Reply With QuoteI get pec cramps after deadlifting sometimes, quite painful. Never had persistent pec pain from them though.
Member
Here's a new one: pec injury while deadlifting
Last night it was deadlift time.
I warm up as usual; some rotation of my arms, both forward and back. A set of Press, to loosen the shoulders. Two sets of squats with the empty bar, one with 40 Kg.
Then I put the bar to on the platform, added two small bumpers and got ready for the first warmup set, with just 50Kg.
Straight away, on the lockout of the very first rep, I feel a little, sharp, deep pain in the right pec.
I thought it would just go away, but it didn't.
I tried to loosen the lockout a little, not standing that erect, a less than normal proud chest; this worked, but also messed up the lift.
Once I got to 105Kg, I realised I had to stop. I just could not stand and lockout without feeling the pain, this time louder and sharper.
Imagine a diagonal line linking the nipple and the shoulder joint. The pain was located about midway, quite deep in the muscle.
This morning the muscle was quite sore; only some specific movements bring pain.
I can press.
I can hold a squat (front and back)
I can put the palms of my hands together in front of me and push them together.
I can raise grab my hands behind my neck (one elbow over the head, the other one down, you know the drill).
What I can't do is swing the arm back; imagine having straight arms, hands in front of your face, and to swing them back as if you wanted to clap behind your back. As the arms passes vertical I can feel the pain.
Also, removing a bumper by sliding it off the the bar, while the bar is on the floor, brings the pain.
I haven't tried holding on a loaded bar yet, and I'm not going to try until tomorrow.
Not sure how I can try to rehab this. Intuitively, arms rotations and presses seem helpful, but I have no pain doing them, so maybe they are not actually hitting the injured part.
A very weird injury, I don't remember ever having problems with my pecs; I don't mean since I started lifting, I mean ever.
IPB
cwd
I get pec cramps after deadlifting sometimes, quite painful. Never had persistent pec pain from them though.
Member
For about a month while doing SSLP I was getting pain in my right pec while deadlifting, but it didn't persist, and is now fine.Originally Posted by cwd
OP, how does bench pressing with a various grip widths feel?
Member
I don't have a bench, so I don't bench.
I can confidently say though that dips will be out of bounds for at least a few days.
IPB
cwd
Hope it heals quickly.
Member
Thank you.
IPB
Member
Hello again,
a little update on this, just in case anyone is interested.
Did a bit of active rehab yesterday.
- lots of warm up for shoulders
- lots of pressing, just the bar.
In particular, I did a set of 15, 17, 20, 15, 15, with five minutes plus between sets. I focused on tightening the lats and triceps when bringing the bar down and holding it at the shoulders, really putting emphasis on an arched, proud chest. I could feel the muscle tightening and hurting a little bit, but it never got painful.
After pressing, I put up the dip handles and held them with my hands, diving forward and down with my chest (feet on the platform of course), elbows as high and back as I could get them, to get a nice stretch on the pecs.
Finished with some more shoulder movements.
Today I started warming up for the deadlift, and got no back feedback. Ended up completing the workout I should have done two days ago. I didn't lock out fully and aggressively, and didn't lingered much standing with the bar in hand.
I could feel a dull, diffused pain in the pec, as opposed to the sharp, localised one that I felt two days ago.
Bottom line; recovery is going well, but:
- dips will still be out of question for at least a few more days
- don't know if the 'repair' is going to hold when I move on to heavier weights (today I used little more than 60% of my 1RM).
IPB
Member
Hey man!
How did it go with your pec injury?
I'm very curious as I had the exact same problem back in 2017 lifting around 105 KG (just like you!). The pain would sometimes go away after a few hours - sometimes after a couple of days. The pain didn't affect my other exercises such as bench press or overhead press.
I then had a break from weightlifting (not because of this injury) and started again two months ago, and last Sunday I had to deadlift 90 KG and when I was done with my last set I felt a small pain the exact same place in my right pec. The pain was very small, but I'm sure it's the same as the one from 2017.
I have read a few places on online forums that a bit wider grip + if I don't lock out fully may help. I will try this on Thursday.
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