January 2015 Upper Trapezius

Upper Trapezius

Have you ever felt tightness in your upper shoulders or into your neck? How about a headache at the back of your head, or up the side of your head into your temple? If you answered “Yes”, it is likely that your Upper Trapezius muscle was involved. I will share with you how this muscle works, as well as the easiest and most effective ways to take care of this muscle.  Knowing how your body works can help you to keep your body working well.

Where is Upper Trapezius located?

The Trapezius muscles are appropriately named since each side looks like a trapezoid. The right and left sides together form a diamond shape from the back of the head, out to each of the scapulae, and down to the middle of the back.  The Trapezius muscle consists of 3 sections on each side, the upper, middle, and lower fibers.  This article focuses on the highest portion, known as the Upper Trapezius.

What does Upper Trapezius do for me?

We use our Upper Trapezius to raise our shoulders up to our ears, or “shrug” them.  In addition to supporting the weight of our arms at our side, the Upper Trapezius rotates the shoulder blade upward as we reach forward and overhead.  The Upper Trapezius connects to the base of our skull, and we use it to look up and extend our neck. The left side of the Upper Trapezius rotates our head to the right when it contracts, and vice versa.

Why does my Upper Trapezius get injured or sore?

Overdoing any of the above motions or lifting too heavy a weight may cause this muscle to become strained. Also, cradling a telephone between your ear and shoulder for long periods of time may cause this muscle to become shortened, then tight or painful.

What can I do to keep my Upper Trapezius working well?

As you sit or stand comfortably, try the following activities to feel your Upper Trapezius working on each side of your body. Remember to stay within a pain-free motion.  You can perform each of these a few times to get the circulation moving and feel your muscles working.

1. Raise your shoulders up toward your ears. Relax them down.

2. Look up to the right and bring the left ear toward your left shoulder. Reverse.

3. Keep your elbows straight and raise your arms straight in front of you.

4. Keep your elbows straight and raise your arms out at an angle in front of you.

5. Keep your elbows straight and raise your arms out to the side.

Did you feel your Upper Trapezius muscles working? Great!

How can I strengthen my Upper Trapezius muscles?

If you want a little more strenuous exercise for these muscles, try “Shoulder Shrugs” while holding a weight in each hand. Some other strengthening exercises commonly performed that involve the Upper Trapezius are the “Clean and Jerk”, where a weight is lifted from the floor to the shoulder, then raised straight up overhead. You can also perform “Upright Rows” where you raise a bar, kettlebell or weight in front of your chest as you bend your elbows out to the sides. “Dead lifts” also work your Upper Trapezius as they support the weight of your arms and any extra weight you are lifting in front of you.

As you can see, Upper Trapezius is a very important muscle and has some functions we rely on many times throughout every day.  It is important to make sure your Upper Trapezius is working at it’s best.  

Latissimus Dorsi

Latissimus Dorsi is one of my favorite muscles! The Latin name “Latis” means broad, and “Dorsi” comes from the Latin word dorsum, which means back. This huge muscle connects the arm to the lower back. When Latissimus contracts, it pulls your arm toward your side, allows you to reach behind you, it helps your trunk, ribcage and spine rotate and bend to that side, AND it helps you use your arms to push up from a chair. Wow, that is one very busy and important muscle!! You have likely used the “Lat Pull Down” machine at the gym to build strength and tone up this area. You can also work the Lats by doing Rows, Planks (on your side), pullups, bridges, dead-lifts, and all sorts of exercises with an Exercise Ball. If you have questions about whether any of these exercises are right for you, or if you want to be sure your Lats are working properly, I’d love to help you!

Gluteus Maximus

Gluteus Maximus 

I MUST share some very valuable information to help you avoid the same problems I’ve been helping my clients solve for the past year. As I continue to grow and serve more clients through my independent MAT business, I work 2 days/week as a PT at “Knee Specialists of Wisconsin.” Our clients have advanced stage osteoarthritis in one or both of their knees, are in terrible amounts of pain, and are trying to avoid knee replacement surgery. I use MAT to get to the “bottom” of why my physical therapy client’s joints broke down in the first place, as I help them move better, feel better and live better.

I believe I have identified one of THE key issues affecting 95% of my clients with knee pain and joint deterioration: The Gluteus Maximus muscles, or buttocks, are not working efficiently!
Our Gluteus Maximus muslces are 2 of the largest muscles on our body. As you can see from the picture, the “glutes” begin up in the hip, and they attach to the outside of the knee joint through the Iliotibial band (ITBand). Any of you ever experience tight IT bands?? Well, typically we rely upon our glutes to be the most efficient muscles we use to get up and down from a chair, toilet, or car seat, etc. How many times do you do this each day, each month, each year.....? How do you know you are using your glutes correctly? What do you think happens after years of wear and tear from improperly balanced forces through our important hip and knee joints?

After specifically analyzing the joint and muscular mechanics of my clients, I have found it is more common than I realized that the gluteus muscles are not working properly to balance the forces around our hip and knee joints. Unfortunately, 80% of the jobs today are considered “sedentary” and so most people are sitting on their buttock muscles all day long. The pressure applied can weaken or “inhibit” these muscles from performing their intended function. This is not helping matters!

Our buttocks muscles were not designed to be just a SEAT CUSHION!!!

You are likely wondering, “What can we do about this?” Well, you are in luck. There is hope! I have some helpful and easy to implement strategies for you.

1. While sitting, simply squeeze your cheeks underneath you, press your feet flat into the floor, as you feel yourself rise up a little in your chair (stop giggling, I’m serious! : ) and hold this for 6 seconds, rest 5 seconds and repeat this series 6 times. You can do both sides together or try one at a time.

2. Stand up straight behind the chair, hold the back of the chair with your hands for support, and squeeze your buttocks now. Feel the entire back side of your body begin to come to life again? Great! Contracting your “Glutes” will stimulate a whole chain of muscles to work more efficiently as you engage them, and then your hip flexors will naturally get the message to relax and elongate.
Want more? There are all sorts of great exercises to strengthen the glutes, however we must be sure that the “full circle” of communication between our brain and gluteus muscles is intact before we move on to the strengthening phase. Luckily, it is fairly easy to test all 3 of the different sections of your “glutes” to see which ones are truly working and which ones may be weak. I’m happy to help you make the most of your time in your chair and help to prevent a future of sore and creaky knees.

Let me know how you like these exercises, and what other muscles may be of interest to you to learn more helpful tips to keep them activated!