If you’ve been around Crossfit long enough, odds are you’ve had an ache or a pain pop up somewhere along the way. These “cranky” areas tend to lend themselves to giving Crossfit as a whole a bad rep as dangerous-however, we think that thought needs to be reframed. If we are moving our bodies well and exercising regularly, a few flare ups of overuse injuries may come and go. However, a bout of shoulder pain for 4-6 weeks is significantly less damaging than metabolic conditions developed due to sedentary lifestyle behaviors, including diabetes and heart disease.
Now that we got our soap box out of the way, let’s dive in to one of the most commonly complained about areas in Crossfit-the shoulder.
Shoulder pain stinks-we don’t realize how much we use our shoulder for until it starts hurting to use it. Whether it is pain and pinching reaching overhead, or pain with reaching behind our back or handing our kid a toy in the back seat, those pains can get in the way of living life. What causes shoulder pain in Crossfit, and what can we do?
Typically, we can think about breaking the shoulder up into two camps- the stiff shoulder, and the mobile shoulder.
The stiff shoulder is someone who maybe hasn’t raised their arms overhead in a hot minute. They may have a desk job, where they spend 8 hours a day with their arms locked in to the same position, typing away on a keyboard. This person lacks mobility, and Crossfit demands it. When they start Crossfit, they are moving into ranges of motion they may not have been in for some time, and applying load to those positions. People in the stiff shoulder category need to hone in on mobility drills to improve their shoulder and midback mobility.
The other side of the camp is the mobile shoulder crew, our bendy friends. These may be folks who are double jointed, that have the fun party trick of touching their thumb to their forearm, or who you notice stand with banana knees. Having mobility is fantastic, but we also need strength within those ranges to own those positions. People in the mobile camp run into achey shoulders when they are exploring potentially new ranges, with load, for the first time (or progressing load as they develop In crossfit). People who fall into the mobile shoulder category need to focus on strength and stability of their shoulder in a variety of positions, so their body is prepared for the demands being placed on it.
Aches and pains come and go. If you are struggling with shoulder pain, the best thing to do is to pop in to the office of a fitness forward physical therapist. At Disrupt PT and Wellness, our goal is to keep you in the gym working towards YOUR goals, all while rehabbing your shoulder.
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