Our user asked: "I used to powerlift in the 148lb class many years ago and always had some soreness that I ignored in my right shoulder. It would always fail first when benching, but I was still able to lift heavy and when it would ache, I'd stop and lift lighter for about 8 weeks and it felt much better. It lasted years, but never quite got so bad where I couldn't lift. I've since gotten fat, lazy and weak. I've gained 60lbs from years of driving about as much as a trucker for my job. Recently, I fell with my hands stretched out and messed up my right shoulder. I felt a strong soreness at first, and could move it, but within an hour, I couldn't rotate my arm away from my body, or above my head. I went to the hospital and they x-rayed my shoulder checking to see if the shoulder dislocated. It didn't, so they told me if it still hurts in 2 weeks, come back. It has since been 7 months, and it has healed quite a bit, but it's still very weak, and only recently stopped aching from normal use. I looked up online about ways to figure out what might be wrong, and tried a movement that was suggested. I put my arm behind my back, and tried to move my forearm away from my back. I was not able to, and it was tough even getting my arm in that position. Now I can do the movement, but with much less range of motion than my left arm. I am thinking I may have torn a ligament or tendon, but don't know how to tell, or how to work toward strengthening it without re-injuring it. I want to get back to weight training, but not powerlifting. Should I ease into any movement that uses my shoulder and see how it feels, or should I wait longer without using it? How long does a tendon or ligament take to heal if it's not torn all the way through?"