Has anyone had success using acupuncture or ART to rehab a pec tear? Mine is the non-operable kind of tear and I am mostly worried (once it finally heals) that it will be misshapen for the rest of my life. Has anyone had success with either technique in helping the muscle to regain its old form?
I have a surgically repaired pec and there is a noticeable difference in it. I tore 80% of it off my arm and had to have it re-attached. It has been seven years since my surgery, about the only time it bothers me is when I bench. I dont want to rain on your day but if you tore it real bad don’t expect it to be the same as it was.
Luckily- it wasn’t too bad. Sounds like I got off easy compared to you. As soon as I felt it starting to tear- I lowered the weight and rolled it off my chest. I’m also not worried about being able to bench heavy ever again. I’m fine with avoiding singles and working up to sets of 3-5 for my heavier days. I believe I’ve reached the age where I don’t give a rats ass how much I can bench press (of course tearing my pec is partly the genesis of my new attitude). I am concerned, however, about having a divot in my chest- and I wonder if there are therapies, like those I mentioned, that can assist me in my rehab. Maybe I’ll shoot an e-mail to TC.
I had a complete pectoral rupture about 3 years ago and while I have yet to reach the same bench numbers as before I feel that I am 100%. As far as the way your pec may look I can’t say but I have had friends who have torn their pecs through the belly of the muscle and their chests appear normal. My best advice would be to rest it and not worry too much about how it is going to look until, if ever, you notice a discrepancy. Good luck!
Ive torn my right pec twice - but they were both minor. On a scale of 1 to 3, Id say it was a 1.5.
The main thing I learned from the injuries was to start using better form on bench - keep my elbows in at about 45 degrees to my torso. Both times I tore my pec, my elbows were strait out from my sides. IT may work your pecs better, but it’s not worth the added risk imho.
The downside is that my right pec always feels a little different than my left during most chest exercises. The upside is that it has forced me to use better form - and dont train any muscle too often with the same exercise(too bad it had to happen twice for me to learn!). By training smarter with better form, despite the injury, my bench has gone up from 365 to 415 - point being, there IS hope!
As as far as a visual defect - I dont see anything…although if you got lean into the single digits, you might notice something?
As for treatment - lots of icing & light stretching. As soon as possible, start LIGHT resistance training thru the full range of motion to help insure the muscle heals correctly. Even if you’re only using a 5lb dbl, that’s fine. However, dont do anything that makes it hurt.
Thanks for the responses. I appreciate it.