In today’s article I am going to show you one of our go-to shoulder saver combos.  In this superset, we combine soft-tissue massage, with mobility and activation work.

This proven 3-step sequence is actually the focus of an upcoming CPPS workout that Joe DeFranco and I recently filmed.

Let’s see how it breaks down.

Med Ball Rolling on Pec / Shoulder

Soft-tissue work on the pec, shoulders, mid-back and lats is critical for overall posture and alignment of the shoulders.  When you fall into a slumped shoulders position, the scapula lose position and humeral rhythm is negatively affected.  That means pressing and pulling movements could be problematic.  So you should always be trying to maintain a balance in volume of opposing upper body movement patterns and driving toward better posture.

We do a TON of lacrosse ball work on these same areas, but by when you utilize a medicine ball on the ground, you can put much more of your bodyweight into the massage.  This makes it very effective – and more awesome.

Dynamic Blackburns

After we improve the soft-tissue quality of the targeted muscle groups with the med ball rolling, we attempt to improve shoulder mobility and activation of the rhomboids and traps; the muscles responsible for dynamic mobility and stability of the scapulae – with Dynamic Blackburns.  This is a movement we detail in our massive AMPED Warm-up system.

The sequence is repeated 2-3 times during the warm-up before ANY workout – not just upper body.  Deep belly breathing during both movements will be very effective at getting deeper into the massage and relaxes tension in the body.

Let me know in the comments what you think of the movements.