Surfing Waves

Hi
My right shoulder has been hurting after a surf session three days ago. The pain is on the top of shoulder, mostly when my arm is at rest.
I have been doing stretching exercises ever since. Exercises do not hurt When can I start strengthening my shoulder? Should I wait until
I have a totally pain free day? I need to strengthen my arms before a surf trip, which is seven weeks away. Any suggestions?

Thanks
BA

So many factors to consider:

1) Wetsuit too small ( but then both shoulders would hurt right ? )

2) Uneven paddling, where you "favor" your strong arm. ( might explain the wetsuit thing )

3) In-correct paddling stroke. Especially if you are straight arming.

I had a left shoulder problem for 2 years. Learned to do this correct stretching, take Magnesium to let the muscle/body relax.

Question: it is not the top of the collar bone ?

Surfers often have rotator cuff problems; so it could be that. There are a few simple strengthening exercises - grab a resistance band and do some face pulls, pull aparts, reverse flyes etc (Easy to find on the Internet)

Even if this isn’t your actual problem it’s still a very worthwhile thing to do every day (and pre surf warmup)

I am currently dealing with a shoulder injury. My advice is to figure out what makes it worse and don't do that. Ice it down for 15 to 20 minutes maybe do 15 minutes ice 15 minutes rest then 15 minutes ice again till it's not sore. Watch closely when you do exercises and stop if it hurts. Currently I manage to keep aggravating my injury so it delays my entry back into surfing.

Thanks for all the info. I am located in Baja Sur, no more wetsuits! My main question is when it is safe to start with the
resistance band training? My shoulder still aches today. Now the pain seems to have traveled more to the front of my shoulder. Does hydrating more help?

I have soreness before, but never lasted this long. Maybe its just age.

Thanks agan
BA

See a doctor. There is no way we can tell the extent of your problem. Any exercises that don't aggravate the problem should be okay saying you have the typical rotator cuff problem. Ice down shoulder after every time you exercise as well as other times in the day. Take Ibuprofen or something for the pain to take the edge off till it isn't so sore. If what you are doing is making it worse stop doing it.

++ see a doctor, especially if you have had it for a few years. It may not even be a shoulder issue that is causing the pain. My wife hurt her shoulder doing Olympic lifting in the gym about 2 years ago; finally saw a shoulder specialist after the pain became unmanageable and an mri identified herniated discs in the upper vertebrae...they were pressing against the nerves that travelled down to her shoulder hence the shoulder pain. Not saying that is your issue, but no way of knowing until you get it checked out. I saw a good point being made on a FB forum, that if you are willing to spend £500+ on a board then why not the same on a consultation with a specialist

I tried to heal it on my own but felt like I wasn't making progress so I visited my regular doctor. They set up Physical therapy sessions. In the meantime I aggravated the problem several times making it much worse. I then went to a specialist orthopedic guy who specializes in shoulders. Had an MRI done and no major damage so back to physical therapy. But the ortho guy does an ultrasound guided cortisone shot that is supposed to help. Currently I am on the mend though. I do stretches especially on days when my shoulder is more sore and may not be working right. One of the things physical therapy did for me is to show me that correct posture when doing activities will keep you from reinjuring the arm. Rotator cuff problems are related to pinching of the ends of the muscle by the clavicular joint above the muscles. There is like a narrow tube it runs through but once damaged then there is less room to move in that area and more easy to cause more damage with the wrong activity. There are lots of exercises that you can try but only some that will not make your problem worse. However the better you get the more exercises will be okay and with the right posture even more. I also do dumbbells 2 days a week as I have been doing all along. I have added in stretch band exercises. But unfortunately I do stuff at work that messes up my arm in a small way as well as working around my house which slows down the whole process. The more pain you have the more difficult it is to use the correct posture because your body tries to protect the area by tightening up all the muscles which makes it less mobile and more likely to pinch. If I don't mess up my shoulder again for a while I will try a surf outing saying that the motion I do for surfing can be done without pain

Go buy a good quality mattress and improve your sleeping position. That will help a lot.

FOAM ROLLER!!! I can't even tell you what a difference it's made for me and many others. Then just watch some YouTube on how to use it. In my humble opinion there isn't really a wrong way, just better ways. They're like $5 for a cheap one and they last for ever.

surfinggrrrl65 wrote:Hi
My right shoulder has been hurting after a surf session three days ago. The pain is on the top of shoulder, mostly when my arm is at rest.
I have been doing stretching exercises ever since. Exercises do not hurt When can I start strengthening my shoulder? Should I wait until
I have a totally pain free day? I need to strengthen my arms before a surf trip, which is seven weeks away. Any suggestions?

Thanks
BA

Before starting any activity, it is best to confirm your injury and avoid delaying the optimal treatment time. Take action according to the doctor's recommendations and if the pain becomes unbearable, you can use a heating pad to relieve it.
In any case, follow the doctor ’s advice and move your shoulders carefully.

surfinggrrrl65 wrote:Hi
My right shoulder has been hurting after a surf session three days ago. The pain is on the top of shoulder, mostly when my arm is at rest.
I have been doing stretching exercises ever since. Exercises do not hurt When can I start strengthening my shoulder? Should I wait until
I have a totally pain free day? I need to strengthen my arms before a surf trip, which is seven weeks away. Any suggestions?

Thanks
BA

I have a similar situation only my shoulder shoots at the neck in the head and hurts a lot! I think it pinched a nerve somewhere

If the pain persists, I would recommend seeing a physical therapist or doctor to get an accurate diagnosis.

OP is long gone but ive found mobility exercises have helped alot along with magnesium.


https://youtu.be/xwsDEKj10Dg

surfinggrrrl65 wrote:Thanks for all the info. I am located in Baja Sur, no more wetsuits! My main question is when it is safe to start with the
resistance band training? My shoulder still aches today. Now the pain seems to have traveled more to the front of my shoulder. Does hydrating more help?

I have soreness before, but never lasted this long. Maybe its just age.

Thanks agan
BA

Why is that funny?

My shoulder is doing great, no pain or mobility problems. I still do a variety of exercises and stretching for my shoulder to keep it healthy. Now my problem is I am caregiving for my wife who had a stroke and just haven’t found the time for surfing but she’s getting better so hopefully I will get back to regular surfing

Jumping into resistance band work too early can do more harm than good if there's underlying instability.