In this short, Dr. Ivan Bracic, DC, clinical director at Novaré Injury Care and Rehab in Fort Myers, explains a simple mirror check for rounded shoulders. He shows how to look at the knuckles of your hands in a mirror, and how engaging the muscles between the shoulder blades draws the shoulders back.
Read the full guide: Stretching Exercises for Seniors: 6 Daily Mobility Moves →
Video Transcript
Hey, when it comes to mid-back pain, shoulder pain, there's a very important group of muscles in your mid-back called the subscapularis. And when they're engaged, it helps retract the shoulders.
Let's take a look. Stand in the mirror, close your eyes and take a look, and look at the knuckles of your hands. If you can see more than one or two knuckles, your subscaps are not engaged. You're letting them roll forward.
All of a sudden, you can see more knuckles. This is a lazy subscap, even though I'm standing straight.
Engage the subscaps and the scapula retract. They come back along with the rhomboids. They come together as a team to help provide proper stabilization of the shoulders and the mid-back.
Read the full guide on mobility moves for seniors, including rounded shoulders →