I discovered these “10 Rotator Cuff Exercises for Kayakers” the hard way.
After 52 years of abusing my body at work and at play, I found that kayak ing had become painful. To the point where I felt reluctant to finish rolls.
This was a problem.
So after multiple appointments with the doc I finally booked an appointment at the spa…I mean, the MRI.
Yup, I had a tear in my rotator cuff. The tear had loosened up the joint to that the head of the humerus had been banging around in the joint causing all kinds of havoc. (Imagine running a 40 yard dash naked. When stuff doesn’t stay put it can get uncomfortable!)
So I scheduled surgery for December and they went in, stitched up the tear and ground out and smoothed some roughed up bone.
Time for rehab!
I began slowly, basically using a dowel with my left arm to move my right arm. The progressed to exercises using no resistance, then finally to weighted and resistance band exercises to help strengthen the rotator cuff.
These rotator cuff exercises work to establish muscular balance in the shoulder. Doing repetitive motions over the years had resulted in some muscles becoming stronger than others and pulling my shoulder out of wack.
By doing these shoulder exercises, I am strengthening (and balancing that strength) in a way that will stabilize the joint and reduce my shoulder pain.
I am not a doctor, so be sure to see a medical professional for a full assessment if you have significant pain!!
In the following pictures, my sister, who is a physical therapist, is coaching me through the exercises.
Rotator Cuff Exercises with Bands
#1 Archers
Anchor a theraband to a doorknob and use a staggered stance. Imagine you are pulling back a bow and keeping your elbow parallel to the floor, pull your thumb back to your ear. Decrease the range of motion and/or decrease the resistance of the band if you experience pain.
2 sets of 10-20
#2 Internal Rotation
Anchor a band to a doorknob and use a squared stance facing perpendicular to the band. Keep the elbow tight to your side, keep the elbow at 90 degrees and pull your hand across your belly.
#3 External Rotation
Same as Internal Rotation except begin with the band across your belly and pull the band to the outside.
#4 Wall Climbers
Stand about one foot from a wall and hold a band in front of your forehead with your elbow in front of you and about a foot from each other. Lightly rest your elbows against the wall and raise your arms up over your head keeping your arms parallel. Go only as high as pain allows. If it hurts, stop.
Physioball Rotator Cuff Exercises
#5 Shoulder Extensions
Place your chest on a physioball and stabilize yourself with your toes. If you feel shaky, drop to your knees so that you don’t run the risk of falling off and further injuring yourself. Keeping your arms straight and by your side, lift dumbbells from the floor to your hips. Imagine squeezing a pencil between your shoulder blades.
Sets and Reps
Start with lighter weights and more reps…12-20, for example.
As you gain strength, gradually increase weight and reduce reps to 10.
My physical therapist has me doing 2 sets.
#6 Prone External Rotation
Place your chest on a physioball and extend your elbows 90 degrees away from your body with your hands pointing at the floor. Raise your hands out in front of your face keeping your elbows at 90 degrees.
#7 Horizontal Abduction
Place your chest on a physioball and extend your arms straight out to the sides. Raise your arms to shoulder height.
Rotator Cuff Exercises with Weights
#8 45 Degree Arm Raises
Stand with your feet hip width and keep your shoulders down below your neck. Raise your arms even to the shoulders keeping your arms at a 45 degree angle to the body.
#9 Bent Over Rows
Stand with your feet hip width apart, pull the shoulder blades together and bend at the waist. Keep your chest out. Start with your arms dangling and pull dumbbells up to your ribs.
#10 Curls
Standing with your feet hip width and your elbows touching the front of your torso, bend the elbows raising the weights up to your shoulder. Be sure not to rock back and forth to swing the weights!
Conclusion
Frequency
If you’re just out of surgery, your physical therapist will provide you with a detailed plan. Most likely, this will involve exercises every day.
If you are doing preventative maintenance, then 2-3 times a week should provide you with positive results.
Consult a Medical Professional
If you feel you have bad shoulders, consult your doctor to make sure it’s nothing serious. But then, do something about it before it gets worse! Strengthen and balance those muscles before you do more damage!