Is Radical Shoulder Replacement Right for You?
April 6, 2011
Who wants to have the end of their upper arm sawed off and then have a deep hole drilled down the center? No one….unless you’re suffering from the extreme pain of Osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis, also known as degenerative joint disease, results in the wearing away of the cartilage of the joint. When the cartilage is gone, you have bone on bone contact with no lubrication between and PAIN…lots of pain.
Answers to your Shoulder Arthritis Questions
Here’s a video that will answer some of the questions you’re having about shoulder arthritis and what you can do.
What Is Shoulder Replacement Surgery?
Okay, now that you know you have options, what is shoulder replacement surgery? What can you expect..before, during and after surgery?
Talk to your doctor and get the facts. Shoulder replacement is radical…but sometimes it’s the only way to relieve your shoulder pain.
Battling Frozen Shoulder? You Have Options
February 23, 2011
Does the Rotater help with frozen shoulder? Read this email from someone who’s been battling this painful condition and decide for yourself!
Me and The Rotater—A Success Story
Imagine not being able to:
Frozen Shoulder is Painful
- Towel dry your back.
- Take off or put on a sweater over your head.
- Reach for the butter dish on the rear refrigerator shelf.
- Grab the last sock hiding in the back of the dryer.
That’s what it’s like having bilateral “frozen shoulder” and that’s what I began living with back in early spring of 2010.
Like many others with frozen shoulder, I initially thought I must have somehow injured my arms, back or shoulders so I began limiting use of those areas. When the pain grew increasingly sharp and went bilateral, I sought medical help.
Physical therapy, while it answered my questions and concerns and provided some needed instruction on exercises, didn’t really increase my function or decrease my pain. Evidently frozen shoulder goes through three stages: freezing, frozen and thawing. My shoulders were still in the “freezing” stage so relief could be several months ahead.
My therapist and my research on the Internet convinced me that, since there was no injury underlying the condition, it was important for me to maintain as much flexibility, use of the shoulders/upper arms and rotation as possible throughout the process. Unfortunately, with both shoulders affected, many of the standard exercises weren’t as helpful as they might have been.
Thank heavens for my discovery of The Rotater. In therapy, the trained therapist could manipulate my arm to keep/increase rotation but on my own I wasn’t able to do that very well at all. Therapy, at $80/session, was getting expensive yet I knew I needed to keep up the rotational manipulation so that when the “thawing” began I would still have retained as much shoulder/arm function as possible.
The Rotater allows me to work with the limited function of my shoulders to continue exercising my arms and shoulders. Even with both shoulders involved, the Rotater device permits easy stretching and holding to get a “good” rotation. While the device looks “simple,” this is not a “one trick pony” with one stretch only; you can use The Rotater you’re your own body to rehab your shoulder with internal and external rotation in several positions.
The online support was great and the many videos demonstrating use of The Rotater and invaluable. I’d also suggest folks (at least initially) do the exercises with The Rotater while standing in front of a mirror. After watching the videos it’s important, I think to get the “feedback” from watching yourself in the mirror; without that feedback it’s more difficult to tell if you’re keeping your body in the right position or holding on to good posture (not “lifting” or “shrugging” the shoulders).
I was concerned that The Rotater would require a “good” arm/shoulder to make the exercises work properly but the device works with your body at the stage it is in rehabilitation—and in my case, it wasn’t a very high functioning level initially.
While, almost 12 months later, I still have frozen shoulders, the process is now in the “thawing” stage and I am pleased to have not lost too much muscle tone or flexibility in the past year, despite the limitations of having two frozen shoulders. My range of motion continues to increase and I look forward to the day when I can reach for a soup can on the back kitchen shelf without thinking twice!
I credit my use of The Rotater for retaining my flexibility and muscle tone as I’m emerging from a year?long physical challenge. When I get back to my usual physical activities, I’ll keep using The Rotater, too—I’m not going to quit something that’s working so well!
T. D. – Paradise, California
Swimming Without Shoulder Pain
December 16, 2010
Andy Cassell contacted us because his Rotater broke…yeah, every once in a while, a Rotater will break. Andy wanted to purchase another Rotater to replace the one that had broken. We told Andy that his money was no good because we guarantee the Rotater forever and promptly sent him another one!
Shoulder mobility for swimmers
When we asked him why he was so adamant about getting another Rotater, he sent us this email.
Andy’s Testimonial
“I discovered the Rotater after experiencing shoulder pain, due to poor stroke technique while lap swimming at a local public pool. The Rotater immediately helped me stretch and strenghten my shoulders in a safe and controlled manner. Following the instructions provided with the product, I began to notice increased strength and mobility and confidence too. Within months, I went from pain, to no pain. I continued to use the product daily and gained additional strength and flexibility in the shoulder area. Recently, I swam in an ocean mile competitive swim - my first ever! The bad news is that after several months of continued use, the tubing broke, and then the Rotater broke into two pieces. To my surprise, Joint Mechanix shipped another one, without any cost to me. They explained that a more rigid and durable Rotater was in the works. Thanks to Joint Mechanix, I swim with no shoulder pain.”
Andy Cassell, age 47, swimmer
Boynton Beach, FL
p.s. **This endorsement is provided without any expectation of renumeration from Joint Mechanix, past, present, or future.
Editor of The Healthy Minute is thankful for the Rotater
July 20, 2010
“Who is Pete Genot?”
- the Founder and Editor of The Healthy Minute…a free on-line newsletter publishing the latest breakthroughs in the health industry
- Pete is a former college football player
- He has earned both Bachelors and Masters degrees from The University of Toledo
- He’s an avid a motorcycle rider
“Here are my thoughts…
Pete Genot - editor of The Healthy Minute
- I’m sure glad you included the video…I think I would have been lost if I just had to follow the diagrams on the instruction sheet.
- After a few days of watching the videos and following along with the exercises, I was able catch on. They were very easy to learn and can be done in less than 15 minutes per day.
- I have been using The Rotater along with the Strong-arm Attachment for the past 30 days, and I couldn’t be happier!
I injured my right shoulder over a year and a half ago in a bad motorcycle accident. I was traveling on the highway at 60 mph when some debris in the road caused my motorcycle to throw me over the handlebars. I flew thru the air head-over-heals, and the initial impact was on my right shoulder. This caused a severe separation of the shoulder, fractured ribs and various other bruises and abrasions. I tumbled approximately the length of a football field, passing thru the fast lane before finally landing in the center median.
My orthopedic surgeon decided against surgery, and instead recommended physical therapy. When I first started PT, I was in tremendous pain, and had very little range of motion and strength. After several months of therapy, I was able to regain about 90% of my range of motion, although I still suffered from pain and weakness. My doctor said this was something I would just have to live with the rest of my life.
So, after my insurance ran out, I continued to do my rehab at home and slowly regained much of my strength over the next year.
Although my shoulder was much stronger, there were exercises that I just could not do (like barbell bench press) because the pain was just too great. So, I limited myself to doing exercises using light enough weights and specific (limited) ranges of motion that did not cause pain.
The problem was, the more I worked out, the more range of motion I lost and the more pain I felt. Over a year after the accident, I was still feeling enough pain that is limited not only the things I enjoy doing (working out, playing basketball, playing baseball with my kids), but also “normal” activities like sleeping, putting on a shirt or combing my hair. I was resigned to the fact that I would just always be in pain and would have to live with certain physical limitations.
But that all changed when I started using The Rotater.
After doing the stretching exercises the very first day, I noticed that my shoulder really felt better. I was shocked. You see, I was pretty skeptical that this “contraption” would really be able to help me. I already exercised and did some “basic” shoulder stretches the PT taught me, so I didn’t think this funny looking piece of plastic could do any better.
Boy…I’m sure glad I was wrong!
I didn’t realize that the muscles, ligaments and tendons The Rotater helps were so different than the ones I use to do a dumbell press or lateral raise. Those exercises actually hurt, while the one I do with The Rotater give me RELIEF.
I currently use The Rotater to stretch my shoulder about 5 days per week, and I use the Strong-arm Attachment to do strengthening exercises 2 – 3 times per week.
Since I started following this program, I have improved the strength and stability of the shoulder, increased my range of motion to nearly 100% of what it was before the accident and… more importantly…have greatly reduced the amount of pain I feel in and around the shoulder.
This has allowed me to do the things I enjoy again…like shooting a basketball, throwing a baseball to my son, or lifting my 2-year old daughter in the air…without as much pain.
I owe you much thanks!”
Sincerely,
Pete Genot
http://thehealthyminute.com/
You can learn all about Pete on his Facebook page or by following him on Twitter.
Disclosure: Pete was provided with a Rotater at no charge. His testimonial was voluntary and not required.
World Class Athletic Performance Coach Impressed with the Rotater
July 13, 2010
A few months ago we sent a Rotater to Doug Fioranelli for testing and evaluation. Doug is one of the premier personal trainers in the world and has trained high school, Olympic and professional athletes. Check out Doug’s testimonials! Here are some of Doug’s qualifications:
- Doug has Master’s degree in Kinesiology
Doug Fioranelli - World Class Performance Trainer
- he has been published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research
- Doug is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS)
- he is a Certified Olympic Weightlifting Club Coach through the USA Weightlifting Association (USAW)
- he is a Certified Russian Kettlebell Instructor under Pavel Tsatsouline (RKC Level II)
- Doug is a Certified Sports Nutritionist from the International Society of Sports Nutrition (CISSN)
Doug Fioranelli gives his opinion of the Rotater
“I had the opportunity to use The Rotater for several months now and I have to say this is an amazing product. It is very simple to use and easy to understand. Pretty much get it out of the box and you are ready to go.
I think it is very important for people to realize that joints do not move in the exact same pattern even when essentially performing the same motion. It is a huge advantage to expose, strengthen, and mobilize the shoulder joint and its muscles in as many movement patterns as possible to ensure their optimal strength, stability and performance. The Rotater allows for unlimited angles to stretch, mobilize and strengthening the joint and muscles around the shoulder to maintain its movement and integrity.
I found The Rotater to be a great tool and have even loaned mine out to friends who were having shoulder inhibition and pain. I highly recommend that you add this fantastic tool to your arsenal and keep your shoulder joints mobile, strong and healthy for life.
Pros:
- Simple to use and easy to understand. Pretty much get it out of the box and you are ready to go, I like that.
- The unlimited angles for stretching and strengthening. I think it is very important for people to realize that generally joints do not move in the same pattern even when essentially performing the same motion. It is a huge advantage to expose, strengthen, and mobilize the joint and muscles in as many movement patterns as possible to ensure their optimal strength, stability and performance
- I like how easy it is to stretch and strengthen the muscles of the shoulder when the arm is placed behind the back. It is VERY difficult to do this without The Rotater. I was surprised to see how limited my right side was until I used it and I was able to gain some ROM using it.
CONS: (I am being very very nit picky, I think it is a great product)
- Plastic frame could be a little stronger. I did not break mine but I did almost step on it getting out of bed and could have cracked it. I also felt it “flex” sometimes when I do certain movements. Maybe just a little harder plastic would be good for future frames.
- I think the elastic strengthening band could be a little easier to adjust when switching angles and tension. I think instead of closed loops on the frame and untying it each time, maybe an open “bulb-shaped” slot could work where the elastic could just drop down and secure itself in there
- My DVD sound only worked on the main menu page, not sure if it was just mine or a few of them.”
Doug Fioranelli
Rise Above Performance Training
If you like Twitter, then be sure to follow Doug – @RiseAboveStr…you can check out his Facebook Page or see all his videos on YouTube.
Notes: The Rotater is guaranteed against breakage and will be replaced at no charge if you ever break or damage yours – NO MATTER HOW THE DAMAGE OCCURS!
Disclosure: Doug was provided with a Rotater at no charge. His testimonial was voluntary and not required.
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