Last updated 14/06/2020 by The pain clinics - Interdisciplinary Health

7 Exercises for Sore Shoulder

Need help with a bad shoulder? Here are 7 exercises that can contribute to more mobility, improved function and pain relief. Exercise should be tailored to your personal health condition. Treatment at clinics may be necessary in combination with exercise for optimal recovery. These 7 exercises have a special focus on increasing mobility and function. Feel free to contact us on our Facebook page if you have input or comments.

Also read: What You Should Know About Shoulder Pain

In combination with these exercises, we recommend that you adjust your daily movement, for example in the form of less static work, less repetitive load (maybe you can make adjustments at work?), Custom walks in rough terrain or swimming in a hot water pool. If you already have a proven diagnosis, we recommend that you check with your clinician (physician, chiropractor, physiotherapist or similar) whether these exercises are suitable for you.

PS - We have chosen to add a video with seven alternative exercises in the form of this video.

Feel free to subscribe to our youtube channel for free for more great training programs.

1. Scapula mobilization / 2. pectoralis stretching / 3. biceps stretching

Scapula / shoulder mobilization: Active review of shoulder movement pattern without resistance. Roll your shoulders forward, then roll backwards. Turn the arm outwards (outward rotation) while hanging down the side. Raise your shoulders and then lower them down. Light exercises that keep the movement moving inside the shoulder joint. Do this several times daily.

Pectoralis / chest muscle stretching: Feel free to use a doorway when performing this stretchy exercise. Put your arms up along the door frames and then gently lower your torso forward until you feel a stretch toward the front of the chest in the attachment to the front of the shoulder. Hold the stretch in 20-30 seconds and repeat 2-3 times.

Biceps stretch: Place your hand calmly against a wall. Then gently turn the upper body towards the opposite side until you feel it stretch gently in the shoulder blade and shoulder. Keep the clothing position in 20-30 seconds and repeat over 3-4 sets.

4. 'Angled', 'kneeling' or 'wall push-up'

This exercise can be done by anyone and anywhere, all you need is a wall, bench or the like - a strong advantage is that it increases the blood supply to the rotator cuff muscles and provides functional, strong muscle fibers. Push-ups are the best way to exercise anterior serratus muscle on - and it is known that weakness in this muscle is directly linked to 'winging scapula' / 'protruding shoulder blade', which in turn provides the basis for neck pain and shoulder pain. Can also be performed with the knees in the ground to make the push-up itself easier, this is called kneeling push-ups. Of course, if you can, you can do 'regular push ups'. Performed above 10 - 25 repetitions with 3 - 4 sets.

5. Standing rowing

Attach the elastic to the rib wall. Stand with spread legs, a handle in each hand and face to the rib wall. Keep your arms straight out of your body and pull the handles towards your stomach. You should know that the shoulder blades are pulled towards each other.

This exercise is excellent when it comes to activating the muscles within the shoulder blades and around the shoulder blades. Including rotator cuff, rhomboidus and serratus muscles. An added bonus is that this also gives a positive effect on the neck, as the shoulder and shoulder blades act as a platform for the neck function.

Video of the exercise:

6. Back bend on therapy ball with outstretched arms

This exercise aims to help you reduce tension and stiffness between the shoulder blades and the neck. This is also a great form of training to reduce the incidence of neck pain in the future as well.

Starting Position: Bend forward slowly so that you hang over the ball - you should feel that it extends lightly in the chest and up to the neck.

Final Position: Raise your body calmly with your arms outstretched to the side. Hold the position for 10 seconds before settling down again. Repeat 5-10 times.

7. Raise

Attach the middle of the knit under your feet. Stand with your arms down along the side and a handle in each hand. Turn your palms toward you. Raise the arms out to the side and up until they are horizontal.

Important exercise for improved control in the movement of shoulder blades and shoulders. It also strengthens the supraspinatus (rotator cuff muscle) and deltoid.

The exercise is performed 3 sets of 10-12 repetitions. If this gets too much for you in the beginning, you can start with 3 sets of 8 repetitions.

Summary:

Here are 7 exercises that can contribute to less pain and functional improvement in sore shoulder. The training should be adapted to the individual.

What can I do even for shoulder pain?

1. General exercise, specific exercise, stretching and activity are recommended, but stay within the pain limit. Two walks a day of 20-40 minutes make good for the whole body and sore muscles.

2. Trigger point / massage balls we strongly recommend - they come in different sizes so you can hit well even on all parts of the body. There is no better self help than this! We recommend the following (click the image below) - which is a complete set of 5 trigger point / massage balls in different sizes:

3. Training: Specific training with training tricks of various opponents (such as this complete set of 6 knits of different resistance) can help you train strength and function. Knit training often involves more specific training, which in turn can lead to more effective injury prevention and pain reduction.

4. Pain Relief - Cooling: Biofreeze is a natural product that can relieve pain by cooling the area gently. Cooling is especially recommended when the pain is very severe. When they have calmed down then heat treatment is recommended - it is therefore advisable to have both cooling and heating available.

5. Pain Relief - Heating: Warming up tight muscles can increase blood circulation and reduce pain. We recommend the following reusable hot / cold gasket (click here to read more about it) - which can be used both for cooling (can be frozen) and for heating (can be heated in the microwave).

Recommended products for pain relief for shoulder pain

Biofreeze (Cold / cryotherapy)

Feel free to contact us at YouTube or Facebook if you have any questions or similar regarding exercise or your muscle and joint problems.

Also read: - What You Should Know About Tendonitis

Also read: - AU! Is it Late Inflammation or Late Injury? (Did you know that the two have two vastly different treatments?)

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