Many of us experience pain in the neck and shoulder muscles. Tight muscles, caused by stress, poor posture, insufficient movement and exercise, need to be stretched on a daily basis.
The shoulder joint has the largest range of movement of all the joints in our bodies. Think of what you can do-swing your arms 360 degrees, move them up to the side of your body, swing them backwards and forwards and so on. All of the motions involved in throwing a ball, swinging a tennis racket, swimming, punching and a variety of motions in sport involve the shoulder muscles. This tremendous range of motion has a downside, which is that the shoulder is prone to instability and injury. Thus, we need to take care of the muscles and ensure they maintain their natural flexibilty, strength and range of motion.
Briefly, the strongest shoulder muscles are the deltoid muscles. They are attached to the upper arm and the shoulder blade and allow movement of the arm up and to the side of the body. There are 4 rotator cuff muscles which form a cuff around the joint and allow the arm to rotate.
Other muscles attached to the scapula include the trapezius, the big triangular muscle at the top the back, and the rhomboid muscles.
Shoulder stretch. Place your right hand at the back of your neck and touch the space between the shoulder blades, if you can. Your right elbow should be pointing upwards. Grab your right elbow with your left hand and then pull slightly, stretching the right shoulder muscles.
4 Stretching Guidelines 1. You should never feel sharp or sudden pain. If you do, stop – you are pushing yourself too far-beyond your current safe range of movement. 2.Breathe deeply. If you breathe deeply, your muscles will relax and you will be able to stretch more deeply.If you hold your breath, you make yourself tense and will find it more difficult to stretch. 3. Stretch daily. If you only stretch once a week you will find it hard to improve your flexibility. Consistent stretching for a few minutes each day will, over time, build your range of movement and flexibility. 4.Increase your time in each stretch by a few seconds each week. Use a watch or timer. Start with 10-15 seconds and extend this by 5 seconds each week until you can hold a stretch for at least 30 seconds.
