Yoga For Frozen Shoulder: What Helps, What To Avoid, And The Honest Evidence

Yoga for frozen shoulder: the short answer

A frozen shoulder can make everyday things hard: doing up a bra, reaching a high shelf, sleeping on that side. Yoga for frozen shoulder may help you keep moving comfortably, but we want to be plain: the research is thin, just a few small studies with mixed results. Gentle, regular movement within a comfortable range, with props such as a belt, is what a careful Iyengar class offers. Here is what the studies found, the poses commonly taught, what to avoid, and how to start in Darwin or online.

Here is the article in short form:

• What it is: a painful, stiff shoulder joint that slowly thaws over months to years.
• Research: only a few small studies; results are mixed.
• 2019 trial: yoga added no extra benefit to usual care over four weeks.
• 2020 study: yoga and physiotherapy both helped; yoga slightly better for arm lifting.
• Safety: no weight on a painful shoulder; never force the range.
• Next step: a gentle class focused on backs, necks and shoulders.

What is a frozen shoulder?

Frozen shoulder (adhesive capsulitis, a thickened and tight shoulder joint lining) makes the shoulder painful and stiff in every direction. It usually comes on slowly, often with no injury.

It tends to pass through three stages: a painful freezing stage, a stiff frozen stage, and a thawing stage when movement returns. The whole process often takes one to three years.

It is most common between about 40 and 60, more common in women, and more common in people with diabetes. Frozen shoulder is on Dr Timothy McCall’s June 2019 list of 117 health conditions helped by yoga, one of the conditions he added after 2016.

Is yoga good for frozen shoulder? What the research says

The honest answer: yoga may help, but the evidence is thin. We found only two small controlled studies. Here they are, with the year and what yoga was compared with.

• 2019 trial, India, Journal of Ayurveda and Integrative Medicine: 72 adults aged 30 to 60 with mild to moderate frozen shoulder. One group added a set of standing yoga poses to their usual treatment of physiotherapy and pain relief; the other had usual treatment alone. After four weeks both groups had improved a lot, with no difference between them. The yoga added no extra benefit over that short time.
• 2020 study, India, Journal of Complementary and Integrative Medicine: 40 adults aged 35 to 60. Four weeks of yoga poses compared with four weeks of physiotherapy. Both groups improved in pain, movement and function. Yoga was a little better for lifting the arm out to the side. The study was not fully randomised and was small.

In plain terms: yoga appears safe and about as useful as other shoulder exercise over a few weeks, but there is not enough research to say more. No study has tested Iyengar yoga for frozen shoulder specifically.

What we do know from long practice is that careful, regular movement, with props so the arm is never forced, helps many students stay comfortable while a shoulder thaws. That is known from practice, not yet tested by modern research.

What an Iyengar class does for a frozen shoulder

An Iyengar class works the shoulder gradually, with belts, blocks, walls and chairs, so the arm moves in its comfortable range and a little further over time. The rest of the body keeps working too, so you stay strong while the shoulder recovers.

Poses commonly taught for stiff shoulders

• Arms up (Urdhva Hastasana) with a belt or block: raising the arms evenly, only as high as is comfortable.
• Hands on a wall or chair: walking the hands up a wall, or resting them on a chair to open the chest.
• Cow face arms (Gomukhasana) with a belt: the belt bridges the gap between the hands.
• Standing poses: Triangle and Warrior 2, with the arms held at a comfortable height.
• Supported rests: lying with the arms supported on blankets, to ease a painful shoulder at the end of class.

How to practise safely with a frozen shoulder

• See your doctor or physiotherapist to confirm it is a frozen shoulder, not a tear or another problem.
• No weight on a painful shoulder. Skip downward dog, plank, arm balances and full shoulderstand until your teacher says otherwise.
• Never force the range. Mild stretch is fine; sharp or lasting pain is a sign to ease off.
• Match the stage. Gentle and supported in the painful stage; more stretching in the stiff and thawing stages.
• If you have diabetes, see yoga for type 2 diabetes for its safety points.

Frozen shoulder or ordinary shoulder stiffness?

Most stiff shoulders are not frozen shoulders. Stiffness from desk work, driving and carrying bags usually comes with neck tension, and eases with regular movement. The research on yoga for neck and shoulder pain is much stronger; see yoga for neck pain and yoga for posture.

Yoga for frozen shoulder in Darwin and live online

Flametree Yoga Studio runs a weekly Yoga For Backs class at 7:15pm on Wednesdays, covering back, neck and shoulders, taught by Christine (Chris) Lalor, Senior Iyengar Yoga Teacher and certified yoga therapist, at Woolner in Darwin and LIVE online. Gentle Yoga also suits most people with a stiff shoulder. Tell your teacher about your shoulder before class.

• New to Flametree? Your first class is free. In Darwin, just come along to the studio. Online, click the class time you want and we email you the link to join. See the class times and get your link to join here, or see the beginner timetable.
• Keep going at half price. The beginner deal is 10 classes at half price plus 2 more free, $59.50 in total, in the studio, online or both. No discount code is needed, and it has a 14-day money-back guarantee. It is for newcomers and anyone away three months or more.
• Already practising yoga? The non-beginner half price 10 pass with 2 free is $104.50, no code needed, with a money-back guarantee.

Related pages: the Back, Neck and Shoulder Focus class page, yoga for neck pain, yoga for posture, yoga for arthritis, yoga for type 2 diabetes, yoga for back pain over 50, and the benefits of yoga page, which carries Dr Timothy McCall’s June 2019 list of 117 health conditions helped by yoga.

Yoga for frozen shoulder: frequently asked questions

Is yoga good for frozen shoulder?

It may help as part of your care, but the research is thin. Only a few small studies exist. One 2019 trial found adding yoga to usual treatment gave no extra benefit after four weeks; a 2020 study found yoga and physiotherapy both helped, with yoga slightly better for lifting the arm out to the side. Gentle, regular movement within a comfortable range is the sensible aim.

Which yoga poses help a stiff shoulder?

Poses that raise the arms gradually are commonly taught: arms up with a belt or block, hands on a wall or chair to open the chest, and cow face arms (Gomukhasana) with a belt between the hands. A belt lets the arm move only as far as it comfortably can, and the teacher adjusts each pose to the stage your shoulder is at.

Which yoga poses should I avoid with frozen shoulder?

Anything that takes weight through a painful shoulder: downward dog, plank, arm balances and full shoulderstand. Also avoid forcing the arm behind the back or overhead into pain. Your teacher can give supported alternatives.

Should I do yoga while my shoulder is freezing and very painful?

Gently, if at all. In the early painful stage, keep moving within a pain-free range, rest the arm in supported poses, and follow your doctor’s or physiotherapist’s advice. Stronger stretching usually suits the later stiff and thawing stages better.

How long does frozen shoulder take to get better?

Frozen shoulder often improves over one to three years, even without treatment, moving through painful, stiff and thawing stages. Yoga is not a quick answer; the aim is to stay as comfortable and mobile as possible while it runs its course.

Can yoga help shoulder stiffness from sitting at a desk?

Often, yes. Desk-related stiffness in the neck and shoulders is different from frozen shoulder, and poses that open the chest and lift the arms are a regular part of every Iyengar class. See our yoga for neck pain page for the research on neck and shoulder pain.

Is frozen shoulder more common with diabetes?

Yes. Frozen shoulder is more common in people with diabetes and in people in their 40s to 60s, especially women. If you have diabetes, see our yoga for type 2 diabetes page for the safety points that go with it.

Where can I do yoga for a frozen shoulder in Darwin or online?

Flametree’s weekly Yoga For Backs class, 7:15pm on Wednesdays with Christine (Chris) Lalor, Senior Iyengar Yoga Teacher and certified yoga therapist, covers back, neck and shoulders, at Woolner in Darwin and LIVE online. Your first class is free if you are new to Flametree.

This article is general information, not medical advice. See your doctor or physiotherapist to confirm the cause of shoulder pain. Flametree Yoga Studio, Darwin and live online.

Sources: Jain M and colleagues, Short term effect of yoga asana: an adjunct therapy to conventional treatment in frozen shoulder, Journal of Ayurveda and Integrative Medicine, 2019, doi 10.1016/j.jaim.2018.12.007. Pitchai P and colleagues, Functional status in adhesive capsulitis: yoga vs. physiotherapy, a quasi experimental study, Journal of Complementary and Integrative Medicine, 2020, doi 10.1515/jcim-2020-0089. McCall T, 117 Health Conditions Helped by Yoga, Yoga As Medicine, June 2019, DrMcCall.com.