I have been swimming lots o yards and my shoulders are hurting. Last year I went to therapy, and got some good execizes that helped. Now the pain is in another area (Trapezius, teres major, rear deltoids). I know I am a bit OCD but I hate stopping training. Should I cut back on yards and increase weightlifting? What about deep tissue massage? Anyone have any thoughts?:confused: This is starting to get depressing.
This sort of advice may be old hat to many of you, but I came across this article "When It's OK to Run Hurt"
www.nytimes.com/.../11FITNESS.html
The advice seems to apply to swimming and other activities. Address the mechanics issues when you can, listen to your body (if the pain is sharp or worsening, then don't be dumb and ignore it).
Kick workouts can be very intense and are well worth doing. As you are doing them, look forward to the day you will blast past your competitors off the walls!
I, of course, take absolutely no responsibility for any injuries that result from you listening to anything I have to say. (My wife's a lawyer, I had to say that...!)
I, of course, take absolutely no responsibility for any injuries that result from you listening to anything I have to say. (My wife's a lawyer, I had to say that...!)
I'm sure she's a lovely lady.
I know it's redundant, but.. Use Fins! When my shoulders get sore, I transfer the load to my legs and hammer the kick.
Also try lifting weights. Rotator cuff exercises are a must, but I had great success mixing those with regular old weightlifting. Military press, lat pulldowns, shoulder shrugs, etc. I always do my rotator cuff exercises first to warm up, but then I transition into heavier weights. I think it has helped a lot. I prefer exercises with dumbbells instead of barbels, I think they stretch the muscles out more and seem to complement swimming well.
Based on your first post about swimming lots of yards, you might also want to periodize your training and incorporate some rest weeks where you swim less yards, but focus on quality. Maybe a "rest week" would be a week of shorter yardage but intense sprinting. Or it could be a week of slower technique work. The key is to reduce the potential for overuse injuries. Confuse the muscles!
~.
I have found that changing the way you exit your hand and start your stroke can significantly reduce shoulder pain. Along with a rehab program, the changing of how you get your hand and arm out of the water and how you set-up your stroke may even eliminate your shoulder pain.
I had the former ASCA president put on a clinic for us and helped one of my swimmers eliminate the severe shoulder pain that had him side-lined (kick lane) for a few weeks. He told the swimmer to roll more and as he pulled his hand out of the water to make sure he could see his palm (the entry was the same). The larger muscles in the front of the shoulder pulled his arm out and the impingement problem went away. I have inhereted swimmers with shoulder problems and helping those swimmers takes a committment from them to religiously do their rehab. Good luck
I did 4000 yards with my zoomers on yesterday. My shoulders dont hurt as much while swimming. I am going to continue this for awhile. Judging from the response, I am not alone! Why cant it be like when I was 15! Thanks for the advice.
