Injured rotator cuff

[coldvein]

I tweaked my rotator cuff recently (90% sure its the rotator cuff at least). After doing weeks of heavy snatches and jerks it evolved from a very miniscule pain to a bit more of an annoyance. I don't think I necessarily tore it or anything, maybe more on the line of a tweak. I've layed off of doing overhead stuff for a few weeks and gave a shot at snatches a few days ago. They went fine, but the pain creeped in towards the end of my workout. I've been sticking with a lot of cleans and power cleans and while those are generally fine, racking anything above the 80% range in the clean puts some strain on it still.

Flexibility shouldn't be an issue, I can do dislocates pretty easily and what not, but I'm not sure why my left side got strained. I've read that rotator cuff injuries take a long time to heal, which is disappointing since I really wanted to lift hard this summer now that I'm starting to get good at the lifts. Obviously, a full recovery is needed though.

I'm guessing injuries of this sort are common in weightlifting. Roughly how long do they take to heal? If its something like a three month plus thing, it really sucks.... Should I just do a lot of snatch pulls and play the cleans by ear or what? I've been adding some rehab at the end of my workouts for what that is worth.

Anyways, I'm just looking to hear some experiences and advice. Thanks

[erick15]

None of us here are doctors and every injury is different. If you want to be sure that it heals properly, see a physical therapist.

[ilicet51]

None of us here are doctors and every injury is different. If you want to be sure that it heals properly, see a physical therapist.

Speak for yourself but OP, go get checked out. No idea if you have shoulder whinging or any other postural issue.

[MikeWittmer]

It is almost impossible to diagnose without the benefit of a thorough exam. You need to have it evaluated and find out exactly what is wrong.

Who knows? You may need some type of imaging. After you know what you are dealing with, you can determine the best treatment or therapy.

[coldvein]

Yeah I suppose PT is the way to go. I was thinking this injury was probably a common thing, but better to be safe than sorry.

[chigiskov]

When i first started oly, it was months of intense, sometimes very intense shoulder impingement and pain. It was always tendon like. Sometimes after snatch but ALWAYS after jerk. It took my body about a year to adapt, I can jerk every day (lol) with no pain now. I hate to sound like abadjiev but i think you adapt, i'm no doctor but it sounds like your shoulders just aren't used to the positions they get put in. ICE, STRETCH, REST my friend.

edit: in other words, yes i think this is very common. been through it, i feel your pain, it goes away.