Rotator cuff inflammation problem is often occurs for people who are regularly practicing the resistance training. This problem usually happens because those people are using the dangerous shoulder exercises or movement when performing the workout.
Bench press – This exercise is very popular for building the chest muscle. It is also will shape the triceps and anterior deltoids. But, unfortunately some people have done it in the wrong way where they let the bar down too far so it touches the chest slightly.
This movement will put excessive load to the anterior shoulder capsule. It is also will make the rotator cuff’s soft tissue get compressed. After a while, this movement will cause inflammation to the rotator cuff or even injury where the shoulder cartilage is damage. This could happen to people who have shoulder laxity and people who have experiencing dislocation.
To perform this exercise safely is that the bar only needs to be lowered until the elbow make 90 degrees angle. This will prevent the shoulder joint to move into the dangerous range. This method must also be applied in push-ups.
Lat pull downs – This workout is originally to strengthen the back, but this exercise can cause problem to the rotator cuff if you pull it down behind the head. This way of pulling will make the humerus pinch the rotator cuff and could tear it. This movement also put a lot of stress to the cervical spine.
The safer way to perform lat pull downs is by pulling it down in front of the head. This will eliminate the injury risk for the shoulder while still targeting the back muscle.
Military press – just like the lat pull downs, this exercise also risky is it positioned behind the head. You will give unnecessary stress to your neck. It will be safer to do this workout in front of the head. It will be better to use a bench that has back support to avoid the low back arching.
Dumbbell lateral raise – many people have done this exercise incorrectly such as lifting too much weight and raising the upper arms more than 90 degrees. This will put too much burden for the small rotator cuff muscles.
The safer way to perform this exercise is to maintain the elbows in comfortable degrees around 20 to 30 degrees, and do not lift higher than the shoulder level. This exercise could harm the shoulder and rotator cuff if it performed incorrectly.
In conclusion, good intentions in the exercise movement could end up with pain or injury for your shoulder when you perform it in the wrong way. The rotator cuff and shoulder joint is very delicate against repetitive movement with heavy weight in exercise.
It will slowly become inflamed and impede your exercise movement. Make sure that you fully understand and mastering the right form before adding on the load and you should not force yourself to perform it if you feel any pain, since it will lead to injury and you will have to stop exercising for a while.
Orthotics is a special orthopedic equipment which is use to help people who suffer foot disorders whether in their foot structural, skeletal, mechanical or muscular disorder. It is usually come in the shape of heel cups or special insoles that is attached inside the footwear.
Many orthotics are custom made to match with the certain needs from individual who is going to use it. So, this device will help them to improve their movement when walking.
Orthotics is not only useful for people who have foot disorder. Ordinary people who are experiencing foot problem such as pain or injury can also take the advantages of this device to reduce their pain when walking and performing their daily activity.
Once in a while, many people have a foot problem in their live. For people who had experiencing foot problems should understand just how much the foot pain will influence and hindering their life’s quality. The agony they had suffered just by walking to the door can be unbearable. Since many nerve connected with our feet, when it is hurt, then the whole body will feel hurts too.
As an active person, you will understand the importance of the ability to move freely. But, what should you do when your feet hurt? Understanding about your feet and the knowledge on treating and preventing the foot problems is very important for your activity, well being and health.
The best action to avoid the problems relating to the foot’s health is by stretching properly, controlling our weight and wearing the proper footwear.
Our weight is a crucial aspect that can contribute to foot problems. Sadly, if the foot pain has stopping us from exercising, it will be harder to control your weight.
By performing proper stretching will assist our foot to tone the back leg’s muscles and tendons which are connected to the foot. This can be very useful for people who have heel pain or plantar fasciitis.
Orthotics device can help people who are suffering from arch pain, heel pain, shin splints, stress fractures, Achilles tendonitis and runner’s knee.
The price of customized orthotics could quite costly (more than $300) while the common orthotics that is sold on open market can be much cheaper (less than $100). Before buying this device, you should consult it to your podiatrist to determine the right orthotics type that is suit to your problem and needs. It will be a waste to spend much money on the wrong orthotics type that does not suit to your problem, and certainly would not solve your foot pain.
In the custom made orthotics, the orthotics specialist will make a cast from your feet to determine the right orthotics for your foot problems. The specialist will design the orthotics to help stabilize your foot and reduce the pressure from your feet.
After the orthotics is finish, the device will be put in the footwear to stabilize the foot and maintain a good posture. In some cases, the orthotics will be strapped to your feet to maintain your foot’s alignment and posture.
This device is really helpful to improve the quality of life for people who are suffering from foot pain.
The number of Americans who suffer from lower back pain has increasing. This has become a common problem these days. There are many things that can cause the lower back pain, but usually there are at least three common causes that is often occurs such as;
Muscle imbalances
Muscular imbalances are one of the biggest factors that can cause the lower back pain. But, it is not only limited as the major cause of lower back pain, it is also can cause other pain, ache, or injury. The worse thing is, most people who suffer from muscle imbalances are not aware that they have it until they are suffering from the pain.
This is because muscle imbalances usually happen undetected. As the time grew, this condition will cause some serious health issues, especially for joints and muscles. In minor case, it can cause mild pain in joints or muscle. In more severe case, it can cause back spasm, bulging disc or even arthritis.
Imbalanced muscle will make the muscle become difficult to hold the joint in its socket. So, over the time the joint is going to be misaligned with its socket and hindering the movement or move in a slight unnatural motion.
The misaligned joint will cause a lot of stress to muscle, tendons, and the joint itself. And after many repeated movement they will start to degenerate and causing pain.
Poor posture
With the variety of people who are joining the fitness program, fitness trainers and professionals are challenged to design the fitness program that suitable with each of their client’s goals and needs. The uniform type of fitness programs would likely fail to satisfy most of their clients, and it is could harm some of the clients such as injuries and chronic back pain which is caused by the cumulative effects that are occurs for a long time.
Poor postures, position and faulty body movement could end up with lower back pain. Faulty movements will put stress to soft tissues and joints. People might feel pain that comes and goes at first. So, they do not pay too much of attention to this condition. But, after a while the condition will get worsens. The pain, aching, or stiffness will occur more often.
Not enough exercise
Not enough exercise or physical activity will make the shrink and become weaker. It is a natural process. The more your body becomes inactive in your daily life, the faster this process will be. Strength training can provide a simple solution for this problem. By exercising your muscle regularly even for briefly, so your muscle will work more than they usually do everyday.
This will make your muscles, bones, ligaments and tendons become much stronger. It is also help to stabilize the joints, therefore you joints will become less vulnerable to injury. Other benefit is that your body will be easier to perform in your daily activity such as going up the stair or lifting up grocery, couch, or other heavy stuff, and many more.
Have you ever experienced a dull ache or sharp pain in your shoulder or upper arm? Maybe you are unable to sleep on one side because your shoulder wakes you up at night. Perhaps, you have discomfort reaching behind your back to tuck in your shirt or grab your wallet. If so, you may be suffering from a rotator cuff inflammation or injury.
Rotator cuff injuries, such as tendonitis, bursitis and tears plague several people in our population. The rotator cuff consists of four small muscles, which form a sleeve around the shoulder and allow us to raise our arm overhead effectively.
These muscles, consisting of the supraspinatus, infraspinatus, teres minor and subscapularis, oppose the action of the deltoid and depress the head of the humerus (upper arm) during shoulder elevation to prevent impingement.
The most commonly injured muscle is the supraspinatus. It is responsible for initiating and aiding in elevation of the arm. If torn, the individual typically experiences persistent pain in the upper lateral arm and significant difficulty raising the arm without compensatory motion from the scapula (shrug sign). The hallmark signs of a tear are nocturnal pain, loss of strength, and inability to raise the arm overhead.
However, acute tendonitis may also present with similar signs and symptoms, as pain can inhibit motion and strength. Yet, symptoms associated with tendonitis normally respond to rest, ice, anti-inflammatory medication and therapeutic exercise.
Rotator cuff tears are most common in men age 65 and older. Tears and/or injury are typically related to degeneration, instability, bone spurs, trauma, overuse and diminished strength/flexibility related to the aging process. However, youth are also at risk for injury if they are involved in repetitive overhead sports, including swimming, volleyball, baseball, softball, tennis, gymnastics, etc.
Many people can function adequately with a torn rotator cuff provided they have a low to moderate pain level. The primary reason for performing rotator cuff surgery is to alleviate pain rather than to restore function.
It is common for post-surgical patients to lose some mobility/range of motion. Strength recovery is dictated by the size of tear, quality of the torn tissue at the time of surgery, time elapsed between injury and repair, and the surgeon’s ability to recreate the proper anatomical relationship.
It may take up to 18 months following surgery to completely recover, although most people return to normal activities of daily living in 3-6 months. On the contrary, tendonitis usually resolves within 4-6 weeks, depending on the management of the injury.
The key to avoiding rotator cuff injury is performing adequate conditioning prior to stressing it with vigorous activities. Many weekend warriors try to pick up the softball, baseball, football, etc. and begin throwing repetitively and forcefully without properly warming up. In addition, they are not likely to condition before the season like competitive athletes.
This often leads to excessive strain on the rotator cuff and swelling. The inevitable result is soreness, especially with overhead movement or reaching behind the back. The act of throwing is the most stressful motion on the shoulder. The rotator cuff is forced to decelerate the humerus during follow through at speeds up to 7000 degrees/second.
Without proper strength and conditioning, the shoulder easily becomes inflamed. Since the rotator cuff muscles are small, it is best to utilize lower resistance and higher repetitions to sufficiently strengthen them. Sample exercises include theraband or light dumbbell external and internal rotation exercises, which can be performed at various degrees of abduction.
Other common exercises include forward elevation to shoulder height in the plane of the scapula (scaption), press-ups, prone dumbbell horizontal abduction with external rotation, and diagonal arm patterns with bands, weights or medicine balls. In addition to cuff specific exercises, it is also important to strengthen the muscles around the shoulder blade. These exercises include wall push-ups with a plus (rounding shoulder blades), shrugs, rows and lower trapezius exercises.
Finally, it is important to note some precautions with general exercises routinely performed in health clubs. I recommend the following suggestions to prevent rotator cuff problems:
Do not lower the bar or dumbbells below parallel with incline/flat bench press for the aforementioned reason.
Refrain from using too much weight with lateral shoulder raises. This exercise increases the load on the shoulder to 90% of the body weight, so there is no need to use heavy weight. It is best to maintain an arc of movement slightly in front of the body with lateral raises to decrease stress on the rotator cuff, while avoiding elevation above 90 degrees.
Specific rotator cuff exercises can be incorporated into upper body workouts. Perform 2 sets of 15-25 repetitions for each exercise. These exercises should be done no more than three times per week to avoid overtraining.
