Shoulder issues with new client

[Isaac Medina]

Hey guys,

I have a new personal training client for the month (he's in ABQ until the end of the month) and I'm training him using the SS method. I'm a little scared/nervous that I'm not gonna do things correctly, as he's the first client that I'm going to be teaching the SS method to.

Anyway, when he's squatting, he's getting shoulder pain in his left side (anterior delt it seems like), probably exactly where I had the pain when I was squatting at first, and where many others here on the forum have had the pain. I've been having him use the Paul Horn stretch (which helped me immensely), and it sort of helps, but he's still complaining of shoulder pain, and isn't really bought in to squatting, and I can sense apprehension in doing the exercise. I know the Squat is the most

Any personal trainers/SSCs here who have had the same issue and want to bestow wisdom upon my inexperienced brain?

[Hayden-William Courtland]

There are a bunch of things to check: is the bar in the right place, is his upper back flat when the bar is placed or is it rounded over, is he jacking up his elbows at all during the lift, are his elbows just too high to begin with, are his elbows flared out to the sides instead of tucked in towards the body, is he pressing the bar up into his hands/wrists instead of pulling is down as he squats, etc. If none of those, have you tried a wider grip? If none of those, have you tried thumbs around the bar?

[Isaac Medina]

I would say that it's uncomfortable and painful for him when he gets set up. His grip is pretty wide, with the thumbs on the outside ring of a dual-knurl marked bar. That's why I thought the Paul Horn stretch would help, but I'll keep what you said as an unofficial checklist.

[Isaac Medina]

Hayden, thank you so much for your reply. I gave my client the cue of bringing his elbows close to his body, and it seems to have fixed everything. His squat is a lot tighter, his upper back is a lot tighter, and his shoulder does not hurt! You're the man. Thank you again

[Hayden-William Courtland]

Awesome, glad to hear.