‘Motion is lotion’: how to really look after your shoulders | Life and style

YesYou're clinging to the top strap on a crowded bus during rush hour when the driver suddenly slams on the brakes. As the crowd gains momentum, your arm jerks back and your shoulder takes the full force of the momentum. In times like these, one is grateful for a strong and healthy shoulder.

“If you have a strong and mobile shoulder, you have control over reducing the risk of anything happening. [bad] is happening,” says Dr Josh Zadro, physiotherapist and senior research fellow at the University of Sydney.

We often ignore our shoulders until they need attention, but prevention is much more effective than cure, says Dr Anelise Silveira, a physiotherapist and researcher at the University of Queensland.

Here, experts walk us through the principles of maintaining shoulder health:

Use your full range of motion every day

According to Zadro, problems arise when we stop moving altogether.

“There is no one ideal posture,” he says. “People move and sit differently… it doesn't bother us.”

He says, “Movement is lotion”: As we age and naturally lose mobility, shoulder health declines. To correct this, he recommends exposing your shoulders to a full range of motion every day:

1. Hand circles: Large, controlled circles in front of the body.

2. Slide on the wall: Stand facing the wall and raise your arms as high as possible.

3. Overhead flight: Extend your arms toward the ceiling to counteract the forward lean from working at the computer.

“Instead of trying to completely change the way people sit or work, you just need to get out of those positions regularly,” Zadro says.

Silveira agrees, explaining that staying in place for too long compresses the tendons and bursa—the small, fluid-filled sac that reduces friction between bones, tendons and muscles—leading to stiffness. Her advice for busy workers: Set a phone timer every hour or two.

When it buzzes, do a quick reset: check to see if you're falling, then roll your shoulders back, around, and down. Hold for five to 10 seconds and repeat up to 10 times.

“The goal is to become aware of your shoulders, strengthen your muscles and develop the habit of adaptability.”

Strengthen your shoulders safely

The function of the shoulder depends on a group of muscles, including the rotator cuff, a group of muscles and tendons that support and stabilize the arm at the shoulder joint. and larger muscles in the front and back, Zadro says.

Professor George Murrell, a shoulder specialist, says safe strengthening helps healthy shoulders.

He recommends low-impact options such as breaststroke, which he describes as “gentle” on the joints, or using a rowing machine on an easy setting to work the back of the shoulder and core without stressing the rotator cuff tendons.

For an at-home setup, Zadro recommends grabbing a resistance band and doing simple exercises two to three times a week. The first exercise he suggests is the “stand and rise,” where you stand on the band and raise your arm to the side, then forward, then overhead. He also recommends a technique called the door anchor, which involves wrapping tape around a closed doorknob. Turn toward the door to pull (rowing motion) or turn away to push (pressing motion), using the door as an anchor—hence the name.

Zadro says that “there is no golden number of sets or reps.” Exercise until the muscle becomes tired and movement becomes difficult.

Silveira warns that even healthy people who go to the gym and exercise a lot can have weak rotator cuffs, and recommends isolating these muscles with rotations.

For external rotation, keep your elbow at a 90-degree angle, tucked into your side, while holding resistance with a band or light weight, rotate your forearm outward (away from your stomach). Make a counter internal rotation by moving your forearm inward through your abdomen. Once the movement becomes easy, you can either add weight or increase the range of motion.

Gradually increase new activities

A quick way to damage a healthy shoulder is a sudden burst of intense activity, Murrell says. Overuse of the rotator cuff can lead to tendinopathy (tendon damage) and bursitis (inflammation).

He cautions against diving into high-intensity training programs like CrossFit without significant training experience, as the high loads of a competitive environment can push the shoulder into the danger zone.

This also applies to casual exercise. Experts say we should be mindful of activities that require repetitive overhead movements for which the body is not prepared, such as painting a house or returning to tennis after a long break.

Silveira calls for consistency rather than intensity. “You can't go to the gym and expect to lift 50kg on the first day,” she says.

Zadro agrees: “A lot of shoulder problems occur when people suddenly take on new or greater loads.”

Listen to the pain

While these tips reflect best practices, experts say if you experience pain, contact your doctor.

“Pain is our best friend,” Silveira says. “It tells you something is wrong.”

Murrell suggests stopping the annoying movements immediately. He says pain often causes people to stop using the actual shoulder joint (the ball of the shoulder) and become overly reliant on the trapezius muscles to compensate.

A physical therapist can detect these warning signs, adjust your movements, and get you back to safe exercise once the inflammation has subsided.