Shoulder pain while running

emilym173

Hey everyone! Lately, I have been getting sharp pain at the top of my right shoulder (at the acromioclavicular joint) while I run. I'm thinking it is because I am keeping my upper body too tense. I've tried stretching my arms and shoulders before I run and keeping my hands open during the run (I imagine that I look like I am doing the robot to cars passing by!), but I still get the shoulder pain. It's weird too because I never get it in my left shoulder and I fractured my left shoulder a year ago!
Anyone have any advice? I'm on week 4 of C25k. I've been doing great so far, but I'm worried that this will continue and slow down my progress now that I am getting into the running-heavy portion of the program.

rduhlir

Shoulder pain could also be from over extension of your arms when you run, too. Take your body and draw an imaginary line from head to toe, no part of your arm should cross that line. That includes hands. If you start crossing that line, you start putting unneeded tension on your shoulders and back because of the over extension you are creating.

As far as the added tension when running...I sometimes get this. Try rolling your shoulders back at the start of every run. This will relieve some of the stress you are creating. Once you start running solid, roll them back every 5 minutes or so. Or just sigh deeply, and that will sometimes naturally relax them. Sometimes if those two things don't work for me, I will run with arms extended further down so that my hands are swinging about hip level.

Hope this helps.

likitisplit

I tend to hold my arms to close. I let them simply flop around for about a week to wean myself of the habit. One thing I realized during that period was that I was using my arms to counterbalance my torso. By forcing my core muscles to do their job, I became a better runner.

heyjude345

Oh yes...I know this pain well! I know that I hold my upper body too tense when I run. I have been able to, over the last few weeks, consciously remind myself to run looser in my arms. It has helped immensely! When I'm running, I will sometimes let my arms go limp at my sides (which I'm sure is amusing to look at), just to fully relax them and then go back to my usual stance.