Three great exercises to mobilize the thoracic spine

Do you know that?

You perform an exercise and it pulls in the shoulder ... and pulls ... and pulls.

You know immediately what's going on.

And the only thing that goes through your head is that this unit is over and the next training is not safe.

You hurt yourself.

Injuries of the shoulder during strength training are not uncommon.

Most athletes who regularly do strength training know the problem.

The shoulder is complex!

Shoulder blades and collarbones form the shoulder girdle. The scapula and humerus form the shoulder joint. The shoulder roof (acromion) is the raven beak procession and the bony prominences of the scapula.

And most importantly, but often forgotten:

The thoracic spine.
Bridge It has a huge influence on the function of the shoulder girdle and the shoulder joint.

If you have restrictions in the thoracic spine, it will have a negative impact on your shoulders.

I was allowed to convince myself of it. A high volume of vertical pressure training exercises brought me a hefty right shoulder overload.

Normal training was out of the question for months.
It is so superfluous. All you need to know is how to effectively mobilize your thoracic spine.
And that's what this article is about.

I'll show you three great and effective exercises to mobilize your thoracic spine.

Do you run them regularly, this has many advantages for you:
• your injury vulnerability in the shoulders is extremely reduced
• Exercises will be easier
• Your attitude improves
• And you have three great exercises in addition to your Warm Up routine

These are the exercises:
# 1 windmill in lateral position
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VW6trG_okdo

# 2 T-Spine Bridge
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O9uI19XOTtY

# 3 RKC armbar
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_F6LmviSdc

Here are the possibilities to use them in training:
You should test which of the exercises gives you the most.

The ideal test for this is the overhead reach.

The overhead reach is a test for your lockout position. You check how well you can lift your stretched arm overhead.

If you regularly have exercises in training that move you over the head, it is important to be able to perform a solid lockout position.

Exercises like Military Press, Snatch, Handstand (yes, that too - you push the planet over your head), Turkish Get Up - just to name a few.

How to test:
• Stand with your back to a wall
• The heels are allowed to stand about 5 cm away from the wall.
• Buttocks, shoulders and back of the head touch the wall
• Take one hand and put it between the wall and the lower back
• Tilt your pelvis so that you pinch your hand (you should feel the pressure on the hand throughout the test)
• Lift your free arm straight upside down

The goal is that you can easily raise the extended arm overhead and the wrist touches (with fully extended arm) the wall. The pressure on the hand between wall and lower back stays the same all the time.

After the test, you will do one of the three exercises to mobilize the thoracic spine.

Right after that, test again and pay attention to how it feels.

It may well be that one exercise works better with you than another. You should test this to train efficiently. Do only the exercises that bring you the most. This is exactly the same in exercises for mobilization as in strengthening exercises.

How many repetitions?
• Windmill at least five repetitions on each side
• T-Spine Bridge at least three to five repetitions on each side.
• RKC armbars usually last one to three repetitions on each side.

When is the best time?

# 1: 5-minute flow / routine

If you are familiar with the 5-minute flows, this is the best time.

So you play it safe to get the right dose of exercise. Daily mobilization has the biggest impact on your agility. After all, you do something every day to make it worse.

Unless you're the exception, and you're hardly ever sitting or having unilateral everyday stresses.

# 2: Warm Up

You should do more than circling your arms three times.

There was a time when I did without a warm-up. I thought a few lighter sets of exercises that I wanted to do were enough. If you are dealing with BioFeedback, there is even something to it.

But why would you miss the chance to mentally prepare yourself for training while doing something about the mobility of your thoracic spine?

# 3: As a correction between the strengthening exercises

I'm a big fan of packing "correction exercises" between two strengthening exercises.

Corrective exercises are exercises that prepare something. Goals of these exercises are that either more Bewegungsspie