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Thread: Weakness left arm: Bench and Chins

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Dec 2009
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    Cali
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    Default Weakness left arm: Bench and Chins

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    Onset of pain/weakness: 3 days ago. I was doing some dips and I noticed weakness around my bicep. No surprise since I've had tendonitis in the past, but I've worked through it.

    Last workout was

    BW: 220
    Squat
    275 x 5 x 3 (This was on a reset due to swelling in my knees. Semi-resolved now.)
    Press
    200 x 3, 185 x 5 x 2 (The 2nd workout previous I had done 195 x 5 x 3.)
    Powerclean
    145 x 3 x 5 (No problems)
    Dips
    40lbs x 5 x 3

    I added in the dips because I couldn't progress past 250-260 on my bench due to lack of tricep strength.

    Anyway, today's workout I was supposed to bench, but when I put 135 on the bar to warmup my left bicep and lat felt weak, unstable, and painful. I tried two more warm up sets, but it didn't go away. I figured what the hell, I'll just go do my chins. That wasn't any better - still weak, unstable, and painful.

    I find nothing on palpating my left underarm, but then again I don't frequently assess for tears, strains, or abnormalities in muscle structure underneath my armpit.

    Any kind of pulling or pushing movement tends to aggravate it (except the press). It's pretty damn painful if I poke my left lat - 7 out of 10.

    My thoughts are:
    Lay off of it for a week (no bench, chins or dips)
    Focus on press
    Ice the area morning, postworkout, and night
    Eat more
    Test the area the following week with weights approximately 50% of my worksets. If there's no pain, I'll progress from there. If there is, give it more rest.

    I'd try the Star rehab if I thought it was a muscle belly tear, but I don't see how I could've torn it. I never felt a tearing motion. I'm more inclined to believe it's a tendon strain.

    My question for you: Anything else you would add to help recovery?

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jul 2007
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    North Texas
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    Default

    Sounds like a neuro case to me. Any neck/upper back pain?

  3. #3
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    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Mark Rippetoe View Post
    Sounds like a neuro case to me. Any neck/upper back pain?
    Nothing constant. I do have some tightness of the neck and traps, which does result in pain if I try to rotate my neck beyond 100 degrees to the left or the right. I would presume however that the tightness/soreness is due to the powercleans and squats.

  4. #4
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    Shit is so complicated over the internet.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Dec 2009
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mark Rippetoe View Post
    Shit is so complicated over the internet.
    Haha, ah well. I appreciate you responding to my thread. I'll go with the protcol I mentioned and if it doesn't resolve itself. I'll hit up a doctor for it. I need to schedule an appointment anyway, so they can read my MRI's and CT scan on my hip and knee.

    Thanks for the quick reply, Rip.

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