Shoulder Pain: The House of Gains or The House of Pains! - Fighting Fit Physiotherapy Nerang Gold Coast

Should I keep training shoulders when I have shoulder pain?

You can always do something!

Never let one issue stop you from maintaining your health habits, stop you from getting a bit sweaty, or stop you from blowing off some steam.

If you come across someone (health professional, friend, or acquaintance) that suggests stopping all your exercise because of some shoulder pain…… tell them to PISS OFF!

Now that being said, we can definitely be smart about what we partake in and how we conduct our training to decrease the likelihood of aggravating the symptoms.

In this short but sweet blog I intend to outline some common mistakes made by the GYM RATs (and recreational lifters) when it comes to lifting weights and shoulder pain.

Once we understand these factors, we will give you some simple but effective ways to help your shoulders feel happy again while chasing the only muscle pump that really matters 😉 ….. the shoulder pump!

Important Information: these are general suggestions that may help you keep training while suffering with shoulder pain, but this is no magic wand.

The best course of action is to book in to see one of our Expert Shoulder Physios at Fighting Fit Physio to get individualized and specific advice on what you need to help resolve that annoying shoulder pain.

5 Common mistakes with shoulder pain in the gym!

The Most Common Mistake – Too Much Weight Too Fast

Yes, we all want to see our numbers sky rocket.

Our friends tell us to make the most of our ‘beginner gains’.

You see an Instagram Influencer guarantee results with their Volume Training Plan (10sets of 10reps).

But this is the wrong way to approach shoulder gains.

This sudden and sharp approach will result in our shoulders, and other joints, letting us know we have overstepped the line. PAIN WILL CREEP IN!

If shoulder pain is beginning to creep into your shoulder day.. listen up!

We need to give our bodies time to recover and adapt from the training stimulus we are providing it. They are small muscles (if you compare them to the quads, so volume can creep up very quickly on people!)

An easy fix to early shoulder pain in the gym,is to reduce the load.

Think critically about what you trying to achieve and focus on the basics; good technique, appropriate load, and adequate rest. This will maximize your performance and cut out all the unnecessary bullshit that may be doing more harm than good.

The Second Most Common Mistake – Bro Splits for Beginners

This builds on the point above, think about what you are trying to achieve and a smart way to get there.

If you wanted to hike Mt Everest do you start by hiking 5,364m of elevation on the first day….. I’m going to say no!

You would gradually build up to it to ensure longevity of your training and to avoid issues.

Training in the gym is the same. You do not need exclusively 8+ shoulder exercises crammed into a single gym day as a novice lifter.

The only thing this will achieve is you struggling to wipe your ARSE the next morning.

Break your upper and lower body exercises across the days to get some variety and give the joints and muscles time to recover and adapt to the new routine.

The Fourth Most Common Mistake – Blindly Continuing Through Painful Lifts

Sometimes the saying “No Pain No Gain” can mislead you.

Trying to stress and strain those shoulder muscles to cause change is tough and can be uncomfortable. This is normal.

On the other hand, a sharp or stabbing pain, deep aching pain, a catch or impingement in your shoulder is not beneficial.

It’s important to know the difference between a normal shoulder pain pump and shoulder pain warning you something isn’t right!

Use your common sense to guide how you approach the rest of your session if you notice a different type of pain, not the usual pump.

A good tip here is exercise modification. What part of the movement is painful, am I able to avoid this with a partial rep? Is it less painful if I change my grip slightly or bring my elbows a little closer to my body? Can I use a safety bar to remove the discomfort in my shoulder when squatting?

These are some simple ways to maintain some training consistency whilst managing shoulder injury and pain.

The Third Most Common Mistake – Focusing On Too Much Pushing and Not Enough Pulling

We all love pushing exercises like bench press, incline press, and or military press.

Why?

Because we are all vain and love to see our results in the mirror.

But we must not forget to build that thick, strong, upper back to support the shoulder.

In its simplest form we want to train all the muscles that act on the shoulder girdle.

Like everything in life, moderation is key. We want to expose our shoulders to numerous different exercises that move us in all directions, this will develop strong and resilient shoulders. A painful shoulder will typically tolerate pulling movements better than pushing, so start to use this to your advantage when managing pain and wanting to continue training.

A good rule of thumb is to use a 2:1 ratio of pull : to push movements in the gym to keep those shoulders healthy.

The Fifth Most Common Mistake – Stopping Other Types of Training

The best physios, exercise physiologists, and coaches will keep you doing as much as possible whilst modifying your exercises to prevent worsening of shoulder symptoms.

A common mistake is letting all your other training and performance suffer at the hand of shoulder pain. If it does not make your shoulder pain worse, safe bet you can keep doing it!

Keep active, keep motivated, keep disciplined, and keep healthy while you seek help from a professional.

The Final Word of Advice

See a physio or exercise physiologist, one at Fighting Fit Physio preferably, to ensure you are making the best decision possible when managing shoulder pain and continuing with gym training.

Do not let a small niggle become the bane of your existence and stop you from getting the results you want.

Seek help, so you continue onward and upward to those shoulder gains.

Brenda Samosa

05:52 07 Nov 24

I had a really bad shoulder and had been seeing a different physio for 3 months (from a different place) I got told Tyson was good. After just a few sessions the movement was coming back. I’m 66 and was worried I would have to stop surfing. But with a lot of help from Tyson I’m back in the waves ( thank you so so much)

Cyana Ferguson

08:16 30 Oct 24

Steve Harris

22:33 15 Oct 24

Great team, all friendly, super helpful and first class clinical advice and a big shout out to my Physio Noah with my shoulder issue

Andrea Bell

05:33 19 Sep 24

These guys are the best in the biz 🎉

Ryan Brockett

04:20 18 Sep 24

Shout out to Max from fighting fit physio. He helped me out massively straight after shoulder surgery and back into work and sports in no time. Couldn’t recommend anyone better!

Scotty

08:31 31 Jul 24

Five star service from Max & the team!
Professional & very thorough, you know that patient outcomes are of the highest priority.
I highly recommend this business.

Riley Wilson

08:27 14 Jul 24

Be AWARE they’ll immediately try to commit you to multiple follow up sessions after your initial consultation. This happened to me and then I later found out that as it just so happens, they have a cancellation policy that says you have to pay 100% of the consultation fee for cancelling. They failed to tell me this when they were pushy in committing me to 6 sessions after my consult, so that was a really nice little surprise.

I was already uncomfortable with how pushy they were in having me commit to so many sessions, so when I heard about the policy I just cancelled all together. So, I can’t speak further to the quality of their service throughout therapy phase. FYI this was also a few months ago now, it’s possible (though unlikely) they may have changed the policy. Just ask the question.

Megan Shelley

06:51 03 May 24

Fighting Fit Physiotherapy is hands down the best physio I've encountered. Having tried multiple physios for various injuries, I always find myself coming back to them. Their expertise consistently exceeds expectations, helping me get back to my sport faster than I thought possible. Their personalized approach and attention to detail make all the difference. I could not recommend a better or more exceptional physio team!

Gina Matthews

08:41 24 Mar 23

Can't recommend this place high enough. I was in so much pain with my knee an had been for months through advise an exercises I'm now looking forward to returning to gym an back riding my horses in endurance thank you so much

Courtney Halse

01:36 29 Nov 22

Kyle was knowledgeable, personable and professional. He saw me through my second pregnancy and continued to work with me until 6 months post partum on issues with my back. Would recommend anyone to go and see him.

Also shout out to Georgia on the front desk. She makes you feel welcome and brings a sense of warmth to the place!

Alli Davenport

08:07 04 Nov 22

After hip replacement surgery in February I wanted toget back into weight training legs, I started with Mitch 18 weeks ago and after a lot of hard work and sweat I am able to safely train again, I cannot thank Mitch enough for his support,encouragement and knowledge. The staff are friendly and helpful and I always looked forward to my session's

Robert Parkinson

10:50 15 Aug 22

This is the second time I have been treated by the team at FFP.
As a health professional myself I have been impressed with the level of care I have received from all members of the team.
The personalised treatment and rehabilitation programs have produced excellent results and I have completed both programs pain free and feeling stronger than before my injuries.
During the program there was constant communication and follow up and they were very accommodating with my work schedule.
All in all it was a very holistic experience and I would highly recommend the service.

Kiri Canavan

07:30 08 Jun 22

Tyson was amazing! We came up with an 8 week plan at my first consultation with weekly check ins and updates to exercises. 8 weeks later, I am pain free and able to train harder than ever. Highly recommend and the staff are all fantastic and super accomodating!

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