The Worst Exercises for an Irritated Shoulder and How to Modify Them
Written by Dr. Tim Berreth, DPT
An irritated shoulder doesn't mean every exercise is off the table. It usually means a handful of specific movements are doing most of the aggravating, and swapping or modifying just those lets the rest of a training program continue. The exercises below tend to cause the most trouble, along with a modification that keeps the same muscle groups working without repeating the motion that's provoking symptoms.
What may be happening
Shoulder irritation, whether it's impingement-type pain, tendinopathy, or a general flare after training, usually gets worse with movements that combine a high, compressed, or end-range shoulder position with load. The exercises that show up on this list share that pattern even though they come from different types of training. Recognizing the pattern, not just avoiding a fixed list forever, is what lets you eventually reintroduce these movements once the shoulder tolerates load better.
Behind-the-neck press or pulldowns.
This forces the arm into an extreme overhead and rotated position that few shoulders tolerate well even when healthy.
Modify: switch to a press or pulldown in front of the body, in a range that doesn't reproduce the pain.
Deep bench press or push-ups with flared elbows.
Letting the elbows flare out to the sides at the bottom of the movement increases stress on the front of the shoulder.
Modify: tuck the elbows to roughly a 45-degree angle from the torso and reduce the range of motion at the bottom until symptoms settle.
Heavy overhead barbell pressing.
Loading a fully overhead position before the shoulder blade and rotator cuff can control it well tends to reproduce the exact compression causing the pain.
Modify: landmine press or a half-kneeling single-arm press, both of which reduce the range and the load angle while still training pressing strength.
Upright rows.
Pulling the elbows up above shoulder height internally rotates the arm bone into the same narrow space that's already irritated.
Modify: replace with a wide-grip row at chest height, or a face pull with the elbows kept below shoulder level.
Kipping or high-volume overhead pull-ups.
The combination of overhead range, momentum, and repeated reps is a common flare point for an already-irritated shoulder.
Modify: switch to strict, lower-volume pull-ups or an assisted variation, or substitute a row-based pulling exercise for a period.
Deep dips.
Dips place the shoulder in an extended, internally rotated position under load, which many irritated shoulders don't tolerate.
Modify: limit the range to where the upper arm stays roughly parallel to the floor, or substitute a close-grip push-up.