Connecting the arms to the torso through the shoulder is not a simple matter of strengthening or mobilizing the shoulder, although both are involved to some degree. A connected shoulder is one that allows free passage of force. This force could be as simple as the weight of the arms themselves being transferred into the body, allowing them to be held and used with ease. It could also be transferring an external force applied to the arms, such as from a weight, or some other kind of external resistance, through to the torso (and either down through the feet into the ground, or even better emptying it into the center directly). It can work in the other direction too, allowing the pressure from the foot pushing into the ground to be transferred up through the body and out through the hands.
In other words, a connected shoulder is one that is both open and released, or more accurately, perpetually opening and releasing. The effect is that pressure in the arms tends to get drained away, allowing you to hold up your arms and use them for long periods at a time without getting exhausted. It’s quite a different orientation to most western exercise models which try to increase muscular endurance through sustained effort against resistance. What do I mean by this?
Let’s say I stand and hold my arms out straight to the sides with the hands at face height. If I were to follow a conventional exercise approach, I would be struggling against the pressure gravity is exerting on my arms, and working to make that struggle stronger so I can hold my arms up against gravity for longer and with more power. A coach might be cueing me to squeeze the muscles working against the pressure in a particular way to encourage certain muscular chains to be active. Over the long term, I get better and stronger at this, getting more skill at contracting my muscles in this specific way and enduring this contraction for a long time.
The approach I am suggesting is almost the polar opposite; we are perpetually trying to relax and release every muscle and tissue fiber that we can while still keeping the arms in their position. This release strips away everything except for those things which cannot at this point relax, and so those tissues tend to work hard. However, with the intention of continually trying to release, once those tissues are strong enough they too will release and the apparent effort will move down and in, running into the next sticking point of tissues that won’t release. Over time, the muscles that I am using to hold up my arms change. At one point it can feel like muscles in the body are holding the arms and the arms feel very relaxed and at ease, and then when the torso muscles release it can feel like the hips are holding the weight of the arms, and so on. Over the long term the struggle is almost completely nullified; certainly greatly reduced compared to the starting point. Although there has certainly been an endurance of struggle along the way, the overall result is a great reduction in struggle – the pressure simply drains through open pathways either into the ground or into the center (either way it’s not in my body anymore).
There are of course limits to this, we can only drain a certain amount of pressure through the system at any given moment. I won’t be able to stand in front of an oncoming car and transfer all the force of the impact freely through my body like superman, however with this approach many day to day activities become easeful. If I can hold and move my arms above my head for an hour or more with ease, then most of my day to day usage of my arms will be easeful too – I will be able to carry moderate loads, swing a tool for long periods of time, use my arms overhead to change lightbulbs, or paint a ceiling, or hold that picture still while my partner gets me to shift it to see where it looks best, or cut the sourdough loaf that’s gone a bit hard, all without a struggle in the arms.
This quality is also something I explore throughout the rest of the body of course, however bringing a specific focus to the shoulders is a really good idea given that most of us must basically navigate our lives using our arms and hands. It can make a big difference to the quality of our lives if our shoulders are connected and free!
To develop this quality is simple enough, the exercises used just need to be framed and cued properly.
[Feature Photo by Daniele Levis Pelusi on Unsplash.]
Craig can be found at www.craigmallett.com and contacted direct at contact@craigmallett.com