My Shoulder Hurts - Strengthening Phase
In a previous post I detailed what to do if you have shoulder pain. This previous 6 week phase detailed mobility exercises to decrease or eliminate your shoulder pain. The 6 week timeframe was not an accident. Healing time for soft tissue is generally 6-8 weeks. If you followed this routine for 6 weeks and your pain is almost gone(2/10), it’s time to move on to the strengthening phase below. However, if your pain is getting better but still at a 3-5/10, stick with the mobility phase before strengthening. If your pain has not improved over the past few weeks doing the mobility work I detailed, time to give a clinician a call. Plan on doing these exercises for 3-4 weeks before moving on to more dynamic strengthening.
Who is this routine for?
Pain 2/10 at end range. Ie. When reaching all the way overhead.
Not feeling any pain, but feeling weakness.
Not currently feeling pain, but my shoulders have always been a weak spot for me.
Injury Prevention for the Overhead athlete (tennis, pickleball, volleyball, climber, etc.)
Strengthening the rotator cuff is the priority when you first begin to address shoulder weakness or injury prevention.
Shoulder Rotations (Warm Up - Do Not Skip)
Use 5-15lbs.
3 Sets of 10 - 15 reps per side….use a weight that allows you to reach the 3 sets of 10-15 without failure.
Ideally you want a towel sandwiched between your arm and ribs, but it is not critical.
External Rotation
Use a resistance band or cable.
3 Sets of 10 - 15 reps per side….use a weight or resistance band that allows you to reach the 3 sets of 10-15 without failure.
Ideally you want a towel sandwiched between your arm and ribs, but it is not critical.
Internal Rotation
Use a resistance band or cable.
3 Sets of 10 - 15 reps per side….use a weight or resistance band that allows you to reach the 3 sets of 10-15 without failure.
Ideally you want a towel sandwiched between your arm and ribs, but it is not critical.
External Rotation at 90 Degrees
You may not be quite ready for this exercise, if there is some pain, focus on the other exercises for a week or then circle back to this one.
Use 3-7 lbs
3 Sets of 10 - 15 reps per side….use a weight that allows you to reach the 3 sets of 10-15 without failure.
Ideally you want a towel sandwiched between your arm and ribs, but it is not critical.
For the following exercises, if you feel a bit of pain, consider holding off on these for a couple weeks while you continue the exercises above.
Prone Shoulder Abduction
Do not use any weight for the first 1-2 weeks, then progress to 2-4 lbs.
3 Sets of 10 - 15 reps per side….use a weight that allows you to reach the 3 sets of 10-15 without failure.
Ideally you want a towel sandwiched between your arm and ribs, but it is not critical.
Prone Shoulder Flexion
Do not use any weight for the first 1-2 weeks, then progress to 2-4 lbs.
3 Sets of 10 - 15 reps per side….use a weight that allows you to reach the 3 sets of 10-15 without failure.
Ideally you want a towel sandwiched between your arm and ribs, but it is not critical.
What is the plan?
Spend 3-4 weeks doing this.
If your pain is gone but this routine is still challenging, spend another 2 weeks here.
If you have been doing this routine for 3-4 weeks and you are good to go, move on to Phase 3.
If your pain hasn’t improved at all……time to consult a clinician.*