How to tape a shoulder

This, along with the fact they can be injured in various ways, means we use a lot of different taping methods depending on the injury and the sport the athlete is playing. If you do injure your shoulder, get professional advice from an expert as to how best to tape your shoulder for your return.

I thought today I would run you through the most common shoulder taping I apply before local sporting games, which is a taping technique for ‘anterior instability’. We typically use this taping method for players who have previously dislocated or subluxed their shoulder.

Even after they recover and rehab their shoulder, it still might feel vulnerable in positions where they reach their arm above their head (such as competing for a mark) or wrenched backwards (such as when an opponent breaks through an attempted tackle). For this method we use fixomull or rigid tape for the anchors and 75mm elastic adhesive bandage for the rest.

Step one: the athlete places an arm on their hip. Apply two or three anchor strips up and over the top of the shoulder from front to back as shown in the picture.

Step two: with the stretchier elastic adhesive bandage tape, start at the anchor at the front of the shoulder. Apply the tape with moderate tension horizontally over the front of the shoulder and continue to the mid portion of the upper arm bone, where you do one-and-a-half loops around the arm (get the athlete to flex their biceps when you do the loop). When the roll appears from under the arm for the second time, you then tape back up the arm, over the back of the shoulder, to finish on the back aspect of your anchor tape.

Step three: reapply the anchor tape. I suggest another two or three strips to cover all the loose ends and rub firmly to hold it down.

Get feedback from the athlete as to whether the tightness is right or not. Generally they should be able to easily raise the arm above their head, but feel tension/restriction/support when they get there. It might take a few goes to get the tightness right, but with practice it gets a lot easier.

• Please note, some people may have an allergic reaction to tape. Always follow the manufacturer’s instructions, take it off after one to two hours the first time you use it and discontinue use if you notice signs of skin irritation.