Pilates in Western Massachusetts prepares the Rotator Cuff for Wyoming wind.

hehehe

I have traveled home for the holiday.  I am settling into my mom’s home cooking, I have seen and spent quality times with three of my four nephews, and I am eagerly anticipating the arrival of my sister’s family.  All in all it has been a good two days.  The weather is everything that can be expected from Wyoming weather.  It’s cold and windy.  The wind in Wyoming is different than the wind in Western Massachusetts.  It is the kind of wind that causes bodies to hinge forward in the hopes that the blunt force of the skull can pierce through the wall of the wind, or if one is lucky to be walking with the wind at the back and she opens her arms out to the side, it feels like she might just float into the air.  In Wyoming, it is so windy that if one flippantly opens the car door without awareness of the wind that car door might just open so far and so fast that it takes the arm and person with it.  There is a technique to opening car doors in the wind, it is bred into Wyomingites deeply.  Today as I was opening the door, I was reminded of this technique. I felt the force of the wind grab the door and pull it open with great force.  I felt my arm straighten and I felt my body begin to go along with the door.  Then it all came back to me.  Of course I should have parked on the other side of the building and opened the door with a little more care, but it was too late for that.  In that moment I had to get the car door shut!  Well thank goodness for Pilates and the shoulder strengthening exercises that allowed me to engage my latissimus dorsi, serratus anterior, and rotator cuff.  Not only did these muscles keep my shoulder from dislocating (You may think I’m being dramatic but until you experience Wyoming wind you won’t know the power of it) these muscles also allowed me to overcome the force of the wind, pull the door shut and drive to the other side of the building where it was a little easier to open the door.

And thus, the inspiration for this blog post.  How did the strength from my shoulder save it in the Wyoming wind?

Well first let’s talk about the anatomy of the shoulder.  Often when talking about the shoulder joint people only imagine the point at which the humerus (upper arm) connects with the scapula (shoulder blade).  In actuality there are three joints that make up the shoulder. We must also consider the place where the scapula connects with the clavicle (collar bone) and also where the clavicle connects to the sternum (breast bone).  In essence when we are talking about maintaining a full range of motion at the shoulder joint we are actually alluding to three joints that work together to create this motion. 

Held the upper arm in the socket on the shoulder blade

allowed shoulder blade to move away from body

There are also many muscular connections that are important within the shoulder girdle.  These relationships require balance for efficient movement and support.  If we think back to the car door that whipped open taking me and my body with it, a great amount of effort was required in my shoulder.  First several muscles had to call upon their individual flexibility so that they could allow my shoulder blade to follow my arm out into space. The flexibility of these muscles allowed my shoulder blade to move away from my ribcage.  This flexibility is balanced by the strength of my rotator cuff, which held my humerus solidly in the socket that is located on the shoulder blade.  Thus no shoulder dislocation took place (YAY!) 

big muscles that were called upon to shut the door

Then from this position came the retraction (getting the car door shut again).  All of the muscles that were pulled to the extent of their flexibility needed to be contracted to connect the shoulder blade back to the ribcage.  Then because the arm bone was connected solidly to the shoulder blade (thank you very much rotator cuff) the arm was in a perfect position to call on the strength of the biceps and the lattisimus dorsi and all of the myo fascial connections in between to pull the door to a close. Thus, the car door did not fly off into the wind. (Double YAY!)

Phew!  In the instant my brain was busy swearing (in front of my mom actually eek!), but my body knew what to do and against the odds the car door was shut…I am grateful to the lat pulls on the trap table and the lat pulls on the springboard, and especially grateful for safe functional strength training.   On this holiday, I am tipping my hat to families, great time spent, and of course the Wyoming wind!  Happy Thanksgiving from The Pilates Studio in Hadley!

Katrina Hawley C.M.A, R.S.M.E

Co-director The Pilates Studio