Shoulder injury recovery

[mustangcarpenter]

About a month ago I did something stupid in the gym and as a result received a pulled tendon in the old rotator cuff. I usually warm up on the bench then go straight to heavy weight and low reps, since the injury I focused on form combined with higher reps and seeing good results:

March 1st

12 reps x 135#
12 reps x 225#
12 reps x 315#
3 reps x 405#

March 11th

12 reps x 135#
12 reps x 225 #
12 reps x 315#
4 reps x 405#

March 22nd

12 reps x 135#
12 reps x 225#
12 reps x 315#
6 reps x 405#

I told myself not to exceed 405 until I can comfortably do 12 reps with it. This should be possible considering I was doing 8 reps relatively easy before the injury. If anybody knows of any good movements, exercises, or ideas about recovering feel free to let me know.

Thanx - Joe

[McLifter]

Besides getting a qualified Sports Doctor's opinion on your injury which you should always do first and foremost to keep yourself healthy I would suggest picking up this book;

"The Seven Minute Rotator Cuff Solution"

www.amazon.com/7-Minute-Rotator-Cuff-Solution/dp/0944831257?tag=dogpile-20

McLifter

[mustangcarpenter]

Thanks for the suggestion Mclifter,
My next workout went OK still feeling a small pain when I warm up then the pain goes away once I get my pump. Here's how it went:

April 1st

12 reps x 135#
12 reps x 225#
12 reps x 315#
5 reps x 405#

Not as good as my last workout, but it was one of those days when I was feeling mentally and physically tired so I'm still satisfied. The most painful set is always the 225# set.

[Ed]

Nice weight you are pushing there MC. McLifter showed me the best warm up for shoulders ever if you ever get the chance get him to show it to you, actually he should make a video of it. At the end of most of my bench sessions I do a circuit of lateral raises, bent over laterals, and face pulls to finish it off. This circuit seems to be keeping my shoulders healthy and I have had problems in the past. I also find board presses takes some of the stress off of my shoulders if I feel some pain I usually switch to boards for a while.

[mustangcarpenter]

yeah I am still around.. I haven't posted in a long time. The shoulder injury I had last spring doesn't hold me back anymore.
My new focus on chest day is pre-exhaustion. I do 15 sets of five in a pryamid like fashion. For example:

Last week:
5 sets 5 reps 45#(bar)
4 sets 5 reps 135#
3 sets 5 reps 225#
2 sets 5 reps 315# and
1 set 5 reps 405#

This Week
5 sets 5 reps 135#
4 sets 5 reps 225#
3 sets 5 reps 315#
1 set 4 reps 405#

Hopefully I will get up to 15 sets at the new weights. By doing all these reps at lower weights the muscles are exhausted before I go heavy, therefore I lose strength before going too heavy and re-injuring my rotatar cuff. Another positive aspect of this routine is that I am building muscle and strength at a slower more constant rate.