hey everybody it's Doctor Jo and Mr. Bear,
and today we're gonna show you the top
seven stretches and exercise for
frozen shoulders. so let's get started.
so the first
stretch is using a pulley system. this is
my favorite stretch, especially for
frozen shoulder because a lot of times
if you're in the clinic and your
therapist is stretching you out,
sometimes subconsciously you're
tightening up, but if you're using a
pulley you can completely relax. so I've
got mine just hooked up to the ceiling,
but a lot of the pulley systems you can
hook them into your door, so it makes it
really easy to use if you don't want to
buy a pulley. and they're there probably
10 to 15 bucks. you can actually just use
a jump rope get a little hook and use a
jump rope, so it's really just something
to help pull it up. so what you want to
do is if it's my right side that's my
frozen shoulder, I would start down low
because as you know with a frozen
shoulder, that adhesive capsulitis it's
really tight in there and painful. so the
the right side the one that's hurt is
just going along for the ride. I'm
pulling with my left side so the first
one is just going straight up into a
shoulder flexion. so I'm pulling down and
this one's just going up, I'm not lifting
it up, so if I if there's slack in the
rope like that, then that means I'm
trying to lift it up. you're not you're
pulling it up with the other side, it's a
pulley so just come up get a little
stretch. if this is as far as you can go,
that's fine. if this is as far as you can
go, that's fine, but a lot of times when
people use the pulley they find that
they can stretch it just a little bit
further. you don't have to hold it there
again just maybe a two to three second
pause, and then just do a smooth
continuous motion. I usually have my
patients just start off with a minute in
each direction. you can work your way up
to 3 to 5 minutes if you want to, but I
wouldn't go too crazy the first couple
times you do it. you can also then turn
your elbows out and do like an abduction.
so now I'm going up this way, but it's
still the same concept with the pulley
where I'm pulling down with that left
arm to bring that right arm up. so it
should be completely relaxed. and a lot
of times you're going to get a lot more
stretch with that because it's it's
comfortable, it's easy to do, and you're
in control, and that's always the biggest
component of that. but if you don't have
something like that, that's okay I'll
show you some other exercises. so the
next stretches or exercises it can be
counted as both, are pendulums. I really
like pendulums as well because it's the
same thing as the pulleys, you're really
relaxed. you're kind of doing a passive
movement with it. you can do it's kind of
active assisted if you want to, I'm going
to use just a little weight. this is just
a soup can, so maybe about a pound at the
most. you don't have to do it with the
weight, but I like using weight because a
lot of times just letting it hang really
opens up that joint when you've got that
shoulder, frozen shoulder. it's really
really tight in there and that just kind
of it just gives it a nice little bit of
traction to kind of open everything up.
so just get a chair counter top so you
can lean forward, and let that arm just
hang down. so what you want to do is
really get most of the movement with
your body. so you're not necessarily
doing this. you can since this is not a
surgical thing where you maybe shouldn't
be doing it actively, but if you're doing
it passively a lot of times it really
does help relax those muscles more. so if
you're actively moving a little bit with
this one, that's okay but what I like to
do is just really move your whole body.
put your hips into it and then just make
some circles with it. so I probably start
off with just 10 one way and then
reverse it and do 10 the other way. so
you can see I am actively moving it just
a little bit, but a lot of the swing is
really coming from my body, and that just
feels so good at opening up that joint.
so then you can also do a side to side.
so now I'm just going to kind of sway
back and forth this way. and again it's
just it just feels so good, this kind of
having that hang of that arm with that
movement in there it really just makes
that shoulder feel good. and then
same thing maybe 10 this way, and then
you can also do a front back. so kind of
get almost in a lunge position and then
just rock front to back, back and forth.
and so again you can do 10. you can work
your way up just doing a minute kind of
swinging back and forth, but this is
really a good way to start with the
pulleys and pendulums, just to really
loosen up that shoulder get some of
those adhesions out of there and then go
into some stretches and exercises. so I'm
gonna do some sitting
down now. so now going into with some
more exercises, this one is a scapular or
shoulder squeeze. this is great just to
kind of open up that chest. a lot of
times with the frozen shoulder, we kind
of roll our shoulders forward, so getting
a squeeze in there is really good just
kind of help things start moving and
then strengthen those upper back muscles.
so with a scapular squeeze, what you want
to do is imagine my hand or somebody's
hand is right on your spine in your back,
and what you want to do is squeeze those
shoulder blades back like you're trying
to pinch somebody's hand. the key is
though is to keep your shoulders down
and really use the muscles this way. so
you can use your elbows, but you don't
just want to squeeze it with your elbows,
you want to activate those muscles to
get the squeeze. so keep those shoulders
down. if you want to squeeze with the
elbows kind of give yourself a target
you can, but you're really just squeezing
back and then holding it for about three
to five seconds. so you can use your
elbows to get that squeeze, or you can
just kind of squeeze them back like that
if you feel like you're using your
elbows just a little too much. so we can
just holding that three to five seconds,
do five to ten of those. and then once
you feel like those are easy, then you
can go to the next exercise which is
rows. which is kind of combining the two of them
together, and then using a resistive band.
so with the resistive bands, make sure
you start off with the lightest one. this
is a thera-band and the thera-band
series this is the next one up, so it
goes yellow then red, but I would always
start with the lightest band, and
depending on what brand it is they might
be different colors. so just make sure
you check. so with the rows, you want to
anchor the band. you can do it on a door,
you can do it on your feet. I like it
with my feet just because then I can
kind of do the exercise anywhere, but
you're just going to prop your feet out
a little bit and you want to keep your
thumbs in an upwards position and keep
your elbows close to your sides, just
like you're rowing a boat. but you're
adding in that scapular squeeze at the
end. so now you're just kind of making a
combination move and getting some
resistive resistance with it. so I'm
squeezing back and then giving that nice
squeeze at the end. the biggest thing
with a band
is make sure you're controlling it. so
don't come back and then just pop it
back because that's probably gonna hurt
your shoulder anyways, but really try and
control that band because even the
coming back part is equally as important.
so with the bands even if you're not
feeling a lot of pain, I'd probably just
start off with ten maybe two sets of ten.
you can do that once or twice a day to
start off with and see how you feel and
if you don't feel like it's causing any
pain or a lot of soreness, then you can
start kind of bumping it up from there
and do two to three sessions a day. but I
would start off again with a little bit
less and then progress yourself to some
more because a lot of times that
shoulder frozen shoulder it's really
really painful. so then after you do some
of the exercises, now you want to get
some of the tougher motions a lot of
times with the frozen shoulder, reaching
back behind you like if you want to wash
your back or of course that little
pocket the itches all the time, that's
hard to get to with frozen shoulder. it's
even harder because that internal
rotation movement is one of the toughest
ones that joint capsule that has those
adhesions in there is really kind of
binding it down. so this is really hard
and painful to do. so a good way to kind
of stretch that internal rotation behind
the back is to use a towel or a belt but
you wanted to be something solid, so you
don't want it to be those resistive
bands. this time take it on the opposite
side. so if it's my left side that needs
to stretching, I'm gonna put it on my
right side and just put it behind me.
then I'm gonna grab it, now I understand
that a lot of times when frozen shoulder
this might be as high as you can go. so
just holding it there and then pull
upwards to get that stretch. so the goal
is just to bring it up as high as you
can. again you might not be able to get
this far when you're starting. you might
just be able to go from here to here
which is fine. you don't force it into
just so much pain that you can barely
stand it because you want to hold it
once you get there. start off with 10 to
15 seconds, do maybe five or ten of those.
eventually try and work yourself up to
thirty seconds. holding it and doing that
three times. so just really getting that
good stretch in there. for the next
I'm gonna need a Swiss ball or some
people call it a therapy ball or a
stability ball. if you don't have one of
these you can just use a countertop or a
table. I really like the ball just
because it gives you that extra stretch
and it's also slightly unstable so
you're working some stability in that
shoulder as well when you're stretching.
if you can't get down on the floor and
be on your knees like this that's okay,
but if you do have a Swiss ball you can
still put you can put this on a table or
a coffee table or a countertop and then
just stand and do it, but I feel like if
you're able to get on the floor this is
going to give you a little bit better
stretch. so all you're going to do is
just kind of get in this position where
you're you know just kind of have your
hands on top here, and then just roll it
forward to get the stretch in your
shoulders. so you can do one at a time or
do them together. when you do them
together it's not quite as much of a
stretch, but again if you have that
frozen shoulder, this might be as far as
you can go which is okay. if you can go
with one sometimes you get that little
bit better stretch, but see how I have to
kind of stabilize that ball with my arm
and my shoulder, and that's what gives it
a little bit of an extra exercise to the
stretch. but just rolling it out and then
holding it for maybe three to five
seconds. so this one doesn't have to be a
full hold it's more kind of a continuous
motion. if you want to hold it longer you
can, but again this gives you a really
really good stretch in that shoulder. so
just kind of rolling out and pushing it.
so again if you can only go to right
here just start off with because that
shoulder so tight, that's okay. just once
you get there then just kind of push
down into it a little bit or give it
that little bit more of a stretch and
then come back. but eventually you should
be able to go further and further to when
you can get all the way down here and
stretch it. and that's a really really
great stretch, but that might take awhile.
that might take you know maybe even a
month before you can get that far so
don't feel like you have to force it.
just give it a really really good
stretch. so the stretch that I like to
end with is a prayer stretch, or child's
pose. it's a really great stretch for
your shoulder. it gets down into the lats
and
your back and everything that come goes
all the way down into your lower back
and then your glutes as well. but it's
just a great stretch to end with.
especially with that frozen shoulder
because it helps just kind of relax your
whole body. so all you're going to do is
on your knees you can put your arms out
in front of you. I like if you have that
frozen shoulder to actually bring your
thumbs up going down into the prayer
stretch. I know a lot of times people
don't do it that way, but just come down
and really try and stretch those
shoulders out. so this one would be a
full 30 second hold and again you might
not be able to go that low. you might not
be able to get this much Bend with your
knees. so even if you're coming up you
know and kind of stretching like this,
but you're using that bodyweight to
stretch it out, and then just really go
down into that stretch. and this is where
you can do some deep breathing just kind
of relax your body. again 30 seconds
three times, or if you just want to maybe
hold it for a minute or two just to
really relax your whole body than that's
you can do that as well.
so there you have it those were my top
seven stretches and exercises for frozen
shoulder. yeah right. if you'd like to help
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have fun, and I hope you feel better soon.