Article 3: Prioritize training your hips and shoulders

There are plenty of training methodologies in the world including French contrast Plyometrics, weightlifting, CrossFit, sports specific, calisthenics, bodybuilding, powerlifting, dance etc. I firmly believe that if your program does not have dedicated and structured hip and shoulder strengthening involved, you should consider modifying it. Firstly, these are the main attachment points to the torso and close to the spine, so associated hip or shoulder weakness can cause back pain and degrade spine health in the long term. If you were to ask anyone with spinal issues (ie disc herniation, spinal stenosis, SI joint pain, vertebral facet injury, etc.), they will describe how debilitating that type of pain specifically is and how limited they feel physically, so best to avoid putting the spine in excess danger.

Let’s briefly discuss the evolutionary morphology of the human anatomy. As Charles Darwin described through his principles of evolution, advantageous traits tended to be preserved in an overall population while disadvantageous traits tend to be eliminated [1]. Given that human beings evolved from primates, it is to be expected and natural that many of the same physical traits have been preserved. Most primates have opposable thumbs and flexible shoulder sockets [2]. One can observe the behavior of primates and see that they spend/spent most of their time on all fours, indicating the similarity in their upper and lower limbs. Furthermore, when looking that the structures that compose the musculature and joint structures of the upper and lower limbs, many similarities arise for primates, and this does not exclude the joint similarities in humans. The hips and shoulders, knees and elbows, ankles and wrists, all have incredibly similar structural components [3]. This is a concept that can be described as homology.

When discussing shoulder health, it is important to understand the location of the rotator cuff muscles. The rotator cuff muscles are the primary stabilizers of the shoulder joint. They are a group of 4 muscles that control scapula movement in relation to arm movement. Because there are also muscles of the neck and upper back that attach to the scapula, upper back strength and rotator cuff health are inherently related. They are also internal muscles that cannot be visualized with the naked eye, so physical exams and imaging are the primary way to assess their strength and function.

The hip anatomy is strikingly similar to the shoulder. The primary stabilizers of the hip are the glute muscles, and to a lesser degree, the hip flexors. Dysfunction of the glute muscles can cause issues down the kinetic chain, including associated knee and ankle injuries. This is due to improper biomechanics that originate from hip instability and weakness.

It is often understood that the gluteus muscles and specifically, the gluteus medius, acts as the rotator cuff of the hip joint. The gluteus medius also has the most common deficiency in strength, similar to the rotator cuffs of the shoulder. Both the shoulder and the hip have labra that line the socket of the hip and the shoulder. The acetabular labrum of the hips and the glenoid labrum of the shoulders, are essentially a circular piece of cartilage that line the socket part of the ball & socket joints to hold the ball in the socket. These structures are important because they have relatively limited blood flow (meaning less natural regenerative potential) and are also commonly injured as a result of weakness in the stabilizing musculature, the glutes and rotator cuffs.

Here are links to some of my favorite hip and shoulder strengthening exercises and more can be found on my TikTok and/or Instagram @sanjaym.exercise:

Shoulders:

1. https://www.instagram.com/reel/CasrtjhLveW/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
2. https://www.instagram.com/reel/CcWBKW4vgDM/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
3. https://www.instagram.com/reel/CcEPokvPlMm/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
4. https://www.instagram.com/reel/Ca8P-WTpA0i/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

Hips:

1. https://www.instagram.com/reel/Ca3IKWFPxz7/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
2. https://www.instagram.com/reel/CbDfa1Xrelt/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
3. https://www.instagram.com/reel/CbLahWNrWk4/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
4. https://www.instagram.com/reel/CcGnI_6vhKk/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

Over the next week, I will post some easy resistance band strengthening exercises for both regions. Stay tuned to my fitness page on TikTok and/or Instagram @sanjaym.exercise!

Warm Regards,

Sanjay

References:

[1]: https://www.yourgenome.org/facts/what-is-evolution#:~:text=Charles%20Darwin's%20theory%20of%20evolution,of%20differences%20in%20their%20genes%3F.

[2]: https://nhpbs.org/wild/primates.asp

[3]: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/ajpa.1330250206