Stop Slouching: My stupid shoulder

Do you know that my most popular post on this whole blog is this post about winging scapulae? My mindset around rehab or "corrective exercise" has changed since I wrote that. I no longer think I can fix people or make their movement perfect. Better, maybe. But not perfect. And I can't fix long-term injuries, usually. Again, I might be able to make things better. At a certain point, though, we all have physiological issues that we're going to have to live with. We build them up throughout life. That's part of the deal as humans.

I no longer nitpick so much about "proper" biomechanics of exercise (although still don't do this). Maybe it's because I work primarily with older adults (oldest client is 94, currently!) and I'd have a different mindset if I were working with high-level athletes or something. Mostly, I focus on trying to make clients' movements better rather than perfect. They can only focus on one or two things at a time, anyway.

All of which is a long way to say that my right shoulder is still messed up. In spite of any articles that I've written about corrections for the "problem," my right scapula still wings. And everything around it is kind of FUBAR, too. I'm past trying to fix it. I don't need it to work perfectly; I need it to work well enough. For one thing, I need to be able to pick my bike up by the top tube by the time CX season starts. Right now, that really, really hurts.

Definitely can't do this right now. Photo courtesy of Blooming Cyclist, (c) 2017.

So I've put in a request to see a physical therapist, and I'm going to get some professional help to work this out. I could probably figure out what's wrong and how to fix it with enough research and reading on my own. But I'll soon have enough of that research and reading for my DPT program. I want to spend this summer enjoying my free time while I have it.


Yes, I'm outsourcing my care to another professional. But the alternative is learning to bunny hop the barriers this fall, probably ending up on a video like this. And no one wants to see that.

Healer, heal yourself much?

p.s. That shoulder biomechanics article? 10 years old. Holy crap. I've been doing this for 10 years.