{"id":54598,"date":"2016-12-13T11:15:03","date_gmt":"2016-12-13T16:15:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/?p=54598"},"modified":"2021-05-17T09:11:49","modified_gmt":"2021-05-17T13:11:49","slug":"shoulder-pain-exercise-modifications","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/fitness\/shoulder-pain-exercise-modifications\/","title":{"rendered":"Got Shoulder Pain? 5 Pain-Free Exercise Modifications That Can Help"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Got
Photo: Pond5<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Everything\u2019s a trade-off. So, while the shoulder joint<\/a> enjoys its title as the most mobile joint in the human body, it\u2019s unfortunately also the least stable, and most easily injured, joint in the human body.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe shoulder, which actually comprises four separate joint structures, is a really complex joint, and involves a lot of moving parts that, if not all working together properly, can result in impingement, pain and fraying of muscles and tendons,\u201d explains exercise physiologist Matt Unthank, CSCS, director of training for Crossover Symmetry<\/a>. Hence why you should never just \u201csuck it up\u201d and push through shoulder pain.<\/p>\n

But, if you\u2019ve got shoulder pain, swearing off any and all shoulder exercises<\/a> isn\u2019t the answer either, Unthank says. After all, you\u2019ve got to work the joints if you\u2019re going to strengthen them and get them healthy (and pain-free) again.<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>10 Exercises That Could Land You in Rehab, According to PTs<\/a><\/p>\n

So how do you strengthen your shoulders without wanting to curse through every rep? We talked to leading experts to ID five easy modifications to help eliminate pain during common shoulder moves.<\/p>\n

5 Exercise Tweaks to Reduce Shoulder Pain<\/h3>\n
\"Shoulder
Photo: Pond5<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

1. The Move: Shoulder Press<\/h3>\n

How to Modify It: <\/strong>The shoulder is at its most vulnerable in the overhead position, and if you have any dysfunction within the joint, the muscles that connect to your shoulder blade can jam against the acromion process, a bony protrusion at the side of the shoulder. (If you feel around the meaty portion of your shoulder, you might feel it poke you.) To avoid this impingement, perform shoulder presses with a landmine, rather than a dumbbell or barbell.<\/p>\n

If you haven\u2019t used the landmine at your gym yet, it\u2019s the barbell<\/a> that\u2019s attached at one end to the floor. Standing tall with your feet shoulder-width apart, grab the free end of the landmine with both hands at chest height, and press the weight up and away from you, Unthank says.<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>15 Stretches You Should Do Every Damn Day<\/a><\/p>\n

2. The Move: Front Shoulder Raise<\/h3>\n

How to Modify It: <\/strong>When performing front shoulder raises, many people lift the dumbbells far above their shoulders, which is where most impingements happen, explains kinesiologist and medical exercise specialist Dean Somerset<\/a>, CSCS. Luckily, you don\u2019t have to hoist the weights clear up to eye level to really develop your anterior deltoids. \u201cReduce your range of motion and stop each rep with the weights at shoulder height or just below shoulder height,\u201d Somerset says. If that doesn\u2019t do the trick, you can also try performing each raise with your palms facing each other, rather than the floor, he says.<\/p>\n

\"Bench
Photo: Pond5<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

3. The Move: Bench Press<\/h3>\n

How to Modify It: <\/strong>The bench press is most likely to give you problems if you don\u2019t keep your shoulder blades fixed throughout the entire movement \u2014 which most people don\u2019t even know to do, Somerset says. Here\u2019s how it works: Lie down on a bench and, holding your weight(s) above your chest, pull your shoulder blades down and back, almost as if you are trying to squeeze an orange between them. Now, perform your bench press as normal, keeping your shoulder blades in this retracted position the entire time, he says. Avoid the temptation to flare your shoulder blades at the top of the movement.<\/p>\n

If you still have problems, you can also try performing a push-up<\/a> rather than a bench press, says exercise physiologist Pete McCall<\/a>, MS, CSCS. Because push-ups<\/a> keep the hands completely fixed, they introduce less instability to the shoulder. Bonus: The pressure of your hands against the floor (really \u201cdig\u201d your fingers into it!) helps to activate the rotator cuff muscles and further improve stability, McCall says.<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>THIS Is How to Do the Perfect Push-Up (Even on Your Knees)<\/a><\/p>\n

4. The Move: Lateral Shoulder Raise<\/h3>\n

How to Modify It: <\/strong>Instead of lifting the weights straight out to your sides (at 9 o\u2019clock and 3 o\u2019clock), lift them diagonally in front of you (at 10 o\u2019clock and 2 o\u2019clock), McCall says. That angle allows your humerus (upper arm bone) to follow a more natural movement<\/a> path within the shoulder joint, thereby lowering the risk of any irritation, he says.<\/p>\n

5. The Move: Rear-Delt Fly<\/h3>\n

How to Modify It: <\/strong>Usually performed with dumbbells<\/a>, you can also complete this exercise on a pec deck machine to reduce instability and the risk of pain, McCall says. To do so, sit at the pec deck machine, legs straddling the bench and stomach pressed firmly against the backrest. From here, you can complete the exercise per usual. However, since the machine keeps the weight fixed, it\u2019ll be easier to perform the exercise with good form and train your rotator cuff muscles to fire properly, he says. As you get stronger at this exercise, you can try introducing free weights again.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Strengthen your shoulders \u2014 without the joint pain \u2014 using these expert-approved exercise hacks for the bench press, shoulder raises, and more. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":57,"featured_media":54605,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,6,14],"tags":[32,289,105,144,206,281,145,341,353,154,99],"class_list":["post-54598","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-exercise","category-fitness","category-strength-training","tag-bodyweight","tag-exercise","tag-free-weights","tag-injury","tag-mobility","tag-strength-training","tag-stretching","tag-tax1living-well","tag-tax2weight-training","tag-weight-training","tag-weightlifting"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54598","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/57"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=54598"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54598\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/54605"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=54598"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=54598"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=54598"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}