Now Reading
Shoulder PainStay Well, But Don’t Hurt Yourself

Shoulder PainStay Well, But Don’t Hurt Yourself

Introduction

Your rotator cuff is a group of four muscles and tendons located at the top of your shoulder joint. They’re responsible for maintaining stability in that area, which is important because it’s where your upper arm bone meets with your shoulder blade. When you do overhead presses or other movements that put stress on the shoulders, these small muscles are vulnerable to injury. If you have an acute tear in one or more of them, you’ll notice pain and inflammation as well as reduced mobility in that area. There are two ways this can play out: rest (and let those muscles heal) or rehab (which allows you to keep working hard). We’ll talk about both approaches below. 

Hard work, rest, and conditioning don’t always pay off. 

The most important thing to remember is that there’s no one-sizefits-all answer. Your body is unique and so is your situation, so what works for someone else may not be right for you. It’s important to know your limits—and when it’s time to stop. 

Your shoulder joint is your main source of power in your upper body. 

The shoulder is a ball and socket joint. It’s the most mobile part of your upper body, with an amazing range of motion in front, behind and laterally (side to side). The shoulder also has great flexibility. You can raise your arm straight up above your head all by itself or raise it to touch the ear opposite your outstretched arm: both are done at the shoulder joint. The shoulder has great strength as well. The muscles that move your arms have tremendous power because they’re close to large reservoirs of blood with plenty of oxygen available for energy production—the heart being one of them! The last thing I want to mention about how strong the muscles are at moving our arms forward is that unlike most other joints in our bodies, these muscles don’t attach directly onto bone but instead onto tendons which then connect onto bones via ligaments (tough bands of tissue). So when you want to bend or extend at this joint, all these muscle groups contract together creating one big force that moves things around easily without any effort from you whatsoever! This allows us humans beings some pretty amazing abilities like throwing rocks long distances using just our arms alone; opening doors really fast using just one hand; lifting heavy weights such as cars off small children who accidentally get under tires while playing on streets full speed ahead during rush hour traffic jams etc., etc., etc…

You need to build shoulder strength to be able to move effectively.

You need to build shoulder strength to be able to move effectively. Your shoulders are responsible for a lot of the motions you make: from lifting a glass of water, to throwing a ball, or even just picking up groceries from your cart at the grocery store. A strong and stable shoulder will allow you to move in all directions without fear of injury or pain. 

Side view of muscular African American man standing and suffering from shoulder pain during workout with dumbbells. Sportsman holding sore shoulder in gym

Here are some exercises that can help build up your shoulder muscles: 

• Push-ups on elbows (start with 10 pushups at a time)

 • Standing cable internal rotations (using light weights) 

• Bent over raises with dumbbells (start with 5 pounds) 

Your rotator cuff is an important group of muscles that anchor the scapula (shoulder blade) onto the clavicle (collar bone)

Your rotator cuff is an important group of muscles that anchor the scapula (shoulder blade) onto the clavicle (collar bone). It also stabilizes the shoulder joint. The rotator cuff includes four muscles: supraspinatus, infraspinatus, teres minor and subscapularis. These four muscles allow you to lift something with your arm overhead, twist it or throw a ball overhand.

When you do overhead presses, a rotator cuff tear is likely. 

When you do overhead presses, a rotator cuff tear is likely. The reason for this is that many individuals perform the exercise in a way that places undue stress on their shoulders. For example, they may extend their elbows and lock them out at the top of each rep (which is called “locking out,” or locking at the elbow). Or maybe they skip leg day entirely and attempt to lift more weight than their body can handle by leaning forward with poor posture throughout the set. Either way, these actions will increase stress on your rotator cuff muscles and tendons—and all too often result in injury over time. By contrast, when done correctly as part of a well-rounded training program—and not overloaded beyond what’s appropriate for your experience level—overhead pressing can be an excellent exercise that improves shoulder health while also building strength and muscle mass in other areas of your body like chest and triceps! 

Getting in touch with your body language can help you figure out what’s really happening. 

Get a second opinion. When you’re trying to figure out what’s bothering you, it can be helpful to get a different perspective on your symptoms. Luckily, there are many people who can help: 

• Physiotherapists (doctors or physical therapists) 

• Personal trainers and coaches 

• Friends and family members 

• Colleagues at work 

See Also

• The intercostal muscles contract when you do overhead moves and help stabilize the shoulders. 

The intercostal muscles are part of your respiratory system and they help to stabilize the trunk while you breathe. 

When you do overhead moves, such as push-ups or overhead presses, the intercostal muscles contract in order to help stabilize the shoulders. The same thing happens when you raise your arm above your head: The pecs contract to stabilize the chest and prevent it from dropping towards the floor. If you have rotator cuff pain or impingement syndrome (which we’ll talk about below), then there may be tightness in these areas that can cause an imbalance between flexion-extension forces on your shoulder joint—not unlike having a weak upper body with strong legs. If this is happening for you, then having good shoulder stability will allow that strength disparity to be more evenly distributed across all parts of your body which will lead to better health overall! 

Strength-training exercises can help keep this damage from occurring. 

The exercises are easy to do. You don’t need any equipment and there’s no need to be in the gym or a fitness center. Just take the time each day to strengthen your muscles with these simple exercises: 

  • The first exercise is performed by squeezing your shoulder blades together until they touch. Hold this position for 5 seconds, then release and repeat 10 times in a row (you can do more if you want). This helps strengthen the muscles at the back of your shoulder, which helps keep them stable so they don’t get injured when you lift weights or perform other activities that put pressure on them.
  • The second exercise involves bending forward slightly and then rotating at the waist so that you’re looking over one shoulder at an imaginary line (sort of like being a soldier standing at attention). Then rotate back down toward where you started so that you’re facing forward again; repeat 10 times for each side (again, do as many reps as feels good). The rotator cuff muscles will help stabilize this motion from happening too quickly or too slowly, so by strengthening them we can prevent injury from occurring during everyday tasks like turning off lights or reaching high places! Resting can reduce symptoms, but it won’t fix any damage. 

Resting can reduce symptoms, but it won’t fix any damage. Resting too much can actually make the pain worse in the long run. After a few days of rest, your body will start to lose muscle tone and strength. The muscles closest to your injury become weaker, while other muscles around them get stronger from compensating for the injured ones. This can lead to muscle imbalance or even atrophy (wasting away) of some muscles because they aren’t getting used enough anymore. 

Find a way to rehabilitate yourself instead of resting for a long time 

While resting is important, it’s not the only thing you need to do. You can’t fix the problem by just resting. You need to find a way to strengthen the muscles that are causing pain, stabilize your shoulder joint and improve your posture and technique. If you’re experiencing symptoms of rotator cuff injury or shoulder impingement, consider visiting an orthopedic surgeon who specializes in sports medicine or physical therapy. 

Conclusion If you suspect that your rotator cuff is injured, it’s important to seek medical attention. A doctor can determine if a tear has occurred and offer treatment options. In some cases, surgery may be necessary. If you have an existing tear that causes pain but doesn’t cause symptoms like weakness or instability, your doctor may recommend rest from overhead activities as well as physical therapy exercises to strengthen the muscles around the shoulder joint and improve mobility

Michelle Rhodes

Scroll To Top