Climb ZA

Hello all,

Im hoping someone could give me some advice. I have recently been developing injuries or pain gradually after climbing. I warm up and stretch before I climb and feel fine generally whilst climbing yet directly afterwards or during the end of my session I am experiencing severer pain in my left shoulder. It has progressively got worse and I have also had a similar experience in my left wrist- aching and stiff. There has been nothing that I have done that has caused me to stop and go ow I have hurt myself, it comes on like a headache and effects my whole arm into my elbow.

I know a rotator cuff injury can be cause by excessive overhead movements. I have tried stretching and icing but the pain seems to be "internal" as apposed to a surface muscle- knot type thing.

I have been climbing more frequently and harder over the last month and am disappointed with this injury as I have recently finished a spell with having physio on my right shoulder blade/back for a some strain and knotting caused by a shifted rib. If anyone has experienced something similar and can offer some tips it would be much appreciated - cant afford to go to more physio right now!

Want it to go away so I can carry on hiiiiiting it

Thanks

A few Q's to help with the diagnosis:

How old are you?
How long has it been since your back/shoulder blade injury?
What grade are you pushing right now?
Your whole arm hurts? Or just the shoulder and wrist?
Have you tried yoga (for stretching and strengthening purposes)?

_________________
Climb ZA - Administrator
justin@climbing.co.za

1) Yoga with the correct instructor
2) A good massage to release the muscles-not the relaxing kind!

PM me if you want info on the above in CT

Cormac

It's not just rotor cuffs it can be one of a half dozen small muscles that stabilise the shoulders. If you are training hard and have been for a while I guess it's caused by muscle imbalances. I good physio can have a look and ttell you which ones are misbehaving and prescribe a good exercise routine (usually involving a theraband) to target them, strengthen them up and get them working properly again. The wrist pain may be related to this.

This might possibly help.

http://www.dpmclimbing.com/articles/vie ... -should-do

Careful...Cormac might want to give you a "private massage"

But will this tale have a happy ending?

How old are you?

25 and injury prone.

How long has it been since your back/shoulder blade injury?

less than a month

What grade are you pushing right now?

18 - 23

Your whole arm hurts? Or just the shoulder and wrist?

The shoulder hurts and the pain seems as if it goes down into my elbow. It feels as if i cant lift my arm up - like it is weak. The wrist is a separate ache and pain that I had a while ago that went away after resting it, but it feels like it is coming back.

Have you tried yoga (for stretching and strengthening purposes)?

Have not tried yoga, but do stretches and other strength training. Yoga is tricky due to time and budget constraints - wouldn't mind trying some move by myself.


My girlfriend is a massage therapist so she tries to help

Thanks

Do any of your symptoms include pins n needles? Particularly your hand and forearm?

That seems normal. Stop climbing until the pain is gone. Cycle heat and cold compresses on the area. Once the pain is gone, begin with light stretches and rubber band exercises and slowly get back to climbing. This is what my physio says. So you should probably go and see one. Don't bother with acupuncture and other assortment of quacks.

In my (very unprofessional, but somewhat experienced) opinion. You need to wait longer for your body to heal properly.

Give climbing a (full) break for another 3 weeks (at least), more would be better. If you must climb - go hiking.
Carry on with Yoga - if it hurts don't do that position.

I have no idea what you have done to yourself but time and rest normally sort these things out when you're at the 'quarter of century' mark
Massage will no doubt help things along.

_________________
Climb ZA - Administrator
justin@climbing.co.za

Justin has given you some really good advice. Take it and add a couple of extra weeks!
How long have you been climbing?

yes i agree rest is the best you can do with your pain.

Often injury's come back if it is "to hard, to quik, to fast"
make sure you keep it safe and don't put alot of strain on it. Ice and heat on a daily basis for 2 - 3 weeks and you should have sorted the pain.

if you still have pain after the standard recovery method i would recomend you go and see a radiologist that works with nuclear medicine, they can find the smallest problem that can cause the most pain.

_________________
take the leap, its worth the adventure

Thanks for all the advice!

he dude
for what it's worth: you're not particularly injury prone. most climbers i know start to deal with shoulder, wrist and finger pains when they push to the 23rd grade (especially bigger okes).
dealing with it has the elements guys commented above + there is a gradual toughening of your body to be less prone to injury over time. patience. recover fully. it is advised to take at least a month off climbing per year to give persistent niggles time to heal.
unless in real pain, stay away from anti-inflammatories; they simply mask injuries & do not actually heal.
cross train and get into other activities to help deal with the frustrations of climbing injury (mountain bike; hike; surf; whatever)
strongs!

This is a really good article about imbalances in shoulders and ways to address them. Protagonistic exercises seem to get neglected but they are important to prevent long term problems

http://www.theshortspan.com/features/in ... oulder.htm

Has some good info. The rest of theshortspan also has some great info about climbing in Ireland.

I think you should just go to a doctor that specialise in sport injuries and perhaps also to a physiotherapist. I mean massages and yoga can only help so much. The massages can relieve the pain and tension and the yoga can teach you good posture (if you have a good instructor, otherwise it can do more harm than good). But a sport doctor can tell you exactly what is wrong....don't rely too much on "Dr. Internet". A physiotherapist can give you the right treatment and a proper exercise regime. I have had recurrent shoulder problems due to hyper flexible joints, and the only thing that really works for me is combining physiotherapy with specific exercise to stabilise my muscles. If I stop doing the exercises it is only a matter of months before my shoulder acts up again (especially after intense bouldering). And the only way to get rid of the pain is to rest a bit and go for physiotherapy. You should listen to your body, if something hurts, you should rest. If the pain stops and you start training again, don't train with the same high intensity, you should ease back into it. Good luck I hope you heal fast

Also, you say you stretch before you climb. This is not a good idea. I have done ballet for many years, and my teacher told us to warm up before class (jumping or running a bit) but not stretch. When you stretch you lengthen your muscles, and this makes them a bit weaker, so you injure them easier when you do hard work (like climbing). You should stretch after you climb, to prevent stiffness. So warm up before exercise and stretch afterwards.

Hi there

Did you ever get this sorted? I see its been nearly two months since you posted here.

I am having similar pain after doing a hard boulder problem 2 weeks ago. I now have intense pain in my left shoulder down to my elbow after climbing. The pain gets less and less everyday but comes straight back again after climbing.