During my time at University of Miami, I was blessed to have the help from the Physical Therapy Department with a rehabilitation program that could be well-integrated into a training program. This helped me reduce joint pain, balance out my muscles, and finally get in shape. Today, I’d like to share this program with you. It was centered around my shoulders and the shoulder pain I was experiencing, so I thought this may help A TON of people out there who could be suffering from similar injuries or aches and pains.
If this helps you, or if you think it could help someone you know, please be sure to leave you comments and feedback below. Also, I’m depending upon you to spread this information far and wide by clicking at least one of the social media icons on this page and sharing it with all of your loved ones and friends.
Deal?
Here we go – Shoulder Muscle Balancing:
Shoulder muscle balancing programs come down to repositioning of the shoulder onto what’s called an ‘incline plane,’ which basically means that your rotator cuff no longer has to do unnecessary work. It’s a simple focal point for your training program, although it’s going to sound a bit overwhelming at first. Here are the most important muscles of the shoulder girdle:
- Trapezius (more accurately broken down into upper, middle, and lower)
- Rhomboids
- Lats
- Deltoids (more accurately broken into anterior, posterior, and middle)
- Pecs (more accurately broken down into Major and Minor)
- Triceps
- Biceps
- Serratus Anterior (Boxer’s Muscle that sticks out from your side)
- Rotator Cuff (more accurately broken down into internal and external rotators)
Then comes the surrounding areas that affect shoulder rehabilitation:
- Head on Neck (changes everything when sidebent or out of place)
- Neck (cervical alignment)
- Ribcage (intercostal muscles and breathing pattern abnormalities)
- Thoracic Spine (usually limited in extension, or backwards bending)
- Lumbar Spine (if extended, it’s very difficult not to have forward shoulder)
- Hip Flexors (when tight, they affect your entire spinal position and force thoracic restrictions)
So, the logical solution is to balance out these areas and take away the strain. Here’s what’s needed in order to do so:
- Assess your posture
- Correct for ‘Forward Shoulder’ or ‘Forward Head’ (meaning rounded shoulders or your head jutting out forward when you take a picture from your side)
- Learn how to ‘belly breathe’ through your diaphragm, instead of through your shoulders (belly out, not shoulders up, especially during exercise)
- Strengthen Your Shoulders: This includes your Lats, Rhomboids, Middle Trap, Lower Trap, and Posterior Deltoids
- Mobilize (active stretching) your Pecs, Lats, Thoracic Spine, and Hip Flexors
- Strengthen your core for all overhead exercises, so you have proper support.
- Train ‘Proprioception,’ or ‘position sense’ by working on closed-chain, or weight bearing exercises with your upper body, while watching shoulder posture
- Work close to your body before working further away (your shoulder is more stable when your elbows are near your side – you lose stability and require more support as you extend your arms in front of yourself or overhead)
- Strengthen your Rotator Cuff, functionally, by constantly paying attention to shoulder posture and position with exercises, as well as working the individual movements of each rotator cuff muscle.
- Integrate the rest of your body into these movements by adding complexity to your exercises once in the right position (for example, a squat and press is an integrated whole body movement that targets lower body movement, spinal movement, and requires you maintain proper shoulder, head, and neck posture while you move)
Finally, don’t forget to stretch all the right muscles.
Here’s a great video on how to properly stretch all of the muscles surrounding your shoulder girdle. You’ll love it, and don’t forget to comment:
Did this post help you?
Please comment below and let me know…
28 Comments
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Love it! Thanks so much, I think I can use this information to help me relieve some pain I am experiencing.
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thank you very much …. i stretch every day and find it really helps
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I only did the exercises as you did them on the video and my shoulders feel heaps better already. I’m a 57Kg dressage rider and tend to forget how tense I can become in the shoulders with a 700Kg warmblood on the end of the reins. Its after the training process that he becomes light but up to then its hard work. The rest of the time I am sliding heavy gates around when we are cattle drafting for at least one day of the weekend or Im locked in position at my desk being the secretary. It would be so amazing to have life with no shoulder pain. I promise I will try and put everything into this.
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I only did the exercises as you did them on the video and my shoulders feel heaps better already. I’m a 57Kg dressage rider and tend to forget how tense I can become in the shoulders with a 700Kg warmblood on the end of the reins. Its after the training process that he becomes light but up to then its hard work. The rest of the time I am sliding heavy gates around when we are cattle drafting for at least one day of the weekend or Im locked in position at my desk being the secretary. It would be so amazing to have life with no shoulder pain. I promise I will try and put everything into this.
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Great vedio! I know I’ll be using these exercises with have had shoulder surgery myself. I knew some of the stretches but you went into it a little further for other surrrounding muscles not just the ones close by the shoulder area. Also with me being a cashier at a very fast paced grocery store, I use the upper body shoulder area a lot. With these stretches it will keep me in better shape to do my job and avoid another shoulder surgery on the other shoulder. Keep my shoulder and surrounding muscles in great shape to do my job well. Thank you so much; what a great help it will be for me. =)
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In a word – YES!
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These exercises are really going to help with the weak muscle(s) over my ribs, along the bra line. I have 2 ribs that dislocate at the slightest twing; they pop out and back in then it’s a week of severe pain. I’ve been looking for some stretches to help strengthen that area.
Thanks Dr. K! -
Excellent and very helpful video instructions and text, thanks again, Dr. Kareem!
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Excellent and very helpful video instructions and text, thanks again, Dr. Kareem!
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Thank you. I’m looking forward to putting these tips into action.
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I truly find your programs enlightening. Most all people have some type of physical limitation in their joints and it is refreshing to learn the technique and reasons for these types of excerises and why they work very well with minimal discomfort. Thank you, I will give all of these my attention both physically and mentally.
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Thanks so much! Push ups were killing me! I went to my chiropractor last Friday and he put me back in alignment and worked on my shoulder when I told him exactly where/how it hurt. I am having “fun” with your program! I am envisioning myself without pain and in the best shape of my life!
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Thank you so much!!! 🙂
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Thank you Dr. K.
Great set of stretches -
Great stretches. I’m 5 months status post posterior labrum and micro fracture surgury of my left shoulder. After 4 months of PT, I’m doing it on my own at the gym. This will help in addition to the stretches I already do. Does your program offer any guidance to exercises for people with shoulder limitations. exercises to substitute for bench press, military, press, etc. Thanks so much….
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Great post and videos! I like I can always learn something new from all of them!
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This is fantastic. This is exactly what is needed to do on breaks from sitting at computers. And this is exactly what my body needs. Dr. K, you knocked it out of the park, as usualy. God Bless You.
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The beauty about these exercises is you don’t have to go to the gym to do them. Very convenient that you can do them wherever you might be. Thank you Dr. K.
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These exercises are really good, and they don’t require any apparatus. Besides, tehy are easy to perform. Excellent! Thank you very much. I’m following your program (i’m on the third week now) and I’m feeling great.
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Thank you! I am currently working to rehab my shoulder after spending several weeks on a walker while healing from ankle replacement surgery. Great information!
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Awesome gift, Dr. K. My wife especially suffers from shoulder pain, and i believe that this is going to help her.
don
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Dr K anyway I could get a written copy of this? I have a problem w/rotator cuff and would like to do this after my upper body workout. Hard to take a video to the gym!
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Dr K, two weeks ago my right shoulder began hurting. I watched this video and from what I can surmise it’s either the Bicep Tendonitis (front of the shoulder) or combined w/ something else. Near the back of the shoulder it sensitive when I massage it. Sometimes it catches in the front w/ some movements, but it’s strength is limited…for instance it’s hard to throw a basketball chest pass leading w/ my right shoulder. I am a week into the “Ab Strength Guide” and it’s working, so I am hesitant to stop working out and rest my shoulder. Four days now I have incorporated the shoulder PT in this video, but the pain w/ some, not all movements is still present. It’s not getting better and not getting worse. Any thoughts?
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These really hit my areas of need! Will be put to great use!
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This is what my husband needs…he is forever slamming his shoulder & it’s pretty well frozen…
will have to get him going on this. Thank you! -
Good ideas
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great video, thank you so much. Some I’ve tried and some new ones that look like the ones I’ve been missing : )
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These are the BEST shoulder exercises that I have ever seen. Helped me through two rounds of frozen shoulder at age 58 and I am now back to 100% use of both arms.
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