With the averge age of the kneeboarder these days this area should be used to post issues on health matters (surfer's ear, knee surgery, stretches, etc).
thanks for the advice, I've essentially given up snow skiing (too expensive, too far to drive, too many kooks -- and too hard on the knees!). But I gotta do something during times like these when the surf has been a piddly one foot for the last two weeks! Otherwise I'll end up being one big puddly puffball and not so graveful even in the water! Things are looking up -- south swell on the way finally for this weekend!
Any day you can get out of bed and have a decent bm is a good day ... don't worry about the pain, just work around it the best you can -- and exercise smart, too.
If you can get in the water and kb for a few, even better!
dm
Having been competitive swimmer and an avid surfer all my life (54 yrs) I've delt off and on with minor should problems and came to realize you have to pay attention to what your doing, meaning HOW you paddle/Swim. Form/technique is EVERYTHING to maintaining healthy shoulder especially as you get older. P.S -my wife is a Occupational therapists who hammers this stuff into me.
For what it's worth;
What I know and practice and my shoulders are strong painfree:I swim three times a week and surf 2-3 times a week, Much of this is good freestyle technique that applies to paddling as well.
1. Don't overextend on the "recovery" part of the stroke. This is where alot of impingment occurs. There's no need to reach WAY OUT in front since all you really do then is push water down instead of back. Most current swim techique actually has the swimmer reach down into the water at an angle instead of straight out ahead, parallel to the surface of the water.
2) Keep you elbows lower than your hand on the "recovery" to reduce internal arm rotation which leads to impingment while paddling a surfboard since you cannot body rotate your shoulders as swimmers do to reduce internal rotation.
3) When reaching out for the stroke keep your hand oriented such that it enters the water with the pinky and not the thumb, Again reducing internal rotation.
4) On the recovery bend you elbow. Why? Simple physics. Less leverage load on your shoulder. Straight arm windmilling is hard on the shoulder.
5) Don't over stretch but do stretch the Chest regularly. Most paddlers/swimmers have pretty loose shoulders but tend to get too tight chest muscles pulling the arm forward and out of alignment.
I've been trying to modify my paddling to limit shoulder stress,
By recovery stroke do you mean bringing the arm out the water behind the waist and moving it forward for the next stroke?
As a result of the above I couldn't quite figure this out: "Keep your elbows lower than your hand on the "recovery""
Hi Red,
Sorry if I wasn't clear. Yes, "Recovery" is the phase where you're pulling your arm out of the water and reaching forward. The "elbow lower than your hand" should be during this phase.
As you pull your arm/hand out of the water and start to reach forward, bend your arm comfortably at the elbow and keep your elbow closer to the water than your hand. This minimizes "internal" arm rotation which pinches tendons and muscles in your shoulder as you reach forward. Avoid windmilling(straight arm recovery) and what I call the lizard stroke that you see some guys do where their elbow is pointed up while the paddle.
Freestyle swimmers avoid excessive shoulder joint motion by rotating their shoulder up towards the sky as they reach forward
but we surfers can't cause of the board so the next best thing is what I describe above.
Also, for shoulder rehab would recommend freestyle swimming with FINS, paying close attention to techniques I mentioned above. This has done miracles for me when I've had shoulder problems and physical therapy has not helped.
Good luck. Let me know how it goes
Here's another idea. I often employ these techniques when my arms get tired during a long, long paddle or I just feel the need to change positions. This may sound a bit strange but:
Get off your board and swim!
You can:
1) Stretch out behind your board and use it sort of like a swimmer would use a kickboard during a workout, that is, holding it in front of you using only your legs for propulsion. You can hold onto the tail of the board or grasp it by the fins.
2) Swim in regular fashion, either face-down crawl or backstroke, towing your board along behind you via the leash. It will kinda pull on the leg it is attached to but that really shouldn't affect you too much. If you are on your back and just kicking you can hold the leash in your hands.
Especially good for long paddles back out to the line-up or when paddling from one break to another. As a kneeboarder with fins you won't be at any disadvantage. In fact, a great advantage that KB'ers have over stand up surfers is their ability to utilize two different modes of propulsion, either together at the same time or separately.
These techniques will save your arm strength (and shoulders) for catching more waves!
Using hand paddles or webbed gloves is playing Russian Roulett with you shoulders. Some people never have problems using them but most do EVENTUALLY. IF your paddle technique isn't perfect ergonomically then the paddles/gloves will magnify the problems with your stroke and can literally wreck your shoulders before you realize it.
After months of physio, remedial exercises and completely new paddling technique (thanks gsurf!), I've got some recurring shoulder problems (but different, I think, to before). Doctor tells me it is most likely a damaged bicep tendon.
Here's the rub:
It only really hurts when I put my shirt on or some other weird rotation/twist movement. It clicks a bit when I paddle.
1. What are the chances that this is likely to catastrophically fail in the next few months? Since the doc tells me that one of the treatements for damaged bicep tendon is to cut the thing, complete failure may not be that bad?
2. Doc wants to administer cortisone injections. Is there any real benefit to cortisone?
What have your experiences been, especially with cortisone?
Red wrote:After months of physio, remedial exercises and completely new paddling technique (thanks gsurf!), I've got some recurring shoulder problems (but different, I think, to before). Doctor tells me it is most likely a damaged bicep tendon.
Here's the rub:
It only really hurts when I put my shirt on or some other weird rotation/twist movement. It clicks a bit when I paddle.
1. What are the chances that this is likely to catastrophically fail in the next few months? Since the doc tells me that one of the treatements for damaged bicep tendon is to cut the thing, complete failure may not be that bad?
2. Doc wants to administer cortisone injections. Is there any real benefit to cortisone?
What have your experiences been, especially with cortisone?
Thanks
Hi Red,
This SCGary( used to be GSURF)
Sounds like you're doing better.
Iv'e had cortisone in my right shoulder and it helped for a few weeks but nothing long term. It's to reduce inflammation. Some people get permament relief, for others , it's temporary. It's worth a try and won't hurt anything unless you get too many shots. I think they say more than 2-3 a year is too much.
Your symptoms are real similar to what mine were a few years ago. I kept swimming and was carful of how I used my shoulders and now their fine although they still click once and awhile.
Give it some more time, these things take along time to heal. Stay away from surgery unless something fails (torn rotator, or bicepts tendon). My wife (Occupational therapist) has seen many shoulders that were made worse by surgery so make it a last resort.
1)definitely get the mechanical aspect checked out by the shoulder guru or someone like that
2) castor oil hot packs can work wonders--soft rag soaked in castor oil, cover with plastic wrap, the hot pad or hot water bottle for 45-60 minutes.
Can save the cloth and reuse. WARNING don't get the oil on your clothes or furniture. It will never ever come out.
4) MSM (8-12 grams per day) and vit C (maybe a gram with each dose of the MSM divided up over the day). these are both precursors to collagen, what your tendons and ligaments are made of, and will provide raw materials for repair. Also, esp the MSM, very anti-inflammatory
5)get the mechanical aspect checked out. Did I already say that? That's cause it's so important. Maybe a little structural body work by the PT or a brialliant sports massage person...to realign the works.
Spoke to a new physio who treats a lot of swimmers shoulder. My previous treatments and exercises did a reasonable job of helping the healing and of prevention, but they also moved some of the stress from the rotator cuff to the bicep tendon. I've got new exercises to help change the angle of my shoulder blades over time. Retraining muscles will prevent the impingement that's currently causing occasional pain. It has a side effect of correcting the poor posture (hunched over) that is typical of swimmers and surfers (hey, I've 'grown' another inch!)
We decided against the injections because I'm not in constant pain and the condition is not bad yet. We hope remedial therapy will be sufficient. On the negative side I have to continue limiting time in the water. I guess I'll just maintain my current level of unfitness until the world's in Tahiti.
What's MSM?
By the way, I've been taking fish Omega 3. I moved to Flaxseed Omega 3 a few weeks ago, but had to stop because I started to smell like a flax plant and cows were chasing me down the street. Actually the flax in my system mad beer and food taste like flax which got rather boring.
MSM is a form of sulfer. YOur liver will love it. Traces in very fresh raw food. Manufactured from wood pulp.
Fish oil is great stuff. Be double dog gone sure to get moleculary distilled as that is the only way to get out the heavy metals, pesticide residues, PCB's and other nasty fat soluable stuff that is in all, repeat all fish. Brands I know of that are done that way: Nordic Naturals, Spectrum, Health From the Sun, may be others. Also jacked up price stuff from Barry Sears who also wrote a good book on it called the Omega Zone (he's the zone diet dude)
I'm an old fart so I take caps a day (about 2 grams of the actual omega 3's EPA and DHA). That's why I'm so pretty. Dogs and little kids chase me down the street. Hide your daughters. Sorry, getting carried away with my youthfulness.
