Frozen Shoulder Exercise

Before beginning any shoulder exercises, always warm up the shoulder. The best approach to accomplish that is to spend 10 to 15 minutes in a warm bath or shower. A damp towel or moist heating pad heated in the microwave can also be used, but it might not be as efficient.

Stretch the muscles in the following exercises until they feel tight but not painful.

Pendulum stretch

1. Start by letting your shoulders down.

2. Stand up straight and stoop down slightly, letting the affected arm dangle down.

3. Swing the arm in a foot-diameter miniature circle.

4. Rotate your body 10 times every day, once in each direction.

5. Gradually expand the diameter of your swing as your symptoms go better.

6. Refrain from pushing the stretch.

7. When ready, you can enhance the stretch by placing a modest weight (between three and five pounds) in the arm that is swinging.

Towel stretch

1. Grab a three-foot towel and hold it horizontally with both hands behind your back.

2. Pull the afflicted arm upward with your strong arm to stretch it.

3. This exercise can also be done more effectively by draping the towel over your right shoulder.

4. With the unaffected arm, draw the towel toward the lower back while grabbing the bottom with the affected arm.

5. Perform this stretch 10–20 times daily.

Finger walk

1. Three-quarters of an arm's length away from a wall, face it.

2. With the fingertips of the affected arm, extend your arm out and touch the wall at waist height.

3. To lift your arm to shoulder level or as high as you can safely go, carefully walk your fingers up the wall while keeping your elbow slightly bent.

4. Instead of using your shoulder muscles, use your fingertips.

5. Repeat by slowly lowering the arm, using the strong arm if necessary.

6. Ten to twenty times every day, carry out this activity.

Cross-body reach

1. Stand or sit.

2. In order to extend the shoulder, lift the problematic arm at the elbow with your good arm and bring it up and across your body.

3. For 15 to 20 seconds, keep the stretch in place.

4. Ten to twenty times a day, repeat this stretch.

Armpit stretch

1. Lift the injured arm onto a shelf about breast-high with your strong arm.

2. Open up the armpit by bending your legs slightly.

3. After gently stretching the armpit with a minor knee bend, straighten your leg.

4. Stretch a little bit more with each knee bend, but don't strain yourself.

5. Perform this stretch ten to twenty times daily.

Strengthening the rotator cuff

After your range of motion improves, you can add rotator cuff–strengthening exercises. Be sure to warm up your shoulder and do your stretching exercises before you perform strengthening

Outward rotation

1. With your elbows at a 90-degree angle and close to your sides, hold a rubber workout band in between your hands.

2. Rotate the affected arm's bottom portion two or three inches outward and hold the position for five seconds.

3. Once per day, repeat 10 to 15 times.

Inward rotation

1. Place yourself next to a closed door and wrap the doorknob with one end of a rubber exercise band.

2. Hold the elbow at a 90-degree angle and grasp the other end with the hand of the affected arm.

3. Pull the band two to three inches closer to your body, then hold the position for five seconds.

4. Once per day, repeat 10 to 15 times.