Alternative exercises - shoulder impingement/bursitis - calcification tendinitis

[Nelg1993]

I'm looking for advice from a fellow lifter, preferably someone with knowledge of biomechanics and with a PT background of some sort. My PT has some knowledge of lifting weights and the biomechanics involved, but not 100%.

For the past 2+ years I've been dealing with shoulder pain, saw several PT's and have been diagnosed with shoulder impingement syndrome. All of them never really bothered to look for the cause of the impingement so after reading up on the subject myself I asked my doctor for an ultrasound. Turns out my supraspinatus tendon has calcifications, which is treatable, but only with surgery at this stage. The surgery in itself is very painful and rehab is fairly long, it could also lead to a frozen shoulder. Feeling like an old man right now because this is rarely seen in people <50 y/o. This calcification in combination with lifting (primarily overhead motions with my arms abducted) causes the impingement and bursitis.

My doctor opted for another round of PT for a few months and learning how to avoid motions that aggravate the issue, if I wish to continue training. He suggested dropping weight training completely and finding another sport like.. Chess or something. The inflammation (bursitis) should go away by doing so and I should be able to avoid it in the future with strengthening and range of motion exercises. And of course the obvious: avoiding those motions.

What I'm asking specifically is: what alternatives are there for the following exercises, keeping in mind my restrictions?

- Lat pulldown: would a shoulder width supinated or CG neutral grip bother my shoulder? My elbows are in front of my body when going overhead so in theory it shouldn't? Are rows and deadlifts sufficient to hit the lats so I could ditch overhead pulling completely?

- Bench press: this exercise is known to bother the RC, although you're not lifting overhead, only with slight abduction. Would dumbbells or a CG be a good alternative? Maybe a neutral grip when using dumbbells? Or decline bench?

- Incline bench press/overhead press: I guess these are strictly forbidden for me? Would a landmine press be a good alternative for hitting both the upper chest and front delts? Again, elbows stay in front of the body with this exercise.

- Lateral raises: are they even useful if you're not able to lift your arm to 90 degrees? Any safe alternatives for the medial deltoid?

- Face pulls: can be replaced with dumbbell rear delt flyes and reverse machine flyes?

[grubman]

Not a doctor! Not giving medical advice!

When I had a shoulder impingement compounded with bicep tendinitis, I took several months completely off to heal. When I started back, I took several months working our with ridiculously light weights, and very slowly building up.

Your case sounds a bit more serious...but my point is that actually taking time to heal is a much better option than trying to work through or around it and possibly causing permanent damage.

In any case (to answer the question) ...when I started lifting again I used a Black Widow multi-press bar for all my pressing. It was very easy on the shoulders during recovery (same grip as dumbells without the extra stress of balance). You might want to take a look.

https://www.blackwidowtg.com/product...ulti-press.htm

[Nelg1993]

Thanks for the tip, but you're kind of missing the point. I will take my time off, have been doing so for the past month and a half and will probably continue to do so for another 2 months. Unless my PT allows me to do certain exercises.

Unless I get the surgery I'll probably never be able to do any of the exercises listed above anymore as they will lead to bursitis over and over again. It's a structural thing, not an injury that has to heal. Except for the bursitis, but that was the consequence, not the cause.

Also, that bar is freaking expensive lol. Did you buy it?

[grubman]

Thanks for the tip, but you're kind of missing the point.

Also, that bar is freaking expensive lol. Did you buy it?

Apologies.

Yes I did. I also have a Black Widow rackable hex bar and an EliteFTS yoke bar in my home gym...but I only work out in my home gym. I'm a pretty frugal guy, but when it comes to gym equipment I usually buy the best quality I can get for the best price (junk is just a waste of money). Since these kind of specialty bars rarely come up used, sometimes you just have to bite the bullet.

[Nelg1993]

No problem!

I'm still at uni so can't really afford to build a home gym right now, would love to do so one day.