CONSTANT Shrug- shrugs galore

F

flyinfree

2
OK Georgen you are definatley the shrug master! And we have wellness people, yoga people, overall athletics and posture. I need some help here if you all got any ideas.

It seems that I have a constant shrug going on. Like all the ttime. Everytoime I think about it, it can drop my shoulders.

I started noticing it months ago when on the bike. Then I started realizing I have this lil pinch in my upper shoulders from it at times.

I do it at my desk, even a lil bit when I run.

Anytime I think-- relax, dropp the shoulders, I can.

what do you think I can do to help this "BAD HABIT" of holding my shoulders up.

Maybe even doing shrugs would help?

FF
 
first of all, try to drop your shoulders whenever you can. I notice that when I'm stressed, I'll sit in a constant semi shrug too.

The traps pull the scapulae upward, and the lats pull the scapulae downward. So there needs to be a balance there. However, the lats pull on the scapulae can also cause downward rotation (which is bad) (the anterior part of the scapulae points down instead of forward think about what you do if you want to really pop your traps to make them as big as possible) and the traps help with the oposite. There needs to be a balance here too. Sometimes people think they are in a constant shrug but are really just having their scapulae rotated downwards.
Take a pic, of yourself from the side and post, or if you totally get what I mean and trust your own judgement, look in the mirror.

If you are in a constant shrug, you need more lat work (but don't go too crazy, since getting too tight lats isn't good) if you find out your scaps are downward rotated, do more work for the traps (not just upper, but middle and lower too) and for your serratus anterior.

But again, the most important part is probably relaxing more, since you can drop your shoulders down if you want without having to use muscles to force them.
 
Good info Karky.

If I'm not mistaken you are into cycling right FF? Your in somewhat of a "shrugging" position when you cycle and your body can get accustomed to this depending on how much you do. This can contribute to you always having a shrugging posture but smart weight training can contribute to fixing this issue as stated above.
 
THE FIRST ONE- It tool me a second to just relax and stad there like I always stand. But her it is:


THE SECOND ONE- I turned the other way, and though-- ok, If i try to stand like what i would think as proper-

I do quite a bit of lat pull downs. as far as any type of trap work- not really- don't even know one. but i have been doping more squats and deadlifts.

Biking- i do lots. I try to remember to keep my shooulders dropped, but it is many time that lil pich feeling that makes me remember.

this is not a biggie, but there is definately something goin on here. May 15 ye3ar old, thinks its the fitness ball i sit on at the office, or the directors' chair i sit in at the computer. and she thinks it's totally cool that sopme guy in London, and one all the way from Hell would try and help me. thx FF
 
k and here is my back straight on standign comfortably-

and please try to tell me what to do weight lifting or exercise wise. You know me, telling me to remember to stand uop straight aint gunna changeme. Telling me to do 100 pushups a day will, or telling me to do somthing to compensate will work,... ths again...
 
ok,,, no jumpin today, i have an ear that is feeling funny, and it is the one I froze one time.

SO- about this lil pinch in my back?

cool-- maybe i will get some additional imput from Norway. who is in london? oh i thinkl i is CCR

Mrs thesaurus websters location tracker is in my brain!!!! you have permission to leave my brain how! hehhehe wait wait come back... oh yes there we go! right where i like ya ;)

FF'in
 
FF. Looking at your picture you need to do a LOT of all types of back work. That will help to correct posture.

Of course practicing good posture all the time is a good idea too. :D

Exercises like -

rows
wide grip rows
wide grip DB rows
external rotations
shrugs (focussing on keeping your shoulders back while doing the exercise)

I am going to go against the grain here and say that more lat pull-downs are not necessarily the route to go. Your shoulders already round forward, lats are an internal rotator, so tighter / stronger lats will not solve the problem. (thats not to say that you should not train lats)

Increasing flexibility of the lats and chest will also help better your posture.

If you are in a "hunched" posture your traps are in a stretch all the time and that can cause the "pinching" that you are feeling. (that is a possibility, not hard truth)

The traps pull the scapulae upward
Click to expand...

Traps do not just pull the scapula upward. Muscle pulls in the same direction as the grain of the fibers. If you look at the picture below you will see that the traps can pull down as well as retract the shoulders.
 
yeah sorry about that, I meant the "upper traps" I'm just so used to people just meaning the upper traps when they say traps :p

FF, it looks like your scapulae is a bit rotated downward, so like G says, lots and lots of back work. I agree with G on not doing all that much lat work, because the lats are both internal rotators of the humerus and downward rotators of the scap.

The traps, both upper, lower and middle ( :p ) aswell as the serratus anterior will help with the downward rotation. I've found prone trap raises help.
Like fact down on an incline bench at 45 degrees, DBs in hands and lift them up with elbows locked and keep a Y shape.
 
my whole family all five of us are gathered around this post. thank you for making it such a great one. it seems the Family here has a tendency to this forward posture.

i will work on some these lifts going forward. If I flex my back, or superman my arms it looks like I have good muscles back there.

But George you said a LOT. ;) thank you. that is the way to talk to me.

Karky, that one lift you describe scares me a bit because I have had rotator cuff problems. do you think a nervous and potentially weak deltoid will keep me from doing enough weight to effectively work that middle and loswer trap? From the looks of me, I am 184, what amount of DB weight are you thinking?
 
ok-- i wil just say it. I do not know what any of those lifts are George. Renae gave me a link to a webiste once where i could see little videos of things and I don;t know it.

like Wide grip DB row-- so I bend over, flat back, try to hold my arm out wider that an typical bent over row? or do i use the bench press bar? shoot man! i just don't know what they are.. :(
 
just google them and find pictures.

You would be using very low weight for the exercise I gave you. If you need to, start with your just your arms. When you get the hang of it, you can really feel your middle back working instead of your shoulders, it's all in the y thing, experiment with how wide you go until you feel it.
If it hurts your shoulders, then don't do it!

Also, do you do a lot of pushups? If so, at the top, push your shoulderblades forward (you can also do pushups with just this last part of the rom, the protraction of the shoulderblades) it makes the serratus anterior work more, don't worry if you can't feel it, it is working! The pushup thing is known as a "pushup pluss"
 
I forgot to add:

There's a test you can try for your lats. And sevral for other shoulder issues.. you can find out what is tight by doing these.
TESTOSTERONE NATION - In Defense of Overhead Lifting
It's an article on overhead lifting, but it contains a lot of tests you can try to see if your pecs, pec minor, lats, ext rotators, int rotators, etc are stiff.

and don't feel to bad if you flunk many of these tests, chanses are, most people will. After some hard work on my posture I can now pass most of the pec and lats tests. My hip flexors are still way tight though..
 
do you figure this has developed due to the intense biking, adding alot of ab work and bench press stuff?

now that you have Identified the muscle for me so well, I can tell is feels extended alot and it feels week in that region of my back.

This is sooo cool, because I can tell strengthening that will make me better and make my front look better too.

the body is sooo dynamic. I like it!

Grateful for you guys.
George- that picture made all the difference for my comprehension here. I am a pic type of person. I can really tell that the cross section being stretched and weak is the source of the pinch. and my son is lean enough we can actually see his full trap.
 
I do not know what any of those lifts are George.
Click to expand...

rows - just what it sounds like. ;)

wide grip rows - Here you can use a bar or a row machine. Just flair your elbows out wide and pull them back. Like you are making a T with your body and upper arm. You will en up with your elbows about 90 degrees.

rreardelt.jpg


wide grip DB rows - These you will do like a bent over row with Dumbbells. you arms will work like the picture above.

external rotations - look Like Below

shoulder-exercises-20.jpg

shoulder-exercises-22.jpg


AND

th_21.jpg

th_22.jpg


Hope the pics help. :D
 
not one of them was anytrhign like I thought. thanks. I can do some of that right here with the DB and kettle bell set I have in the office.

Starting now!
FF

p.s. thanks for knowing me good enough to pick chick pics ;)
 
google images = genius for exercises!
 
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