Pulled Lower Trapezius

[goldenthree]

I was wondering what I could to help heal more quickly, and how long I have to take off lifting?

[mike]

use some ibuprofen and take it easy.. it may just be sore or spasmed. re-evaluate in 48-72 hours.

[Blut Wump]

I pulled mine a couple of years ago. It put a hole in my deadlifting for months. You can count on at least a couple of months before it starts to feel right.

[Beverly McD.]

Ice it too. Every day, several times per day if possible.

[goldenthree]

I was also wondering how long I should before starting full weight training again? 1 week or 2 weeks? Also I was curious when I should start doing light exercises to help with repair and blood flow. Something like pull downs with 25% of usual weight and then working up as pain permits. Its seems like a pretty moderate sprain with the first day of injury being constantly painful except for laying in very specific positions. Second day being painful about 2 thirds of the time. Third day mostly uncomfortable with a couple of positions bringing pain, and the fourth day(today) being only occasional pain.

[Beverly McD.]

Rule of thumb usually is.... if it hurts don't do it.

If it doesn't hurt I would probably for for it!

[Blut Wump]

Work exercises which avoid the pain rather than ones to test the limits of the pain. Accept straight away that the exercise which broke the muscle is a no-go area for at least a month, maybe longer, depending on what the exercise was.

If you were gearing up for a meet then it might be a different situation. For the sake of simple training, the very last thing you want to risk is worsening the injury. For blood flow, simple, light, fluid motions will do that and give a low-stress stretch. Your cardio is probably adequate to the task. Ice the area after workouts.