Exercises for shoulder relief: Techniques, additional options, and when to consult a professional for assistance
Shoulder pain can be a nuisance, but there are exercises you can do at home to help treat and prevent it. Here's a guide to mobility and strength exercises that can improve flexibility, stability, and posture, while avoiding sharp pain.
Mobility Exercises
- Pendulum Stretch: Lean forward with your affected arm hanging loose and gently swing it in small circles, clockwise and counter-clockwise (around 10 circles each way). This helps gently mobilize the shoulder joint and loosen it in early recovery.
- Doorway Stretch: Stand in a doorway with your arms on the frame and step forward to stretch the chest and shoulders, improving shoulder flexibility.
- Standing Child’s Pose and Open Book Rotations: These stretches loosen tense shoulder muscles and increase upper body mobility to relieve pain.
- Face the Wall Reach: Stand close to a wall, reach one arm sideways and lean into the wall as much as comfortable to stretch the shoulder.
Strength Exercises
- Resisted Shoulder Internal and External Rotation: Using resistance bands or similar, rotate your shoulder inward and outward to strengthen rotator cuff muscles and improve shoulder stability.
- Shoulder Rows and High-to-Low Rows: Pull resistance bands or weights toward your body focusing on squeezing the shoulder blades together to strengthen supporting muscles and improve posture.
- Shoulder Blade Squeeze: Sit or stand tall, keep shoulders down and relaxed, then squeeze shoulder blades together and hold for several seconds before releasing. Repeat multiple times to stabilize the shoulder blade and support rotator cuff function.
- Lawnmower Pull: Attach a resistance band under the opposite foot, pull it diagonally upward mimicking starting a lawnmower, focusing on scapular retraction and core stability. Perform 3 sets of 10 reps.
General Recommendations
- Warm up with gentle shoulder circles or arm swings before exercising.
- Avoid any movements that cause sharp or shooting pain.
- Move slowly and focus on maintaining good posture with a neutral spine and relaxed shoulders.
- Consistent practice, ideally daily or several times per week, yields the best results.
- Diaphragmatic breathing can help reduce upper body muscle tension during activity.
- If pain persists, consult a healthcare provider or physical therapist for personalized guidance.
In addition to these exercises, it's recommended to rest the affected shoulder and avoid strenuous activities such as lifting heavy weights. Applying a hot compress can help relax tight muscles and relieve pain related to shoulder pain. Over-the-counter anti-inflammatory medications such as ibuprofen or aspirin can help reduce inflammation related to shoulder pain. Applying a cold compress can help relieve inflammation and pain related to shoulder pain.
Yoga poses such as Downward Dog may help strengthen the shoulders and back muscles and improve the mobility of the shoulders and thoracic spine. The lateral raise is a shoulder strengthening exercise that can be done using lightweight dumbbells, resistance bands, or water bottles. The internal and external shoulder rotations strengthen the shoulder muscles using resistance bands or large elastic bands.
If you experience severe pain that does not improve with at-home treatments, if the shoulder joint feels unstable, if recently injured or dislocated the shoulder, if the shoulder appears swollen or flushed or feels warm to the touch, if feeling numbness in the arm or hand, if having muscle weakness or paralysis in the arm, or if experiencing any other concerning symptoms related to shoulder pain, seek medical advice immediately.
By regularly completing mobility work of the shoulders and upper back, you can improve range of motion and flexibility, and collectively increase flexibility, strengthen rotator cuff and scapular muscles, and enhance shoulder stability and posture—all essential for treating and preventing shoulder pain.
- Ankylosing spondylitis, a type of inflammatory arthritis, can lead to chronic pain and stiffness in the spine and shoulder joints.
- Cancer treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation can cause pain in the shoulders and other parts of the body.
- Bipolar disorder, a mental health condition, can be associated with physical pain, including shoulder pain.
- Obesity may contribute to shoulder pain due to the extra weight putting pressure on the joints.
- Psoriatic arthritis, a type of inflammatory arthritis, can affect the joints in the hands, feet, and shoulders, causing pain and swelling.
- Atopic dermatitis, a type of eczema, can sometimes cause itchy skin rashes on the breast or other parts of the body.
- Lung cancer may cause pain in the shoulder if the cancer has spread to the chest wall or bones.
- Spondylitis, an inflammation of the vertebrae, can lead to pain in the lower back, neck, and shoulders.
- Diabetes can increase the risk of developing various types of arthritis, including osteoarthritis in the shoulder joint.
- Dermatitis, an inflammation of the skin, can cause redness, itching, and rashes, including psoriasis on the skin of the arms and shoulders.
- Predictive science in health-and-wellness, fitness-and-exercise, and therapies-and-treatments is advancing to help diagnose and manage conditions like shoulder pain more effectively.
