Great Exercises That May Not Be Great For You: Part 1
Very often we hear about various exercises that will help you tone or tighten up a certain area. There are a lot of great exercises to choose from out there that can help the average person meet there goals. There are however a number of exercises that you may want to reconsider engaging in if you meet certain conditions. In this article we’ll take a look at one of those exercises.
Dumbbell Overhead Press:
The Issue: Limited Shoulder ROM, Rotator Cuff Injuries
The Dumbbell Overhead Press, or Dumbbell Shoulder Press, is a great shoulder exercise that focuses primarily on the medial deltoid, or middle part of the shoulder. It’s a great exercise for adding bulk and definition at the shoulders where they meet with the biceps and triceps.
The problem with this exercise arises when a person has limited Range of Motion (ROM) or rotator cuff problems/injuries. The nature of the exercise places the humerus in its most superior position where it meets the shoulder. Very often, people with ongoing shoulder problems will find that doing this exercise exacerbates pain/problems in that area.
Limited range of motion in the shoulder can also be a deterrent to this exercise. Range of motion at a joint can be increased however through a sound program of stretching. If overhead range of motion at the shoulders is limited, your body will not only be fighting to move the weight itself, but it will also try to move the dumbbells straight overhead, which is out of its range of motion.
There are two simple assessments to tell if you have limited range of motion in your shoulders. These should be considered with respect to any overhead pressing type of motion. The first is called a Shoulder Flexion Test. I would recommend that if you do this test to have someone who has been trained to spot any number of incorrect movement patterns, limited ROM, and various compensations. Any Corrective Exercise Specialist can do this.
To do the Shoulder Flexion Test, you simply need a wall you can stand next to. It’s ideal that the base of the wall does not have anything that extends your heels out away from it, such as a baseboard. If it does, your lower body will be moved a half inch or more away from the wall, and the test itself will be compromised. For this reason, some people will do this test against a door, or a fitness wall such as Isawall.
To perform the shoulder flexion assessment, stand with your heels all the way back against the wall or base of the door. Stand tall with your arms at either side of your body with your palms turned in toward your body. Slowly take your arms over your head as much as you are able to, keeping your palms facing in toward each other. Do not bend at your elbows and keep your hands right in line with your wrists.
There are a few important things to keep in mind when doing this assessment. There are many compensations the body may do to try to account for limited ROM at the shoulder, but I will mention two of the most significant here. First, be aware of your lower back arching as you take your arms overhead. If your back arches, this is a compensation. Your body is struggling to have the range of motion in your shoulders to get your arms straight overhead, and your lower body is trying to arch forward to make the movement possible. Secondly, notice if you shrugged your shoulders when doing this. If you do so, again this is a compensation. Your shoulders should not rise up when doing this assessment.
Were you able to take your arms straight overhead? If not, then you have limited range of motion in your shoulders, and engaging in a stretching program may be appropriate to help you increase your ROM and thereby make overhead resisted motions such as the dumbbell overhead press more practical.
The second assessment that can be done with respect to the overhead dumbbell press is the shoulder external rotation test. This particular assessment nearly identically simulates the position used during a dumbbell overhead press, and for that reason it is highly valuable and offers great feedback on any compensations or limited ROM that will affect you during an overhead dumbbell press.
The shoulder external rotation assessment is done in the same position as the shoulder flexion assessment. Simply stand next to a door, wall, or Isawall with your heels all the way next to the wall or door itself. Next, take your arms out straight in front of you, with your palms facing in towards each other, as if you are clapping your hands. Now take your arms all the way out to the sides so that they are against the wall. Your palms should be facing forward now. Next, move only at the elbows, so that your forearms, and only your forearms, are pointing in the direction of the ceiling.
Just like the shoulder flexion test, you may see your lower back arch in order to raise your arms up higher, and you may notice that your shoulders want to shrug so as to help your arms raise up higher toward the wall.
Both the overhead shoulder flexion assessment and the shoulder external rotation assessment are great means of examining shoulder range of motion as it relates to the dumbbell overhead press. If you lack the range of motion in the either of these assessments, you may want to hold off on the dumbbell overhead press until you are able to adequately increase your range of motion. In fact you may want to hold off on any overhead resisted exercise until your range of motion is adequate to do those exercises. If you engage in these exercises with poor ROM in your shoulders, your body will likely try to accommodate for the lack of range with similar methods seen in the assessments themselves.
The Dumbbell overhead press is a great exercise, but if you have limited range of motion and/or shoulder injuries, you may want to hold off on doing it unless you are able to fully correct the limited ROM and/or injury sufficiently. There are many great shoulder exercises that also target the medial head of the deltoid if you are unable to perform this particular shoulder exercise.
Paul Owens is a personal trainer in the Cleveland area. He is a Certified Personal Trainer through the National Strength and Conditioning Association, and the National Council on Strength and fitness. He is also a Corrective Exercise Specialist through the National Academy of Sports Medicine. He can be reached at http://www.clevelandpersonaltraining.com
