Spring is here, and you’re ready to get back outside. Tennis, golf, swimming, softball, yard work—after months of winter inactivity, you’re eager to dive back in. But your shoulder has other ideas. Pain when you reach overhead. Weakness throwing a ball. Discomfort that won’t quit after that first weekend of intense activity.
Shoulder injuries are incredibly common when people ramp up activity too quickly after the off-season. The good news? Most are preventable with smart preparation and progression. Let’s talk about the most common shoulder problems we see at Performance Health each spring and how to protect yourself.
Why Your Shoulder Is Vulnerable
Your shoulder is the most mobile joint in your body—which also makes it the least stable. It relies heavily on muscles, tendons, and ligaments to keep everything in place during movement. When those supporting structures aren’t strong or when you ask them to do too much too fast, injuries happen.
Winter inactivity weakens shoulder muscles and reduces flexibility. Then spring arrives, and you immediately jump into activities that require overhead reaching, throwing, or repetitive motions. Your shoulder isn’t ready for that demand, and something gives.
Common Spring Shoulder Injuries
Rotator Cuff Strains and Tears
Your rotator cuff is a group of four muscles that stabilize your shoulder. Throwing, swimming, overhead lifting, and repetitive reaching all stress these muscles. When you go from zero to full intensity without preparation, rotator cuff strains or even tears can occur.
Symptoms include pain when reaching overhead or behind your back, weakness lifting or rotating your arm, night pain that disrupts sleep, and a deep ache in the shoulder.
Shoulder Impingement
This happens when tendons get pinched between shoulder bones during overhead movements. Swimming, tennis serves, painting ceilings—any repetitive overhead activity can cause impingement. Poor posture and weak shoulder blade muscles make it worse.
You’ll feel pain when lifting your arm to the side or overhead, weakness with overhead activities, and a painful arc as you raise your arm—it hurts in the middle of the movement but feels better at the top and bottom.
Tendinitis
Inflammation of shoulder tendons from overuse. This often affects the biceps tendon or rotator cuff tendons. That first weekend of aggressive gardening or painting after months of inactivity is a classic trigger.
Symptoms include pain with specific movements, tenderness when you press on the affected tendon, and stiffness, especially in the morning.
Frozen Shoulder
While less common as an acute injury, frozen shoulder can develop if you stop moving your shoulder due to pain from another injury. The shoulder capsule tightens up, creating severe stiffness and restricted range of motion.
The Mistake Everyone Makes: Too Much, Too Soon
The pattern is predictable. Nice weather arrives. You spend an entire Saturday playing tennis or softball, doing yard work, or swimming laps—activities you haven’t done in months. By Sunday, your shoulder is screaming.
Your enthusiasm is great, but your shoulder needs gradual preparation. You can’t go from sedentary to full intensity without consequences. Tissues need time to adapt to new demands.
Smart Preparation: Build Strength and Flexibility First
Before diving into spring activities, spend 2-3 weeks preparing your shoulder. This doesn’t require gym memberships or complicated routines—just consistent basic preparation.
Strengthen Your Rotator Cuff
Simple resistance band exercises strengthen the rotator cuff and prepare it for activity. External and internal rotation exercises, performed with light resistance for higher repetitions, build endurance in these critical stabilizing muscles.
Start light—very light. The rotator cuff muscles are small and fatigue easily. Fifteen to twenty repetitions with minimal resistance builds strength safely.
Strengthen Your Shoulder Blade Muscles
Your shoulder blade (scapula) provides the stable base for shoulder movement. Weak shoulder blade muscles contribute to impingement and instability. Rows, reverse flys, and scapular squeezes strengthen these supporting muscles.
Improve Flexibility
Tight shoulders restrict movement and increase injury risk. Gentle stretching of the chest, front of the shoulder, and upper back improves flexibility. Doorway stretches for the chest and cross-body arm stretches improve range of motion.
Stretch daily, holding each position for 30 seconds without bouncing. Consistency matters more than intensity.
Start Slow and Progress Gradually
When you start your spring activities, ease in. If you’re returning to tennis, don’t play three hours the first day. Start with 30-45 minutes and build gradually over several weeks. Taking up swimming? Begin with shorter sessions at moderate intensity rather than immediately trying to match last summer’s distances.
Listen to your body. Some mild muscle soreness is normal when increasing activity. Sharp pain, persistent aching, or weakness are warning signs. Respect those signals and dial back intensity.
The 10% rule works well—increase duration or intensity by no more than 10% per week. This allows tissues to adapt without overwhelming them.
When to Get Checked: Don’t Ignore the Warning Signs
Many people try to push through shoulder pain, hoping it will resolve on its own. Sometimes it does, but often delayed treatment makes things worse. Ignoring shoulder pain can lead to chronic problems that are harder to fix.
Get evaluated if you experience pain lasting more than a week despite rest, significant weakness in your shoulder or arm, inability to perform normal daily activities, night pain that disrupts sleep, or pain that’s getting worse instead of better.
Early intervention prevents minor problems from becoming major ones. A rotator cuff strain caught early responds quickly to treatment. Ignored for months, that same strain can progress to a tear requiring much longer recovery.
How We Treat Shoulder Injuries
At Performance Health, we take a comprehensive approach to shoulder injuries. Treatment typically includes manual therapy to improve joint mechanics and reduce pain, specific exercises to strengthen weak muscles and improve movement patterns, and guidance on modifying activities during recovery while maintaining fitness.
Most shoulder injuries respond well to conservative care when addressed promptly. The key is proper diagnosis of what’s causing your pain so treatment targets the actual problem, not just symptoms.
Don’t Sideline Your Summer
Shoulder injuries don’t have to derail your spring and summer plans. With smart preparation—building strength and flexibility before ramping up activity—gradual progression when starting new or resumed activities, and early intervention when pain appears, you can enjoy an active season without being sidelined by shoulder problems.
Your shoulder has carried you through countless activities over the years. Give it the preparation it needs to keep performing, and don’t ignore warning signs when they appear.
If you’re experiencing shoulder pain or want guidance preparing for spring activities, contact Performance Health. We’ll evaluate your shoulder, identify any problems, and create a plan to get you active safely. Don’t let shoulder pain keep you on the sidelines this summer.