hey guys, ive been lifting a couple of years now. for a while, my shoulder, about where my rotator cuff is, would get really sore and ache, but for the most part wasnt too bad. within the last 6 months it has been getting pretty ridiculous. it is to the point where i have to stop brushing my teeth for a second to rest my shoulder, it just feels like its on fire. same with jump roping.
its not that im out of breath, its just my shoulders burn so bad i have to stop. i am HOPING that perhaps my rotator cuffs are just weak and underdeveloped, not torn. what do you guys think? i JUST tonight started doing some exercises for them and will be icing them after every workout. there are 3 specific exercises i do, you can see what they are at the bottom of this page:
also, it seems to get the most sore from bench pressing. i am assuming that is what has caused it to get this way. please let me know what you guys think! thanks!
oh and i forgot to ask, these 3 exercises i am doing… how often should i do them, and how many reps/sets? I planned on doing them MWF on the days i lift, 3x12?
A common cause is doing too many exercises where you internally rotate your humerus (like benching) and not enough external rotations (like rowing.) I’m guilty of this. You could try the pencil test as a method of self evaluation.
thanx alot i really appreciate it! so im guessing i should really lay off dips and bench for a while. the next set program i was going to do had me doing incline bench monday, dips wed, and decline bench friday… too much?
[quote]skimmy_jimmy wrote:
thanx alot i really appreciate it! so im guessing i should really lay off dips and bench for a while. the next set program i was going to do had me doing incline bench monday, dips wed, and decline bench friday… too much?[/quote]
Defiantly too much chest work. No good program will have you pressing more than two days a week. Maybe there are exceptions to this, but not many.
In the event of a tear track down a doctor of prolotherapy if you can afford it. Your doctors probably going to put you through a bunch of pointless steps, anti-inflammatories, physical therapy, cortisone shots, and finally surgery or you give up before then.
When I tore my rotator cuff I wasted months of training because of all the shit I had to go through. I got frusterated with my doctor after they lost an MRI and got some prolotherapy performed and my shoulder pain is gone and is functionally as strong as my other.
unfortunately, i work full time at a hospital and go to school full time with a child on the way, needless to say i am dead ass poor and cant even afford health insurance for myself so im pretty much fucked there. if i can find a doctor whos not a total prick, i would see if he could try to evaluate my situation but most of them tell me to kiss their ass, set up an appointment.
yes i am DEFINITELY cutting down my chest work. i am thinking alternate between decline and incline bench on mondays and then do dips on fridays, unless that still sounds like too much? these really dont cause pain on my shoulders at all like flat benching does.
It’s still pressing(the incline), if you can’t brush your teeth without pain, stop with the pressing movements. Start doing some serious pulling until the major imbalance that you have goes away. Then get a balanced routine. I had the same problem last year until I found out my program was crap.
[quote]tw0scoops2 wrote:
It’s still pressing(the incline), if you can’t brush your teeth without pain, stop with the pressing movements. Start doing some serious pulling until the major imbalance that you have goes away. Then get a balanced routine. I had the same problem last year until I found out my program was crap.
Do you deadlift?[/quote]
This is good advice. Pay heed, lest you fuck yourself forever.
yeah i think youre right on that one. i had issues with pulling exercises because of my lower back, and i quit dead lifting because of that as well. i have 2 discs that are torn and have degenerative disc disease, so when i attempt to dead lift if it doesnt hurt too bad, i get scared im going to hurt it again. i was attempting to do 300, which was relatively easy, but my back popped and i couldnt walk for 3 days.
anyway, i am in Columbia MO. im still doing my rotator cuff exercises and they seem to be helping a bit. i will definitely kill the pressing exercises and incorporate many more pulling for a while
if it is rotator cuff pathology or weakness, then the muscles around the shoulder may be compensating for them, causing your pain. I would suggest going to see either a doctor or aphysical therapist. if you can’t then we can try our best on here but without a physical examination it may be hard to distinguish the problem. keep up with those rotator cuff exercises you been doing, and I’d say try do them everyday.
I know by bodybuilding rules you shouldnt as muscles need their rest etc, but just like a diet, doing it often and little will help. so yea, i’d say 2x/day, 10-15reps. I wouldnt use big weights, just a lighter weight and controlled movement. but yea, if possible see a physical therapist, could help you out with some pain relief therapy like TENS or acupuncture.
alright thanks alot for the feedback guys, its much appreciated. since i have started doing cuff exercises, it seems to be helping a bit. i think i am going to just keep doing dips 1x per week in my program and incorporate MANY MANY more pulling exercises until i fix the unbalance, as mentioned before.
one last question on that, do you guys think it would be good to continue power cleans, or stop those for a while as well?