• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Breaking Muscle

Breaking Muscle

Breaking Muscle

  • Fitness
  • Workouts
    • Best Shoulder Workouts
    • Best Chest Workouts
    • Best Leg Workouts
    • Best Leg Exercises
    • Best Biceps Exercises
    • Best Kettlebell Exercises
    • Best Back Workouts
    • Best HIIT Workouts
    • Best Triceps Exercises
    • Best Arm Workouts
  • Reviews
    • Supplements
      • Best Pre-Workout
      • Best BCAAs
      • Best Testosterone Boosters
      • Best Bodybuilding Supplements
      • Best Creatine
      • Best Supplements for Weight Loss
      • Best Multivitamins
      • Best Collagen Supplement
      • Best Probiotic
      • Best Non-Stim Pre-Workout
      • Best Greens Powder
      • Best Magnesium Supplements
    • Protein
      • Best Protein Powder
      • Best Whey Protein
      • Best Protein Powders for Muscle Gain
      • Best Tasting Protein Powder
      • Best Vegan Protein
      • Best Mass Gainer
      • Best Protein Shakes
      • Best Organic Protein Powder
      • Best Pea Protein Powder
      • Best Protein Bars
    • Strength Equipment
      • Best Home Gym Equipment
      • Best Squat Racks
      • Best Barbells
      • Best Weightlifting Belts
      • Best Weight Benches
      • Best Functional Trainers
      • Best Dumbbells
      • Best Adjustable Dumbbells
      • Best Kettlebells
      • Best Resistance Bands
      • Best Trap Bars
    • Cardio Equipment
      • Best Cardio Machines
      • Best Rowing Machines
      • Best Treadmills
      • Best Weighted Vests
      • Concept2 RowErg Review
      • Hydrow Wave Review
      • Best Jump Ropes
  • News
  • Exercise Guides
    • Legs
      • Back Squat
      • Bulgarian Split Squat
      • Goblet Squat
      • Zercher Squat
      • Standing Calf Raise
      • Hack Squat
    • Chest
      • Bench Press
      • Dumbbell Bench Press
      • Close-Grip Bench Press
      • Incline Bench Press
    • Shoulders
      • Overhead Dumbbell Press
      • Lateral Raise
    • Arms
      • Chin-Up
      • Weighted Pull-Up
      • Triceps Pushdown
    • Back
      • Deadlift
      • Trap Bar Deadlift
      • Lat Pulldown
      • Inverted Row
      • Bent-Over Barbell Row
      • Single-Arm Dumbbell Row
      • Pendlay Row
Fitness

How to Heal Shoulder and Lumbar Spine Injuries

As a health practitioner, the two most common injuries I see are shoulder and low back injuries. Here is my advice for how to handle and heal from these common athletic injuries.

Lindsey Mathews

Written by Lindsey Mathews Last updated on Oct 20, 2021

My work as a chiropractor consists of treating many different athletes, from track and field amateurs and professionals to competitive tri-athletes to professional baseball, basketball, and soccer players, and of course, CrossFit athletes. In the course of my work I have come across some awesome rare injuries, but the most common things I see are shoulder injuries and lower back issues.

My work as a chiropractor consists of treating many different athletes, from track and field amateurs and professionals to competitive tri-athletes to professional baseball, basketball, and soccer players, and of course, CrossFit athletes. In the course of my work I have come across some awesome rare injuries, but the most common things I see are shoulder injuries and lower back issues. Based on my experience, I’m want to offer you a little insight on these latter injuries, as to what helped get some of my patients back on the playing field as quickly, and in the best health, as possible.

Let me start by saying if you have aches and pains that have lasted longer than three days with no improvement with icing, then you need to get to a healthcare practitioner as soon as possible, whether it is a chiropractor, acupuncturist, osteopath, or physical therapist. Find someone who knows the body and that you trust.

Shoulder Injury

Shoulder injuries usually consist of impingement syndrome, bursitis, or tendonitis of a muscle, possibly a rotator cuff muscle or the bicep. I’m sure at one point you have all Googled one or two of the fore mentioned. In general, each of these means the shoulder is not functioning correctly biomechanically, so a different muscle or group of muscles have taken the brunt of the mechanical demand, or there could have been excessive demand placed on the shoulder to cause improper functioning at a stage of fatigue. Whatever happened, you have a hot, inflamed shoulder now.

With the onset of a shoulder injury the first thing to do is to stop inflammation. This means no shoulder-intensive workouts and no lacrosse ball directly on the shoulder. More times than not, people will keep the shoulder inflamed by using a lacrosse ball or tennis ball to mobilize directly on the inflamed areas. Back away from the shoulder and let it be.

The second thing to do is to pay attention to your posture. A lot of shoulder aches and pains can be diminished by proper posture and muscle recruitment patterns. The ideal posture would consist of setting your scapulas in your back pockets (yes, they will never reach but you get the idea) and making a double chin, so your head is directly lined up over your shoulders.

When your healthcare practitioner gives you the green light to go back to your workouts, ease into them and make sure your shoulders are functioning correctly biomechanically. Have someone watch you to make sure you set your scapulas down and back before each lift. If your shoulders are not displaying proper muscle activation patterns, I guarantee you will continue to re-injure yourself.

Here are a few of my shoulder tips:

  • Mobilize shoulders and thoracic spine before and after workouts.
  • Warm up with scapula pushups and pull-ups.
  • Do pushups with your elbows close to your body and elbow pits forward.
  • Start with strict pull-ups for three weeks before kipping.
  • Remember to set your scapulas (or activate your lats) before anything.

Lumbar Spine

The lumbar spine offers great support as well as distributes weight throughout the pelvis to the lower extremities. If an individual’s joints are not functioning properly, or their deep inner core is not firing, or their gluteus maximus firing pattern is off, then they are definitely at a predisposition for lumbar spine injury. Facet syndrome (also referred to as facet imbrication) or lumbar sprain/strain are the two most common athletic injuries I come across.

lumbar spine, facet, facet syndrome

Basically, the facet joints are the small pair of joints located on the superior and inferior posterior portion of each vertebral segment. The facet joints orchestrate movement and provide stabilization for the lumbar spine. When these joints are repetitively jammed together, as in deadlifts or a back squat or even handstand pushups, the synovial fluid and articular cartilage can become inflamed and result in pain. With a facet injury, an individual feels pain with excessive extension, stiffness in the morning, and even difficulty rising from the seated position. An individual will feel relief upon forward flexion or in the “roly poly” stretch. A lumbar sprain or strain happens when excessive mechanical demands are placed upon the muscles and/or ligaments. An individual may feel increased discomfort with rotational movements.

When a lumbar spine injury is suspected, as mentioned earlier, get in to see a chiropractor or a healthcare practitioner of your choice. Hold off on load-bearing workouts and excessive “kipping” movements. You may continue to mobilize your TFLs (tensor fasciae latae), gluteus medius, and even quadriceps. Maintain core activation when standing by thinking of the hollow position, or pulling your belt buckle to your rib cage. Take time off, but do not stop moving. Movement brings nutrients to the structures of the spine. Walk thirty minutes a day during the first week. When the second and third weeks come around, try swimming three times a week.

Here are my a few of my lumbar spine tips:

  • If you cannot hold the hollow position for sixty seconds, then you should not be putting any weight over your head.
  • If you have weight over your head, you had better be “hollowed out.”
  • Activate your gluteus maximus before workouts.
  • Back squats put the most load on the spine posteriorly.
  • Front squats are great for training posture and core.

Again, these are just tips from what have worked for my patients. This article is not designed to be the next WebMD or physical assessment book. Like I said before, if you have pain or discomfort that persists for more than three days, you need to get into see a healthcare practitioner. It is better to get hold of an abnormal situation before things get so bad you cannot even brush your teeth, much less workout.

Photos courtesy of Shutterstock.

Lindsey Mathews

About Lindsey Mathews

Lindsey Mathews is a chiropractor who specializes in the biomechanics of the body and balancing the musculoskeletal system. She focuses on women’s health, perinatal chiropractic, and pediatrics. Lindsey aspires to create purity in pregnancy in today’s modern world and empower women to become “birth fit.”

Lindsey was born in Houston, Texas. She grew up on the river in New Braunfels, Texas. During high school, Lindsey participated in cheerleading and played soccer. While in college, she played intramural soccer and maintained her gymnastic skills while working at the Center for Student Athletes at Texas A&M. She is the proudest member of the Fightin’ Texas Aggie Class of 2005.

While on a medical mission trip to Tanzania, Africa, Lindsey decided that she wanted to enhance people’s lives in a natural way - without pharmaceuticals. Lindsey decided to become a doctor of chiropractic. She moved out to Los Angeles and completed her doctorate at the Southern California University of Health Sciences.

Lindsey worked at the International Sports Performance Institute from 2009-2012. She currently works at the American Health Lasers Los Angeles Clinic. She also owns her own business that specializes in pregnancy lifestyle coaching. Lindsey has treated numerous active people such as Olympic and professional athletes, CrossFit athletes, and CrossFit moms, and traveled the world to be on set for demanding stunts in film and television.

Lindsey practices what she preaches. She eats a paleo diet, exercises five to six times a week, gets adjusted, and takes fish oil. She currently is enrolled in and donates one weekend a month to the International Chiropractic Pediatric Association (ICPA). She is immersed in research and is relentless in her mission to naturally improve the lifestyle of women, mothers, children, and others. Lindsey lives with intention and is a proud member of Team Original.

View All Articles

Related Posts

Fergus Crawley 5K Run Tips Photo
Fergus Crawley Shares 5 Tips For Running a Better 5K
Actor Chris Hemsworth in gym performing dumbbell row
Chris Hemsworth Diagrams a Killer Upper Body Workout Fit For an Action Star
Hugh Jackman Deadpool 3 Workouts Spring:Winter 2023
Hugh Jackman Returns to Wolverine Condition in Workouts for “Deadpool 3”
Method Man Incline Dumbbell Presses December 2022
Check Out Rapper Method Man Cruising Through 120-Pound Incline Dumbbell Presses for 10 Reps

Primary Sidebar

Latest Articles

New Year’s Fitness Sales (2025)

XWERKS Motion BCAA Review (2025): A Registered Dietitian’s Honest Thoughts

Assault Fitness AssaultBike Pro X Review (2025): Assault’s Best Bike Yet?

13 Best Exercise Bikes for Home Gyms (2025)

Transparent Labs BCAA Glutamine Review (2025): The Key to Post-Workout Recovery?

Latest Reviews

Element 26 Hybrid Leather Weightlifting Belt

Element 26 Hybrid Leather Weightlifting Belt Review (2025)

Omre NMN + Resveratrol, Lifeforce Peak NMN, and partiQlar NMN on a red background

Best NMN Supplement: Fountain of Youth in a Bottle? (2025)

The Titan Series Adjustable Bench on a red background

Titan Series Adjustable Bench Review (2025)

A photo of the NordicTrack Select-a-Weight Dumbbells on a red background

NordicTrack Adjustable Dumbbell Review (2025): Are These Value Dumbbells Worth It?

woman lifting barbell

Be the smartest person in your gym

The Breaking Muscle newsletter is everything you need to know about strength in a 3 minute read.

I WANT IN!

Breaking Muscle is the fitness world’s preeminent destination for timely, high-quality information on exercise, fitness, health, and nutrition. Our audience encompasses the entire spectrum of the fitness community: consumers, aficionados, fitness professionals, and business owners. We seek to inform, educate and advocate for this community.

  • Reviews
  • Healthy Eating
  • Workouts
  • Fitness
  • News

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS Feed

© 2025 · Breaking Muscle · Terms of Use · Privacy Policy · Affiliate Disclaimer · Accessibility · About