The Complete Shoulder and RC Injury Article

[rbdbikes]

So I started doing the sample routine shown in the thread, when doing the internal/external rotations, i really feel the burn once i get around 20-30 reps, is that the point? feeling that really hot burn in the cuff? especially when doing the external

[hmmEthanol]

Glad i read this and thnx bernieD.

My left shoulder has been giving me pain for ages now, doing heavy lateral raises seemed to off put me out of action. Now considering i had this pain for years but never really had it looked at mainly due to the fact i wasnt lifting heavy weights so i just lived with it..

Now that i am back in training this pain could hault my excellent progress after just 2 months of training..

i went to see my doctor and said i may have a rotator cuff problem and after examination she said it seems like my diagnosis is correct. to my dissapointment she turned around and said what are you hoping we can do for you to which i just said try and fix it..

She spoke about injections which i quickly said NO to to which she then said she would arrange physio for me..

I have watched video's on utube of the rotator tear beeign stitched back up, i am not even convinced mine is a tear, the reason for this is the cracking and grinding senstaion i can feel and hear while moving my arm as if i was flapping a wing. Possibly the bone is grinding and not the rotator.?

Any way i am kinda cheesed off with this injury and was wondering if this injury is curable with physio.?

i can still work out providing i leave lat raises alone, but will shoulder press alone be enough. even my bench press is slightly effected as is incline flyes now..

I have almost the same problem. slight crackling on my left shoulder joints. upright rows are a big no no for me and I'm just afraid of flies nowadays as that's how I got my injury anyway (not to mention on my last rep Fuuu!)

lat raises I have to go real low weight and high reps, Military Presses have to be missed here and there depending on how bad it gets during the day. bench press... man that's even more depressing.

hoping to fix all those with rest and RC exercises!

[liangyu]

Do/did you have this kind of general ache?

[EpicenterRex]

Can someone ITT help me with my RC, I need opinions.

Like an idiot for 4 years of powerlifting I Neglected all RC work, and now it's hurting. I don't think it's torn, but it gives me a slight pain lifting it above my head.

Should I give it 2-3 weeks off For complete rest and then go lift (plus do these movements) or should I be doing the movements now with not letting it rest?

[polskiski]

Here's an article that I've alluded to a few times that I had been working on. It's finally finished. I hope you like the final product. If you have any suggestions or comments, please let me know. I'd be happy to hear constructive criticisms on the article. My goal with this article was to make a single body of text that contained enough information for people to be busy with for awhile. I hope that people like it enough that the next time someone posts a thread asking about a shoulder injury, that they will get linked to this thread. I have tried to cover a lot of material (not just "OK, here's some RC exercises, now go do them" and that's it), and I hope you get something out of it. Thanks in advance for reading this article--I put a lot of time into it, so I hope you like it.

thanks for the info, it was very helpful!

[mzphoenix]

The PT at my gym had me doing mainly upper body work only. I go six days a week so I obviously over did it. She told me my pain was from underuse. Well last Saturday when putting the 20kg barbell behind my neck for squats my left shoulder said it had had enough. It's been almost constantly painful since then. I'm a total newbie when it comes to weights but I LOVE lifting heavy and my ultimate goal is competition.
My question is should I see my doctor about my shoulder or try some of the rehab exercises? I've been avoiding using it as I'm worried I'll make it worse.
I have a feeling my doctor will just say stop lifting for a while.

Thanks in advance for any advice

[Nate2003]

I've been suffering from what was diagnosed as rotator cuff instability/tendonitis for around 10 months now. At this time of my life I've been working out for 5 years now. I used to have a solid 3 day a week routine with the big 4 exercise compounds and isolations. Now I'm just trying to maintain my build even though my strength has plummeted so badly since the shoulder issue. It gets a little better at times and a little worse at times. Waking up this morning for example I took 2 ibuprofen before heading to work. At just turning 29 years old I really hope I can recover from this and get back to doing what makes me happy. I've done some minor PT after having a MIR to diagnose the issue. I think I really need to focus all my energy on the recover of this if I'm ever gonna be healthy again without this dull pain ever lasting. Seems like push ups don't bother but incline and decline are just killer in strength and causing aggravation. Before this for example I could do body weight dips and even throw a 45lb plate on and now I must use the assistance dip machine to take off 55-70 lbs and even then I feel so delicate with my shoulder while trying to maintain perfect form.

The mentality of trying to be consistent with the gym and trying to do exercises to prevent the rest of my body from lagging yet causing one direct problem is quite the battle I'm facing. Especially now when it's getting warm out pool season and all and just to say I'm single and hardly ever date and feel I'm just taking steps backwards from all my hard work I've put in.

Besides being really smart with the stretching and training methods for the rotator has anyone had luck after visiting a chiropractor?

[allieboballieee]

I really need some advice guys...

I’ve been having serious shoulder and bicep problems since early August 2014, so for about 7 months now. I’m 22 and prior to my injury (which nobody is seemingly able to diagnose) I was at a high fitness level working out 6 days a week with boxing, high-intensity boot camp-style training, and heavy lifting. I have always had chronic shoulder pain but it usually goes away after a week or two. This time it’s different, though, because of the combined issue with my bicep. The pain began after a day of heavy benching which I followed up the following day with and hour of vigorous heavy bag work. Prior to these 2 days I was feeling some discomfort in the shoulder but kept working out anyway. The day after I woke up in agony and since then I’ve been having these issues.

I’ve had a shoulder MRI, elbow MRI, shoulder MR arthrogram, and an EMG test performed all showing little to no evidence of what’s causing this. I truly believe I have a SLAP tear but not much is showing up.

The arthrogram, though, did show something…

Findings: The scans demonstrate the joint to be of normal capacity. The acromioclavicular joint is unremarkable. The supraspinatus, infraspinatus subscapularis and bicep tendons are normal. There is no evidence for labral tear. There is contrast undercutting the anterior superior labrum anterior to the biceps anchor. COntrast parallels the superior articular surface of the labrum and is not into the substance of the labrum. The findings most consistent with a superior sub-labral foramen. Remainder the labral structures are normal.

Impression: Normal examination. Probable superior labral sub-labral foramen which is a normal variant.

Because I never went for the MRI read I’m not too sure how to fully understand this. What is a superior sub-labral foramen? Is it the cause of both my shoulder and bicep issues? What is the surgical procedure to fix this?

I was being treated by a PT for bicep tendinosis which was a total waste of time. The pain is not centralized in my arm, it almost seems like it jumps from place to place on any given day and feels more like something is not where it should be. Because of this, any curl, press, or crossover type motion results in severe pain afterwords. The bicep pain is mostly in the lower part of my bicep around the elbow, at the top of the bicep at the shoulder and into my armpit, and also into my forearm and hand mostly in the base of the thumb. The elbow MRI and EMG showed nothing so is this results from this foramen in my shoulder?

I am totally open to surgery because this is RUINING my life. I have since stopped working out completely. which is devastating to me. The only thing I care about is returning to my previous fitness level and getting on the right track to recovery. Do you think that the amount of time that has gone by will prevent me from reaching my goals? Will surgery still give me a positive result? I am young and otherwise healthy so maybe this will be in my favor with surgery?

[jjthexer]

I really need some advice guys...

I’ve been having serious shoulder and bicep problems since early August 2014, so for about 7 months now. I’m 22 and prior to my injury (which nobody is seemingly able to diagnose) I was at a high fitness level working out 6 days a week with boxing, high-intensity boot camp-style training, and heavy lifting. I have always had chronic shoulder pain but it usually goes away after a week or two. This time it’s different, though, because of the combined issue with my bicep. The pain began after a day of heavy benching which I followed up the following day with and hour of vigorous heavy bag work. Prior to these 2 days I was feeling some discomfort in the shoulder but kept working out anyway. The day after I woke up in agony and since then I’ve been having these issues.

I’ve had a shoulder MRI, elbow MRI, shoulder MR arthrogram, and an EMG test performed all showing little to no evidence of what’s causing this. I truly believe I have a SLAP tear but not much is showing up.

The arthrogram, though, did show something…

Findings: The scans demonstrate the joint to be of normal capacity. The acromioclavicular joint is unremarkable. The supraspinatus, infraspinatus subscapularis and bicep tendons are normal. There is no evidence for labral tear. There is contrast undercutting the anterior superior labrum anterior to the biceps anchor. COntrast parallels the superior articular surface of the labrum and is not into the substance of the labrum. The findings most consistent with a superior sub-labral foramen. Remainder the labral structures are normal.

Impression: Normal examination. Probable superior labral sub-labral foramen which is a normal variant.

Because I never went for the MRI read I’m not too sure how to fully understand this. What is a superior sub-labral foramen? Is it the cause of both my shoulder and bicep issues? What is the surgical procedure to fix this?

I was being treated by a PT for bicep tendinosis which was a total waste of time. The pain is not centralized in my arm, it almost seems like it jumps from place to place on any given day and feels more like something is not where it should be. Because of this, any curl, press, or crossover type motion results in severe pain afterwords. The bicep pain is mostly in the lower part of my bicep around the elbow, at the top of the bicep at the shoulder and into my armpit, and also into my forearm and hand mostly in the base of the thumb. The elbow MRI and EMG showed nothing so is this results from this foramen in my shoulder?

I am totally open to surgery because this is RUINING my life. I have since stopped working out completely. which is devastating to me. The only thing I care about is returning to my previous fitness level and getting on the right track to recovery. Do you think that the amount of time that has gone by will prevent me from reaching my goals? Will surgery still give me a positive result? I am young and otherwise healthy so maybe this will be in my favor with surgery?

Hey man, I'm 22 myself and recently found this thread as I have recently caused some damage to my right shoulder. I was doing military presses and coming much below 90 degrees because I wanted to increase my strength on putting up the dumbells once I kicked them up off of my lap. Wrong decision and now I've had shoulder pains when doing certain motions for over 4 weeks now. I pushed through shoulder exercises for about 2 weeks before I finally decided to give up shoulder press. I can do flies, laterals, rears no problem, no pain. But anything press, even bench press makes me uncomfortable and causes pain. More importantly when lifting my right arm straight up into the air and bending it behind my head and stretching I can feel the most pain here.

I would steer clear of any kind of surgery until you try everything in this article. Since I just found this article I'm going to try all of this and gradually try to put low weight on my shoulders in the coming weeks to see if it improves. I read an article that said if you get shoulder surgery you're looking at physical therapy (obviously) and about 4 months before you're back to full functioning motion. You may get back 100% but thats a risk you'll have to take.

I'm going to follow up with this thread for the next month+ and give my progress on stretching distances and weight without pain to see if this will really work.

Good luck man!

[Rizzo23601]

I've had secondary shoulder impingement due to instability for the longest time, and researched for days and days to find help. Just wanted to let you guys know what finally helped me get back on track, now I am back training chest/shoulders without pain. Maybe somebody finds this helpful, it's just what helped me. Anyway:

1. I skipped Chest-day for 4 weeks ( = I stopped training chest for 4 weeks). I did train shoulders though, because it didn't cause me pain.
2. I did the following routine: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0ONHZmsFec
3. I did the following stretches after every workout ( = 5 times a week): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rvwOypiZUi0&index=1

After a few weeks, my shoulders and scapulae feel much more stabilised, and I am back to training normally. Just wanted to share this, and maybe spare some of you guys days and weeks of searching and trying out stuff. Like I said, that's what helped me, hopefully it works for other people plagued by shoulder problems as well.

[jjthexer]

Ok guys, my last post was the beginning of april. I've incorporated all of the exercises in this article along with a few variations of slow holds and extensions. My shoulder still isn't fully 100%. I've completely stopped bench press/shoulder press/military press> I moved everything to dumbells and this has alleviated any pain when pushing my chest. My shoudler exercises include, laterals, rear delts, front raises (light weight).

My buddy also recommended me the video: "The Simple Five Way Shoulder | Feat. Kelly Starrett | Ep. 211 | MobilityWOD" I can't post links lol.

This guy is a Dr. & trains a lot of professionals around the world. Going to start incorporating some of these movements as well. I am however able to put up around 25-30lb dumbbells for shoulder press just to test the waters and the pain was minimal to none. When I up the weight a bit it almost feels a little bit like tricep/bicep/shoulder mix of pain which is strange.

Anyways, shoulder pain has improved and flexibility has improved since following this threads advice.

Good Luck! I'll report back soon!

[greekgod21]

I needed this

[Germh]

No wonder my shoulder blew up yesterday. I'm doing every one of those exercises on the "Section 5: Exercises to be wary of" list. Except dips and pec decks. My left shoulder has been uncomfortable for the last few weeks, so I dropped out upright rows. As I've read in numerous places that they are a "bad" exercise.(last time I was lifting I did them for over a year with no problems)
Figured I would be ok since I got rid of them. But yesterday(chest day) I had some pain in my left shoulder while benching. I had to drop weight and reps just to get through it. Now, a day later I have dull throbbing pain, but no reduced mobility. I can raise my arm overhead no problem, and I can do a lateral raise no problem. So hopefully it's nothing serious. Something I forgot to mention, I do have the clicking in my shoulder, but it's been there since highschool.

I have to say though, all this RC injury and tearing I'm reading about is really psyching me out. I've been lifting off and on since I was around 20 years old and I've never had to deal with a weight lifting related injury. I can't tell if it's getting worse, or if I'm making it worse by obsessing and worrying about it.

Guess I shouldn't hold my breath for any feedback, lol. There's unanswered posts from 2013 on this page. That's neat...

[Nate2003]

No wonder my shoulder blew up yesterday. I'm doing every one of those exercises on the "Section 5: Exercises to be wary of" list. Except dips and pec decks. My left shoulder has been uncomfortable for the last few weeks, so I dropped out upright rows. As I've read in numerous places that they are a "bad" exercise.(last time I was lifting I did them for over a year with no problems)
Figured I would be ok since I got rid of them. But yesterday(chest day) I had some pain in my left shoulder while benching. I had to drop weight and reps just to get through it. Now, a day later I have dull throbbing pain, but no reduced mobility. I can raise my arm overhead no problem, and I can do a lateral raise no problem. So hopefully it's nothing serious. Something I forgot to mention, I do have the clicking in my shoulder, but it's been there since highschool.

I have to say though, all this RC injury and tearing I'm reading about is really psyching me out. I've been lifting off and on since I was around 20 years old and I've never had to deal with a weight lifting related injury. I can't tell if it's getting worse, or if I'm making it worse by obsessing and worrying about it.

Guess I shouldn't hold my breath for any feedback, lol. There's unanswered posts from 2013 on this page. That's neat...

You've got a shoulder instability bro. It's a loose shoulder.

I had surgery on mine in January on my right and now my left is starting to follow suit. You get a dull weakness in it along with clicking and feelings of it popping occasionally. I haven't done a pull-up now in probably 8 months due to the body weight on my shoulders would probably be just too much. Any upper body much at all seems to be a no go.

Surgery that gets done to correct it.

Capsular Plication
https://www.shoulderdoc.co.uk/section/895

Good luck man. Get checked out. Nothing shows up in X-rays... MRI has to be done to see if it is indeed loose.

[Germh]

Sick. I have no money or insurance.

[milkbar]

Thanks for the heads up on upright rows. I didn't know they were bad for you. They do make my shoulders hurt more than overhead presses.

[Germh]

Thanks for the heads up on upright rows. I didn't know they were bad for you. They do make my shoulders hurt more than overhead presses.

If you're in pain, don't push through it.(even mild discomfort because mine was just uncomfortable for a few weeks before I actually hurt it) Something I'm learning the hard way, like everything else. Reason why upright rows are considered bad is because they put you in an impinging position. Putting alot of stress on the shoulder. I did them for over a year with out a problem, but I would just say stay away from them. Shoulderpress and bent over row to counter.

[milkbar]

If you're in pain, don't push through it.(even mild discomfort because mine was just uncomfortable for a few weeks before I actually hurt it) Something I'm learning the hard way, like everything else. Reason why upright rows are considered bad is because they put you in an impinging position. Putting alot of stress on the shoulder. I did them for over a year with out a problem, but I would just say stay away from them. Shoulderpress and bent over row to counter.

Thanks, I also learned the hard way to stop if you have any pain. I was trying to press too much weight and felt a pop. Instead of stopping I kept going, and the popping happened with each rep. I had to stop for a month or two before I was able to move my shoulder normally again.

[Germh]

I got the results back from my X ray the other day, every thing looks fine. On to the MRI, I have to wait for approval from Medi cal first, which can take 6 to 8 weeks. Apperantly they don't cover MRI's, even after my doctor told me we had to do an X ray first in order for medi cal to give me an MRI. I have the order form/referal from my doctor to get the MRI, but can't get it because I only have medi cal. So we will see, I don't want to start lifting again until I know for sure. Because I'm still in pain, and whatever it is I don't want to make it worse.

[milkbar]

I got the results back from my X ray the other day, every thing looks fine. On to the MRI, I have to wait for approval from Medi cal first, which can take 6 to 8 weeks. Apperantly they don't cover MRI's, even after my doctor told me we had to do an X ray first in order for medi cal to give me an MRI. I have the order form/referal from my doctor to get the MRI, but can't get it because I only have medi cal. So we will see, I don't want to start lifting again until I know for sure. Because I'm still in pain, and whatever it is I don't want to make it worse.

Hopefully you find out what's going on soon. That sucks that you're still in pain.

I think I hurt my shoulder again last night doing dumbbell bench presses (again) so I'm gonna take some time off. I'm not in pain but the popping returned.

Do you guys think I should stop all upper body activities or can I work around it? I don't want to risk slowing down the healing process by working triceps/back/biceps when I shouldn't be. I'll probably keep doing lower body.

[Morien]

Quick question.

To bench safely I need to retract and depress my scapula, ping it against the bench. Do I retract and depress when doing a press? Keep getting inflammation and a winged left shoulder blade following barbell press.

Thanks

[Germh]

Still haven't had an MRI, and it's looking less and less likely that I will get one. So I may never know what is going on with my shoulder. Which sucks because all I want to do is lift, it's been a month and I've already lost 9lbs. I've still been working out, but only body weight and no upper body. Treadmill, squats and sit ups. I tried doing push ups a couple weeks ago but I was in pain afterwards. I'm still in pain right now, as I sit here typing this. Even if I sit or stand with my arms crossed, my shoulder will kill afterwards. I'm about to try the stretches on page one I think, but I'm fighting myself on just going outside and lifting. All I want to do, lol.

[Germh]

Quick question.

To bench safely I need to retract and depress my scapula, ping it against the bench. Do I retract and depress when doing a press? Keep getting inflammation and a winged left shoulder blade following barbell press.

Thanks

Don't know what you're trying to say, but here. /watch?v=vUcjOIZc80c(youtube) chest up, scapulas retracted. You shouldn't be changing your form mid press, once you're set up, start benching. So I don't really understand what you're asking.

Or just search this video title
☆ How to Bench Press ☆ Get a Big Chest, Add Muscle All Without Wrecking Your Shoulders
Messing up your shoulder is more likely from hitting the bar too high on your chest and with flared elbows.

[milkbar]

Still haven't had an MRI, and it's looking less and less likely that I will get one. So I may never know what is going on with my shoulder. Which sucks because all I want to do is lift, it's been a month and I've already lost 9lbs. I've still been working out, but only body weight and no upper body. Treadmill, squats and sit ups. I tried doing push ups a couple weeks ago but I was in pain afterwards. I'm still in pain right now, as I sit here typing this. Even if I sit or stand with my arms crossed, my shoulder will kill afterwards. I'm about to try the stretches on page one I think, but I'm fighting myself on just going outside and lifting. All I want to do, lol.

That really sucks man.

[Morien]

Don't know what you're trying to say, but here. /watch?v=vUcjOIZc80c(youtube) chest up, scapulas retracted. You shouldn't be changing your form mid press, once you're set up, start benching. So I don't really understand what you're asking.

Or just search this video title
☆ How to Bench Press ☆ Get a Big Chest, Add Muscle All Without Wrecking Your Shoulders
Messing up your shoulder is more likely from hitting the bar too high on your chest and with flared elbows.

Hey mate,
Not asking how to bench, asking about press (standing barbell overhead press). Should have been more specific (I refer to 'bench press' and 'press'). Thanks

[Watsonm5]

Hurt my left shouldler doing too much on Reverse Flies and then IBP. Basically top middle of shoulder. Not sure of the muscle(s) but if this is the case TYPICALLY how long should I wait before starting that exercise again? Stupid question maybe but is there another way to avoid and keep going? Definitely dropping the weights on both and resetting...

[fortitude101]

awesome thread thank you

[emerica1184]

Hey dudes I run this site injuredshoulder.com, It has a complete list of shoulder conditions, symptoms, treatments, all that jazz. Hope it can help out someone.

[aali1221]

I will start to do the exercises shown in the thread consistently now as injury prevention and strengthening after my main pressing workout. How many days per week should I be doing them?

[sowilson]

I will start to do the exercises shown in the thread consistently now as injury prevention and strengthening after my main pressing workout. How many days per week should I be doing them?

You can do them every day. If you quit doing them frequently you'll probably experience messed up shoulders again.