Rotator Cuff Supraspinatus Tendonitis RC/PE1

Hi everyone,

 

I've recently restarted Foundation after a spell of a few months where I focused on losing 50 pounds to bring me down to a more gymnast like weight I've been doing RC/PE1 the hinge rows and have now started to get a dull aching pain on the outside of my left shoulder. I think these have been the catalyst but my scapula on this side always made a grating noise so I may have had a pre-existing problem or it has affected my technique in the hinge row which has caused problems.

Having googled this and the rest of my symptoms; grating from scapula, impingement type feeling, etc I think I have rotator cuff tendonitus/tendonosis probably supraspinatus as it is down the side of my shoulder (only my shoulder so far not down to elbow).

 

I live in the UK I've been to see my doctor who was pretty clueless but has referred me to a physio but the wait will be about 3 months. I'm really looking at what I can do in the meantime to keep active or strengthen the muscles involved without adding to the irritation as obviously you can do a lot of damage in 3 months of the wrong thing. I believe Hinge Rows are supposed to target rotator cuff musculature but they seem to be too much for me at the moment.

 

I haven't lost any mobility as yet and there is no sharp pain only the dull ache but I can feel the shoulder is not moving as seamlessly as my right one does.

 

I was kind of thinking Scapular Push ups and resistance band pulls does this sound like a good idea or should I rest it entirely and are there any of the other movements in F1 outside of RC ones that I would be better to avoid? Don't want to ruin any progress I've made by resting entirely but will if I have to.

 

Many Thanks for any advice! 

 

PS. I read a few things about weak serratus anterior helping to contribute to impingement problems and was wondering if L-sit holds would be beneficial and non-aggravating they are not something in which I am particuarly strong.

I think you should work around your injury, you need to be patience and conscious with what I'm about to say. Do your foundation workout and determine what exercises can you perform without pain, once you know, work around them. Avoid everything that feels bad.

Thanks Chuchodani that's kind of what I was thinking. I think that rules out RC and sPL as I'm on pushups which feel a little odd on my left side and Forward Xiaopengs which I get a lot of odd noises from although I really like them!

There are many good pdfs online of treatment plans for rotator cuff injuries. Many begin with isometrics and stretching of the various muscles, and then move to things like sPL1, band external rotations, etc. That was one of the things that brought me to F1... Rotator cuff and biceps tendinitis. It took a long time before I could do RCPE1..i ended up doing the 0.5 version (hanging) for a long time before I could do the movement without pain. It took a good 4-6 months and I now only get tendon pain occasionally after doing a lot of work, and it revolves with a day of rest.

Tendons heal very slowly, and get little blood flow. Expect it to take a while to recover, but the activity is needed to get blood to the area. Listen to your body.

My suggestions are the following.

-rest and avoid all movements where the lower extremity of the upper arm moves higher than shoulder.

-use the other arm for the daily activities.

-check your sleep position. try to sleep chest to ceiling.

Thanks everyone for the advice I really appreciate your help.

Alessandro I really like your tip about keeping elbow lower than shoulder does that only include movement type exercises like HSPUs etc or would you avoid all static Handstand work as well or would that be ok as there is no motion in the shoulder after the initial arm raise and therefore it wouldn't aggravate the tendon the same way? (I'm guessing here )

 

Also just out of curiousity, why does the sleeping position matter? I normally sleep on my right (healthy) side in a kind of foetal position although if really tired can sleep on on back. 

 

Thanks again for your time and knowledge!

he may be referring to the fact that some people are belly sleepers and do so with thier arm out-stretched above them while lying down. This could continue to aggravate the rotator since it wont like being above shoulder level if inflamed. Also if its really impingment (as I have) it no good to sleep on stomach and maybe the arm and compress the joint. Its wants space not to be crowed so the cycle continues. In terms of RC I think I read somewhere that Coach said it focuses on grip mostly but you may be right as well.

Ive asked similar questions as you as I'm dealing with a similar situation, including the wait for physio. In my case due to impingement I have been warned about continuing anything that will continue to compress the joint. I have tried plodding through F1 to not lose my gains but it's not worked out in the long run in terms of reducing symptoms. Also age is a factor in my case a bit so I can't keep hammering at my joints and expect to bounce back quickly.

i would say 3 to 4 month wait is a drop in the bucket in terms of working towards mastery of all Foundation elements. I think you and I both could use that time and find other weaknesses to focus on that don't include upper body strength work. Besides we are all good at something, the point is to focus on the not so good as I've heard Coach say. I plan to work on the remaining elements that are safe to me, meaning no injuried joint involvement and approved by physio, with the stretch programs. Yes it sucks real bad to have to back off, but as Coach says "first things first". If I don't take care of it now I could do some real damage attempting more difficult elements with an injuried joint. Don't know about you but I want to aviod surgery. You've come this far, losing that much weight is a big accomplishment dont forget, I think you should reframe your idea of "losing progress". Good luck...

Hi Sean,

 

Thanks for the advice yes think I'm going to err on the side of caution and stick to abdominal, leg and back strength and try to increase my leg/hip flexbility.

I'm not as young as I used to be either, I've had elbow tendonitis before and know how long it can take to rehab it.

 

Best of luck to you too. This too shall pass

LOL I've been there too with elbows from doing ring work and weighted parrallel bar work without the proper preparation. By the grace of God I found GST and now on a much better path to rebuild this , taking depreciation in account, 6 dollar man Same back at ya!