Swim Stronger: The Right Way to Warm Up and COOL DOWN
Summer is here! And with it comes sunshine, warm weather and more time for the water. Whether you are a fan of the ocean or the pool, it is important to make sure your shoulders are ready for swimming to avoid injury and keep yourself moving in the gym and other activities in your life.
How Swimming Stresses the Shoulders
Swimming involves repetitive overhead reaching and internal rotation that challenge the muscles around the shoulder. It can be especially taxing for the lats, rotator cuff and biceps. If you aren't prepared, a long day of swimming can lead to:
Soreness or aching in the front of the shoulder after swimming
Stiffness and pain when reaching overhead
The extra force from ocean waves can add additional challenges for the shoulder, making ocean swimming more taxing than swimming in a pool.
But your beach and pool days don't have to end with sore shoulders. Even just a few minutes spent prepping your muscles before the water and stretching them after can have a huge impact on soreness.
A Proper Warm-Up and Cool-Down are Key
Warm-ups should be dynamic, taking the shoulders through a range of motion to improve blood flow, reduce muscle tension and prep muscles for the demands of the activity. Here are some of our go-tos for warming up the shoulders before swimming:
Shoulder circles
1. Stand with your arms by your sides
2. Bring both arms back, up and around in a full circle
3. Repeat 8x
4. Bring both arms forward, up and back in a full circle in the opposite direction
5. Repeat 8x
Bear hugs
1. Stand with both arms wide to the sides at shoulder height
2. Hug your arms in and around your torso
3. Reach your arms back out to the sides
4. Repeat hug motion 10x, alternating what arm is on top
Lateral reaches
1. Stand with your arms by your sides
2. Reach one arm up and overhead towards the opposite side of the room
3. Return that arm to your side
4. Repeat movement on both sides 10x each
Trunk rotation
1. Stand with both arms in front at shoulder height with your palms facing in
2. Reach one arm out to the side and behind, allowing rotation through the spine until you are looking behind you
3. Return to the starting position
4. Repeat movement on both sides 10x each
It is just as important to stretch after activity as it is to warm-up. A proper cool-down should focus on lengthening muscles that have been used, which helps decrease post-activity soreness. Here are some of our favorites:
Pec stretch
1. Stand in a doorway
2. Raise one forearm against the doorway
2. Step through the doorway until you feel a stretch in the front of the chest
3. Hold for 20-30 seconds and repeat on both sides
Cross arm stretch
1. Stand with your arms by your sides
2. Hook one arm under the opposite forearm and pull that arm in towards your body until you feel a stretch in the side and back of the shoulder
3. Hold for 20-30 seconds and repeat on both sides
Trunk rotation stretch
1. Sit with your feet flat on the floor
2. Cross one hand over to the outside of your opposite knee
3. Push gently into the outside of your knee to encourage the trunk into rotation
4. Hold for 20-30 seconds and repeat on both sides
Side stretch
1. Stand with your arms by your sides
2. Reach one arm up and overhead to the opposite side until you feel a stretch in the side of the trunk
3. Hold for 20-30 seconds and repeat on both sides
Looking to make sure your recreation stays pain free and relaxing?
At FIXXED, we work with you to make sure nagging aches and pains don't keep you from enjoying the sun or the water! Enhance your swimming recovery with one of our 20-minute bodywork sessions, which incorporates dry needling, cupping or graston to loosen sore muscles and keep you moving well.
