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Hunched Shoulders

863 Back Pain

Why Does My Mid Back Hurt When I Look Down?

Do you have middle back pain when you look down toward your toes?  Do you feel tension and strain between your shoulder blades?

Pain in the mid back between the shoulder blades is quite common. But massaging your aching muscles won’t get rid of your middle back pain.

It’s logical to want to rub the part of your body that hurts because it seems like that’s where the problem is. But to really get an understanding of what’s going on in your mid back, we need to take a more holistic view.

Related:

Why Does My Mid Back Hurt? Common Causes

First of all, we need to understand the two kinds of tight muscles: those that are locked short and those that are locked long.

Muscles that are locked short are just that – muscles that have contracted and won’t let go.  Locked long muscles, on the other hand, are being stretched, usually by the muscles that are locked short. They’re hanging on for dear life to keep you in some semblance of balance.

This is usually what’s going on in cases of middle back pain. The muscles on the front of your shoulders and chest are super tight, pulling your shoulders and back forward and stretching the muscles along your spine.

Those muscles in your mid back and along your neck are already being pulled to the greatest length they can manage. Rubbing them won’t help because they’re being stretched and literally can’t let go.

4 Keys to Fixing Middle Back Pain for Good

Your mid back pain is a result of tight shoulder and chest muscles — NOT tight back muscles. Usually people who suffer from middle back pain actually have weak back muscles, so back strengthening exercises can help.

In many cases, weak core muscles and tight hip flexors are also pulling your rib cage down, causing your shoulders to round into the classic computer hunch.

To get relief for your middle back pain, work on opening up the front of your body. Stretch your hip flexors and your chest muscles. Work on strengthening your core.

Pain Free At Any Age

 

109 Hunched Shoulders

Why Does My Shoulder Clunk?

Are you wondering: why does my shoulder clunk?

Clicking, popping and other joint noises can be alarming. They are rarely a cause for concern, however.

Read on to learn more about shoulder clunking and whether you should be worried about your joint.

Related:

Shoulder Clunking: What Are The Causes?

Does your shoulder make a clunking noise when you move your arm?

The most common cause of a shoulder clunk is lack of space in the joint. You may also have tight shoulder muscles that restrict the movement of your scapula, or shoulder blade.

Shoulder joints are designed for mobility. Your shoulder is a shallow ball and socket joint, similar to your hip. However, your shoulder is much less deep, allowing for tremendous range of motion.

Unfortunately, when shoulder muscles get tight, they can cause clunking, clicking, popping or grinding noises as they move across bony surfaces.

Tight shoulder muscles can also slightly displace the humerus (arm bone) in the shoulder joint, causing clicking and popping. This can also happen when shoulders are weak and lacking integrity, which allows the bone to move around too much in the socket.

How To Fix A Shoulder Clunk

Using the wrong muscles to move your arms and shoulders will cause neck and upper shoulder tension, limiting mobility.

In the past, the majority of the population was engaged in some sort of manual labor. This strengthened the larger muscles of the back and lower scapula.

Your shoulder girdle (the bony structures that make up your shoulder and joint) needs muscular support because it only has one point of bony connection to the rest of your body: your clavicle, or collar bone.

These days, most people spend multiple hours in front of a computer, in cars, watching television, and utilizing fine motor skills to operate cell phones and other hand held devices.

The larger, strength-based muscles of your back and rib cage weaken with this type of lifestyle. Then you’re forced to rely on smaller, less efficient muscles in your neck and upper shoulder. These muscles are designed for fine motor skills — not heavy lifting.

To fix this problem, you’ve got to retrain your body to use its powerful shoulder and back muscles again.

The Bottom Line

To get relief for a clunking shoulder, you have to do two things…

First, you have to create space for the scapula to move.

Second, you have to retrain your body to support the shoulder using the large, postural muscles of the ribs and back.

Pain Free At Any Age

Want more great ways to stay pain-free whether you work in an office or on a mountain top? Click below to get access to my **free** Pain Free At Any Age video series that will help you heal your body in no time.