Shoulder injuries and training
Did you know that the shoulder joint has the largest range of movement in the body? We use our shoulders in nearly everything we do… Washing our hair, picking up our children, doing the laundry… The list is endless.
Here at IPT Fitness, we often see shoulder injuries. These have often been made worse by inappropriate training.
First lets talk a little about the shoulder joint itself. The shoulder joint is a ball and socket joint. The major bones are the humerus, clavicle, and the scapula. The muscle structure in the shoulder is complex. You have the muscles connecting the humerus to the body (pectorals major, minor, the lat’s, Teresa major and deltoids). The you have the muscle group to connect the scapular and clavicle to the body (the trapezius, rhomboids and levator scapulae). Most importantly, there are the muscles to support the shoulder joint which are the rotator cuff muscles (subscapularis, infraspinatus, supraspinatus, and teres minor).
The most frequent injuries we see are rotator cuff tears.
So, what can you do to help prevent these issues?
- To ensure full range of movement, mobilise your shoulder before completing weight training exercises. At IPT we love shoulder and arm circles, and chest openers dynamic stretches.
- When designing your training programme, ensure you utilise exercises which work all angles of the shoulder.
- Include some rotator strengthening exercises, in particular external rotation exercises which are often neglected.
- Shoulder stability exercises are also important.
- If you do not have full range of movement in your shoulders, avoid overhead pressing movements.
- Don’t forget to stretch! In particular the anterior deltoids and pectoral muscles.
Happy shoulder pressing !
