Injuries are a part of life, as frustrating as they might be, often forcing you to change your routine and schedule its important to learn from them. Often they come from training beyond the limits of your current capacity. This however also tells you that your moving in the right direction. Provided that its not a common reoccurrence that you see with many sports. Its a fine line that you alone can make a judgement call on.
"What doesn't break you, makes you stronger"
Today after two days of hoping with bated breath that the mysterious shoulder pain, that appeared in the evening after a good workout session earlier that day failed to subdue and stop aggravating me. There was no obvious moments within the training where it hurt or I became pained, so I was confident it would settle itself.
During the night however I genuinely thought that my shoulder may have become dislocated. Waking with excruciating pains through the Deltoid, Lats, Scapula and down the arm. Giving me a weakness in normal arm movement, meaning I couldn't even lift my own arm without pain and the assistance of my other hand. At about 4 am struggling to sleep I began googling how to self reset dislocated shoulders, somehow during this process I managed to fall asleep with with the comfort of my arm hanging over the edge of the bed.
Being the xmas holiday period, it took me about 7 or 8 phone calls to find a Chiropractor that was working and available this morning. As some of you might be aware I'm not a fan of conventional mainstream medication and medical practices. Most doctors or hospitals would of prescribed rest and pain relief tablets which doesn't help much, rather just mask the problem and hope that it gets better.
When a doctor tells you to quit lifting and to get on NSAIDS (Non Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs), you should consider finding a new doctor. Consider that over 16,500 people die/year in the US from reactions from those simple over the counter drugs. (British Medical Journal, June, 1999.)
Short-term use of Advil, Aleve, Nuprin, Motrin, Asprin (white willow bark) and other NSAIDS (less than three weeks) are usually safe, but continued use will destroy your protective lining of your stomach and your heart.
Ref. http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/drryan9.htm
With that in mind think think about how to maintain good shoulder health, if a standard doctor diagnoses 2 weeks of pain relief and rest your over 2/3's of the way through the safe zone. Find a utilise specialists to aid your recovery.
The Chiropractor was great. After a consultation which is standard practice when visiting a Chiropractor, he began assessing my structure and before even addressing the shoulder released the surrounding tensions in my back and neck. Allowing him access to massage and work the deep tissue around the Deltoid muscles, having diagnosed this as the dominant pain centre.
So with todays session out of the way it feels slightly better but I have to ice it to reduce the tissue inflammation before returning tomorrow for more work on the shoulder. So Ice pack and deepfreeze cream putting a frozen edge on me all day.
Within my areas of training (gymnastic strength training and movement training) there is a lot of emphasis on doing as much as you can to maintain good shoulder health. To me it is now super apparent why. I know its touched on in many training methodologies but I don't think people fully understand how important the shoulders are. They are the most complex joint in the body to rehabilitate. Due to it having more mobility and speed than any other joint. Moving 5370 degrees per second (dps), approximately 80% faster than the knee with a top speed of 2000 (dps).
"Prevention is the best cure"
My shoulder will recover fast due to the time I spend ensuring their health, through training my shoulders in a capacity that ensures optimal health. However I felt it important to raise this today, given my current predicament surrounding the importance of shoulders.
I'd advise everyone to pay attention to training your shoulders through complete range of motion. Always ensure that you listen to your body. Focus on structure and form before adding weight to any exercise and be consistent with your training schedule.
For more information be sure to check back to the blog, where we have regular updates with; training, health, fitness, weight loss and so much more. With the aim of helping you become the best version of you that you can be.
Stay healthy
Craig W.
the Real Fitness Ninja
http://therealfitnessninja.blogspot.co.uk
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