Bicep tendinitis

Hey climbing community,

I have in the past few months developed something I can only assume is tendinitis in my bicep. I have been trying to ice it after climbing outside and at the gym. It to some extent helps a little, but week by week it only seems to get worse. Have any of you been through this and have any recommendations on exercises or or stretches, or should I simply just go get physical therapy?

Any information or suggestions is better than what I've got right now and would be appreciated.

i remember the book "one move too many" (my bible for stuff like this) says a lot about bicep tendonitis but I haven't read into it and won't have the book on hand for another week since i'm traveling. if you're still interested by then shoot me a msg.

More pushups, less climbing

I had something similar although closure to my elbow. Drinking tons of water, and backing off of the harder routes and boulder problems definitely made the biggest difference. Also a good stretch and warm up. Ooh and some of that good old vitamin I.

Is is proximal (near the shoulder) or distal (by the elbow)?

If you can get PT, you should, even if only a few sessions.

Why do you keep climbing when it continues to get worse by doing so? If you really have bicipital tendonitis, rest would be first and foremost.

James Otey wrote:More pushups, less climbing

+1

Also, dips are good. I've also had luck with this exercise:

• Edit* I can't get the video to work for the life of me. Too tired to think about it right now, maybe I'll try again after some sleep.

Thanks for the responses guys, the inflammation has actually gotten worse since Sunday and has been flared up for three straight days now. Making the call and going to get PT. Appreciate the info though. Thanks guys.

mountainproject.com/v/tendo…

Had it so bad the pain would make me nauseous. Find a chiro that does active release therapy/ART, really helped with getting mine from chronic to very manageable. Like other guys mentioned too, pushups and dips, and a dedication to them, help a ton.

I would avoid the vitamin I except for the day of an injury. There is substantial research showing that longer term use slows recovery of tendons and can actually lead to weaker tendons elsewhere. NSAIDS mask the pain but have no healing benefit. If you want to feel better and push through, by all means, take it. If you want to recover and heal, stay away from it.

Eric Carlos wrote:I would avoid the vitamin I except for the day of an injury. There is substantial research showing that longer term use slows recovery of tendons and can actually lead to weaker tendons elsewhere.

1. Please cite the research that shows NSAIDs weaken tendons in general.

2. Impairing healing in soft tissue is not that black and white or clear cut. There are conflicting studies about not only how long you have to take an NSAID for this to occur, but there is uncertainty about which NSAIDs actually do this (in some cases, ibuprofen has shown no detriment to the healing process vs other NSAIDs), and whether you are studying bone, ligments, or tendons-- and which part, like osteotendinous junction or some other area of the tendon. Not to mention that many of these studies are not carried out on humans and some are even done only on soft tissues from animals in petri dishes. (It would be erroneous to think tendons or ligaments always behave identically in petri dishes as in the body...we are finding they certainly do not.)

I believe short term use of NSAIDs is generally felt to be safe and helpful in many cases of acute or chronic injury (probably 2-4 weeks). Certainly I have had past injuries where I simply could not start exercise therapy in the rehab process UNTIL I finally started a short term NSAID therapy (due to chronic re-aggravation of the injury without them). So it can be useful.

mountainproject.com/v/my-bi…