Best Shoulder Pain Relief Exercises | Rotator Cuff Tendinopathy
Koltyn et al. from the year 2001 found that isometric exercises are able to reduce pain and they are therefore a great way to load the injured tendon early on.
1) In case of suspected superior cuff tendinopathy of the supraspinatus tendon, press the back of your hand against the wall in the scapular plane, which is at approximately 30° of horizontal adduction, and hold it for 15-30s with strong intensity.
2) If you suspect posterosuperior cuff tendinopathy of the infraspinatus and the teres minor tendon, you want to do an external rotation in a neutral Wall Press. This is done with the elbow flexed at the elbow to 90° and then externally rotate against the wall or by resisting rotation with your other hand and again, holding it for 15-30s with strong intensity.
3) Finally, if you suspect anterior-superior cuff tendinopathy of the subscapularis tendon, you would wanna do the Belly Press. To perform this exercise, place your hand against the belly in line with the elbow and push for 15-30s with strong intensity.
According to Hoger Bement et al. in the year 2008, the best variables to achieve the maximal analgesic effect are high-intensity contractions of 80% Maximal Voluntary Contraction for a sustained duration. However, the experience pain level should also be used as a guide and should not be higher than a 4 or a 5 out of 10. These exercises can be done a couple of times throughout the day in sets of 3-5. If you want to know how to know which part of the rotator cuff is affected, make sure to watch our video on full can test, external rotation lag sign, and the lift off sign or check out other shoulder rehab exercises on our channel.
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