jenkmark

Back View – notice shoulders are set

A very common problem in the clinic is neck and shoulder pain. Every type of athlete and avid exerciser will likely experience shoulder pain at some point in their career. Yet so often at the gym I see shoulder exercises done incorrectly.

Most people do not know that the rotator cuff is an extremely important muscle group and what it’s purpose is. This shows up in exercise routines as either poorly executed exercises or lack of stability exercises at all.

The rotator cuff is the primary stability for the shoulder. The muscle group (containing four muscles) holds the humerus into the pocket of the shoulder blade. Yes, these two bones make up your shoulder! ** side note: if your shoulder blade is winged or dysfunctional you will have shoulder weakness** If your rotator cuff muscles are not activated, your big traps and deltoids and biceps and triceps and pecs and and and etc have to hold the joint together. These muscles need to save their energy and strength for moving objects, turning door handles, getting out of bed, sitting in a chair or any number of upper body movements. With a properly engaged rotator cuff, these muscles will not tire out so quickly leaving you with achy, heavy shoulders or neck pain.

Side View – notice the elbows are under the shoulders

The muscles in the rotator cuff (infraspinatus, supraspinatus, teres minor, and subscapularis) hold your posture, internally and externally rotate your shoulder, and initiate lifting your arm. I have pictured the most popular rotator cuff exercise designed to strengthen the external rotation of the shoulder (infraspinatus and teres minor). Since we spend so long in internal rotation (sitting at a desk or using our smart phones), it’s important to restore this movement. When our external rotators are as strong as our overworked internal rotators, we are in balance and posture improves.

The external rotation exercise is commonly used with a resistance band.

Front View – notice the wrists are straight and the elbows have not moved back

The important points to remember are:

Keep your posture
Keep your elbows touching your sides in the rotation
Stay away from letting your shoulders fall forward during any point of the movement
Do not squeeze your shoulder blades together

For questions regarding this exercise or other shoulder stability exercises please contact me (jenmark@dynamicliving.me) or visit the videos on our website (video #1).

Jen Mark BSc., CAT(C), CSCS
www.dynamicliving.me

There are so many people out there that have sore knees. We get pain in our knees because of chronic use and degeneration as well as acute, sudden injuries. No matter the reason, the most important rehabilitation is stabilization. You can begin stabilizing the knees once the swelling and pain is almost gone (if there was any).

Stabilization means that all the muscles that affect the knee are coordinated in working together for control, as well as the ligaments in the knee being strong enough to keep the knee still. Think of stabilization as guide wires. As we move about our day, or pivot and twist in a game, we have ligaments and muscles to stop the knee from over rotating or sliding too far forward. When your knee is unstable, you are in jeopardy of this happening and causing further damage.

An important part of stabilization training is correct technique. First, when doing any lunging or squatting, your knee needs to stay in line with your second toe (your big toe being the first). You also must insure that your knee does not go farther than your shoe laces in a forward position. It is, in fact, your glutes that control the position of your knee. The bone at the top of the knee joint, the femur, is also the main bone in the hip. So it would make sense to make sure your glutes are strong and active in order to keep good knee alignment.

Check out the following exercises for knee stability. Check in with a certified strength coach (or personal trainer) for supervision if needed. Email me (jenmark@dynamicliving.me) for any questions or concerns you many have with these exercises.