ScapuLOVE
Scapular Stability:
It’s Like Giving Your Shoulders a Hug
I’ve been hearing a lot from you all about wanting to work on your posture and to decrease neck and shoulder pain. I’ll be highlighting some of the posture classes that exist in the library, and adding some short sitting and standing classes that can be done anywhere, anytime your neck needs some love. We’ll also be breaking down shoulder mechanics so you can apply these thoughts to your practice with deeper understanding!
What is scapular stability and why does it matter?
Your arms connect to your trunk via the shoulder joint, which is a ball-in-socket joint, similar to your hips, but with A LOT more range of motion. Any joint that has a lot of range of motion also needs extra focus on stability to control that range of motion and avoid injury. This is especially true in weight-bearing exercises like planks, where the shoulders are supporting the majority of the bodyweight. By focusing on strengthening postural muscles, and the muscles around the scapula (aka shoulder blades), you can decrease the load on the wrist and elbow joints in movements like planks. You can also take these lessons off the mat and practice healthy shoulder mechanics when reaching overhead (for example: reaching into cabinets) without over straining the neck.
Scapulohumeral Rhythm: One of my favorite terms! It’s fun to say and apply. When your arms lift to the side and overhead, your scapula actually helps with 1/3 of that upward rotation. You want to be able to lift your arms overhead by using your serratus and other muscles around the shoulder blades more than from the upper traps at the top of the neck.
How to Apply It:
When lifting arms overhead: Think about your arms like a wingspan, connected to your back. Think about lifting the arms from your back instead of from your neck. Practice this with the arms out to the side and in front of you so you can practice your scapulohumeral rhythm.
Serratus Activation: Your serratus muscle wraps underneath your shoulder blade and helps move your shoulder blade laterally and medially (in and out) along the rib cage. If you notice your shoulder blades “winging” a lot in a plank, serratus strengthening will help reduce that! The better your shoulder blades can sit on your ribcage during a plank, the stronger and more stable that plank will be for your shoulders.
How to Apply It:
When weight bearing in planks: Think about pushing your hands into the mat and energetically ripping the mat in half away from the midline to activate the serratus. At the same time, spin the biceps forward to avoid rounding the shoulders forward.
It’s complicated because the shoulder is a complicated joint! But we’ll practice in digestible shorts this month. Explore the posture classes in the library this week for both strength and mobility. The strength classes will work on these mechanics and building up shoulder stability.
