how to rehab a pulled bicep

How long does a pulled bicep take to heal?

It takes about 3 to 4 months for your biceps muscle to heal. You may be able to do easier daily activities in 2 to 3 weeks, as long as you don't use your injured arm. Most people who work at a desk job can return to work in 1 to 2 weeks.

How do you rehab a strained bicep?

Step 1: Stand upright and hold a yardstick, broom, or other stick behind your back in both hands, knuckles facing down. Step 2: Slowly raise the stick up your back with both hands until you feel a stretch in your injured arm. Step 3: Hold this position for thirty seconds, then gently release your arms back down.Nov 8, 2020

What is the fastest way to heal a pulled bicep?

The best way to heal bicep tendonitis involves a combination of various treatment methods:Rest. Rest is vital to healing tendon injuries. ... Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) ... Ice. ... Physical therapy. ... Pendulum stretches. ... Wall walks. ... Steroid injections. ... Non-surgical treatments.More items...•Jun 3, 2021

Can a bicep strain heal on its own?

Will a bicep tendon heal itself? Once a bicep is torn, it unfortunately will not reattach itself to the bone and heal on its own. There are, however, a variety of treatment options available depending on the severity of your injury and whether it was a partial or complete tear.

Did I pull a muscle in my bicep?

The most common symptom of a bicep tear or strain is a sudden burst of pain in the upper arm near the shoulder. You could also hear a “popping” sound as the tendon tears. Other signs that you may have torn a bicep tendon can include: Weakness in the shoulder.

How do you know if you tore your bicep?

The most obvious symptom will be a sudden, severe pain in the upper part of your arm or at the elbow, depending on where the tendon is injured. You may hear or feel a "pop" when a tendon tears. Other signs that you may have torn a biceps tendon can include: Sharp pain at the shoulder or elbow.Oct 17, 2018

How do you fix a sore bicep?

TreatmentRest: Avoid using the injured muscle as much as possible.Ice: Apply ice packs to the bruised area a few times per day for 20 minutes at a time, making sure that the ice is not directly touching the skin.Compression: Wrap the upper arm in a bandage.Elevate: Keep the arm lifted above heart level.Feb 24, 2021

Why does the middle of my bicep hurt?

Common causes of pain in the middle of the bicep include muscle strain, bruises, and DOMS after exercise. Mild injuries usually get better on their own, while more severe ones may require medical treatment and physical therapy. Sometimes, pain in the left arm can indicate a heart attack.May 27, 2021

Can I still workout with a torn bicep tendon?

A complete tear means the tendon has torn away from the bone. Biceps tendon tears around the shoulder almost exclusively occur in the long head. In the case of a complete tear of the long head tendon, the short head tendon will allow you to continue using your biceps muscle.

What does bicep tendonitis feel like?

The most common symptoms of biceps tendinitis include: Pain in the front of the shoulder that is made worse when pulling, lifting, or doing repeated overhead activities. A dull ache that radiates from the upper arm to the elbow. Popping or clicking near the shoulder that often gets worse at night.

What exercises can I do with a torn bicep tendon?

Biceps Tendon Strengthening ExercisesElbow flexion and extension. Gently bend your injured arm and place your palm up to your shoulder. ... Biceps curl. Hold a 5 or 8-pound weight or a half-gallon water bottle in your injured arm and lift it forward towards your shoulder. ... Resisted shoulder external rotation. ... Sleeper stretch.

What are the Causes and Symptoms of a Torn Bicep?

First, you need to know what a torn bicep is. A torn bicep can mean a couple of different things. Often, this refers to a torn tendon that connects the bicep muscle to the arm. The tendon usually tears around the elbow. The other form of bicep tear occurs when the muscle itself has torn. As for what causes these tears, it’s pretty basic stuff.

Diagnosing Bicep Tears

You think you may have torn your bicep in one way or another, and you’ve made your way to a doctor to properly diagnose the problem. In the case of a torn bicep, X-rays are not much help, with the exception of ruling out a cracked elbow. X-rays can’t really show a tendon or muscle tissue even if it’s torn.

Recovering from a Bicep Tear

The doctor has diagnosed your bicep and, unfortunately, all of your suspicions were true; you’ve torn your bicep. The next thing you have to do is figure out which path to recovery you have to take. Will you be able to recover with rehab and rest or is it more serious and will you need surgery?

Exercises to Treat a Torn Bicep

Once your bicep is fixed up, you will probably want to jump back into exercising or sports again, but there are a few things you should keep in mind.

Be Careful with a Bicep Tear

As you have probably figured out, bicep tears are not a fun type of injury. It’s painful, and can require surgery, months of inactivity, and a slow road to recovery. The two important things to remember are to get it diagnosed as soon as possible and take your recovery slowly.

Trigger Point Massage

Before you begin exercising your bicep, try trigger point massage to reduce pain, swelling and stiffness in the muscle. Gently massage your bicep, looking for muscle knots or hardened muscles. When you find them, press on them -- massaging in one direction only -- while slowly bending your elbow to improve your range of motion.

Biceps Stretches

Stretching your bicep can encourage the muscle to heal and reduce tension, but you should never force an uncomfortable stretch. Face a wall, and extend your arm straight out so that your hand touches the wall. Slowly rotate your body away from your arm until you feel a stretch. Hold for 30 seconds, then stand up straight with your arms behind you.

Weight Training

A simple weight-bearing exercise can help you gain strength in your bicep and prevent the muscle from atrophying as it heals. Stand up straight and hold a small hand weight in your hand. With your arm pointed downward, bend your elbow and slowly lift the weight toward your shoulder in a bicep curl.

Rotations

Rotations can help improve your range of motion while gently stretching your muscles. Lie on the side of the arm that is not injured, and bend your injured arm at your elbow, forming a 90-degree angle. Lift your arm toward the ceiling while keeping your elbow pressed up against your side. Hold for two to five seconds, then lower your arm.

Biceps Tendon Tear Exercises

Most often biceps tears at the elbow damage the entire tendon, requiring surgery, as explained by the Mayo Clinic. You will likely wear a hinged elbow brace for up to eight weeks as the tendon heals.

Start Isometric Training

While the biceps tendon is still sore in the early months after surgery, you will typically begin gentle isometric strengthening around 12 weeks after surgery, according to an article published in April 2019 by the International Journal of Sports Physical Therapy.

Add Some Light Weight Training

According to the International Journal of Sports Physical Therapy article, at 16 weeks after surgery the tendon is likely strong enough to be able to withstand light weight training.

Getting Back to Full Strength

You can plan to wait at least six months to return to unrestricted weight lifting after distal biceps surgery. When you can lift heavy weights with no pain, there are many exercises you can do to fully strengthen your bicep tendon.

Usually a result of overuse

You may envision a bicep injury resulting from a single incident, like lifting a particularly heavy dumbbell or struggling with heavy furniture. But many times, bicep injuries in adults are overuse injuries and they are more common as we age.

Advice to speed recovery

Bicep injuries can cause you pain, but they don’t require an immediate visit to your doctor.

When to see a doctor

If you’re still experiencing pain after a few weeks of these at-home treatments, it’s time to call your doctor.

Proximal biceps tendon tear at shoulder

This injury occurs when one of the tendons that attaches the bicep to the shoulder tears. The long head tendon is more likely to tear than the short head tendon. This type of tear often starts as normal tendon fraying, but can also tear if you get injured.

Distal biceps tendonitis and tear at the elbow

A bicep tendon tear at the elbow usually happens when the elbow is pushed straight against a heavy weight. This stress can tear the tendon from the bone, and usually causes a complete tear.

Tendonitis (microtears from use)

Tendonitis is the inflammation or irritation of the long head of the bicep tendon. This can cause microtears. As with distal biceps tendonitis, tendonitis of the long head of the biceps tendon is usually due to normal wear and tear, but can also be made worse by repetitive motion.

Rest

Taking time off from exercising, lifting, or holding anything heavy — and using your arm as little as possible — can help you recover, especially from overuse injuries. Be sure to avoid any activity that causes pain, even if it doesn’t seem strenuous.

NSAIDs

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are over-the-counter medications that help reduce inflammation. They can help reduce the inflammation (the hallmark of tendonitis), as well as help reduce swelling from bicep tears. They can also help reduce the pain you might have from any bicep tendon injuries.

Physical therapy

Physical therapy can help you regain strength and range of motion after a bicep tendon injury. A physical therapist will take you through a series of motions designed to help heal your injury and relieve pain.

Torn bicep surgery

If none of the measures above help your bicep injury heal, or if more than half the tendon is torn, your doctor might recommend surgery to repair the bicep tendon.

What is a bicep tear or strain?

A bicep tear is a strain or tear in the bicep muscle that can occur in the shoulder or elbow. The tear can be complete (the tendon has torn completely away from the bone) or partial.

Symptoms of bicep tear or strain

The most common symptom of a bicep tear or strain is a sudden burst of pain in the upper arm near the shoulder. You could also hear a “popping” sound as the tendon tears. Other signs that you may have torn a bicep tendon can include:

Treatment of bicep tear or strain

In most cases, nonsurgical treatments will relieve the symptoms associated with a torn or strained bicep. Nonsurgical treatment options include rest, ice and anti-inflammatory medications.

Symptoms of a pulled arm muscle

The affected area becomes tender and painful especially when it is pressed.

Treatment

Take plenty of rest especially the affected muscle. Stop performing activities that resulted to a pulled arm muscle. Since this injury involves small tears in the muscle fibers, excessive exertion could make the tear larger and further aggravating the injury.

Tips

Warm up properly to prevent over-straining of the muscles. Take time to stretch and condition the muscles before performing any physical activities.