It's a Trap!

Some of you sci-fi fans might've immediately gone here reading that title:

While Admiral Ackbar was right, that's not what I'm talking about.  I'm talking about this:

I'm talking about your trapezius muscles.  More specifically my trapezius muscles that totally bunged up on me and got me to the point I needed a deep tissue massage to get some relief.  I wasn't able to turn my neck, and I created a perfect storm with new to us workouts over the previous two months until they reached their breaking point.  It doesn't take hard workouts to screw your traps either.  Do you use your smartphone?  Do you use a laptop?  Do you have bad posture?  Then you're at risk for getting head and neck pain as well.  First, let's see where your trapezius muscles are located as shown below in red.

They go from your neck, the top of your shoulders and shoulder blades to the middle of your back.  They include muscles that help hold your head up and leaning your head forward to work on your computer all day or scrolling social media all day and night long is going to stress those muscles.  In my case, we were doing a lot more strength training (like we're doing this month) and doing modified burpees that were being done on a folding chair to reduce the amount of body weight but it was still a trauma to go from reverse lunges to slamming half of my body weight down on...you guessed it...my traps.    So how can we keep ourselves from getting text neck or making sure we're treating our traps with love?

1)  Focus on good posture and keep your shoulders away from your ears.  If you're like me when you're typing and get into it, your neck disappears.  Sit up straight, shoulders down and no shallow breathing.  Also, make sure your desk is ergonomically aligned.  If you work in an office, most places do ergonomic assessments for this very reason because they know if you develop health issues related to a poorly set up desk, they could be in hot water.  If you work from home, this guide could give you the start you need to keep everything in line.

2)  Stretch!

Sounds so simple, doesn't it?  But these stretches done a few times a day can keep head, neck, and pain between shoulder blades at bay.

Head to Shoulder Stretch- With your shoulders relaxed, gently tilt your head to the side so your ear leans toward the shoulder. Switch sides. Hold the position for 10-15 seconds.

Diagonal stretch- Gently lean your head diagonally forward so your chin leans toward the opposite shoulder. Hold this position for 10 to 15 seconds then switch sides.

Chin to Chest Stretch- Gently drop your chin toward your chest. Hold the stretch for 10 to 15 seconds.

Shoulder Rolls-  Roll your shoulders forward for 15 counts and backward for 15 counts to keep the shoulders loose and limber.

Exaggerated Shoulder Shrug-  I love this one.  While you can do regular shoulder shrugs just to loosen some of the tension from the day, this one works best for me, especially first thing in the morning.  I lean forward while sitting on the edge of the bed so my chest is on my thighs.  Then I shrug my shoulders as close to or in line with my ears.  I usually hear some good snap, crackle and pops in there.

Arm Across the  Chest Stretch- Place your right arm across your chest, with the elbow slightly bent. With your left hand, grip the right arm just above the elbow.  Gently pull the arm across the body until you feel a stretch in the middle of your back.  Hold for 30 seconds, and repeat on the other side.

You can also get a tennis ball and stand against a door frame.  Place the ball in the middle of your back roll the trap muscles up and down to keep things loose.  This is especially relieving after a workout to keep things from tightening up and piling on the tension in those muscles.


====================
Like this post? Don't miss another one...subscribe via email or RSS feed. (Or you can follow me on Facebook )  Some posts may contain affiliate links which help keep this blog running at no cost to you.  See the Disclaimer page for more info.