Shoulder Exercises

jrloveless

Hi. I'm an on again off again MFPer because I suffer from severe migraines. After much process of elimination I have pretty much found out 95% of the headaches I get are caused by tension in the muscles because they're weak.

I did a round of physical therapy 2 years ago and was basically migraine free for six months. Any heavy lifting, any repetitive motions, even vacuuming causes headaches. I am hoping someone here might have some good suggestions on shoulder exercises I can do to start building those muscles?

If I can get rid of the migraines I can stay motivated to lose the weight. I did it for the six months I was migraine free and lost over fifty lbs.

Any help would be appreciated. Thank you.

jayemes

From someone who deals with chronic pain, I would think that you should mimic whatever you did in PT that helped previously

Wheelhouse15

As a person who gets both migraines and tension headaches this sounds more like a tension headache than migraine, but regardless you should be seeking medical advice for medical issues to ensure that you get the correct diagnosis and treatment plan. Giving you a workout program online without knowing what is really going on could be more detrimental than beneficial.

Good luck to you.

TavistockToad

can you not just do what you did in physical therapy before?

H_Ock12

I would start by doing the previous PT exercises and progress from there once you've built that strength back up. In the meanwhile, do you have a doctor/neurologist that will prescribe you medication to help prevent the migraines or stop them when you feel them start to occur?

jrloveless

MotherOfSharpei wrote: »

I would start by doing the previous PT exercises and progress from there once you've built that strength back up. In the meanwhile, do you have a doctor/neurologist that will prescribe you medication to help prevent the migraines or stop them when you feel them start to occur?

I've seen two neurologists. The pills they gave me don't work or aren't meant for tension headaches. :-/ I've been to many many doctors and had several different procedures done. Botox, corticosteroid injections, MRIs, etc. I have yet to find a doctor who is able to find a solution.

In answer to the other questions posed already:
I would do the PT exercises but only remember a couple of them and don't have access to some of the machines they used. I have access to a gym at my company and there is one of the equipment they used there. We have a personal trainer at my company as well that I am going to consult so it's not me looking to receive medical advice but I don't think asking for exercises to strengthen the muscles in my shoulders can be considered medical advice.

I don't want to attempt any type of exercises aside from walking on my own even without the headaches. I am too likely to do it wrong and end up hurting myself.

TavistockToad

jrloveless wrote: »

MotherOfSharpei wrote: »

I would start by doing the previous PT exercises and progress from there once you've built that strength back up. In the meanwhile, do you have a doctor/neurologist that will prescribe you medication to help prevent the migraines or stop them when you feel them start to occur?

I've seen two neurologists. The pills they gave me don't work or aren't meant for tension headaches. :-/ I've been to many many doctors and had several different procedures done. Botox, corticosteroid injections, MRIs, etc. I have yet to find a doctor who is able to find a solution.

In answer to the other questions posed already:
I would do the PT exercises but only remember a couple of them and don't have access to some of the machines they used. I have access to a gym at my company and there is one of the equipment they used there. We have a personal trainer at my company as well that I am going to consult so it's not me looking to receive medical advice but I don't think asking for exercises to strengthen the muscles in my shoulders can be considered medical advice.

I don't want to attempt any type of exercises aside from walking on my own even without the headaches. I am too likely to do it wrong and end up hurting myself.

I'd go back to the PT then.

Wheelhouse15

jrloveless wrote: »

MotherOfSharpei wrote: »

I would start by doing the previous PT exercises and progress from there once you've built that strength back up. In the meanwhile, do you have a doctor/neurologist that will prescribe you medication to help prevent the migraines or stop them when you feel them start to occur?

I've seen two neurologists. The pills they gave me don't work or aren't meant for tension headaches. :-/ I've been to many many doctors and had several different procedures done. Botox, corticosteroid injections, MRIs, etc. I have yet to find a doctor who is able to find a solution.

In answer to the other questions posed already:
I would do the PT exercises but only remember a couple of them and don't have access to some of the machines they used. I have access to a gym at my company and there is one of the equipment they used there. We have a personal trainer at my company as well that I am going to consult so it's not me looking to receive medical advice but I don't think asking for exercises to strengthen the muscles in my shoulders can be considered medical advice.

I don't want to attempt any type of exercises aside from walking on my own even without the headaches. I am too likely to do it wrong and end up hurting myself.

So looks like you have taken the first steps. I would recommend, however, that you seek out a medical exercise specialist, certified kinesiologist rather than of a generic personal trainer as these are people that specialize in training those with medical conditions.

sargeca

You might try this site. ExercisesForInjuries.com. Rick has a program called Shoulder Pain Solved that might help you along the way.

canadianlbs

if you dont remember the exercises, can you recall the names of the muscles that were implicated? once you know what you need to strengthen, the internet is a pretty rich resource.

failing that, eric cressey is one of the people whose content i liked about shoulders. disclaimer though: i found him while researching help for an impingement issue, not for headaches.

Chieflrg

jrloveless wrote: »

Hi. I'm an on again off again MFPer because I suffer from severe migraines. After much process of elimination I have pretty much found out 95% of the headaches I get are caused by tension in the muscles because they're weak.

I did a round of physical therapy 2 years ago and was basically migraine free for six months. Any heavy lifting, any repetitive motions, even vacuuming causes headaches. I am hoping someone here might have some good suggestions on shoulder exercises I can do to start building those muscles?

If I can get rid of the migraines I can stay motivated to lose the weight. I did it for the six months I was migraine free and lost over fifty lbs.

Any help would be appreciated. Thank you.

To build muscle mass, heavy lifting and repetitive motions are required. If you aren't able to do so, your next move would be the one suggested above to alleviate the headaches.