Upper Back and Shoulder Stretches

StrangeFox started this discussion · 5/18/2018

Hey guys! I need your help again. :) First...I need to buy the lessons here again. I didn't realize my membership expired until I tried to watch the video for my favorite warm up (the hard core warm up) and the site told me I needed to renew my subscription. Unfortunately, my PayPal is being a nuisance. :( What are some good stretches I can do for my lats/upper back and shoulders? Both have grown significantly in the past couple of months (YAY!) but I have not been stretching them and now I'm getting stuck when I try to do moves like advanced figurehead and seahorse... seriously, it's really hilarious, but I need to fix this. My shoulders are usually OK ...this is the first time I've lost flexibility in them and I'm a bit freaked out because I have zero experience stretching them (never needed to before). Taking people to the "gun show" will lose all of its charm if I can no longer scratch my own back...

6 replies

Veena · 5/18/2018
Once you have the lessons again start with the Bridge stretch https://www.studioveena.com/lessons/view/4deccca1-6624-4065-bc2e-7e100ac37250 and work your way down to the Adv. Ballerina stretch. Choosing all or some of them each time you cool down. The Back mobility routine will help a ton too! https://www.studioveena.com/lessons/view/53000190-d198-4e3e-8e30-6b2c0a9aa0eb Don't forget to foam roll or use a tennis ball on the shoulders, lats and back too!
StrangeFox · 5/18/2018
Thank you! I'll check those out once I get my PayPal sorted (hopefully very, very soon!) :D I've been doing cobras and they've helped my lower back but haven't done much for my upper back. I'm going to foam roll tonight because everything is super tight up there.
Allison Erin · 5/18/2018
I saw someone on IG recommend "puppy pose" (I had to Google it!) once for upper back & shoulders, and now it's my favorite thing. I'm amazed at how much it's helped my shoulders and backbendy lines in a short time. The best part is it's super quick and easy to get into from a child's pose, so it's easy to sneak in to any stretch session. Feels sooo good, too! I've also recently been working on active flexibility in shoulders from a child's pose. Holding the arms straight out and then lifting/holding one at a time without rotating or lifting the chest. Got that one from @cirque_physio, who is amazing. I'm not an expert but that's what's working for me right now! Haha. I hope you find something that works for you!
LatinPoler · 5/18/2018
Puppy pose is great, agreed! Veena, it would be great to have a follow-along routine for shoulders/upper back. I know there are classes for individual stretches that are great for reference, but it would be awesome to have a routine. Stretchit has a very good 15 min YouTube video I've been doing recently, I recommend it.
StrangeFox · 5/18/2018
Thanks so much, ladies! I will definitely check out puppy pose, cirque_physio and StretchIt. :) It's so rare to find upper back stretches that feel good so I'm super excited to try puppy pose! It looks simple and effective. I agree with LatinPoler - I'd love to see an upper back and shoulders routine!
Runemist34 · 5/20/2018
Hey Strangefox! My shoulders, upper back, and neck are all super big problem areas for me, so I have had to learn a lot about stretching and caring for them. First, neck stretching is really, really good for those areas! Especially the traps, as it's all connected. I enjoy doing very deep, slooow movements with my neck, bringing the chin to chest, and then carefully rotating up and to the side. You'll feel it, I promise! You can also use one hand to provide a little more weight to the head, but please be careful doing that ;) I really like doing Eagle arms (from yoga) for a lot of business between shoulder-blade and spine. This one also takes a bit of time to sink into and get used to, but at some point, you'll really feel it! Puppy pose is a modification of Downward dog pose, and both of them are meant to stretch through the front shoulder, and open things up. If you have issues with that one, I would also seriously recommend stretching the chest, too. It's been one of the worst places for me, stretch-wise, because they're so stupidly strong! And, they are also very, very important for good shoulder mobility. If you have lots of knots and tight places in these areas, you can also self-massage with a tennis ball (or if you're more hardcore, a lacrosse ball or something tougher). Go slow with it, because it can be easy to over-do it for a couple days and then really suffer afterward. But, leaning into the ball either on the wall, or laying on it on the floor, and rolling it around, can help so much in working out tension, knots, and soreness. I also will apply pressure to my back with the ball, right around the shoulder blade, and slowly move my arm, from opposite hip to above my head. You can look it up on Youtube, too :) Good luck!