I finally did it (and sadly, I don't mean hitting 600.) Warning, shirtless injured powerlifter pic inside.
Posted Sep 28, 2017, 12:49 PM UTC
229122
Plz post update when broozing consumes entire body thx
100
It's a lot worse this morning than it was last night when I got home, so I have every expectation that it's gonna get worse before it gets better, and I'll be sure to document the progress.
54
violet, you're turning violet!
50
Hahahaha!!! Wonka.
15
I ruptured a bicep on deads. You'll be back. Good luck!
5
Thanks man.
4
Serious questions here. I am taking a picture every day, and so far every one of them is worse than the day before, as we'd expect. . . How should I go about updating? Should I wait till the bruises are cleared up and post a big album showing them all? If not, what other option would there be? Can I edit this post to continue adding pics?
4
I think it's better to post a big album once it's cleared.
5
3
https://imgur.com/gallery/Wlgn9
Pic a day for the last four days, for those who are curious. Once the colors all go away I'll do an update in a fresh post.
2
Wish you a speedy recovery. What happened on the lift?
19
Just felt a big rip on the third rep of what was supposed to be five reps with 245 (lbs, not kilos) which was a warm up working up to what I was planning on being several sets of triples at around 285-315 or so, depending on how things felt, so it was a middle of the range warm up set when it went.
No warning as far as the previous reps were concerned that night, which is scary and annoying.
24
Well I'll be having nightmares for few days... seriously that sucks always thought there would be a hint or slip before something like that.
19
I hesitated to post it for fear of that very thing, actually. . . Do take this small comfort tho, I've got 27 years of training and scar tissue built up in there, plus I did feel something a few weeks ago that I should have paid more attention to than I did, so I did have some warning in the grand scheme of things, just no warning on the night of the actual tear.
17
I'm sure you'll be back to crushing weights in no time. Keep your head up man it happens to the best of us. I'm sure after 27 years this won't stop you.
Appreciate the info
4
... shit, to have this happen with only 245 is fucking terrifying. I always tell myself I'm not strong enough to worry about shit like this, because I'm not benching 400+, but I guess it can happen any time. Much scarier that way.
7
Yeah, I agree. It's scary and annoying. I've been feeling really strong lately and this was the 4th or 5th warm up set. Gym was hot, I had a light sweat going, hydrated enough I had to take two pee breaks before this happened, and only the little tweak from a few weeks ago that I had thought was healed up (but clearly wasn't) as a warning.
I'm usually one to look for lessons (like tap quick when someone grabs a heel hook) to avoid repeating mistakes, especially painful injury producing mistakes, but I'm honestly having trouble figuring this one out. Sometimes shit just happens I guess.
2
Do you think it was overuse? How often were you deloading?
I ask because I also tore my shit up halfway through warmups before, and have always blamed it on my "I'll deload only when I need to" mentality at the time. So now I take every 4-5th week light in load and volume, and I warm up and stretch my tear-prone tendons forever before every workout. But really, I have no idea how much any this will help prevent the next tear.
2
Was it a fast rep?
2
You can tear a pec at 245lbs when you're able to bench 600 (with a shirt.......I dont want to bench anymore haha.
4
Re: speedy recovery. . . https://youtu.be/OhQ86kfaMoI thx, apparently your wish is coming true, or at least its coming along faster than I would have thought in the first few days and weeks after the tear.
1
Of course today is my bench day... good thing I’m weak.
11
Lol, I'd say do plenty of warm ups, but I tore this shit with a warm up set, so I'll just say if you tweaked your pec three weeks ago bad enough to where you saw some blood then, don't be a dumbass and continue lifting like it wasn't a problem, when clearly it was a ticking time bomb.
You almost certainly don't have the same kind of action going on in your pec that I had in mine, so try not to let it fuck with you too much.
15
i can't even gauge how long i should rest from a minor discomfort from a week ago! Of course I don’t have the decades of experience you have to acknowledge these things. Hoping for a speedy and full recovery!
6
so I'll just say if you tweaked your pec three weeks ago bad enough to where you saw some blood then
Wait, you said you felt just a slight tweak 3 weeks before and now you say that this slight tweak you had bled a bit? If yes, that was a very clear warning sign...
3
Yes, the feeling I had 3 weeks ago was very clearly a warning sign that I should have paid more attention to. It felt like a slight stitch, and was feeling fine within a few days, but it did have a slight bleed to it that showed up a few days later.
1
Then it was not "twitch" or "stich" but a normal pec tear...
3
Unfortunately, I know that feeling (tore a hamstring last year). As you noted, this is very much one of the risks when chasing absolute maximums.
Here's wishing you a speedy recovery!
8
Thanks so much Brandon, really appreciate it and it's absolutely a part of the game when you want to play at the top levels, we can't go around being a whiny bitch about it when the inevitable happens, just get it fixed as best as you can and get back after it when and as you can, I figure.
I'm actually in the waiting room at the ortho as I'm reading over these responses. I really appreciate everyone who has taken a moment to send along good thoughts.
4
I tore my hamstring pulling nearly 800lb. in competition.
Two weeks later, I was running -- well, "running" -- a 10k in Cuba. (To be fair, it was more like angry hobbling, but still, I did it.)
Good luck, man. That's a gnarly-looking pec.
9
Lol, doing a ten K at your size would be pretty badass even on two healthy wheels, with that injury it gets into some extreme territory for sure.
2
This is how I crossed the finish line:
6
That blows, I was really looking forward to seeing you get that 600.
Hope that heals up quick and you can get back in the action
5
Thanks man. I was hoping to hit that 6 before the end of the year, and Sunday's 585 made me feel really confident that 600 was realist by next meet, of not, year's end, but this is gonna put that timeline way out there, and depending on how bad the damage is, might just make it impossible, I dunno. But time will tell, and I'll come back if I'm able. I've already done several impossible things in the past and have had several "career ending" injuries in the past I've worked around, so we may just end up adding this one to that list before it's all said and done.
And if not (stoicism warning) then at least I did some shit while I was healthy enough to do it that most couch sitting motherfuckers never had the balls to even dream about, and I did it on video, and it's in the record books; so if indeed this is the straw that finally breaks this camel's back, then so be it, I at least went out on my shield.
B.
8
Only time will tell
Hopefully they can stitch you back together well enough that the universe will give you another chance and you can kill that white whale once and for all
5
Yes sir!!!!
3
Ugh, I am so sorry Brian. This will pass and you will get through it.
5
Yeah, breaks of the games we play, don't ya know? Thanks so much and sorry I missed you last weekend at TX Iron, I'll be back after it once I get this straightened out, if it's at all possible to do so.
1
It definitely comes with the territory! Whether we like it or not, these are the risks we all sign up for when we push the limits of our bodies. Hope your recovery is speedy!
2
Read a good article on the bill star rehab method a few weeks back. IIRC it had an example like yours that got healed quickly following it. Somebody may have a link to it. Good luck.
5
The article is awesome and is exactly what I did when I tore my lat.
5
I'd love that link.
2
Sorry fell asleep. It was the bottom one callmebreezey has found. Good luck with recovery.
3
I'm not him, but I found this link here that seems to describe the same protocol: https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=131850683 And then another one by Dave Tate about his experience: https://www.elitefts.com/coaching-logs/what-i-learned-from-multiple-pec-tears/ Good luck!
2
Thanks so much. Just read that Tate article, and about to read the other one. Really appreciate it.
3
Yeah it must have been the bottom one i had read.
3
Sorry to hear man. I tore my left pec two years ago in the muscle belly. Nothing to be done surgically. I also had some warning signs that I ignored. I remember thinking "I should be deloading this week" when it happened but I decided to push through it. If Mendy can come back from his to bench 1000 then we can all come back from ours! Good luck with the recovery and keep us updated.
4
Thanks a bunch. It’s now been ten days since the injury, and while I still don’t know anything definitive because the first MRI didn’t produce any usable images, and I haven’t made it to the second MRI yet, but I’m becoming more and more convinced, it’s a partial tear right in the middle of the muscle belly.
At this point it no longer even hurts, barely anything I can even call discomfort unless I try to stretch it out to the extreme limits of my ever increasing ROM. I’m a big believer now in this float spot sensory deprivation chamber full of epsom saltwater thingy-mabobber that my friend Chuck put me onto. I’ve floated in this thing three or four times now, and every single time I have walked out feeling substantially better and with substantially better ROM than I had when I walked in.
I’m starting active resistance rehab tomorrow at the gym. Basically gonna start trying to get blood flowing in there again now that I’ve basically left it alone to knit back together for a week and a half first. So far I’ve been doing empty handed floor presses since that’s all I was able to do at first. That and hundreds of light pec pops to make sure that the muscle is contracting/responding to the nerves.
1
Hope it's still been feeling okay. Sounds similar to mine, the pain went away pretty quickly. Benching the empty bar hurt for awhile. I got back in the gym and like you said started doing active rehab to get blood flowing through the tissue and to force it to heal properly without scarring over. I started with the empty bar for sets of 25 and slowly increased the weight. Once it had spent some time healing I got some deep tissue / sports massages on it. I think I waited several months to get the massages but it could've been done earlier. I had other complications at the time (like breaking my hand, unrelated to lifting).
I think now if I could go back and do the rehab all over again I'd spend more time in the early stages doing light stretching and active rehab movements, like really light DB flyes to stretch the pec and get the blood flowing. I mostly just benched high reps, which definitely helped, but maybe didn't put the muscle through the full ROM. I don't know how much it'd help but just a thought.
Either way it'll come back. I was worried about my raw strength never returning but I've since hit raw PRs, although I do all my heavy raw work now with a closer grip. Pec's been completely fine in the bench shirt. I tore mine in February 2015 and hit a shirt PR my first meet back in December.
The float chamber sounds interesting.
2
That’s badass, thanks and congrats man. I’m feeling better about mine all the time, and the float chamber is incredible. Can’t wait for tonight’s session.
1
Sad boys ... I was anxiously awaiting some big banching from you but clearly that aint happening right now. I'm sure you'll get back on the saddle and get that 600 though.
3
Thx so much, best I've been able to do this far was a 545 at a meet a few months back, and the 585 I hit in the gym last Sunday, but it's gonna be a month or more before I'm even likely to get back under a bar at this point, so now that other harder hard work comes in.
2
That really sucks dude, especially considering you said you recently hit 585. All the best, and a speedy recovery!
3
Thanks Zulu
3
I've been a competitive bencher for 30 year and ripping a pec is my worst nightmare I feel for you. just take it easy and give it time to heal properly. on a different topic what shirt do you like to use?
3
It's always been mine as well fwiw, which is why I've always stuck with shirts for anything heavy.
When I wear a shirt (wasn't wearing one at the time of this tear of course) I love the Inzer SDP.
2
damn that sucks. I only switched to raw benching last year. all the other years I was equipped. well it looks like you were having success with that inner. can't do much better then 4 for 4 lol
2
Get some good quality GH.
3
Yep, might need to go see the anti aging doc.
1
Damn, hope you recover well man!
2
Thx so much. I really appreciate the sentiment.
1
Oh man! Sorry to read this. I have a question though... when it actually happened, how painful was it? Does it hurt more now or when it happened?
2
Honestly, and I swear this isn't me trying to sound tough, it really doesn't hurt as bad as you'd think. Don't get me wrong, it hurts like a fucker, but it's more of the feeling/realization that you just crippled yourself that overwhelms me, much more so than the physical pain.
It's a feeling very much like the sensation you get when you are tearing an old wash cloth in two, but with a moderate amount of pain on top of it.
And it hurt more this morning when I got up than it did during the first hour or so after I did it.
3
tearing a washcloth in half
That’s a lovely mental image
3
Metaphors and similes are a bit of a specialty of mine. ;-)
2
Haha clearly. Recover fast man. Sending collagen infused thoughts your way
2
No fun! I wish you all the best and hope its not too bad of a tear. You'll be back at it in no time
2
What was your reaction when it happened? Did your torn side just collapse, and you threw the weight off with the other arm? Did the weight just fall on you? I've always wondered how people react in the moment of injuries while lifting.
2
I finished the rep while shouting something along the lines of "aaarghh" then got up and told my team that I had just torn my pec. I was mad, way more than hurt. The weight did not fall on me, which is part of why I think the tear isn't all the way thru.
1
Interesting. I had always assumed that in this situation, continuing the motion would cause the muscle to keep tearing, more than it would have if the movement was completely abandoned and weights dropped or thrown off. I've always wondered what me reactions would be for different lifts if this happens to me, thanks for the insight and here's to a healthy recovery!
2
Oh no, I'm super sorry :( I hope that you have a speedy recovery and aren't in too much pain :(
2
Thanks for the kind thoughts. I had an MRI yesterday and go see the ortho Monday, and time will tell on the healing, but I'm not actually in massive amounts of pain unless I go to move it, or bump it into something.
1
Oof :( Good luck and I'm glad that you're taking care of yourself!
2
If it's a tear that caused internal bleeding, does that mean they'll need to open you up and stitch the tear?
If you leave it to heal on its own, how can you make sure that it will heal properly, with the muscle fibers aligned like they should be and with minimal scar tissue?
I don't mean to add to your worries, I'm just curious because this sort of thing happens a lot and I never get the chance to ask these questions.
It also seems that you're used to injuries because you've had so many over the years, so your mind is probably strong enough by now to handle such a set back.
I hope you heal fast.
2
If it's a tear that caused internal bleeding, does that mean they'll need to open you up and stitch the tear?
If the tendon is torn then it needs surgery definitely. Only muscle belly tears can heal without I think.
2
Thanks for the well wishes. I'm not sure that anything can be done if the tear is in the middle of he muscle, which this appears to be.
Leaving it to heal on its own, you are going to be subject to the vagaries of how your body heals, no doubt about it, but I think they only do surgery if it tears off the sternum or away from the shoulder.
And you are right, I've had a ton of injuries, they all leave some sort of lingering effect, it's just going to be a matter of how much I'm able to get back, which remains to be seen.
1
Damn this sucks. Do you think it has to do with increasing weights from the juice or is it just random happening.
2
Since I did it with such a light weight, I tend to think it was just a random happening/freak occurrence.
1
I hope you heal up fast man. This sucks!
2
I wish you quick recovery man! There is nothing worse than injuries for a powerlifter (I am currently battling one which 3 doctors werent even able to diagnose and I am unable to squat and deadlift for 1/2 year).
2
While warming up last night, which was supposed to be a volume day, nothing heavy, I felt a pretty bad rip in my right pec. It just came up out of the blue, as far as I hadn't had any pain at all in the previous four warm up sets leading up to the tear.
Just happened last night so I haven't had a chance to get in to see a doc or get an MRI yet, but blood means a tear, and I've torn enough body parts over my 43 years that I pretty much knew immediately what it was. I've had pec strains in the past, and had felt a weird little stitch right where this one tore a couple or three weeks ago which in retrospect I should have paid more attention to. . .
Overall I had been feeling really good lately, had actually hit 585 to the chest this past Sunday in my new blue Inzer SDP that I was planning on competing in on Oct. 28th in Belton, TX where I had hoped to make a run at 600 in the Master's 198's. . . That's clearly not happening now.
Time, rehab, and doctors will tell what this ends up meaning, but these are absolutely the breaks of the game when you start going after extreme human performance, and if you are gonna play the game, you are going to pay the price. Know that and get your mind right for dealing with it when it comes along.
I've had concussions, and broken hands, feet, nose, fingers, etc while doing striking martial arts, I've lost both my knees (one ACL, other terrible triad of ACL, MCL and meniscus) while doing grappling martial arts, and have torn off both of my supraspinatus tendons, have strained both pecs, have torn my left labrum and now have torn my right pec, while powerlifting. . . I am not saying any of the above to try and discourage anybody at all, but I do believe that you deserve to know what you are getting into if you decide you want to be a man of action, even at the low levels that I've done these things.
Happy lifting folks, I'm off to rehab now. . .
just wanted to wish you a speedy recovery. Hope all goes well :)
Thx a bunch. And it’s gone very well, I am happy to report.
Tore my pec three years ago. It's a game changer. Sucks.
By the way, black and blue mark gets much worse before it gets better. Half my body looked like a bruise down to the waist after a month.
Oh yeah, I been there with both knees, had bruises from my taint to my toes, kind of expecting the upper body equivalent to that here over the next couple days, and will document the journey to recovery for everybody to cringe at and/or enjoy.
I wore that shit like a Medal of Honor.
Heard so many people tell me "nobody tears their pecs, it doesn't happen, you probably just strained it a little." Was really entertaining to take off my shirt and have people see the entire left side of me was a bruise.
It's been a few years, but I'm back up to weights that people don't believe are true (broke the 400lb level on bench a few weeks back), but sucks to know that there will be a new limiting factor for the rest of my life.
War wounds amigo. No doubt about it. Glad to hear you came back to impressive numbers there.
The look on the doc's face was pretty great, but the look on his very attractive PA's face was absolutely priceless when the shirt came off for the exam.
and I thought my injury list was impressive, speedy recovery mate
Lol, it's not a dick measuring contest that I like to win, but unless there is a rodeo cowboy or a soldier in the room, I tend to have one of the most colorful lists when this kind of bar talk breaks out.
Glad you did get hurt from the weight suddenly falling towards your face unexpectedly.
The bench I was on has face catchers anyways but yeah, that would really add insult to injury, or I guess injury to injury had that happened.
You sure you're powerlifting right?
Feel free to post videos of you doing it right so we can all learn, then.