Sharp shoulder pain after swimming lessons

[u/Utkarsh-1525]

Hi All, I am extremely beginner just into 4 classes and I have been practicing hand movements along with my legs, seems like yesterday i did lots of wrong hand movements, and since then i have sharp shoulder pain and having hard time lifting my shoulder? How long will it take to heal and how should I be cautious in future?

[u/bakedSnarf]

Rest it until it stops hurting. That's usually a safe bet.

In the future, make sure you warm up your shoulders before getting in the pool. Simple shoulder rotations in a forward and backwards motion 10x/direction should help loosen things up.

Ultimately the pain comes from shoulder muscles being under too much strain while they are too weak and underdeveloped. It should reduce the more you stretch and the more you strengthen the muscles in your shoulder (by swimming more).

But I don't mean to say you should just jump into swimming significantly more distances. Slow and steady. Build up to it.

If the pain persists, try targeting specific shoulder stretches that focus on your rotator cuff and improving shoulder mobility.

[u/Tricky-Dust-6724]

If it’s bad go see a doctor or physical therapist. It sounds like shoulder rotator cuff. Theres exercises for that. Strength training with a personal trainer or physical therapist is good too.

[u/Bitter-Hand6979]

Rest until fully healed.  It can be simply from poor technique. Especially with hipermobility. Your shoulders move in a way that they are not used to. Sfter healing, when you go back, focus on keeping doen your shoulders, far feom ears. Also to rotate your body when doing and arm stroke

[u/Dapper-Ad9787]

Make sure that your hands aren't crossing the centerline of your body as they enter the water, keep them at just outside shoulder width.

[u/whispercricket → u/Dapper-Ad9787]

Also came here to say this. As well as make sure when you reach forward you always have your elbow lower than shoulder and wrist lower than elbow.

[u/OrthoCarolina]

Swimming uses your shoulders a lot, especially when you’re just getting started and still learning proper technique. Sharp pain and difficulty lifting your arm are worth getting checked out rather than trying to swim through it. It’s best to take a break from movements that hurt and get guidance from a healthcare professional before jumping back in. Hope you’re feeling better soon!

[u/Flashy_Local1]

You could be crossing over and pulling with your shoulder. Keep your arms straight out at 2 o’clock and 10 o’clock (exaggerated). When you rotate with your arm straight, I should feel closer to 1 o’clock and 11oclock. Try and not let your arm drift past over the distance between your two shoulders. If you feel your arm drifting our front, remember to point your arm out towards 2 and 10. Imagine you’re throwing a ball from in front to behind you along your side. Good luck.

[u/RMOONU]

Calentar y estirar muy suave en seco. Y en el agua empezar despacio y también muy suave.

[u/Quitagrasa]

Rest until it stops. Warm up and warm down. Avoid bad technique as much as possible and do strenght exercises outside the water.

[u/PaddyScrag]

Shoulder pain when lifting the arm can be a serious injury. Wait for it to settle down, then take it real easy. If it returns, you may have some form of tendinitis. See a physio. That shit took me out of the pool for almost a year, and now I have to be super careful. It was awful, and caused me secondary issues like depression.

[u/Utkarsh-1525 → u/PaddyScrag]

Do you know I started swimming because of my disc bulge and now it’s scary to hear this and yes I am severely depressed too

[u/PaddyScrag → u/Utkarsh-1525]

Just be careful and listen to your body. See the physio if it's still hurting in a few days. Hopefully it's just muscle strain

My tendinitis was from sustained overuse and finished off by stress from way too much training with paddles and bad technique. My weak-ass shoulders couldn't take it. But it did manifest as a shoulder impingement where the symptom was pain in the shoulder when raising my arm past 90 degrees (called "painful arc").

[u/Salted_Caramel]

Look up impingement syndrome. I get it too, there are exercises you can do to strengthen your shoulder.