For years whenever I bench I’ve had a pain in my shoulder. Do I just need to accept it? There has been long periods where I haven’t lifted regularly so that didn’t help it recover, since once I started lifting again it would come back.
Sure sounds like Shoulder Impingement or Rotator Cuff Tendinitis.
I no longer flat bench because it is just to easy to get an impingement.
I never have an issue with incline or decline which I find very strange.
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Have you considered trying a peptide like BPC 157?
I had developed tennis elbow in both forearms. I started doing site location 157 shots and the first time I used it it took about 6 weeks of daily shots.
One morning the pain was just gone.
I have re-injured both forearms and the 157 fixed my pain in less than 1 week.
Anyway just a thought since no one was jumping in with any solutions.
There is a chance that it could be irritation of the biceps tendon in the shoulder, along with supraspinatus inflammation. Is it tender if you let your arm hang down by your side, and press into the anterior delt/biceps tendon? And if you press along the region just below the acromion, where the humeral head starts? If so, that could be the root of the issue, and you could be helped by someone versed in ART (active release technique). OR, you could administer it yourself. I have done this with many people, and I will try to break it down for you. Find the spot on the anterior delt that is tender, and press into it with the thumb of your other hand. Really dig into it and keep pressure on it. Now, with the affected limb, perform a standing biceps curl (full range), while keeping the pressure on it. At the top of the curl, keep the biceps contracted, and raise the bent arm up and drive it as far toward the back as you can. Then release the thumb pressure at the top and straighten the arm down by your side. That’s one rep. Do three more in this manner. It will hurt like hell while you are doing it, but finish the 4 reps. Raise it up high afterward, and see if that improves it. Then, find that spot near the acromion and the top of the lateral delt (supraspinatus tendon), Press hard with opposite hand index finger, and do a 1/3 easy lateral raise (30 degrees). Four reps. Then find the belly of the supraspinatus (at top of scapula), and use the first 2 fingers of opposite hand and dig in, while doing 1/3 lateral raise for 4 reps. Test it by moving your arm around. I would not be surprise if that nearly eliminates your problem, or significantly improves it. Good luck. I will try to find some vid to support this in the meantime.
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I’m not familiar with BPC 157 shots. Maybe I can look into that. I don’t know if it’s severe enough of an issue for shots.
The pain only happens when I bench. When I do bicep curls, etc. I don’t feel it.
Let me guess flat bench only right? If so, try just doing more incline and decline and skipping the flat bench The only exercise that causes more shoulder impingement than flat bench is up right rows. In both cases it is bad form that really causes the damage.
BPC-157 really does work as well as anavar a pill if you can get your doctor to prescribe it.
Hi hrdlvn,
6 weeks of daily shots! That makes 42 shots! Are you sure dry needling in itself didn’t solve the issue? Maybe localized shock-treatment would have been healthier? BPC157 is not scientifically proven to be effective, which may be of interest to the public.
yeah ive kind of figured bcp157 by itself probably doesnt hurt anything , but might be more helpful to take some other stuff at the same time like tb500 and something for increasing gh like cjc1295/dac along with trying to get all the nutrients you need plus just moving, strengthening all the muscles around the problem area.
I’m not as experienced as some other guys here, but I can relate to your situation. I spent years with a nagging left shoulder from benching. Like yours, mine almost never hurt doing any other lift, including overhead press, chin ups, lateral raises, etc. it was just the damn flat bench.
Over the past year, I did three things that have solved the problem 95% (sometimes with heavy benching I can feel a teeny tiny bit of discomfort, it’s like a 1 on a scale of 1-10).
- Perfected technique on the flat bench - I spent months and months of taking extra time to literally just bench the bar and focus on doing everything right, usually before and after all my upper body days. I really focused on improving my arch, finding the optimal grip width, tucking my elbows, etc.
- Doubled tricep volume - weaker triceps can cause internal rotation and hurt your shoulders when pressing.
- Doubled lat volume - gave me much more stability in pressing.
Of course, I can’t guarantee these things will work for you, but don’t give up hope. I was in your situation for years and I have nearly remedied this all in under a year. On top of that, my bench has made great progress as well.
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