The Shoulder Pain
If you are a person that suffers from shoulder pain, you may be wondering if there is anything you can do to relieve your pain and still build strong shoulders. Yes, you can successfully begin (or continue) an exercise program but it is important that you see a physical therapist first.
It is important to find out why you are experiencing shoulder pain to begin with. While there may be more serious reasons for shoulder pain, you may find that simple exercise movements that increase your shoulder strength may also remedy your shoulder pain.
For example; some therapists recommend using the assistance of a Swiss-ball for performing exercises for your shoulder rotator cuff muscles. In this instance, the patient would be asked to lie face down on the ball. With thumbs pointed upwards (think “The Fonz” on “Happy Days”) you would be asked to pull your shoulder blades together and extend your arms out to either side of you to create a “T” shape with your torso. Then lower your arms and repeat for a specified number of repetitions.
However, to help insure your shoulders remain healthy, you may want to balance the number of upper-body pushing exercises you currently do (like pushups and bench presses) with upper-body pulling exercises (such as seated rows and reverse flys) whenever you are at the gym. Ignoring this balancing act and letting one side dominate your training focus, will undoubtedly leave you susceptible to injury.
See you at “The Gym!”
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