Exercises can/can't do for shoulder impingement?

I'm 24 years old 6' 222 and suffer from shoulder impingement syndrome that I really agrevated when I was boxing.

My question is now that I am done boxing (stopped a year ago) and am back weight training I have done some research and have read that you should eliminate and alter some exercises in your routine to reduce the pain in your shoulder/rotator cuff. Here are some and please correct them if they are wrong:

1. Don't do flat dumbell press. Instead do incline or decline dumbell press.
2. No behind the neck lat pull downs. Instead do lat pull downs to the front .
3. No behind the neck shoulder presses and no shoulder presses where your arms are at your side. Instead do Arnold presses for your shoulder presses.

My specialist also said to do rotator cuff exercises(front and back) 3 times a week with light weight and he also said that building up my rear deltoid, superspinatus, and my brachialis would help strengthen the muscles around my rotator cuff and thus would stop inflamation and pain.

He also said to stretch before, during, and after my workout. And also said to heat my shoulder for 20 minutes before I workout and ice my shoulder for 20 minutes after I workout. I was also told by him that when in pain take 1 800 mg motrin 3 times a day with food.

Is this a good plan of attack to workout while staying healthy?

id say stick to his plan and see if you start to feel better... shoulder injuries are tough to get through.. i had a minor rotator cuff issue and its ok, just once in a while it gets sore from a good workout.. and im not sure about the flat dumbell presses but i know anything behind the neck excercise can be trouble...

Welcome to the club ;)

It was a hell of a bitch at the beginning but I sorta got used to doing only those things the body can handle and my workouts have since become really intense.

Over and above what you were recommended which are good, I find the following:
- Arnold presses actually aggrevate my impingement. I do shoulder press with dumbbells, with two limitations: when I come down it is only till the arm is perpendicular to my body (forms a right angle); and when I go up I go up straight, and do not bring the dumbbells together
- Contrary to what so many said, doing wide grip front shoulder press with a smith machine works my shoulders very well and doesn't cause a problem
- Chest I also hardly do flat bench. I find incline dumbells can aggrevate the problem but incline barbell is fine. Decline either is great. Also flyes with a light weight work very well. Stay away from dips like the devil!! ;)
- I don't do bicep exercises with too wide or too narrow a grip. This puts major pressure on the bicep tendon which is linked to the same joint as the shoulder where the impingement is. I try to keep it as shoulder-width as possible and use a EZ-bar or hammer-grip bar to change the angle of attack
- No tricep exercises involving over the head movements such as behind the head tricep extension.

I just responded to your lifting question too, but here I agree you have good advice escpecially possibly using the smith machine and stay away from behind the neck exercises. Realize too if there is any scar tissue the nerves may always be agitated give you some minor discomfort.