User blogs
Back and shoulder pain can mean a lot of things. However, one of the most common culprits is overuse or strain of the rotator cuff.
The rotator cuff is a ring of muscles surrounding each shoulder joint. They’re responsible for giving the shoulders their impressive multi-directional range-of-motion. However, they are also very delicate.
Many people who have overuse injuries of the rotator cuff are athletes who often make arm motions above their heads, like pitchers and quarterbacks. However, people with physically demanding jobs like stockers and construction workers can also have these problems. Further, acute issues like sprains and strains can also impact these muscles.
A recurring theme throughout this article - and our website - is that overuse and damage can be prevented through careful strengthening and toning of the muscle groups. The muscles of the rotator cuff are no different, and strengthening your shoulders can help reduce pain.
The bad news is that they can be difficult to target effectively. The good news is that the muscles of the chest and back do most of the heavy lifting. As a result, familiarizing yourself with exercises to develop the back and chest can help to make these injuries less likely.
Written by Leo Ochoa
Date: January 14, 2021
“What I’ve learned is you just got to stay focused and believe in yourself and trust you own ability and judgement.” – Mark Cuban.
To place an image in our minds of what focus is we should think of a race horse with blinders on during the Kentucky Derby. They’re really only able to see what’s ahead. Not able to see the other horses next to them, their jockey that’s on their back, or what time it is. Only on the road ahead. During training, the jockey usually rewards the horse for moving in the right direction at the correct speed.
As athletes we are the race horse. Of course there are others next to us competing with us and we usually have people in our corner or behind us pushing us in the ‘right’ directions. The only thing that matters is our level of focus on what we need to do to run our own race. Only we control our effort and our attention to what we need to work on to get better.
Date: 06.15.2021
