Shoulders are rather important part of our body. Strong, healthy and flexible shoulders enable us to do lots of activities and feel confident in any movement. However, our today’s lifestyle often causes shoulder discomfort or even pain – all that sitting, working on a computer, carrying shoulder bags… you know!

It does not have to be like that, you can make your shoulders healthy and flexible with regular exercise. We prepared for you series of 5 simple exercises that you can perform at home, in the office, hotel room, simply anytime, anywhere you are with no or limited equipment. If you exercise these or similar exercises regularly, your shoulders will feel more open and flexible after just a couple of weeks. Regularly is the key word here. You won’t become an Olympic athlete with this simple sequence 😉 but if you exercise regularly, you will see & feel the results.

Of course, you should feel your muscles working but avoid any sharp pain in your shoulders. If you feel any pain, stop the exercise, decrease the range of movement or move to the next exercise. In case you have any history of shoulder injuries, please make sure to consult your physician before starting any of the exercises. This short program is not a substitute to a proper medical advice if you already have some shoulder issues.

Some basics about shoulders in case you are interested:

The human shoulder is made up of three bones: the clavicle (collarbone), the scapula (shoulder blade), and the humerus (upper arm bone) as well as associated muscles, ligaments and tendons. The shoulder joint (also known as the glenohumeral joint) is a ball and socket joint that allows the arm to rotate in a circular fashion or to hinge out and up away from the body. The muscles associated with the shoulder are the biceps and the rotator cuff muscle group that surrounds the shoulder joint and contribute to the shoulder’s stability. The shoulder must be mobile enough for the wide range actions of the arms and hands, but also stable enough to allow for actions such as lifting, pushing and pulling. Shoulder joint is then rather complex structure where by strengthening some involved muscles we can stabilize the shoulder while stretching other muscles makes the shoulder mobile. Delicate balance between strength and flexibility is key to the healthy, functional shoulder – too much strength results in limited mobility, too much flexibility leads to instability.

You can learn more about the anatomy and shoulder function for example here: Wikipedia – Shoulder.

Once we injure our shoulder (doesn’t have to be a car crash…just a small impingement with little but persistent pain is annoying enough), we usually have to rest, adjust our activities and seek medical advice. Some injuries are possible to address with specific physiotherapy, others require surgery. There are so many different options why our shoulder could be painful, hence proper examination using modern tools like MRI is a very good idea. From my view, any surgery should be avoided unless absolutely necessary, until we find out that physiotherapy with an experienced therapist does not work.

Enjoy your shoulder exercises and have a great day! Please let me know your experience after you have done the routine for a couple of weeks.