Relaxed hang
Hang from a bar with straight arms and let the shoulders go up.
Share a collection of drills
Pick up to 6 drills from the library, put them in order, and send them as one link. Whoever opens it sees the same drills, each with its instructions and camera practice, without an account.
A collection is a list of links to the library's instructions, not a plan. It has no doses, schedule or notes of its own, and fisiolike does not choose the drills or say who they suit. Each drill page has its own starting dose and easier version.
Warning signs: see a clinician first
Do not start, or stop, if any of these apply to you:
- The pain started with a fall, a dislocation, or a sudden pop or tear, and you cannot lift the arm since.
- Numbness, tingling or pins and needles running down the arm or into the hand.
- Weakness that is getting worse, or the arm suddenly much weaker than the other.
- Pain that wakes you at night and does not ease when you change position.
- Swelling, redness, heat or a fever with the pain.
- Pain in the chest, jaw or left arm with breathlessness or sweating — call emergency services.
- A visible lump, change in shape, or the shoulder looking different from the other.
These are general reasons to have a shoulder examined. They are not a complete list.
Choose drills
Active hang
From a relaxed hang, draw the shoulders down away from the ears and hold, arms still straight.
Scapular pull-up
Repeat the active hang as reps: shoulders down, pause, back up to a relaxed hang.
Band pull-apart
Hold a light band at shoulder height with straight arms and pull it apart to your chest.
Wall slide
Forearms on a wall, slide them up as far as is comfortable while keeping the shoulders down.
Band external rotation
Elbow tucked at your side, turn the forearm out against a light band.
Prone Y raise
Lying face down, thumbs up, lift straight arms in a Y shape.
Scapular push-up
In a push-up position with straight arms, let the chest sink between the shoulder blades, then push the floor away.
Top hold
Jump or step to the top of a pull-up and hold there, elbows bent.
Lowering from the top
Start at the top of a pull-up and lower yourself as slowly as you can to straight arms.
Band-assisted pull-up
A strict pull-up with a band looped under a knee or foot to take some weight.
Strict pull-up
From a still, straight-arm hang, pull until the chin is over the bar, with no swing.
Relaxed hang
Hang from a bar with straight arms and let the shoulders go up.
Active hang
From a relaxed hang, draw the shoulders down away from the ears and hold, arms still straight.
Scapular pull-up
Repeat the active hang as reps: shoulders down, pause, back up to a relaxed hang.
Band pull-apart
Hold a light band at shoulder height with straight arms and pull it apart to your chest.
Wall slide
Forearms on a wall, slide them up as far as is comfortable while keeping the shoulders down.
Band external rotation
Elbow tucked at your side, turn the forearm out against a light band.
Prone Y raise
Lying face down, thumbs up, lift straight arms in a Y shape.
Scapular push-up
In a push-up position with straight arms, let the chest sink between the shoulder blades, then push the floor away.
Top hold
Jump or step to the top of a pull-up and hold there, elbows bent.
Lowering from the top
Start at the top of a pull-up and lower yourself as slowly as you can to straight arms.
Band-assisted pull-up
A strict pull-up with a band looped under a knee or foot to take some weight.
Strict pull-up
From a still, straight-arm hang, pull until the chin is over the bar, with no swing.