Kelly Starrett, DPT, breaks down the most common causes of shoulder injuries in CrossFit athletes and explains what can be done to prevent them.

Starrett attributes most injuries to:

• Poor preparation or taking insufficient time to warm up
• Athletes lacking the necessary range of motion
• Generally not treating the shoulder with the same care as the rest of the body

To address shoulder discomfort before it becomes a problem, he recommends:

• Increasing soft tissue work by adding mobilization between workouts and doing myofascial release with a foam roller and ball at home
• Expanding your repertoire of warm-up exercises to restore normal range of motion in the shoulder joint
• Checking in with your breathing. Maintaining regular breath patterns often restores mobility.

Dr. Starrett goes on to say that if your shoulder hurts, it is not necessary an injury but is something not to ignore.  He goes on to say, if you are doing some myofascial release with a foam roller and/or lacrosse ball and you find a spot that hurts, you have found a spot that probably needs a little work. 

Listen to your body and take care of it.