How to perform Rotator Cuff Exercises

The basic premise for sports and exercise, and generally any kind of physical work is health. So athlete must be healthy in order to compete just as the employee of any profession must be healthy in order to carry out its function of employees, especially if his work still requires the physical work (eg. Workers on construction sites and other similar professions). Through sport and physical exercise promotes healthy lifestyles, but injuries are a part of sport and physical exercise.
Many athletes neglects rotator cuff exercises  , believing that they should be carried out only in the process of rehabilitation and post-operative period. This practice was common in the "old sport systems" but it is absolutely incorrect. If implemented prevention exercise will reduce the number of injuries and thus the athlete would be able to quickly get to the final goal and superior results.

As useful in top sport so also brings benefits in sports rehabilitation and raises the overall quality of life. Many coaches avoid the implementation of prevention because they believe that they lose time from training, and that is more important to improve those skills most needed for a particular sport. The above statement is partially accurate but such work often goes "two steps forward and one backwards", ie rapid progress and injuries and rehabilitation operations. If we implement preventive exercise programs such as only in regeneration extensive training option "Go back a step" would be drastically diminished.

One of the big problems in the sport and the cause of many injuries, is low flexibility of the shoulder. The shoulder is part of the body due to its high mobility, carrying movements of the hand as a whole, suffers a large mechanical stress, both in sport and in everyday life, the solution is rotator cuff exercises.


The anatomy of the shoulder joint

In the shoulder joint there are a number of structures (ligaments, tendons and muscles) which are mutually in contact and the functional influence each other. Rotator cuff shoulder  is a joint anatomical structure formed by the muscles of the shoulder rotators, whose tendons wrap your head shoulder bone (humerus) and annexed to it. Rotator cuff consists of four muscles that have different roles in the movement shoulder. The external rotators shoulder, its contraction, rotate the head of the humerus outward, while the internal rotators perform a movement of internal rotation of the shoulder.
The primary function of the rotator muscles shoulder to stabilize the shoulder joint movements shoulders !!! They prevent slipping head shoulder bone and joint over the borders of injury structures shoulders. On the bench press improper technique leads to excessive movement of the shoulder joint and the occurrence of the injury to the shoulder joint, which often make a big problem in training.


Biomechanics of movement rotator shoulder

The primary function of the rotator muscles shoulder to stabilize the shoulder (glenohumeral) joint movement in the shoulder
Also, its contraction held the head of the humerus in glenoidalnom recessed blades and maintain the required pressure in the glenohumeral joint. When moving the removal arms (abduction) its contraction strike down the head of the humerus down, preventing narrowing subacromion space and contact (impigment) between the humerus and the acromion bulges blades. Impigment in the shoulder joint is formed, among other things, and as a result of weak external rotators.
- M. Supraspinatus participate in the movement of taking arms (abduction) together with m.deltoideusom. It is believed that the supraspinatus main adductor shoulder in the first 15 degrees of abduction, as well as over 90 degrees abduction movement.
-m. infraspinatus and m. teres minor muscles external rotators and shoulder stabilizers of the shoulder joint.
-m. subscapularis represents an internal rotator of the shoulder joint and adductor (adductor) of the humerus.

Range of motion (ROM - range of motion) shoulder joint represents the most mobile joint in the body. The movements are carried out in all directions, to a large extent.
- Removal arms (abduction) - a movement away from the body, 0-90, middle deltoid muscles, supraspinatus.
- Bringing the arms (adduction) - movement to the body, 90-0, latissimus muscles, big chest, teres major.
- Horizontal drainage - the movement of the body at shoulder height, 0-45, last deltoid, teres major, latissimus.
- Horizontally arrest - movement to the body at shoulder height, 0-135, large pectoral muscles, small chest, anterior deltoid.
- Flexion - a movement to raise his hands to the front, 90-100, front part of the deltoid muscle, the large pectoral muscle, the biceps.
- Stretching (extension) - gesture in the back, 40-60, latissimus muscles, big chest, teres major.
- Internal rotation - arm movement circular uvisini shoulders down, 75-90, muscles subskapularis, big chest, anterior deltoid.
- External rotation - move your hands at shoulder height above the circular, 75-90, last deltoid muscle, teres minor, infraspinatus.


Rotator cuff exercises  

- Stretching muscles and flexor (flexors, adductors) shoulder: exercise 1,2,5.
- Stretching the extensor muscle (extensors, abducts) shoulder: exercise 2,3,5.
- Stretching external rotator shoulder: exercise 3.4.
- Stretching the internal rotator shoulder: exercise 1.2.

Exercise 1 - rotating the body of the hand open anterior segment shoulders and stretch the internal rotators, hamstrings and the shoulder joint. The muscles that stretch the large pectoral muscle, biceps, subskapularis.
Exercise 2 - pulling up your hands to stretch the front, rear and bottom sections shoulder muscles, the internal rotators, triceps. The muscles that stretch the latissimus, triceps, deltoid last, subskapularis.
Exercise 3 - pulling hand over the opposite shoulder stretch last segment shoulder external rotators. The muscles that stretch the last deltoid, shoulder rotators.
Exercise 4 - this exercise by pulling the elbow to the front stretch external rotators shoulder.
Exercise 5 - pulling the arms down and back stretch flexor and shoulder.

When a shoulder injury or poorly flexible shoulder exercises 4 and 5 are not recommended to be performed in the beginning.


Tips for Rotator cuff exercises  

It is performed so as to take the position of the end range of motion, allowing the muscles in a particular joint and the position is retained certain time. Stretching is done gradually, never on strike, occupying the position to which movement is possible without delay. The position is maintained for 15-20 seconds, then deepens to 2-3cm and this is repeated several times. During static stretching is necessary to pay attention to breathing, because the relaxation of muscles directly associated with relaxation breathing. It is important that all exercises are working under the border of pain. Pain is always a signal that leads to reflex spasm of muscles, which prevents further relaxation. Static stretching is performed slowly and the end position is held for about 20-30 seconds. The advantage of rotator cuff exercises   is minimal risk of injury. See also Glute exercises.