Rotator Cuff Strength Progression (for “Tendinosis” and Shoulder Pain)

Updated February 28, 2025

In several previous blog posts and videos about shoulder pain and rotator cuff issues (especially rotator cuff “tendinosis”), I’ve talked about how to heal the rotator cuff muscles with things like eccentric strengthening.

However, I’ve never explained how to progress to eccentric strengthening while dealing with shoulder pain, and I get a lot of questions on my YouTube videos about how to strengthen the rotator cuff without causing additional pain.

In this video, I’ll explain the rotator cuff strength progression, which I break down into 3 stages.

3 Stages of Rotator Cuff Strengthening

->> Stage 1: Isometric Strengthening

->> Stage 2: Concentric Strengthening

->> Stage 3: Eccentric Strengthening

The exercises that I demonstrate in this video are a great place to start if you’re looking to strengthen your rotator cuff, improve blood flow and tissue healing and avoid additional pain in the process.

I hope this video helps you with your shoulder pain, especially for things like “supraspinatus tendinosis” and infraspinatus tendinosis”.

If you have more questions about how to eliminate shoulder pain, or how to heal rotator cuff issues (like “supraspinatus tendinosis” and infraspinatus tendinosis”), send me a quick email at Luke@GordonPhysicalTherapy.com.

– Luke Gordon, DPT (Doctor of Physical Therapy/Owner of Gordon Physical Therapy)