Roskopf in the Box – Happy Mapping of the Arms Part 3

This month we are going to talk about the 3rd joint of the arm, the elbow joint and the two different actions that take place there. 
If you have tendinitis of the wrist or elbow, or if you have problems with finger control, or if you suffer from carpal tunnel syndrome or tennis elbow, then you should pay careful attention to the structure of the two lower joints of the arms and correct your map if necessary. I can almost guarantee that your map will be incorrect if you experience those difficulties.

The elbow joint is a joint of two bones with one. There are two bones in the lower arm that make it possible to both rotate and bend. If all we did with the lower arm was open and close it, we would only need one bone in the lower arm. Notice that it is different rotation than is available at the shoulder joint, where there is also rotation available (with a different design not requiring two bones). 

So bending and rotating both happen at the elbow. It is misunderstanding the rotation that can give people so much grief.  

 
Notice in the picture above how rotation occurs on the pinky side of the forearm and hand. Place your hand on a flat surface and try this for yourself. When you rotate your lower arm around the pinky side, movement is easy. Now try rotating around the thumb side. Not so easy is it? The ulna bone is the axis of rotation, the stable thing around which everything else moves. See how the radius bone is round at the end? 
It’s like a little wheel, perfectly designed for rolling around the ulna. This movement is important to know for nearly all the movements we do at the box (Pullups, Muscle ups, Cleans, Snatches, TGU’s, Front Squats, Rowing). In a supinated hand (palm up) the two arm bones (ulna and radius) run parallel to each other. When the hand is pronated (palm down) the radius bone crosses over the ulna. If we attempt to rotate more around the thumb instead of around the pinky side of the hand, it can cause great tension on the tissues that lie between the radius and ulna. This becomes exponentially apparent as our skills become more refined and explosive. Increasing the potential for discomfort, inefficiency and painful nastiness not only at the elbow, but at the wrist and even up to the shoulder. 

So play with how the forearm both rotates and bends at the elbow. See if you can separate the two movements. Try it from the forearm hand rest relationship position and try it from the bad relationship position. Bending and rotating very often happen at the same time so we think of them as one, but they are not.
To contact Rich, either give him a call at
503-939-2524 or email him at rroskopf@beavertoncrossfit.com 

Conable, Barbara, and William Conable. How to Learn the Alexander Technique: A Manual for Students. Portland, OR: Andover, 1995. Print.

Roskopf in the Box – The Happy Mapping of Arms Part 2

Last month we began talking about the structure of the arm and where the 1st joint of the arm is. This month we are going to shed a bit of light on the 2nd joint of the arm…the Glenohumeral Joint or what most people call the Shoulder joint. 
 
The second arm joint, the joint of the upper arm with the shoulder blade, must be mapped correctly in order to completely free the muscles of your back. See how nicely it lines up with the weight bearing part of the vertebrae? Here we are up against not only the ubiquitous faulty map but a major bit of cultural conditioning—the posture thing. The P-word. A central tenet of the posture dogma is “get your shoulders back,” or the harsher version, “Get those shoulders back.” I sometimes want to cry when I see someone who has obeyed the command for decades, always hurting between his shoulder blades, never feeling a free movement of the arms. 

Shoulders don’t belong back. Just like they don’t belong up, down or forward. The second arm joint is designed to balance at the very center laterally. Neither forward, nor back, but just balanced at center. Shoulders back makes people miserable. It is dangerous to attempt to achieve an opening in front at the expense of closing in back. Some people are so used to narrowing in back that they don’t even notice the tightening anymore. If you correctly map the 1st and 2nd joints of the arm and look for a sense of balance and ease rather than for placement of posture or openness, you will have a clarity about the widening of the back, which allows the arm structure to ease into balance. 

To contact Rich, either give him a call at

503-939-2524 or email him at rroskopf@beavertoncrossfit.com 

Conable, Barbara, and William Conable. How to Learn the Alexander Technique: A Manual for Students. Portland, OR: Andover, 1995. Print.

Roskopf in the Box – The Happy Mapping of Arms Part 1

Are you unable to do a pullup? Does your front rack kinda suck? Do push-ups hurt your shoulders? Do overhead squats end up on the ground? Are your shoulders always tiiiiiiiiiiightuh? I might be able to shed some light on the situation.
The next couple of months I am going to go into a bit of detail about the proper function, structure and size of the arm. I am going to use the bodywork technique, Body mapping as the platform to help us out. 
 
The body map idea is simple and profound. You have a map of your body in your brain and it is easy to gain access to. If I say, “Where are your hip joints?” or “Where does your arm connect to your structure?” I will always get an answer. Sometimes the answer is accurate, sometimes it’s a little off and sometimes it’s not even close. In any case we always move according to how we think we are structured. When there is conflict between the map and the reality, the map will always win in movement. Always. It’s inevitable because the map is what shapes our experience but we can change it with some conscious effort.  I have found that the reason a lot of people have chronic tension in their shoulders and upper back it often due to an inaccurate body map. When we correct these mismappings, then movements that involve the arms become easier, you get stronger and will carry less tension. Sound good? 

<<<<The whole arm includes the scapula and collarbone.             
I am breaking the arm up into several bite-sized pieces over the next few months in order to cover it properly and allow ample time for digestion and assimilation of the information.
An arm includes a collarbone, a shoulder blade, an upper arm bone, two lower arm bones, a wrist, and a hand. The collarbone and shoulder blade are of importance here, because their inclusion in the arm means there are four arm joints, not three as many people assume. 
 
The only place that the arm structure joins the torso at a joint is where the collarbone meets the sternum. At that joint the movements that are available, are raising the shoulders or bringing the shoulders forward or pulling the shoulders back or dropping them. 
A correctly mapped arm and an incorrectly mapped arm.  >>>>>>
Which one do you have?
If you place your fingers along your collarbone near the sternum and make those movements you will see what I mean. The collarbone is moving in relation to the sternum. The action at that joint can be clearly felt because the collarbone lies just under the skin. If you place your fingertips on the collarbone near the end where it joins the shoulder blade and do the movements of raising your shoulders, bringing your shoulders forward, dropping your shoulders pulling your shoulders back, you will find your fingertips moving with the collarbone in swoopy circles. If you then place your fingertips on your upper shoulder blade as you do those movements you will learn how much the shoulder blade moves, and how good it feels to let it move. The accurate mapping of the joint of the collarbone with the sternum is critical for free upper torso and arm movement. If that joint is not mapped, it is not used. It is held rigid and does not contribute its share of movement when it is needed, as in pullups, pushups, overhead presses, rowing, wallballs…basically any movement that involves the arms.  This forces a disproportionate amount of movement onto the second arm joint, the joint of the upper arm with the shoulder blade. That disproportion is a source of strain in activities that require repetitive use of all four arm joints. 
 
Do you want to have smoother moving, stronger, mobile arms and be able to do mad pullups and overhead presses? Start by finding that joint where the collarbone meets the sternum.  It’s called the sternoclavicular joint. Explore the movements from the paragraph above often throughout the day. When you wake up, when you shower, when warming up before a WOD. Whenever you think about it. It is a crucial piece in moving your arms efficiently.  Remember, the arms begin at the sternum, not the shoulder.
 
If you have any questions about what the heck I am talking about, grab me when you see me at the box. I love showing people who are interested in moving more efficiently. Next month we will cover the second joint of the arm. Where it belongs in relation to the side of the body and it’s role in what’s called humeroscapular rhythm. Get excited about this one!
To contact Rich, either give him a call at
503-939-2524 or email him at rroskopf@beavertoncrossfit.com.