Brachiallis issues. Powerlifters, BBr's advice?

[burnthiscorpse]

So I fucked up the brachialis in both arms. Left one way worse than the right. Also some forearm too.

Did it squatting. Finally dropped the bar down off my traps where it should be. Which creates a different angle on the shoulders and arms obviously when grabbing the bar. More comfortable but not for the arms as of now.
I'm thinking of venturing into competitive PL'ing so I have been working on getting my squat stance wayyyyy wider.
Last sunday I did a few max attempts at 455. Hit the first one, dumped the second one in the rack and nailed the third one like I had taken 25 lb off.
Problem is I guess I never realized when the entire body is involved in the squat and its max effort exactly how much you grip the bar and hold it tight to your body.
So I strained the ever loving fuck out of my brachialis and forearm muscles. left arm I cant even hold a gallon of water out at full extension without real pain. If I try and curl an empty straight bar the left arm cant do it.

I iced the shit out of it for two days. Been heating it now as it makes the pain go away while heated. Tried DMSO which helped a little. Dumped 5 lb of Epsom salt in a scalding bath and soaked in that for a half hour last night. Helped a little until I cooled back down.
The muscles are just a giant solid knot. Will not let go. I even had ART the day after it happened and it didn't help. I have tried 800mg motrin (yes I know they are awful for you). I have TB500 waiting in my mailbox today. I have used it many times and its anti inflammatory effects are amazing so hopefully it helps.
As it stands now I tried deadlifting last night hoping it would yank and stretch the shit out of it. No such luck. made it way worse last night. But today they are the same as before.
Sunday I will be squatting but only box squats with 315-365 real wide stance to work on the hips and glutes so I wont have to use death grip on the bar.

Any suggestions other than obviously rest which I am afraid is going to take 2-4 weeks to heal.

 

[mbag012]

light stretches and massages? visit the physio as soon as easter break is over.

 

[moya]

Just keep away from max effort squats for a couple weeks... Keep squatting but make sure to warm up the brachialis a bit first... I had to do that with my shoulder for a while, but it helped
I got my shoulder warm first and felt the weight slowly increase as I went up in weight... After a while with a new grip or stance most injured support muscles tend to eventually adapt and strengthen...

 

[joeblow12345]

Ya I'd stay away from heavy straight bar squats for a couple weeks. If you have access to a safety sq bar, cambered bar, buffalo bar, or zercher harness I'd suggest using them to sq and do good mornings with. It's also a good idea to rotate those special bars frequently in training to avoid getting taxed too much from the straight bar. When you are able to sq with a straight bar again I recommend working on bar placement and grip. I always hold the bar all the way out near the plates and ride it low on my delts. That's with an 8 ft bar, on a standard 7ft bar I have to have the bar mid traps, or else I can't get my hands on the bar in a comfortable position. Every bar will have a slightly different point that works for you.

 

[burnthiscorpse]

yeah I wish my gym had a fucking 8" squat bar. Douche bags.

I've actually been out of action for 2 weeks today. I'll be out for two more weeks because this Friday I have my every fourth month prolotherapy apt for my shoulders (unrelated to this issue). I have to take a week off everything after that. Then I plan on being good to go.
This has been unreal afterwards the amount I strained them. Every muscle in my left arm has been knotted like concrete and strained to hell. It has just started to finally show signs of getting better the last couple days after a week and a half.

 

[joeblow12345]

yeah I wish my gym had a fucking 8" squat bar. Douche bags.

I've actually been out of action for 2 weeks today. I'll be out for two more weeks because this Friday I have my every fourth month prolotherapy apt for my shoulders (unrelated to this issue). I have to take a week off everything after that. Then I plan on being good to go.
This has been unreal afterwards the amount I strained them. Every muscle in my left arm has been knotted like concrete and strained to hell. It has just started to finally show signs of getting better the last couple days after a week and a half.

If the shoulders are a problem area and you like squatting heavy then I suggest investing in a safety squat bar or a buffalo bar. Elitefts sells them for a few hundred bucks. It's a hell of a lot easier in the shoulders when all you have to do is hold handles in front of you to squat. The buffalo bar is low enough to where the stress is minimal on the shoulders if you still wanna have the same effect as a straight bar. The safety bar changes the stress. Here are a couple links so you can check them out.

http://www.flexcart.com/members/elitefts/default.asp?m=PD&cid=212&pid=4636

http://www.flexcart.com/members/elitefts/default.asp?m=PD&cid=212&pid=259

http://www.westside-barbell.com/products/?c=14&p=117

http://www.westside-barbell.com/products/?c=14&p=121

 

[burnthiscorpse]

If the shoulders are a problem area and you like squatting heavy then I suggest investing in a safety squat bar or a buffalo bar. Elitefts sells them for a few hundred bucks. It's a hell of a lot easier in the shoulders when all you have to do is hold handles in front of you to squat. The buffalo bar is low enough to where the stress is minimal on the shoulders if you still wanna have the same effect as a straight bar. The safety bar changes the stress. Here are a couple links so you can check them out.

Elite FTS

Elite FTS

Bow Bar #IM-0250-O - Westside Barbell Products

Texas squat bar - Westside Barbell Products

My chiropractor has the buffalo, mastodon, and every other top of the line bar you can imagine. They are great.
Its not so much the shoulders as it was the left arm and specifically the bicep, medial tricep head, all forearm elbow connections and the brachioradiallis and brachialis more than anything. I just didn't realize how much force above and beyond what was needed that I was using to grip the bar to my back. Just inexperience on my part powerlifting wise. I just need to bend forward slightly more so I don't need to death grip the bar so much.

I tried to squat again last sunday but my arm was just too fucked up to even hold the bar. I put collars on the inside of the plates to space things out about 5 inches more then added plates then the outside collar. Much better to be able to hold my arms wide. I just did box squats last week but it re aggravated my arm too much. Last night I did the stupid sled...what a joke. no leg workout at all. plus I forgot my knee wraps so I couldn't go over 800 lb. ah well within two weeks I'll be squatting again.