How to Improve Your Shoulder Range of Motion (Stretches & Exercises)

in this video i'm going to show you how to assess and improve your shoulder range of motion the primary movements you might want to address are flexion extension external rotation and or internal rotation although your shoulder also moves through abduction you probably don't need to specifically focus on it since it will likely improve when performing exercises in the other directions in terms of how much range of motion you need a quick google search online will likely return values similar to the one shown here however these numbers are rather arbitrary how much you need for each direction is going to be different from that of your friend or family member for example if you are a competitive weight lifter you're going to need more flexion and external rotation than someone that only wants to perform household tasks or if you want to return to practicing yoga you will likely need more shoulder movement for various poses than someone that does not do this activity furthermore these values may not accurately reflect your case you may end up with more or less range of motion depending on your training history surgery injury etc one option is to strive for the same or close to the same amount as your other shoulder if you had surgery on both sides or your other shoulder is not a good reference due to a prior injury then you can use these values as a reference however it is probably more realistic to work toward the values that you need for your activities or hobbies are you simply looking to perform day-to-day activities with ease like reaching in a higher cabinet or do you want to go to the gym and press weights overhead before jumping into the exercises it may be helpful to first assess your active shoulder range of motion assuming you don't have any pain or precautions against these movements for these all you will need is a phone or camera to record yourself first up flexion stand tall with your back against a wall and lift your arm in front of you as high as you can keeping your elbow straight for extension you'll turn around so your chest and nose are touching the wall and then reach your arm behind you as far as comfortable measure the angle formed between your torso and upper arm for external and internal rotation stand with your back against the wall and upper arm at 90 degrees or parallel to the ground rotate your arm back for external rotation and rotate your arm forward for internal rotation measure the angle formed between a line parallel to the ground and your forearm if your sport or activity requires external rotation beyond 90 degrees you can alternatively perform the self-assessment on a squat rack or door frame make a note of these numbers and then periodically reassess your range of motion about every four to six weeks that way you can objectively measure your progress over time for the exercises i'm going to show you at least one progression for each shoulder direction as well as an additional category that can help maximize your shoulder range of motion category 1 shoulder flexion supine progression level one hold a dollar stick with both hands up toward the ceiling slowly move your arms overhead as far as comfortable use as much assistance from the uninvolved side as needed level two add a light weight to help move the shoulder further overhead for these aim for two to three sets of 10 to 15 repetitions one to two times a day every day or with intolerance level three weighted single arm pullover from the floor keep your back flat to the ground and slowly pull a weight overhead once you're able to consistently reach the weight to the floor progress to level four same movement but now lie on an elevated surface to increase the amount of shoulder flexion you can move through for levels three and four aim for two to three sets of 10 to 15 repetitions every other day once you progress to level 4 you can add prone shoulder flexion with a dowel this will help build strength and control at your end ranges your goal is to lift the dowel or stick as high as you can keeping elbows straight perform for 2-3 sets of 10 to 15 repetitions and over time you can add weight if needed other options include shoulder flexion on a wall child's pose rocking down dog transitions and the most advanced of the four down dog toe taps for all of these keep your elbow straight as you move through as much shoulder flexion as tolerated perform two to three sets of 10 to fifteen reps for the first two and two to three sets of eight to ten reps for the down dog variations category two shoulder extension progression number one level one standing extension with a dowel start with a stick or dowel on your butt or low back and reach behind you as far as you can you want to keep your elbows straight and torso tall throughout each rep you can have palms facing in either direction aim for two to three sets of 10 to 15 repetitions one to two times a day every day and level two prone extension with a dowel lie on your stomach and perform the same movement but now reaching your arms up toward the ceiling perform for two to three sets of 10 to 15 repetitions every other day add weight to the dowel if you want to make it more challenging here's another shoulder extension progression which is slightly more advanced level one rocking sit on the ground with your hands behind you lift your butt slightly off the ground and rock it towards your feet moving your shoulder into extension level two reverse plank straighten your legs and lift your butt as high as you can lower back down and repeat and level 3 crab position bend your legs again but now lift your butt up as high off the ground as you can for all levels you can point your hands in whatever position is most comfortable and perform for two to three sets of ten to fifteen repetitions category three shoulder external rotation progression number one level one place the involved shoulder at your side supported on a towel and your elbow bent to 90 degrees holding your sticker down use the non-involved side to move your shoulder in and out of external rotation use as much assistance from the uninvolved side as needed level 2 same setup but now actively rotate your arm outward as your motion improves perform the same movement but with your arm further away from your body working up to about 90 degrees for levels one and two aim for two to three sets of 10 to 15 repetitions one to two times a day every day or with intolerance level 3 weighted supine external rotation with your shoulder at about 90 degrees slowly lower a weight as far back as comfortable if you need to start with your arm in a lower position and level four place your arm on an object one to three inches high so you can move through more range of motion for levels three and four aim for two to three sets of 10 to 15 repetitions every other day or as needed once you progress to level four work on building strength and control by adding in prone external rotations lie on your stomach with your elbow and shoulder at 90 degrees and rotate your hand as high off the ground as possible hold the end position two to three seconds before lowering back down perform for two to three sets of 10 to 15 reps and over time you can add weight if needed once you gain more shoulder external rotation range of motion you can try wall slides here's a simple progression start standing then progress to sitting on a chair and eventually to the floor with knees bent towards your chest your goal is to keep your low back elbows and wrist in contact with the wall as you slide up as high as you can move slowly and remember to breathe during the movement aim for 2-3 sets of 10 to 15 repetitions as you work through this progression category 4 shoulder internal rotation level 1 lie on your back and actively rotate your arm towards your stomach keeping your elbow bent to 90 degrees as your motion improves move your arm further away from your body working up to about 90 degrees level 2 weighted supine internal rotation hold a weight in your hand as you rotate in and out of internal rotation and level three elbow on knee sit with your elbow supported on your knee and slowly lower your arm before returning back to the start in addition to improving shoulder internal rotation range of motion this will also increase your external rotation strength for all levels aim for 2-3 sets of 10 to 15 repetitions another option is a sleeper stretch lie on your side with your head supported and shoulder and elbow at about 90 degrees use your top hand to gently push your other hand toward the floor hold this position for 2-3 sets of 20 to 30 seconds category 5 thoracic spine range of motion if time allows these can be beneficial for maximizing your shoulder range of motion level one sideline support your head and bend your hips and knees up towards your chest rotate your top arm toward the floor behind you and level two half kneeling set up in a half-kneeling position and rotate over the up knee twisting through your middle and upper back keep your arms straight as you rotate reaching as far back as you can if this shoulder position is painful or your range of motion is limited you can adjust either option by placing your arm across your chest if you want to make either of these more challenging progress to a windmill make a half circle with the arm as you rotate through your spine before returning back to your start for either of these perform for two to three sets of 10 to 12 reps on each side as needed when performing these exercises i have three recommendations number one you do not need to do all the exercises shown you can choose one exercise for each direction or focus on the one range of motion you want to improve number two keep symptoms tolerable during exercise it is okay to experience some discomfort but you do not want the exercises to be unbearable and number three you should not have an increase in pain or discomfort the next day if you do decrease the number of sets reps frequency or exercise difficulty the next session also it's important to understand that when you can perform each level in a given category and how fast you move through the progression will vary case by case for example following some surgeries you might start with level 1 exercises within a restricted range of motion in order to protect the healing tissue then over the course of weeks you will progress to higher levels as tolerated on the other hand if you are someone who experiences general shoulder stiffness from a chronic injury you can probably perform any or all of these exercises right away these exercises are just some options that i have found to be helpful with a wide range of shoulder issues that present along a variable time frame what exercises you choose to perform your timeline and outcomes will vary based off of your goals injury surgery symptoms etc if you're older have a shoulder replacement and your main activity is playing in a weekly bocce ball league you might only choose lower level exercises also achieving significant amounts of shoulder range of motion may not be realistic or even necessary in contrast if you are younger had a labral repair and want to compete in crossfit you will want to incorporate more advanced options and eventually work toward restoring full shoulder movement to summarize here are the six main takeaways one if you're looking to improve your shoulder range of motion you should place an emphasis on exercises targeting flexion extension external rotation and internal rotation thoracic mobility is also a consideration two your goal should be to aim for full range of motion or very close to it you can use values similar to the one shown here however due to individual variants other preferred options include using your other shoulder as a reference or working toward numbers based on what you need for your desired activities three if appropriate self-assess your range of motion by filming yourself this will allow you to determine your baseline and objectively measure progress over time four understand that each person will progress at different rates and exercise selection will vary based on the surgery precautions history goals and so on five improving range of motion takes time focus on the quality of your movement keep exercises tolerable minimize symptoms the next day and stay consistent and six once again before starting any exercise program you should first consult with your doctor surgeon or physical therapist thank you so much for watching if you found this video helpful tap that like button subscribe and turn on notifications if you have any questions or suggestions on future content you can drop those in the comments below until next time

Channel: E3 Rehab

Views: 871,904

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Id: b7yQwf-K7z0

Length: 15min 11sec (911 seconds)

Published: Sun Aug 28 2022