Chest and back pain doing push-ups

There are many ways to exercise, and doing push-ups is one way to make your arms stronger. However, this kind of exercise is only a lifetime

When it comes to static muscle training, the most comprehensive exercise should be running. Of course, many people cannot stick to it. However, some people feel obvious pain in the chest and back when doing push-ups. Why is that? This is because you don't do it often and don't stretch your muscles. It will get better over time.

Why does my back hurt when doing push-ups?

Generally, back pain after doing push-ups is relatively rare. If it does occur, it is usually due to the following two reasons, the first of which is more common.

Normal muscle soreness

Push-ups mainly exercise the pectoralis major, triceps, anterior deltoid, etc. However, a certain amount of back muscle strength will also be mobilized, which will lead to accumulation of lactic acid in the back, slight damage to muscle fibers, and normal muscle soreness. This is often more obvious when doing push-ups for the first time.

Descending too low and straining the muscles

When lowering your body to do push-ups, lowering your chest too low and squeezing your back too much, exercising suddenly without warming up, or moving too vigorously may all lead to strained back muscles. However, this situation rarely happens under normal circumstances.

2 What to do if your back hurts after doing push-ups

Stretch

Static stretching is one of the most effective ways to deal with muscle soreness. It involves stretching your muscles to the extreme, keeping still and holding them for more than 15 seconds.

massage

Massage can promote local blood circulation, help remove lactic acid and relax muscles.

Hot and cold compresses

Alternate between applying ice packs and heat packs to the sore areas of your back for 15 minutes at a time, repeating the cycle. Changing temperatures between hot and cold can help speed up blood circulation and muscle recovery. It is very effective in relieving muscle soreness.

Take a hot bath

Taking a hot bath is also very helpful in relieving arm pain and can also reduce sports fatigue. However, hot bath should be taken half an hour after exercise, and the water temperature should not be too high.

rest

Rest is the most important way to relieve pain. Resting allows the body to adjust automatically, helps metabolism, and helps relieve fatigue.

3 What to do if you strain your back while doing push-ups

Stop Movement

After a shoulder strain, the shoulder will experience redness, swelling and congestion. At this time, you should stop exercising immediately to avoid causing greater damage.

Cold compress

When your shoulder is just strained, you can apply cold compresses. Wrap ice cubes in a towel and apply them to your shoulder. This can help constrict local blood vessels and reduce inflammatory responses. It should be noted that cold compress can only be used when a strain first occurs and cannot be used continuously.

Heat

You can apply hot compress three days after the injury by applying a hot towel to the shoulder. Because this is the recovery stage of the muscles, hot compress can promote local blood circulation and accelerate the healing of long-term tense muscle tissue.

Taking painkillers

If you feel unbearable pain in your shoulder area, you can take painkillers such as aspirin to relieve it and help you carry out normal daily activities.

4 Is back pain serious after doing push-ups?

Muscle soreness is not serious, strain is more serious.

If it is muscle soreness, it is not serious. It is a normal and positive phenomenon, because the process of muscle growth itself is a process of muscle fiber damage and repair, thereby increasing its size.

If it is a muscle strain, the situation may be more serious than muscle soreness. In this case, the pain is more obvious, damages body tissues, and limits body movement, affecting normal activities.

5 Can I continue to do push-ups after back pain?

It is not recommended to do it immediately.

It is recommended to rest for a day or two for normal muscle soreness, and then continue exercising after the pain subsides. Even if the soreness is not obvious, you should rest for a day before continuing training. If you have a muscle strain, you should not do exercises that involve your back until your injury has fully recovered to avoid causing greater damage. However, you can do some light back movements to help with recovery.

6 How long does it take for back pain after doing push-ups to heal?

Muscle soreness generally does not require special treatment and the pain will disappear after three to five days; however, muscle strain is more serious and requires certain treatment. Mild cases may require about a week, and severe cases may take a month to recover.

7 How to prevent back pain after doing push-ups

Warm up thoroughly

Warm up thoroughly before exercise, stretch your ligaments, move your joints, and move your shoulders, back, chest, hands and other parts to avoid possible injuries from doing pull-ups directly.

Correct action

Don't push up too hard, and don't lower yourself too low. Rapid lifting and lowering, coupled with going too deep, can easily cause back compression and muscle strain. Start by lowering your arms so that they are parallel to your body.

Step by step

Excessive exercise can easily lead to a large accumulation of lactic acid, severe muscle fatigue, and severe muscle soreness. Exercise should not be rushed. It should be started with small doses and low intensity, and then the intensity can be gradually increased after the athletic ability improves.

8. Differences between muscle strain and muscle soreness

Many people cannot tell the difference between muscle strain and muscle soreness - muscle soreness gradually increases with exercise time, while muscle and ligament strain occurs suddenly due to an damaging movement. The two can be judged by stretching: muscle soreness can be relieved by stretching, while sports injuries will aggravate the pain due to stretching.