rotator cuff exercises

Whenever you talk about exercises for the rotator cuff or for preventing shoulder injuries the very first exercise people think of is the external rotation exercise using rubber tubing. How come nearly every shoulder problem needs external rotation work? Do they all have weak external rotators? Many physical therapists and trainers will say yes, and this will often be their “go-to” exercise for almost every shoulder injury they see. Their belief is that the external rotators are weak and over-powered by the larger internal rotator muscles of the pecs and lats and therefor they need to be strengthened. However, this type of logic ignores the true role of the rotator cuff and assumes so many critical factors that are often the reason behind the imbalance being created in the first place. In this article, I will discuss how these exercises often cause more problems than they solve and if you want to improve stability and function of the rotator cuff, you will find there are much better choices that will get you out of pain and back to full function.

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