Top Exercises for Sub-acute Rotator Cuff Tears | Feat. Tim Keeley | No.171 | Physio REHAB
Channel: Physio Fitness | Physio REHAB | Tim Keeley
Date: 2019-02-12

Rotator cuff tears initially don’t like long lever loads, especially into abduction and flexion. You need a bit of guidance and a lot of time and a set routine of specific stability and activation exercises to start with. So here are my top 5 shoulder exercises for sub-acute rotator cuff tears. 

First, is a bit about how we are going to work on the strengthening phase after treatment and when the initial injury has settled down, and the tendon is WEAK. You simply can’t launch into conventional shoulder exercises, it has to be specific stability and low load work that doesn’t cause pain at the shoulder.

Exercise 1: Scapula press in a plank on your knees. It’s using a short lever which is a bit hard for the serratus but as it’s closed chain and static for the shoulder joint it’s usually kind on the cuff so you should be able to do this pain free. Essential to keep the scapula stabilisers working and active, to maintain shoulder posture and stop things tightening up. The isometric work for the rotator cuff in this position for Gleno-humeral joint stability is great. 

Exercise 2: Closed chain row 2 arms and 1 arm, in this case using a @trxtraining #trx. Again as it’s closed chain and static for the shoulder joint it’s usually kind on the cuff so you should be able to do this pain free. Essential to keep the scapula stabilisers working and active, to maintain shoulder posture and stop things tightening up. The isometric work for the rotator cuff in this position for Gleno-humeral joint stability is great. Exercise 3 is isometric abduction, great as a starting point to stop the supraspinatus from deactivating and atrophy. 

Exercise 4: Eccentric external rotation with and without acitve assistance for those really weak and painful tears that need REALLY low load to start with

Exercise 5: the old fav; Extension

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