238 Post(s)Gender: MaleGoal: Gain MuscleDate Joined: January 1, 2018
Posted
Simply put when I was in the Army I took a pretty bad spill, landed with my arm trapped beneath me perfectly at a 90 degree angle, all of my weight directly downward and pretty gruesomely damaged my rotator cuff and elbow...at least the fleshy bits.
Fast forward to the future, I've regained a lot of mobility and strength in the shoulder. I'm able to do pull ups reasonably well, but I'd noticed during curls I was expressing a form of..hitch..in the movement on my left side. While I was getting work done with my masseuse, he explained that the tendon in my bicep might be 'weak' and that could be the complication... I don't know anatomy very well, and I wanted to avoid injuring my arm or shoulder further so I thought I would ask the validity of this. And what I should do if indeed the connective tissue or even the tendon itself is weakened or something from under use [ as I undoubtedly 'babied' the injury for years.]
2.6K Post(s)Gender: MaleGoal: BodybuildingDate Joined: October 10, 2013
Posted
Soft tissue damage will be repaired by the body as best it can based on the nature of the injury and the amount of nutrient dense food you eat - basically the more quality building blocks you give the body thru food the better the repair job that can be done.
As for your situation, it is probably more due to scar tissue and constricted muscles and connective tissue. Many people who have injuries like yours are very scared to immediately start using the injured muscle/joint as soon as the swelling is down for fear of pain and further damage. When I tore my left bicep muscle belly deadlifting, I was back down the gym 7 days later doing very light bicep and back exercises and massaging the area so as to promote healing, reduce scar tissue formation, and strengthen the area. Your body responds to the stressors it experiences. Baby an injury for too long and you get a weakened repair and high potential for re-injury. For me, I have had no residual issues (other than a cosmetic defect) with my left bicep in any way 4+ years after the tear.
You may need to see a specialist in deep muscle/tissue massage to break up the scar tissue and tightness you currently have in your shoulder as I am pretty confident this is the source of your troubles. You will also need to work on shoulder flexibility and strengthening work. The good news is you can reverse the weakness if you do a careful and methodical re-hab.
John
34 years of lifting and nutritional experience and resident "old man" :-)
MS Athlete and past Super Hermanite since 2013.
238 Post(s)Gender: MaleGoal: Gain MuscleDate Joined: January 1, 2018
Posted
Alright, that makes a lot of sense. Thank you for the detailed reply. I've been getting deep tissue work when I can afford to do so, so I'm glad to hear that's on the right track. So, I'll just have to focus on physical therapy style / focused stuff for a while until I get ROM and stability strength back. I appreciate the help!
7.1K Post(s)Gender: MaleGoal: BodybuildingDate Joined: August 8, 2008
Posted
My advice would be the same as John's. I didn't quite tear my bicep tendon, but I had an injury close to it when I was deadlifting. So if that tendon is where the issue is now, you should try doing some of your own massage work on it when you can't go and see a specialist.
I also was back training biceps pretty soon after, but obviously just light training so as to not make the injury any worse.
Check out my video below to see what kind of methods I used, and if you can I HIGHLY recommend getting yourself a thera-cane, those things work wonders!!
Need 1 on 1 coaching? Send me a direct message to learn more!
238 Post(s)Gender: MaleGoal: Gain MuscleDate Joined: January 1, 2018
Posted
Much appreciated, Scott.
As much as I absolutely loathe the foam roller I've been frequently using it because frankly my body is all jacked up and needs the help, Lol.
I'll look into trying to find one of those wands, admittedly I've seen a few floating around goodwill time and again, so I might be able to get lucky
7.1K Post(s)Gender: MaleGoal: BodybuildingDate Joined: August 8, 2008
Posted
That foam roller will sonn become your best friend the more you use it haha. Let's hope you have better luck finding that theracane.. than you do in Dokkan Battle 😋
Need 1 on 1 coaching? Send me a direct message to learn more!
7.1K Post(s)Gender: MaleGoal: BodybuildingDate Joined: August 8, 2008
Posted
definitely grab one next time you see it!!
Need 1 on 1 coaching? Send me a direct message to learn more!
238 Post(s)Gender: MaleGoal: Gain MuscleDate Joined: January 1, 2018
Posted
Low blow man.... I'll just take my GogetaS, plural, and leave D=