Help!!!! pulled Latissimus Dorsi

OK, Monday i go in the gym to lift, i do my warm-ups my stretches like always, i get down finally when it comes to my first set(after the warm-up sets) of Arnold's dumbbells presses, seated. I was going for a set of 8 with 80 lb dumbbell. I get my spotter, do one rep ez, then second one half way up. ouch . I dropped the weights get up and i could barely breath cause it hurt, i started to stretch it out, i knew right away what had happened, i had to leave the gym, went home. I hot showered, heat pad, iced, watched movies. I'm so depressed cause i know i wont be able to lift for at least a weak if i'm lucky. I slept 12 hours today, sux. Does anyone have any more help, like how long it will take before i'm back. The muscle pulled is mostly my left, mid lat, but the right has some lower mid lat pull too. I'm all out of wack. > Thx for any help, this is like my second post here so i guess i will give some stats for this section anyway.

weight in mourning 225 lb even, 6 foot 2.75 in. All natural, only vitamins.
18 years old, bench 340 lb, squat 470 lb, deep powerlifting squat. used to DL not anymore.

Sorry to here about your injury mate,bit late now but ive read several articles that say stretching before a workout is a bad idea because it can lead to an injury.

prince Albert said:

Sorry to here about your injury mate,bit late now but ive read several articles that say stretching before a workout is a bad idea because it can lead to an injury.

Click to expand...

It is a very bad idea. IF you are going to do passive stretching(which isnt all that great for you anyway) you should do it after the workout.

Tell me more about where it hurts and more importantly what movements cause you the most discomfort. I might be able to help.

Studies have shown that stretching prior to lifting actually weakens the muscle, preventing you from lifting what you could normally lift. Best thing is to just warm the muscle up real well with very light weights before actually working it out. However, fascia stretching after an intense workout helps with recovery.

Very slight correction to Sikdogg's post-

Static stretching, or a stretch that you hold for a period of time, have been shown to reduce strength levels if done before exercises.

Dynamic stretching, or a stretch you do quickly like drawing your elbows towards your back several times in rapid succession to stretch your chest, do not.

Do some research online and you'll be good to go.

Man it hurts when i do rowing motion, pull down motion, when i sit up straight, trying to Do Penis Enlargement < and i don't do tons of stretches, i do real quick ones i don't even really hold, i more warm up the muscles by like starting off light, so i didn't get injured because i stretched before hand, sorry i'm a youngster

Stretching does that? huh. I have always hurt much more days after I don't stretch than when I do. Doing the same amount of weight and reps as well.

Maybe its different from weightlifting (which I do currently), but while I played soccer, the people who didn't stretch usually got injured. Not saying its not true, I'm just surprised...

i dont understand how you pulled your lats doing arnold press (military press i think?). i would expect you to hurt your deltoids or triceip or something.

Yea no shit, that is what pissed me up, the lats are only used as stabilization in Arnold's and i get a cramp and pull them, so unlucky, >

I never see Pro's stretching, before or after on their workout tapes.

Several studies have indicated that stretching also carries the benefit of increasing HGH activity in the muscles that are being stretched. I'm not 100% sure, but I think I also heard that it may cause an increase in the quantity of HGH receptors in the muscles if done consistently over a long period of time. Aside from these benefits, you would do well to engage in some stretching after you've worked out, but definitely not before. Well, you can do dynamic stretching as dreamaloud1 said, but static stretching actually does decrease your strength output and increase the risk for injury if done immediately prior to a workout. Personally I don't do any type of stretching right after, either- I like to wait for an hour or so before getting into it.

well just to post on my injury, it's been 13 days and i'm probably at 90%, so this week working out i'm gonna work around the lats and not do any lifts with direct involvement and still do light on everything overall, hope i can go 100% hard in a week

Well if anyone wants to know how long it takes to heal a pulled muscle, for me this lat injury is at about 89% and it is the 3 week mark, so i'm guessing by week 4 i will be 100%. So depressing that in the past 5 weeks I have lost 15 pounds, that is right i said 15 pounds. from 230 to 215. I can tell i have lost about `10 pounds of muscle. With the combonation of the lifting injury and being sick the past 2 and half weeks with sinus infection and bronchitis i can't lift. So depressing, atleast i can do my Penis Enlargement but have got off routine because i have been so depressed or fatigued some days. so horrible <
I'm just getting my thoughts out on paper u might say.

Later

Sorry to hear about the bad news and happy to hear your lat is healing. The comeback is never fun because of the reduction in the amount of weight you can do. But you can do it.

Update,

Woah things have gone into a whirl, while being sick with bronchitis and a sinus infection for about 4 weeks(had antibiotics and didn't clear it up, making new doc appointment), My lat injury has regressed a bit.
I have been working around it and doing very light pulldown exercises for blood flow, I have been heating too.

I did some side bends for obliques and now my lats are all cramped and this sux. I have come to the awful decision to not lift at all for a week.

All i can do to stay mentally together is know that when i can come back i am gonna bust my ass. All my weight gains all last semester of school are down the drain now. I have gone from 230 lb at the beginning of January to now a 214 lb. I hope that muscle memory i hear about really takes effect for me when i get back into it.

I'm posting my progress just in case anyone can share experience on a pulled muscle or droughts in lifting where they had some loses a while.

thx anyone

Take at least 1 week - you will be fine. Start out very light when you go back to lifting. If it still hurts, I'd take more time off.

Regards,

HOOS

update, just for anyone who gets a pull and wants to know:

Pulled lats happened Jan 3rd

Finally healed to a 100% by March 4th

2 months. woah

in the 2 months i also fought 8 weeks of bronchitis and sinus infection where i went through 3 antibiotics and one respiratory steroid.

Total loss, from 232 lb to 212 lb, in which now i am back up to 216 lb. God that sux, strength dropped, even though i pretty much worked out in the 2 months, on and off, heavy and not. Ex: was doin pulldowns with 290 lb, now i workout with only 220 lb. BUT lats are what got injured. Bench dropped 25 lbs.

I hope this post helps anyone with future injury. I had hell of trouble searching the web, and bb.com forum for info on this type of muscle pull