I hurt both my shoulders doing curls with one of those old spring chest expander gadgets.

The right shoulder healed but the left one is knackered. If i do dumbbell curls or bench press it bites on the front of my shoulder.. I know I really should see a physio but don’t have the time.

Can your product fix something like this?

Actually using a upright butterfly machine for pecks had given me trouble for years. I look forward to getting into the training to help build stronger shoulders. Thanks Chad A. Wilgus

This is incredibly helpful. I’ve been a fan of Rick Kaselj for a long time and he is my go-to guy for injury prevention. Thanks for the great info – looking forward to the Fix My Shoulder Pain system. It will be a must-have for me!

Regular dips are a big problem for my right shoulder, which I injured many times (rotator cuff, trap, neck). I’m looking forward to your info!

Nick

This is important stuff. Thanks.

Female, age 43 Group exercise instructor and PT for 22 years and have just started with problem with AC joint and rotator cuff on left side caused by overuse (reisitance training + piloxing, power yoga, body conditioning classes daily) seeing physio, cannot avoid exercising (its my livelihood) but need to know how to improve pain and prevent a relapse or (worst case scenario) getting the same problem on the other side!

Years of overhead pressing, behind the neck pressing and dumbbell lateral raises have caused tendinitis and tendonosis in my shoulders. My solution has been to press a light or jerk press a heavy barbell overhead and hold it there as long as possible or for time. For lateral raises I use a similar process. Hold the dumbbell at arms length, straight arm to the side and parallel to the floor. These can be done to the front also. Hold some 15s for 60 seconds and feel the burn and get the pump without aggravating the joint. Holding 185 overhead for 60 seconds hits the holders and whole back area. Stare at yourself in the mirror or close your eyes and go into a zone. These static holds have been working for me.

I see some guys doing heavy internal and external rotation exercises for their rotator cuff and shoulders. Seems a bit much for a small muscle. Your thoughts? Thanks Rick, your advice is always a go to for my trainers,your the man!

That’s funny, I used to do Rows the bad way that hurts your shoulders and then I learned to do them right. It’s funny how an exercise when done wrong can hurt you but when done right can make you feel better. When I finally figured out how to do one arm rows correctly it actually fixed my shoulder pain, thanks for sharing all this awesome information Rick you’re doing a great job!

Rick, this is so helpful to me and to my readers. The shoulder is such a finicky joint and you’ve addressed all the pain issues I get questions about. You’re def my ‘go to’ shoulder injury specialist. Thanks!

Hey Rick, this product looks awesome and will solve a problem that most people who train suffer from at some point in life.

I have rotator cuff problems in my left shoulder – I know what aggravates it, but not what caused it, so your videos were very useful.

Any kind of overhead or shoulder exercise aggravates it, but the worst are pull ups or chin ups.

This is so annoying as these exercises generally give the best returns.

My cure is simply to not do them and avoid the pain.

If you have a solution that allows me to continue with these exercise – ‘Bring it on’

Thanks for sharing, Vern

I regret that the audio portions of videos 1, 3 and 4 started then stopped intermittently making it impossible to get meaningful info from the commentary.

I have regularly done presses with kettlebells, barbells, and sandbags, dips on a Roman chair, and upright rows using KB’s and DB’s. I am now under chiropractic care for over two years and have not gotten any real relief. They say I suffer from a damaged suprasprinaus and I often stop doing the drills involving the above for a couple of weeks at a time to no avail.

I am anxious to learn if you have a better “mouse-trap”.

-JIMBO

I’ve had a bad shoulder from an old hockey injury (fractured the rotator cuff). Rick has done a great job showing the proper form. We all get caught in taking shortcuts in our workout and I end up in pain the next day. With his reminders, it makes things a lot easier so I can gain strength to further prevent injuries while not re-aggrevating old ones.

Awesome stuff Rick. Thanks.

Hi Rick

I want to let you know how much your 5 worst shoulder exercises product has helped my clients. I’m a sports therapist and often get bodybuilders and martial artists coming to me with chronic shoulder issues that they either try to ignore or take NSAID’s to resolve the problem. Obviously the problem isn’t going to go away by ignoring or masking it. Your awesome work on avoiding and resolving shoulder injuries is incisive and to the point. not only is it easy to read and implement, it has great depth, with progressions, regressions and lots of research references, which is important to me as a professional whose reputation depends on results.

I would recommend this seminal piece to anyone who has had a shoulder injury in the past or treats those with chronic shoulder problems. It’s been a valuable resource to me for implementing cutting edge strategies for my clients to stay pain free and improve their performance.

Thanks for your amazing efforts and please keep up the great work, I can’t wait until your expert analysis of the next body part. Your books and products take pride of place on my bookshelf of professional injury resolution resources.

Jason

Awesome information. Thanks Rick. I’ve had left shoulder pain in recent weeks and I think it’s because of exercise # 2, the shoulder press. I’ll try this variation you suggest. I’m looking forward to learning more in your product.

Kate

Hi Rick,

Thanks for the information, very helpful. One program that I have includes the upright row – which I agree shouldn’t be done. What would you suggest for a shoulder routine that would cover all three heads – anterior, medial and rear?

I am thinking front raises for anterior, your recommended way for the shouldere press for the medial, and bent over rear delt flyes since I don’t have a pulley at home.

Your comments would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Hey – thanks for the great info. As a massage therapist and trainer, I appreciate understanding how to help my clients work safely to not further injure their shoulder, as well as how to fix their shoulder pain by strengthening the tissue that needs to be strengthened to be in better balance. Just awesome info!

Believe it or not, one of the exercises that really bother my shoulders and my elbows is the preacher curl machine at my gym. The whole setup puts my joints in a very prone positions. I have a very bad right shoulder from a 15 year old injury so I need to be very careful what I do.

Whenever I do flat bench press I experience what feels like a sharp stabbing like sensation in both of my shoulders. I at times can almost hear my shoulder joints cracking upon the descent of the bar. Thank you for the consideration.

I understand what your saying about rotating the Dumbell’s in 30 degrees to take the stretch overload off for the press. But how do you explain the extreme scap/shoulder retraction need for a Barbell Power Snatch?

I’ve been working out for over 28 years shoulder pain for me is a given. However these hints and don’t dos will help a lot cant wait to try them.

thank you,

Rick

It’s awesome to see such an expert like Rick sharing his knowledge to us. As a physical therapist I can see these are invaluable recommendations that every fitness professional should follow.

Thanks Rick for taking the fitness community to the next level!

Great tips – your video taught me how to improve exercises I’ve done for years (shoulder press and single arm row) and drop upright row completely. I have a sore shoulder from my road warrior days – I can feel it when I do pull downs but not pull ups. Will “Fix My Shoulder Pain” address this?

The videos are good but I have a very healthy shoulders, as I download to view calmly.

Great info Rick. Your videos have just given me a whole new idea on how to improve on my fitness routine, amazing as always. Double thumbs up.

As an oldie I have learned the hard way and getting injuries teaches you quickly what is bad to do – you feel it. So I agree with the advice. I suffer from a bad shoulder following a motorcycle accident in my teens when physio was not the norm. So this has hampered my benching and shoulder work. But in the last ten years I have found that hand-stands against a wall with limited pressing (not all the way down and do not lock out) helps plus static holding (isometric work as another has mentioned) is an excellent exercise to do. You naturally get hands and body into best position and all muscles engage immediately.

It works for me and my body weight is a 107kgs/17 stone plus of exercised body (ie no fat beer gut) so not a light weight to be using but it feels natural.

poor training by PTs is something that annoys me in a gym – many clearly learn from a book and do not do the exercises themselves. More people should read this type of information before engaging with a PT so that they find……..the good ones who are researching and using this site as an example!! Did I get out of that hole?!

Hi Rick,
Great information. I think this is a problem most people suffer with in silence, me included.
I’ve been attending a circuit class for years where we use barbells and as a result I have twinges in both shoulders due to doing all the exercises you’ve highlighted as bad 🙁 Press behind the neck, upright rows & bench dips etc. I kind of knew they were the cause, but I love attending the class, so I’d be interested to find out what exercises can be done as an alternative using barbells as I guess they limit the movement path more than dumbbells? Dumbbells are not available at this class unfortunately.
Also, I’m interested in body weight training which I promote with my clients as a PT, because I feel they pose less risk of injury, however I would welcome your comments. So I would love to see examples of bodyweight exercise Do’s & Don’t s in your product. In addition to bench dips, what other bodyweight exercises would you recommend not doing? Can you suggest any alternatives?
Thanks,
Paul

Helpful, informative

Hi Rick,

Great insight into these moves. Front Delt Lateral Raises, hurt a bit but nothing works better
for size and roundness, Any advice on this?

Hi Rick. I’m not clear on why not to do the upright rows ( up to now I’ve been including them in some of my workouts). I regularly do shrugs and shoulder presses (hopefully correctly). What other exercises are good? And how can I know which are the bad ones (don’t tell me to avoid an exercise if it makes my joints creak as many of them do at 65!)?

This isn’t a comment but a question. I do dumbbell upright rows with the weight starting in front of my thighs. As I lift the weight, I bring it out so that when it is all the way up, my hands are aligned with my shoulders. Is this any better than using the machine? Worse?

The flat bench press causes pain. It is approximately at the mid point of the movement, both downward and the pressing motion where the upper arms are about parallel to the floor.

I have developed pain in my left shoulder when I put my arm up over head and back. It hurts really bad to the point I can’t even do overhead squats but doesn’t hurt with military presses? If it goes up in line with my ear its fine but if it goes up and back there’s pain. I can also feel it when zip up the back of my dress or something that requires me to reach my own back. I’m thinking it is supraspinatus impingement but I’m not sure. (is that the same as bursitis?) I really want to go to a pr but I just can’t afford it right now and insurance won’t cover it. I’ve stopped taking heavy weight overhead, started the diesel crew shoulder rehab, and I’m trying to ice 3x daily. Does it sound like your product will help me? And I use mostly kettlebells will your product translate well for those who mostly us kbs?

Doing side laterals is problematic. Also the
videos were very interesting but the form Rick used when he was demonstrating
bench dips was very poor. He was several inches from the bench, his butt and back should have barely cleared the bench and most people have their feet up on another bench. Feet on floor is not what advanced or even intermediate people do.

what is your opinion on kettlebell exercises ,in general and how they can effect the shoulders

Currently suffer from frozen shoulder (right) and my left shoulder is bothering me. It all began with pole dancing classes. Not sure what the actual injury is in right shoulder – xray and ultrasound cam back fine, waiting for MRI results.

Rick,
I’m having issues in my left shoulder as I type this. Oddly enough it’s radiating from the posterior part of my delt and i’m struggling to figure out how I did it. Usually, I can point out thing like in proper form on heavy Push Press or going too heavy on a Bench press. After watching these videos I realize it was from hanging ring dips I did as part of a workout the other day. Good stuff my friend!

I’ve found that alot of yoga moves with overhead arms, close grip pushups, and arms held static in front or sides of the body irritate my shoulders. I modify with arms by my side or whatever feels right. What do you think?
I am a dental hygienist and have some kyphosis and forward/ rounded shoulders after all the years in this job!

I have massive shoulder pain basically has taken over my life I have done some physio but did not help I was currently told I should try cold laser therapy need some help that’s for sure

Thanks! That was great! I wish all of the personal trainers could work with you! Man, is there some dangerous training going on. Your tips are SO helpful—-I worked out in a gym for years and finally set up a gym at home. This info will help me keep my shoulders working well into old age (I hope!) I am 66 now and hope to die with my sweats on! 🙂 Again, thanks!

Really like the tips on rows, and presses to make them a safe exercise. I and my clients will be doing it that way from now on. Thanks Rick

The squat. It causes me pain at the top of my knee.

Rick,

I have pain in the front of my right shoulder every time I do a chest press. Ive tried everything, light weights, hammer machine, bench, dumbells and nothing seems to help. I try to pinch my shoulder blades to stretch the muscle and take tension off of my shoulder and still I have pain. It’s incredibly frustrating, I used to work out at 245 and now I can barely bench 200. I also have muscular pain and tightness in my posterior deltoid. Any ideas for me? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for your information about how to do correct exercise.
I am looking forward to the Fix My Shoulder Pain system
Thanks again

Dips are rough on my shoulders.

Great info Rick! I really appreciate this. My question is from a kettle bell standpoint: How does one achieve the strength to do the KB snatch properly? It would appear that hi-pulls (intermediate conditioning for the snatch) would be as bad as the upright row, or at the very least should be cut off before the elbows break the plane. I’ve been working thru some shoulder injuries myself, and I suspect some of mine have been related to this endeavor.

I have been training 25 years. I tore my labrum doing steep decline presses. After a botched shoulder surgery, I developed arthrits in my shoulder. I cannot lift overhead and have limited range of motion. Any suggestions on what I can do to strengthen my shoulders without causing further damage to my arhtritic one?

I am 46 years old and have been exercising since i was 14. Over the years i have had numerous injuries…. I recently tore my left labrum but i still workout but stay away from exercises that cause pain in my shoulder. I plan on having surgery in January. What exercises should I stay away from until I have the injury repaired?

Great videos! really helpful thanks!

Wow, that was so helpful. Have been looking for something like this program for years. 59-year-old female, active exerciser all my adult life but had a longtime problem with shoulder dislocations. First it was just the left, then the right shoulder started “popping out” too. And usually NOT when exercising, just moving the wrong way — they often seemed to dislocate at will. Very frightening and painful each time. Sometimes I could get them back in, other times off to the emergency room (again).

Eventually had reconstructive surgery on both shoulders. They had to do the left one twice — the day after they fixed it for repeated anterior dislocations it went out in posterior position, while I was lying there post-op in the hospital bed!

The surgeries were 10 years ago but I’m still always very wary of shoulder exercises and concerned about proper form. But I need shoulder & back work to help my not-so-good posture. Looking forward to more tips and your product launch.

Hey Rick, Great videos and great information. Shoulder issues are one of the most common issues with new clients I see. Changing position on the shoulder press and making sure people aren’t letting their shoulder drop out on the one arm row have been two big things for our programming over the years.

Great stuff Rick, looking forward to the product.

Cameron Makarchuk

I have had shoulder issues since I broke my clavicle in 1997. These exercises have been great. Thanks Rick!

Billy Thomas

Thanks for the list of top 5 NOT TO DO Shoulder exercises. But, how about if you provide a list of top 5 TO DO shoulder exercises? THANKS!

Thanks Rick…good info
What are your thoughts on parallel bar dips in regard to shoulder development and safety?
I try to do “compound” exercises that activate numerous muscle groups in one movement like pushups for example. I have access to an assisted pullup machine at my gym and I like using it. I have also tried assisted pullups using elastic bands. Do you have an opinion on those pullup exercises as well as pushups as overall arm-shoulder-back conditioners?
Thanks, again.
dr j

Dear Mr Kaselj,

I have continuous pain in my upper arms (deltoid to tricep) when performing bench presses, despite spending quite some time warming up beforehand, and starting off with relatively low weights.

The pain persists during rest days and it is getting to the point where I shall have to stop doing bench presses altogether because of the pain. Incidentally, I have had this problem for over a year, and I have taken 10 weeks rest from training to see if this would help but I am afraid this had little effect.

Is there anything you can suggest that could possibly help me overcome, or ease, this problem?

Kind regards

Brian Wells
England, UK
Age 73

Thanks for the great info on the 5 worst exercises,

I am looking forward to the Fix My Shoulder Pain system when it is available at a reasonable price

As a guy apparently 2 weeks out from a fixed shoulder (I’ve been patient) I’d just like to say thanks. From experience, dumb exercises on the smith machine and a concoction of upright rows, bench dips and DB incline bench pressing with a barbell-like grip are not good for your health! Taking advice from guys like you plus instinct from now on, too much bad advice in the gym, if you’re unsure what you’re doing do some research and get a program!

Chin-ups, military press, bench press, regular dips and all lateral raises. Even using resistance bands for rotor cuff exercises cause dull aches the length of my arms.

What is your feeling on parallel bar dips,a supposed lower chest and tricep exercise? Does this exercise put the shoulder out of alignment?

Also, my daughter, who plays fastpitch softball and basketball, recently has had incredible shoulder soreness and tendersness. She has been diagnosed by a physical therapist and orthopaedic surgeon with shoulder “hyper-mobility”. Are there any types of exercises she can do to strengthen or enhance the stability (shoulder support) of her shoulder joint? I’m assuming you can’t really strengthen the ligaments and tendons but what about the underlying and exterior muscles around the shoulder joint itself?

Very interesting and helpful videos. I appreciate any advise you can give me.

Thanks………….nate

Rick, Thanks for all the info!

I’ve been doing one-arm shoulder presses using your 30 degree start position. When working out by myself, I can use a heavier dumbbell because the other arm helps gets the single weight in the start position.

Anything wrong with just doing one arm at a time?

Hi my name is esai. I have been dealing with winged scapula for a while now and was curious if there was any exercises you would recommend doing( excluding scapula push-ups i have done these for a while and no improvement).Or any other information you may have to give on that topic.

Hi Rick,
On the upright row you suggested not to include that for shoulder workout. Does that also include barbell and dumbbell upright row. Thanks!

Hi Rick

I tore my rotator cuff four years ago and still havn’t fully recovered from it despite going through physio several times. The situation has gradually improved enabling me to start training again at the beginning of this year without any pain. However i can definitely feel theres some tissue missing deep in my shoulder and I’ve noticed that I’ve not gained any muscle on my injured left side while my uninjured right side which is also my dominant side has grown.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated

Hey Rick-
I’m 60 years old, and have been working out 3-4 times/week for 32 years. But since I’ve been 53 or so, I’ve developed birsitis in my right shoulder. I have had to readjust some of my exercises– I lift weights, but are there any techniques you would know of where I could protect that shoulder more. By the way, in the lat pulldown, I have gone from pulling the bar behind the neck to pulling the bar in front, and seems to have improved the situation. It also seems to build the muscle better being in front. What do you think? Thanks for the tip about the bumbell raises. I do them and never thought bringing in my arms would help. I will implement that tip.

I watched the video series and was glad to see that for 4 of the 5 exercises, I’m already reducing injury risk for my training clients. For the 5th exercise, upright row, I didn’t hear an explanation for WHY it’s bad for the shoulder. Rick, you did such a great job of giving the “why” for the other 4, so I’d love to hear the explanation behind removing the upright row from my exercise library. Thanks in advance!
Cheers,
Nancy

I agree about the upright rows,which are actualy a screwed up partial movement within the barbell clean, every other ‘worst exercise for your shoulders’ you list is one that helped fix my shoulder problems, especialy the BTN pulldown (with a band, however, not a pulley)
working shoulder retraction when rowing works the shoulder retractors, for me, in a good way.
I do do shoulder press the way you show, if anything, more in the frontal plane (for barbell Press my elbows are farther forward than the bar, almost like a standing close grip bench to overhead)

Hi Rick,
Thank you, I love your work!
When I attempt to do a pull up, my left shoulder doesn’t ‘fire’, i.e. my lat is able to pull it into it’s socket but the movement seems to stop there. I have had this shoulder injured quite a while ago but now it isn’t giving me any problem with any other movement. Could it be just a strength issue? Or something else? Is there an (easy) fix?
Be well,
Rob

oh, I should clarify that the retraction of the shoulder and the actual row are preformed as seperate movements, so it’s retract, row, lower, allow to protract.
also I can’t do dips, so agreeon not doing those, esp. the bench version

Hello,

I couldn’t really learn anything from this segment, because there weren’t any closed caption or subtitle to the videos. I don’t think all of your audience who can hear. I’m Deaf myself, and I enjoy lifting, I want to get better and know more about this field of area, but I couldn’t really pick up anything just by reading lips or watching Rick talking. Next time you guys might want to give your audience some kind of language options here.

Keep up the good work, though! I’ll look forward to your next email.

Danny

Hi Rick, your doing a great job..

Wondering what you would suggest if I already feel that over the years I have been doing these things and my right shoulder is ALREADY sore? Obviously I wont continue with these exercises, but is there any other treatment you would recommend? Deep tissue massage, MRI scans, rotator cuff exercises to strengthen the area etc.. Ive had bursitis in the past..

Also, are you saying all upright row ‘movements’ are bad????? For example clean presses, power cleans, etc..

Also, are all dips bad????? What about dips for the chest – tricep dips were emphasised on the video!

Thankyou Rick, Ive definetely learnt alot..

I get a pain in the anterior portion of the deltoid when I do bench press. Any suggestions?

Hey Rick.

I have undergone a sub scapularis and repairs to severe bursitis from a work related accident. I still have a 15mm tear of the supra-spinatis tendon and my shoulder was giving me hell. Ive raced motorcycles all my life but this injury resulted in forcing my retirement. I asked a question whether my shoulder could ever return to being as strong as before medically and the answer was no, so I asked could I repair and rebuild it mechanically with weights, again the answer was unlikely. So I have a full gym at home and have gone about constructing my own rehab/shoulder rebuilding workouts and coincidentally what you have shown me already confirms that Im going down the correct path and my shoulder continues to rebuild from the outside. Wont be long and I will be back in the pool!!

Thanks for the info. Years ago when I was into bodybuilding, I use to do upright rows & my upper left lip would curl. Yeah, I was probably irritating a nerve then. Eventually I moved into yoga, because my left shoulder became so painful no matter what. So an everyday practice I do is to strengthen my serratus anterior. My left is still weaker than my right, but I have full range of motion. Push-ups still bother me, so I do them modified.

Keep spreading the word about those shoulders!!!

I don’t have pain, but when trying CrossFit, I realized I have limited range of motion – I can’t do front squats easily or overhead squats at all. I guess I adversely affected my shoulders from lots of vertical dips and “chicken wing” bench press. Any fixes?

Excellent information. I have had severe shoulder pain that required surgery and I have done all of those exercises. I will incorporate the changes that Rick recommends. Thanks for the help

Dear Rick,

Thanks for taking the time to focus on the shoulder – one of the most complex joints to rehabilitate.

I have chronic shoulder instability in my left shoulder, following a series of dislocations while playing basketball. I have tried everything but it is very hard to get a programme that focuses on strength and stability. Can you help? I really need to rebuild muscular stability which is quite a difficult thing to do – heavy weights just build up the wrong muscles and certain exercises harm more than help.

I really would appreciate your input.

Thanks and kind regards,
Mike

Hi Rick

Not sure if my ‘problem’, comes within your orbit. But here goes

I am 68 years old, but an avid ‘gym rat, who works out, cardios or stretches most days of the week and (touch wood), has not had any serious injury or have any specific problems at present.

However I know that my shoulders are as stiff as the proverbial board and just as inflexible. I am very tall, so tend to stoop which I think might aggravate my immobility. This stiffness does not hinder me in my normal life or in my workout, but I feel that I should be far more flexible.

Any suggestions?

Regards

Trevor Ingram

I have been training clients with different protocals for alot of yrs and I am amazed at how many clients/people misuse the the very complex shoulder group…including me!
Thanks for the head’s up and I am always learning at the ripe ‘old age’ of 57.
Rick

Great work all around. That closed-packed shoulder advice is priceless, so few understand the importance. I learned via a serious Rt shoulder injury doing KB swings (heavy). Eight months of regular chiropractic care, kinesiotape and cold laser, with the tiniest of progressions doing tai chi and I was able to get back to better than 100%. I turned down an injection and a surgery.

Thanks,

DrD

Thanks for the videos. Those are all very good suggestions that I plan on using. I have definitely been doing the one arm rows incorrectly!

Mike C.

Rick

Great info. Nice to see somebody else with this body of knowledge. I got mine the hard way. I competed on the national level in the martial arts as a youth. A severe shoulder dislocation forced me into second in the national sambo Russian submission wrestling championships. After surgery and lengthy rehab, I missed the World championships in Moscow. I then became a physical therapist.

Keep up the good work,

Dave Beutel, P.T.

Great insights and very helpful videos!

I hurt my left shoulder somehow last year (no pain but feeling week). But having seen the 5 videos I now think I have a good notion as to why!!

My physiotherapists says its my supraspinatus muscle which is preventing me from getting the most out of my workouts. So I do dbell press for my chest and dbell press for shoulders but at lower weights with very slow movements. I am feeling stronger but still on occasion get pinches in my left shoulder especially on the press. Thankfully I don’t have any acute pain.

I have really been paying attention to my technique without going heavy and actually noticed that by bringing the shoulder forward to 30 degrees it actually helps.

My biggest question though is how to regain the strength and stability in my left shoulder so that I can go full force and equal my right shoulder in terms of resistance and strength.

Thanks!

I have had nagging shoulder pain and injuries since my mid 20s and I am now 50. I recently injured my shoulder while trying to do tricep bench dips and reinjured it before it had a chance to heal just trying to do light incline dumbell presses. The doctor is sending me for a MRI. I usually injury my left shoulder and around 8 years ago I tore my left bicep muscle, but never had it fixed because I thought it was just a muscle sprain or strain and now it is too late to fix because of the scar tissue. Since this injury, I have not been able to even do 1 single pull-up or even a set of 10 push-ups. Any help or advise especially with the pull-ups and push-ups would be greatly appreciated.

I hurt my left shoulder about 40 years ago playing racquetball. I t went out of place 3 times in 3 months. Since then it has always given me pain. I find now that I am older even pushups are extremely taxing. I have had PT within the last three years but it continues to get worse. Any help?

It would appear that I have acquired Rt. Shoulder Distal Clavicular Osteolysis (Self-Diagnosed) from too frequent bench pressing. Any suggestions on what I can do to speed-up my recovery time &/or begin rehabing my shoulder.

How about doing upright rows with DBs to just below the pec line. It seems like a natural place to stop. That’s without any swing or ballistic movement thrown in.

Hello Rick!
I’ve been an athlete since my school days and I have trained athletes since 1979. I have found the greater majority of all bodybuilding exercises create negative motor patterns and evenually injury. Though, I do not think the upright row ‘should’ be avoided I understand your concerns. I think it should be minimized. For those who want to use this exercise I encourge these 3 points:
1. Shrug the shoulders at the beginning of the pull. Drive the shoulders to the ears.This allows the joint to open rather than being laterally compressed.
2. Drive the elbows up rather than pulling with the hands. This changes the leverage & tension by taking the stress off the shoulder joint.
3. Always keep the elbows higher than the hands/grip and drive the elbows up; do not pull with the hands. The hands are only an extension of the shoulder/elbow connection. This exercise needs to be more like a shrug than a pull.

Keep up the great work Rick,
Stephen

Hey, I hurt my shoulder about 5 months ago benching. I had my form corrected to be safe, but I apparently caused myself inflammation of the ac. Im finally able to work again now, but my problem is despite the reduction in pain (thanks to lyprinol- an anti inflam.) I still have a dropped shoulder that feels uncomfortable and sitting forward than anything else. Please help me on what to do for this!

As a personal trainer & competitive bodybuilder, I look forward to reading Fix My Shoulder Pain.

Good info, i always thought of these as common sense, as if it hurts don’t continue to do them..

With the exception when i was working out at home and doing chair dips, lol

Rick,Thankyou thankyou!
I am a trainer in Perth Western Australia. Im often critisced as being too regimented and “nazi” with technique, I dont indulge in the “smash em crash em” way of training people. My approach is to teach technique while conditioning the person to then progress them in shaping and strength.
Many training organistations here are making a quick million dollars pumping out trainers who are not being taught any of these things you point out in your vids.They arent beign taught correct technique even in some thing as simple as the pushup, I see horror things in shoudlers due to postioning of the arms aand body while trainers do pushups to demonstrate to clients.
I am rejuvinated and inspired with your vids to know I am in fact on the right track that I am training my people safely and properly. I will continue teaching other trainers ( Im a registered Mentor) in the manner of which I train.
Thankyou for taking the time to do thses videos.
Kind regards
Gwenda

Hi – I am a professional BB and appreciated the articulation of knowledge many of us know, but put so clearly. Keep it coming…

good stuff.

Dear Sir,
I need some guidance for back pain. one day i have done back exercised heavily. After that I am geeting back pain when i take medicine it will cover but after sometime it will come back.

Kindly guide the same.
Regards,
Ajay

Hi Rick,

I’ve injured my my AC joint in the shoulder and it has inflamed something terrible. It looks as if the joint/shoulder has broken and reset incorrectly (I know it hasn’t though).
This has most likely happened to awkward manual handling movements at work and my training doesn’t help it (frustrating!)
I’ve had physio treatment with it and to no success. Any ideas as to what route I could go down ?

Many thanks
Richie Robinson
UK

I don’t have bad shoulders, but I do have a bad elbow from doing pullovers. Do you have any program to fix elbows?
Thanks

Common Bicep curls and side-lateral raise. Please help..

Hi Rick

So many people offer how to build strong solid muscle, really interested in your How to avoid and how to fix, great explanations on the vids.

I have a right rotator cuff injury right now…

Thank you

Bench press causes my husband grief. Particularly decline bench press. Any suggestions?

Hi Rick,
Useful videos there…thanks. I have three exercises which eventually give me problems with my shoulders…1) Wide Grip behind the neck pull ups….2) Barbell bench Presses and 3) Parallel Bar Dips .

I usually stop the exercises or switch to a lighter weight wherever possible and start a regime of the normal rotator cuff exercises using a band and after a while i’m back to normal. I still hear a clicking sound in my left shoulder though and an occassional twinge of pain along with the click when I reach back for something and then get my arm back up front.

Nice and interesting videos ! Along my life my right shoulder dislocated 3 times and leans forward.What exercices could help me to rebuild the muscles in place ? Thanks in advance

Dear Rick,
great Info as always. I am also a happy customer of some of your other programs.

I have one question though: What is your suggestion with barbell overhead presses? Can they be done without hurting the shoulders, maybe be trying to turn the ellbows more inward or is this exercise a bad idea anyway, because the shoulders are put in a bad position as you demonstrate in your first video?

Thanks in advance!

Hi Rick very interesting videos!
Could you suggest to use, instead of the upright rows, the “shrug” exercise with barbells?
I answered the wrong way with the “shoulder press” 😉 it was very interesting really! 😉

The only reason that I started to use a gym was because my shoulders were injured due to poor health / poor posture / back trouble, and the work-outs have definitely not worsened matters, either aesthetically or bio-mechanically.

I discovered that I could re-build / build muscle, AND I revealed a bikini-body AND six pack.
I also reckon that I should of been informed, a very long time ago, that I could be a candidate for ‘body-buiding’ , as I did not hit the gym till aged thirty-four / thirty-five.

Success story any-way, although muscle growth is slow to show (I am leaner, not bulkier).

When I do incline bench my left shoulder tends to hurt.

Rick, I am a 58 yr old male and started (trying to) this year in weight lifting and cardio (not too much) training on my own due to staying healthy in my later yrs of life by God’s willing. My question is: how long does it takes to see some good defination on your body? I work out (weights) every other day (3-4x week) and has been taking Kre Alkalyn (pre & post), NO-XPLODE (pre work out), HGH up (post) plus my vitamins stacking all up (pre) only during work out days. According to research that I’ve done due to age wise requires me to do every other day and one day in-between rest, is this true? also I’ve been doing Intermitten Fasting and just started about two month ago but my weight isn’t really going down either. what do you recomand for us older guys to do without getting hurt? That’s one reason I take a break every other day is for not hurting myself. I see guys at the gym that workout everyday and some have def and others don’t. my workouts are in PM not AM. also my workout consist of heavy lifting, enough that I can do 12 rep or less x 3 sets of any workouts. Is this enough or too little?

that’s exactly what I was doing with the shoulder press, and I do get shoulder pain. Thank you.

Hi Rick (and thanks to Mike for the intro :))
I’ve been out of the gym for almost 2 years now with impingements of my subscapularis. This was confirmed via MRI scan. I’ve seen 4 physiotherapists, only one had an effect after 4 months when trying a new strategy. This involved lying on my back with my arm bent and hand tucked under my back. Then the physio pushed my shoulder downwards with force. They reckoned the whole problem was because of overdeveloped traps, bad posture, and sitting at a computer 24/7. The problem cleared up quickly, but then arose on the other side. So it has moved from one shoulder to the other. At the moment I’m doing my best to spend as little time hunched at a computer as I can, and walk with my shoulders back. Unfortunately I can’t afford the physio at the moment but I’m having my brother push my shoulder back the same way the physio did. It aches like hell after wards.
I was wondering if you had any solutions or advice on the problem? I can’t bench or esp. do flyes.
Kind Regards, Maddy

Best way to do bench press is shoulder are a problem? Inclined bench? Declined bench? Flat bench?
Should I load lots or littel weight? My max one-rep is 225. Should I regularly go back up to that or stay away and lift lighter with more reps? Thanks.

Hi rick, I hurt my both knees from the 20 + years of vigorous badminton I play & when I consulted two specialist, they had asked me to go for an operation. In the gym how can I nurse my both knees ( rehab ) , what kinda exercises should I focus at. With many thanks.

Are pushups bad for your shoulders?

If not all pushups are bad, which ones are good/bad?

The best exercise for building strong flexible shoulders is a bodyweight exercise called the Hindu Push Up.

I’ve heard the criticisms of all the above exercises and have done a lot of shoulder rehab. It turns out that in my case, the 2 things that irritate my shoulder issues are pushups/bench press and standing exercise without sufficient pelvic “tucking under”; any arch in the lower back and my shoulders will not thank me. I haven’t figured out the pushup issue yet. I only do them in perfect form and quit early in the set at the first tweak and that seems to help loads.

One piece of advice I have given to people just starting out in weight training has been to study an anatomy text book, exercise phyiology text book and a biomechanics / knesiology text book. Understanding how the human body moves (or is supposed to move) is vital in maintainin a pain free / injury free training program.

Hi Rick, when will the SR3 program be released?

hii i just started doing workout and i do workout in following sequence
1 dips
2 squat
3 pullover
4 deadlift
5 bench press
6 incline dumbell
7 bar dips
8 back press
9 up right rowing
10 biceps barcurls
11 biceps dumbell
12 dumbell triceps
13 abs
i want to know is sequence imp and if yes is my sequence good and i want to know proper way to do deadlift

well, im really so thankful to you.. for your videos…
i think it will help me so much.. for not getting back in pain of my right shoulder..

Hello,
My training partner suffers constantly from the Bench Press. One of his shoulders ends up working harder than the other and before his final rep on our work weight the weaker shoulder fail. I haven’t noticed stress on my shoulder and I am not sure what he is doing differently. If you have any advice, Thank you.
Justin Cerruti

I broke my clavicle about three years ago an had a plate put in any exercise from shoulder press to fly hurts an feels like the plate wants to rip threw the skin

Hello Rick, I live in Toronto, and I am a great fan of all your teachings/ advice. I think you have the exact issue that amateur bodybuilders and workout freaks (like me) face and which is improper form. I need your advice on how I can get a couple of nagging chronic pains that I have, relieved.

1) My right bicep tendon, specifically where it attaches to my shoulder, hurts when I work out. Now that I have completely stopped lifting weights to let this pain go away, the right bicep tendon still pains when I lift my hand to sip coffee or some such light movement. How can I make this go away completely? I think I hurt it doing bicep curls and chest presses the improper way or too much intensity etc etc

2) I have been having this pain for many years and inspite of going to multiple chiropractors and massage therapists, this one wont just go away at all!. The pain is in the right upper back, just between the scapula and spine, on the right side, somewhere between C2 and C4 vertebrae, it is like a knot there and it will get tighter after working out and if I do not work out at all, I can feel the knot whenever I breathe in.

Any help/ advice from your end is highly appreciated!

Regards
Raj

When I do pull overs either with dumbell or french curl bar my left shoulder “falls” out of its socket and I have to “Pull” it back in.

I have been diagnosed with bicep tendinitis. The pain I feel from this ailment is located in the front shoulder. My doctor said many shoulder problems actually originate in the bicep. Does your program address these particular types of injuries?

What are the best shoulder exercises then?

Hi I have had a long recurring injury to my left shoulder from doing martial arts and playing football. It has been described as a “stinger” but they have repeatedly gotten worse when I have had them. The last time it happened I honestly felt like I it separated slightly and was unsure if it was about to pop. it has bothered me to the point where I have not lifted with it for about 2 months now to try and let it recover. I started doing some Shoulder presses and immediately on the downward movement there is pain, I don’t even need to have a weight for their to be pain through certain movements and angles etc. This has really hampered my shoulder work outs and even my bench as with dumb bells my left seems to have a weakness specifically in stability. Do you think your program could help me improve this as well as gain strength and durability in the shoulders?

Interesting videos; most of this seems like common sense (or that it should be) assuming you pay attention to your body when you exercise. I have a question about dips though:

I see how if you do dips off a bench, as in your video, and dip down to the upper arm being parallel to the ground how it will roll the shoulder forward. What about free hanging dips from rings, specifically leaning forward at the lowest portion of the dip? It seems that this would allow for that 45ish degree limit you specified and still get an excellent exersice.

Bench dips are terrible for the shoulders. But is it acceptable to do dips on rings or parallel bars? Provided one doesn’t go too deep into the motion causing the shoulder to round forward.

Thanks

I injured both my shoulders from doing the P90X program a few years ago (ended up with bursitis and tendonitis in both shoulders…still causes problems to this day). Any suggestions on how I can regain strength without causing more pain or injury? My shoulders have lost flexibility and are so much weaker now…the simplest exercise seems to cause a flare up. Help!

behind the neck pullup never bothered me. the front one does bother me. It makes me feel a pain in the very center of my shoulder joint.

wall slides really give me a freeR range of motion in daily life activities. My shoulders, without the wallslides, click a lot and I feel a restriction in almost literaly 70% of the natural range of motion for my shoulder, on the sides and behind.
I do the pec minor and scapula stuff. it’s just that wallslides are somehow magical, to my condition.

I’m back in the gym now (for 5 months) and since I started anew I got a nagging shoulderpain doing benchpress and regular dips. It’s a sharp pain right under or in the front delt on my right. I can do deadlifts and other exercises painfree although I’m not sure about pullups (hands facing away, shoulder width and bar to the neck / chest) I currently weigh 92 kg and use an extra 20 kg of weight (I end up doing 3 or 4 sets of 6 reps like this).
I don’t stretch out in the starting position and during my reps. Could this exercise damage my shoulder even further?

Rick,

Thanks for the insightful piece. I currently do not perform any of the ‘worst exercises’ you mentioned, but I certainly miss overhead presses.

Would you please do a segment on the 5 Best Exercises For Your Shoulders? It would be much appreciated!

Ashton

Hi Rick,
I have bought some of your products and I open up every e-mail that you send. This is by far the best one yet!! Pushups would have been a great exercise to include as well- years of bootcamps without proper instruction can cause a heap of trouble…

Hi, I originally injured my shoulder doing a tennis serve (it felt like a “tear”) about 8 years ago. Now, it’s extremely painful to spike a volleyball. I learned a lot from the videos on how to do the weight exercises properly (I’ve been doing 1 arm rows and shoulder presses incorrectly as well as doing bench dips and upright rows which I will now eliminate) so thank-you for that. I would love to be able to have pain free shoulders and be able to spike a volleyball pain-free!

Wide pullups are quite painful for me, especially in my R shoulder, which was injured in a hard bicycle fall. Damage to the rotator cuff was repaired through extensive therapy. Since then I only employ narrow pullups, chinups or the vertical, 90 degree grip variety.

Rear deltoid fly bother my shoulder.

i dont have any problems with my shoulder but for some reason when i do tricep kickback my hurts like hell! maybe you got some advice?

Hi,

Thank you for the videos. They are most useful for correcting exercises I never realised could cause problems.
I train regularly with kettlebells and sandbags. I have also practiced yoga for 20 years, swim regularly and play around with my stand up paddle board.
An issue with my left shoulder (I am right handed) I and physios cannot not correct is that the front of the deltroid where it joins the arm causes pain when the arm and shoulder is in some rotations. I appreciate that this could be referred pain. The discomfort does not prevent me from training or participating in activities, but I also know that there must be something wrong for such long term pain to be present and I like very much to correct it.
Thank you. Regards, Peter

Hi Rick, this is all great stuff, my wife and I both workout together and she depends on me to guide her, I have not included upright-rows in our workouts until resently when I saw a workout for kettle bells, not having any available it was said to do a set of single DB upright-rows, followed a set of duel DB upright-rows. Now I change up my workouts all the time and have never much cared for this exercise, however, it is the only exercise that I know of that hits the delts, other then maybe shoulder shugs, something you did not mention. Anyway, it is nice to know what not to do and shoulders have always been a problem for both me and my wife, would it be to bold to ask what are the best exercises to safely build and strengthen the whole shoulder area?

Andrew

I can’t bench press because when I start to reach my max reps my left shoulder rises up off the nech to compensate. Thus that shoulder is a bit weker than the right one and also has pain, especially at the front and down the bicep attacher.

Doing bench dips are bad for shoulders but what about doing tricep dips on parallel bar and close grip bench press? are they bad for the shoulders?

Dumbell side laterals.

I had a lot of shoulder injuries due to sports in my younger years and as a result have now had surgery on both of them. I had the cuffs repaired, decompression done and my surgeon also cut the biceps tendons (short head I think) because they were frayed so badly and unrepairable. Any exercises I should stay away from now? They seem fine now but I’m extra careful when doing bench press.

-R

I have been avoiding shoulder workouts for the last 3 – 4 years, as whenever I started up again, I injured myself. I tore my right rotator cuff about 10 years ago lifting heavy sandbags, and developed a bone spur at the left AC joint and tendinosis of the supraspinatus tendons (both) about 3 years ago. I have since healed the left shoulder with laser therapy, and have my range of motion almost back. I don’t feel any of the tendinosis so I suspect this has also minimized with laser therapy. I also have a weak left tricep at the insertion point of the left olecranon process, and often pull it with even just light weights doing tricep work, or push ups, further creating problems with trying to do any shoulder work or bench presses. I would need some suggestions for my left tricep prior to attempting something like the shoulder press you show. I am glad to have viewed your videos, as they will be a great help and I am looking forward to doing shoulder work, once the tricep is taken care of. Will your workout system help with the triceps, and would you think I would be able to get back to doing some shoulder workouts? Thanks for any tips you can give me.

Shoulder pain when I do dips, shoulder presses. I believe it’s my bicep tendon in both shouldes.

Hey Rick,

Whenever I perform incline pressing movements, I feel most of the emphasis on my anterior delts as well as what seems to be my rotator cuffs (to the poiunt where its slightly uncomfortable). As a result, those two muscle groups burn out before I get a chance to fully exhaust them. No matter what I do I cant seem to fully engage my chest.

Any idea of what might be the culprit or any tips?

Thank you

Thanks so much, Rick. I have struggled with rotator cuff issues and shoulder pain for about 18 years – since I injured myself doing a flat-bench press training for a competition when I was 48 years old. I love the look of strong, shapely shoulders on women but whenever I did the exercises I knew to do for shoulders, I ended up hurting again. Your tips about overhead presses, and foregoing bench dips will make a huge difference for me. Again, thank you! What about lateral and front shoulder flyes with free weights?

I’m still learning from you, while I’m trying to reach my goals. I certainly liked reading all that is posted on your blog.Keep the posts coming. I enjoyed it!

Dear Rick

Great stuff. In the Men’s Health Book of Exercises the dumbell lateral raise is done with a palms forward grip ( as opposed to the usual palms down). This is the only time I have ever seen this variation promoted – it’s supposed to be easier on the shoulder. Do you have an opinion on this modification and would you recommend using it?

Kind regards
Colin

I have been dealing with rotator cuff/frozen shoulder problems for some time. While slowly improving I still can put my self in positions that bring on pain but once out of those positions the pain disappears and the shoulder feels fine. Do you have a course that specializes in rehab for specific situations like this?

Dr tells me I hurt my AC joint. My left shoulder is in pain. Looking for away to help it heal and still continue my workouts. Tell me more about your program.

I have limited mobility in both shoulders-but primarily the right with bone spurs. Im looking forward to more help! Thank You!

Dear Rick and Eric

Thanks a lot for sharing this valuable information for free. It is so good to know about these things – prevention is far better than curing. God bless you both.

Kind regards
Julian Leander

Rick –

Very valuable information for me personally as well as info for client use in our Personal Fitness Training business in Orlando, Florida…I have had both rotator cuff surgeries in right and left shoulders in the past 4 years, and am very interesting in pain free shoulder work as well as rehab…tweaking various exercises has been a goal of mine for both strength training and rehab of the shoulder girdle, so thanks much for the videos…good luck in your endeavors and we look forward to the new publication…
W/R Rick & Nancy Veteto – Orlando, FL

i have problem with my left shoulder i went to chiropractor and advice me to stopped going to the gym for 6 months ..the rotator cuff is my problem and ligaments..my left arm hurts if i pull up side..can u please help me .im going for a theraphy

Question about doing dips. I was a gymnast in high school and still do chins, pullups, dips, and pushups. I’m 61yrs now and I agree with you about too much stress at the angle dips can do. However in a limited range of motion I think as one ages one needs a certain about of strength to get out of a tub, chair, those movements that facilitate functioning on a daily basis. Do you agree?

Hi Rick,

When will this program be available? I am a PT and very interested in reducing shoulder pain, back pain, core stability etc,,,the list goes on, for many of my clients.

Look forward to hearing from you!

Sue

Bench Press

Hey Rick. I’ve actually dislocated my shoulder twice from high impact beneath my underarm. I did not have surgery and it feels fine now but sometimes feels loose. I have also had tendonitis in my shoulders.

How and can your program help with these problems.

Thanks
Darren

On the first video you mentioned that feeling of your shoulder being pulled forward. This has been exactly my issue for the past two years; so annoying and frustrating. So I guess this means that its probably a result of me doing bad moves for a few years and reshaping my shoulder?
Do you happen to have any videos addressing this particular issue, and what to do about it? Ive tried taking months off, but I go back and the same pain and feeling is there.

In any event, thanks for the vids. Very helpful.

Bench pressing hurts my right shoulder

High Pulls with a kettlebell put too much strain on my upper Traps, though I don’t feel a strain on the shoulder joint itself, but this exercise seems very similar in action to the upright row that you suggest leaving out, and that I see many trainers do and suggest. Thanks for the important safety tips!

In video number five (5) I saw that in doing the upright row you went above the chest, I have a DVD of a professional bodybuilder saying that if you do upright rows only go up to the chest, is this wrong also.

Thanks for the great info Rick. I was wondering about the different positioning of the arms and hands in push-ups and how that might be affecting the shoulders (wide hands, elbows-at-waist) and about the depth of a push-up. I’d be interested in your comments on this. Again, thanks.

You should do vid’s on how to stop knee AND elbow pain as well.

What is a good alternative instead of doing upward rows????

would you recommend cutting out chest dips?

Chin ups, upright rows, pull ups and bench presses. There are the exercises that “nip” my right side rotator cuff. I’m currently receiving physio for my injury, but I’m hoping that your product may be a good solution !

Great info! Thanks!

I am 58 years old with a right shoulder injury that comes and goes.I dont like using weights anymore and prefer body weight exercises. Pushups and pullups seem to be out of the question as I am left in pain.I take it I will be able to do these with proper alignment

I have a 5mm complete tear on the anterior aspect of the supraspinatus tendon…I’ve been back to the gym for a while now, and decided to try doing cable flyes for a chest exercise again. I had minor discomfort during the exercise but not any significant pain or increasing pain during the exercise to stop. Unfortunately, I started to have pain the next day after 24 hrs on a non-training day….I presume it was the attempt at doing the chest flyes since nothing else was changed. I went light enought, but now, I’m questioning since I have a degeneration in my left shoulder, should I modify or forget this exercise as a chest exericise?

I am female, 70, with severe arthritis in my right shoulder (rotator cuff), left ankle and have had 3 lower back surgeries. I have difficulty walking upright due to apparent weakness in my lower back. Is there anything you could recommend that I do to help me with these problems? I really would like to stay as active as possible, but am afraid I could do some wrong moves and make things worse.

Im suffering from supraspinatus tendonitis but the physios dont pay any attention to may main problem which is dis-shaped shoulders due to exercises. My right shoulder seems a bit smaller and bent towards the front as compared to the left shoulder. The strength is also significantly less in the right shoulder even though Im a right handed guy. Im 24 years old and the shoulder pain has nothing but increases over the past 2 years even though I had stopped working out that time itself. Whichever doctor Ive went to has asked me to eat medicines, done physio therepy and what not, but the pain just does not go and the shoulder being dis-shaped is not being understood by anyone. Infact your website is the first one ever to talk about the shoulders getting dis-shaped due to wrong exercises.
What do I do. Please help me. Im desperate to fix my shoulder and go back to working out. Please.

Hi Rick,

Thanks so much for these videos. One-arm rows are part of my workout routine and I realise I’ve been doing them wrong – I was letting the weight drop too far, as I thought that by extending down as much as possible – relaxing my lats – I was working more muscles on the contraction (if that makes sense). I know now to keep the tension in my lats, so thanks for possibly averting a shoulder crisis!

All the best.

Emma

I had an MRI and have a slight rotator cuff tear of my right shoulder, with slight inflammation and bursitis. I want to get back to lifting weights, but do not want to do further damage. Surgery is an option, but this problem does not interfere with normal activities, including golf. Thus, I am wondering if there is anything I can do to repair the tear without surgery. Thanks.

since an orthepedic surgeon told me not to do behind the neck lat pulls I have rebuilt my shoulders and have gained strength and definition again with no pain. At over 55 I can cleanly do 10 reps of 3 plates to side on the hammer strength machine with no pain and good form.

Hi,
Just wondering about the appropriateness of your program for my boyfriend? He had a 2nd traumatic left shoulder dislocation about a month ago, and after looking at his MRI, his sports physician has referred him to a surgeon. Apparently there is very little holding his joint in place, particularly anteriorly. Could your program help him? He’s a sonographer, and uses his left arm, therefore it’s vital he gets good form and function back!
Cheers

Anna

This was the best video I have seen as far as why not to do certain lifts! I tore my labrum and did rehab, which worked well to stabilize my shoulders and increase shoulder and hip mobility as well as core strength! Really excited for the release of your product! What can I do to depress and retract my shoulder more?

That was great info, because I did injure my right shoulder in a fall. I’ll be looking forward to more tips….Thank You……

I always hurt my left shoulder doing face pulls. But I know i need to strengthen my upper back and not so sure what to do for that. Specially cause my shoulder is second degree (curved). It feels like I don’t do a good job when it comes to strengthen my upper back muscles-have the feeling my arms always get the most resistance.
is there any exercise for people with to different shoulders? and what would you recommend to add that thickness to my mid and upper back(like to engage those shoulder blade muscles)?Exclzyme-2AF(supposed to be good for joints)?
(sorry for my english,I’m brazilian)
Thanks a Lot,

Jonas.

Rick,
Thank you for the tips and excellent explanation to shoulder ROM issues when it comes to Dipping exercises.

? on High Pulls for Snathch and Clean Olympic Lifts; any helpful thoughts to look out for?

Thank you again,

Chris Duplissis
Vancouver

Will this help if you suffer from impingement I have it in my right shoulder have for 8 years but I still lift through the pain Thank You Wayne Bogart

I work in Cardiac Rehabilitation. I found your 5 mistakes helpful, although I did get the quiz questions right. I have been in resistance training for over 40years. I look forward to your next info.

Regards Jon Allen

push up exercise, affect mainly a muscle at the tip of the medial and lower end of scapula .

Wow! Thank you! I permanently needed to write on my blog something like that. Can I implement a fragment of your post to my site?

The shoulder is the joint that is used and abused a lot in nearly every upper body exercise. Thank you Rick for always putting together the best evidence based and cutting edge techniques to keep our bodies functioning and healthy. You are GREATLY appreciated.

Great timing Rick. I started working out at the gym a year ago and started shoulder presses about a month ago. I noticed that one of shoulders has gotten so sore that I don’t even want to work it. I see why now the reason is that I went too wide in my position and this was also on a machine. With the advise of a friend I’m going back at it with much less weight, no machine and now with your advise I know the optimal position. Thank you much.

What about lateral raises?

I’m starting to experience pain in the rotator cuff while doing both flat bench and slight incline bench with barbells (Smith machine). It’s not severe yet but it is consistent. Any tips?

Thanks in advance for the information. We have one of the premier prep swimming programs on the east coast. Of course, we are constantly concerned with shoulder over use injuries. Can you point me in a positive direction as far as corrective exercises are concerned? Once again many thanks!

Thanks for your service to a greater good for all. You ask User community for input relevant to exercises bothering the shoulder. After months of physical therapy to recover from repetitive motion inujury (impingement in right shoulder, with deferred pain radiating down right arm…and complicated by degenerative joint disease around C4-5), I’d like to know what exercises you’d recommend to strengthen my right shoulder and to avoid adaptive/compensatory injury to my left.

It is really useful for the beginners who by over enthusiasm do these and get strucked with the shldr pain. By the way it will be still better if you can explain this more in pictures- for those who have hearing deficiency. I would appreciate with more photos/videos which may say right and wrong rather than those lengthy lectures.

Hi Rick, thanks for the videos, really good stuff! Would you recommend doing incline bench curls? What I mean is, can this excercise hurt or damage the shoulders? Also, do you believe all dip excercises hurt the shoulder, even when performed on a machine with hand holds on each side? Thanks.

Steve.

Rick,
I have impingement on both of my shoulders. Benching really hurts them as the biceps tendon is being pinched. What is a good way to develope the mass of the chest without having this pain, and whatis a good way to fix the impingment.

I have shoulder impingement, my chest and anterior delts pull my shoulders forward, causing pain in the back of my shoulder. How do I counter act this, and balance my.shoulder again?

Have great difficulty with squats. Want to Squat but my sholders can’t rotate to the rear far enough without great pain as I try to hold the bar while squatting. Have to quit the excercise not because of leg pain but because of shoulder pain. What can I do.?

Human Flag practice really kills my shoulders and leaves it feeling entirely burned out the following day. I need to give at least 4 days complete rest (no workout at all) for my shoulders to be in a position to try a new Personal Record on the Human Flag.

hello sir, this is Harish from india , as i am suffering from shoulder, lower back, hip, knee, from past 3 years can u pls give me some tips or workouts for my plb ….. my age 34 and i cannot stand for more than 15 min my lower back will pain lot, and i have pain in the below the knee i will find difficulty to climb steps and walk on thread mills, pl pl give me some solutions for my pain,,,,,,,,,,,waiting for your reply ………………….Harish

Thank you for those valuable information.

Hi Rick
I have Shoulder Problems since 2 months.I have made a Lot of Moutainbiking und Kettlebells.I play Golf and my
Swing is very restricted.because of Sleep Apnoe I must sleep sidewards,is sometimes painful.
I will do everything To Improve it. Would like to Meeting Youn
I am in Somerset West.Next Tuesday J Cairns from Kettlebells will test my Shoulders.
Best wishes
Helmut

Bench Press, Pec Deck, Pushups,

Thanks for the observation that dips can be harmful if done improperly.

Hi Rick,

I received your videos from a friend of mine that knows I suffer from chronic shoulder pain. I have been trying to avoid surgery, I have a torn labram (according to the drs) and need my biscep disected from my shoulder to stop putting strain on it.

I do power pump 2 times a week. We do dips in our class and I will avoid them from now on. But lateral raises or front raises of even light weights are very hard on my shoulder.

If I try to do a upright row without weights I have pain by the time my arm gets to my upper stomach.

Thanks for your interest in helping people like me with shoulder pain. I know there is hope for me without giving up my workouts.

stretching is the best way to recover from joints injuries….I’ve lived through them with no surgery required

Hi Rick,
I really enjoyed your instructional videos as to how to stop injuring your shoulders doing certain exercises.
I am a 69 year old keen golfer (weight 68kg) and would like to strengthen my shoulders and chest muscles to give me a bit more power. Fortunately I do not suffer from any injuries at the moment and would like to do exercises that will help me into later life. I have a V tech fitness gym to help me with this, plus static weights 2,3 and 5lbs.
Any help that you can give would be most appreciated.
Regards,
Keith

An interesting discussion is worth comment. I think that you should write more on this topic, it might not be a taboo subject but generally people are not enough to speak on such topics. To the next. Cheers

Hi Rick, as part of Scapula Health for my clients, I have them perform “Scapula wall slides”. Some of my clients,especially those with anterior head tilts, find this exercise difficult and sometimes painful to perform. Having watched your 5 worse exercises for shoulders, I drew a parallel to the overhead shoulder press and the scapula wall slide, (same action without load). If I instruct my clients to bring their arms out from the wall to 30 degrees, would this exercise still be of benefit to the scapular?
Brian Lloyd
Ottawa

I was experiencing some shoulder pain when i do shoulder and chest exercise.
I got a x-ray and UCG and found out that the gap in my left shoulder bone has decreased,

I experience pain only doing my shoulder and chest exercise. For rest of the body parts like biceps, triceps and back i dont experience no pain.

Can u please suggest what should i do for it.

I am recovering from a torn rotator cuff. I had surgery and extensive rehab. I’m alreadyback to training in boxing and martial arts and my shoulder feels great. But I’ve been thinking about training for bodybuilding and I know that requires serious lifting. What are some exercises that are best to do for shoulders if someone has had an injury?

tengo mucho dolor en ambos homobros,lo que me dificulta realizar ejercicios de deltoides.
dolor en deltoides anterior con press de banca ,trambien con triceps.

Hi, i liked your videos. I will try the new range for shoulder press. I don’t do behind the neck lat pull downs. I rarely do triceps bench dips, single row I do that way . Now, my question to you is you suggest not to do upright rows. What would you suggest to do for your traps?

Thank you!

Thanks for the help.

Hi Rick,

I am a 43 yr old male….I sustained a rotator cuff injury since 2008 to my right shoulder. I have limited extension when moving my arm from my side to above shoulder level. My arm will only go as high as my shoulder and no further.
I have started mehdi stronglifts 5 x 5 routine about a year now to develop my fitness and health. Its been going good thus far but because of my shoulder injury i am limited in my strength and flexibility. I must say though there has been progress in shoulder & flexibility but not as fast as i want. I do know that my rotator cuff injury was going to hamper my progress but i am forging on hoping for the best. I will appreciate your input & assistance …

Regards,

Vishan.

This couldn’t have come at a better time. I have had a history of shoulder problems. He has some good information. I’m going to give it a try. Thanks. John

I just suffered grade 3 ac shoulder separation and I need
Help. Both My shoulders have been bothering me
For years but now I’m in more pain. Can you help?

I would like to know if there is a “correct” way to do pushups and pullups. I have some labral tears in my shoulders that showed in an MRI, shoulder pain is almost non-existent so I’m ignoring my physiatrist recommendation to go to an orthopedic surgeon to correct these tears through operation since I’ve read these tears are normal in over 40 people that have been actively weightlifting. Physiatrist recommended to stop pushup, pullup and any exercise that involves the shoulder.

This is a very helpful video. thanks for sharing!!!

Excellent

Great information. Thank you Rick. Looking forward to what your program is.
Good luck.
All the best.
Ervin

I am 66 and lost most of my shoulder muscles due to a rather lengthy recovery from a neck operation. Now I have pain in my left shoulder all the time which my surgeon suggested I had all along but didn’t feel due to the neck injury. Am trying to rebuild basic strength and form but not sure what to do that works without aggravating the situation. Looking forward to your Fix My Shoulder Pain system. Thanks for the videos.

Thankd for the videos I have been avoiding uPright row with a close grip as it could be hard on rotator cuff but how about doing them with a wider grip of with dumbbells as they are great for building traps and strengthening rear delt?

Wow Rick! Nice job with the video’s and more importantly the information the videos contained. I learned some interesting new stuff, which I will be passing on to my readers. Can’t wait for the new program to be released. Looks like it’s a no brainer solution for a common problem area that many people experience pain in.

All the best,

Alex

Thanks for the helpful advice, Rick! My right shoulder hurts when I do incline barbell bench presses, but I have no problems with other presses. What do you suggest I do?

I have been an athlete my whole life and have been seriously into weights for over 25 years until recent. Last year I suffered 2 double tear hernia’s and a torn stomach mucle. Most recently March of this year I had 5 5 shoulder surgery performed replacing the biciptial tendon, and both labrums with cadaver tendon. Should is much better but I have had to change my routine…no straight bar anything…al cables and dumbells. I am trying to get that round shoulder head to come back but with out military and the sorts…what do you rec to get big shoulder back all things considered.

What if i have seperated both of my shoulders before and they hurt very bad during dumbbell flys and other time as i am walking they just click? What can i do for this?

Dr. K,

Although not currently performing bench dips (BD) or upright rows (UR), i have in the past, and planned on returning to them. After your presentation, I won’t be! Thanks for the clear and brief presentations.

Can regular grip and close grip (palms facing away) pull ups hurt the shoulder? Can they be done daily?

Rick,

Had my rotator cuff repaired surgically 4 months ago. Rehab has gone great (in my opinion). Just been cleared for full activity by my surgeon – riding bikes outside, swimming, working out with weights/bodyweight, etc. He advised against any overhead moves that would aggravate the shoulder (pull-ups, presses, etc.) ever again and to listen to my shoulder as I try to get stronger and recover that last 5% in mobility/flexibility.

I’m looking to maximize my shoulder strength/flexibilty while recovering my ability to throw a football/baseball/etc. and swim again without pain. What is the best way to regain shoulder strength and sports-related performance after surgery?

Thanks,
Steve.

OK. it seems like you are advocating the “consult with your Dr before you think about bending sideways” approach.
I haven’t ever experienced an injury when 1) I was well-rested 2) I was lifting doable weights 3) was warmed up.
Perhaps it might be different for a recent injury, but the elimination of certain exercises on a permanent basis because of muscle/joint stress seems to defeat the purpose of exercise.

Weight lifting was supposed to be about transforming your body – Yes???

What exactly/specifically does ” reshape your shoulders in a negative way” mean??

Thanks for your input….

Will “Fix My Shoulder Pain” be able to teach me how to do Barbell Bench Presses and Military Presses without experiencing shoulder pain? I don’t own dumbbells .

This is great information
tkn.

Pullups kill my rear delts. I had rotator cuff surgery on both shoulders and I cant do pull ups without having intense pain. Suggestions?

I do dips on a dip apparatus and during the night I will wake up with my arm asleep. I think the dips are putting pressure on a nerve, is that correct and what other body weight excersize can I do

Wow, I was doing every one of those excersises, before I injured my shoulder every one of them accept # 5, and I just started that one, and I will stop, this is great info Thank you

Hey Rick. I love the videos! I also share your passion and vision to instruct my patients to be extremely careful with their choice of upper extremity exercises. Too many of us over develop the upper traps, pec maj/min and anterior delts resulting in abnormal head, neck and shoulder postures and mechanics.

Personally, I’ve notice more pain in my shoulder joint and tissues when performing flat, barbell bench presses. However, the pain is significantly minimized when using dumbbells.

Would you mind explaining this later observation with me and your readers?

Thanx and blessings,

Dr. Daryl

I understand why the bench dip is bad now. How about the bar dip machine for triceps?

The flat bench press hurts my shoulders. I had surgery to the left shoulder a few years ago and when I woke up I was in extreme pain. I believe the surgeon made an error while “cleaning up” the tear (no stitches). It took a year for the pain to subside enough to work out again, but I feel it more on the flat bench press than the incline bench press, and I thought the incline put more of a strain on the shoulder.

all merci

Triceps push down hurts like heck!

What is your opinion about cuban presses for shoulder rehab?

Also I hurt my shoulders and experienced pain when trying to press any weight over 35 lbs in each arm. By moving to the scapular plane with overhead press I was able to press 60 lb dumbells almost 100% pain free so thank you very much for these videos and the fix my shoulder series.

I now break up my day with the stretches recommended in the SR3 method so bonus my day isn’t as boring and im fixing imbalances!!!!

I watched all 5 clips and was relieved to see I had the right idea with my approach in training clients.

hello. thank you.

It’s nearly impossible to find educated people in this particular topic, but you seem like you know what you’re talking about! Thanks

doing pullups and chinups.

Military presses the front or back , which one is best for body building and adding size and shape?

Great info Rick. My shoulders are in very dire straits, I cannot train my shoulders, or chest, and although I can do some direct triceps work, I can feel the pain spilling off into these strict movements as well. I am currently training around my injuries by concentrating on legs, back and arms. I cannot do the 30 degree proper shoulder presses. For chest I can do some decline bench presses, but flat benches are worse, and inclines hurt very bad. Even bent over lateral raises with moderate weight dumbbell cause pain. My left shoulder is the worse of the two. I was into competitive body building for 15 years in my late teens to 30’s, I am 50 years old now. I have good symmetry and development, but these injuries hold me back from enjoying training with weights.I was a big abuser of weighted dips and upright rows. I use to get people to place up to 5-50 pound plates on my lap while I did 6 strict reps. I gave up the dips, even just body weighted ones, over a year ago. I stopped upright rows a long time ago, knowing that they were bad for my wrists and shoulders. I also stopped dumbbell lateral side raises at the same time.

Videos were very enlightening, thank-you

Thanks for the tips,now l can work on the recovery of my left shoulder

Great info, I cured my weak right rotator using the shoulder horn. Some like it, some hate it but it works better than anything else. My shoulders don’t “pop” anymore and no pain whatsoever. I’m not selling anything the shoulder horn is off the market I think, but my rotators are brutally strong now after several years with the horn.

Great job keep it up.

Hi Rick, I have a left shoulder that has a torn labrim. Would like to find out what exercises I could do to strengthen this shoulder up without having surgery. Would appreciate the advise. Thanks

Front and Side Lateral Raises Hurt my shoulders.. What change do i need to make????

Rick,
Thanks for the provocation! I have recently been diagnosed with osteoarthrosis in the shoulder joint. The x-rays show where the clavicle bone is being impacted. MRI results show no other damage. Being a young 43 yo, this is likely due to over-use injury eg. Plyo-push-ups and lots of other regular push-ups, sometimes not properly warmed up :(…

I did the cortisone injection in July that lasted into early November – got me through the summer and training hard for tough mudder etc. Now the pain is back – and of course a little worse and aggravating than before.

So now that the damage is done and the pain is there and only getting worse. I am now scheduled for the surgery but am wondering – is my state of injury beyond the type of shoulder pain you are referring to and need to proceed with the surgery, or is there any hope that changing my exercise practices as you suggest will help resolve? (I don’t think so)…

Can you give me your quick opinion?

(PS. looking on Facebook, I see we are both Centennial and SFU grads (87 and 93 for me)… I thought that was somewhat weird as I came across your information while dealing with this shoulder issue.)

Thanks,
Gordon

Concerning #’s 2 and 3. Behind the neck lat pulldowns are good for developing the back upper neck, traps, and clavicals. Done them myself and got good results.

Upright rows are one of the best for developing the traps and secondary on the delts.

Rick,
I’d like to share a dumbbell shoulder exercise that I incorporate to by-pass the initial strain on the rotators.

It focuses on leaning the body so that the upper arm is hanging 30 degrees from the torso.

Then perform the front/anterior delt raise, then lateral/side delt raise, then the back/posterior delt raise (by slightly rotating the wrist backward/palm forward.

To get this lean, grab an upright structure, place feet close to the structure and hang on, thus tilting the whole body.

Rick, I didn’t quite get the reason the upright row was not good.
Is there excessive internal rotation?

I want to work out more but time is a issue, i like to know is a full body workout good to do/ if so do you have a good one i can use at the gym 3 days a week/

Thank you for these tips. As an aging male I do have concerns about shoulder injuries,I’ve heard such horror stories. I’m sure using the many tips you have suggested will help me avoid injury. Thank you ,once again.

I got lower left back & hip problem… (Seen a bone specialist who said I got arthritis in my left hip area. I was working on an elliptical machine and was doing squats during my routine on the machine as am moving my legs. I wind up aggravating my lower left back and hip. Could walk or bend very little from the pain the next week or so. Could you advise me on my squatting routine while moving my legs on the elliptical machine?

I am a veteran of rotator cuff surgery on both shoulders (left one 15 years ago, right one just 1 year ago), and I’m finding my way back to bodybuilding.

Am SO glad to find your advice! Wish I’d seen this stuff years and years ago, it confirms my own feelings about certain movements.

About the Upright Row: I’ve ALWAYS found it hard on my shoulders AND my elbows. So I do them with an EZ-Curl bar, and it seems OK. OR— I do them with a rope pulley where my fists are basically vertical.

Love to know your opinion about that. And/OR…. what do you recommend for those lats?

Thanks!

PS– I also will not do barbell curls with a straight bar…. have always felt like they pushed me way outta whack. But OK with EZ-Curl.

I think I had hurt my left shoulder once when I was doing shrugs with a barbell. Now I have sharp pain in my left shoulder, when I do regular or inclined push ups( with hands on the ground and my legs on a bench).But I dont feel pain when I m doing it in reverse incline, with my legs on the ground and my hands on the bench. I used to love the former excericses, as it got me a really good chest. I feel the same pain when I do dumbell flies. But strangely enough, I am fine when I do other shoulder excercises, I dont feel any pain.

I avoid presses with barbells. Years ago I had a serious shoulder separation. Over time I developed arthritis in that shoulder. With advice from my doctor and experimentation, I’ve discovered that lowering a barbell with the hands in a fixed position puts a lot of stress on the shoulder as the hands are locked in position. I prefer to use either dumbbells or Hammer Strength equipment as I have a more natural motion.

Thank you RK, this info will be beneficial for my upcoming workouts, I’ve been experiencing some shoulder pain due to some of these exercises.
Can you give me the best exercises that are good for the shoulder & for growth,
Thanks,
Andrew Robles

I need to develop my body building, i need a workout tips.

Would you consider posting some vids on correcting Winged Scapula?

I’m definitely changing my shoulder routine Rick , thanks for sharing , I do have shoulder discomfort as of now , hope to alleviate some with your training techniques.

Dear Rick,

I have been weight training for a several years, but for the last two months I have been hearing cracking sounds from my right shoulder, especially when I do dumbbell rotator cuff exercises and chest expander workouts. I do not know what caused the problem in the first place. Yes, I have been doing all those 5 worst exercised you described in the videos. Since I do not have a serious pain, I did not go to a specialist, thinking that with more exercise that might pass away. But it didn’t. Could it get worse? What is your opinion on that ,and what should I do, or stop doing in addition to those wrong form 5 exercises? Thank you very much for your help.

Bedri

So, Should I stop doing behind the neck barbell shoulder presses? My shoulders get weak if I don’t do them?

Should I avoid doing dips on dipping bars? My triceps get weak if I don’t do them?

I’m a powerlifter.

Dumbell flies hurts my shoulders.

I do a lot of pullups, and they usually feel great, but sometimes they, and similar should-based exercises, cause pain in an old injury somewhere in the inferior trapezius, down around where it meets the bottom of the left scapula.

I hear everywhere that dips are awesome for building strength. Could the problem be that they are too difficult for beginners, and we just hurt ourselves doing them?

Hi Rick,

About two years ago now following my ACL reconstruction etc. I rushed back to the gym (out of stubbornness and not wanting to lose gains) and ended up going to far too fast weight-wise and injuring my left shoulder doing dumbbell chest press. The prognosis was a labral tear with some damage to the rotatory cuff, after a short break (again through mainly stubbornness) I got back to it and created imbalances in my left side. Things now seem to be on the mend but for whatever reason my left anterior delt is not load bearing/being activated properly when say doing shoulder press or front raises my pec minor is activating.

Like Rod before me; I should spend some time with a physio, but do not have the time/money as I’m now in the 3rd year of university. Any advice, tips or specific exercises that you could suggest would be greatly appreciated (as this is driving me crazy). This lagging injury has held me back now from my potential gains/athletic goals.

Kind regards

David

P.S I’ve implemented all of your suggestions above; great videos!

Dear Rick

I am suffering from shoulder impingement since last 5 weeks and have stopped doing any chest/lats/shoulders.

I am just doing shrugs, cable rows, biceps, triceps and legs.

There is a very little improvement over last 5 weeks. I don’t know how to hasten recovery. My physiotherapist says it can take months to fully recover?

Is there any program which can be followed to recover quickly?

Your earliest convenient advice will be much appreciated.

Cheers
Ricky

Can I Use kettle bells for front raises @ shoulder press?

I am 52 years old and have enjoyed lifting weights over the past 5 years or so. However last year I developed shoulder impingement which has hindered my ability to continue to lift even after going to physical therapy. I have read various and conflicting articles on the Internet about correct routines (i.e. exercising back, arms and shoulders on the same or alternating days). Do you have any suggestions or links to a good weekly routine for someone trying to get over a shoulder impingement?

Really good stuff!

When I’m on my back to bench there’s some pain just below my traps

Hi Rick,
Could you agree that the parallel dip bar exercise is better then the bench dip? Or would you also adive against doing the dip bar.
Thank you,
Tom

bicep curls with dumbbell’s

Are their any safe movements for the shoulders at all? Even a basic push up now makes my right shoulder hurt and pop. How long should a person take off from basic training when suffering from shoulder pain?

Hey Rick,

Prevention is too late for me right now. I have rotator cuff tears, bursitis, SLAP, GLAD and others. What can I do to continue working out and not getting worse my shoulder?