How to Fix Shoulder Impingement
Perform a targeted corrective exercise routine using resistance bands and tissue release to restore scapular mechanics and relieve shoulder impingement.
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🧰 Required Tools & Equipment
- ✓ Lacrosse ball or firm massage ball
- ✓ Light resistance loop band (mini band)
- ✓ Resistance band with handles or door anchor
- ✓ Overhead pull-up bar or sturdy suspension point
- ✓ Smooth vertical wall space
📦 Materials & Supplies
- ✓ Exercise mat
- ✓ Door anchor attachment
⚠️ Safety Checkpoints & Warnings
- • Never push through sharp, pinching anterior shoulder pain; adjust arm angle or discontinue that specific drill.
- • Keep movements slow and controlled without relying on momentum or lumbar arching.
- • Do not aggressively stretch into internal rotation under load if acute inflammation is present.
📋 Step-by-Step Guide (5 Steps)
Release the Posterior Rotator Cuff
Place a lacrosse ball against a wall and pin it between the wall and the back of your shoulder blade on the infraspinatus and teres minor. Apply moderate pressure by leaning back. Slowly move your arm across your chest and back horizontally for 60 to 90 seconds to release tension in the posterior capsule.
- • Ball stays pinned at the fleshy muscle belly behind the shoulder joint rather than on bone.
- • Arm oscillates smoothly across the torso horizontally with stable torso positioning.
- • Placing the ball directly on the spine of the scapula or acromion bone.
- • Rolling too quickly instead of pausing on tender trigger points.
Perform Banded Serratus Wall Slides
Loop a light mini-band around both wrists and place your forearms vertically against a smooth wall, shoulder-width apart. Maintain outward wrist tension to keep forearms parallel. Slide your forearms upward into a slight 'V' shape while actively pushing your shoulder blades forward (protraction), then return slowly under control.
- • Forearms remain parallel to each other during the entire slide without hands caving inward.
- • Shoulder blades visibly wrap forward around the ribcage at the top of the reach.
- • Allowing the elbows to flare wide while hands collapse inward.
- • Arching the lower back to gain height rather than upwardly rotating the scapulae.
Execute Face Pulls with External Rotation
Anchor a resistance band at eye level and grip both ends with an overhand grip, thumbs pointed backward. Step back to create tension. Pull the band toward your nose while driving elbows back and externally rotating your hands so your thumbs point behind you in a goalpost or double-biceps finish.
- • Hands finish behind the plane of the elbows at full contraction.
- • Thumbs clearly point straight backward at the peak contraction point.
- • Pulling elbows higher than hands, resulting in internal rotation under load.
- • Thrusting the head forward to meet the band.
Perform Prone W-to-Y Scapular Raises
Lie face down on an exercise mat with forehead lightly touching a folded towel. Retract your shoulder blades into a 'W' position with elbows bent by your sides and thumbs pointing toward the ceiling. From the 'W', smoothly extend your arms forward into a 'Y' position while keeping arms elevated off the floor, then pull back into the 'W'.
- • Thumbs point straight up toward the ceiling throughout the entire movement arc.
- • Neck stays relaxed in neutral alignment with forehead touching or hovering just above the mat.
- • Shrugging shoulders up to the ears into the upper traps.
- • Lifting the head and hyperextending the cervical spine instead of moving from the scapulae.
Perform Passive Subacromial Decompression Hang
Grasp an overhead bar with an overhand, shoulder-width grip. Keeping your toes or balls of your feet lightly supported on the floor to control loading, allow your body to hang passively. Let your latissimus dorsi and shoulder girdle fully relax and lengthen for 30 to 45 seconds while breathing deeply.
- • Shoulders relax up toward the ears, showing elongation of the torso and lats.
- • Feet maintain light, steady contact with the floor to regulate stretch intensity.
- • Active hanging (pulling shoulder blades down into a pull-up initiation position).
- • Dropping full bodyweight suddenly without testing shoulder tolerance.
Credit: inspired by an original tutorial by ATHLEAN-X™ — watch the original on YouTube.
Don’t have everything?
- No Lacrosse ball or firm massage ball? Tennis ball or smooth baseball
- No Overhead pull-up bar or sturdy suspension point? Top edge of a sturdy interior door frame or tall secure beam
- No Light resistance loop band (mini band)? Stretchy elastic resistance tubing tied in a 12-inch circle