Do NOT simply just “squeeze your shoulder blades back together”. Whilst holding onto a weight, lock your arms straight in front of you. Keep your neck completely relaxed. Imbalance of these muscles can result in pain on the upper back, poor posture, etc. Most Common Causes Of Scapular Winging. I am focusing on my Serratus though because that gives me the most relief when it relaxes and isnt chronically tight. Winging scapula can be caused by incorrect posture whilst sitting in front of the computer. Firstly – I hope you and your family have been keeping safe from the recent typhoons. or is it just simply weak? Influence of forward head posture on scapular upward rotators during isometric shoulder flexion. One thing that I really struggle with is this pain where the lower trap meets the spine. Rare condition and recovery is long and partial for many people. Are you fond though of my training regiment? Make sure to address the unaffected side as well. The degree of winging and pain will determine and luckily mine is minor. It is not intended to be used as a substitute for professional advice, diagnosis or treatment. I am wondering what is the best way I should be stretching, sleeping, standing, sitting, etc.? Often spinal accessory nerve issues need either surgery or a valiant attempt at lower to mid trap exercises, but PT usually does not work. Pectoralis Minor tightness/over-activity. Overtraining. If you can’t feel the contraction, round your back as you push your forearms into the wall. Your exercises are meant really for long thoracic nerve/serratus issues. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Corrective Exercise Training. We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. Want to improve shoulder range of motion? (Do not allow your shoulders to depress downwards.) This area is more likely the erector spinae. I unlocked those joints using the backpod but have been battling the typical upper and lower cross syndrome. Results: Does your shoulder blade stick out? A very faint contraction is required to keep your scapula in a more ideal position. Observe the position of the scapula during movement. This is why you want to focus on gently elevating the shoulder. The main issue with snapping scapula is the depression (downward motion) of the scapula onto the rib cage. Eventually, it will become natural. Incorporating these five exercises in to your program is a surefire way to help create a group of strong scapular stabilizers. Shoes – How To Find That Perfect Fitting Pair!! Your physical therapist is likely to start with corrective exercise training … The scapula is connected to the thorax through both muscular and osseocartilaginous conncetions (ordinary joints). Posture correction and muscle strengthening exercises are very effective for individuals with postural kyphosis. See post: Shoulder Impingement. The reproduction, distribution, display, or transmission of the content is strictly prohibited, unless authorized by PostureDirect. Winged Scapula Exercises. When raising your hand – Try to push your hands as far away from the body whilst keeping your shoulder blades. Scapular Retraction Exercises for Posture. Releases are still important to do, but focusing on the strengthening is where your focus should be at. Hold a weight in one … But, a healthy person will not make a good impression (especially the first one) with poor posture. One of the best treatments for your shoulder is exercise. 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Please help, I keep getting debilitated day by day, and I just want an answer to finally scorn this endless researching frenzy i’ve been in for the past 2 month, Before addressing your scapula winging, try to get the shoulder symptoms down first. I had dry needling on my lats before and was completely pain free for 2 weeks which makes me think the lats/serratus are the main culprit. Some muscles are hard to get to by a massage therapist or even a physical therapist due to its position. If your scapular retractors are weak, your shoulders will hunch forward and add strain to your thoracic spine. Is it possible that you have shoulder impingement? There is a curvature convex right of the thoracic spine measuring 39.5 degrees measured from the superior endplate of T4 to the inferior endplate of T9. Posture. Winged Scapula Exercises - Posture Direct. Been a month and a half now, I really can’t see that much of a significant change, both scapulas still winging. 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It is a great drill when working on facilitating a more posterior dominant posture, and getting out of our terrible anterior dominant sitting posture. Slouching in a chair. Water Exercise: A Good Alternative to Exercise for Summer, How to Perform Cervical Isometrics Exercises. These movements help to reduce some stress off of the shoulders, relax the shoulders and therefore reduces the tightness. This hunched back doesn’t provide an ideal surface for scapular movements – leading to an interrupted scapulohumeral rhythm and shoulder instability. … Going to the gym will be great for the shoulder. Unlike most other joints in the body, the scapulothoracic joint does not connect to the body by fibrous (eg: the skull), cartilaginous (eg: intervertebral discs), or synovial (eg: the hip) tissues. I usually tell my patients do think of the shoulder blades as “floating” on the rib cage as opposed to “hanging” off. Lean your weight into the hand that is on the side of the scapula winging. Learn how your comment data is processed. Reach and stretch out your hands as far to opposite sides as possible. Apply your body weight onto the massage ball. Long way to go though. This article will focus on the Scapula or shoulder blade. Shoulder blade exercises are great for scapular strengthening, and to help fix poor posture, particularly to help fix rounded shoulders. From what I’ve seen, it is very difficult to address winging that is caused by issues of the Spinal Accessory nerve with exercises alone. I know there are few, just like me . Due to Covid it’s difficult in the UK to see anyone to help me and I can’t really find any information online on this specific problem. Healthy Shopping. Without this muscle activating, it will be difficult to stabilize the scapula on the rib cage. This strain may increase tension in the muscles, which may in turn cause pain. This is the last article in a series of neck, chest and upper back movements to correct posture. Thank you so much – I found your entire website to be very educational. Can Stretching Help with Rounded Shoulders and Scapular Stabilizers? This is just FYI for those who are interested in knowing the muscles. Lean away from that hand to lock the shoulder blade down. Slowly retract your shoulder blades back to the starting neutral position. If you can see a definite protrusion of the medial border of the shoulder blade, then you have Scapular Winging. Aim to progress to the next level only when you are ready. Do you have a long curved upper back by any chance? The scapula, commonly known as the shoulder blade, is a bone that 17 different muscles are attached to. Wall Ball Circles The Serratus Anterior is the primary muscle that anchors the scapula flat onto the rib cage.. It sort of looks swollen. Let’s keep in touch! Other nerves (when damaged) that can result in scapular winging include the: My recommendation: Get EMG testing of the nerve to see if there are any issues with the electrical signals. When I stretch or massage it also doesnt seem to help much aside from 2 minutes of relief, should I simply focus on strengthening exercises? Proceed to perform a circular motion over the ball. Scoliosis refers to the lateral curvature that occurs in the thoracic and/or lumbar spine. 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You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. The scapula, commonly referred to as the “shoulder blade,” is a large, flat bone that sits on top of the rib cage and is held in place by the many muscles of the shoulder girdle. There are many muscles that stabilize the scapula or shoulder blade. I need to write a few articles on shoulder pathologies and exercises in the near future! So you may have to go back to those previous articles for other exercises. I used a fancy name for shoulder full circle movement. I also find massaging my subscapularis helps my shoulders/scapula move better and reduce upper back pain. I had radical neck surgery which mildly to moderately affected the spinal accessory nerve, or cranial nerve 11.