Brian Schiff’s Blog

It is no secret that the average male gym goer loves to do plenty of bench press exercises.  I was out at a piano bar last weekend celebrating the 10 year wedding anniversary of some close friends and witnessed the “bar body” syndrome firsthand.

For those not familiar with this lingo, the “bar body” belongs to the guy who overworks the chest and biceps, while typically neglecting the back leg muscles altogether.  They routinely sport tight t-shirts and jeans even in the dead of summer in Ohio.

I spotted the bouncer right away.  He was likely 25 years old and obviously proud of his caveman posture and large stature.  What he does not know is that in 5-15 more years he will likely suffer significant shoulder impingement and AC joint arthritis, not to mention he will have little to no upper body flexibility.

Know anyone that fits this description?  Look around in your local health club and you will surely find them.  So, the takeaway messages are:

1. Perform back to chest strengthening exercises in a ratio of 3:2 or even 2:1 to promote balance and better posture
2. You do not need to bench press all the time (once per week is sufficient and may even be too much for some)
3. You should do routine flexibility exercises for the chest as these muscles are tight in most of the population and they can contribute to increased internal rotation of the shoulders and rotator cuff problems

In light of this, I want to share a few effective exercises from my brand new Training & Sports Medicine Update Newsletter.  To view these exercises, click HERE.

If you enjoyed this information, you can get even more info on exercise, recent research, sports performance training, injury prevention and rehab delivered to your inbox monthly by signing up for a subscription to my newsletter.  You can grab the digital version for just $9.95/month.  By subscribing, you are become eligible for immediate product discounts and promotional pricing on all new items.

Click here to sign up and get the entire first issue today!

In health,

Brian

I have been rehabbing rotator cuff injuries for the better part of 13 plus years now.  I also have the privilege of teaching fitness boot camps, educating other fitness pros on training/rehab and training athletes.  One of the most common issues I encounter in my work is rotator cuff pathology (tendinitis, tears, etc.).

I have sold well over 10,000 copies of my Ultimate Rotator Cuff Training Guide (e-book and print versions) since its release in 2004.  While most of the training methodology is still sound today, I wanted to add some new content and tweak a few progressions.  Like anything, with time you gain more experience and wisdom.

In addition, many people were asking me for the DVD version to better understand how to perform the exercises.  So at last, I have released the DVD version.  Some of the new additions include:

• Soft tissue mobility exercises
• Self assessment screening tools
• Integrating a towel roll with rotation exercises

In addition to the DVD itself, you get a companion CD-ROM with my Self Stretching Guide, personal interview on rotator cuff injuries, my 60 minute rotator cuff explained power point and audio seminar, the entire updated rotator cuff e-book, and 5 second video clips of each the particular exercises in the rehab plan.

I am selling this product for $49.95, but until next Wednesday (June 16) you can get it for only $29.95.

Click here to see a sample clip from the DVD

If you decide to grab a  copy, simply use the code BFITCUFF (all caps) at checkout and be sure to hit apply to get credit for the coupon.  You can order at www.brianschiff.com.

This DVD is ideal for people with acute or chronic nagging shoulder pain related to bursitis, scapular imbalances, rotator cuff tendinitis and rotator cuff tears.  As always, I offer a 60 day money back guarantee on all my products.  If you have any questions, simply post them on the blog.

Here’s to happier and healthier shoulders!

So, I have made part of my living the past several years helping people overcome shoulder pain.  I often laugh when I hear people say “how hard can putting together an exercise program really be?  It’s not rocket science or anything.”  Well, maybe not, but getting it just right may mean the difference between a healthy shoulder and really hurting.

There is a new study soon to be released saying weight training injuries are on the rise (especially in males).  In fact, injuries are up 50% from the period between 1990 and 2007.  The majority of these injuries involved free weights.  Many of the upper body injuries I see almost always involve the rotator cuff and/or labrum.  Why?  There are some primary reasons such as:

1. Improper form
2. Poor or absent spotting
3. Exceedingly high loads in what I term the “high risk” soft tissue zones
4. Too much volume/frequency
5. Lack of posterior chain strength due to pressing dominance
6. Too little recovery
7. Pushing through pain

What most people fail to understand is that the high repetition associated with weightlifting coupled with unfavorable biomechanical stress through long lever arms leads to eventual mechanical breakdowns/failure.  The basic translation = fraying, degeneration, tendinitis, tendinosis and tears.

This pattern equates to lost time in the gym and in some cases surgery.  The ironic part is the damage is often done in the early lifting years but not seen or felt for a decade or two later.  This is why the young twenty somethings like to debate me on the modifications I suggest for bench presses and such.  Yet, read what one former power lifter recently emailed me below: 

Yes you can count me as another one of your satisfied customers.  I followed your 6 week injured series religiously and have recently moved on the your healthy shoulder series.

My main concern at this point is to avoid injuring the shoulder again and I will follow your advice on the 7 bonus exercises listed.  My background fits the profile mentioned in your manual - 46 years old, former power lifter, injured dominant shoulder doing barbell presses about 6 months ago.  I have been doing presses for over 30 years and unfortunately never read about the scapular plane.

The take home message is that modifying the load and adjusting the arc of movement with certain lifting exercises will indeed prevent common shoulder injuries and keep you in the gym for many years to come without the fear of a lifting injury.

While the hard core lifters and competitors may scoff at my application of the science and my suggestions now, they may also suddenly come to realize the potential consequences of their ways when a debilitating shoulder injury hits.  Am I saying full range of motion and heavy loads are absolutely forbidden?  No, but I do think you should ask yourself how often and for what purpose am I doing certain lifts in certain ranges of motion.

Additionally, I am saying that insufficient muscular balance coupled with repetitive load to near failure will over time result in acquired laxity, accelerated tendon degeneration and potential mechanical failure.  Gravity and friction are two forces that will tear a shoulder down over time with exercises such as pressing, flies, dips, upright rows, side raises and push-ups to name a few. 

So, the next time you feel a “twinge” in the shoulder with lifting, it may be time to consider backing off and making some changes in your routine as time and experience has taught me the rotator cuff and A-C joint will eventually say "enough is enough."  If you want more information on my exercise modifications, check out my shoulder book at www.rotatorcufftraining.com.

Well, I just finished day two of the 2nd IYCA Youth Summit.  I attended last year as well.  Each year I took away some new info, reinforcement about what I am currently doing along with motivation to become a better coach.  Yet, the best part of attending these live events is building relationships. 

I have met so many incredible coaches and people.  Whether having breakfast with the likes of Kwame Brown and Carlo Alvarez or chatting with Dave Jack and Chris Mohr, I am reminded that greatness is not about ego or self seeking.  Rather, greatness comes from giving, humility and most importantly “doing the right things” for our clients.

What does this look like in my fitness and sports performance business?  Well, it involves the following:

• Putting 100% of my passion into products, training and consulting
• Assessing the needs, abilities and goals of my clients
• Constantly re-assessing to “tweak” programming and exercise prescription
• Being willing to admit when you are wrong or change the way you do or see things when it is in the best interests of the client
• Continually learning and striving to get better each day
• Delivering results through sound evidenced based training (knowing “why” I do what I do)
• Being honest and dedicated to improving the lives of my clients

So, you may be asking why I am telling you all this.  I have a simple answer.  I want you to trust me and look to me as a credible expert when it comes to corrective exercise, rehab and sports performance.  I also want to assure you it really is the proper application of knowledge that defines success with exercise.  It is an exact science.

The types of exercise, reps, sets and such really do matter.  See what one client recently said about my shoulder rehab program:

I began using your exercises immediately.  In just 6 days I have seen significant change.  I have been able to use my hamd/arm again to wash my hair, close my car door, reach for items and just stop holding it up and against my body.  Today I had a weekly massage (she was formerly a PT) and she was amazed at my progress.  I feel there is hope again.  I know the book cost a fee, but I still want to say thank you for creating an exercise plan that does not include torture.

Wow, torture is never good, right?  Exercise should never be painful - just effective.  If you have not seen significant positive change within 30 days, this should raise a red flag.  So, beware of ultra hype and too good to be true claims, yet understand that you should see some measurable results in a reasonable time frame.  I will always stand behind my programs and products. 

With that said, I will be revealing a series of specific exercises I use with my clients over the next month.  In these posts, I will show you the exercise, explain the applications and reveal the training tools I use to make them work.  The posts will give you real exercises you can use to fix muscular imbalances, improve strength and maximize physical health and performance.  Most importantly, you can rest assured I remain 100% committed to doing things the “right way.” 

Whether you are lay person, trainer or therapist reading this blog, I try to keep you up to date on science, training and my interpretation/application of exercise based upon the research and practical application in my practice.

Today, I want to touch on an article just published in the Journal of American Sports Medicine.  It was based on a  study conducted by Tim Tyler et al in New York.  They set out to determine what effect decreasing GIRD (aka glenohumeral internal rotation deficit) and posterior shoulder tightness had on reducing symptoms associated with internal shoulder impingement.

For those unfamiliar with GIRD, it basically looks at total shoulder motion side to side but focuses on deficits in internal rotation.  Throwers often lack internal rotation on their dominant arms and exhibit excessive external range of motion for cocking and ball velocity.  We tend to call this acquired laxity.  Pitchers tend to have higher GIRD as well.  Keep in mind total shoulder motion is critical as well.  So, you cannot assume one will have problems just becasue there is decreased internal rotation.

You may see similar GIRD and psterior shoulder tightness patterns in other overhead athletes (swimmers, tennis players, volleyball players, etc.)  This particular study looked at the effect on 11 men and 11 women who received manual mobilization by a PT combined with ER ROM, posterior shoulder stretches and scapular strengthening.

They studied all 22 subjects (range of symptoms from 1 to 24 months) and then compared data on the patients with and without symptom resolution.  In effect the study revealed that posterior shoulder tightness was significantly improved in 12 of the subjects that had complete resolution of symptoms (more so than in the 10 who did not).  In addition, changes in GIRD did not seek to impact the results.

What is the take away from this study?  In a nutshell, if you have symptoms related to internal impingement, you should be doing posterior shoulder stretches.  So, what are the best ones to do?  There was a recent article in the NSCA Strength and Conditioning Journal (December 2009) that laid out some effective stretches (two of which I will show you in the video).  Also, you should note that this pattern of tightness is common in weight lifters.

I have included a short video clip with 3 effective stretches that easily can be done at home.  The stretches are as follows:

1. Standing cross chest shoulder pull (across the chest) - this is a basic stretch I start most clients with who are experiencing pain.  The drawback is that the scapula is not stabilized (or fixed) so you do not isolate the posterior shoulder effectively.  However, it tends to be more comfortable for many early on and you will still get some benefit.  When you are ready, it can be done against a wall to fix the scapula.
2. Side lying cross chest shoulder pull - this would be equivalent to doing stretch number 1 against a wall.  The floor acts to stabilize the scapula and then you pull the arm up and hold.
3. The sleeper stretch - go easy with this one as pushing too hard may actually increase inflammation in my experience.  You may also vary the angle of the upper arm to hit different portions of the joint capsule.  For example, you may elect to stretch at 90, 70 and 45 degrees.

I advocate holding each stretch for 20-30 seconds and repeating 2-3 times daily.  If you are in therapy, the stretching should be done following the joint mobilization by your therapist.   Click the video below to see the stretches.