Posted on 01/22/2020 10:58:47 AM PST by rebuildus
Okay, today I suppose Im trying to outdo myself for old schoolishness!
This is a protocol Ive been using to help restore function to my injured shoulder, as well as to help decompress my spine. WATCH VIDEO.
I tweaked the shoulder a year ago doing bench dips. I overextended the movement, which isnt that hard to do, its one reason why the exerciseand regular dips toocan be dangerous to the shoulder girdle.
Dont get me wrongdips can be an excellent chest, shoulder, tricep, and serratus anterior muscle (over and above the ribcage) exercise. But you have to be very careful not to overstretch the shoulder muscles and tendons on the way down.
There are many exercises and methods to rehab or strengthen the shoulder. Ive used some, and they are effective. And keep in mind that shoulders typically take a fair amount of time to get better.
The Bar Hang! But the simplest protocol (by far) that Ive seen to bring the shoulders back into condition is the good ole bar hang. I found an interesting book written by a retired orthopedic surgeon named Dr. John Kirsch, MD.
Dr. Kirsch became weary of seeing so many people get shoulder surgeries, he believes, in many cases (but not all) unnecessarily.
Of course, if you have a shoulder injury, you should have it checked out by a professional, and get a second opinion if possible. But Dr. Kirsch believes that a person should make sure that surgery is absolutely necessary before diving in.
The reason Dr. Kirsch recommends bar hanging is because (per his website): When engaged, the humerus (upper arm bone) leans on the acromion bending this structure, providing more room beneath the acromion. This leads to healing sub-acromial impingement syndrome, frozen shoulder and rotator cuff tear symptoms.
Go to his site and see the image yourself (scroll down) to best understand (a picture is worth a thousand words, as they say). And buy his book (Im not making any money from this link, fyi) to get more detail on why and how this works, and to read the many testimonials of people who have helped repair their injured shoulders.
As I said, in my particular case, my shoulder has healed slowly, but since Ive incorporated the hanging per Dr. Kirschs instructions, its headed in the right direction.
How and How Often to Hang Everybody is different, but its clear thatlike almost everything in lifethat more frequent practice (assuming recovery in between sessions) is best (meaning a person may need to do the exercise up to daily for best results). I explain this further in my video. And I would not start by hanging with full weight, but have the feet on the ground or something else to assist you. And start slow, such as doing one set of hanging for ten seconds, and work your way up.
Supplemental Exercises Dr. Kirsch also recommends supplemental shoulder exercises with light dumbbells, as I also demonstrate in my video.
If you have pain or reduced movement in your shoulders, I would at least go to Dr. Kirschs site and pick up his book. Give it a good read, and if everything makes sense to you, and youre physically able to hang, then give it a try. This is not guaranteed to work for everyone, but Dr. Kirsch states that it works in a high degree of cases.
You may just find something really simple that may help you reduce pain and restore proper shoulder function. And that will improve your entire quality of life and allow you to work and play again without serious limitations.
To your Health and Fitness,
Patrick
Patrick Rooney is the Founder of OldSchoolUs.com. Its focus is natural health and independent living. Patrick is the author of GREEK PHYSIQUE: The Simple, Satisfying Way to Sculpt Your BodyEven if Youre Old, Weak, or Broken Down; and is also the creator of Greek Yoga and the Greek Yoga for Beginners video. He offers health and fitness consulting in-person in Middle Tennessee and worldwide via phone, Zoom, and Skype. To reach Patrick, email him at info@oldschoolus.com.
Awesome cat. You know love is pure like that - animals know who’s good people. I have a mini-Dobie who thinks he’s 90 pounds more than his 18 and his mission is protecting me. Did you see that video where all the dogs went wonky but the judge ruled in the end they were all good boys?
Seriously, I’ve got a deteriorated set of neck vertebrae thanks to extra crispy radiation cancer treatments weakening them. Now I’ve had to push for the risky operation, front and back opening, to install a logt of hardware so this man can hold his head up in it’s natural position. And by God that is true and I will endure that. I have the Vanderbilt/VA willing to go and only a super detailed set of scans remain. I’m willing to risk paralysis or crippling for the regaining of full ability/mobility. Or should I settle for a head looking down with a neck collar for life? I have to go for fix. I guess I’m asking someone to tell me alternatives as I’ve always been stuck in a warrior mindset.
Hahahaha...omg, that is so....so...”cat”. That’s too funny!
No, I hadn’t seen that...can you post the link or freepmail it to me?
Well, we love our animals. We sure do...
Hey MikeTackNailer,
Sorry to hear about your dilemma. I am unfamiliar with this procedure, and I have no suggestions, other than to pray and ask God to guide you to the right decision. I wish you the best.
It can also break and then you are up a creek.
Hanging is going to put stress on it and it will probably blow if it is torn badly enough.
And lifting your arm that far can be a problem as well.
After it is repaired or before you tear the tendon, all of the exercises are a real good thing.
But I had a torn tendon, bursa and cuff and went the surgery route and PT after. I now have full use of my arm again.
Doing your full PT and then keeping up the exercises seems to be the key.
I have degenerative disc disease with a bad sciatic. I go to a massage place that specializes in therapy massage. Everyone there used to work in chiropractic offices. They literally hurt me because they know all the pressure points, etc. The next day I’m sore as heck but then the day after that I can walk again. I love a good massage person.
Try that CBD Pro-Level 5 salve right after your maswsage, and you won’t hurt for the day. It’s ABSOLUTELY LIFE CHANGING!
I’m all in on law and order and enforcing societal standards and such...
But hanging someone because they have pain? That might be just a bit much.
Mini mike bloomberg should try using this before his next debate! LOL
Hahahahahaha! I could just see a faux advertisement for one of these tables with Mini Mike! (Did you make that up? I like it...:)
Not mini mike, but I thought he should try an inverted table!
I could not find a good picture of the exercise, but you can see the twist of the chest in this picture. The head and hips stay facing/looking forward, while the chest/shoulders and outstretched arms twist as a unit to their fullest (straight to the front/back (90 degrees) or even a bit more, if everything else can be kept without breaking position).
The basic exercise is done with feet shoulder width (or a bit more) apart. Stand tall and reach out to the sides, stretching everything, and alternatively rotating the torso left and right,pausing at the farthest point on each side to stretch/contract/reach for 10 seconds, while lifting your sternum to tilt your head and (straight) neck backwards.
As you rotate the torso, the outstretched arms just move with it, with no additional movement in the shoulder joint. So while the arms start stretched out to your sides, after your torso turns 90 degrees, they are reaching for the other set of walls in the room. Although the head stays facing forward, it requires an effort like turning the head maximally to keep it there, as the torso rotates the other way (isometrically contracting and stretching the cervical spine).
You can also see in this picture (especially the woman), how when the thoracic spine is fully extended (arced backward, sternum lifted), the head goes backward, even though the neck itself is totally straight. We seldom make that full extension in daily life, but it is the counter to the all too common forward slump over the desk, computer or cell phone.
What is hard to see in this picture, is that the man maintains a high degree of external rotation of his arms (humerus) in the shoulder joints, even though his left hand (wrist) might be decoratively rotated inward (palm down), and his right arm is rotated internally to a high degree at the elbow. It is clear to see that his shoulders/shoulder blades are dropped rock bottom - no hunching up.
Ballroom dance changed a lot over the 20th century, becoming more athletic. Very full range of motion is central to their athleticism - kind of the best practice for that characteristic.
Full extension of everything at once - head to foot standing to tall, stretching each vertebrae open, and reaching strongly with each hand in opposite directions - and then putting maximal twist on the shoulder joints (external rotation of the arms and lowering of the shoulder blades) as well as the spine (like wringing water out of a towel); prevents the next joint in the chain of motion from contorting, to provide slack for the one we are trying to stretch, when isolated stretches are used (e.g. rounding your back over when stretching hamstrings. The whole "kinetic chain" is exercised and stretched, from head to foot, and from hand to hand.
This kind of stretch requires no jerky sudden accelerations, or external weights that might exceed the ability of the weak point in the motion. Full control. You can easily control the amount of contraction through any injured or sticking point, depending on how it feels that day.
The squeeze or reach (isometric contraction) at the end of the movement preferentially strengthens the muscles at that extreme point of the range - optimally targeting the development where strength is needed to improve the range of motion. As they say in Chinese internal martial arts, "add one inch (to your max reach), double the power".
Safe and effective rehab.
CBD does nothing for me.
Have you tried the level 5, 40% ointment, NOT the weak creams, but the opaque 40% ointment?
I have a cousin that works at a hemp farm/Cbd place. Ive tried everything. I might as well drink water. My personal opinion is its a placebo.
I had a friend who bought the book but only got thru the first two pages.......Unfortunately he misinterpreted the hanging part. We miss him dearly
There are no “standards” yet, so it is an unregulated industry, and the potencies vary wildly from product line to product line, and formulation to formulation. All I can vouch for is what I bought from that URL is that it works for me. Getting off Oxycodene and morphine was a blessing. So sorry it doesn’t work for you.
IIRC, we don’t always agree on some things. However, this was a terrific post, thank you.
As a leader, my head is always turned left. I’ll have to try this, it may help balance things out.
“IIRC, we don’t always agree on some things.”
Nobody agrees on everything - but we can all agree on good posture and frame...
May as well aim for perfect.
Aim small, miss small.
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