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First off let me say I am new to the Blueprint program. Checked it out and because of the quick responses I got from Rob I decided to sign up.

But before I can get started with this program I need to rehab an injured shoulder. I injured it doing DB bench press over a month ago. I injured the area where my collar bone meets the shoulder joint. Definate inflammation in the tendons in that area. Still have range of motion and doesnt hurt in most cases. I can even perform bench press just fine. Its after my workouts that it kills me. Becomes very inflamed and range of motion is limited. Right now I am just doing light high intensity workouts and there is little or to no pain following those. Going heavy seems to cause the major pain. Need any advice, such as a rehab program that will allow me to be back at a 100%. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Hi PTL and welcome to the forums!

A couple of ideas we've exchanged and perhaps a few new ones (so many PM's in the past month..tough to keep track).

Sled Dragging: Believe we've been through this and understand you've got it underway. No question, this is at the top of my list.

Curcumin: Hearing some GREAT things about this insofar as pain relief without loading up on NSAID. More info below.

Shoulderhorn: https://www.betterfitnessproducts.com/shoulderhorn.html

Superb rehab device and even if not in need....get one today. It may well boost your bench regardless!

DMSO/D-Limonene: The free radical scavenging properties of DMSO are profound, IMO. Yes, you'll smell like garlic but we're talking training here. So you lose a few friends. Your shoulders are more important. The oral alternative is MSM. No smell either..

Warning: DMSO carries just about anything with a molecular weight under 500 through the skin and into general circulation. If you spill some crushed up Aleve/ibuprofen or acetomeniphen tabs in the gel for example and it gets onto your shoulder, it'll go right to the site of injury. I once spilled curcumin into DMSO as a non-drug alternative and it worked tremendously well. Damn.

D-limonene is a constituent of orange cleaner/found in the peels of citrus fruits. It's also a terrific transdermal and in contrast to DMSO, smells very pleasant ala citrus

Cissus Rx: Heard fabulous things about it. Never used it myself but no hesitation in recommending it based upon the dozen or so lifter I know that do use it.

More info coming later. You will get there..

What rep range leaves you feeling "OK"?

There's a way to go about this. Total tonnage can still be accomplished with the lighter weights. You won't walk away with any new 1RM records but for sure you can build more muscle.

EXAMPLE: Bench Press/Weighted chins

Set of bench with 150lbs supersetted with chins w/bodyweight (say 180lbs) plus 5lbs. Five sets of 10 reps for each completed in 20 minutes start to finish yields an average intensity of:

837.50 pounds per minute. (16,750lbs/20 min)

That's the demand you made of your chest, shoulers, tris, back etc. during that workout.

The next session, you arrange the workout to perform either more weight, more reps, shorter rest periods or some combination of all 3 in order to beat that number.

Presto, progressive overload and the reason your body needs to grow more muscle.

I am looking into the sled dragging right now. Looks like a great tool. Dont have the money to pick one up yet but will in the future. As for the supplements, I work at a Vitamin Shoppe so I will look into those more and probably pick a couple up. Currently using systemic enzymes to help with repair and a small amount of Glucosamine and Chondroitin.

As for my training right now. I am combining a crossfit approach with FST 7 weight training. Rep ranges are at 8-12 with relatively light weight and high volume. Leaves my shoulder kind of tender but nothing like doing heavy weight does. Recently pushed it heavy on bench and left my right shoulder basically dead. Chest movements seem to be the main component of my shoulder pain.

Dragging Sled

https://makeyourowngear.blogspot.com/

Scroll down toward the bottom to get the picture..

1" x 4" treated lumber, screws and glue. Add a 1 1/2" loading pin (pipe and flange) lag screwed to a good, thick layered center plate, you're ready to go.

I like that site. But exactly how does sled dragging help with rehabing my shoulder?

Blood flow.

Sled dragging (forward, backward etc) with the handles held in various positions mimics the concentric portion of a weight lifting movement, with NONE of the eccentric (lowering) effect that damages tissues.

New blood is brought in (along with nutrients) to heal the shoulder/joint and waste products are flushed out. An excellent primer:

https://asp.elitefts.com/qa/default.asp? ... 86&tid=110

Alright...well i will be building my own in the next couple of days. Going to get the equipment today

RobRegish wrote:The free radical scavenging properties of DMSO are profound, IMO. Yes, you'll smell like garlic but we're talking training here. So you lose a few friends. Your shoulders are more important. The oral alternative is MSM. No smell either.

I'll vouch for DMSO too, but be very careful with it.

MSM is something that we looked into carrying years ago, but in our testing it didn't exactly run away with honors.

I don't think it's worthless as an oral supplement, but don't expect anything close to the DMSO effect IMO.

I will say, however, that there is an MSM based soap that I keep around which is absorbed (and there are ways to improve that aspect) and it does have some noticeable effect on muscle tissue. Nothing dramatic, but over time useful if you ask me. The brand I buy is called "Born Again MSM Soap".

Best of luck with your rehab, PTL, and welcome.

Thanks for all the advice. I will look into DMSO more. Need anything I can get. As of now I have my materials to make a homemade sled. I tried light circuit training today and my shoulder is not feeling good. Hopefully I have the sled built soon and can get on that.

Ok so sled should be built soon. What kind of exercises should I use to help with the shoulder rehab?

You'll want to perform a bench like movement (forward drag). You'll also want to incorporate backward dragging with the straps pulled like an upright row. Forward dragging again with a light weight mimicking a front raise, rearward dragging mimicking a bent over lateral raise.

Be sure to balance one push movement with a pull to ensure shoulder health. You'll get the hang of it after a few sessions.....and feel the big difference it can make on getting back onto the road of healing!

Thanks for the info. I have the sled made. Need to add a couple more things to finish it off.

Excellent.

Do let us know about looks/comments from the neighbors. I find this is yet another benefit sled dragging imparts