf ball against wall worked for me) Also do pec stretches. If you look up "pec rehab exercises/stretches" on youtube there are loads of vids. If you only have a minor strain, chances are the u may recover in one to 2 weeks. If its still very sore then repeat above until pain subsides.
If you feel better, when u return to benching do a set of band pull aparts in between all your bench sets. Also pay very close attention to keeping your shoulder blades pinched throughout your bench movement. This is the best way to prevent pec tears.

[smokinHawk]

I have had a couple small pec tears, they took a 3-4 weeks to recover from. A training partner had a large pec tear, it still hinders his training, even though he is recovered.

I would back off some. You have to listen to your body, and if it is telling you to back off, back off.
Massage it, stretch it.

I myself is feeling something on my right pec, after I got that 470 in training. I havent been going as hard, doing more massage, stretching and rehab- prehab. working on getting to 110% for my next meet which is 3.5 weeks away.

[JimRat6969]

Yea u guys are right, listening to my body aNd going for the long term is better. It's just addicting making all these gains. Even though i've been doing high intensity 3 rep and below training for only a few months.

Can't wait to see where im at in a year. And yea i have been doing static And dynamic stretching for both my shoulder and pectorals. Lots of foam rolling too. With pressure release with a tennis ball. Shoulder breakers with the bands as well.

I dont feel any pain at rest only when i flex hard in my right pec minor At extension. Any physio or med students in here? And the other wierd thing is i dont feel the pain when i bench either.

Today is supposed to be a light day with 1 top set of 250lbs 6x3. I woke up today feeling good and refreshed. I feel like i can hit it.

Should i skip today and just do friday's high intensity workout? It has 2 top sets of 250lbs 2x2 and 280lbs 3x1. That would give me 96 hrs of rest then i get 96 hrs of rest again till i bench.

[BioSmith91]

I want to preface this by saying that there is nothing you can do to totally 100% reduce your risk of a pec tear. I also want to say that I'm not a specialist in orthopedics and anything I have to say is most likely not the entire picture as far as injury prevention goes.

With that said, I think two of the biggest risk factors when it comes to tendon tears are: going too heavy too often and progressing too quickly.

I realize the importance of specificity in powerlifting, and admittedly for someone like you who still has a lot of room to get stronger at his current size; lifting only heavy, and doing so often is going to be the fastest way to reach that potential. But that doesn't necessarily mean its the best idea.

You see the working muscles isn't the only structure to undergo changes in response to weight lifting. Tendons, ligaments, and stabilizing muscles also undergo training adaptations. And unfortunately, they not only take longer to strength, they also recover more slowly between sessions. So while you may even be ready to push for 315 right now, your tendons (which also probably are under recovered from previous sessions) probably are not because you are simply adding weight onto the bar too quickly. But I do want to emphasize, tendons are something that can be strengthened over time. This isn't just foam rolling and tennis balls, those are recovery tools. I'm talking about lifting significant amounts of weight for volume; 5x5 on the bench and 3x15 on an accessory like the cable fly can do wonders in this regard (just don't do an extreme stretch at the bottom, that's bad). I do heavy bicep curls for the same reason, not just for big arms, but I would rather avoid blowing out my bicep tendon while deadlifting. I feel heavy barbell curls for reps helps that.

So while the plan of action is entirely up to you, my suggestion would be, don't just take a week off and jump back to what you were doing. I realize now isn't exactly the best time to jump ship on programs, but I think you would stand to benefit by only doing a true "heavy" day once a week (4x2, 3x3 etc.) and the other day focus more on volume and technique (think 5x5, not 3x10). You'll progress slower, but it'll be progress that you can keep up for a longer period of time, beyond just this competition. Also, I don't mean to discourage you but you might be better off just being happy with 295 for this meet. 30 pounds in 7 weeks is excellent progress and if you spend the next 8 weeks pushing and pushing for the next 20 pounds you run the risk of burning out or getting injured. I always keep my goals 50 pounds away from where I am at so that I never try to rush the next 10. I train hard and I push the envelope, but I'm also not impatient. I would take 20 pounds in the next 6 months over 10 pounds in the next 3 weeks anytime.

[308smk]

You're probably not going to tear your pec. Drink more fluids. Warm up sufficiently before lifting.

[invain]

If I backed off from training every time something was feeling tight/sore I'd literally never get anywhere.

[scullin]

Look at your options...

Go hard, don't tear pec, do well at meet, and in future - best
Go hard, tear pec, do awful at meet, and in future - worst
Backoff, don't tear pec, do ok at meet, and well in future - good

I mean it's up to you but I'd prefer to be lifting big weights for years to come and not be that guy who was like yeah I had a good bench cycle and tore my pec and it's never been the same.

true! Sadly I am that guy. I do OK still but not like before.

[JimRat6969]

Ok so i tried the workout and luckily didnt injure myself. This was the first time i was unable to complete the workout. It called for 250lbs 6x3. I can normally finish this.

But when im on sheiko and it has me benching 3x week and feels like im on the verge on over training by the end of it. Was only able to complete 4x3 and called it quits after that.

Will take a full week off. And yes this does feel different from doms, just really tight and sore pec minors. I did some pressure release with a tennis ball against the wall today too.

Biosmith, i totally forgot about tendons not being able to keep up with muscle. U really think that increase in bench is too fast too soon? I only hit 280lbs at my first meet april 11 and want to hit 315+ on august 1st.

What do u guys think of substituting bench press for barbell OHP for a week? Hopefully the carryover will be good?

[smokinHawk]

do you think your body can only handle 2 days of bench training right now with your intensity?
Mine can only take 2. i think you aren't allowing your body to recover enough before you hit that muscle group again.

[BioSmith91]

Biosmith, i totally forgot about tendons not being able to keep up with muscle. U really think that increase in bench is too fast too soon? I only hit 280lbs at my first meet april 11 and want to hit 315+ on august 1st.

Its hard to say whether it is too fast or too slow. It isn't necessarily the speed of progression that is important, so much as it is how far are you progressing away from weights that you have considerable practice with? If the most you've ever tried is 280, and you've only been working with 250-270 all the time; I think it is fair to say you aren't ready to go for a 315 press even if you think you might get it. Your body is only used to ever doing 270, going for anything more than 290 is pushing the envelope. Now maybe you get that 290, then after a full training cycle of working with %'s of 290 you might be ready for a 305 pound press. The point is, don't do weights you aren't ready for.

Well the point of Sheiko is its a meatgrinder. And a meatgrinder isn't necessarily what is best for you as a lifter. Its great for accumulating huge levels of volume and making gains as fast as possible; but like I said sometimes as fast as possible isn't what is best for the long term. I would rather you do a 2x program where the level of fatigue accumulation isn't so severe and you can make progress consistently for a very long period of time without feeling like you're being run through a gutter. There's a reason I don't see many lifters doing Smolov after they've already reached 400+ pound squat; there's just not enough of a payoff to warrent being driven so close to the edge as compared to something done at a relatively less frequency and volume.

[JimRat6969]

Its hard to say whether it is too fast or too slow. It isn't necessarily the speed of progression that is important, so much as it is how far are you progressing away from weights that you have considerable practice with? If the most you've ever tried is 280, and you've only been working with 250-270 all the time; I think it is fair to say you aren't ready to go for a 315 press even if you think you might get it. Your body is only used to ever doing 270, going for anything more than 290 is pushing the envelope. Now maybe you get that 290, then after a full training cycle of working with %'s of 290 you might be ready for a 305 pound press. The point is, don't do weights you aren't ready for.

Well the point of Sheiko is its a meatgrinder. And a meatgrinder isn't necessarily what is best for you as a lifter. Its great for accumulating huge levels of volume and making gains as fast as possible; but like I said sometimes as fast as possible isn't what is best for the long term. I would rather you do a 2x program where the level of fatigue accumulation isn't so severe and you can make progress consistently for a very long period of time without feeling like you're being run through a gutter. There's a reason I don't see many lifters doing Smolov after they've already reached 400+ pound squat; there's just not enough of a payoff to warrent being driven so close to the edge as compared to something done at a relatively less frequency and volume.

Im definitely at 295 bench. After i take a week off and finish the 4 sheiko workouts I have left, i might go hop on a 2x a week program or make my own DUP.

Yea, my pecs always feel like this towards the last days of sheiko, almost overtrained, after that recent bench seasion where I couldn't finish for the first time, it def feels that way.

[JimRat6969]

do you think your body can only handle 2 days of bench training right now with your intensity?
Mine can only take 2. i think you aren't allowing your body to recover enough before you hit that muscle group again.

Just seeing how 3x a week treated me. Im only 8 weeks into actual programming. I guess my pecs cant take it like my legs can, obviously because of the bigger muscle group.

i also think my right pec is lightly strained, which has happened to me before but I recover very fast. I can sleep/eat whenever I want.

Switching to 2x a week sucks cuz I love bench pressing, especially switching from "bro form" to a more powerlifting form and making all kiinds of gainz.

Can anyone recommend me a 2x week high intensity bench press progrAm?