chest tightness ... feels like I am going to tear a pec

[mattlorig]

A few weeks ago I tested my max on the bench press. After hitting 275 (first lifetime PR in any lift in about 10 years!), I tried to do a rep a 285. On the concentric portion of the lift I felt a tightness in my left pec as if the muscle was going to tear (if you've torn a muscle before, you know how this feels). So, I just let the bar come down to my chest and had my spotter help me rack the bar.

Since testing my max, every time I bench -- even with light weight -- I feel like I am going to tear my pec. So, presumably I caused some damage when I tested my max. If I switch to a slightly narrower grip (pinkies on the knurling rather than middle fingers on the knurling), the pain goes away. So, I'm just benching with a narrow grip for now.

My question is, would it be better to continue to bench with a narrow grip until I can bench again with my usual grip without pain? Or, would it be better to just not bench (with any grip) for a few weeks?

[Nick D'Agostino]

For now, continue to use a narrower grip when bench pressing and gradually widen your grip by one finger width at a time over the next few weeks until you can return to your preferred grip width. It’s normal to experience some pain in your pec while rehabbing the muscle belly injury, especially if the discomfort becomes more diffuse as you progress. However, if the pain becomes more localized and sharper during your benching, reduce the weight until you no longer feel that discomfort. If reducing the load doesn't work, take 2 days off and then try to load it again.

[Tank50]

I actually was just about to post a similar question…

Yesterday I was on my 3rd set of 5 at 270 lbs. when I felt some tightness in the armpit area of my left pec. Rep 2 the tightness turned to discomfort and on rep 3 it became a sharp pain. I racked the bar at that point, feeling that if I continued it would tear. So I believe I strained the muscle. There isn’t any discoloration or bruising and the pain is minor. I was warmed up properly. I have shifted to early intermediate programming on the other lifts but my bench was continuing to progress at 2.5 lbs each bench day, so that’s what I’ve been doing, knowing I probably only had a few increases left at that rate. I assume that was just benching too heavy too close together that caused the strain.

My question is simply how to go about “rehabbing” it back to normal. I understand doing nothing will just allow scar tissue to build up. I am familiar with the Starr Rehab Protocol, but the whole things would seem extreme for a minor strain. So would I basically do an abbreviated version by benching daily to keep blood flowing to the muscle and work my way back up. It’s certainly nothing severe, so I’m trying to understand the balance between not losing progress, but not wanting to make it worse by pushing too hard. Thanks.

[Nick D'Agostino]

Hey Tank,

For a minor muscle strain like this one, I would recommend a linear periodization approach. This would involve bench pressing every other day (3x/week) until you're within about 10ish pounds of your previous working weight.

Here's an example of how to approach this: Start by ramping sets of 12 reps. Aim to find something moderately hard (this is intentionally not specific and depends on the severity of the strain) that causes the pain to become more diffuse and less acute/pinpointed as you continue. Depending on the difficulty of the top set, I usually have people do 1-2 top sets. Most of the time, I have people do 2 training sessions at each rep range. The next time you bench, try to increase the weight and reduce the reps to 10, then 8, then 6, and finally back to 5. Once you're consistently lifting in the 5 to 6 rep range, you can begin a linear progression again or, depending on how things are progressing, transition back into your previous intermediate programming.

[Tank50]

Nick,
Thanks so much. I worked up ascending sets of 12 tonight up to 155 and did 2 sets there. I could feel it, but not a sharp pain. I will continue with 2 sets of 12 next time. (I assume I would up the weight a bit?). Then I’ll go to 10s for 2 sessions and so on. Thanks again.

[mattlorig]

Quick update. Probably I should have just given my chest a rest until the pain was entirely gone, or alternatively, I was going to heavy on the bench. I actually tore my pec squatting yesterday. I've done with once before on my other pec. The tear is obvious from the bruise I can see on my chest.

I assume the best thing to do now is very light weights for sets of about 25, adding about 10 lbs a workout. Continue daily for two weeks or so while slowly lowering the reps. (Starr Rehab).

[Mark Rippetoe]

That's the recommendation. Give it till Sunday.