Push-ups plus: How to mobilize and stabilize your shoulder blades | balancing training

Together with the training experts Patrick Matros and Dicki Korb and the climbing doctor Volker Schöffl, we will show you three preventive exercises to prevent symptoms of overload in the shoulder joint. The third exercise helps to stabilize and mobilize the shoulder blades: the push-up plus.

A contribution by Patrick Matros, Dicki Korb and Volker Schöffl

With this exercise, you learn to differentiate between movements of your shoulder girdle (shoulder blades) and the support loop of your body and to control them consciously. On the other hand, you get the gliding ability of your shoulder blades. This prevents one-sided overloading of other parts of the shoulder joint.

Push-up plus: This is how the exercise works

reps

Do about five repetitions and make sure that you maintain correct body position (trunk, elbows) throughout the exercise. One or two sets as a warm-up or balance after climbing training

Note on the exercise series

This collection of exercises cannot and does not want to replace a personal trainer who, thanks to his specialist knowledge and professional screening, can specifically recognize and treat individual patterns.

However, it claims to counteract the most common and frequent injuries and symptoms of overuse that climbing sports have with well-founded analyzes and proven exercises in hundreds of cases, thus providing interested readers with a balanced and professional selection of exercises.

Train smart!

the authors

Patrick sailors

Patrick Matros

Patrick is a lecturer in sports and educational science at the State Institute in Bayreuth. He has a master's degree in sports and educational sciences and is a certified sports therapist and athletic trainer. Patrick has 20 years of climbing experience with around 200 ascents for routes between 8a and 8c.

Dicki basket

Dicki (Ludwig) basket

Dicki is a sport climbing and functional trainer, therapist and educator. He has been a rock climber for 35 years and has 20 years of climbing training experience with many of the sport's top athletes, and co-wrote the world-renowned training book Gimme Kraft with Patrick Matros. He is also responsible for the Adidas 5.10 athletes together with Volker and Patrick.

Volker Schöffel

Volker Schöffl

Volker is section head of sports orthopedics at the Bamberg Clinic, team doctor of the German climbing team and probably the best-known German "climbing doctor" at all. He is of course an ambitious climber and boulderer himself and is responsible for over 100 first ascents up to 8b/fb8a+.

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Credits: Cover picture Frank Kretschmann and Kaletsch Media

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