Biceps Tendinopathy / Tendinitis | Anterior Shoulder Pain Rehab (Education & Exercises) 

Thank you so much for watching! Be sure to check out the blog for all references: e3rehab.com/blog/biceps-tendinopathy/

Weird RU-vid recommended this. Exactly what i have. When I think it’s gone it comes right back, suffering most with dumbbell bench press

Ive had this for 7 years. Working on shoulder stability the last 6 months has helped alot, but i still feel it every workout.

I can not believe I randomly found this video on the front page of my suggestions. I have had this shoulder pain for over a year and have been in physical therapy for 4 months. My shoulder got better to an extent, but had plateau. My PT was alluding to something being wrong with my bicep tendon after a few months of one on one work. This video describes exactly what I am going through. I will be sending this video to her as well. Thank you so much for this video.

Great advise here. I've been subconsciously incorporating these into my workouts over the past year or so, with great results, namely slowed motions, building progression over time, and wider grips for squats/ closer grips for bench press. Seeing gains can be frustrating, as typically it takes longer, and more focused work (at least in my case), but the end result of minimal/no pain during and after exercises is well worth the wait. Thanks!

I've had this for years. Progressing with curls the way you suggest in the video is what's helped me

Loved it! Exactly what I’ve being doing to recover from my Biceps Tendinopathy and I’m feeling better after one month! Long road ahead tho. Cheers!

Oh man... This is exactly what I needed to hear and exactly what I didn't want to hear. Thanks!

Awesome video! I have had this issue for about 3 months. Naturally I listen to my body and adjust movements to not cause more pain and hope the healing begins. In this case, it has been getting better and I had no idea it had to do with a bicep muscle. You just confirmed everything and I thank you for this video!

So far the best video available in RU-vid

Great video - thank you as always. I have had bicep tendinopathy since the summer from goalkeeping, playing soccer. One tip I would give to anyone who has a similar injury is to listen to your body and stop playing for as long as needed for your body to fully recover. I didn’t and ended up with a separate grade 3 AC joint injury on the same shoulder, possibly because it was made weaker by the tendinopathy! I will incorporate some of these exercises into my weekly physio.

the pause at the bottom with the controlled excentric phase was an absolute gamechanger for me

I’ve been dealing with exactly this for about 6 months. So glad I saw this video.

This video came at the right time. Thank you.

Have been feeling an intense, sharp right shoulder pain when I reach the bottom of a bench press and with overhead pressing. This video has been so helpful!

Great content. This is a fairly common condition, and I think your recommendations will help a lot of people.

I just found your video and I have to say you hit everything perfectly right on point. I had a torn bicep and rotator and rehab was not fun. I compete in powerlifting and I have to be extremely careful that I don't overdo certain things like heavy curls, heavy dumbell rows or anything really that tightens up my biceps and shoulders because it'll kill my squat and bench. You touched on people having trouble squatting because of severe discomfort when reaching back trying to grab the bar. This is my WORST lift because of that pain. I mainly use a safety squat bar if I'm training because it's harder, the same basic muscle groups are being used and I can focus on the movement not how bad my left shoulder hurts. Getting under the bar hurts but it isn't really the bad part, it's when I come back out from under it and the sting hits. It's almost like a good whack of smelling salts right to the brain. Towards the end of your video you also talked about shoulder exercises. I don't know what causes it or what is happening inside of my shoulder but during stretching it feels like rubber bands snapping on my nerve endings. The worst thing is I can feel it coming because it sort of tightens up and I can feel a pinch. If I rotate my shoulder sure enough I can find the snap and then it feels better. Until the next one. You hit on three stretch positions except your holding the stretches isometrically. The only difference is I lay face down on the floor or on a bench if you have one handy. I put my arms straight out at my sides, palms down and raise them as high as I can off the floor keeping the tension on my shoulders. This is where the joy begins, now I do a reverse snow angel through the whole range of motion touching my hands over my back and then go all the way forward until they touch over my head. I don't drag my hands on the floor either, I keep them elevated so my shoulders are always under constant tension. When I find a spot that's painful I move through the range working on that spot until it feels better, then move on to the next spot. Lol I do this stretch nightly or as much as I can tolerate it. In my last competition I was able to get my arms back much easier while squatting with very minimal pain. I'm going to add some of the external rotation exercises you recommended as accessories to my training program. I think it will be worth taking a couple of steps back to be able to take a big leap forward if I can manage this pain better. Thank you for the video and it also makes me feel better knowing that what I'm already doing is correct.

Oh my God AT LAST i know what has been plaguing me. Getting into the squat position, benching, and reaching back are where I feel this. Even during running, I feel pain in this area after about two miles. Thankfully I can do plenty of the exercises shown with discomfort and not full blown pain so I think I can still save my shoulder. Thank you for making this video 🙌

That Barbell Back Squat is where I definitely felt it. I stayed away from push ups, pull ups, dips and thought I would just do legs. Stepped into the rack with only the bar, I said NOPE! This sh*t hurts as soon as I got under and positioned my hands. Dr. said Biceps tendinitis. Still dealing with it 2 years later even after a cortisone shot. Frustrating.

I’ve dealt with this for years. Thought it had to be a SLAP tear with how painful it was. But doctor confirmed biceps tendinitis. In terms of therapy though, this video is right. Posterior shoulder strengthening helps A LOT. Crossover symmetry works really well.

Great video.. explained clearly and detailed 👏🏾

Thank you - for the last 3 years suffering from this injury - stopped barbell bench press and modified my elbow placement with dumbbells and even added more body weight work to alleviate and work around the angle so i could continue my workouts - initially assumed it was only shoulder specific so I included hanging and other shoulder preventative exercises - this was the missing component - some specific straight arm bicep work has helped tremendously - still in the recovery process but thank you for the information

I was diagnosed as having this after x-ray, mobility testing, cortisone injection, and even went to PT for it for 6 weeks before there was a follow up. Both the Orthopedic Doctor and PT said I didn’t have a tear or I wouldn’t be able to move my arm, though the PT said I had symptoms of a tear but they would be surprised. Instead I had a more significant injury. 1. Low-grade partial-thickness articular sided tear of the distal supraspinatus tendon involving the posterior fibers at the footplate. 2. Small intramuscular cyst along the myotendinous junction of the supraspinatus suggesting intratendinous tear. 3. Low-grade partial-thickness articular sided tear of the superior fibers of the distal infraspinatus tendon at the footplate. 4. Nondisplaced tear of the posterior superior labrum extending to the posterior inferior labrum. 5. Mild subacromial-subdeltoid bursitis.

Thanks a lot! I've had this problem for weeks and I didn't know it was biceps tendinitis!

Another one to try... More hopeful this time round 🙏

Thank you so much for this amazing content!

Very well structured and relly helpful video. Thanks!

Daily chores aggravated my bicep tendonitis tremendously. It took me a few instances to realize something simple as that was setting me back.

As a DPT, I am currently experiencing this issue myself. It takes forever and as an individual training for strength it really puts a damper on your progress but safety first. Surprisngly enough, the one thing that has substantially helped me in my recovery as of late was adding in sessions of small bouts to the theragun over the tendon itself.

Of course I love the vedio, you are giving hope, I just 3 weeks ago had my surgery in cervical fixation, I lost a lot of hope of thinking of the GYM but I am planning to workout with weight in a year, now I do spin cycling, but the excrsies you just showed I will did without weight and I felt better in my shoulders.

Randomly I suggested this video on front page of my suggestion page and the same pain I am getting in my shoulders for over 4 years and nothing helps me but now I going to try these exercises and i hope I will get relief from shoulder pain as shown in this video Thanks for this video

I’ve had this pain for years now. The funny thing is that everything you recommend is everything I already do to help with the pain. Kinda figured it out asI went along. But still have the pain.

great video, i do everything shown, the only thing i lack is patience at the moment

Very informative video. Keep up the good work.

Excellent video! Many reasons why this is the case. Thanks

It’s very helpful to me! I doubted whether to continue training with symptoms. So, I will

I have one reversed total shoulder and one with avascular necrosis. I try to modify exercises so they’re less aggravating, but it can be very discouraging sometimes. thank you so much for this video!!! This is exactly what I’ve been looking for

I have a small food business and most of the time im using my right arm to stir the food that im cooking for hours, Thanks to this video for the clarification of my shoulder pain.

Oh my god this video is perfect. I wish you made it years ago! It took me 1.5 years, and the funny thing is that I naturally made all the exact modifications you mentioned! So I’m glad I’m on the right path. I knew you hit it spot on because you mentioned the pain during back squats. An alternative for me was switching to front squats, they work well for me Another piece of advise for others, rehabbing this takes a looong time, so take it real slow. If you rush, it WILL flare up again and you’ll be out for another few weeks. So gradual increase in volume and load is required. Thanks again !

This video is a masterpiece.

Great video! I developed this condition after 3 years of progressive lifting. My sport dr said to stop pressing movements and prescribed many of the movments shown to rehab. I am 90% better after 12 wks but will stay away from pressing for some time before trying again. Nice to get it diagnosed and on to rehab as resting only was not helping.

Dayli 20min cooling of my shoulder helped me a lot, also cooling after every workout, it helps to heal the inflamation.

Great video. This is exactly my issue. I also find I have a pain that runs down the side of my right arm when pressing. Have never seen anything on that type of pain. Thank you for sharing this video.

Great video! Very helpful.

This was so helpful! Especially with the back squat rack with alternate positions for the hand and thumb. I'm going to modify a bit, and when I get back to a point where the oain has subsided, I will implement a lot of your suggestions. 👍🏼

also what can cause this is having tight or weak rotar cuff muscles. the lack of stability/strength can result in the front of the shoulder and the bicep tendon to take more stress to compinsate. what helped me was using a lacrose ball for trigger points on my poster shpulder, tere minor, etc. aftwer that i used isometric holds with a band to active and strengthen the muscles.

Band pull apart and lat/back exercises sorted mine out over 8 weeks. I was weak and tight at the back of my shoulder which was pulling on the front. Limber up, warm-up routine sorted the pain. 👍

I have had this issue for almost a year. What worked for me rotator work and doing neutral grip pull downs and db press and it has worked wonders. I have slowly been adding weight and hope to be completely pain free next year.

I was hoping for a more detailed guide, similar to the approach you presented in another video about patellar tendinopathy - You gave a very detailed explanation. Talking about how different stages are involved when rehabbing an injured tendon and what kind of exercises need to be done in each of the stages. I think that kind of information is critical when it comes to tendon rehab because you have to be careful about not doing too little or too much when loading the injured tendon. I've been seeing a physical therapist for this bicep injury, and yet I always leave with the feeling of still not knowing exactly how to go about my rehabilitation in the right way. It would be amazing if you could provide some extensive detail on the steps needed to create the stimulus needed for the tendon to heal in the right way, similar to what you explained with patellar tendinopathy. :)

spot on. will try this

Great info, thank you!

Was trying to fix my shoulder for almost a yr. Googled a ton of stuff and realized it might be bicep. Been stretxhing bicep for months and has been slowly but surely getting better

Para mi un 8.5 solido...la incomodidad a traves de toda la pelicula, a pesar de que parece que no sucede nada todo el tiempo me tuvo tenso...una sensacion de ansiedad silenciosa q no puedo explicar lo cual me sorprendió bastante. Excelentes actuaciones, decisiones interesantes de camara, en fin...recomendable al 100

All the pressing and reaching behind the back is spot on. Reducing ROM on shoulder press (the lower end hurts, keeping it up near chin level and above is fine. However, curls don’t hurt, at all. I assume it’s just my rotator cuff and I’ve been seeing an Air Force PT for it. But it’s not getting better. 3 weeks of the treatment plan he gave me and a lot of it was what you listed here, with no change.

very comprehensive, thank you

Fantastic video, Thankyou

Excellent video!

Great advice!

machine shoulder press is amazing + limit ROM, done wonders for me

Very helpful - thanks!

I hope this helps. I stopped training Upper Body for 6 Months and it's still not gone. Started 2 weeks ago again and already did most of what is in this video but now I can add some more things that might help.

Such a great video. Thank you.

Thank you for the video

Brilliant!!!

Great video honestly

I partially tore my bicep tendon. Training full range of motion with a pause for 3 seconds in the stretched position helped me the most.

Excellent! 🏆🏆🏆

Facing this for the past 10 days. Reduced a bit without any therapy. Sometimes, the body heals itself.

From my side I would also add thoracic extensions with emphasis on elevating your body and dropping it under tension. That really helps.

Russian Kettlebell swings fixed this on me after 23years of low level pain. Along with tennis elbow and back trouble. Miraculous.

It is hard to distinguish if it is shoulder impingement, biceps tendinopathy or other problem in the shoulder. I am glad that you make this video cuz it helped with my researching process. My pain is light but annoying and it only comes when I train the upper part of my body. I have this problem for years, maybe biceps tendinopathy is the my problem, more research needed.

thanks you very much... appreciate it

I alwys wait for your videos sir

Thanks for this

wonderful content. i really appreciate how you emphasise modification of cessation of exercises

Very helpful. Thanks a lot

Very useful video. Thank you

Had this for years until I finally had it diagnosed at physical therapy. Iv told hella people about it who found this same stuff helpful. If your having pain I highly recommend finding a good physical therapist. You can save years of pain and pain killer addiction

Shaking my head the whole time. Too good!

Thank you

Good advice.

I've had something like this forever -- I caused the problem by continuing to low bar squat when my shoulder was beaten up -- stupid move. At its worst, I couldn't do push-ups, push a heavy door or do pull-ups. Physios were stumped. Gym trainers tried some things and nothing really worked. Then I stumbled upon a page talking about biceps tendinopathy, and it had an exercise that worked really well for me (caveat: for me, singular). The exercise was ... supinated front dumbbell raises. 3 sets of 15 with low weights (progressively heavier dumbbells of 5kg, 6kg, 7kg over the weeks). I do this routine before _every_ gym session as a warmup and it allows me to do most movements pain-free. When I do this routine daily for a few weeks, my pain almost completely vanishes. I still can't flat bench, but that's about the only limitation. Worth a try if anyone's struggling.

Timely video. I have this when doing shoulder and dips. Hope it goes away

While armwrestling, the opponent (a hook armwrestler) will try to cut down my pronation and try to get me hand in a supinated position (to islaote my bicep) and that triggers the front of the shoulder. It has a typical tendonitis (toothache) kind of pain and has zero inflammation. Very useful video. Thanks a lot. Will definitely try varying the load, range, and speed as you mentioned.

Injured mine doing flat bench press. Started doing decline bench and quit doing flat bench and seems to be helping it to heal.

Caused by muscle imbalance in the upper posterior contra anterior - Fix your posture, increase mobility by stretching pecs front delts and serratus anterior - Train more back and rear shoulders. -bodybuilder

After 42 years of bodybuilding, I find cable work is the best for injured, or regular training. Several mild to severe injuries, have made me make cables, a major part of all my upper body workouts. Good look men, pain sucks!

Thnx

Oh, I think I have this for one year now... I do this exercise but not so often, now I know I have to make it often.

I ripped my bicep tendon. They said i would need surgery well i didn't and done all recovery and rehab myself within 2 months i was back benching 205 and now i feel stronger

I had chronic bicep tendinitis. Had loads of physiotherapy on it with different physiotherapists over a ten year period. And once given time to recover and then starting to rehab back. They all recommended shoulder external rotation exercises. And every time this flared up the tendinitis back worse than ever! In the end it was a case of a case of trail and error. I have my body a long period of time off the gym. Then when I came back I gradually introduced exercises into my regime one at a time and lower volume and weight. If something hurt I stopped immediately and tried something else. It probably took a few years in totally but I eventually got to the point I could train for an hour again with no pain and now it's pretty much gone completely. There's certain exercises I keep away from full stop though as I know if I started doing them it would be a matter of time before it all flared up again. Probably the biggest tip I'd give people is to try complete body routines and drop training different body parts on different days. A simple 4 sets on biceps, triceps, chest, back, shoulders and squats with 48 hours recovery worked really well for me.

4 years in, and I still feel the pain but have been able to decrease it dramatically. Was at a point where it would hurt to lift my arm to drive, but luckily, I didn't take the specialist doctor's advice of not doing anything and taking anti-inflammatory medication.

Takes forever to stop hurting

Great video! BUT how about a video for those of us with biceps tendinopathy due to osteoarthritis? Pretty please?

I’ve had this for about a year, incline dumbbell press is when it’s most painful. I’ve naturally found the movements you’ve suggested help. My tip is to embrace what you can do not what you can’t. I’m now doing some Pilates, balancing & low impact exercise as well as the strength training I can manage. Using it as an opportunity to learn has really helped & kept me positive.

How the hell this came out as recommended 😄 . 7 months ago I had an injury while I was rolling with some dude at bjj class. He pulled on me a bad armbar and it fucked up my shoulder. I feel pain at exact place as shown on this video. I could not sleep for two months. Now the pain is not that often but at certain moves I can feel it. I can't do dips anymore at all because it hurts bad. I can do pushups and pull ups and some light weight bicep curls but thats about it. Therapist told me that something is teared I can't remember how did he called it. I hope this video will help me. Thank you!

Well, you were referring to the bicep I have shoulder bursitis, arthritis, and tendinopathy. I have been physical therapy. I’ve had two steroid injections, and it’s still not gotten better, I think I need to heed what you’re saying decrease range of motion, decrease weight, slow, speed down.

Awesome video man, very informative. I have this issue especially when benching and even worse on Incline bench, but recently, I've been waking up in the middle of the night with really sharp pain deep in the front of my shoulder, what is that about?

Thanks

Yeeeeesss! 💪