Down and Back: The Importance of Neutral Shoulders

By KC Reischerl, NSCA-PT

“Shoulders down! Shoulders back!” is the mantra I shout to my students. I shout it, I whisper it,  I repeat it.  Then I shout it again, I whisper it again and I repeat it … again. I say it in the hopes that whoever hears me will take those words and transform them into a living, breathing way of life, a way of understanding and using one’s shoulders.   I say this mantra to many kinds of UCLA Bruins.  Athletes, elderly, blue collar, white collar, faculty , staff and students alike. They’ve all heard me say it.  Many of them, though, need to be reminded to do it.  After watching shoulders up and forward for years, I’ve come to believe that a neutral shoulder is one of the keys to health and well being in the twenty-first century.

Before we can discuss how to correct misuse of the shoulder, we must first understand the definition of what makes a healthy or “neutral” shoulder. My favorite example of this is Leonardo DaVinci’s   rendering of the human form, known as the Vitruvian Man.

 

If you look closely at the sketch you will see his palms are facing us.  This is the quickest way I can illustrate to you how evolution has succeeded in giving our shoulders their optimal advantages.  With the palms facing us, in their most relaxed or “neutral” state, two awesome things can happen:

 We can internally and externally rotate our shoulders; i.e., move forward and backward, and we can elevate and depress our shoulders; i.e., move up and down.  In a perfect world the shoulders would begin and end their duties maintaining a strong neutral stance. As we all know, however, this is not a perfect world.

There are so many modern conveniences that pull us out of neutral shoulders! Computers, mobile phones, tablets, steering wheels, backpacks, strollers… you name it! Not to mention the primal instinct to pull our shoulders up around our ears when we are stressed, tired or afraid.  With all these physical and mental distractions, and the sheer volume of time spent under these conditions, is it any wonder why so many people perceive elevated and internally rotated shoulders as the “new neutral”?

So, what to do? What to do? The first thing is to be aware of the problem. Right now you are probably sitting at a computer or reading this blog on a smart phone. And I’m guessing you’ve put your body in a position that looks much like the people in these pictures. Stop reading. Sit up and look straight ahead.  Tuck your chin in a little and rotate your palms facing away from your torso. Drop your shoulders down. Even a simple step like this will remind you that curling over an electronic screen is not in your body’s best interest.

A few simple exercises can counteract the imbalances placed upon your shoulders.  Here are two of my favorites:

Banded external rotation is a great opportunity for the posterior deltoid (back of the shoulder) to engage, as it is often underdeveloped when accompanied by a rounded upper back. Keep in mind when training the post delt that it is small and doesn’t need a lot of resistance or repetitions to get stronger.  This little muscle will be so happy to be invited to the party and will do wonders for your posture.

Often we think our shoulders are down and away from our ears, but in fact they are hovering and slightly elevated. This can be incredibly taxing on the neck and upper back, especially if you are not aware you are doing it.

For this reason I often suggest shrugs. Shrugs may appear to lean into or exacerbate the notion of elevated shoulders, but there’s a method to my madness. Let’s look a little closer at fellow Bruin Liz in action:

When I ask a client or class member to shrug their shoulders up to their ears with dumbbells or reams of paper, I get a very specific response.  I expect the shoulders to elevate. But on the eccentric or negative portion of the  shrug ,  the shoulders truly lower, or depress, into a neutral  form.

Often it takes the combination of the weighted prop and gravity to help remind us to truly lower the shoulders all the way down.  For this reason I encourage the shrug as part of a healthy shoulder regiment.

The basic principles of “down and back “ can apply to many exercises. Anytime you are working with a barbell, kettlebell , dumbbell or resistance band and you are not going into an overhead movement (  a topic worthy of its own blog) remember:  Shoulders down! Shoulders back!

4 Tips for Starting - and Sustaining - the Perfect Workout Regimen

By Olivia Julian


Committing yourself to a new workout program can be scary and confusing - how much should you be lifting? What is a burpee? Should you buy that new supplement you saw a Kardashian promote on Instagram??

Whether you just began BHIP .5 or Onramp, or you’ve been in Ongoing for years, you will get the most bang for your buck if you have a logical exercise program to follow. Well, you’re in BHIP, so check that off the list. However, YOU are the key to your own success - understanding what to do outside of class, what are just workout myths, and what fads you should probably avoid will ensure that you are on track to be stronger, faster, and greater.

 1.) Consistency is Key

Whenever I teach a new class, I tell them to think of it as a new and improved lifestyle habit, not just as a class that they signed up for. Developing a routine that is sustainable for your undoubtedly busy schedule is essential to gaining strength, improving cardiovascular fitness, and changing your body composition. Commit yourself not because someone said you have to, but because ~science says~ that this is what it takes to cause those physiological changes.

Say you attend BHIP all 5 times per week. That amounts to just 3% of your total time each week. As awesome as it is that you are getting your gains on and getting sweaty on the regular, the ways that you choose to spend the other 97% of your time could make or break your progress. As a trainer, I would love to tell you that you owe your success to us and the exercises we teach you - you’re welcome. But in reality, what you eat, how much you sleep, and how active you are outside of BHIP are arguably even more crucial to your fitness goals than the hour you spend in class.

2.) Know your Goals

Tailor your routine - in, and especially out of class - to your goals. Want to get huge and jacked? Lift a lot of weights and eat a lot. Want to lose body fat? Stick to a healthy meal plan, move as much as you can, and do regular strength training and cardio. Want to run a marathon? Well, better start running.

In order to train for your goals, you have to set some goals. Whether they are physical, mental, or nutritional, be as specific as possible and talk with your coaches about what is an attainable goal for a set time frame. Next, make the necessary changes to your routine or habits, and review Tip #1 above.

In BHIP, we like to give you a healthy balance of resistance training (lifting weights, bodyweight exercises, band work, etc.) and cardiovascular exercise (the huffy-puffy stuff - stairs, jump roping, and my personal favorite, burpees). These components are a great foundation no matter your goals. To illustrate, let us bust a myth. Many people think that to lose weight they need to run a lot or do only cardio. However, resistance training increases muscle mass, which is metabolically active tissue. In other words, your body will expend more energy (burn more calories) - even when you are at rest. Oh, and lifting heavy things won’t magically make you huge, so don’t be a Michael Scott. Science!!

3.) Fuel Yourself Well 

Your body is like a very complex, picky car engine. It needs to be consistently fueled well in order to function properly and remain healthy. Eating well, staying hydrated, sleeping enough, and limiting stress are all essential ingredients of the fuel that allows us to move around, lift things, and fight off the sicknesses that UCLA students coat campus with each day. However, these are also the things that we tend to push aside when life happens. If you’ve ever noticed that you were crazy sore the day after you pulled an all-nighter, or you’ve felt extra fatigued during your workout if you hadn’t eaten well that day, you are not alone. This is because these ingredients are essential to your body’s recovery processes. Exercise creates micro-tears in your muscle fibers. Your body knows how to heal itself and effectively make you stronger, but it can’t do so if you don’t rest, hydrate, and eat healthily in between workouts. If you’re sensing a theme throughout this post - congrats! You’re catching on. 

Some soreness following your workouts is normal, especially when you are beginning a new program like BHIP, but the more consistent your exercise routine is, the less soreness you should experience. The worst thing you could do when you’re really sore? Sit at your desk all day and let your muscles get tighter. Remember your body’s fuel - drink lots of water, check the quality of your sleep, and get moving. Allowing your body to recover prevents injuries and maximizes the effectiveness of your workouts. Exercise + Recovery + Fuel = Fitness Gains!

4.) Prioritize Mental Fitness

Although we think a lot about the physical aspects of fitness, most of us would rather not think or talk about our mental fitness. When you think about exercise or food, maybe they elicit feelings of excitement or positive vibes. Or maybe they spark a negative reaction, like fear or dread. Validating, understanding, and dealing with these emotions is the last key element on your journey toward fitness success.


Your emotional wellness is just as critical as your physical wellness in achieving your goals, although it can feel much more abstract or even daunting to address. Maybe you are someone that would benefit from keeping a journal - writing down what you ate, how much you slept, what your workout was, and how you felt throughout the day may help keep yourself accountable for what you need to do to achieve your goals. It may also help to decode exactly will work for you as an individual. Think of yourself like an experiment - if you change a variable, what difference does it make in the way you felt or performed that day? (More science!)

Lastly, choose an exercise program and make healthy choices that you love (or at least like). You will be much more inclined to stick with it day after day if you enjoy it and can sustain those changes. We all deserve to be functional and happy, so commit to making your health a priority every day. Spoiler alert: there is no one perfect workout regimen - there is just a lot of little choices that you can make to make your workout regimen perfect for YOU.