Unlike most joints in the body, our shoulder is where we (in the Sports Medicine world) say we:
“sacrifice stability for mobility.”
Mobility is almost always a good thing, especially in the shoulder joint allowing us to move our arm in pretty much every direction, including raising, lowering and rotating them, running like Phoebe in Central Park and throwing a baseball to our kids.
It is the lack of stability (read strength) that causes potential issues. Therefore, when we are doing exercises to functionally strengthen and tone our shoulders, we want to keep a few things in mind.
Ideally, you should be able to lift your arms up overhead with your arms nearly touching your ears and your elbows remaining straight. If you cannot do this, lying on your back in this position is a great (and pretty effortless exercise) you can do for 3-10 minutes a day, as long as you are not feeling pain and your fingers do not go numb and cold too quickly;) But I digress …
Here are a few more exercises in our current program and ways to cue these exercises to get maximal benefit:
In this video, Mimi is doing her Single Arm Dumbbell Press (second exercise in the Metabolic Circuit #1 in the Pressing Workout) and working with a 8 lb dumbbell, she is working on NOT shrugging her shoulders with the upward press. If we shrug our shoulders too much when we press overhead, we put all of this extra stress and tension in our neck and upper back, and that is not awesome. Then, the second goal or cue is to tuck your rib cage down against your side while you are pressing up overhead. You do not need a dumbbell to do this at home. Try it now … reach up overhead, keep your elbow straight, and feel your rib cage lift up and out to the side. Now keeping your arm straight up, attempt to tuck your ribs down and tight, which activates some of your stabilizing (that is a good thing) core muscles.
The other move we are dong is the Standing Cable Face Pull (or rubber band (with handles) hooked to a door knob for at home workouts) as Becky is doing in this video. This is a great exercise to integrate your upper back muscles and rotator cuff muscles together. *This video is actually part of the Pressing Workout (in your starter kit) Superset of the Standing Face Pull x 12 reps followed by the Side Plank for 20-30 seconds.
To get your own FREE and Awesome Workout Starter Kit our community is doing right now and join my REDDY Health Weekly email list where I high light these posts, please visit here … Sign Me Up & Send Me My FREE Program.
Let me know what you think and if you have any questions … thanks, Dave
