Playing catch with your kid. Putting away groceries. Painting your room. Sometimes even just typing on your computer. These are everyday activities that show just how much you need your shoulders. The shoulders are the body’s most mobile joint. There is a lot at stake if something goes wrong with your shoulders. But when we do our usual workout, we often overlook the care we need to give these joints. Sometimes, the only time we start paying attention is a little late in the game: when we start to feel a little bit of pain.
There are a variety of reasons that you may experience shoulder pain. Some of these include:
- Poor posture
- Decreased flexibility around the shoulder
- Weakness in the rotator cuff muscles
Many of the previously stated reasons develop from prolonged positions or bad habits that we have developed over a long period of time. You do not develop poor posture overnight. Poor posture and tightness of structures around the shoulder are usually not a problem until we go and try some type of new activity or exercise. This is because we do not have the proper range of motion required to perform these exercises. There is something we can still do to alleviate the problem.
Today, we are going to go over a few stretches to improve your shoulder flexibility and decrease your risk for injury. These stretches are simple enough to squeeze into your day so that you can begin to restore your shoulder’s range of motion.
Is it a posture problem?
If you feel shoulder pain while you are in a slouched position, this is likely due to tightness of the pectoral muscles. One way to stretch this is to perform a pectoral stretch. Stretching the chest muscles can help to open the chest and improve your posture.
1. Pectoral Stretch
- a. Roll up a towel and place it on a hard surface.
- b. Lay down with the towel down the middle of your back
- c. Have your arms out to your side.
- d. Hold this position for 3-5 minutes.
Check out how to do it in this video:
Feeling some shoulder tightness?
Do your shoulders feel stiff? Tight shoulders usually come due to stress, tension, overuse, and incorrect positions and postures. Here are a couple of stretches you can do before a workout to relieve your shoulder.
2. Shoulder Flexion Stretch
- a. Put a chair or object with a flat surface about thigh high in front of you.
- b. While on your knees, bend your elbows, put them on a chair in front of you and lean forward.
- c. Gently try to separate your hands until you feel a stretch.
3. Internal Rotation Towel Stretch
- a. Stretch your arm behind your back and hold a towel with your other hand.
- b. Grab the towel above your head and pull it until you feel a gentle stretch.
- c. Hold this position for 30 seconds and repeat it 3 times.
4. External Rotation Towel Stretch
- a. Stretch your arm above your head and hold onto the towel
- b. Grab the other end of the towel with your other hand behind your back.
- c. Pull the towel until you feel a gentle stretch behind your head.
- d. Hold this position for 30 seconds and repeat it 3 times.
Most people will get good relief by taking these simple steps. We must consider doing these stretches even BEFORE we start to feel pain. We need to protect our these important joints so that we can continue to play catch with our kid, put away groceries, paint our room, type on our computers, or do just about anything! Our shoulders are that important!
We hope these scratches help. If your symptoms don’t improve, please see us for pain relief!
