I'm 8 weeks post-op from shoulder surgery tomorrow. I put off a labrum repair for ten years, developed bad arthritis in my AC joint, then fell this winter and tore my rotator cuff. They "fixed" it all..... (This was after already being out for two months from an emergency surgery in January for a strangulated hernia!)
It doesn't help that I'm 46 with the typical plethora of other bodily ailments, and wasn't in great fitness to start with. I reached the heaviest I've ever been in my life!! (walking today at 5'9" 285#, and I dropped 10 pounds this last month!)
My Doc and PT are telling me I need to be 9-12 months post-op before I can roll again, and 18 months before I can go 90-100%!!! I've basically been off the mats since Christmas, and I am going fucking insane!!!!!
Who here has been through this?
What did you do to stay in shape?
Did you watch and learn from videos? Mental training? Something else?
What drills can I be doing for skill work?
My mind is frustrated, my body is antsy.... even my ACL didn't have this long of a projected recovery. I've been at purple belt since 2005, always teaching/training but sidetracked with a variety of issues over the last decade. I really want to start climbing that rank ladder again as soon as I'm healed up!
I NEED a bjj fix.... BAD. Something. Anything. Please help!! 
9z12 months?!??!
I had SLAP and brankhart, as well as a decompression. 4-5 months recovery.
I posted in other threads about training in a sling and just doing guard work with one arm. Earlier when I had ACL recon, I just sat on the mat and let people attack from my back and mount.
I may start one hand training again as I having bad inflamation in my suprasoinatus again with my bulging neck disk contributing to pain and impingment. Gotta find my old arm sling and put it on trainng. Heck, it hurts just sitting in an airplane seat for lousy 45 min ride!
Anyways, be safe, but theres lotts you can do even when recovering or dealing with chronic issues....just think and be smart
I tore my labrum back in 2008. It happened in early October and I did have to have surgery. After 9 weeks of carrying my arm in a sling I started physical therapy. I began training (kickboxing not BJJ though) in March the following year so I was out for a good 6 months. I took it easy at first but was back at 100% aound May that year.
I'm not sure how that translates to BJJ but I thought I share my recovery timeline. Hope you heal up soon again!
All the best
Marcus
Adam, I went through something similiar last year: a torn ligament in my ankle brought me to "no physical activity of any kind for 9 months". UGH.
My advice to you is twofold:
1) Don't try to cheat the recovery time. It sucks, but it doesn't suck as much as having to repeat it after reinjuring something. I know you've had your share over the years (and then some). Think of this as the opportunity to mend, so that you can come back to training 100%.
2) Use the time between now and then to prepare your body for the next phase. Do whatever your physician will allow to focus on your general physical conditioning, and anything BJJ appropriate that you can do without unduly stressing the shoulder.
All the best,
~Chris
Yeah it seems to be the rotator cuff tear and the ruptured/dislocated biceps tendon (I think I forgot to mention that in the first post) that will take the longest to heal. Just the labrum would have been roughly 6 months to 100%.
It definitely sucks. But I do know from past experience there are no shortcuts.
Thanks guys! Even the moral support helps.
Still sounds long. I had complete full thickness rotator cuff tear, a second partial thickness tear, a labrum tear, and bone spurs requiring acromioplasty. At 4-5 months was training with one hand in the belt. At 9 months probably close to 100%. Did you go to a Dr who regularly deals with athletes or consults pro sports teams? Makes a huge difference
My doc is a shoulder specialist who came recommended highly when my wife (a nurse) asked around. He's actually from the neighboring state but comes to our local hospital twice a month for surgeries and office visits.
yeah I believe I had acronioplasty too - I had such bad arthritis in my AC from the original injury twelve years ago that he shaved all that off and removed a few mm of my clavicle too. supposed to relieve some of the impingement.
I really hope you guys are right. I'm 8 weeks post-op as of yesterday, and I'm still having trouble sleeping at night with the constant pain. I would love to think I could be rolling one-handed in another 3 months, but I guess literally only time will tell on this one. I'm 46 years old too - could that make a difference in projected recovery time? I certainly know nothing else heals as fast as it did 20 or even 10 years ago. :-(
MarsMan - Adam, I've never had it that bad.Thanks man. Yeah, I like to think I eat and cook "mostly" healthy. I don't drink any alcohol, but soda is a huge vice of mine. Finally quit a hardcore 30-year Mountain Dew addiction at the beginning of 2015, replaced it with other soft drinks that I dont enjoy as much so I don't drink as much. Working in cutting back even more. Need to do like I did with the dew and just go cold turkey, find something else better. Maybe Gatorade, haha.. only half he calories. can't stand diet soda.
Since you've been given good advice on PT, I suggest you do your best on working on something you can control: diet.
Take whatever extra time you have and learn how to cook healthy stuff (I'm assuming you don't) and get that weight in check.
I recently signed up for a level 1 Cert course with Precision Nutrition. Getting ready to start studying that - hoping that will help me reach my weight goals, as I do know that eating is probably 75% or more of the problem. I eat good food mostly, but my portions are often too big, or I grab seconds cause I just like the food, or I eat too much late at night and/or skip breakfast etc. I suspect the size and timing of my meals is what needs to change the most.
twinkletoesCT -Wise advice, my friend. Duly noted, and I hope you're all healed up. Any chance of getting your dream job back? (I assume you left because of the ankle). Or are you moving on to other adventures?
Adam, I went through something similiar last year: a torn ligament in my ankle brought me to "no physical activity of any kind for 9 months". UGH.
My advice to you is twofold:
1) Don't try to cheat the recovery time. It sucks, but it doesn't suck as much as having to repeat it after reinjuring something. I know you've had your share over the years (and then some). Think of this as the opportunity to mend, so that you can come back to training 100%.
2) Use the time between now and then to prepare your body for the next phase. Do whatever your physician will allow to focus on your general physical conditioning, and anything BJJ appropriate that you can do without unduly stressing the shoulder.
All the best,
~Chris
Thanks, man. The ankle is healed and I've begun practicing for dance competition again. I'm probably too old to be a full time dancer, but I've got an amazing job in the Solar industry that lets me do great things while still having time to dance & train martial arts, so I've got no complaints :-D
Now I just have to finish losing all this extra weight from my year of recuperating (I'm halfway!)
The bjj advice here is great. But, I can't help but think that at 5'9'' 285#'s, you could focus on your weight more than bjj. I know it's hard to deal with being off the mats, believe me, I've been through the injuries and I feel you. But, EVERYTHING will be better if you improve your physical health, outside of bjj. That would be my #1 priority. Not trying to be a dick, but it's gonna make you better in all aspects of life if you take care of that first.
A_Butler - The bjj advice here is great. But, I can't help but think that at 5'9'' 285#'s, you could focus on your weight more than bjj. I know it's hard to deal with being off the mats, believe me, I've been through the injuries and I feel you. But, EVERYTHING will be better if you improve your physical health, outside of bjj. That would be my #1 priority. Not trying to be a dick, but it's gonna make you better in all aspects of life if you take care of that first.Oh I hear you loud and clear. I was always a slender yet muscular guy until I blew my ACL back in '97. At this point, my body is an orthopedic train wreck. I've had both elbows operated on, my knee three times, a foot surgery, a hernia repair, now my shoulder, and I have a permanent back injury from a car accident in '04. I used to be an avid runner in high school at 140 pounds, but I added 60 pounds of musculature and from just having my shoulder girdle and rib cage expand, etc when I filled out in my 20's. My ideal weight is probably in the low 200's at this point, so my first goal (besides healing from surgery) is definitely to lose about 70 pounds. I've been through that part before, a couple of times.
It's funny, one of my students who has roughly my build but is a personal trainer (and always in shape) told me something once. He said "Adam, when you are under 235, I'm scared of your guard. When you go over 235, your guard is nothing." Those words have haunted me for years!!! The things is, with all the injuries, a lot of the typical general condition exercise tend to cause me a lot of pain. Grappling is my workout of choice. My skills are high enough to protect myself, the cardio factor is high when I roll hard, but it doesn't hurt as much as say running or even walking or many body weight exercises do.
Still, once this shoulder is all healed up, I'm looking forward to being able to do push-ups and burpees and such again hopefully for the first time in a decade without excessive pain from them. There were many days before when I literally could not do 5 push-ups it would hurt so bad, and I've been told I have a fairly high pain threshold by more than one medical professional.
So now I'm rambling, but yes, definitely fitness and weight have to be prioritized. Like Chris said, I need to get ready now for that next phase.
Thanks guys.
Diet is not 75% of your weight problem it's 100% the problem. Give up soda and any other liquid that contains calories. It's all garbage. Drink water, eat fruit.
You need to commit to a lifelong change in diet so you can reduce and then maintain your weight. Walking around at 5'9' 285 is no good.
Losing weight doesn't take any sort of exercise plan, just a commitment to a healthy diet. You can't out exercise a soda habit. One can of regular soda contains your recommended daily allowance of added sugars. You can't exercise your way out of that sort of thing.
If you have shoulder injuries then forget push-ups and burpees. You're just asking to reinjure them. Consider straight bar bench press with correct form instead.
Ive taken 4 and 5 months off before. its terrible. Made even worse if you are eating like a normal person (not an active athele) bc your hungry all the time, but at least you dont gin weight.
Pick up a guitar, its fun and keeps you mind focusing on something else.