5 Habits for Healthy Shoulders
Posted January 22, 2024
5 Habits for Healthy Shoulders
Understanding the complexity of the shoulder is the first step toward ensuring its health and functionality. As the body’s most mobile yet least stable joint, the shoulder is highly vulnerable to minor tweaks. Comprised of five joints and three bones – clavicle (collar bone), scapula (shoulder blade) and humerus (long bone in your upper arm) — the shoulder’s versatility depends on the harmonious interplay of muscles, ligaments, bones and joints.
Shoulder pain can keep you from lifting your grandchildren or reaching for something on the top shelf. This blog explores five habits to foster strong and flexible shoulder joints, allowing you to embrace an active, pain-free lifestyle.
1. Pay Attention to Your Posture
“Keep your shoulders back” isn’t just a nostalgic parental or grandparental saying; it’s a timeless piece of advice for maintaining good posture. Wherever you are right now, stop and check if your shoulders are rounded or pulled back. If they’re rounded, recognize this position’s impact on your neck, back and shoulder muscles. When you pull your shoulders back, you may notice a tightness in your upper back. Those muscles have weakened due to maintaining a rounded shoulder position. It is important to actively correct and maintain good posture during everyday activities like using smartphones, tablets and computers, sitting for a long time, driving, bending and lifting heavy objects.
2. Strengthen Your Shoulder
Maintaining strength in your shoulder muscles is critical for helping you lift your arm away from your body, rotating your arm in its socket and stabilizing your shoulder during overhead motions. Perform these two exercises to increase your shoulder strength.
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Shoulder Touchdown
Take a looped TheraBand, or a looped belt if you don’t have a TheraBand, and place it around your wrists. Try to keep your elbows and forearms parallel as you raise your arms overhead. Control this movement on the way up and down by moving through this exercise slowly. Start by performing this exercise in five repetitions for three sets. You can intensify this exercise by adding more repetitions or by adding in dumbbells.
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Shoulder Taps
Start in a quadruped position, with your knees directly under your hips and your hands directly under your shoulders; ensure your back is straight and your abdominals are tight. Begin the exercise by slowly lifting one hand and tapping the front shoulder of your opposite arm. Make sure to keep your back straight and abdominals tight as you alternate the movement from one hand to the other. Complete three sets of 30 second reps. To make this more challenging, lift off your knees into a high plank.
3. Stretch Your Shoulders
Regular shoulder stretches can alleviate existing pain and reduce the risk of injuries. Incorporate these two stretches into your post-exercise cool down:
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Standing Shoulder Flexion
Stand in the middle of a doorway facing the door frame with your arm above your shoulder. Walk forward until your arm connects with the door frame, and you begin to feel a gentle stretch in your shoulder and on your side and back below your shoulder. Hold the stretch for thirty seconds and repeat on the other side.
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Across Body Stretch
This stretch will target the back of your shoulder joint. Keep your shoulder back and down as you reach your arm across your body and hold. Stay in this position for thirty seconds and repeat on the second side. Perform this stretch for 3 sets of 30 seconds on each side.
4. Evaluate your Sleep Position
If you feel any shoulder pain while sleeping, switch your position. Side sleeping may exacerbate the pain, so experiment with different positions and pillow adjustments to find the one that alleviates pressure. Tip: sleeping on your back will probably feel the best.
5. Practice Moderation
Just as Rome wasn’t built in a day, shoulder health requires gradual improvements. Be mindful of your posture and exercise intensity. Whether addressing your posture or hitting the gym, moderation is the key to sustainable improvements.
Visit your PT
If you’ve been experiencing shoulder pain for a while, or even if it just began, schedule an appointment with your physical therapist today. Step-by-step physical therapy treatment programs have been shown to eliminate shoulder pain in countless patients. A physical therapist will work with you to mobilize the joint to increase motion and decrease pain. Don’t wait – schedule an appointment today to embark on a journey towards a pain-free, active life.
By incorporating these five habits into your routine, you empower yourself to take control of your shoulder health. Remember, a proactive approach to posture, strength, flexibility, sleep, and overall lifestyle moderation can pave the way to a life free from shoulder pain and limitations. If in doubt, consult a physical therapist for personalized guidance on your journey to optimal shoulder wellness.
Written by Devin Trachman, PT, DPT, MTC.
Physical Therapy Central, a member of the Confluent Health Family
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