Tight shoulders when running.

ludzer

Hey all, does anyone know a good technique for relaxing my shoulders while running.
I usually shake my hands on a down hill section but it just doesnt relax my shoulders enough.
Could be my posture thats causing this problem..

any advice? cheeurs.

ThisRegard

Windmill them forward and backwards at the beginning of your run, I find that loosens mine out, otherwise during the run I just shake my arms and shoulders out if they start feeling tight again.

Krusty_Clown

I tend to suffer on longer on longer faster runs, so I try to remember to do some stretching every mile (but usually forget). I didn't suffer these problems when I was doing core-work. In a race, I'll drop my head, then raise it up so i'm looking at the sky, twist my torso and one arm so I'm looking backwards, then twist the other way, and finally clasp my hands behind my back and stretch. This seems to do the trick for a couple of miles.

One approach that was previously advocated was to gently rub the thumb and forefinger together on each of your hands, which subconsciously causes you to relax your shoulders/upper body. I never really had any success with this approach.

ludzer

Krusty_Clown wrote: »

One approach that was previously advocated was to gently rub the thumb and forefinger together on each of your hands, which subconsciously causes you to relax your shoulders/upper body. I never really had any success with this approach.

Ah yeah I think someone told me about that before too, cant remembered if I tried it or not.

A but of llight stretching before hand I'm sure will help not not on longer runs.

digme

relax ur jaw muscles and if you can just rub the bottum left and right muscle of your jaw directly across from your wisdom teeth. works for me

ludzer

digme wrote: »

relax ur jaw muscles and if you can just rub the bottum left and right muscle of your jaw directly across from your wisdom teeth. works for me

HHmmm strange one, but I just tried it and feel how it would seperate you shoulder blades and relax the shoulders alright, I must try that one, cheers Digme.

digme

There connected to one another I'm sure,I only found it out by mistake as sometimes my teeth don't meet and when I massage both sides they align perfectly.

Declanr

I always used to get stiffness in my shoulders when running.
In the end I realised I was huntching up my shoulders so much that it was causing the stiffness.
It took me a few months but I really concentrated on relaxing my shoulders and making sure that they were well below my arm pits.
I also found that holding my arms high was a contributing factor to shoulder pain, so now I hold my arms very low with my hands level with my waist as I run.
It takes a bit of getting used to but well worth it.

ludzer

yeah Declanr, I deffo have my arms and elbows high when running, even noticed it yesterday in my shadow when going along, every so often I remember and drop 2 minutes later they are back up there, all practive I suppose.

MisterAdam

For some reason, I have always associated holding your elbows bent and your shoulders high with being a strong runner. It was kind of subconscious. Floppy-armed head lolling is for the weak, I thought. Sometimes I'd press my arms in by my sides and hold my hands high, just in front my chest as if I was doing an impersonation of Tyrannosaurus Rex out for a jog. And yes, I got terrible shoulder pain. After a long session, my legs would often be fine but my shoulders would be killing me. Don't know what changed but I haven't gotten it in a while.
On the other hand, you see lots of people with their arms hanging down by their thighs like an orangutan in running shorts. What's up with that, eh?

Declanr

Reading MisterAdams remarks reminds me that I actually had to run with my arms so low that I would have looked like a monkey. I did this for quiet a while in order to get the problem corrected.
Try it for a few weeks, you should feel like your arms are so low that you're going to fall over. Then after a few weeks you'll adjust to a more relaxed position.

Runninglady

I think having strong core control and good upper muscle contributes to helping the situation. I get that problem a lot and just remember 'low and loose', but still in control. Swinging them around like a propellor helps the tightness or clasping your hands together behind your back and then raising them up. I think making sure to stretch properly afterwards helps too.