Imagine we were created without shoulder joints. How could we possibly enjoy the freedom of moving every which way, climbing trees, pressing objects overhead, and even just lifting stuff? It would be extremely difficult to move without our shoulder joints.
The shoulder joints, in my book, are the second most abused joints in the body, next to the ankle joints. The mere act of eating, scratching our backs, and other activities that involve the upper body would be hard to do without it.
Since the time when humans had to learn how to hunt for food, their shoulder mobility has been excellent. The hunters of the past had to stalk, hunt, and kill their prey prior to slaughtering, and preserving the meat. Without the help of their shoulder joints, these tasks would have been next to impossible.
Fast-forward to the advancement of technology wherein we can easily buy meat in the supermarket, all ready for cooking. This has been a huge shift, and our human natural movement patterns have changed with the times.
At this day and age, it is rare that we move our arms upward and downward in full range to do basic household chores. Often, we ask our household help to accomplish these tasks for us.
This also holds true at work where we are mostly assisted by machines and computers. Most employees spend about six hours in the office sitting down.
The call to move our joints every single day is far greater than you realize it. Our shoulder joints are so vital in all upper body movement patterns. And this is what the last edition for this series will focus on.
At work or in sports, shoulder mobility plays a vital role in multi-plane movement. Mobility must work together with the flexibility of the muscle (fascia). Any movement restrictions due to tightness of the muscle tissues and the entire fascia line of a specific muscle group will result in poor movement patterns. Poor movement patterns will also mean movement compensation. Subsequently, this will redound to injuries in affected joints and muscle tissues.
Over time, a poor movement pattern will develop that will result into more damaging body mechanics. By human nature, we will begin to move in accordance to a wrong movement pattern mainly to avoid the pain we were already experiencing from the beginning.
If you notice, most athletes have injuries. Even the greatest players may have limited capacity to enhance their prowess in their specific sport once a single joint is not properly functioning due to lack of mobility training from the start of their career.
Elite athletes often undergo physical therapy and rehab training to get back in shape, and be game ready. It is a fact that our connective tissues and ligaments go through wear and tear over time.
This will lead us to the need for proper training. A scientific and evidence-based programming is essential to prepare the athlete even in the most demanding phase of every game. Bear in mind then that even athletes suffer the pain of injuries despite long years of training in their beloved sport. How painful could it possibly be for a sedentary person to accomplish a certain task when the need arises, especially in times of emergencies and natural disasters beyond our control?
We are highly-encouraged to move in compound multi-joint patterns to enhance full range of movements in every joint, and the body’s entire kinetic chain. Furthermore, this enables us to avoid under-trained muscle groups and under-utilized joints.
Weak muscle + tight joints = poor movement pattern. Our muscles need constant stimuli to work at its peak. The more joints involved in a movement pattern, the more muscle fibers are recruited to accomplish a specific task. So whether you’re a regular individual or one actively-involved in sports, always make sure your shoulder joints are mobilized.
Here in this FIT to FUNction space, we recommend training modalities that have programs designed with a purpose. We don’t just move for nothing. We keep moving to become something. Our life should not only be of grandeur but also a life of significance.
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