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Thread: Shoulder injury

  1. #1
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    Default Shoulder injury

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    Hey guys,
    Battling a shoulder problem that still lingers. I can press 140# 3x5 with no issues, but benching hurts and narrowing my grip in the squat hurts as well. Ibuprofen works and I have used it only when the pain becomes too much. Pain is centered in the right deltoid area.

    The below thread is from 2011. Im thinking of giving it a shot. Is there any new news regarding this protocol? 800mg 4 times a day for 5 days. Should I skip any workouts during this time? I need to give it a shot before I break down and go to a doctor. Ill take 600 mg dose and it will relieve 95% of the pain.

    My next move after this will be to get a consult from someone before heading to the doctor. My bench is suffering...

    Proper Use of Ibuprofen?

    Proper Use of Ibuprofen?

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  2. #2
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    Difficult question to answer, but I will say this: it depends.

    Generally speaking, every guideline I have ever seen with regards to ibuprofen usage is that 1200mg/day (400mg TID) is the maximum recommended dosage for OTC use. Prescription ibuprofen is often prescribed at 800mg TID, although, the maximum dosage is 3200mg per day (800 QID). It is becoming more commonplace in the hospitals and clinics I work for the physicians to prescribe the 400mg TID dosage for MSK complaints and reserve 800mg QID for patients with conditions like Rheumatoid Arthritis.

    Effects are oftentimes quoted as being most effective at the two week mark of regular usage. I have not researched that to verify its validity. That piece of information has simply come from trusted agents within the medical system I work in.

    I think it is a well intentioned guideline to state: the lowest effective dose is likely the safest. If 400mg TID does not provide the symptom relief you wish, I would then speak to a physician / FNP / PA about getting prescribed a prescription dose of ibuprofen. I personally wouldn't recommend taking an OTC ibuprofen product at higher than the maximum recommended dose. We pay physicians a fair salary to stratify the risk for us.

  3. #3
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    I've done the ibuprofen protocol and, while it worked, if you don't address the underlying issue, the pain will come back. Plus, the ibuprofen can have some unpleasant side effects.

    I think it's likely that your shoulder problems can be fixed and my first go-to strategy is to locate trigger points (often in the rotator cuff muscles) and massage them aggressively.

  4. #4
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    Thank you for the reply Will. I want to be very careful about ibuprofen. Because of how much it helps my shoulder pain I can see myself using it too much.

    I started dumbell presses this week and I am able to do them without pain if I keep super strict form. The pain is the red dot, and the pain is tward the front. I also found if I dig the index knobber in the space between my shoulder and my chest it relieves some pain as well. I try and do this and save the ibuprofen for worse times.

    Once I have pressed into my shoulder, Im pretty good for half a day, not that it means I can bench again. I have. Im fully willing to bench through the pain if I had any idea it could fix it.

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  5. #5
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    I suffered from intense shoulder pain during squats, bench & press for over a year until I figured out how to solve it. I located a trigger point in the subscapularis muscle, which I could only access from a point near the rear of my armpit. The lacrosse ball was too big to hit the spot; the knobber you showed might could do it, although the reach is still awkward. I used a Theracane and got some immediate relief, although it took a few weeks of daily treatments before the pain went away totally. Every now and then it would flare up, but now I haven't experienced it in many years. (I've also used sharp corners of weight machines to dig into the spot when I was at the gym.)

    If you don't already have it, I highly recommend "The Trigger Point Therapy Workbook":

    Amazon.com

    It's the first thing I run to when I experience any pain.

  6. #6
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    Appriciate the help. I will check out the book. Ive been dealing with it now for so long, I havent looked into trying different ideas. Just posting this got me looking at new ideas.

    I found an excercize I've been trying the last couple days and have had some relief without needing to take any ibuprofen, which is the goal. Im also trying to sleep in a better position to help with the healing... I'm two days in, and I pressed today @ 140# 3x5 and have had no side effects.

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  7. #7
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    Sleep in a better position to help = sleeping with a Snoogle maternity pillow.

  8. #8
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    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Will Morris View Post
    Sleep in a better position to help = sleeping with a Snoogle maternity pillow.
    Wow! That is one serious pillow!

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  9. #9
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    Im on my third day of Ibuprofen... I started with 1200mg the first day and am currently only on 3 200mg per day now. I decided not to go too high unless I go see a doctor, which if this doesn't work I think is the next step.

    While on Ibuprofen, I have virtually no pain and no loss of movement. Everything works as normal.

    If the pills work, can I take it as a good sign that I dont have something seriously wrong with my shoulder?

    Should I give the Ibuprofen some time to do its magic before I start training? I was thinking two weeks or so of 600mg a day they stop, see what happens and start up lifting again.

    Any thoughts? I really think it was caused by bad bench form, and then just pushing though the pain.

    I appriciate the comments as always.
    Last edited by Matthew Spicka; 04-07-2021 at 05:03 PM.

  10. #10
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    starting strength coach development program
    Quote Originally Posted by Matthew Spicka View Post
    Im on my third day of Ibuprofen... I started with 1200mg the first day and am currently only on 3 200mg per day now. I decided not to go too high unless I go see a doctor, which if this doesn't work I think is the next step.

    While on Ibuprofen, I have virtually no pain and no loss of movement. Everything works as normal.

    If the pills work, can I take it as a good sign that I dont have something seriously wrong with my shoulder?

    Should I give the Ibuprofen some time to do its magic before I start training? I was thinking two weeks or so of 600mg a day they stop, see what happens and start up lifting again.

    Any thoughts? I really think it was caused by bad bench form, and then just pushing though the pain.

    I appriciate the comments as always.
    Rest is not generally indicated as an effective treatment strategy for most MSK injuries. If your form was crap, fix that and start lifting immediately.

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