Top 3 Warm-Up Exercises for Shoulders
Top 3 Warm-Up Exercises for Shoulders
Healthy, fully functional shoulders are an essential part of most - if not all - of the movements you perform each day. They are especially important for participation in exercise and recreation. Warming the shoulder joint up can decrease the likelihood of injury and improve the quality of movement of the shoulder during your activity.
What should a shoulder warm up include?
Before starting any sport or activity, it is important to ensure mobility in the shoulder first. Mobility is the combination of flexibility, strength, and control that is needed in order for us to use our shoulders with good mechanics. I always start my own workouts with a mobility drill called Shoulder Controlled Articular Rotations (or, Shoulder CARs for short). This drill serves to improve proprioception, activates all the tissue involved in moving that joint to improve coordination and technique during the workout, and increases blood flow and tissue malleability to prevent strain.
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Scapulohumeral Rhythm
Moving the arm is more complex than it may seem, as it involves the shoulder and shoulder blade (see below). When you move your arm, the ball-and-socket joint of the shoulder articulates, and at the same time, the shoulder blade glides across the back of the rib cage. There is a ratio of movement between these two structures. When the movements are in balance, the arm and shoulder maintain healthy, pain-free movement. If there is in-coordination between the shoulder and shoulder blade one of these can become overworked. This can lead to injury. Warming up can help to improve coordinated movement. Below is a video warming up the shoulder blade.
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Spinal Rotation
Spinal rotation is also a key component to arm movement. One of the things that I’ve been doing in my free time is holding mobility workshops that help people participate in and return to sports safely. Whether that be after a break due to injury or because the gym was closed (again)!
Sports that require spinal rotation include golf, hockey, tennis, and squash - a favourite of mine - and I prepare my warm up drills in order to best facilitate that type of movement. The rotation comes from the shoulder complex (which is where you can find the collarbone, shoulder blade, and the bone of the upper arm) as well as from rotation of the spine itself. As mentioned before, there is a balance between how much work each part of the body is doing in order to carry out a certain task. Golf is a great example of a movement that requires shoulder and spinal rotation (and hip and knee of course!). Mid-back CARs are a simple warm up for movements like this.
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If you are interested in learning more about how you can optimize your own movement feel free to contact me at drmeganyim@gmail.com.
