Shoulder Injuries
Statistics
According to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, approximately 4 million people in the U.S. obtain medical care each year for shoulder issues. Each year, shoulder problems account for about 1.5 million visits to orthopaedic surgeons.
2 of the Most Common Training Related Injuries
Muscular Imbalances - muscular imbalances can happen anytime the same movement is repetitively done. Pushing movements, like bench pressing, tend to contribute to the imbalance between the front and rear deltoid muscles which can result in injury. Many injuries occur in the amortization phase of the press; if the shoulder joint cannot withstand the forces of the change in direction of an extreme amount of weight, injury will occur. Amortization phase is the switch between concentric and eccentric movement (muscles either lengthen or shorten when placed under load).
Most of the popular exercises, such as the bench press, shoulder press, and lat pulldowns only involve external rotation of the shoulder joint. The movements that utilize internal rotation such as bent-over lateral raises, bent over rows, cable face pulls, etc... tend to be used less. Because of this imbalance, the stability of the shoulder joint is compromised and injuries can occur.
Overtraining - Repetitive movements performed too often can exceed your body's ability to recover from them. This can cause irritation, inflammation, and injury. Any type of pressing and pulling movement places stress on the shoulder joint as well. Most people don't realize that chronic shoulder pain can be exasperated through movements not commonly thought to include the muscles of the shoulders.
Injury Prevention
Warm up your shoulders prior to exercise. Get blood flowing to all the muscles.
Strengthen your arms - if your arms are weak, your shoulders could be picking up the slack. The muscles in your arms are also used as stabilizers or synergistic muscles in most shoulder movements.
Avoid problematic exercises - reduce the amount of time spent on exercises that are painful or potentially injurious. You can also make modifications to grip and/or range of motion to alleviate the stress on the shoulder joint.
Isolate and strengthen - Focus time on strengthening the rotator cuff muscles by doing lighter weight movements and isolation work. Also strengthen the muscles around the rotator cuff that help stabilize the shoulder joint.
Posture - Make it a point assess your posture and make necessary changes to how you sit and stand. Especially, at work! Adjust your desk to ensure your head isn't too far forward and you're not rounding your shoulders and thoracic spine as you work.
Tips
Never do movements that cause pain
Always warm up the shoulders before working out
Use light weight to isolate rotator cuff muscles
Be consistent in your efforts to increase strength
Consult a professional if you are ever unsure of a movement
Be dominant in pulling movements over pushing movements
Be aware of posture
Photo by: Harlie Raethel