Shoulder Pain When Benching

I love this question because I used to love lifting weights, but what does it mean when you have shoulder pain when you’re benching?

There are many young guys who love lifting weights. I was one of them. I was a heavy weightlifter when I played football in college, and I love lifting weights and powerlifting and all that stuff. However, benching is typically a little counterintuitive, and most guys are like, “Oh, it’s my rotator cuff” or something like that.

It’s not your rotator cuff 95% of the time, especially if you’re under 40. Typically, it’s something with your labrum, and we often see a posterior labral tear in young weightlifters. You see posterior labral tears from that sheer force over time. You can get anterior labral tears, sometimes slap tears, but it’s almost always a labral tear.

The best way to figure that out is to see a shoulder specialist—not just an orthopedic surgeon. We’ll be able to determine what’s going on and then figure out how to get you back to working out without the pain you’re having. But the first thing is to get the diagnosis.