[Closed] Rotator cuff injury

Go to a physio and get the exact problem diagnosed. Then follow their recovery instructions religiously. Due to my body mechanics I am prone to weak lower/ mid traps and rotator cuff, so can speak from experience. Listening to some people on the internet and having a guess using google will not be of any help and you may well be very annoyed with yourself in a decade for not seeking professional advice.

Get yourself checked out properly. Mine went a couple of years ago. As bsims said, you will need a proper physio program which you'll have to stick too religiously to get full movement back

but I’d like to get out biking ASAP

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but if it is your rotator cuff then you'll be looking at 3 months+, minimum

If you do it properly though, you'll have 100% movement back and no lasting effects

Had probs with mine a couple of years back, mostly climbing related. Tried various things including physio which helped but didn’t cure. Eventually gave up climbing for a while and after a fairly prolonged period (6 months ish) it seems to have sorted itself. Don’t appear to be any lasting effects. If biking is what is aggravating it (road?) then my experience is you just have to stop for a while...

Once you have rested it thoroughly as binners and timbog 160 say you will be pain free then you need to make it strong and also discover why it happened in the first place. The physio will help with this, it could have been a fall/ overuse/ strain etc or it could be something else you are doing.

I've had this twice (one biking crash, one snowboarding crash). Each time I just used prescription anti-inflammatories which settled it back down. Next stop would have been physio or the dreaded cortisone injection...

I've had this flare up a couple of times. Physio recommended a set of exercises, and it seems that if I don't keep doing them (only a few minutes once or twice a week) then the problem comes back.

I remember the phsio, she made a good guess at diagnosis in about 2 minutes!
She asked if I do desk work, (which I do) then got me to try this move... Arms straight down at sides, thumbs point forwards. Slowly move straight arms forward/up until they're above your head (thumbs pointing behind you now) Then rotate arms/hands inwards before slowly lowering your arms, thumbs pointing to the ground. If the lowering movement is painful & uncomfortable then problem is in the rotator cuff, she said. Dignosis was so quick I was slightly doubtful, but shouldn't have been.
It only took a couple of weeks of doing the exercises and I back to normal.

Injured mine playing football, then aggravated it again a few times continuing playing/ climbing/ mtb crash, to the point where I had a very limited range of motion. Took the better part of a year avoiding any aggravation to get back to where I had full motion and could start doing any exercise that put any pressure on it.

Most people would have an idea how they caused a rotator cuff injury - I can tell you the exact moments I did my right then two weeks later my left. As above, maybe get checked out rather than assume RC.

If it is RC, it'll take slightly longer to heal than you think it should and won't stop hurting until one day you realise you haven't noticed the annoying pain for a couple of days.

I got taken out by an out of control snow boarder in France a few years back. Smashed up my shoulder, 50% detachment of one of the main tendons, bone oedema etc etc. Took about a year to get full movement back, for the first 6 months I couldn't raise my arm above my shoulder. However, the good news is that with loads of rehab / physio its as good as new, full range of motion, full strength and completely pain free. Probably cost me over £1000 in Physio appointments though...

I ripped mine right off when I had a posterior shoulder disclocation and smashed humerus last October, from a simple front wheel washout. I ended up with a full shoulder reconstruction end of November. I wasn't able to get my arm above horizontal till about May, and still quite limited movement, and achy all the time. I do a load of physo and see a private sports masseuse and physio weekly. getting there but a long long process. Still very weak when extending - for example I wouldn't be able to lift a bike onto a roof carrier.....thankfully I have a towbar rack 🙂

Just watched a few videos on you tube. Think I’m mistaken as it sounds like it should be more painful, having smashing my tendons on my ankle it’s not that painful. Thanks everyone and take it easy on your bikes!

I take glucosamine for mine otherwise its like toothache in my right shoulder, noticeably worse if I stop taking it.

It doesn't have to be agony. A dull ache like tooth ache can be a sign, and can also be refered pain caused by imbalances triggering pain elsewhere. my left should problem was a prolonged recovery after shoulder dislocation caused by a weak subscapularis leading to imbalance and was like dirtyboy's a dull ache which I could not pinpoint in my shoulder. My right shoulder was caused by a tight infraspinitus which ached a lot but only causes pain when my arm was extended with load - the pain I felt in the front of my shoulder. I still suffer from this occasionly especially if I have been at a desk continuously for days on end.

Other than what the guys are saying above, speak to the doc and get prescription anti-inflammatories.
I bust mine (sex accident lol) and it was annoying as hell - and sore!
Bugging me for two weeks and messing with my weight lifting at the gym.
An hour after my first Naproxen I felt like writing a letter to the company who makes it and thanking them profusely.

Also, look at some shoulder strengthing exercises with a rubber resistance. That helped me. Look them up though, there's a few different axis your shoulder moves through and you should do them all.