Hi,
To frame my question: I have been kayaking for about 25 years now and am a 4 star BCU paddler, so I am an experienced paddler and I believe that my forward stroke is descent (although I would admit that of all the various strokes I think this one is hardest to master). And I am an avid weight lifter and don’t have any issues with muscle strength
I had to take a two-year break from kayaking. Before my break I noticed that I was getting a lot of muscle fatigue and associated pain in my left shoulder. I started paddling again recently and noticed the same thing. Within 5 minutes of paddling it becomes very uncomfortable for me and I have to stop paddling every five minutes or so becuase my left shoulder is fatigued. It’s now hard for me to paddle at all and to becuase of this.
I use a Werner Cyprus bent shaft at a 30 degree right offset and a right control hand. It is always my left shoulder that is an issue. I never have any issues with my right shoulder. I am also a canoeist and I am more comfortable paddling on the right side than left so I think my form is better on that side perhaps.
I am guessing that this is likely a form issue, or perhaps a biomechanical issue. I do have bad shoulders and shoulder impingement.
Can anyone give me some form issues that may help with this? I am being careful to exercise good form and to ensure that I make the paddle exit the water soon enough that I am not lifting water.
FWIW I have a GP as well and it produces less fatigue with my shoulder but does nto solve the issue
An MRI and consult with a top notch - like national team doc - would be your first move.
If you weight train and are not working with a paddling coach my guess is that you never work external rotators? They stabilize your shoulder, but are tiny muscles.
I suggest a visit to a sports physical therapist. After I fractured my shoulder some years ago I was give specific PT exercises. They worked and I still do them on both sides.
No wonder your shoulder hurts, you should stop for a break!
As others have said, it can’t really be diagnosed online, it needs a professional to look at your shoulder. You could ask someone to watch you paddle to see if they can spot any issues with your form. My first thought was that you might be using your arms and shoulders to power your stroke rather than larger muscles such as your torso and legs; this is something I’m trying to focus on myself at the moment.
It’s great that you’re back to paddling! That would be frustrating after 2 years off to have the issue still be there. Hopfully there’s some kind of physical therapy to bring all the nerve/muscle/circulation back up to full function. About all that comes to mind in practice would be to focus on keeping that shoulder in it’s neutral natural position throughout the stroke. Don’t roll it forward or back. But i think you probably have good self awareness in those type of things already.
Seems to be a “thing” that can happen to long time paddlers. Ken Whiting just reported needing to take another extended “break” after just coming back from a previous break.
Plenty of people have shoulder trouble as they age. Paddling requires repetitive motion for hours at a time. I have used physical therapy so many times I have lost count to get back in action.
I had shoulder trouble for several years. A telemark ski crash on ice did not help. A life with horses and motorcycles didn’t either.
I can attest that crunchy painful shoulders can be improved by simple exercises. Start with a can of soup in each hand. Work on range of motion exercises. Practice paddling strokes. Make a gentle throwing motion. Graduate to a large soup can. You can use light weights 5-7.5 pounds or so. This process allowed to bypass shoulder surgery.
Thanks so much for all the good comments. I think it may be a combination of factors that include the need for some PT and strengthening of rotator cuff muscles, and perhaps some minor issue with form that is exacerbating the problem. The pain is muscle pain in my side deltoid—the kind of pain you would get if you did 25 or 30 lateral raises with a light dumbell. I get this in the first 5 minutes of paddling. Given that I have good strenghth and fitness and pretty good form I think the answer must lie with some issue of muscular imbalance that could be addressed by PT. Even if I had horriblely bad form I would think it would be difficult to have muscle fatigue of that degree in such a short period of time.
I also have been dealing with some issues in my left arm as a result of pinched nerves in my neck. Maybe this is related to that. I did not consider that previously. I am planning to get surgery to correct the pinched nerve issue. Perhaps getting that problem fixed and doing some more PT will help.
In the meantime I am going to be very strict in focusing on good form. I think that I do tend to begin my paddle exit a little too far back and may be lifting some water. That may be contributing to the issue.
I do find PT to be very helpful and it is interesting to me how something like should impingement can cause you to compensate in a manner that results in poor strength or efficiency by over taxing certain muscles. Again, that may be a factor.
I obviously can’t diagnose your particular problem, but I will mention that I have long had a wonky lower neck vertebra which occasionally gets knocked out of alignment if I careless yank some heavy load with one arm, most often the left, OR if I roo quickly snap my head in a sharp turn, as one may do when your hands are full and somebody asks where something is and you head-gesture to indicate “over thataway”. This results in horrible spasms across my trapezious muscles in my upper back and sharp enough pain when I try to turn my head or reach either arm even close to above shoulder level. In the most recent case, when I stupidly yanked a yard work wagon loaded with composted chipped wood up a hill with my left arm, that arm was tender and painful from armpit to wrist, especially the forearm, even at rest for 10 days, until I was able to get a chiropractor to adjust the neck back in line. That cleared up the pain and paralysis about 80% right away and it was gradually resolved to 95% 4 days later.
I did do regular stretches as I recovered, most of which I get from the on line tips from the Brooklyn-based PhD/ PT DR. Dan Shapiro, whose “Project Physical Therapy” posts on Facebook give excellent advice and encouragement on solving joint issues. I had been a “guinea pig” 3 years ago as a volunteer for similar therapy and exercise counseling as he offers for low back pain at the University of Pittsburgh Sports Medicine research center with great outcome (no low back pain since) so I recognize the validity of his advice. He’s a little goofy in that he likes to include little dance routines in his videos (he was a competitive ballroom dancer in his younger days) but his advice and routines are solid.
I do know several people, my late mother included, who avoided serious back, knee and shoulder surgeries that had they were being pressed to have by going through a combination chiropractic and PT with exercise regimen by qualified practitioners. In fact my GP family doc had referred me to a chiro he trusted the first time I had that neck spasm incident. Mom was able to avoid ruptured disc surgery and the PT regimen from her chiro relieved back pain that had been leaving her prostrate on the floor in agony at times.
i know it was the strain and not just aging deterioration that caused that last bout of my shoulder and arm agony (even though I just turned 75 and have several healed bones and surgeries in the joints of both arms due to past sports accidents) because the week before it happened I had just returned from a kayaking vacation on the Maine coast where I paddled continuously and vigorously 3 to 7 hours a day. Had no discomfort at all during that trip or after UNTIL the mulch-hauling incident.
As was my experience with the back pain situation, I have learned that if I keep up with the strengthening and stretching exercises daily, the shoulder and arm stiffness and pain don’t manifest (helps also that I am now more careful to avoid doing stupidly abrupt high-strain movements.)
At age 84+, this has been my experience i.e. keep a consistent routine. Of course, every shoulder problem is unique, but if you somehow find a useful routine, keep at it.
Hi, to protect my shoulders I changed to a smaller blade size a couple of years ago. It took a few months to increase my paddle rate to keep up with my mates. I also avoid lifting my boat of the SUV on my own and work with 3 others to lift a loaded sea kayak. I warm up slowly and try to avoid heavy lifting of other things. Lots of little things to avoid strain. I have arthritis but am managing it with these measures. Best of luck.
Have you considered switching to a traditional (stick) paddle? My husband and I both experienced shoulder fatigue early on in our kayaking journey and made the switch. It’s been much better since.
I’ve been paddling since 1946 and switched from a traditional Euro paddle to a Greenland paddle --this isn’t a difficult process of learning something new, but rather an easy, natural shift. The main idea is that the Greenland paddle encourages a more efficient and natural paddling motion that is less strenuous on the body. Instead of using muscle and force, the technique relies on letting energy flow from the core. This can lead to less joint strain, more comfort, and the ability to paddle longer and more effortlessly, potentially allowing paddlers to enjoy the sport for more years. The text frames the change not as a step backward, but as a way to unlock a more natural and sustainable paddling experience.
