Are your shoulders jacked up a little bit from spending too much time sitting in class or at your desk in the office or even because you spend too much time in the car behind the wheel?
A simple fix or at least a great place to start would be to try to implement some floor slides. Floor slides add a lot of bang for your buck from both a mobility and stability standpoint.
A few key benefits;
- stretching the pecs and the internal rotators of the shoulder
- activating the lower trap and the external rotators of the shoulder
- decreases the use of the upper trap which is overactive in most people
You might also be shocked with how difficult it is for you to get into this position, especially if your shoulders are really jacked up. You may also find that one shoulder moves better then the other which is something to take note of.
A couple keys to the floor slide;
- try to keep both the arms and the wrists in contact with the floor/ground the entire time
- focus on retracting and depressing the scapulae
- while you are actively moving the arms overhead, continue to focus on keeping both the arms and wrists in contact with the floor/ground the entire time
- if it hurts, don’t do it
Generally speaking, 1-2 sets of 8-12 reps during your warm up before training or part of a movement maintenance program away from your daily strength training will do the trick.