Trap overdrive

Have you ever had your neck and shoulders feel so tight and sore that it felt like you were hit with a brick?…. me too.

Some backstory: I have suffered with chronic headaches for about 4 years now. This past year, I realized that it is due to tight neck muscles causing cervicogenic headaches, specifically over my right eye.

While I was working at my D1 job, I would frequently have coworkers work on the occipital lobe (base of skull) to release some tension. Now that I am on my own and hitting the gym double time, it’s time I practice what I preach and work toward SUSTAINABLE RESULTS. Neck massages are not sustainable, in case you’re wondering ;)

After a week long headache following a killer upper body day, I decided to pay attention to how I was moving and wow, I did not realize I had been compensating this much. This is what I noticed:

1. Inhalation using traps

2. Squeezing upper traps during scapular retraction

3. Elevating shoulders during supine glute exercises

4. Rounding shoulders during most arm movements

5. Generally holding tension in my shoulders

All of that listed above is proof that my traps are on overdrive and I am not engaging the proper muscles for movements. Here is what I will be working on instead:

1. Scapular retraction with rhomboids

2. Scapular positioning using latissimus and serratus anterior (wings)

3. Keeping scapula’s depressed and shoulders away from my ears

4. Neck stability

5. Proper breathing technique

6. Stress management

Now, this will all sound like nonsense if you don’t know how to go about these goals as well as knowing what I’m even talking about. What I want you to take from this is that my issue is overactive traps. To resolve the root cause of the issue, I need to look everywhere else. Where you think it is, it ain’t. Strengthening my middle back, shoulders, neck, and torso is what is going to give me the ability to take tension off my traps and provide me with better movement.

If you’re curious, go check my IG post to see what treatment and rehab I’m doing to see if you can implement it into your daily routine!