Primary Rotator Cuff Exercises
 

The first group of exercises we want to describe is designed to strengthen the rotator cuff muscles in the shoulder. The rotator cuff is made up of four small muscles deep in your shoulder. When these muscles contract they cause the shoulder to rotate.

Rotate the arm away from the body. This movement is called external rotation.

Rotate the arm towards the body. This movement is called internal rotation.

Lift the arm away from the body. This movement is called shoulder abduction.

Exercise #1 - External Rotation

 

Equipment: To perform this exercise you will need a light to moderate resistance Theraband or surgical tubing. How do you determine what strength Theraband is right for you? Pull on it and if it feels like the resistance is too light – you probably have the right level of resistance. You will be performing many repetitions so a resistance that feels too easy will probably be just right as you start to fatigue.

The Movement: The External Rotation exercise focuses on strengthening the muscles that externally rotate the shoulders. The muscles that perform this motion usually are weak in swimmers. You are going to strengthen both sides of your body in this exercise.

Start by cutting the Theraband and tying it into a loop. The loop should be big enough so that your hands are 6-8 inches apart when your elbows are at your sides and your forearms are parallel to the floor.

Stand up straight with good posture. Do not hunch your shoulders forward. Lift your sternum and your chest towards the ceiling to help set your shoulder blades in the proper position.

Your elbows should be at your sides and should be bent 90 degrees so your forearms are parallel to the floor and your thumbs are pointing towards the sky. Perform the exercise by trying to rotate your hands away from your body like you are pulling taffy apart. The figures to the left show the correct start and finish positions.

Focus on squeezing your shoulder blades together before you start this exercise. Feel this squeeze through the ENTIRE exercise. If you do not focus on squeezing the shoulder blades you will be exercising the wrong muscles.

You should take about two seconds to complete each repetition – 1 second as the muscles contract and you externally rotate the shoulders. Then take 1 second as you return to the starting position. Count 1-and-2-and, 1-and-2-and as you perform the exercise to get the correct timing.

You should perform 3 sets of this exercise, resting 30 seconds between each set. Each set should end after 2 minutes or when you are no longer able to maintain correct form. It is time to end the set if:

• the shoulders start to roll forward,
• you use you upper body or wrists to help the motion or,
• you are unable to keep your shoulder blades squeezed together.

It is okay if you are only able to complete a few repetitions at first, but strive for completing 3 sets of 2 minutes. When you can do this, move up to a higher resistance Theraband.