Role of Rhomboids & Lower Trapezius in Shoulder Stabilit

[Mike Baldwin]

My journey continues ..... (slowly, slowly, slowly) ....

Could I encourage those of you who are throwing around ( even slightly ) serious weight to comment specifically on the role of the Rhomboids & Lower Trapezius ( & greater awareness of the action of same ) in stabilizing the scapula into the "packed shoulder" / "shoulder down" position, and how/if greater progress through this has helped your clubbell/circular strength development.

Cheers :D

[Shaf]

Mike.

I can't speak from a CST viewpoint, but, as a competitive powerlifter, strengthening this area has resulted in a dramatic increase in stability in both the squat and the bench press for me. It's also improved my arch and my ability to control the bar on the bench press descent.

Shaf

[Mike Baldwin]

Evening Shaf,

Thank you for your response.

As well as the suggestions presented by Doug Szolek in his OCS Training Manual, I have been trying to develop a few waves, body weight and clubbell exercises to further strengthen,balance and assist in bringing my left side structure and particularly coordination up to par with my right side.

Anything you have found useful I would be pleased to hear about.
(I have access to dumbbells and barbells also if the exercises you suggest require them.)

Cheers :D

[JasonE]

I have been trying to develop a few waves, body weight and Clubbell® exercises to further strengthen,balance and assist in bringing my left side structure and particularly coordination up to par with my right side.

Anything you have found useful I would be pleased to hear about.

As a life-long left-handed person, I am constantly working to balance my right with my left. Since many things in life are right-dominant, I haven't had a lot of choice in the matter. :wink:

For gross activities and strength, I work both arms to the limit of my right side. While my left could certainly handle more, I find that the overall strength difference between right and left has decreased considerably.

For technical skills like stick and knife fighting, I force myself to start with the right side until I basically "get it", then switch to the left. It takes very little time to transfer the skill to the left, then I work both sides, spending twice the time on the right than on the left. :idea: This helps transfer into what I consider fine motor skills.

Fine motor skills like writing, drawing, using chopsticks, applying submissions, and working on my car have all benefited from working with my right hand. While I still use my left more than my right for these, I do find that they are easier with either hand than they were before I started using my right hand too. It seems that developing basic fine motor skills on the right side has automatically transfered greater coordination to my left as well.

What I'm trying to say is that my experience has been that it matters less *what* you do, but *how* you do it. :lol: As if you haven't heard that before! Work your weak side as much as you can, and let it set the pace for your dominant side. As the gap narrows, your overall coordination will improve.

Working finer skills makes it easier to work strength-building techniques, so you may want to grab some chopsticks and get to work with your off-hand. :!: You may be surprised at how quickly that powerful hand of yours tires when manipulating two small, light pieces of wood. :shock:

If someone could explain this skill-transference from the practiced weak side to the unpracticed dominant side, I'd appreciate it. :D I'm left-handed and right-legged, and I've never figured out how all that works.