I hope you guys will cut me some slack if this is a topic that has been covered before; I searched around the boards for an answer but couldn’t find a thread or post that addressed this specific question.
Is it common to have increased pain and decreased stability in an injured area (shoulder in this case) during the first week or so of rest?
I’ve been lifting consistently again for the last 3 years,and really hard since the beginning of this year when I finally got to the bottom of a thyroid issue that had been restricting my maximum effort in the gym (thanks to the guys here who kicked me in the ass and got me to seek out a doc that actually gives a damn). Since Jan 1st, I’ve added 140 lbs. to my bench PB (now 430) and about 200 lbs. to my squat “8 rep” sets (a lot of this is due to better technique, but still…if ever anyone needs an example regarding the potential benefits of correcting endocrine system problems, I’m it).
About 8 weeks ago, I tweaked something in my right shoulder during a close-grip, max-rep “burn down” set using medium weight. I went home, iced it for a couple of hours, and went to bed. I didn’t work shoulders/back again for several days, during which time the problem seemed to clear itself up. What I’ve noticed though, is that going more than about 72 hours between upper-body workouts brings the pain – and tendency for the shoulder to “catch” – back with a vengeance. Due to traveling out of town because of an illness in the family, I haven’t lifted at all since this past Wed., and today I could barely raise my friggin’ garage door – felt like my arm was going to break off at the shoulder.
My only hypothesis is that the original injury is still there…but was being “masked” somehow by the normal tissue inflammation that results from lifting. Could that be stabilizing the area enough to hide the problem? If so, am I just postponing an inevitable trip to the OR?