T Nation

What Did I Do to My Shoulder?

Bodybuilding
#1

I am proud to say I have been injury free for about 8 years of strength training…until recently. I was doing heavy incline tricep extensions (in retrospect, a terrible thing to do without a spotter), any my left arm failed and the EZ Bar plummeted behind my head.

I didn’t hear a pop and the pain wasn’t severe; however, I know my arm is not supposed to ever go in that position and I could immediately tell that something wasn’t right in my shoulder.

I don’t know what I’ve done to my shoulder and I would like to approach this in a sane way (or, since I’m only two weeks out, just let it heal). Unless I am doing a pull-up or other lat-focused exercise, I feel no discomfort.

My strength is where it was before the “injury” happened. However, I sometimes notice a very tiny popping sensation when I move my left arm in certain ways. And I do feel some pain when my arm is in some positions.

Is it possible that I stretched out a tendon in my shoulder? I’m sure shoulder rotation exercises could benefit me, but do I need to see a doctor about this?

Not looking for a professional diagnosis via a simple message forum post, but I doubt I’m the first person to have ever had an EZ Bar fall behind his head. What could I have done to my shoulder, and what should my next steps be?

#2

Possibly a subluxation… If you have the money/insurance, definitely get it checked out. If you don’t, get the fuckin money somehow and get it checked out.

I am a cheap bastard, but one thing I have learned is that I will never regret the money I have spent on my shoulders… then again, I love to workout, and would be depressed and miserable without it, and I’m guessing you would be to, as would most of the ppl on these boards. Good luck.

#3
  1. See a doctor.

2)Don’t make my mistake. Lay off the weights. Worst exercises to do for the next 3 months in order.

  1. Arnold Presses.
  2. Pull-Ups
  3. Bench press
  4. Incline Press
  5. Military Press
  6. Flyes
  7. Squats w weight
  8. Deadlifts.
  9. Shrugs
    Pretty much all major compound exercises.

It’s a tricky injury because you are not weaker, so you think you can continue as normal. The problem is your shoulder can become real unstable, althought this shouldn’t happen to you since its the first time and it was real quick.

If possible put your arm in a sling for a few days and minimize the shoulder movement. After a day or two you can take it out occasionally to do rotator cuff exersizes, and arm circles. After about a week, you should start doing lateral raises, push ups, serratus exercises, and those sorts.

If you don’t think you can hold off for a full month, you can slowly start to work in the exercises from the top. As you work the bench in only go down 50% your first workout and increase ROM from there. After a few months I would add some pull-overs.

#4

This is all really good advice. But what kind of a doctor would I want to visit (who would have a clue about this kind of injury)? What kind of scan could I expect them to recommend? I hear an MRI will show all kinds of tears even in normal shoulders, so I might not want to go down that path.

#5

I’m going to see a shoulder specialist on Friday - better to be safe than sorry.

#6

[quote]jminiman wrote:
This is all really good advice. But what kind of a doctor would I want to visit (who would have a clue about this kind of injury)? What kind of scan could I expect them to recommend? I hear an MRI will show all kinds of tears even in normal shoulders, so I might not want to go down that path.[/quote]

See an orthopedic surgeon who specializes in shoulders.

#7

[quote]jminiman wrote:
This is all really good advice. But what kind of a doctor would I want to visit (who would have a clue about this kind of injury)? What kind of scan could I expect them to recommend? I hear an MRI will show all kinds of tears even in normal shoulders, so I might not want to go down that path.[/quote]

See ART specialist (Active Release Technique).

#8

Give us an update when you get a chance.

I’ve been experiencing a similar pain and annoying pop for a couple weeks. I can’t pin point the exact moment when this started though. I hope like hell it goes away.

At 23, I thought I wouldn’t have much to worry about in respect to my shoulders, but the more I read about shoulder injuries, the more I don’t want to screw them over.

#9

Turns out I have an impingement of the sub-acromonial. They gave me a steroid shot with lydocane (spelling) and a prescription for Naproxen (500 MG). Says my bone structure is otherwise in good condition.

After three weeks, I’ll see the specialist again and determine if I need another shot. He says the meds + 1 or 2 shots cures this with very high likelihood.

#10

[quote]jminiman wrote:
Turns out I have an impingement of the sub-acromonial. They gave me a steroid shot with lydocane (spelling) and a prescription for Naproxen (500 MG). Says my bone structure is otherwise in good condition.

After three weeks, I’ll see the specialist again and determine if I need another shot. He says the meds + 1 or 2 shots cures this with very high likelihood.[/quote]

I’ve found from personal experience that weak scapular stabilizers and back muscles is a common cause of this. Have been a few good articles about this on here, search around and find them.