5 Shoulder Exercises to Help Shoulder Pain Recovery

Here are my 5 favorite shoulder exercises when going through shoulder rehab after shoulder injuries. These exercises can not only help you get out of shoulder pain, but also help you prevent shoulder injuries. Keep in mind these are great exercises when dealing with common shoulder pain, but may be too advanced if there was a more extensive injury. ​

​I see a lot of shoulder issues arise in February and my theory is that this happens because most people are back to long hours at work sitting at a computer. This is especially true for us here in Palo Alto, CA being right in the middle of Silicon Valley. During the Holidays most people had time off and in January they are back working one of the busiest months of the year. Poor posture and not moving for long periods of time can bring on various aches and pains.
 
Work the weak muscles
The rationale behind all these exercises is to strengthen the commonly weak muscles which help keep you in good posture. Exercising when coming off of shoulder injury often involves strengthening your back muscles. The muscles groups we are working here are: the muscles for shoulder retraction and scapular stabilization, and external shoulder rotation. Like I mention in the video a few times, it’s about getting you out of that forward seated position. I added in a little glute work because it helps support back posture and adds some functionality into it.
 
Easy to do at home
Although I am showing these exercises using common gym equipment, minimal equipment is needed to do this at home. Starting from the first exercise, cobras on the ball, you can easily do these on the ground. The Pushup Plus can be done on a countertop or any non-moving edge. Cable rows…you do need equipment and often band rows work although they are very light. The standing single arm pulldown exercise you will need a band. External shoulder rotation can be done side lying with a water bottle or even just the weight of your arm. Purchasing a band is a good idea and 2-3 bands of various resistance is recommended.
 
Do Your Homework
Nothing works if you don’t do it. These are light exercises that should be done a few times a week to correct muscle imbalances that cause shoulder issues. Some weeks it may seem like it does nothing, when in fact it very much is. Often slow progress feels like no progress to those of us that are dealing with the issue. Keep with it!