Community

Yesterday I had a participant ask me what she could be doing wrong during the squat track to cause a "pins and needles" type sensation and sometimes a numbness in her arms during the squat track.

She said that she had experienced this in all of the other BP classes she had attended and had to put the bar down because she was worried so much.  Her technique looked fine during the track; I asked her if she felt the same or similar sensation in any other track (ie shoulders or back) and she did not - it only affects her during the squat track.

I have no ideas what could be the cause and wondered if any other BP instructors had ever come across this before.  In the end I advised her to check it out with her GP.

I've never heard of that before. Sounds strange. The only thing I can think of is that maybe she's holding the bar too tight... (???)

Good call on referring her to her doctor!

---

If you're not going to push yourself, who is?! Get out of your comfort zone!!!

It could be something as simple as holding the bar too tight. Have you noticed this client keeping the elbows under the bar? Watch next time and confirm. It she is not and her elbows are pointing backwards while holding bar then there may be a problem with her infraspinatus and teres major muscles.  Does your clients posture suggest rounded shoulders? Its so maybe her pecs need releasing?

 A nice test is to get the client to lie on the floor, bend elbows at 90 degress with elbows in line with shoulders. Get her to try and touch the floor with the back of her hand. Is there a restriction there? then while continuing to keep elbows on floor rotate the shoulder forward to try and get the palms to touch the floor (medial rotation). Again see if there is a restriction. Any restrictions may be helped with assisted stretching.

 

Hope all that makes sense.

Keep us up to date. regards michael
 

Thanks for your replies - much appreciated.

I will ask her about whether or not she is gripping the bar too tightly and also get her to do the test you refer to Michael.

 I will let you know the outcome!

Helen

Hi,

Interesting to hear someone else has a simililar problem to me!! I have been doing pump for about 2 years now. About 3 months ago I began to get a tingling/warm feeling in my hand about half way through squat track. At the time I was lifting 12kg each side, thought it may be too heavy, so reduced to 9/10, this did not stop the sensation! I have tried re positioning my grip etc but nothing seems to help. It stops as soon as I put the bar down! Very annoying.

I thought it may have been the bar compressing on a nerve or something, but after reading Micheal's post, it seems very plausible. I often do feel very tight around pec area, so will try this test tomorrow and let you know the outcome!! If there is a restriction I will get this worked on during my next deep tissue massage to see if it stops this limiting sensation!!!

Jen

Tingling and numbness aka parasthesia. Usually caused by compression of the nerve or impairment in blood flow to nerves. For example: when your arm "goes to sleep" if you've been lying on it. Nothing to do with compression/impingement but simply because of reduction in arterial blood supply. Another example: carpal tunnel syndrome caused by mechanical compression of the median nerve due to tissue swelling/fibrosis in a fixed space.

Anyway I digress. The important point is that this is not normal. If it occurs regularly (i.e: on every class) then it should be investigated. Be careful of overstretching with a fixed deficit as this could make the problem worse not better. Muscles respond favourably to stretching, nerves don't.

---

---

The forum member "pipera" is not a Les Mills Instructor, though his posts, signature and profile will claim otherwise.

Since he has been economical with the truth on his profile, read the real facts here.

---

I'm an instructor and I get this sensation on every class if I don't use my hands to signal two's-three's etc. When I'm on a class as a participant I of course don't do any signs   I just roll the bar to a slightly different spot every now and then, maybe 2-3 times during the squat track so I suppose it's a blood vein being blocked. There's nothing else to it and I don't thinks it's serious enough to go to doctor's.

---

Ninnair

I agree with Ninnair...I tend to roll the bar also which helps lessen the sensation! It is more irritating than anything else, as I can't give it my all! 

I don't think it is serious enough to see the doc for, after all the sensation stops straight after the track and there are no other symptoms! Suppose the most sensible answer would be stop doing squat track with bar!!! but I love it too much! :) 

Quite simply she might not be holding the bar in the right place. If the bar (especially the old style thin plastic ones) is digging into her neck then that could well cause that.

I used to have the problem described but after going on my pump course I realised I needed to rest the bar a little lower down (which is difficult as I have big shoulders and pecs which aren't hugely flexible in that direction).

Also using the newer style bars which a lot of gyms have which are thicker and covered in rubber or foam helps the problem as well.

I'm no doctor, but that sorted it for me.

Maybe she's holding on too tight or she's tightening her muscles while keeping her albow at such a sharp angle that she cuts off the blood flow...