CategoriesUncategorized

Exercises You Should Be Doing: Barbell Overhead Shrug

One of the main bullet points I hit on last weekend while in London was that many of the same movement distortions and predictable postural imbalances we see in overhead athletes manifest themselves in the general fitness population as well.

Specially, when we take someone with a extensive history of lifting heavy things – a meathead if you will – it’s not altogether uncommon to see a gross extension pattern or excessive anterior pelvic tilt with their posture (you can fit a fist inside the T-L junction) along with a depressed shoulder girdle.

Note:  I place an emphasis on noting I italicized the word “excessive” because there is an acceptable amount of anterior pelvic tilt (natural lordotic curve) in the lumbar spine.

Let all of the above marinate for a while and it’s a recipe for poor ability to upwardly rotate the scapulae.

For an overhead athlete this is crucial.  It’s important to have ample upward rotation so as to prevent wear and tear on the shoulder joint itself (namely: SLAP tears).

And even if your job doesn’t involve throwing a baseball 95 MPH and all you’re concerned with is how “abby” you look, it’s still important to have sufficient scapular upward rotation for general shoulder health.

And let me tell you something, chicks loooooooooooooove them some upward rotation. They go nuts for it.

Okay, not really.

I wrote in much more detail what scapular downward rotation syndrome is, as well as how to go about “correcting” a depressed shoulder HERE.

Hint: it doesn’t include Prozac. We’re not referring to that kind of depression mmm kay.

Give that article a read because I feel it will help elucidate in more detail all of the above, including some of the more introductory drills we utilize at Cressey Sports Performance to address the issue(s).

Today, however, I wanted to cover a more advance drill.

Barbell Overhead Shrug

It’s always funny whenever I mention during an assessment that someone lacks upward rotation and that we need to work on some upper trap recruitment and/or development.

They assume I’m going to program a healthy dose of barbell shrugs into the mix and that they’ll finally, finally be able to put their Bane mask to good use.

Not so fast you Tom Hardy wannabe.

Performing traditional barbell shrugs – where you hold the barbell at waist height and then “shrug” the barbell up with your upper traps – only feeds into the dysfunction (and may very well make things worse!).

What the what!?!??!!

How is that possible?

Well, think about it.  When you shrug the barbell with your upper traps – and you do so with a heavy load – what does the barbell do on the way back down?  It pulls you back into more shoulder depression.

Not to mention the scapulae aren’t moving to any high degree and there’s no upward rotation entering the picture.

The barbell overhead shrug IS NOT my first choice to address upward rotation. I much prefer to start with drills like forearm wall slides, bottoms-up KB carries, TRX Ys, or a whole litany of other drills which target the upper traps (< — all of which can be viewed in the article linked to above).

However, assuming one has been incorporating those drills for a tick, has decent anterior core stiffness, and is able to get their arms above their head without any major compensations (forward head posture, hyperextension of the lumbar spine), I really like the barbell overhead shrug.

Here we’re able to place the scapulae in a more upwardly rotated position and then we can perform the same “shrug” pattern in a way that will target the upper traps in a more functional manner.

In this case: helping to address lack of upward rotation. Regular barbell shrugs are fine, and will undoubtedly help build some traps. But if someone is in significant downward rotation/shoulder depression, overhead shrugs will more often than not be a better fit.

Key Coaching Cues:  You’ll want to take a wider-than-you-think grip on these, and at the same time, while you do want to sort of “set” the shoulder blades you want to be careful not to yank down too aggressively and allow the lats to turn (and pull you into extension & depression).

Squeeze your glutes, brace your abs, and don’t allow the rib cage to flare out.  From there simply “shrug” the barbell and hold for a 1-2s count at the top. Then CONTROL it back down to the starting position.

If you find that you’re slipping into lumbar extension and you feel it too much in your back, try reverting to a staggered stance and see if that helps.

Shoot for 8-12 reps.

I like to include this drill as part of an extended warm-up or as part of a “prehab” finisher towards the end of a training session.

Give it a try and let me know what you think!

 

CategoriesExercises You Should Be Doing

Exercises You Should Be Doing: Band Horizontal Abduction with Press

What’s up everyone!?  I enjoyed a nice, relaxing, extended Labor Day weekend, hence the reason why I didn’t post anything yesterday.

Did you miss me?  I didn’t think so….;o)

But in case you’re wondering, I was able to catch up on some reading over the past few days and in addition, did what every other guy who’s in a relationship was inevitably dragged into doing yesterday………

……following his girlfriend around as she attacked every Labor Day sale within a ten mile radius.

The Container Store, Macy’s, Limited, Sephora, and I don’t remember  what else. I blacked out after a point.

As you can see Lisa was in seventh heaven.

I, on the other hand, was a beacon of palpable enthusiasm.

Enthusiasm to want to throw an ax into my face.

Looking at the picture now, and noticing the gentleman to my right, I can’t help but think of that bench as a some sort of shopping island purgatory for boyfriends/spouses. Hahahaha.

It wasn’t all that bad, though.  I planned a head and brought some reading material to help keep me occupied – the Kama Sutra Starting Strength 3rd Edition.

I’ve read the previous two editions of the book and have to say that this third edition is the bomb diggidy and blows the other two out of the water.

The original(s) were already towards the top of my list of books I routinely recommend to fitness professionals, but this third edition is absurdly good and has now taken the #1 spot.

In any case, shopping nightmares and book recommendations aside I wanted to share a quick video with all of you on one of my new favorite exercises.

Band Horizontal Abduction with Press

Who Did I Steal It From: I first read about (and saw) this exercise over on Mike Reinold’s site when former Cressey Sports Performance intern and now Sayco Performance owner and renowned swimming strength coach, Tad Sayce, wrote about it.

When I first saw it all I could think to myself was 1) this is brilliant and 2) why the hell didn’t I think of that!?!?!

What Does it Do: First and foremost it should be noted that it’s important to get comfortable with and master each component alone before combining the two.

With the obvious out of the way, what I like about this exercise is that it helps reinforce many of the things we try to ingrain with our overhead athletes – as well as those with chronic shoulder issues – which is, proper scapular movement, scapular stability (in both retraction and posterior tilt), and as Tad notes, “the ability to maintain position in the presence of increasing tension.”

And it’s with that last point why I feel this is such a rad exercise. The “press” component adds an anti-rotation component that’s unique to any other exercise of its kind.

Key Coaching Cues: It (should) go without saying, but I have to say it nonetheless.  This IS NOT a max effort exercise you big meathead!  So lets save the super bands for things that actually warrant their use.

I’m more concerned with the QUALITY of this movement, and it’s important to keep this as the running theme while performing it.

Brace the abs and be sure you’re not cranking through your lower back as you perform the abduction component. If you do, the resistance of the band is too much.  The movement should be initiated by retracting the shoulder blade and then abducting the arm until it’s in the “T” position. Another thing to note is to make sure you don’t go too far to the point where the humeral head translates anteriorly.

Once the arm is in the “T” position, gently press with the opposite arm until it’s fully extended out in front of the body.  Pause for a 3-5s count and repeat.

I like to use sets of 5 here.  5 reps of 3-5s holds.

Give it a try and let me know what you think!

CategoriesExercise Technique Strength Training

5 Ways to Make Bench Pressing More Shoulder Friendly

The bench press. There’s no mistaking it’s popularity.  Walk into most gyms and you’re bound to see an inverse relationship between the number of bench press stations available and squat racks. Likewise, it’s no coincidence that there’s a lot barrel chested guys walking around with chicken legs than vice versa.

I get it, though. As dudes (and yes, women can enter the conversation too, but they’re not nearly as enamored) it’s almost engrained in our DNA out of the womb to bench press.

Ask any guy what he did the first time he stepped foot in a gym and nine times out of ten he’s gonna say “come on man, I benched.”

No exercise is as glamorized nor put on pedestal as the bench press.  Moreover, no exercise eats up one’s shoulders like the bench press.

That said, the bench press isn’t going away anytime soon (not that it should, it’s a fantastic exercise), but below are a few suggestions on how tweak it so that your shoulders are less likely to hate you.

1.  Uh, Stop Benching (Just for a Little While)

Whenever I start working with someone and they start to describe how much their shoulder hurts one of the first questions I’ll ask is what their benching frequency is like.

More often than not, to put it lightly, it’s a lot.

And while I realize it’s borderline asinine for me to say (because it seems so obvious), I’m going to say it anyways:  stop benching.

If bench pressing hurts your shoulder, stop doing it Sherlock!

But since most guys will react by pounding their feet to ground and screaming, “no, no, no, NO!” and then act as if I just ruined their world and said “you’re not leaving this table until you finish your veggies Mister!” I’ll usually lighten the blow by telling them that I only want them to lay low for a week or two, just to see if their symptoms subside.

In the interim I’ll suggest they ramp up their horizontal rowing frequency to the tune of 2:1 or 3:1 (pull:push) ratio and start adding in more push-up variations (which will usually end up being more of a challenge than they think).

Guys often scoff at push-ups, but you’d be surprised as to how many can’t perform them correctly, let alone be able to do ten straight.

I LOVE push-ups in that they’re a closed chain exercise (bench pressing is open chain) which allow for a little more wiggle room for the scapulae to actually move.  Conversely, with the bench press, the shoulder blades are glued to the bench itself which can be problematic down the road.

Sure, setting the scapulae in place for stability and transference of force is paramount, but considering the long-term ramifications that can have on shoulder health, it “may” not be ideal for some.

In any case, it’s amazing how much better most shoulders will feel after a couple of weeks of laying off the bench press and addressing muscular imbalances by including more rowing into the mix.

Speaking truthfully, outside of the powerlifting realm I’d be perfectly content with nixing benching altogether for most guys and just opting for push-up variations and dumbbell work.  But since pigs will fly before that happens, and guys are going to want to bench press no matter what, here are some more options.

2.  Change Your Hand Position

Utilizing more of a narrow or close grip variation will undoubtedly be more “shoulder friendly” in the long run.  When we bench with a wider grip it’s a lot easier for the elbows to flare out, which in turn makes the shoulder more vulnerable, unstable, and want to flip us the bird.

Don’t go too narrow however.  The one caveat with using a super narrow grip is that we’ll tend to “crowd” ourselves once the bar reaches chest height and the scapulae will dip into anterior tilt and cause more anterior humeral glide (which again, will lead to more instability, not to mention a pissed off bicep tendon).

My general rule of thumb for close grip is roughly shoulder width apart, maybe a teeny tiny bit less depending on the person.  For a frame of reference, here’s a picture I snaked off of Mike Robertson’s site:

3.  Get a Hand-Off For the Love of God

If you ask any powerlifter or strength coach how important the initial set-up is for the bench press, they’ll inevitably say it’s VERY important.

I don’t want to get into the specifics here – you can easily go read anything Dave Tate has written on the topic – but suffice it to say it’s crucial to set a stable base of support when benching.  And that’s going to entail setting your shoulder blades together AND DOWN!!!

A lot of guys will set up properly only to lose everything once they go to un-rack the bar.  In order to un-rack the bar they’ll have to protract and abduct the shoulders which kind of defeats the purpose of going through the trouble to set up.

For whatever reason some guys are stubborn when it comes to getting or asking for a hand-off, as if it’s some kind of hit on their manhood.

You’re asking for a hand-off, not for a pedicure.  Not that there’s anything wrong with getting a pedicure from time to time. They’re actually quite lovely sometimes.  Er, I mean, that’s what I’ve heard at least.

*runs off in the other direction*

Anyhoo, I actually dedicated an entire blog not too long ago on the importance of getting a proper hand-off and the benefits of doing so, so I won’t belabor the point here.

For those too lazy to click on the link, here’s the video component for your viewing pleasure.

4.  Board Presses

We actually have a checklist of progressions that we like our clients and athletes to go through before they actually touch a standard bench press.  It starts all the way down with push-up isometric holds (pain free ROM) all the way up to the end game of bench pressing like a boss.

Somewhere in the middle are board presses.

Board presses are beneficial for a variety of reasons

1. For the sake of this conversation they’re fantastic because they allow us to limit the ROM so that benching it’s pain free. But we’re still benching, so psychologically it’s a huge win for most guys.

We can start with a 4-5 board press and work our way down three, two, and then one…..so it’s a nice sliding scale of progressions.

2.  A bit off topic, board presses are also a fantastic way to teach the body to hold more weight.  Because of the reduced ROM, we’re able to load the bar heavier and you can program your CNS to “feel” what it’s like to hold a heavier load.

3.  Plus, board presses are an awesome exercise to hammer the triceps.

5. Decline Bench Press

Eric Cressey noted this point yesterday during a staff in-service and is something he’s goes into much more detail on in his Elite Training Mentorship series.

When we’re referencing true “impingement” syndrome with most guys, many will light up when they reach roughly 80-90 degrees of shoulder flexion.

With the decline bench, it’s not uncommon to see 10-15 degrees less shoulder flexion and subsequently guys tend to stay outside of that “danger” zone.  So, this is yet another way to make benching a bit more shoulder friendly, and serves as a nice progression leading up to regular bench pressing down the road.

CategoriesCorrective Exercise Exercise Technique Program Design

So Your Shoulder Hurts……

I’d say that at least once a week I open up my email and start reading something that sounds like this, “Hi Tony, this is (enter name of Victoria Secret model here). I was checking out your website and……..”

Just kidding – that’ll never happen.  But fingers crossed that it does someday.

Back in reality what typically happens is a receive an email that starts, “Hey man, so, uh, I have this shoulder thingie going on…………………”

And almost immediately the Darth Vader theme music starts echoing in my head.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m always honored when someone goes out of their way to reach out to me and ask for advice.  And, I’m always more than happy to respond.  It’s just sometimes I feel like I’m a broken record repeating myself over and over and over again.

Now shoulder injuries can be tricky, as no two shoulders are the same.  There’s a lot of “stuff” happening, which shouldn’t come as surprise given the shoulder actually consists of four joints (glenohumeral, scapulothoracic, acromioclavicular, sternoclavicular), as well as consists of 17 muscular attachments alone. This piece slides into that piece. This part rotates. BAM – it’s like it’s own little Transformer!

On top of all that, because the shoulder is such an intricate joint it lends itself open to injury fairly easily.  We have AC joint separations, labrum tears, SLAP tears, external (primary and secondary) and internal impingement, and a whole host of other words that end in ‘itis or “WTF my shoulder hurts!”

All that said, however, I’d say that 90% of the time when someone reaches out to me (or Eric for that matter) asking why their shoulder is flipping them the bird,  it usually comes down to a handful of common denominators. While the following shouldn’t be taken as the end all-be all list, I feel it does cover most people’s bases.

Lets get to it!

1. Programming Balance?

There’s a popular theme that a lot of coaches and trainers like to live and die by called programming balance.  Meaning, any well structured program should have a balanced approached between movement patterns.  Specific to the conversation at hand, with regards to upper body training, it’s often recognized that for every pushing exercise one performs (bench press), he or she should also perform one pulling exercise (seated row, etc).

This actually isn’t a bad advice.  The thing is:  We all know that Mondays are reserved for bench pressing.  So are Wednesdays, Fridays, and every other day that’s a prime number.

Basically, guys like to bench press.

As a result many develop muscular imbalances – short/stiff pecs, weak/inhibited upper back – which leads to protracted and internally rotated shoulders.

If we’re lucky, we may see a set or two of rows in there for good measure, but it’s safe to assume that for many, their pressing to pulling ration is skewed.

Program balance isn’t going to work for these people.  Using a 1:1 ratio ain’t gonna cut it.  In this sense we need to use an UNBALANCED APPROACH.

Which is why I’m not adverse to recommending that most people revert to a 2:1 or even 3:1 (pull:push) ratio to help offset their gross muscular imbalance and help their shoulder feel better.

To that end I typically let these guys know that their world won’t end if they don’t bench press for a few weeks, and that it would be in their best interests to implement more horizontal rowing into the mix.

2.  And Don’t Forget Push-Ups!

I’d say that 95% of the time any shoulder issue comes dow to it being a scapular issue.  One of the main reasons why I’d prefer guys nix the bench pressing for the time being is because it’s an open chained movement.

Speaking english, what this means is that the hands are able to move freely, but the scapulae are pinned against a bench.  Like, they can’t move.  At all. They’re “glued” in place, which doesn’t bode well for shoulder health.

Moreover, holding a barbell locks us into a pronated grip which leads to more internal rotation of the humerus, which closes off the subacromial space

On an aside: using DBs with a neutral (palms face one another) grip would be a more shoulder friendly option, as we can encourage a bit more external rotation and open up the subacromial space a bit more.

Push-ups on the other hand are a CLOSED-CHAIN exercise, where the hands don’t move and the scapulae have a bit more breathing room. This is a HUGE advantage, and something I feel many trainees dismiss because they deem push-ups too wimpy.

Of course push-up technique is going to enter the conversation as a huge reason why a lot of people’s shoulders hurt is because they have no idea how to perform one correctly.

For a primer I’d encourage everyone to check out THIS post.

3. Scaps, Scaps, and more Scaps

As I noted above, much of the time when someone’s shoulder hurts it can pinpointed to the scapulae.  The most cliched – albeit easiest – explanation to use here would be the shooting a cannon from a canoe analogy.

When everything is hunky-dory, the scapulae are hugged tight against our rib cage and our force couples are “balanced” and everything is in ideal alignment to allow things to run smoothly.  In other words our downward rotators (levator, rhomboids, pecs, and lats) and upward rotators (upper and lower traps, serratus anterior) are doing their jobs and everyone is happy.

Unfortunately, due to societal demands, lack of physical activity, and global warming (we can blame everything on that, right), most tend to be woefully weak in their upward rotators (especially lower traps and SA) and dominant in their downward rotators – leaving the scapulae abducted and anteriorly tilted.

Or……UNSTABLE!

Placing a premium on drills that target the lower traps and serratus anterior while stretching or addressing tissue quality  on the levator, pecs, and lats will go a long ways in helping the shoulder feel a ton better.

1-Arm Prone Trap Raise

Forearm Wall Slide w/ Lift Off

Shoulder W’s

Hand Switches w/ Push-Up

Actually Doing Your Rows Correctly

Pec Release w/ Ball

4.  Learning to Breath Correctly

While I’ve always felt this was important, I generally steered clear of it because I felt there were more pressing (HA!  Pun intended) issues that people should work on – technique, program modifications, soft tissue quality, etc.

But when we consider that everyone takes roughly 20,000 breaths per day, incorrectly, firing our accessory breathing muscles (upper traps, scalenes, levator) and completely neglecting the diaphragm – it’s no wonder we have an epidemic of pissed off shoulders!

I won’t go into too much detail here, other than to say to check out THIS post on breathing patterns I wrote last year as well as check out Mike Robertson’s much more detailed post HERE.

5.  Watch Predator

This really has nothing to do with shoulders, but it’s a crime if you haven’t watched this movie.  I’m pretty sure watching the Predator Handshake on repeat increases T-levels by 286% instantly.  Subsequently your shoulder will feel better!

6.  Hammer T-Spine Mobility

I don’t think I need to belabor this point.  If you’re rocking a Neanderthal posture, chances are your shoulder hates you.  This ties in hand-in-hand with the section on scapular stability above.  When we’re stuck in a overly rounded/kyphotic posture, the scapulae are going to be abducted and anteriorly tilted.  Tossing in some daily t-spine mobility drills will work wonders on how your shoulder feels.

Some of my favorites include:

Quadruped Extension-Rotation

Side Lying Windmill

Yoga Push-Up Complex

Also, because I’m sick of typing now, I’d HIGHLY encourage you to check our Dean Somerset’s 3-part series on All Things Thoracic Spine HERE.

That’s That

And that’s that.  Seriously, stop benching.

CategoriesExercise Technique Strength Training

The Truth About Overhead Pressing

With all the overhead pressing articles being posted up on T-Nation as of late I figured I’d join in on the fun and I invited myself to the party.

Overhead pressing isn’t for everyone.

To be fair, I’m not adamantly against ALL overhead pressing.  As a strength coach I’d be remiss not to recognize that overhead pressing is a staple with regards to well-balanced programming, not to mention it’s kind of important from a shoulder health and building delts the size of boulders standpoint.

That said, I truly feel most trainees need to earn the right to overhead press.

As sad as it is, most people have the movement quality of a pregnant turtle or the Tin Man on a good day.  As such, walking up to a barbell and haphazardly hoisting it above our heads might not be the best decision.

In the article I link to below I discuss some simple screens to help people ascertain whether overhead pressing in the right fit for them, as well as dive into one of my go to “shoulder friendly” pressing variations.  Give it a look and let me know what you think!

===> The Truth About Overhead Pressing <====

CategoriesUncategorized

Exercises You Should Be Doing: Half Kneeling Band Overhead Shrug

Sometimes as coaches and trainers we need to take a step back and really think about why we do things. Why do we prescribe “x” exercise? What purpose does it serve?  How will it help any given client become bigger, faster, stronger, or more sexifed?  Not only that, why for “x” number of sets and reps?  Why does it matter if it’s done as the first movement of the day rather than the third?  Is there a specific tempo involved?  What type of rest periods are we talking about? Are there any other intricate things to consider like foot stance, hand placement or grip variation?

I mean, these are all important questions, and the list could easily go on and on.

Shirt optional, right?

More to the point, as a coach or trainer, you should be able to explain, definitively, the rationale as to why you programmed what you programmed. What purpose does it serve?

In a like manner, you should also be objective about your programming and not be afraid to admit when you’re wrong or that you possibly overlooked something.

Unfortunately, we all like to think we’re perfect and infallible, but we’re not.  We all like to think we’re open minded and adaptable, but really, many of us our set in our ways.

ESPECIALLY, as coaches.

Take for example today’s exercise you should be doing.  If you happened to have a few ounces of plutonium on hand (and a Flux Capacitor), and decided for shits and giggles to go back in time two years to ask me whether or not I’d include any direct upper trap work into my programs, you’d more than likely find me laughing in your face.

Given most people are walking around with FUBAR’d shoulders as it is, and that recent research has shown that upper trapezius dominance plays a significant role in subacromial impingement, it makes sense.  It’s dumb.

The last thing you want to do with a muscle that’s already jacked up or overactive is to target it even more. This is almost always the case when you’re dealing with someone who spends the majority of their time sitting in front of a computer all day and then heads to the gym, grabs a barbell, and shrugs their face off.

In this instance, they’ll undoubtedly play into the dysfunction (upper cross syndrome, among others), and probably have a pissed off shoulder to boot.

Buuuuuuuut…………..

There are cases where some direct upper trap work is warranted.

See what I just did there?  I blew your mind.

With regards to shoulder function we all know that of “stuff” goes down in that area.

The shoulder complex can partake in:  flexion/extension, internal/external rotation, abduction/adduction, horizontal abduction/adduction, elevation/depression, and of course, (scapular) upward/downward rotation.

The latter (upward/downward rotation) is what will be highlighted here.

Sadly, due to any number of factors – namely, the ungodly number of hours people spend sitting playing Angry Birds, poor programming choices, flawed technique, etc – we don’t move very well as a society. Further still, we just get in our own way and end up hurting ourselves.

Using an easy example:  I remember watching Eric assess an older client once who came to the facility with a litany of shoulder issue.  To put it bluntly, the guy couldn’t even extend his arms straight over his head.  Yet, the very first question right out of the gate was, “so, when do you think I’ll be able to add snatches and shrugs into my program?”

See what I mean?  We get in our own way.

However, given we train a fair share of baseball players at Cressey Performance, and it’s kind of a big deal that they have the ability to throw a baseball (which entails going over the head) without compromising the shoulder, doing some upper trap work may indeed be a crucial component to overall shoulder performance and health.

Up until recently, we’ve done little (if any) upper trap work.  Again, as noted above, it’s readily apparent that the upper traps are overly dominant in most individuals (compared to the lower traps and serratus anterior), and haphazardly throwing in exercises like shrugs may only make the issue worse.

That said, we can’t neglect the fact that the upper traps DO play a role in scapular upward rotation, and that optimizing their function is worth some of our time.

Here’s what we noticed, which has been a paradigm shift for us – especially as it relates to our baseball guys (and even some of our general population clients):  we are constantly (like, all the time) telling athletes and clients to retract and depress their scapulae.  Normally this isn’t a bad thing, as it targets the lower traps more and will help offset upper trap dominance.  But sometimes, it can be to the detriment of the shoulder.

Take the following exercises and how we typically like to cue them:

Seated rows:  pull the shoulder blades together and down.

Chin-Ups:  keep the shoulder blades in your back pocket (depressed).

Deadlifts:  shoulder blades “locked” and set (and subsequently the upper traps are on stretch)

Farmer Carries:  don’t shrug, set the shoulders (again, upper traps are on stretch).

Those are just a few examples, but hopefully you get the idea. And just so we’re clear:  I am in no way saying that these are bad cues to use.  Just that, sometimes, we need to be objective.   Anyhoo……..

Soon you may notice a downwardly rotated scapula due to a lengthened upper trapezius.  In this scenario, the excessive length makes the upper trap weak and a less than effective upward rotator of the scapula.  And, I don’t think I need to reiterate that less than optimal upward rotation is a going to be a massive monkey wrench when it comes to shoulder health and performance.

Take me for example.  Other than that being the coolest t-shirt ever, what else do you notice about the picture to the right?

See those sloped shoulders? Definitely not ideal, and sets the shoulder girdle a little too low for optimal function.  Now, thankfully, my baseball career is long over, and I don’t suffer from any long-term shoulder issues.  But needless to say, some dedicated upper trap work would be in high order for someone like me.

Likewise, this is exactly the type of shoulder symmetry (or, more appropriately, asymmetry) we’re more cognizant of at the facility when dealing with overhead athletes.

The key, though, is to step away from the stupid and not hightail it for the barbell shrugs.  As both Mike Robertson and Bill Hartman have noted on numerous occasions:

A shrug with the arms at the sides will certainly activate the upper trapezius, however it also strongly recruits the levator scapulae and the rhomboids, the downward scapular rotators. This feeds the imbalance causing the downward scapular rotation dominance.

The key, then, is to perform a movement where the scapulae is already in an upwardly rotated position which places a larger activation of the upper traps, which in turn will help offset the pull of the downward rotators (rhomboids and levator).

Half Kneeling Band Overhead Shrugs

This was a video I took while I was down in Florida last week at the commercial gym I was training at (so you may see some exercises you SHOULDN’T be doing in the background).  In it, you’ll see how I use a regular ol’ exercise band and place it underneath my knee.

From there, with my arm fully extended, I shrug and hold for a 1-2 second count.  I reset my scapulae and repeat for the desired number of repetitions.  Ideally, I’d shoot for anywhere from 8-12 reps per side.

Key Coaching Cues: Squeeze the glute of the kneeling leg to gain more of an active stretch in the hip flexors.  Wrist should be neutral.  And, you may need to play around with the band tension.  I was pretty limited with what I had available at the time, but suffice it to say, you may need to finagle a bit with how much of the band you place underneath your knee.

Additionally, this isn’t the type of exercise where I’m looking to overload the traps, so don’t be too concerned with using a monster band or anything like that.  Rather, it’s more of an activation and it’s imperative that you focus on the QUALITY of reps (feeling the actual muscle do its job).

Try it out today, and let me know what you think!

 

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A Closer Look At…….Shoulder Pain

Note from TG: the post below will take you to my latest article over at LiveStrong.com.

It’s Monday, otherwise known as National Bench Press Day.

Like so many others in the same weekly routine, you dutifully head to the gym after work, get to the locker room and toss your gym bag into a locker, give your training partner a fist pump and head out to the gym floor to get your bench on.

Set one, and you feel like a rock star. You turn up your iPod a little louder and add some more weight.

Set two, and you notice something weird. The shoulder that’s been a little “tweaky” for the past few weeks is starting to act up again. You’ve been ignoring it, taking the attitude that it’s just something that comes with the territory when lifting. You shrug it off, add a little more weight and think to yourself, “Once I’m warmed-up, it’ll be fine.”

Set three, and the pain is still there. But you’d sooner jump into a live volcano than skip bench day. There’s no chance you’re bowing out. So you add more weight.

Set four, and “Houston, we have a problem!”

Continue reading —>

UPDATE: For those interested (which I’m assuming is like, two people) I caught the mouse!!!! We used an electrical mouse trap. Basically, you place the food inside, turn it on, the mouse enters, and its zapped into oblivion.

Tony Gentilcore: 1

Mouse: 0

I win!!!!!


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Stuff to Read While You’re Pretending to Work: Back to Reality Edition

So, I’m back in Boston as I type this.  No less than three hours ago, I was in 80 degree weather with the sun beating down on me and not a cloud in the sky.  Now, I’m looking out the window at nothing but gray skies and rain.  And a homeless person collecting cans.  Great.

Alas, it’s back to reality.  We had an amazing time in Florida, and I can see why so many people decide to set up shop there when it’s time to retire.  Beautiful weather, beaches, golf, bikini’s, gator meat – what’s not to love?   Of course, having no state income tax doesn’t hurt either.

Nonetheless, I’m not gonna sit here and pretend that I’m not kinda, sorta still in vacation mode. The idea of writing a well thought out blog post right now is the furthest thing from my mind – especially considering I have yet to un-pack, I have a pile a mile high of laundry to do, and I still need to hit off the store to get some groceries.  The only thing in my fridge at this moment is some marinated chicken I made last week, and I’m pretty sure that would taste like cardboard and farts right now.

To that end, today’s post is going to be cut and dry.  I was able to catch up on a lot of reading while I was away, and below are some gems that I felt were pretty good.

Drugs, Brown Fat, and Weight Loss – Mark Young

Mark has an uncanny ability to filter out the stupid, and this post is no different.

The Shoulder W Exercise – Mike Reinold

I remember Mike talking about this exercise exclusively last year during the Optimal Shoulder Performance seminar.  Here, he gives a little background on why he feels it’s such a valuable exercise, and I tend to agree!

Why Go Organic? – Jamie Hale

Steady State Cardio vs. Intervals, High Reps vs. Low Reps, Jamie Eason vs. Jelena Abbou – there are a myriad of controversies in the fitness industry that either one of us can make legitimate cases for or against.  None, however, are more controversial than the whole Conventional Food vs. Organic debate.

Personally, I tend to veer more towards the organic side of things – as I feel that the costs and high(er) prices of buying organic far outweigh the costs of the ever increasing ramifications that our food industry has on health care; not to mention sustainable agriculture

That said, I like to consider myself an open-minded guy, and this article by Jamie Hale does make some great arguments on why organic might not be all it’s cracked up to be.

Even still, at the end of the day, for my own peace of mind, I’m still leaning more towards organic.