Kinesiology THURSDAY – Getting Your Hand Behind Your Back

Ever try this move? Just looking at this picture may elicit a groan. But your shoulders are designed to do this and if you were to give this a try, I venture a guess that most of you would have limitations in the shoulder that is going into extension/adduction/internal rotation (EADIR), the hand behind the back move, and that it’s worse on one side.

If you do this move and you feel a pain in your shoulder (instead of a stretch), then using a towel to gain this range of motion isn’t the answer. According to this study (and my clinical observations), there is little correlation between internal rotation of the shoulder and your ability to put your hand behind your back.

So what locks this movement up? Here’s a short list of what is required to make this movement happen:

Joint movement	Evaluation/Test	Movement Fix
Thoracic extension	Wall test – Stand with your back up against the wall. Your head and upper back should be touching the wall	Wall angels Foam roll alternating shoulder flexion STEMs
Scapular retraction	Prone T – Lie prone with your arms out to a “T”. Lift one arm off the floor. Here’s a video of someone doing both at the same time. Try one at a time. You should feel like you are working the rhomboid between your shoulder blades. If you feel	If you have shoulder pain with this, try releasing the infraspinatus trigger pointat the inferior angle THEN perform single arm rhomboid rows (arm abducted 45-70 degrees).
Ipsilateral thoracic side bending	Seated butt rockers – Sit tall on a chair and lightly cross your hands on your chest. Rock your weight onto your right sit bone and lift your left one off the chair. Your spine should make a “C” curve. Repeat on the other side. Are they the same?	The test is the fix. Practice seated butt rockers OR try the wall washing exercise.
Contralateral thoracic rotation	Side lying thoracic rotation – Lie on your left side with your hips and knees bent to 90˚. Roll your right shoulder back and try to touch your shoulder blade to the floor. Repeat on the other side. Are they the same?	The test is the fix here too. Also, try tubing 90/90 rows, pulley punches and mid pulley rows.

Conventional thinking says: If you can’t put your hand behind your back, you lack internal rotation of the shoulder. Grab a towel and stretch it.

Real World Thinking says: Putting your hand behind your back involves way more than shoulder internal rotation. It requires an intricate set of movements involving the scapula and thoracic spine. Test each of those movements and fix what you find. Here are some ideas to unlock the thoracic spine and release the infraspinatus to help your rhomboid activate better.

Because nobody has time to be in pain.

Until next time…