Left Arm Pain: From Practicing FULL backswing

[gregsandiego]

I have a new kind of left arm pain - for a few weeks now. I've been working very hard on a FULL back swing and I think it comes from that because I can feel the pressure/pinch at that point  (fully rotated during back swing).

It's about halfway between the shoulder and elbow, on the outside of the arm.

Oddly it doesn't bother me that much when hitting balls. But later, especially at night, it starts to ache.

Anyone else experience this ?

[mvmac]

The pain is here? Does it hurt if you let the left arm bend a little?

[gregsandiego]

4 minutes ago, mvmac said:

The pain is here? Does it hurt if you let the left arm bend a little?

Your green dot is correct.

If you mean during the swing, my arm never stays perfectly straight like the pros.   

At this point I think it's too hard to tell what bending more would change - I'd feel it either way.

 

[Patch]

I can swing a golf club with no pain. I can stand still with no pain. I can sleep on my sides or back without pain. 

I cannot sit without pain. I cannot drive, or ride in a car with out pain. I cannot walk at my normal speed without pain. 

When I do have pain, it is in the same spot as discribed by the OP. Difference is it is in my right arm. 

About 6-7 weeks ago, I woke up with a sore neck. Kind of like when you sleep wrong, that usually goes away later on in the day. This didn't go away. It became so bad, my entire left shoulder and back became so painful, all I could do was lay in bed

After tests it was determined I had pinched nerve. Meds, and therapy has me feeling much better, but I still have soreness on top of my shoulder. I also have developed a tingling sensation in my right finger tips. I also have soreness as discribed by the OP 

Not saying the OP has a nerve issue. Just a little history of the same area of pain discribed. 

[gregsandiego]

5 hours ago, Patch said:

I can swing a golf club with no pain. I can stand still with no pain. I can sleep on my sides or back without pain. 

I cannot sit without pain. I cannot drive, or ride in a car with out pain. I cannot walk at my normal speed without pain. 

When I do have pain, it is in the same spot as discribed by the OP. Difference is it is in my right arm. 

About 6-7 weeks ago, I woke up with a sore neck. Kind of like when you sleep wrong, that usually goes away later on in the day. This didn't go away. It became so bad, my entire left shoulder and back became so painful, all I could do was lay in bed

After tests it was determined I had pinched nerve. Meds, and therapy has me feeling much better, but I still have soreness on top of my shoulder. I also have developed a tingling sensation in my right finger tips. I also have soreness as discribed by the OP 

Not saying the OP has a nerve issue. Just a little history of the same area of pain discribed. 

Thanks Patch and glad that what's important - playing golf - still gets done. I use "Aleve" which interestingly enough shows up in the Amazon advertisement on the right of my screen right now along with other related products. What do you take ?

 

[MarvChamp]

8 hours ago, gregsandiego said:

It's about halfway between the shoulder and elbow, on the outside of the arm.

Oddly it doesn't bother me that much when hitting balls. But later, especially at night, it starts to ache.

I'm not a doctor but sounds like my rotator cuff impingement. Physical therapy + a shorter back swing + pain management? Suggest you see an orthopedic physician. Best wishes, -Marv

[Patch]

2 hours ago, gregsandiego said:

Thanks Patch and glad that what's important - playing golf - still gets done. I use "Aleve" which interestingly enough shows up in the Amazon advertisement on the right of my screen right now along with other related products. What do you take ?

 

 I was on scripts of pain pills, and muscle relaxants. Actually I quit taking the muscle relaxants. The pain pills, (2) varieties I don't take as often as I did. 

I take the pain pills as needed now. Like if I have to drive/ride in a car for more the 15-20 minutes. Or if I have to sit in a weird chair. 

I'm getting better. Two weeks ago just sitting was painful. Just standing was a problem. Pain would get so bad, I'd get sick. 

Next week I will be able to drive farther, and stand up longer than I did last week. I'm looking at maybe 10-12 more weeks of pt. treatments .

[Osnola]

On 5/11/2018 at 1:52 AM, Patch said:

I can swing a golf club with no pain. I can stand still with no pain. I can sleep on my sides or back without pain. 

I cannot sit without pain. I cannot drive, or ride in a car with out pain. I cannot walk at my normal speed without pain. 

When I do have pain, it is in the same spot as discribed by the OP. Difference is it is in my right arm. 

About 6-7 weeks ago, I woke up with a sore neck. Kind of like when you sleep wrong, that usually goes away later on in the day. This didn't go away. It became so bad, my entire left shoulder and back became so painful, all I could do was lay in bed

After tests it was determined I had pinched nerve. Meds, and therapy has me feeling much better, but I still have soreness on top of my shoulder. I also have developed a tingling sensation in my right finger tips. I also have soreness as discribed by the OP 

Not saying the OP has a nerve issue. Just a little history of the same area of pain discribed. 

I had sore neck, pain in shoulder, down my upper back, tingling and burning down my left arm into my thumb and index finger. Also, intermittent spasm/pain in the bicep. I fought this for 15 years.  Tried meds, massage, PT, injection, everything.  Nothing really worked, somethings would mask the pain but never the tingling and numbness. 

I had 3 level ACDF surgery a week ago. I came out of surgery with no numbness and the neck/shoulder pain is gone.  Yeah, there is some surgery related pain and I feel like I have whip lash, but it will pass and the I’ll effectd of the nerves being compressed are gone. 

I was told that it would likely be 2 or 3 months before I can play golf or fish, but my hope is that I can make a complete swing from start to finish without pain. I will be able to see the hole when I putt from 15+ feet away because I will have more mobility in my neck. 

I tell you all this because they will treat you for a pinched nerve in the shoulder, give you injections and meds. They will not fix the problem. 

I am an older guy (69) but very active and have been athletic my whole life.  Don’t wait to long to get good diagnosis and treatment. 

[gregsandiego]

53 minutes ago, Osnola said:

I had sore neck, pain in shoulder, down my upper back, tingling and burning down my left arm into my thumb and index finger. Also, intermittent spasm/pain in the bicep. I fought this for 15 years.  Tried meds, massage, PT, injection, everything.  Nothing really worked, somethings would mask the pain but never the tingling and numbness. 

I had 3 level ACDF surgery a week ago. I came out of surgery with no numbness and the neck/shoulder pain is gone.  Yeah, there is some surgery related pain and I feel like I have whip lash, but it will pass and the I’ll effectd of the nerves being compressed are gone. 

I was told that it would likely be 2 or 3 months before I can play golf or fish, but my hope is that I can make a complete swing from start to finish without pain. I will be able to see the hole when I putt from 15+ feet away because I will have more mobility in my neck. 

I tell you all this because they will treat you for a pinched nerve in the shoulder, give you injections and meds. They will not fix the problem. 

I am an older guy (69) but very active and have been athletic my whole life.  Don’t wait to long to get good diagnosis and treatment. 

Thanks for the advice.

[Alx]

Ive gotten something similar when Ive done a alot of work infront of a mirror holding positions. Never really hurt when swinging.
Could just be the tricep/shoulder getting iritated from being overworked/constantly streched.

[Patch]

7 hours ago, Osnola said:

I had sore neck, pain in shoulder, down my upper back, tingling and burning down my left arm into my thumb and index finger. Also, intermittent spasm/pain in the bicep. I fought this for 15 years.  Tried meds, massage, PT, injection, everything.  Nothing really worked, somethings would mask the pain but never the tingling and numbness. 

I had 3 level ACDF surgery a week ago. I came out of surgery with no numbness and the neck/shoulder pain is gone.  Yeah, there is some surgery related pain and I feel like I have whip lash, but it will pass and the I’ll effectd of the nerves being compressed are gone. 

I was told that it would likely be 2 or 3 months before I can play golf or fish, but my hope is that I can make a complete swing from start to finish without pain. I will be able to see the hole when I putt from 15+ feet away because I will have more mobility in my neck. 

I tell you all this because they will treat you for a pinched nerve in the shoulder, give you injections and meds. They will not fix the problem. 

I am an older guy (69) but very active and have been athletic my whole life.  Don’t wait to long to get good diagnosis and treatment. 

Yeah, that what was going on with my right shoulder, and fingers, although the tingling fingers is not a constant issue. Have not had that for a couple days now. There is also the possibility the tingling fingers are from an older injury, and not part of what's going on now. 

My issue seems to be getting better. I have 3 doctors monitoring my rehab. Two are unpaid great people. One is a retired orthopedic surgeon. She does my pt. The other is a spine/brain guy. I golf with him. My primary, who gets paid, is through the VA health program. He networks with the other two. 

Surgery has been discussed as a last resort, if needed. I'm 68, and led a active life style too. As of yesterday, the only discomfort I feel is from driving/riding in a car for too long. They say the road vibration does something that aggrevates the initial injury. 

I went for a two mile walk, without any issues till the last 1/4 mile. Even then, that was just a dull soreness. I stood over 100+ practice putts earlier to day with no issues. Full swing golf shots are not a problem at all. 

Things are looking up. 

[gregsandiego]

On 5/11/2018 at 5:48 AM, MarvChamp said:

I'm not a doctor but sounds like my rotator cuff impingement. Physical therapy + a shorter back swing + pain management? Suggest you see an orthopedic physician. Best wishes, -Marv

My whole problem in golf has been too short a back swing. I think I was finally getting it LOL.

 

Update : this sucks. I took 2 weeks off of my daily little practice sessions to recover. My arm feels a better but my hitting ability has really suffered. Not as far, not as straight.

 

 

[Patch]

4 hours ago, gregsandiego said:

My whole problem in golf has been too short a back swing. I think I was finally getting it LOL.

 

Update : this sucks. I took 2 weeks off of my daily little practice sessions to recover. My arm feels a better but my hitting ability has really suffered. Not as far, not as straight.

 

 

Stay with the resting, and time off. I was pretty much on my back, in bed for 4-5 weeks. Then slowly but surely over the past week, or so, thing, have been looking better everyday. 

As mentioned above, if you haven't seen a doctor yet, I suggest you do. 

[gregsandiego]

On 5/19/2018 at 9:01 PM, Patch said:

Stay with the resting, and time off. I was pretty much on my back, in bed for 4-5 weeks. Then slowly but surely over the past week, or so, thing, have been looking better everyday. 

As mentioned above, if you haven't seen a doctor yet, I suggest you do. 

I am though I hate that this is Memorial day weekend and I can't hit the course at all.

 

[adampaul]

gregsandiego,

No need to worry It's a normal thing your body will adopt it. If you are facing this problem for a long time then you should go to the physiologist that can solve your problem. 

because, when I started playing Golf feel the pain but after some time your body gets used to it.  

Thanks

[golfjedi777]

Backswing repetition is a lot of stress on the shoulders and left arm. The movement stores energy to blast the ball but is not released through the down swing not happening. I would suggest warm up well stretch a lot and only do at the most 5 reps then rest and do again. No more then 5 sets.

 

Hope this helps

[JCrane]

On 5/10/2018 at 11:52 PM, Patch said:

I can swing a golf club with no pain. I can stand still with no pain. I can sleep on my sides or back without pain. 

I cannot sit without pain. I cannot drive, or ride in a car with out pain. I cannot walk at my normal speed without pain. 

When I do have pain, it is in the same spot as discribed by the OP. Difference is it is in my right arm. 

About 6-7 weeks ago, I woke up with a sore neck. Kind of like when you sleep wrong, that usually goes away later on in the day. This didn't go away. It became so bad, my entire left shoulder and back became so painful, all I could do was lay in bed

After tests it was determined I had pinched nerve. Meds, and therapy has me feeling much better, but I still have soreness on top of my shoulder. I also have developed a tingling sensation in my right finger tips. I also have soreness as discribed by the OP 

Not saying the OP has a nerve issue. Just a little history of the same area of pain discribed. 

I hate to tell you this but your pain will probably come back. Muscle relaxers and temporary therapy are temporary solutions to pinched nerves and herniated disks in my experience. The problem is compression. If you think about it ,day after day and year after year we are fighting gravity. Gravity pushes us down. To make matters worse we sit on chairs and car seats and toilets, and walk on cement floors.This creates compression in the spine. Compression can lead to disk problems and back pain. In my opinion we need to regularly decompress the spine which means stretching the muscles first.so the spine can lengthen.

On 5/10/2018 at 9:27 PM, gregsandiego said:

I have a new kind of left arm pain - for a few weeks now. I've been working very hard on a FULL back swing and I think it comes from that because I can feel the pressure/pinch at that point  (fully rotated during back swing).

It's about halfway between the shoulder and elbow, on the outside of the arm.

Oddly it doesn't bother me that much when hitting balls. But later, especially at night, it starts to ache.

Anyone else experience this ?

unfortunately most of us do not prepare the body for the game of golf and think we can prepare the body by practicing golf. Sometime that works but most times we end up with problems.Moving to a full swing requires muscle co operation and forcing the muscles to respond is not always the best solution. Just my opinion