My shoulders constantly hurt from lap swimming, more below.?

Question

I am almost 47 years old. I have been swimming laps 4-6 days a week since 2000. The youth swimming coach from the YMCA once told me that it hurt her shoulders just to watch me swim. I stretch my shoulders in just about everyway I can before swimming, matter of fact here in an hour or so from now. I know my form is horrible. Any ideas you can give me without personnal instruction available on how to work my arms on a stroke so my shoulders don't hurt so much? I know the only way to stop aching is to quit--that is out of the question. Poor stroke habits are hard to break.

Thanks to all for any ideas.

Answer 1

I haven't tried them, but they make some training bands that tend to force you into a better swimming posture.  Try adding some strokes without breathing.  I would bet that the way you come up for air is what is throwing you off.  Try to twist your body slightly so that you aren't fighting the water when you are drawing your non-stroking arm through the water.  Try to increase the glide distance of your stroke; if it takes 25 strokes to make it across the pool, try to do it in 24, etc.  Alternate your strokes.  Don't try to do your entire workout with the crawl.

Answer 2

I agree with what they said above. I a lot of problems with mine when I first started swimming however they were all do to poor technique. If you aren't willing to get some stroke help then ....

a) quit

b) cut your yardage and try to mix up the strokes with lots of kicking.

but really you need stroke help.

Answer 3

Practise Practise Practise

Answer 4

Try mimicking your swimming movements on land with a video tape / and or mirror (It would help to have an instructor to make sure you are doing the same movements on land as in the water). Watch what you are doing and try to get a sense of  how your body feels when you are doing these movements. Correct them on land and look for what changes  you can see visually and also what your body did to make these changes.

One thing that will most likely be a big culprit to your problem is body rotation. I would look for help in trying to get your torso to generate torque in which your arms end in a far better position under water.

Off land chiropractors did wonders for my shoulders.

Answer 5

Try just kicking sets for a couple of weeks!

The best way IS to change your stroke.  Just remember to keep ur elbows up, but don't straighten your arm.

Answer 6

When was the last time you paid a visit to your local G.P?

It's good to get a blood test now and again.

Maybe your lacking in vitamins or Calcium.

Get yourself checked out....men are hopeless at these things..lol

Answer 7

If you're looking for technique advice without spending money, then check out http://www.goswim.tv  They have a ton of FREE videos, drills, and technique tips that can help you improve your stroke your self.

Because I haven't seen your stroke, the following are all guesses.  I'd ask that age group coach to spend 15 minutes with you in changing the major stroke flaws.  That being said, here are my guesses as to your shoulder pain (it could be one, it could be all, or a combination thereof).

1) You are torquing your back as you swim.  Your shoulders and hips should remain inline at all phases.  Most novice swimmers will turn their shoulders as they breath/swim while leaving the hips flat or counter-rotating.  To fix this, think about rolling the top hip down with every stroke, trying to roll from hip to hip.

2) You are overreaching.  Sometimes less is more.  Your body has an optimal range of motion.  When you exceed that range, pain ensues (maybe not right away, but eventually).  The way I explain this to my athletes is to have them stand on deck, arms down.  Then I have them put their arm almost straight up in a comfortable position.  Then I tell them to pretend like they're reaching for something on a tall shelf.  As they extend those extra couple inches two main things happen.  First the shoulder separates slightly - when you swim and overreach this way it puts extreme pressure on the joints.  Staying shorter keeps the shoulder and scapula in position.  The second thing that happens is the ribs flare and the back torques (see number 1)

3) Your head is too high/low.  Your head should be in a comfortable, relaxed position.  Try changing your head position to see if it loosens things up any.

4) You move your arm outside its range of motion during the stroke/recovery.  As you take the stroke, the arm should not cross underneath the body.  As you recover, the arm should be relaxed (see the Sharkfin/fingertip drag drill on goswim.tv)

This is by no means a complete list of your possible or probable stroke mechanics issues, but as I said above, diagnosing over the internet is impossible.

As for pain management, make sure that you ice 20 min on/ 20 of/ 20 on after swimming for the next couple of weeks to take down the swelling.  You can never go wrong with ice (almost).  A trip to your friendly neighborhood physical therapist might be a good idea too.  A GP will probably tell you its tendinitis or the only cure is to stop swimming.  A halfway decent/good coach should be able to sort out the major issues, meeting once a week for 3-4 weeks.

Answer 8

Pick up your elbows when you swim, try to poke the ceiling with them.

Do this drill for warmup:

It is called the finger drag. Because - well.... you drag your fingers. As you swim, and your arm moves past your hip, do not let your fingertips leave the water! Drag them along (just the tips, not the whole hand!) and run your thumb up your body. This is exaggerating the freestyle technique, but when you actually swim the stroke, it will improve.

As a side note, make sure you are making your strokes as long as possible, going right past your hip, and reaching as far ahead as possible. When reaching, roll your shoulders, and REACH! Do the following: Stand in front of something that is higher than you are. (A wall-mounted clock for example). Now REACH for it as hard as you can without moving your feet. That's what your stroke should feel like when its swimming.

Answer 9

(1) Personal instruction is your best bet. Go ask that youth coach: "If you could change one thing about my stroke, what would it be?" Repeat the question once per week.

(2) Go see a physical therapist that specializes in sports science. You may have developed a muscle imbalance that can be corrected without quitting swimming.

(3) Depending on your body type, stretching can make things worse. Ask the therapist for guidance.

You only get one pair of shoulders in this life -- please don't squander them!