freestyle swimming and shoulder pain

Question
Hello, Ron Usher

I normally swim 20 laps in an olympic swimming pool, 2 days a week. I also have a shoulder pain specially when I make a round movement with my arm.

This pain is not very intense, so I keep with my swimming routine, but I was wondering if this pain is a normal or good thing, as part of my swimming technique improvement, similar to sore muscles bodybuilders get after working out.

Or is it something bad? should I stop swimming altogether or seek medical help?

Thanks,

Regards,

Jay K.

Answer
From your description, the pain does not sound like a good kind of pain. It should more like an injury. If it was a good pain, you'd feel it in your lats and triceps.

You probably have a rotator-cuff impingement. Sometimes it's bursitis or tendinitis, but it's all pretty much the same thing. That means the the small muscles in the front of your shoulder (or their tendons) are compressed and rubbing against something they shouldn't. It's a fairly common type of injury in swimming, though you're not swimming far enough or frequently enough for it to be happening. I'm wondering if there is a previous injury from some other sport (tennis, weight lifting, push-ups?). Usually repeated overhead movements can cause this.

Some people are genetically pre-disposed to this. They have loose shoulder muscles and the humerus (the upper arm bone) comes out and inflames the muscles around it. It is also from having the front of the shoulder be stronger than the rear of the shoulder and back, so it pulls the arm forward. You can see this if you look in a mirror and notice your shoulders are forward. There also might be a crease between the arm and chest.

I'm not a doctor so I can't make the decision for you. If you were one of my swimmers, I would recommend the following things to do.

1. Do an easier and longer warm-up. Also, do more kicking and try doing other strokes and varying the workout a lot.
2. Try using fins to decrease the pressure on the arm.
3. When pulling, wait till the arm is underneath your shoulder before applying pressure. This puts the arm in a more efficient position and can help a lot.
4. Take some aspirin to decrease the swelling before you swim.
5. Do pull-ups and rows to increase the strength of your back muscles. Don't do push-ups or overhead lifts. (more about this later)
6. Stretch more.Dynamic stretching before, static stretching after.
7. After workout, ice your shoulder to reduce the inflammation.

Here are some other thoughts...
1. It might really be a stroke technique problem. If you video tape it, I might be able to see and tell you.
2. A.R.T. (active release technique) is a type of massage. Very painful, but it worked for me. You might be able to find a physical therapist, chiropractor or doctor who can do it.
3. I would see a doc if the other ideas don't fix it, though do NOT get an operation (you're not swimming enough to justify it). Most docs will tell you to rest. A few will give you the same advice I did.
4. You might get a good physical therapist or trainer who can get you on a specific exercise program to strengthen and stretch the shoulder muscles. There are programs that work, though it takes a lot of work and time.

Sorry about the late response. I don't always get the emails.