How to Foam Roll Your Shoulder Muscles

Foam roller shoulder exercises can help reduce pain in the shoulder area whilst improving
posture and performance.

Below are our favorite foam rolling shoulder stretches to help keep you free from injury.

Shoulder Anatomy

The muscles to consider when foam rolling the shoulder are the deltoids and the rotator cuff.
The deltoids comprise three separate muscles. The:

Anterior Deltoid
Lateral Deltoid
Posterior Deltoid

And the rotator cuff comprises four muscles. The:

Infraspinatus
Subscapularis
Supraspinatus
Teres Minor

It is also important to consider foam rolling your pectorals when treating the shoulder.

Click here to find out the proven benefits of using a foam roller.

Shoulder Muscle Trigger Points

Tight spots or trigger points int the deltoids can cause pain in the front, side or back of the shoulder region. There may also be some pain when you move your shoulder and often raising your arm more than 90 degrees is difficult. People with trigger point issues in the Deltoids may feel a catch sensation when they lift the shoulder 15 degrees.

Reasons For Tightness or weakness in the Deltoids

It is common for the rear delts to become lengthen and weak due to poor posutre or a condition called Upper Crossed syndrome (UCS) This is because your pecs and front (anterior) delts become tight due to overuse, causing your shoulders to rotate internally and stretch the rear delts. This results in the rear delts not being able to function properly, meaning the biceps, lats and spinal erectors take on some work. Eventually this will cause an imbalance between the rear delts and the pecs/front delts, resulting in shoulder issues. The main reasons for UPS are:

Poor Posture
Over Working the chest muscles, (bench press of push up)
Hunching over when driving or typing
Not focusing on pull exercises

How to Foam Roll Your Shoulders

The following video by Critical Bench shows how to use a foam roller to target your front, rear and side deltoid muscles.

How to Foam Roll Your Rotator Cuff

Upper Body Foam Rolling Exercises

Lower Body Foam Rolling Exercises

Our website provides readers with content for informational and educational purposes only and does not replace medical advice from qualified healthcare providers. You must always consult a qualified healthcare professional when undertaking fitness, training or nutiritonal programmes.