Please Don’t Tell Us We Can’t Bench!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If there’s one thing we guys like it is benching!  Unfortunately our shoulders suffer sometime or another.  Talk to any powerlifter or body builder and a majority will tell you of their shoulder problems.  Bench pressing is not kind to the shoulder.  In the lowered position, the shoulder joint capsule is stretched and the subacromial space is compromised setting us up for impingement, capsular instability, A/C joint and glenohumeral wear and tear and muscle and ligament strains.  One solution to protect the shoulder and resume benching after a shoulder injury, is to bench off the floor instead of the bench.  This prevents the elbows from dropping below the trunk saving the joint a whole lot of stress and strain.  And, you can actually bench more weight, which activates more fibers and ultimately leads to increased strength and size of the chest!  By benching from the floor you do not hit the “sticking point”, which is the weakest part of the chest press movement and the limiting factor to weight lifted.  Thereby protecting the shoulder and increasing your bench!  What guy is not going to be happy about that!  So, ladies please dont tell us guys we cant bench.  We have to! (it must be genetic), regardless of how skinny our legs are.  We love to bench!

Hopefully now you have a plan to protect the injured shoulder and begin the inured lifter back to benching and being happy.
Get Strong! Stay Strong!
Chris

So, What’s with Kinesio Tape?

What is that black tattoo on Kerri Walsh’s right shoulder? It is called Kinesio Tex Taping which is an elastic taping used in chiropractic, rehabilitation and sports medicine. Developed 25 years ago by Dr. Kenzo Kase, it is now getting recognition and being used by top athletes such as Lance Armstrong, Serena Williams, David Beckam, Robby Ginepri and Justine Henin. Kinesio Tape works by giving support like a flexible brace and facilitates weak muscles with neurological awareness or proprioception. Kerri Walsh had a recent rotator cuff surgery last November. NBC reported that she uses the black shoulder tape for better circulation and her shoulder pain.

Many people watching the olympics and ive received several questions regarding kinesio taping.

As the paragraph reports its been around for a long time.  It has just come to the publics attention from the exposure it got on the olympics.  While it can be beneficial it is not the miracle cure for all (even though it was in the olympics).  It is just another good tool to assist in the rehabilitation and healing of the body.

Hope you enjoyed the olympics as much as my family and I did.  U. S. A. !!

Get Strong! Stay Strong!

Chris

Getting Hip to the Shoulder

Shoulder pain can range from nagging to debilitating depending on the problem and severity.  Generally, in the under 40 crowd shoulder problems usuually consist of impingement and instability.  Impingement occurs when the “ball” of the ball and socket joint “rides” up during shoulder movement and pinches the rotator cuff and bursae.  This can result from trauma or fatigue from repetitive movement.  Instability is from a laxity in the capsule (fibrous tissue.  Like the wrapper of a lollipop) that holds the ball and socket joint together.  This can occur from repetitive motion or trauma.  Some people are born with more laxity in their joints that predisposes them to these typess of problems.  These are the people that are “double jointed.”  They don’t actually have 2 joints they are just very flexible in their joint tissue.  This can range from mild to severe.  This creates “extra” movement in the joint that can irritate the tissue, rotator cuff and/or injure the cartilage of the socket (the labrum).  The over 40 crowd usually suffers from rotator cuff tears, although they can also have impingement and tendonitis.  Aging of tissue and the longevity of activity makes the older individual more prone to rotator cuff tears.  This can happen through gradual wear and tear leading to the cuff tear or from trauma such as a fall or heavy pulling movement.

Many factors can lead to shoulder problems and multiple steps can be taken to prevent or at least reduce your risk of shoulder injury.  Posture is a big problem for many people.  The rounded shoulders compromise the shoulder joint space and contribute to muscle imbalance and impingement.  Tight hip flexors can also contribute to shoulder pain.  The tightness in the hip flexor can “pull” the pelvis forward which can pull the shoulders forward leading to pec tightness which further pulls the shoulder forward.  Taken further this shortens the abdominal muscles (shutting them off) and contributes to an unstable back.  When looking at movement through a functional eye you would see that overhead activity requires extension and rotation through the spine and the same side hip.  So for example, if your hip flexor is tight and/or your shoulders or upper back was rounded and you were trying to change a light bulb, even if your shoulder motion was normal, your ability to work overhead would be limited and your chances of developing shoulder pain would be high.  The moral of the story is that it is all connected and that to successfully correct shoulder problems you must try to find and address the cause.  This requires understanding the functional relationships of the body.  Many times easier said than done.

In general, make sure your exercise programs are balanced and you are not just working the “mirror muscles,” stretch your hip flexors, watch your posture especially when sitting, drink plenty of water (most of your tissue is water) and eat a balanced, nutritious diet (give your body the nutrients it needs to be healthy and support the growth and repair processes).

Get Strong! Stay Strong!

Chris