SquatLord2k,
Sorry to hear of your pec injury. I also tore my right pec about eight years ago while flat benching. I was on my 4/6 rep of 365# when I felt a sharp pain shoot across my pec. When the muscle tear occurred I’d shrugged it off as a minor tear and did not seek medical attention right away – big mistake. A couple of days later I tried to flat bench again and experienced even more intense pain and that’s when I knew the injury was worse than I’d originally thought. The next morning my right pec sore as hell, black&blue and swollen. I immediately visited my orthepedic doctor that morning & after examining the tear and taking into consideration that 72+hrs had passed since the injury, scheduled me asap for surgery later that same evening. My orthopedic doc had previous surgical experience with chest/pec injuries, so I was very lucky in that respect. It was a tedious 3-hour surgery and was described to me as taking the torn muscle fibers (like spaghetti noodles) and one by one – stretching them back across my chest and re-attaching them. Afterwards, my orth-doc told me that I had torn away about 40% of the pec and that he was able to piece back together the majority of the muscle – but not all of it! He guess-timated that after time & rehab that my right pec would recover to about 90% of what it was before the injury. He did do a good job of hiding the 5-inch scar under my armpit and the only thing noticeable today is when I flex my pecs, you can see a horizontal gap running ½ way across my right pec, traveling towards my armpit. I was able to regain my bench strength within a couple/three years, but it required a good deal of patience and reserve – not pushing too much weight too soon. Back then it seemed like it was a long slow road back, but looking back now 8 yrs later & it’s almost like it never happened - just be patient and don’t push the pec too soon.
My only recommendations are; time is of the essence as far as surgical re-attachment is concerned (so don’t procrastinate a decision) and if your Doctor does not have prior experience with this type of injury/surgery – get a second opinion from an experienced orthopedic surgeon asap. Anyway, good luck if you opt for surgery and subsequent rehab! Be patient & positive and you’ll do fine.
Peace,
/Native
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