The 5 Main Causes of Shoulder Pain
Nothing is more frustrating to the dedicated trainee than shoulder pain. Injured shoulders can take a long time to heal and limit our exercise selection dramatically. Here are the 5 main causes of shoulder pain and what we can do about it!
1. Lack of thoracic spine mobility
Each of the joints in our body is designed for a specific purpose, which is either stability or mobility. The thoracic spine is a section of the body that craves mobility, but is generally locked up due to the sedentary postures we adopt on a daily basis. If the thoracic spine does not move into extension it means any movement where we lift our arms above our heads is compromised. This will lead to anterior shoulder pain. Practicing thoracic extension drills on a foam roller is a great way to improve this dysfunction.
2. Scapula instability
Our scapula is literally the foundation for our shoulder joint. If it does not sit in the right place at the right time the glenohumeral joint loses its instantaneous axis of rotation and is prone to impingement, faulty recruitment patterns and other issues. The majority of our clientele have scapula that are elevated and protracted. The best way to combat this is exercises that emphasize the opposites of these movements which are depression and retraction. the prone cobra and wall slide exercises are great exercises for this function.
3. Faulty breathing patterns
Breathing is often overlooked in shoulder function. However if our breathing and rib cage is dysfunctional, our shoulders will be problematic! We breath on average 20 000 times a day so we need to ensure that each breath is therapeutic, not stressful to our biomechanics. A great idea to fix this issue is to go for a walk while holding water in our mouths. This ensures correct nasal breathing and wards off hyperventilation.
4. Imbalanced training programs
The majority of people who train focus on the muscles that they can see in the mirror. Quite often we see a overwhelming focus on pushing exercises to the detriment of pulling exercises. This creates imbalances in the scapulo-thoracic musculature and is a recipe for disaster. Creating a training program with a pulling to pushing ratio of 2:1 or even 3:1 will rectify these problems quickly.
5. Poor soft tissue quality
As we train and get stronger we subject our body to more and more stress. Unfortunately many people neglect to take care of their soft tissue quality in their upper body and these adhesions and trigger points can create pain and dysfunction quickly. I recommend Active Release Technique to remove shoulder adhesions. You will be amazed at how good your shoulders feel after this! . Ask your practitioner to address trigger points in your infraspinatus, pec minor, upper trapezius and biceps and you will be amazed at how good you feel!
About the Author
Paul Meldrum has been training clients for over 10 years. He specialises in fat loss, muscle gain and rehabilitation. He was the winner of the 05/06 Personal Trainer of the year award. To receive his 3 part video series on the 8 Things you need to know to lose fat http://dchealthperformance.com.au/
Tell others about
this page:
Comments? Questions? Email Here