Pain in left pec/shoulder area

[OKapricot]

I seem to have developed a pain in my left side chest. I noticed a sensation the other day after training, similar to tight legs after a good leg session the day before. Imagine holding your arm to the side at 90degrees, the area of my chest that's hurting is just below the centre line of the arm outstretched as above, around two-finger-width in from the side if that makes any sense.

The bench press brings out this pain in particular, though its noticeable on incline with dumbbells. My normal grip is a wider grip, but today this grip has made things difficult as the pain is pretty sharp. A narrower grip reduces this sensation noticeably and I can get through the set. If numbers are any help, I have a target of 32 reps over 4 sets, usually something like 11,9,8,6, currently at 72.5kg attempting to pass 32 reps. Daily calories in contradiction to my recent nutrition post are 1850.

I know its not right but that's all I know... And that it's pretty sharp.

Cheers!

[EiFit91]

I seem to have developed a pain in my left side chest. I noticed a sensation the other day after training, similar to tight legs after a good leg session the day before. Imagine holding your arm to the side at 90degrees, the area of my chest that's hurting is just below the centre line of the arm outstretched as above, around two-finger-width in from the side if that makes any sense.

The bench press brings out this pain in particular, though its noticeable on incline with dumbbells. My normal grip is a wider grip, but today this grip has made things difficult as the pain is pretty sharp. A narrower grip reduces this sensation noticeably and I can get through the set. If numbers are any help, I have a target of 32 reps over 4 sets, usually something like 11,9,8,6, currently at 72.5kg attempting to pass 32 reps. Daily calories in contradiction to my recent nutrition post are 1850.

I know its not right but that's all I know... And that it's pretty sharp.

Cheers!

Don't move into pain. I would cut the exercises that causes pain for now and slowly try to ease back into them over time.

How often do you deload? And how did your volume change during the cut compared to before?

[safcpaul]

I can't bench wide. I bench around shoulder width. If I bench wide then I get the same pain as you. Don't do things that cause pain. It's sounds like a touch of impingement to me. Just do exercises that cause no pain

[OKapricot]

Don't move into pain. I would cut the exercises that causes pain for now and slowly try to ease back into them over time.

How often do you deload? And how did your volume change during the cut compared to before?

To be honest I've been on a cut the whole time - main goal has been fat loss since Feb last year. Have been making progress during this time so I'm going as far as I can with it. Saying that, there was a period of a few weeks a month or so before Christmas where I was having trouble in everyday life and didn't make it to the gym so I guess with that, and coming back in lifting around 60-70% of what I was up to that point, that counts as a deload?

Safcpaul - it definitely feels more like a sharp soreness, though I wouldn't know what an impingement feels like. If I hold my arm out to the side and bring it across my body like a pec fly I feel this soreness particularly in the last bit of ROM.

I wonder if I should abandon chest for a week or so, or just go light and do lots of reps?

[BeginnerGainz]

Could be any number of things. Could be a pissed off pec tendon or long head of the biceps.

If it is that concerning get it checked out by a professional.

[EiFit91]

To be honest I've been on a cut the whole time - main goal has been fat loss since Feb last year. Have been making progress during this time so I'm going as far as I can with it. Saying that, there was a period of a few weeks a month or so before Christmas where I was having trouble in everyday life and didn't make it to the gym so I guess with that, and coming back in lifting around 60-70% of what I was up to that point, that counts as a deload?

Safcpaul - it definitely feels more like a sharp soreness, though I wouldn't know what an impingement feels like. If I hold my arm out to the side and bring it across my body like a pec fly I feel this soreness particularly in the last bit of ROM.

I wonder if I should abandon chest for a week or so, or just go light and do lots of reps?

In the future you should start doing deloads more often. Training without deloading will work for a while, but as you get stronger your body will not be able to take the constant beating and injuries can happen. The stronger you get, the more time you need to spend thinking about recovery management and how to program to avoid injuries. And IME in a calorie deficit it's generally just harder to recover properly so you need to be extra careful. I tend to deload more often when cutting than when bulking, on top of reducing overall volume.

[OKapricot]

It's only concerning in that I don't want to make things worse but do want to keep lifting. I just wondered if anyone's experience fits what I'm trying to describe, and what it turned out to be and how they remedied it. I would definitely see the doctor if it was that bad before posting on a forum. I guess this is the first "injury" I've had in the gym and am in unfamiliar territory.

I will do a deload for a week. My next session being tomorrow so I will start then. Back off about 30%. Thank you for the advice.

[EiFit91]

It's only concerning in that I don't want to make things worse but do want to keep lifting. I just wondered if anyone's experience fits what I'm trying to describe, and what it turned out to be and how they remedied it. I would definitely see the doctor if it was that bad before posting on a forum. I guess this is the first "injury" I've had in the gym and am in unfamiliar territory.

I will do a deload for a week. My next session being tomorrow so I will start then. Back off about 30%. Thank you for the advice.

Just bear in mind that deloads are primarily a tool for avoiding injuries in the first place, not a tool for handling an injury when it's there.

If you don't know if it's an injury I would visit a doctor/physical therapist. If you won't/can't do that I'd personally try taking a full week off first and then slowly ramp up volume from that until you get back to your usual volume. If you get back to that without any pain, you can try adding the exercises that caused pain and see if it still happens.

[air2fakie]

It's only concerning in that I don't want to make things worse but do want to keep lifting.

You can always just take out chest & do everything else if you're a "never deload" guy. Resting stuff that's causing pain is pretty logical.

I just wondered if anyone's experience fits what I'm trying to describe, and what it turned out to be and how they remedied it. I would definitely see the doctor if it was that bad before posting on a forum. I guess this is the first "injury" I've had in the gym and am in unfamiliar territory.

That's hardly an injury. For anyone active in sports or lifting above a certain age, that's just another Wednesday. You do have to monitor & adjust when stuff like that happens though, and see a doc if you're worried about what it is. Your verbal description isn't as descriptive as you think it is.

[OKapricot]

Thanks for the input gents, much appreciated. With some thought I've decided to take the next week off completely. It can only help.

[OKapricot]

Saw a doctor about this, he reckons a grade 2 strain in the pec, specifically the sternocostal head. Recommended not lifting for around 4 weeks and then to come back in slowly. Sound about right? Anyone else had a pec strain what was your experience?

[EiFit91]

Saw a doctor about this, he reckons a grade 2 strain in the pec, specifically the sternocostal head. Recommended not lifting for around 4 weeks and then to come back in slowly. Sound about right? Anyone else had a pec strain what was your experience?

Do not ignore your doctor's advice over what strangers tell you on the internet.

In the very long run, this is just a small blip on the radar.

[OKapricot]

Do not ignore your doctor's advice over what strangers tell you on the internet.

In the very long run, this is just a small blip on the radar.

Definitely not, I'll use this time to increase the cardio and try to speed up the fat loss. Gotta take this seriously.

[coachcalande]

Saw a doctor about this, he reckons a grade 2 strain in the pec, specifically the sternocostal head. Recommended not lifting for around 4 weeks and then to come back in slowly. Sound about right? Anyone else had a pec strain what was your experience?

Strained a pec this summer. August.

I could do light inclines and I could do ROM with the bar.

After two weeks I started pyramid training on bench, no flys.

I did a lot of reps for weeks.

It’s all logged here on the forum under a thread about “auto regulated training explained”..

This was today:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vieqLILTq0U

[BeginnerGainz]

Saw a doctor about this, he reckons a grade 2 strain in the pec, specifically the sternocostal head. Recommended not lifting for around 4 weeks and then to come back in slowly. Sound about right? Anyone else had a pec strain what was your experience?

When you have give it enough rest, don’t jump right back into pressing. Start with super light high reps flys to strengthen it in a greater range of motion than you would benching. Deficit pushups are good too if your bodyweight is light and not a challenge for you.

And then, never stop working that stretch. Prehab is the best defense against tears and injuries.

[OKapricot]

Cheers for the advice gents. Check back in a month!