Can't bench

[Sullwe904]

I've had problems with my shoulder for a bit and have stayed away from the gym.  But after a year away I figured I would start going again. 

The problem is that I can't do any type of benching exercise.    I can do over head shoulder presses, some front lateral lifts and overhead dumbbell press, but just can't do anything with pressing outward i.e. flat/decline bench.  I had an MRI a year ago and was told that there was no tear, so what could be wrong??

Any info/advice would be appreciated.

[tonymctones]

Where and how does it hurt?

ive got some shoulder problems that come and go, right now my left shoulder has been in pretty decent pain for sometime now. The AC joint is tender sometimes even to the touch and I have pain in my anterior delt when doing most presses and lat pulls. Ive been told that my chest muscle on that side is extremely tight and this is causing my shoulder to be pulled forward and down creating pressure on my ac joint. I dont know how much of that is true but I always do feel better after I get a chiropractic adjustment in which the guy really stretches the shit out of my chest, lats, shoulder and traps.

If youve never tried self Myofascial release with a foam roller I would probably suggest that. You can pick up a foam roller for like 15 bucks or your gym may have one and do exercises like this.

the 2nd one where youre rolling on your lats really helped mine for a while and it still does but it only lasts for a short amount of time. If youve never done anything like this then be prepared b/c youre probably tight as shit in your lats and its going to HURT LIKE A BASTARD!!!

they also use a lacross ball which is really good at getting those really hard to hit areas that you cant with the roller.

Hope this helps

[Fitness4Life]

barbell presses of any sort are just fucked up on the shoulders, especially bench presses.  we all hit a point where we're throwing up some crazy weight, because of that, we can't be benching everyweek.  gotta release the ego, accept that your body has limitations, do work on the smith, preferably dumbells in my opinion. 

[jpm101]

T. McTones offers excellent advice. Worth a little time and effort on anyone's part.

I might suggest also that getting a serious deep tissue massages may help greatly with any shoulder girdle/pec problem. Top choices would be Rolfing or a professional sports massage. The muscle tissue, as well as the nerves (pinched/pressure), are worked very well. Also the soft tissue of tendons/ligaments/fasciae can be affected in a positive way. All of this to release any blockage or limiting of muscle/joint function.  Be warned though, Rolfing or a true sports massage can be very, very painful at first. Not for the weak of heart. Rehab centers have many of these services at hand.

Acupuncture  seems to help some to release nerve pressure and in return help normal muscle function. Acupressure, without needles, is another method that some say helps them a lot with muscle/nerve problems. Good luck.