Rotator Cuff Injury Exercise - What Should You Be Doing?



Posted: Friday, November 13, 2009

by Nick Bryant

I had the bad luck to get a rotator cuff tear at the end of last year which really focused me on the rotator cuff muscles and how to fix them and keep them healthy. I found out a few things that quite surprised me and if I had known then what I now know about rotator cuff injury exercise I would certainly have approached my problem a bit differently.

So read along and hopefully you can learn from my mistakes.

If you have managed to damage your rotator cuff the first thing you need to do is stop using it. No, don't put your arm in a sling but do avoid any movement that causes you pain. Easier said than done I hear you say, and you are absolutely right. We use our arms constantly, we swing our arms when we walk or run. Drop something and we instinctively reach out to catch it. We use our hands and consequently our arms when we talk. Resting our arms and our shoulders goes against our nature.

But, if you do not stop using your damaged shoulder, if you carry on doing the movements that give you pain you will be damaging your arm further. Trust me, I did it! You must change your behaviour for a couple of weeks to let the muscle heal properly. This is because the rotator cuff can get pinched or impinged when it is damaged and inflamed. That impingement causes the tendons to fray and if you ignore it they will eventually snap which is extremely bad news.

So, whilst you are resting it as much as possible, take anti-inflammatory drugs and use ice packs to bring down the inflammation.

I made the mistake of working through a rotator cuff injury and made it a lot worse. I tried anti-inflammatory drugs but only half heartedly. It was only when I finally decided to rest my arm completely and maxed out on Ibuprofen for about three weeks that I saw any improvement.

Do not play at treating the injury. Look after your shoulder properly. If you are following a doctor's advice, follow it thoroughly, don't kid yourself.

Once you have managed to get the pain and inflammation under control do not go straight back to using your shoulder in the same way as before. You will need to strengthen and build up the rotator cuff and shoulder. This does not mean pushing weights and exercising the major muscles like the trapeziums. The cuff is a group of relatively small muscles that help to keep the head of the humerus in the socket of the shoulder.

We use them without thinking and any exercise to strengthen them will not involve large weights. Rotator cuff injury exercise tends to be more Pilates based exercises concentrating on control and flexibility rather than power. Get your rotator cuff up to strength and your whole shoulder will be stronger. Ignore it and you are likely to have another injury pretty soon.

So. Like I said, learn from my mistakes. Treat a rotator cuff injury seriously. Rest it properly, no matter how inconvenient it is. Treat the inflammation and soreness for a few weeks, don't stop as soon as it stops being painful, carry on for a bit. When you are ready to start exercising start with gentle exercises that focus on the rotator cuff. And keep doing the rotator cuff injury exercises when it is better. You do not want a second rotator cuff injury.

Nick Bryant lives in Shropshire in the UK with his wife and two young children where he is a director in their family recruitment business. His hobbies and interests tend to be family orientated and focussed on the outdoors and sporting activities. He is the proud owner of a vintage VW camper and he and his family spend a great deal of their spare time at the coast camping, body-boarding and surfing in the summer months. He is also a keen golfer. He writes on a number of subjects around personal health and well being and has recently started a blog at http://www.strongershoulders.com.
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