Shoulder Function Exercise- The Shoulder Push Up

Honestly, if I have one too many people in the past few months demonstrate that they are not able to raise their arm above their head. I do mean can’t. Many have been 45 degrees and it’s just totally maddening. I don’t know about you but when I have a pain that lasts for more than 2 weeks I dig down to the bottom and get after resolving it with research of my resting, movement and recovery patterns. You body and your fascia is always moving or not moving which can be a problem either way. Some people do to much of only one type of sport or are stuck driving for hours, sleeping on only one side, gardening, office/desk work and just don’t balance their bodies for all the planes in which it NEEDS to move to move freely and pain free.

Here’s one of the shoulder exercises I give people both in my training sessions, take home fitness programs or group fitness classes I have been teaching at The Cliffs Valley Wellness Center. First of all to get into this position, it tests the ability of your hips to hinge in order to stretch the hamstrings and calves. I tell clients they can bend the legs but the point is really to shift the weight so that the nose is behind the wrists that are on the ground. Tucking the head and getting the shoulder blades down and back into your pockets and your shoulders away from your ears is key to setting up for success for the shoulder push up. This exercise is also testing your core strength. I have found that the subscapularis muscle is a common muscle that tends to pin the scapular area down and can prevent this raising of the arm overhead. I massage this muscle for others when they are lying face up. I grab the arm That’s a topic for another blog post though and you can get a massage therapist to get after it or do compression rolling with a rigid foam roller or trigger point ball. Here’s an advanced version from a massage therapist. He even discusses the pec minor which I continually address and show clients stretches for as when it’s tight it can pull the shoulder into a forward position.https://youtu.be/i0BzmHXq6BM

Check out the Shoulder push up variations and see which one you can do. Try for 2-3 sets of max reps. Aim for touching the top of your head to the ground and pretty much being at an angle. Focus on what your shoulder blades are doing and visualize the muscles being worked. The first video below is with both feet on the ground while the second one is with one leg up in the air. Note how tight your calves and soleus muscle is as well as hamstrings and hips. This may give you a clue as to what else you may need to stretch or work on for an optimal and balanced body. Can’t do either? Go for short range of motion until you get better. You may even want to film yourself so you can see improvement and make self corrections to your form.

Why put off your fitness…..let’s discuss your fitness & nutrition needs. All it takes is a call or text to get the conversation started. Maybe you can be one of the charter clients for South Carolina location, LET’S GET MOVING, even if it’s online for now. Plans to restart construction mid-October for relocated location from Memphis to Greenville (Travelers Rest area), South Carolina.
If you haven’t had a functional movement assessment with a professional observe the way you move different joints and movements with your hips, shoulders, wrists and spine then how do you know you are doing the most effective strength training, flexibility or cardio program? Hire someone like me to get you on track with a program to help you reduce current pain, eliminate pain, improve your current program or enhance your athletic performance.

Tonya Tittle, M.S., ACSM, LMT, TPI Level 1
Energy Fitness /Owner/Dir. of Training
(Club 29 Fitness Inc.)

898 N. Hwy 25 Bypass
Greenville, SC 29690 (Travelers Rest area)