Panel Discussion: What exercises & techniques do you use to improve thoracic spine mobility?
What exercises, techniques, and modalities do you use to improve thoracic spine mobility? What techniques do you think result in the largest improvement and why?
Moderated by Brent Brookbush DPT, PT, MS, PES, CES, CSCS, ACSM H/FS
This Panel Discussion was originally posted on my facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/brent.brookbush - on November 25th, 2012
Mark Jamantoc Self mobilization using PVC pipe roll, self thoracic chair traction, shoulder circles, and scapular retractions. Basic stuff I teach my patients with neck or shoulder pain: I start with thoracic mobility.
December 8 at 11:23am via mobile · Like
Brent Brookbush Nice Mark Jamantoc… any piece of equipment you think works best for rolling? and why shoulder circles, I am missing something here… how do they contribute to thoracic mobility?
December 8 at 11:26am
Jemimah Simms was asking abut shoulder circles rhetorical?
December 8 at 11:28am · Like
Mark Jamantoc I use PVC pipe rolled over an old piece of yoga Mat and Locked by duct tape. I learned this from Dewey Nielsen who owns Impact Jiu Jitsu in Portland, OR. I'll have to look for that article on shoulder circles. It was in a manuscript written by Tim Flynn, he used to be the professor for Regis University DPT program. Shoulder circles are supposed incorporate ribs, shoulders, thoracic spine and neck to function together as one unit. When I find it, I'll message you.
December 8 at 11:30am
Ryan Crandall Get inside a Gary Gray stretch cage and one can find a multitude of ways to get Type I and Type II T spine mobs going. Feels great especially if someone can get there hands and block motion in some areas to facilitate motion in others.
December 8 at 11:33am via mobile
Didi Frizell Has anyone ever heard of "Davis's Law"?
December 8 at 12:42pm
Sheb Giner I applied the shoulder roll with my mother-in-law only last night. Prior to that i released some triggers along rotator cuff, then asked her to roll shoulders one at a time. Initial movement was completely stuck and showed various compensatory signs. Eventually through soft tissue and re-reactivation we had Some improvement.. Its not something thats going to improve over night. She did wake this morning and say it was the best sleep she's had in a while. Oh and the other thing we did was release plantar fascia using a golf ball.. This also helped release her neck pain.. I could keep going but feel like I'm hogging the comment box.. .. Amazing how the body works!
December 8 at 4:24pm
Brent Brookbush This discussion is starting out great… Can't wait to see the article Mark Jamantoc. Love the personal account Sheb Giner…. Didi Frizell: Davis's Law is a corollary to Wolff's Law. Wolff's law states that bone will remodel to adapt to the application of force through a bone. For example, if we do a frontal plane cut of the femur you can see how trabeculae have created a web that reinforces the bone from shaft to neck to femoral head in the direction of the force of gravity during standing and ambulation - if you step back you can actually see a thickening in the amount of bony mass in columns that reinforce the vertical load. Davis's law is the same thing, but for connective tissue. Connective tissue will remodel to accommodate the direction and amount of load placed on tissues. For example stretching may cause more collagen and fibrin laid down in the direction of the force applied to accommodate an increase in length.
December 8 at 9:14pm
Perry Nickelston Brettzel and Rib Roll work well. Discover if unilateral and whether lumbar and cervical rotation are compensating. Lock in with diaphragm reset and TVA activation.
December 8 at 10:12pm
Brent Brookbush Nice points about the core Perry Nickelston - always thinkin' "outside the box"
December 8 at 10:35pm
Perry Nickelston Inside the box is where most people live…no fun there and rarely will you discover the truth.
December 9 at 7:03am via mobile
Mark Jamantoc On a related note to what Perry wrote, I have now started to look at rib mobility and thoracic spine mobility every time I get a neck and shoulder referral (thinking outside the box). Here is a copy of my blog a few years back on Diagnosing and Correcting POSTERIORLY SUBLUXED RIBS using Muscle Energy Technique: http://www.markjamantoc.com/online-courses/online-courses/2009/10/diagnosing-and-treating-posteriorly.html?m=1
Wellness Solutions: Diagnosing and treating a POSTERIORLY SUBLUXED RIB using MUSCLE ENERGY TECHNIQUE
December 9 at 10:58am
Brent Brookbush Really great stuff Mark… looking forward to working with these techniques.
December 10 at 7:21am
Mark Jamantoc You're welcome Brent. Thoracic and Shoulders are my passion. I keep learning new stuff about these regions.
December 11 at 1:07am