If you have been diagnosed with a rotator cuff injury, then you can try these stretches that I often give to patients with the same symptoms. These stretches, along with good posture, can often be enough to take the pressure off the rotator cuff tendons and give you relief from pain.
Rotator Cuff Exercise 1
Stand in a door frame with your elbows bent to 90 degrees and your arms lifted out to the side. Only lift your arms as high as you can without pain and then place your forearms on the door frame on either side. Now gently lean your body forward through the door so that you feel a stretch through the chest and the front of the shoulders on both sides. Hold the stretch for 30 seconds, relax and then repeat a further 2 times.
Exercise 2
Stand with your back and shoulder blades flat against a wall. Lift your right arm across the front of your chest and hold the elbow with the left hand. With the right arm relaxed, use your left hand to push the right elbow across and into the body. Whilst applying the stretch, keep your right shoulder blade back against the wall. You should feel a comfortable stretch in the back of the right shoulder joint. Hold for 30 seconds, 3 times.
Exercise 3
If your rotator cuff injury isn't healing as quickly as you hoped it would then it might be because there is stress being placed on the shoulder from an adjacent part of the body.
This can commonly happen from having neck tightness, in particular the upper trapezius muscle between the neck and shoulder. I find that this muscle is tight in the majority of people that have a rotator cuff injury so I usually always treat this along with the shoulder itself.
This is a good stretch for the upper trapezius muscle. Sit with the hand of your affected arm behind your back and put your other hand on the top of your head. Side-bend your head away from the sore shoulder and use the hand on your head to add a bit of light pressure so that you feel the stretch from the neck down to the shoulder.
How Often Should I Stretch?
Ideally these stretches should be performed each morning and evening whilst your symptoms persist. If you are consistently stretching for 2 weeks and there is no change in your shoulder pain then there is likely an underlying issue that needs to be addressed so an assessment and treatment from a physio should be sought. Once your shoulder pain has resolved, these same stretches performed once per day will be beneficial to maintain healthy shoulders and prevent recurrence of your symptoms.
If you want to find out more about how we can help you here at The Physiotherapy Place, arrange a time that one of our physio's can give you a call here or book an appointment here.
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One of the most common reasons for shoulder pain is rotator cuff tears and strains. Some who seek help from their GP will be prescribed rest and painkillers, but most of the time this is not getting to the root of the problem and so will not solve the issue.
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