When Stretching is not Enough – Looking Beyond the Symptom of Tightness and Figuring out the Source of the Problem

Christopher Warden, CSCS

Today’s post is by guest author Christopher Warden, CSCS – Certified Specialist in Health, Fitness and Performance Enhancement and author of Fitness Philosopher.

Why is My Shoulder Tight?  And Is Stretching the Only Option to Fix It?

To this day, it still seems the most common prescription for a tight or painful shoulder is to stretch it.  The reason is logical enough: if the symptom is in the shoulder, the problem’s likely in the shoulder, so it’s best to treat the shoulder directly.

But is the stiffness in your shoulder the sole problem, or is it the symptom of another underlying factor?

And is stretching an ideal first response, or are there other remedies that can make stretching more effective, if not eliminate the need for it altogether?

Generally speaking, unless you’ve done direct physical damage to a joint, the symptoms you’re feeling are likely a reflection of a bigger underlying condition.  While it’s natural to look directly at the joint in question – the shoulder, in this case – contemplating other factors that are contributing to your stiff shoulder will go a long way toward healing the problem completely, as opposed to temporarily relieving the symptoms.

So, what’s causing your tight shoulder?  It could be the result of any of these three interrelated conditions:

• Poor posture. The body’s ability to function and feel good all starts with good posture.  Without it, you lose movement efficiency while placing additional stress on your joints.
• Faulty Movement Patterns. Mobility and stability work in a continuum with each other and provide the foundation for all movement.  As you age, the activities you do, injuries you experience or habits you’ve formed impact joint mobility and stability and, in turn, your movement capabilities. This, of course, can translate into joint pain/stiffness.
• Strength imbalance. Whether it’s an adaptation to poor habits (ex. prolonged sitting with poor posture) or from unbalanced training, strength imbalances can create stiffness/mobility issues.

What else can be done, aside from stretching, to make your shoulder feel better?

• Smart training. Ensure this by subjecting yourself to a movement screen designed to measure your quality of motion and enable you to create a training regimen that (among other things) specifically targets your weaknesses.  If you don’t want to take things that far (though I strongly suggest you do!), a bit of common sense will serve you well: if your body is in a constant state of flexion (because you sit all day long), train with a focus on extension!  If you typically emphasize pushing movements while training, pull more often!  Correcting your imbalances will have a positive effect on the mobility of your shoulder.
• Self-massage/Trigger point work. A little imagery to illustrate this point:  When you pull on the ends of a knotted rope, what happens to the knot?  It gets tighter.  The same concept applies to muscle.  Stretch muscles containing knots, and you risk making the knots tighter – not a preferred result when you’re trying to relieve tightness, is it?!  Releasing knots with self-massage and/or trigger point work helps muscle to lengthen naturally, making stretching less irritating and more effective, if not entirely removing the need for it.
• Develop body awareness. This goes well beyond the mind-body connection established in the gym.  Pay attention to how you sit, stand . . . move throughout the day.  Taking the time to develop awareness can help rectify any imbalances you have, and prevent the formation of new ones.

All the above said, the point of this post isn’t to portray stretching as an inadequate modality for treating a tight shoulder complex.  It’s to remind you that the body functions together as a whole – not as an aggregate of individually functioning parts.  Physical factors not immediately obvious as “connected to the shoulder” can (and do) influence shoulder health.  Be cognizant of that and you’ll increase your chances of fixing your shoulder and avoiding injury in the future.

- Christopher is certified in the Functional Movement Screen and is coach in NYC.  For more information on him and his training services, check him out at www.christopherwarden.com

Tagged as: faulty movement, functional movement screen, poor posture, self-massage, shoulder stiffness, shoulder stretching, strength imbalance, trigger point therapy