John, Thank you so much for this video. I ruptured my proximal tendon in haste to lift and object that got away from me and it just popped... no noticeable pain, but there was an immediate weakening of my grip. I neglected to see an orthopedic surgeon in a timely fashion and by the time I did... it was too late to correct, even if I wanted to. Anyway, I have been relatively depressed over the injury until I watched this video. Your visceral experience with the exact same injury and your background in actual physical fitness really gave credence to your opinion and advice. It lifted my spirits to know that I could over come the injury by strengthening other muscle groups and that it was (for the most part) just cosmetic. Now I am back in the gym. Thank you so much.
I hurt my arm yesterday, and watched this video in the morning. So I went to the hospital to get it checked. Turns out it was a ruptured distal bicep tendon. They got me in for surgery right away. So here I am 16 hours later at home and in cast. Thanks for the helpful video.
Happy to hear this video was helpful. Good luck in recovery and if you can give me an update of your progression, that would be great. I could pass that on to other viewers. Good luck.!! John
I have the same thing with the long head of the right bicep. I have had it for over 30 years. I'm 82 and still do a lot of body building. I have lost some strength, but it doesn't seem to be due to the bicep. I really appreciate this video. You answered the questions I had regarding our mutual problem. thank you. Subscribed and liked.
Thank you & I’m glad to have answered some of your questions re: the loss of the long head. I have an additional Video on my Channel regarding filling the void after tearing your long head biceps tendon. Hope it will help you out even more. Thx! John
@@JOHNDEYOUNGFITNESSLA I have watched your other video and have been using it for over a month. Although only a month, I can see it working. Once again, I appreciate it. Thanks.
I have the same issue, actually I hadn't noticed it until a few weeks ago. I had actually damaged it 5 years ago in a fall but hadn't really noticed the damage. What I want to know is can you still build up the muscle??? I've been skinny for 40+ years but after a recent Lung disease diagnosis, I decided to get fit and build up some bulk. I'm now eating healthier. Exercise and do weight training everyday and I Quit smoking 5 weeks ago. Feeling really fit for a change.👍
@@caralynhunt9895did you get it fixed I think I tore mine my elbow forearm and bicep is in so much pain I can’t even workout now going to the doctor this week
Really appreciate you sharing your story. I'm new to the "club" and have experienced a lot anxiety about long term consequences given how active I am. Looking forward to learning how you went about dealing with it so well! Cheers!
Hello, at this point I really don’t even think about it anymore. The difference between my two arms is negligible. Check out the other Video on my channel re : Filling the Void after tearing your long head biceps tendon. Thx ! John
Hi John, I tore my proximal bicep about 18 months ago and similar to you I didn't want the risks associated with the surgery. Ive been a trainer for 41 years so i have a good grasp of physiology. However I wanted to get your opinion about training. I used to do 100lb barbell curls prior to the injury. For the past 4 months I've been able do the same weight once again. My question is do you think the other 2 remaining tendons in the injured arm are under more pressure to compensate for the ruptured tendon ? If so are they more susceptible to get injured since one of the tendons is missing ? Thank you for the video !! Good luck to you.
That’s an excellent question, are the remaining tendons under more pressure ? I’m going through that now on my right (dominant) arm, and that is a concern.
Was it a complete tear/rupture? Considering what you said, aesthetics is the only issue, there are still many things to consider. Post surgery recovery, any surgical procedure could not go so well or you could get an infection or staff, the longer you wait to decide there might be a finite time to do the surgery because of atrophy, and lastly if you choose surgery the aesthetics will be much better. Sorry, it’s really up to you. Good luck
@@JOHNDEYOUNGFITNESSLA Yes, it is a complete tear. I wanted to know if i can decide to get the surgery done in like the next 5-10 years, unlike the distal bicep tendon surgery which is performed immediately.
How long should I pause exercises after the longhead bicep rupture? I have no pain, no weakness.What do you recommend?Would a month of no gym helping me recovering from the injury? Thanks for your answer in advance.
Well, good news with no pain & no weakness. If it was a full tear, then you could workout after 2 weeks and let pain be your guide. If you feel some pain at the shoulder then modify the exercise or stop for the day. You’ll feel some cramping in the long head but that will go away over time. Checkout my other torn long head bicep video on my channel, “Popeye Bicep, filling in the void” this should help. Good luck !! 👍
@@JOHNDEYOUNGFITNESSLA I really thank you for the time spent looking into my request. This makes you a honorable youtuber and person. I am checking your video and I hope this injury will not stop me such did not stop you from continuing excercising. Let me confirm, yes the long head is gone forever but no bruise, no pains, just a mild weakness and tickling around the elbow. I would love to return doing boxing and gym soon. Now It's two weeks of stopping everything. I want to add also that my doctor suggests to avoid surgery and wait that the longhead will attach to the short head of the bicep naturally.
I think you should be OK starting to train now, I will say that I had no tingling or weird sensations at the elbow so that I’m a little concerned about, my cramping was mostly mid bicep area and kind of an odd feeling at my shoulder, where the long head used to attach. So, basically the long head bicep is kinda going to atrophy and I guess you can consider it adhering to the short headbicep, but the long head bicep is gone. Start off slowly kind of hold off a little bit for some serious pounding on that arm gradually increase the intensity. Good luck. Hope this makes sense. I was just wanting to reply in between a few of my clients right now. Got to go back to work be well. 🤙🏻
Best video out there for a proximal long head bicep tendon rupture! Thanks John. I ruptured mine (left shoulder) about 2 months ago. My Popeye muscle is very obvious like yours and my orthopedic simply gave your recommendation, “no surgery and conservative rehab”. Unlike most “weightlifting” comments here mine occurred from repetitive overhead stress of swimming (I swim a lot), kiteboarding, wingfoiling (see avatar) and home construction work (drywall, painting). I’m 64 yrs old. The only thing I’ll add is that there is one non-surgical treatment I get that does help improve ligament and tendon “strength” in addition to rehab exercises, and that’s “prolotherapy”. It won’t repair a ruptured tendon, and it’s not a miracle cure, but it will help strengthen the remaining intact ligaments/tendons in the shoulder area when done in conjunction with conservative rehab exercises. Anyway that’s where I’m at right now. Getting back to my freestyle swimming, with a constant full overhead arm stretch is probably going to take the most time but I’m confident I’ll get there if I don’t rush it!
Thank you so much!! Yes, mine too was from wear & tear over the years - football, surfing, skiing, etc. unfortunately I Tore my tendon completely off the bone so no salvaging any tendon. But, the pain was never a problem and my strength has come back to 99percent. It was always strange in the beginning working that bicep. Good luck with that injection therapy ( is that mostly for pain) ? 👊
@@JOHNDEYOUNGFITNESSLA Prolotherapy isn’t for pain, it actually method of stimulating the bodies own immune system to enhance the healing process for ligaments and tendons which otherwise are very slow to heal themselves due to the poor blood flow they receive. Right now I have a bit of residual irritation from the rupture but I’m guessing it will lessen over time as I rehab it. Very encouraging to hear that you’re back to 99%!
I injured mine diving for a ball playing softball about 6 months ago. I don't have the popeye bulge...but certain overhead motions, and a throwing motion is still extremely painful, as well as reaching back. Been doing PT for about 2 months now. I love to swim but haven't tried since the injury since it's winter here. Did the pain ever go away for you?
@@penguin12902 Yes. With rehab and added shoulder exercises I’m generally pain free and doing everything I want to. There is still occasional residual irritation from some rotator cuff tears and nerve impingement, and I’m obviously not doing extreme stuff or overdoing any activity, but my freestyle swimming and wing foiling is going great! (Sleeping the wrong way is worse than my athletic activities 🤣)
Hey. Just to say, there are different opinions out there. I'm 54 and have been 40 years in a wheelchair (pushing hard) & had the LHBT tear along with some RC tears on my right side (70% dominant), and having anything less than 100% going forward is not acceptable.. I had both recommendations, repair, and not repair.. I opted for the repair. Now, I'm only 2 weeks post surgery (with very limited pain) but I already feel like it was the right answer for me. My feeling was, you can always cut the tendon (and sometimes this is done on purpose, surgically, to reduce pain, etc..) which is same net result of having "torn" it from some trauma. So, if my "repair" doesn't last, or if I end up with new pain, etc.. later, then there will always be that option (cut it loose), but after a few months of being cut (or after a complete tear), it's my understanding you generally then cannot "reattach".... Also, I suffer already also from tennis elbow, etc.., so having those "other" tendons taking additional load to make up the difference seemed like a path to more problems... So, it's kind of a one-way road if you go the direction recommended in this video... I prefer options. So do you research, and make up your own mind as to what you think is best for you because not even the surgeon's can agree.
Thank a lot for the video, I broke my proximal tendon lifting my motorcycle two days ago and was very worried. Can’t say how relieved I am now after watching your video.Thanks again.
Happy to hear I put you at ease. Was it a complete tear? If it was a partial then you could have some pain moving forward and might need some Physical Therapy to break up the scar tissue or impingements. Good luck .
Hey John , I’ve had both, distal on my right arm , proximal on my left. I elected to have the surgery on both. Surprised that the surgeon asked me if I wanted to get the surgery on the distal, it was a no brainer for me since I was a law enforcement officer and that was my gun hand. The rehab was lengthy but the results were very good. Years later I damaged my left triceps distal tendon again surgery with good results. Years later the proximal tendon of that same arm gave way and I elected to have that surgery since I’ve had good history. I’m 67 and I have lifted weights consistently since I was 16. Not a competitive bodybuilder and have never been on gear. From your short video you mentioned that you can’t strengthen tendons. If true, that’s sad news for me, and dire consequences if I continue to lift weights. Is there any nutritional focus or exercise advice you could recommend?
Obviously, I’m not a doctor and take his advice for sure, especially depending on how bad the tear is. Usually with complete tears, Nonsurgical treatments are usually only used for people who do minimal activities and require minimal arm strength. Not having surgery often results in significant loss of strength. Flexion of the elbow is somewhat affected, but supination (which is the motion of twisting the forearm, such as when you use a screwdriver) can be very affected. A distal biceps rupture that is not repaired reduces supination strength by about 50 percent. It’s been reported that Early repair (performed at 4 weeks or less after injury) has been recommended and is believed to prevent potential complications and poorer outcomes due to tendon retraction, scarring, and the need for more extensive dissection. However, these advantages of early repair have not been clearly borne out in the literature. So don’t feel pressured into a decision immediately. So, hope all this was helpful and good luck! Hit the like button and subscribe if you haven’t already. Thank you,
Thanks for the video. Last summer I tore the long head of my bicep tendon. The MRI revealed that it tore mid-humerus, which I found interesting. The “Popeye” bulge isn’t that bad. I got opinions from two different orthopedic surgeons who treat professional and college athletes, and they did not recommend surgery. I am 67 years old and have been lifting weights consistently since the age of 40. My tendon tore while doing spider curls. The weight was moderate, but just like when a bridge collapses, it’s not the last car that drove over it, but rather the millions of cars that did over the years. I was out of the gym for 3 weeks until each doc cleared me to resume my workouts. I have basically avoided all exercises using a supinated or pronated grip. I now work out using a Swiss bar with a neutral grip, a Trap bar and a landmine attachment, all of which enables me to workout without any shoulder or bicep pain.
Thanks for your comment! Wow, mid-humorous! I think that location of the tear must leave behind more scar tissue and tending residue, leading to more impingement and inflammation issues. My tear was much higher, at the shoulder attachment of the long head so after a few weeks of strange bicep cramps during workouts, I’m able to do spider curls and other bicep movements with various grips with no shoulder pain. Happy to hear you too are able to navigate your injury and find bicep movements, grips & bars that work for you. Keep moving forward!!! 👊
@@georgehakimian5949 yes, a weird burning sensation from the shoulder up my neck. Cramping also. After that no pain any longer because the tendon came completely off the bone but cramping when I would turn my palms up or down or in anyway contracted bicep. That lasted for about two weeks but you can actually use it kinda soon after tearing it it’s crazy
I hope it helps. Also check out on my channel. There’s a video “how to filled the void”with a ruptured bicep tendon of the long head, there’s some exercises in there as well. Hope That’ll help will you.
I just recently had the distal bicep tendon rupture repair. Literally 3 days ago. So I'm in the recovery stage. FYI, very painful. Not wrist rotation movement. So, learn to wipe with the opposite hand. I hope after much PT I can use my arm normally again soon.
Glad to hear someone who thinks like me. Exact same tear 11-12 years ago, never saw a dr. my shoulder does bother me more after the injury. Certain arm positions like picking up a heavy dog causes pain in the bicep, which disappears when I stop.
Hey, thanks for reaching out. I’m wondering if you still have a little scar tissue that could be worked through with a physical therapist. But yeah, mines great and no problems at all, except a little cosmetic, but I don’t care about that. Let me know what you think about getting some PT done. On that shoulder - could help ya out. Thx! John
@JOHNDEYOUNGFITNESSLA my current problem is on the other side (left shoulder) that was dislocated almost 2 yrs ago. Had it reset about 12 hrs later at the emergency room but never saw a dr. beyond that. It's been a painfully slow recovery and it cracks and pops. Still not like it should be, but I attribute slow recovery to being in my late 60s. What do you think?
Oh, got it. Jeez, that sounds like a possible labrum tear, supraspinatus ( rotator cuff tear) or a proximal tendon tear ( long head bicep tendon tear at the shoulder. You’re going to need a scan to see exactly what’s going on in there, then come up with a plan. Good luck
Excellent video. I tore the same thing a week ago, and the big purple bruise is now there, along with the popeye bicep. Is the last tendon that is now singularly holding the bicep at the shoulder in any real danger of tearing off as well, if I go back to lifting weights? I'm 52.
Hi John thanks for your unique video. I found it really helpful. I think I have torn the biceps tendon (not sure if complete tear). I am a tennis coach and suffered pain for a long time until it got really bad and noticed my biceps looking very buggy and compact. I am slowly getting back into it but scared to make it worse. I want to avoid surgery. Which strengthening exercises do you recommend?
Hello, check out the video on my Channel that goes a bit deeper into “Filling the Void” from a long head biceps tendon tear/rupture. That should give you some exercises to perform. 🤙🏻
My man! I have a question, i did some incline dumbbell chest and felt a weird shift in the bicep. Pain was maybe a 1 or 2 out of ten. Never bruised up, but now on the "short head" closest to the shoulder i have a small indent. I didnt lose strength and didnt bruise up. But it feels different forsure. I did curls the next souple days and didnt feel anything. But that same incline dumbbell chest i did feel a funny sensation. Your thoughts!? Good info on this video to thanks!
The short head of the biceps rarely tears. When you tear your biceps tendon, you can also damage other parts of your shoulder, such as the rotator cuff tendons and also compression of the median and musculocutaneous nerves. This could be that funny sensation you are feeling. This unique compression of the median and musculocutaneous nerves might require microsurgical decompression for symptom relief. Injuries like this to the short head have been found in water skiers resulting from sudden extension against a flexed elbow. Another study reported an isolated tear of the short belly of the biceps muscle in a patient whose arm was struck by a passing car door as it was abducted and externally rotated out of the window. I think I would definitely see a doctor just to make sure to really find out what’s going on in there.
@JOHNDEYOUNGFITNESSLA ah thanks so much for the quick response! Okay I'm definetely going to get it checked out. I lost zero strength but that inner part of the bicep the short head just feels different. You think a ultrasound or a mri would suite best? Appreciate your time!
I think I got the ol Popeye tear. Like 3 years ago..I was just reaching up ..and overstretched it or something..it hurt pretty bad for a while..& occasionally still hurts a little..I still have most my strength & mobility...& Still work out & bicycle all the time..I guess I'll just have to deal with it...😂💯thanks for the. .. video.. probably not worth a doctor visit...✌️
John I really appreciate this on the right upper! Felt like I tore or strained mine in May, with a slight burn initially. Iced it for several weeks, maybe two months….. total rest, then after warming the body up for 30 minutes inclining walks on the treadmill, started doing some non weight bearing shoulder exercises and bicep curls (non weight nearing, just going thru the motion). Eventually 2 light sets of incline push-ups. No discomfort. Then 10lb curls, hammer curls, deltoid raise at 45 degree angle. No discomfort. Two days ago bent over to pick up 17lb family puppy and felt a pop in top of bicep. I can still turn my palm up, and raise my arm up. Don’t really want surgery, could care less about cosmetics. How do I best get started rehabbing and when to start strengthening?
Wow! Sounds like a proximal tendon at your shoulder was holding on by a thread. Looks like it finally detached from the shoulder. I would definitely see a doctor to verify this and make sure you didn’t injure a rotator cuff (supraspinatus). But, if you’re going rogue, and surgery is out of the question then you can start off with limited range of motion and limited resistance on bicep curls ( only go to 90 degrees on the way up) Light front shoulder raises also don’t go higher than your shoulder on the way up. Go easy on bench press, not too far down. It’s primarily a bicep tendon issue but there’s a lot going on in the shoulder joint because of the tear. I also have another torn bicep tendon video on my channel aimed at filling in the void on your bicep where the torn tendon left a void. Great stuff on that video. Good luck !!
Yeah not interested in surgery, but would like to play golf again, and keep strong and fit in the gym. Yes the initial injury, the burn in the front of the shoulder, did cause discomfort in the rotator cuff but in the two months of total rest, and icing every day, several times daily, the rotator cuff discomfort went away, and never felt it again. Even since the pop the other day, I don’t have any discomfort in the rotator cuff, but some slight ache in the deltoid of the shoulder, tolerable. Have the dent in the top of the bicep, only I notice, and slight Popeye ball bicep. I did make an arm movement today shutting the rear hatch to my SUV, that I felt the tendon you described in my elbow below the bicep, take on some xtra load, so I don’t want to cause problems there. I don’t bench press anymore which is where I believe I first injured my shoulder maybe 10 years ago. But I do love pushups, and was doing 100 in a morning workout and another 100 same day in the evening workouts, 5 days a week. Can I still incorporate those? Should I mainly be focusing on forearm and deltoid strength training? How long before I start 90 degree curls? Thanks buddy! @@JOHNDEYOUNGFITNESSLA
Hey, so there will be cramping along the way to recovery, so don’t let that worry ya. 90 degree bicep curls can be done now but start light and do each side separately since there will be differences in weight you can curl. The push-ups are ok to do and don’t go to low, down to a 90 degree angle at the elbow. Always let pain be an indicator of your range of motion. You could come down to a pause on the push-ups at a right angle, hold for a beat then go back up & repeat. As long as the tendon is in fact torn completely off the bone then you could resume pretty much what you were doing before, being conscious of having to strengthen the forearm, short bicep head, & brachialus on the injured arm. Do some supraspinatus rotator cuff work as well on that arm. 🤙🏻
Great! Exactly what I needed to hear; a path back to getting healed. Thank you so much for taking the time to reply and give me some direction. I greatly appreciate you and your expertise. Hope to share a progress report with you down the road. 💪@@JOHNDEYOUNGFITNESSLA
I was doing boxing when I hurt my bicep throwing a body shot. It did not completely tear until 2 weeks later after picking up something at home. I felt a pop from my bicep to my shoulder and now have the Popeye arm. I was wondering when this heals do you think I will be able to go back to boxing?
Hello, check with your doctor but yes, I believe it is too late. Six years is a long time, the muscle has atrophied as well as the tendon. I have another video on my channel to help you fill that void of where the long head used to be. It’s called “filling the void” give you some exercises to work, the brachialis and your forearm as well. Good luck !
Thank you so much for this, I has the same problem 5 months ago with a proximal bicep partial tear, now that I want to get back to the gym I wonder how to modify my training and work around it? I will watch out for tennis elbows and forearm training but for other upper body parts can u pls tell me what to avoid or what to do? another Q's, could a partial tear become fully teared or no? thanks a lot for any advices.
I had a distal partially ruptured bycep tear. I went to the Doctor and the Doctor told me I didn't actually need surgery because it's not completely torn. i'm not sure , so I really don't know what to do. The cosmetic part Bothers me and I want to get it fixed but the doctor says it's not necessary. What do I do sir ?
I have a distal tear and my strength and mobility is fine. It dropped a little, but I'm working out and making gains. What it has affected is my endurance in supination/pronation.
@@MIGGS32100 Yeah. I can get soar when using a screwdriver or something, but it's not debilitating or limiting in any way. If I was an electrician maybe. Actually the therapy and recovery got me back into working out. It looks a symmetrical, but f-it it's my battle scar.
@@MIGGS32100S. I can see why someone would want the surgery. It's an aesthetic and performance issue. If I had a tear from the shoulder maybe I would have gotten the surgery. The distal bicep tear doesn't bother me. Personal choice .
@@digitaldaemon74 do you still stay pretty active? My concern is tearing the proximal head since it’s not anchored but I’ve seen some big guys doing some serious weight and I guess if im not doing that I should be ok. Shoulder was fine up until two weeks ago. And it’s been 2 months since I ruptured.
John thank you for this informative and helpful video. I have a proximal tear. My dr tells me to do physical therapy and ice it. After the first day of PT I couldn't sleep get more than 2 hours of sleep due to the pain. Almost more painful than the injury itself. Im 33 years old, do you think I should consider surgery? Thanks
Is it a complete tear? Mine was complete, and before the tear I was having some shoulder issues, so the complete tear off the bone actually gave me shoulder pain relief. Sometimes, when that proximal tendon tear gives a lot of shoulder pain they will sever the tendon and slightly move it down to relieve the pain, and also keeping the long head bicep attached. Therefore, no Popeye bicep. With my complete tear I had some cramping & weird spasms for a few weeks but no pain.
@@JOHNDEYOUNGFITNESSLA it’s a partial tear but I’m afraid it’s getting worse. Also have history of dislocation so not sure if that has anything to do with it. Wow that’s interesting the tear relieved the pain. That’s good to know. Leaning towards surgery now. Thanks!
@@thatdudeonyoutube mine is extremely painful too...and i don't think it's a complete tear because I don't have the bulge. I haven't paid for the MRI yet...wondering if your pain ever got better.
@@penguin12902 I got a cortisone shot and it helped big time! And I don’t have the bulge either but I do have a partial tear. Sounds like you might too. Have you been icing or any physical therapy?
My Proximal tear at the shoulder didn’t hurt that much at all either. It’s obvious that it’s a rupture by my long head bicep slides down towards the elbow, creating a ball, or Popeye bicep & my void is closer to the shoulder or upper arm & yours would be the opposite direction. Usually your kind of rupture happens with a fall or blunt force. You’ll have some difficulty supinating your hand (rotating palm up). Depending on the size of the “void” on your arm would be a good indicator of rupture. If you tried using a screw driver and screwing in a screw could be a good test of strength & how impaired your supination is. Let me know what you think of that guys arm. 👍
I have a question for you, first thank you for your content, I do kettlebells, I'm a martial arts instructor, and got a bicep tear at shoulder, how do I protect my arm from getting injured while like doing snatches with kettlebell or throwing a hook in boxing? I appreciate your help. Thank you
I just had that surgery about a month ago and still in physical therapy. They were able to fix the rotator cuff tear, shave up the jagged pieces of tendon, and they tried to fix the Popeyes arm by reattaching it to the bone, however i dont think it worked cuz its back. The surgery was still worth it cuz of all the other work they did to the shoulder because if i didnt treat it, it would lead to early arthritis and keep shredding and poking at the insides of my deltoid. When they first took the dressing off it looked like the popeyes arm was gone but then again my entire arm was dead numb and asleep, and i was pretty doped up on the pills so im not sure if i moved my arm too far too soon, or if they even touched it at all. They said "oh, while we're in there we'll fix that popeyes arm by lifting the tendon up and stitching it to the bone" like as if it were kind of like a non-essential bonus to the surgery. Now that it is healing i cannot get an MRI to see what happened and insurance wont cover them to go back in and retry it, so there just might not be any hope. I've seen the assistant surgeon once since then when i got the stitches removed and he said everything seems to be doing fine, didn't have much to say in general though, just nodded his head and agreed with everything i had to say, seemed like he wasn't paying much attention to it. My physical therapist said its still attached, i just lost tone and once im back to lifting the indentation will fill in, cuz if it came undone there'd be tremendous pain and new bruising, but again i was pretty doped up so i wouldnt have noticed much pain, however no new bruising. Saw your video browsing the internet still looking for possible answers on how to tell if it did come undone, but not having any luck on any 2nd or 3rd opinions on the popeye's arm. Surgery is essential for the shoulder though if you are insured and still plan to be active.
I am 6wks out on the distal tear surgery, doing pretty good with it, still struggling with palms down and up, the tricep is virtually gone right now and am trying to get it to fire back up and the doc said I should be fully healed and can go back to being a mechanic by late 3-4 months
Thank you for the message, you’re the first to have torn & repaired the distal tendon. The Supination & pronation will get better over time. Keep doing your PT exercises. Best of luck! John
Thank you for the video. I have a proximal bicep tendon tear. The doctor does not recommend surgery. I am 75 years old, a woman, and I live alone. I'm doing great at this time. But I don't particularly like "popeye" arm.
Hello, yes, I would definitely not have surgery. Eventually, the cramping and just a strange feeling, in the muscle will go away. The Popeye arm can be impressive sometimes😁. Good luck to you 👊
Yes, of course that would give you an answer. But a no-brainer even if you’re at the doctor, he’s gonna be able to see a torn or ruptured proximal tendon as the long head of the bicep is obviously not attached at the shoulder any longer, and has slid down forming a ball.
Have what you call a Popeye bicep. Where the top has torn off. This was done in an accident 2 years ago. Is there anything I can do now? As with this part of the bicep missing. Some lifting becomes painful and I worry it could be easier to tear off the rest? Is any kind of surgery possible now? Any advice? Thanks
Thanks for this video. I ruptured my left proximal biceps tendon a week ago at the end of an hour-long workout on the first rep of a concentration curl as I lowered the weight. I assumed it would be repaired surgically. I’m 53 and workout regularly. When the orthopedic surgeon phoned me today to say that surgery isn’t recommended, I was very disappointed because of the popeye sign is very pronounced. May I ask how long it took you to get over not the physical but rather the psychological effects of living with the deformity? I’ve always been attentive to body symmetry and I know this is something I cannot fix.
Hello, sorry to hear about your injury. Does your insurance not cover the surgical procedure if your doctor “thinks” you don’t need it? There is a cosmetic element to this injury but there is also a chance of tennis elbow in the future because that tendon will be taking on bigger loads. I think if you train your brachialus, short head biceps, front delts and triceps your arm will look just fine 🤙🏻. I have another video on my channel that “Helps fill the void” of a bicep tendon tear. It’s really only noticeable to other people if you point it out or when you are shirtless & in certain arm positions. Don’t let it bother you & keep training hard. John
@@JOHNDEYOUNGFITNESSLA I persevered and asked for a second opinion with another orthopedic surgeon at Kaiser who listened to my concerns. He agreed to perform tenodesis (tendon reattachment surgery) provided that I had no rotator cuff tear. The MRI came out clean, so I'm scheduled for surgery in mid-November, and it's covered by insurance. I do thank you for your reply.
50 % partial distal tendon tear... Any idea why the surgeon wants me to do 3 months of rehab before considering surgery? It been 2 months and arm still is weak and painful. ANy idea why the surgeon is recommending waiting 3 months? I have a friend who had a complete tear, got the surgery and is back to work after 3 months. At this point, I am not even sure I will be back to full duty since my job requires near perfect strength in the arm and I am also an active male in his early 30s...
Hey John! Thank you for your video! I have a distal rupture that happened almost an year ago. I am already able to exercise and function but I still feel the injury. I read that you have to do the surgery almost right after the injury occurs which I have not.. Do you have any advices or strengthening exercises i could do ? Thank you
@jenkem jones I am doing alright, I guess, but the injured arm is still pretty weak. Besides certain twisting movements, my arm is fully functional. However it's significantly weaker than my other one, I have been working out, but it's not enough for it to catch up yet. It also gets tired quicker. Other than that it's fine, no pulling sensations and hardly any pain. but definitely still weak. How about you?
@@MIGGS32100 Sorry to hear that. I can`t really say if I regret not doing the surgery simply because I don`t really know how I would have felt and recovered potentially. However, I can tell you that almost an year and half after my injury, I exercise as before and almost 90% of time I don`t think about it. Now I can definitely feel my injured arm(left one) being weaker and getting tired way faster than before, but in all honesty I have not had enough time to train it back as I am supposed to. I injured it in a boxing sparring, over-extended for a left hook and it popped, recently I did some punching on a boxing bag, pain free. - Again , its getting tired quicker and it feels weak but no pain whatsoever, which If I dedicate enough time to train it might go away. Flexing isn`t an issue, I may be experiencing some tightness when I rotate my arm, I feel it pull. The way I see it, you will have to dedicate a LOT of time to train back that muscle with the idea that it will never be whole again but you could gain back a big amount of your strength. Obviously I visually can tell I have a rapture , but you will get used to it. Nowadays I remember I have it, only when it gets tired. Which like I said can be fixed by exercise. On a positive note..now you will have more motivation to workout and train. Start light weight, you have to be careful and patient, take your time and feel your biceps working and contracting. Light weight dumbells and resistance bands is your best bet. Light weight, consistency and you will see a progress. As far as surgery goes..I have never had one , thank God , so I can`t really say how it feels. Some people are happy with it some not, so many factors are involved, from the doctor to the recovery etc. Whichever way you go, you will have to work your way back as far as mobility and strength goes. I hope that helps! Good luck! Message me your progress.
@@DilianMitev thank you for your response Dilyan. I injured it Wednesday and went to work the following day. Still need to see the Dr. I am an Xray tech at a busy hospital and was able to function still. Pushing is no problem and neither is pulling. I know they recommend surgery very soon but it’s huge decision and don’t want any complications. I can deal with a lower percentage of weakness. Watching this video and hearing your story has given me some bit of hope. Thank you for your time.
Hi no Popeye and can't recall a specific time when lifting but I have had pain in the front of my right shoulder which has gotten better over last two months. My issue is pronation is weak, if I curl a dumbbell instead of 50 pounds I can only do 20 for 3 or 4 reps. I feel fatigue when shaving my head with a razor, and when I flex my bicept as hard as I can the middle section doesn't completely ball up like it used too. Basically compared to the left one it's at 75% flexed but mostly the middle is not stiffening up? Also abduction like front dumbbell raises are weak and it fatigues quickly. Your thoughts ?
I need your advice :) A week ago I was doing pec cable flies from slightly below shoulder level, lightweight (12 kg either side) really slowly, controlled, focusing on the stretch. I was allowing my arms to go back a lot at the end of the eccentric. And, third set, 12th rep, I heard a subtle pop. Accompanied by a strange sensation. Not pain, or very little pain. It was more like a sensation of ease. As if my right shoulder joint had found a better location and it could move more freely. I have always had limited mobility in my right shoulder accompanied by pain both on internal and external rotation limits. So yes - first I thought it was a “good pop”… But when it came to train the biceps, I realised a strange gap between my felt and the long head of my biceps. I could still contract it, but it felt out of place so I stopped. I also noticed a slight yellowing right under my front delt where my bicep used to start, but now there is a slight gap. Went to emergency room and was told it’s a tear but it would heal on its own. Dismissed in 10 minutes. Having replayed it in my mind, what I believe happened, was a shift of the upper tendon. It simply feels as if that long tendon no longer runs in the groove at the top of my humerus, instead it moved a couple of centimetres forward and internally. What do you think, And what should I do? I really want to keep my functionality of my body, you know… I’m quite worried. Theodor
Hello, it sounds like a partial tear of the proximal tendon, at a point where you probably had some trauma to that tendon, so that’s why you felt some relief and not a total tear cause you would’ve seen the bicep long head of the biceps slide down & had cramping you wouldn’t have been able to do biceps at that point. You should get a prescription from your doctor for physical therapy to get treatment on that partial tear that will help it heal
Hi there, thanks for the informative video, been depressed after getting my ultrasound report last friday, so this injury took place on the 27 December 2021, thought i had popped my shoulder, so the weeks after had been training light weight with no idea that the long head was torn, did light weight bicep curls and very light on shoulders, since April went back to heavy lifting.. my GP asked me to stop training upper body until we hear from the orthopedics who specializes in shoulders. How long ago was your injury? (Bodybuilding for 19 years)
Hello, sorry for your injury. Are you in pain now during upper body exercises, is that why you saw your GP and waiting to see a shoulder specialist? My injury happened over 7 years ago, the Proximal tendon came completely off the bone. It’s great now, both arms are pretty much even strength. No pain doing any upper body movements and that was even in the first year of the injury. I did get some Tennis elbow issues since that tendon in my forearm (epicondylitis) took some of the load that my long head of the bicep would have taken. Strength that tendon - see tennis/golfers elbow videos on my Channel to avoid this injury going forward. If you do have shoulder pain doing upper body exercises maybe you need that torn tendon to be cleaned out a little bit (scar tissue) Easy outpatient procedure I’m sure. Maybe even PT ( ultrasound & deep tissue therapy) might work. 👍
@@JOHNDEYOUNGFITNESSLA Apologies for the short reply, getting ready for work, its 5am in RSA. Had some pain when it happened, but not much now during training.
@@JOHNDEYOUNGFITNESSLA went to the GP for the regular stiff neck, so while i was there, told him about the injury, he recommended doing an ultrasound. Im sure the orthopedic shoulder specialist will do an MRI and take it from there. Ive seen other forums where doctors prefer to leave it without surgery.. im also not keen for it, dont want issues to pop up later in life.
Yes, it should probably be left alone if any scar tissue develops a PT could work that out. I’m completely fine and mine was severed off the bone completely so you should be OK.
I tore mine for my 44th birthday what a gift to myself. I shpuld have got it repaired but surgeon didnt want to. My biggest problem aside from the way it looks is cramping even after a year. so I have my own exercising equiptment at home and want to go back to exercising to rid myself of the cramping. i do struggle with curls (cramping) but still want to do them any suggestions? Thanks
Wouldn't only half the bicep be working if one of its 2 tendons isn't attached? I have lost strength and the muscle aches at times. I'm pretty sure I have this injury. I used to be able to 10 pullups easily. Now I struggle to do 1. It feels like my bicep will tear. I had an MRI yesterday. Waiting to hear back on what they found.
That is correct. If you severed the proximal tendon for the long head bicep, you would no longer be able to contract the long head bicep without surgery. Then you would just have a short head and the brachialis. I would wait for the results of the MRI before doing anything. If you did, in fact, tear a tendon for the long head bicep, and are choosing not to have surgery, I have another video of how to strengthen the short head and the brachialis. Check it out on my channel. Good luck!
Weird enough both left and right… both tore. I have the funky bicep look… but my biggest issue is not being able to throw now. As a lifelong athletic person and two grandsons… that’s a huge loss to me.
Hey, so sorry about your injury. Bummer. I’m happy my video gave you some peace and knowledge. I also have a follow up video called, “Popeye Bicep”? Learn how to fill the void.” It has some good stuff in there that should be helpful. If you have any other questions, please feel free to message me. Thx! John
I am pretty sure I tore my long head a couple weeks ago. It was a series of events. I was maxing my power snatch and had a sloppy last two attempts which gave me a shoulder impingement. So since I couldn't do anything over head for a little while I did some flexercise and my biceps got super sore. With my very sore biceps I did cleans one day since it didn't bug my shoulder that much and when I got to just 75% of my max I felt a huge pop in the top of my bicep. Then a couple days later there was an ice storm and I slipped and fell awkwardly on that arm. So I rested it pretty good for about a week and a half and did lots of banded work to make everything feel good. Then after feeling good for a days I did 50 pull-ups in my workout last night(which is not that much for me) with no pain in the shoulder or bicep. Then this morning I woke up and BAM serious Popeye muscle. I think I am more scared of getting surgery than I am just leaving it as is. Its not really bugging me much. But I also have a slight tear in the labrum of the same arm. Somebody told me the two could go together. So Im not sure if I should it get it checked out or not?
Hey buddy, this is a lot -phew! I wanna spend some time on it and I’ll get back to you later today. Go easy & for one thing I think the torn labrum is my first concern. Hit ya back later today👊
Hi John,thanks for this nice video. I just got my long head biceps torn of my left arm less than a week ago while I was training in the gym. The pain is improved much from the first day. Just feel some pain (not much) in shoulder, and biceps with some force in my arm. I am 36 years, active and doing heavy weight training. I am doing natural bodybuilding for more than 10 years.Do you recommend doing surgery? If not, how much strength I could expect after this injury? And when I can get back to the gym?
Hello!! Well, you’ll get about 90% strength back & functionally about 100%. If you’re competing in bodybuilding & aesthetics is important to you then surgery might be an option since you’ll have a bit of a void where the long head used to be. Otherwise no surgery👊
@@JOHNDEYOUNGFITNESSLA Thanks John for your relay. I went back to the gym a week ago. Most of the exercises that do not much focus on the biceps I can do well without problems. However, I feel pain or cramping in the biceps with the exercises that focus on the biceps (ex: front and lateral dumbbell raise, dumbbell curl). I have to decrease the weight to 50% of my previous to avoid this pain. Should I kept weights to 50% or increase gradually? When I can expect a complete relief of this pain. Or this pain could be a kind of a persist pain?
I tore the proximal tendons on both biceps. My right one when I was around 21 (I'm 47 now). And my left one back around in 2008. I guess there's probably no chance of repair since too much time has passed. Not that I'd ever consider surgery as it doesn't seem to be worth it but it's nice to know what my options are. Also, is there any exercises that I can do to stimulate the long head? Or is that no longer possible since a part of it is literally not attached any more?
Unfortunately, that long head Bicep is gone & will atrophy into oblivion. That’s if the Proximal tendon is completely gone. It’s all short head biceps going forward and The brachialis muscle is something to focus on to maintain size in your upper arm. Also, the tendon of the long head bicep acts as a stabilizer of the humerus head in the Glenoid. So, keep your rotator cuffs strong (the supraspinatus, infraspinatus, teres minor and subscapularis muscles.) Hope this helps. John
@@JOHNDEYOUNGFITNESSLA thanks for info. I never actually had my biceps checked out. But I know at least the right one is gone for sure because I had an MRI done on the right shoulder and the doc commented that the biceps tendon there is "just gone" when he went over the images with me. I'm assuming the left one is the same injury because I heard the the same pop, felt the same snap, and the bicep had the same popeye look afterwards. But I guess I have another question. If the tendon is completely gone, wouldn't that mean I wouldn't be able to contract it at all? Because when I flex, it does seem like I am able to contract the long head. It's just noticeably smaller than the short head.
@@arcadiosincero that’s correct, you’re really just contracting the short head. I had the same thought with my injury but it wouldn’t be possible if there’s no tendon attached since no tension would be experienced. Good luck ! It’s not too bad. Look at My RU-vid short Video & you can see what mine looks like doing a bicep curl. 👍
Hi thxs for sharing your videos i am 52 and have jsut did the same tear as yourself i I training 6 days a week in crossfit and surf loads . And dont no what to do now should i go under the knife or just live with it and give up crossfit and concentrate on getting back surfing any help or advice wood be great
If it’s a complete tear and no injury to the rotator cuffs, the only thing to worry about now is aesthetics. If you don’t mind the way it’s gonna look going forward there will be a void there, but there are ways to fill that gap slightly. Your strength will come back check out some of the videos I have on my channel. I have a few shorts. I’m still doing deadlifts. I’m doing dumbbell presses over the head bicep curls grip strength training doing pull-ups using towels, so you’ll be fine. It’s gonna take a little while to be some cramping, it’s gonna feel a little weird but get back to 98% where you were with that same arm.. good luck by the way I’m 59 so you’re a youngster !
Thanks for video. Like many I felt something tear yesterday. Can move and hand and type, and plan on resting it months.. if I still have weak full motion does that mean not distal? I'm not into surgery so hope I just can keep typing. Thanks for your video it helped...
@@JOHNDEYOUNGFITNESSLA Was full tear of the proximal tendon. Got a bad popeye. Wanted it to look as good as it could and i am happy with out come. They did not wanna do it in sweden due to my age (43). Went to private practice in poland. Had it done within a week at sports orthopedic hospital. Service and understanding of patience needs on a whole different level. Rehab was brutal though. 6 months of really hard work.
Dear can you please tell me the name of the polland Place where you made the surgery? In Italy There Is no One wants to surgery this, how much you pay? Thank you
I had a distal tear, but I decided not to go ahead with surgery. My arm now is about 75% of strength back. I couldn't afford the time off work for the surgery. I can now use a screwdriver again, without weakness.
Guy can you help me plzz pwhat should I do if anyone is reading my comment so I will tell you a story of mine so I was on keto diet for losing weight and after 5-6 month in april 4 2023 I curl 45 lbs dumbell for many reps poor form without warmup anything so I didn't hear any pop sound and all that but after 1-2 days my bicep area started to get swollen and then I was not able to straighten my arm so I consult to normal doctor he gave me some pain killers and etc then after week my pain gone but after 3 months I started lifting weight and I just found that my curl and tendon has reduced little bit then again I rest for 2-3 month and now I am doing gym regularly and now I still think my strength has been reduced but by hook test I can feel my tendon and don't feel any pain lifting weight just loss of little bit strength which i dont know it is happening because of loss of muscle aur injury can so can you tell my bicep tendon is still detached or attached to my bone i m not understanding because I can feel my bicep tendon by hook test feels no pain just pronation supination power had reduced little bit and i m from India and here there are knowledge doctors like you countries plz can you give mei some suggestions
Hi John, I came across your video as I have been diagnosed with a right proximal bicep rupture. I am 38yrs and currently researching my options. You mention that surgery is not needed and that gaining my full strength back is possible with rehab. I am an active crossfitter and practice jiu-jitsu . Is being able to get my strength back to be able to do these sports again really possible without surgery? Any feedback would be much appreciated.
Hey, happy you reached out to me. So, Doctors usually treat a ruptured long head of biceps tendon without surgery. Rarely is there a noticeable loss of strength. Supination (the motion of twisting the forearm such as when you use a screwdriver) is usually affected most but again not so much, at least in my case. I totally got my strength back and you should work hard on your forearm on that arm so to avoid future “ Tennis Elbow”, (Lateral Epicondylitis) since that tendon will take on additional load during resistance training. Surgery is usually required if you have pain that won't go away or severe loss of strength or if you’re worried about what it looks like cosmetically. In a t-shirt it looks fine - actually great because it bulges a little, but shirtless there is a slight to noticeable void. Good luck!!
sir, 2 years back i was benching thrice a week(due to my recklessness) i felt a pop in both of my elbows with a 3/10pain. i was able to re-rack the weight. for the next 48 hours i had a slight pain on the inside of my elbow (no bruising or swelling) since i was a broke student i didn't go to a doctor thinking it's just a strain but i developed both golfers and tennis elbow from then, i stopped lifting from then. now,2 years down the line i have the same strength. i wanted to ask you can i just go back to weight lifting now? i still could barely afford a treatment/surgery any way 😭
Hello! Proximal biceps tendon ruptures can be treated conservatively with physical therapy and anti-inflammatories. Surgery is considered when a patient continues to have pain despite conservative measures. I hope this helps. Surgery seem is always the last resort 😁
When i do push ups my upper bicep near my shoulder kinda hurts not really kinda feels like a streching pinch or like it abt to be torn or is it just growing?
Thanks for the video! I tore my DISTAL TENDON and started to upload the recovery process on youtube. I ended up getting the surgery and can relate to what you were going through.
I have the same tear and I am also stuck with the Popeye bicep. It looks so ugly. The bruising is finally gone, so can i go back to working out the biceps ? Will my Bicep grow anymore ?? Curious what I should do ? Can i damage it more if I lift heavy ?? So confused
Of course check with your doctor first before any exercise on your biceps. My tendon was torn completely off the bone so no further damage could occur. My Surgeon said take a few days off before working out. I was shocked but resumed training my biceps slowly. It was weird, cramping etc. But now it’s great!!! The “ void “ is still there but the strength is back. Check out my Short Video on my channel “Bicep Tendon Tear”, you can see that the arm has come around. Good luck!!
Hello, I began working out at least within a week or so of the tear, but didn’t hit biceps directly until about 6 weeks. There will be cramping and weird sensations from time to time but they will begin to go away after 2-3 months. Check out my other video on my channel regarding “Filling the Void” after a proximal bicep tendon tear. It should be of some use to you. Thank you ! John
Hi John, Thanks for responding to my past post. Do you think I can return to boxing training once I am completely healed? I am worried about tearing the other tendon.
Was it a complete tear of the bone? You chose not to have surgery, correct? Also, you mentioned afraid of tearing the other tendon do you mean on the short head on the same arm, or the same tendon on the other arm? If you’re worried about the other arm, make sure you are strengthening your front side and rear deltoid correctly and doing rotator cuff exercises correctly and you should be fine.
Yes, I completely tore my proximal and have the popeye arm like yourself. I was worried about tearing the distal tendon. Do you think it would hold up doing boxing. Thank you for responding so fast.
I have distal I think. Er doctor said it's a full tear. Edit: well with the bad news of having to get it fixed. What would my options be three to four years later?. I'm half way into the video. My apologies and disregard if you answer this.
Ouch!! How old are you? Are you very active? Are you thinking of having it repaired? Thanks for reaching out and let me know what you decide to do and if I could be of any help. 👍. John
I would love to have it repaired. I'm not very active these days. None the less I want full strength in it. It's been a few years and I'm not sure if surgery is even an option? What can you tell me about a full distal bicep tear? Is exercising it an option?
Obviously, I’m not a doctor and take his advice for sure, especially depending on how bad the tear is. Usually with complete tears, Nonsurgical treatments are usually only used for people who do minimal activities and require minimal arm strength. Not having surgery often results in significant loss of strength. Flexion of the elbow is somewhat affected, but supination (which is the motion of twisting the forearm, such as when you use a screwdriver) can be very affected. A distal biceps rupture that is not repaired reduces supination strength by about 50 percent. It’s been reported that Early repair (performed at 4 weeks or less after injury) has been recommended and is believed to prevent potential complications and poorer outcomes due to tendon retraction, scarring, and the need for more extensive dissection. However, these advantages of early repair have not been clearly borne out in the literature. So don’t feel pressured into a decision immediately. So, hope all this was helpful and good luck! Hit the like button and subscribe if you haven’t already. Thank you,
@@JOHNDEYOUNGFITNESSLA I understand you're not a doctor. I appreciate any and all advice you gave and could further give. My tare happened a few years ago. So I'm way past the few week mark. I still have most mobility with some strength loss. I seen a doctor today who is referring me to a specialist. I guess my question to you is it heard of for someone to rebuild their arm without surgery?
check out Bobby Maximus on RU-vid- I randomly noticed that he has a distal rupture (right arm) & not repaired, and he seems to be doing great!! Maybe you could message him.
II had 800lbs land on my arm my surgeon said I was a difficult one because of scar tissue . I'm. a milk man and I do heavy loads of delivery I have a feeling I won't be back to work anytime soon. This sucks
I know asking this on RU-vid is a long shot. My ultrasound was not able to show the doctors what they wanted to see but they are stating they suggest it’s a partial thickness tear no evidence of full thickness or retracted tear. Anyone able to explain that to me? I got for an MRI in 2 weeks
I had an isolated rapture for my right arm long head biceps and had tenodesis surgery 4 weeks after the tear, deformity almost gone but the arm became weaker due to muscle atrophy. I’m working to strengthen it up. I’m 33.
Hello, thanks for the message & you’ll get your muscularity back in no time - how’s the recovery coming, pain? Range of motion? Nice to know the deformity is gone. 💪🏼. Best of luck !
@@JOHNDEYOUNGFITNESSLA Most welcome :). No issues with ROM except when I fully raise my shoulder, but insignificant tbh. No pain as well. I'm honestly satisfied with the results as I was terribly annoyed with Popeye deformity. the faster someone have surgery after tear, the more better results, as tendon retraction will be minor.
J'ai la même chose que vous bras gauche depuis 2 mois .. J'ai choisi de ne pas me faire opérer .. On ne constate en effet pas trop de perte de force mais sur certains mouvements .. Ça coince Comment ça va pour vous 2 ans plus tard ?
Hello, there’s definitely some cramping associated with working biceps, that will go away after a while. I would check with your doctor regarding the pain because I didn’t experience that kind of pain and maybe you still have some of the tendon in that groove that leads to your shoulder where the long head tendon used to be. Good luck !
Thanks for the video, I have ruptured the long head of my bicep also and have the void and "popeye sign" as you have shown, its been 4 months now and although I have been doing regular exercises under the direction of a physio to strengthen my arm I am still a long way off from where I was before the rupture. I was wandering if you have any recommendations for particular exercises which would help me to regain as much of my previous strength as is possible, I have been told that I will never achieve 100% but that some people can get close to that. Many thanks.
Sorry for your injury & yes you’ll always be a bit weaker on your injured side but it’s not that much weaker. You’ll be surprised how strong it will be, but I do recommend working on your forearms and watch my Video on Tennis elbow & Golfers elbow for exercises to build your forearms and precent Tennis elbow which can happen when missing the long head bicep tendon because other muscles & tendons will have to make up for that loss of your proximal tendon. 👊
Hello, once the proximal tendon is torn off the bone then no, you won’t be able to gain size in the long head of the bicep because there is nothing anchoring the bicep at both ends. You’ll have to really train your short head and your brachialus. 👊. Check out my other video in my channel showing how to help fill the void in your bicep from a torn long head bicep tendon. “How to fill the void”. Thx!
I believe that window has closed but double check with a surgeon. How have you progressed?? Are you just concerned about the “void”? See my video to help fill in the void with Brachiallis exercises.
Ouch! I’m thinking you probably had that tendon compromised already in the past. Was it giving you a little problems before the accident? Definitely see a doctor make sure you didn’t tear any rotator cuff or your labrum. Good luck & let me know the results of the doc visit 👍
Hey, thanks for reaching out. You can actually have both a torn rotator cuff plus the torn proximal tendon for the long head of the biceps. Ask your doctor for an MRI to be sure. Good luck!
@@steveschulze518 depends on how bad the tear is for both. I’ve had clients get through torn rotator cuff with physical therapy and training, no surgery. Also, if you did both, I imagine focus on the rotator cuff and if you’re OK with aesthetics just leave the proximal tendon alone, that’s also if it’s completely off the bone so you don’t have any pain or impingements. I have another video on my channel for “filling in the void” after tearing your long head bicep tendon. There’s some new stuff in there if you wanna check it out. Thx!
I have had surgery on the long head bicep, does it ever get back to normal after surgery, looks normal but the it gets tiers after doing two sets of bicep curls, fils like a cramp and it hurts for about 20 seconds
How long ago did you have the surgery? How did the rehab go? This should have started 1 to 2 weeks after your surgery and last for 2 to 3 months. It takes about 4 to 6 months before your shoulder heals. Most people can start activities with low risk of shoulder injury in about 3 months. Jogging is one example. If you play sports, training may also start at this time. Most baseball or softball players can begin a program to toss a ball lightly. It may take 6 to 12 months to return to normal throwing. How long it takes depends on how damaged your shoulder was and how well your rehab goes.
Sorry to hear buddy, you won’t be able to fill that void caused by the tear of the Tendon of the long head bicep because since that tendon is no longer attached at the shoulder, the long head of the bicep has moved down, leaving the void, since the tendon is no longer pulling it or keeping it in place. You can train your short head of the bicep to compensate but it will never be completely normal looking. It’s really not that bad. No one notices unless I draw attention to it. Best of luck!
@@JOHNDEYOUNGFITNESSLA I was afraid of that; guess we will have to live with deformed arms. I saw an orthopedic surgeon and he advised me to leave it alone; no surgery. Thanks a lot for the reply.
If we are talking about a full tear, there will be scar tissue, deformations, fusions, massive atrophy all over the place. They won't be able to just cut it open and attach it back to its place. They will need tendon grafts from organ donors, extra tissue to repair it. So yeah it is possible, but it will be a very complicated procedure.
Hii sir.. The last two months ago happened an incident with me and my right hand biecp getting down like you .. In the beginning when my biceps ruptured that time i got pain but now nothing. So please guide me sir how to get back my bicep in normal position. I am become very very disturb when I see my hand..
I done the surgery on the long head and I regret it. I feel on my shoulder two months after surgery and now I have continuous pain in my shoulder. Been out of with for 5 months now
Thanks for letting me know and I’m really sorry it was not a success. Check out some videos on proximal tendon physical therapy. The surgeon should be able to write you a prescription for physical therapy sessions. Hopefully your insurance will cover that.
I had a total shoulder replacement, and ended up with the " cosmetic tear " needless to say having 18" arm and the Popeye look is just silly for me.. but i am glad their wont be to many problems with it .
A complete tear would reveal the “Popeye” bicep since the tendon has become unattached at the shoulder and slid down so there is no longer tension holding the long head of the bicep in place.
It will go away on its own. Sometimes I would massage that part of the muscle and tendon that kind of slid down - kind of creeped me out sometimes feeling the end of the tendon, but a little light massage is good - but it will stop eventually.
Hello, If you currently have a complete distal rupture that was not repaired then you already tore the tendon of either the long or short head of the biceps tendon at the elbow. Left without surgical repair, however, the injured arm will have a 30 to 40% decrease in strength, mainly in twisting the forearm (supination).
Since the biceps muscle has two tendons that attach the muscle to the shoulder and only one tendon that attaches at the elbow, The distal biceps tendon, attaching to a part of the radius bone called the radial tuberosity. This is usually surgically repaired- because of the loss of strength and supination, so I would think that it would be hard to lift enough weight to tear the proximal tendon of either head since the “anchor” at the distal end is no longer attached. I’m not a doc but that’s what I would say especially since you said it was a complete rupture.
@@JOHNDEYOUNGFITNESSLA thank you for your response. Makes sense. And I haven’t been able to find any other issues that may arise from a distal rupture other than supination pronation flexion strength. How bout shoulder problems? Any way to combat that not having a distal connection?
Hello, it’s pretty uncommon to tear the short head of the proximal biceps tendon - did a doctor confirm this ?? I’ve never had a client with that kind of year. Four months out, maybe you also injured a rotator cuff tendon.
@@JOHNDEYOUNGFITNESSLA yea, partial rc tear from previous injurt as well. The pain is down the lateral side of bicep. Really weak too, hard to open a jar. Doc said surgery is possible BUT at this point skip it bc recovery is so long . It doesnt affect my recreation ( kiteboarding, mt biking, skiing) but simple stuff is a pain in the as&. ( overhead , palm up lifting , no chance). Any advice?? THANKS !!
@@billyfarwig7387 Oh boy!!! That’s a lot going on, but I’m happy it doesn’t interfere with your recreational activities. Eventually, the long head will take over and compensate, but be careful you don’t get tendinitis also called golfers, elbow, or tennis elbow. The load that the short head would take has to be spread out over other muscles & tendons. Check out my video on tennis, elbow and golfers elbow. That should strengthen your forearms. also, a shoulder strengthening/ rotator cuff video would be a good idea. Good luck sir👊
Pretty much everything I could before the injury I can do now. Of course that was a few years ago. My tear was completely off the bone so no impingements.
As long as you’ve had a doctors clearance to do so, yes. You’ll feel some cramping in the remaining head of the bicep but that will stop eventually. You could massage the cramp with your thumb. Check out my other video on torn bicep tendon on my channel called “Filling the Void”, that will help you find some exercises to fill in the void from the bicep tendon tear.
I'm 70 and just had the proximal bicep tear surgery. I'm on day 3, not a of pain. Didn't need the oxycodone they sent me home with. I actually didn't know that most people don't get it fixed so I guess I'm happy I did it and happy that it's going well so far.
Hey, happy to hear that all went well & you’re on the mend. It looks a lot better I bet. Happy it worked out for you & let me know your continued recovery progresses. Thanks for reaching out. John
At shoulder right ? While surgery may be needed to fix a torn tendon, in many cases people with a torn tendon can still function normally. Symptoms can be relieved using the same treatments that are used to treat tendonitis: * Cold packs or ice will reduce swelling and pain caused by tendonitis. * Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications such as aspirin or ibuprofen will help relieve swelling and pain. * Your doctor may also recommend rest. It will be particularly important to avoid any heavy lifting, flexing at the elbow and over your head. * In some cases, your doctor may refer you for physical therapy to help your shoulder or elbow recover. * In severe cases of tendonitis without a tear, corticosteroid injections may offer relief of pain and halt the inflammatory process and get the tendon back on a path of healing. Surgery may be a choice for those who continue to experience symptoms after non-surgical treatments. I hope this helps.
@@JOHNDEYOUNGFITNESSLA At shoulder? Dude, do you even know basic anatomy? You're giving fitness and physio advice without knowing basic, yes basic, muscle anatomy. Unfortunately, I'd say 90% of fitness trainers have the same amount of basic knowledge as you do which isn't much; hollow at best. Muscles have two attachments. The origin (not movable end) and the INSERTION (the movable end). The commenter is obviously referring to the distal portion of the biceps which is the the tendon end that attaches to the humerus. When muscle contracts it pulls on the insertion to, in the case of the biceps, flexes (curls in your terms) the arm. Dude, do everyone a favor and go back to study basic exercise science. What certification do you even have? Stop giving injury/rehab advice to people on the internet. Being a trainer for 20 years does not mean shite if you haven't the basic muscular knowledge.
