Best Shoulder Exercises For Seniors And The Elderly

Side Shoulder Raise

Best shoulder exercises for seniors and the elderly like the side shoulder raise will help stretch and strengthen your upper arm and chest muscles.

This can improve your ability to shake out a heavy blanket, open a jar of pickles, wash your hair and even put on your overcoat!

We often take our shoulders for granted and forget to keep them limber and loose.

Strengthening your upper arm and improving your flexibility and range of motion will go a long way in creating a more functional and useful arm and hand.

Purpose of this exercise

Strengthen your upper arms, shoulders and chest.

Improve your daily activities like opening doors or pushing a shopping cart.

How to do it:

Step 1

Begin with your arm at your side, elbow straight, holding the weight with palm forward.

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Step 2

Raise your arm outward to the side and overhead.

Return to the starting position and repeat 10 times.

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Breathing:

Exhale during the upward movement phase.

Inhale during the downward movement phase

Tips:

Bring weight upward evenly in a wide arch.

Keep your elbows slightly flexed.

Lower weights slowly and under control until arms are at your side.

Take it up a notch:

Start with the weights in the overhead position.

Return weights to the overhead position and keep your elbows straight. Then lift your shoulders even higher.

How to do Side Shoulder Raise

How to do Side Shoulder Raise

More Upper Body Strengthening

1. Bicep Curls

  • Strengthens the upper part of your arm with elbow exercises.
  • Will make lifting activities easier.

2. Overhead Elbow Extension

  • Strengthens your upper arm muscles with this arm workout.
  • Improves your ability to lift your arms above your shoulders when reaching high to a shelf.

3. Triceps Kickbacks

  • Strengthening and toning arm workouts.
  • Improves your ability to rise from a chair.
  • Makes reaching to a high shelf easier.

4. Diagonal Inward Shoulder Raise

  • Build the strength in your upper arm and back with arm training.
  • Increase the mobility of your shoulder for better arm swing while walking.
  • Add to your ability to reach overhead.

5.Diagonal Outward Shoulder Raise

  • Strengthens the upper arm, back and shoulders with arm toning.
  • Improves your shoulder mobility.
  • Increases your ability to comfortably reach overhead.

6. Shoulder Rolls

  • Improves the mobility with shoulder shrug.
  • Stabilizes your shoulder blades for heavier lifting.

7. Overhead Press

  • Improve the ability to safely reach overhead
  • Stabilizes the back muscles shoulder rehab exercises.
  • Increases the mobility of the shoulder joint.

8. Shoulder Press Lying Down

  • Improve the mobility of your shoulder and chest with shoulder rehabilitation exercises.
  • Increase your strength when reaching forward or lifting with two hands.

9. Upright Rows

  • Increase the strength in your upper arms and back with upper arm exercises.
  • Improve your ability to lift heavier objects around the house.
  • Assist in the mobility of your shoulder and elbow joints.

10. Bent Over Rows

  • Strengthens your upper arm and back with shoulder workout.
  • Improves your ability to pull and lift.
  • Increase shoulder range of motion.

11. Side Shoulder Raises

  • Strengthen your upper arms, shoulders and chest with these best shoulder exercises.
  • Improve your daily activities like opening doors or pushing a shopping cart.

12. Elbow Side Extensions

  • Help strengthen your upper arm and shoulders with shoulder muscle workout.
  • Improve your ability to grip and pull as in opening a stuck refrigerator, moving a chair to vacuum, or opening a sliding glass door.

Resources Check For Safety
https://www.cdc.gov/steadi/pdf/STEADI-Brochure-CheckForSafety-508.pdf