Please help me loosen my tight pecs

[InTraining]

I don't have any chest\back strength imbalances or anything like that...I do rotator exercises..keep the external rotators strong etc....

I get sternal pain on certain exercises though(dips, close grip bench) which I think is related to a tightness in my pecs...

What should I do to fix this?

 

[InTraining]

bump....cmon I know someone has the same problem....

 

[wnt2bBeast]

i saw your post before unfortunately i couldnt really think of anything to help ya..do you stretch regularly?

 

[InTraining]

i saw your post before unfortunately i couldnt really think of anything to help ya..do you stretch regularly?

Yeh I try to as much as possible...wall stretches don't really do too much for me...so I do one where you put your hands behind your head and lean back...

Says I have to spread around the karma a bit...

 

[bigstve12]

do you do the doorway pec stretch

 

[InTraining]

do you do the doorway pec stretch

Oops..by wall stretch I meant door stretch...

Yes..I have tried it...but not much relief and I don't really feel like it is doing anything...

Anyone got a link of how to do it correctly? I have googled stuff before and come up with very little...

 

[Sub-Zero]

i get sternal pain from dips....

 

[wnt2bBeast]

Yeh I try to as much as possible...wall stretches don't really do too much for me...so I do one where you put your hands behind your head and lean back...

Says I have to spread around the karma a bit...

to tell you the truth im not really sure how to strecthc the pecs..i always tend to stretch my delts rotator before heavy pressing..so if any one knows chime in please!!

 

[InTraining]

i get sternal pain from dips....

Do you still do them? Anything alleviate the pain?

Please elaborate bro...

 

[Illuminati]

hey bro, is it your sternum (the bone between your pecs) or is it actually your pecs?

 

[InTraining]

hey bro, is it your sternum (the bone between your pecs) or is it actually your pecs?

Well I think it is inflammation of the sternal cartiledge...forget the exact name....

Supposedly it's pretty common I just don't know if it is related to tight pecs(I'm not even sure if mine are) but when doing dips or close grip benches it feels like my chest cavity is being forcibly opened by a vice...

Thanks for the help here's some karma

 

[bignate73]

in DC training the best way to do it without straining the elbows is to just take some light/medium weight dbells and go into the bottom of a chest press position and try to relax. works pretty well.

 

[InTraining]

in DC training the best way to do it without straining the elbows is to just take some light/medium weight dbells and go into the bottom of a chest press position and try to relax. works pretty well.

I have been doing the weighted stretch for a minute and noticing that my chest is looking a lot fuller...

Hmm maybe the problem is cured and I just don't know it? I haven't done dips or close grip benches in awhile...

Thanks for the help..says I can't give you karma

 

[Illuminati]

Well I think it is inflammation of the sternal cartiledge...forget the exact name....

Supposedly it's pretty common I just don't know if it is related to tight pecs(I'm not even sure if mine are) but when doing dips or close grip benches it feels like my chest cavity is being forcibly opened by a vice...

Thanks for the help here's some karma

if it was in the muscle itself, i would say try massaging it. have you gone to see a doctor about it? ill give my dad a call later (he's a general practitioner) he'll probably be able to give me some advice that i could pass on to you. ill let you know what he says....

 

[InTraining]

if it was in the muscle itself, i would say try massaging it. have you gone to see a doctor about it? ill give my dad a call later (he's a general practitioner) he'll probably be able to give me some advice that i could pass on to you. ill let you know what he says....

Hey thanks a lot!! I have talked to a doctor and they basically told me what I already knew..that it is a mild condition and that rest will most likely take care of it...

At one time I thought it was because of my age(18) that the cartiledge is still very flexible and exercises like dips really stretch it out...

 

[Debaser]

Do incline flyes (with light weights), but do them slowly and make sure you're exhaling as you stretch at the bottom.

 

[Illuminati]

Hey thanks a lot!! I have talked to a doctor and they basically told me what I already knew..that it is a mild condition and that rest will most likely take care of it...

At one time I thought it was because of my age(18) that the cartiledge is still very flexible and exercises like dips really stretch it out...

i talked to my dad a little while ago. he said that you are experiencing shortness of breath accompanied due to the pain in your sternum, you could have a problem with your heart. but judging how you said that it started when you were doing dips and bench press, you could have strained or pulled a muscle. but seeing how pulling a chest muscle would more than likely be one of the most painful things that you could do, you probably just strained a muscle, since the pectoral muscles tie in at the sternum.

with that said, he also said that i owe him $100. so i told him to put it on my tab (its a running joke that we have.) i think i unofficially owe him $500,000.

 

[Sub-Zero]

Do you still do them? Anything alleviate the pain?

Please elaborate bro...

im new to lifting, so i dont really listen to my body yet...


but whenever i dip it feels like my shoulders are guna rip out if i go too low, and then my sternum starts to feel like its being ripped and pushed in at the same time...like tectonic movement. it lasts for about 10 seconds after, but then i do another set. (i havnt really started weighted dips yet though, i pretty much do as much to failure as i can after tricep day just to finish off) im sure the pain would be much worse with weight on it

 

[InTraining]

i talked to my dad a little while ago. he said that you are experiencing shortness of breath accompanied due to the pain in your sternum, you could have a problem with your heart. but judging how you said that it started when you were doing dips and bench press, you could have strained or pulled a muscle. but seeing how pulling a chest muscle would more than likely be one of the most painful things that you could do, you probably just strained a muscle, since the pectoral muscles tie in at the sternum.

with that said, he also said that i owe him $100. so i told him to put it on my tab (its a running joke that we have.) i think i unofficially owe him $500,000.

Thanks again for the help!! I doubt it is a muscle strain as I have no problems with other movements(incline db,flat db, hs presses, incline bb to name a few) but let me tell you it is quite annoying!

 

[InTraining]

im new to lifting, so i dont really listen to my body yet...


but whenever i dip it feels like my shoulders are guna rip out if i go too low, and then my sternum starts to feel like its being ripped and pushed in at the same time...like tectonic movement. it lasts for about 10 seconds after, but then i do another set. (i havnt really started weighted dips yet though, i pretty much do as much to failure as i can after tricep day just to finish off) im sure the pain would be much worse with weight on it

Ah...seems i'm not alone here! Has it affected you on any of your other chest movements? Oddly enough the stretch from doing pullups will affect it sometimes!

 

[InTraining]

Did dips today...seems like I only have pain at the bottom of movement..pain was not like excruciating but still uncomfortable...right side of sternum inner pec

Anyways thanks for the feedback everyone I will continue to try and work on this