Hearing and feeling popping in your shoulder as you do pushups might cause you to feel concerned about your health and fitness. Most of the time, popping in your shoulder results from air in the fluid of your joint or a minor injury to a ligament, tendon or bone in the area. You can treat and prevent episodes of shoulder popping during pushups with self-care at home, medical care and changes in your exercise routine. If the popping results in persistent or worsening pain, consult your doctor.
Symptoms
Your shoulder might pop just once during a series of pushups, or you might notice it pop with each pushup you perform. In addition to the popping sound, you might experience temporary discomfort or a painful sensation, which might stay localized to your shoulder or spread into the rest of your arm. After you hear the popping sounds, your shoulder might feel stiff and you could experience difficulty resuming the pushup exercises.
Causes
A sudden movement while performing pushups, such as a sudden jerking of your arm or a loss of balance, could cause a tear in one of the ligaments of your shoulder, resulting in a popping sound. If you have recently experienced an injury such as falling on your outstretched arm or trying to stop yourself from sliding, this might have caused a muscle strain or sprain or a dislocated shoulder, resulting in a popping sound as you try to do pushups. Doing one-handed pushups could result in a similar injury, also resulting in popping sounds in your shoulder. A buildup of gases in the synovial fluid of your shoulder joint could release, resulting in a popping sound, the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases explains. Chronic conditions such as bursitis and tendinitis in your shoulder can also cause occasional popping during exercises such as pushups.
Treatments
Starting with conservative treatments such as taking ibuprofen or acetaminophen to treat any pain and resting your shoulder can treat shoulder popping from minor tears in ligaments in your shoulder. Icing the affected shoulder can help reduce pain and swelling, and keeping your shoulder restrained from movement by wearing your arm in a sling can also help treat injuries such as dislocations and ligament tears. For moderate or more serious injuries to your shoulder, your doctor could perform arthroscopic surgery to correct the problem causing the popping sound. Rehabilitation therapy after surgery will help you regain use of your shoulder.
Prevention
Performing motion and flexibility exercises can help reduce your risk for shoulder injuries and can help prevent recurrence, the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons explains. Performing some gentle stretches of your arms, upper back and shoulders before you begin doing pushups can help warm up your muscles and prevent injuries. No treatment or prevention is necessary for shoulder popping that results from the release of gas from synovial fluid in your shoulder.
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