Neck and shoulder pain from staring at your phone? It could be tight traps.
Do you have shoulder or neck tightness? Do you feel like you carry all of your stress between your neck and your shoulders? Do you sit a desk or day or spend a lot of tiem looking down at a laptop, tablet or smartphone? Chance are, you could have tight trapezius muscles.
The trapezius muscles (traps) are a group of large upper back muscles that stabilise and move the shoulder blade and are responsible for helping to extending your neck.
They do a lot of work which why they are so tight.
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/324251#functions
What causes tight traps?
There are several causes by here are the main ones:
Stress
When people are stressed they tend to tense the shoulder and neck muscles. The habit of tensing them can be so ingrained that we do not even know we are doing it.
Try this. Pull your shoulders up toward your ears like you are shrugging you shoulders and squeeze the muscles between you neck and shoulders as tight as you can. You may notice the tension build up in the top of your shoulders. Hold this for 10-15 seconds.
Now let go and let the shoulders drop down toward your feet.
Do you notice a difference?
Chances are your shoulders will now be more relaxed than they were and you have been tensing your traps without really noticing.
Poor Posture
A lot of us spend a lot of time looking down for hours at a laptop, tablet or smartphone. You are likely doing it right now to read this article. I am.
As we spoke about before, our muscles tend to adapt to their ‘normal’ position and this looking down can result in shortened and tight traps.
Not only does looking down shorten muscles, it puts more strain on them. When you head is tilted down at 30 degrees, your head effectively weighs 4x as much as it does when you a looking straight ahead. When you are looking down at 60 degrees, it is 6x as heavy!
https://www.physio-pedia.com/images/7/70/Texting_and_Mobile_Usage_Does_to_Your_Spine.jpg
Overuse
The last common cause is overuse. This is common it people who do repetitive activities that involve the shoulder such as lifting heavy objects or specific sports such as swimming.
So I have tight traps, so what?
Well a lot of people notice the tension in their traps and this can be uncomfortable in itself.
However, tight traps can also cause other issues such as shoulder or neck pain, headaches
What can I do about my tight traps?
Firstly, if you are suffering from neck or shoulder pain, please consult your health professional for advice.
Additionally, here are some things you can do to help prevent tight traps
Mobility
To keep good posture and avoid back pain, it is important to strengthen the trapezius.
Shoulder Blade Squeeze
1. Stand up straight.
2. Slowly squeeze your shoulder blades together and hold for 3 seconds.
3. Slowly release.
4. Repeat 20 times.
https://www.healthline.com/health/no-weights-needed-4-trapezius-exercises#shoulder-blade-squeeze
Should Shrug
1. Stand up straight.
2. Raise your shoulders to your ears as high you can.
3. Hold for 2 seconds.
4. Relax them toward the ground.
5. Repeat 20 times
https://www.healthline.com/health/no-weights-needed-4-trapezius-exercises#shrug
Shoulder Roll
1. Stand up straight
2. Roll your shoulders in a backward circular motion for 5 rotations
3. Then do 5 rotations forward
https://www.healthline.com/health/fitness-exercise/upper-back-pain-exercises#10-stretches
Self Myofascial Release / Self-Massage
Upper Trapezius Trigger Point
1. Lie on your back
2. Place your trigger ball under the sore point (the video uses a Pocket Physio but you can use a spikey ball, or tennis ball/lacrosse ball or something similar.
3. Lay into the ball.
https://www.pogophysio.com.au/blog/upper-trapezius-traps-exercise-video/
Upper Back Roll
1. Lie on a foam roller in your mid-back.
2. Hug your arms across your chest
3. Lift hip off the mat (to a pressure of your choosing)
4. Roll back and forth (no further down than your bottom ribs, not further up that your shoulders
http://www.kinfolkwellness.com.au/blog/2016/7/24/improve-thoracic-flexibilty
Yoga Poses
Ear to Shoulder
1. Start standing or sitting
2. Slowly take your ear toward your shoulder. If you shoulder lifts, then ease back
3. Lift your same side hand and place it on your head. Rest your hand for slightly more pressure. Do NOT pull.
4. Hold for about 30 seconds.
5. Release
6. Repeat on the otherside.
https://www.healthline.com/health/fitness-exercise/trapezius-stretches#ear-to-shoulder
Cat-Cow Pose
1. Start on all fours (table top position). Hips over knees. Shoulders of elbows.
2. Inhale. Starting from the pelvis. Tilt the tailbone up. Let you stomach sink. Pull your chest forward. Lift your head.
3. Exhale. Tilt tailbone down. Draw your belly button to your spine. Round the spine. Chin to chest.
4. Repeat as you breathe.
https://youtu.be/nf67wOK8uaQ
Conclusion
Hours of looking down at laptops, tablets and smartphones shortens and weakens our traps and can cause neck-aches, shoulder-aches and headaches. Strengthening our traps using shoulder and neck mobility exercises, releasing tension using trigger balls and foam rollers and lengthening them using yoga can help relieve the stress and tension in our neck and shoulders. Give it a go and see how you feel.
You can also come to a Recharge class and we’ll go through these techniques with you.