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What home-retraining exercises do you give your forward-head posture clients?

Strengthening...stretching...what seems to work best for you?

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Kunnee Chew on January 17, 2010 at 5:17pm

Seated row to strengthen the rhomboids, place a tennis ball or a racquetball behind the head against a wall or on the floor to get stability and press against the ball just to strengthen the extensors in the neck. Also, place a long bar below the hips level and stretch out the traps.

Permalink Reply by Alfred Ball on January 17, 2010 at 5:22pm

I often find that the front line and arm line are tight, which also means that the shoulders protracted. My first step is to show clients chest, anterior shoulder, upper trap and levator scap stretches. Along with these we teach awareness of every day and occupational activities that put their heads in that position.

Stretches and strengthening exercises are great, but I feel that we also need to change movement patterns to be effective.

Permalink Reply by John McDermott on January 17, 2010 at 5:27pm

Something John Iams calls the Oximoron Situp. Lying supine push the back of your head against the floor while simultaneously raising your chest up (not like a wrestlers bridge). Great for opening up the thoracic spine, stretching the abs and strengthening the cervical spine musculature.

Permalink Reply by Amy Quartermaine on January 17, 2010 at 5:49pm

I try to have them do an"L" shaped stretch...first pushing the chin in, then lifting the back of the head up. That's for tight suboccipitals. I also have them think about pulling their shoulder blades together and then down. Sometimes I get them to use a Theraband behind their back at waist level with the elbows bent and tucked into the waist, then pull apart their hands along the same line as the waist.

Permalink Reply by Rick Johnson on January 17, 2010 at 6:01pm

Introduce the client to the foam roller for thoracic mobility exercises. Also get the pecs stretched and the shoulders back with door-way stretches and wall stretches. If the client is strong enough,modified chins or pull-ups with scapular depression and retraction as the focus

Permalink Reply by Kunnee Chew on January 17, 2010 at 6:06pm

Strengthen the rhomboids by doing seated row, stretch out both pecs muscles, increase the strength of the neck extensors by lying on the floor and place a bolster pillow behind the head and press down hard to get the activation of the neck extensors. Stretch out the trapezius by holding a bar and straightening both arms.

Permalink Reply by Erik Dalton, Ph.D. on January 17, 2010 at 6:09pm

Excellent suggestions gentlemen.

Just watched an interesting video one of my Myoskeletal instructors (Geoffrey Bishop) sent me: www.tvo.org/TVO/WebObjects/TVO.woa?video?BL_Lecture_20090308_838185...
He says it's impossible to stretch pec minor using the humerus as a lever because the muscles from the arm do not connect to the pecs...Yeah, but what about the fascial connection that Alfred mentions below...old, tired thinking from a very bright, well-respected man.

Hey John: I love old (younger than me) John Iams. Haven't heard his name in a loooong while. He sent me the first copy of his 'one-minute nociceptor' VHS...great mind...pls tell him 'hey' for me. Not familiar with the Oximoron Situp but sounds like a great functional chest wall stretch....thx for all the responses.

John McDermott said:

Something John Iams calls the Oximoron Situp. Lying supine push the back of your head against the floor while simultaneously raising your chest up (not like a wrestlers bridge). Great for opening up the thoracic spine, stretching the abs and strengthening the cervical spine musculature.

Permalink Reply by Jim Moon on January 17, 2010 at 8:56pm

I have found prone cobra on a stability ball w/ext. rot. (no cervical ext. eyes fixed forward head neutral) scaps squeezing shldr. down and back this can be a timed event or pulse reps,
Jim Moon

Erik Dalton, Ph.D. said:

Excellent suggestions gentlemen.

Just watched an interesting video one of my Myoskeletal instructors (Geoffrey Bishop) sent me: www.tvo.org/TVO/WebObjects/TVO.woa?video?BL_Lecture_20090308_838185...
He says it's impossible to stretch pec minor using the humerus as a lever because the muscles from the arm do not connect to the pecs...Yeah, but what about the fascial connection that Alfred mentions below...old, tired thinking from a very bright, well-respected man.

Hey John: I love old (younger than me) John Iams. Haven't heard his name in a loooong while. He sent me the first copy of his 'one-minute nociceptor' VHS...great mind...pls tell him 'hey' for me. Not familiar with the Oximoron Situp but sounds like a great functional chest wall stretch....thx for all the responses.

John McDermott said:
Something John Iams calls the Oximoron Situp. Lying supine push the back of your head against the floor while simultaneously raising your chest up (not like a wrestlers bridge). Great for opening up the thoracic spine, stretching the abs and strengthening the cervical spine musculature.

Permalink Reply by Erik Dalton, Ph.D. on January 17, 2010 at 9:29pm

I like that theraband routine Amy.
Did you receive you Blue Collar Contest prizes yet? Congratulations on a very funny quote.

Amy Quartermaine said:

I try to have them do an"L" shaped stretch...first pushing the chin in, then lifting the back of the head up. That's for tight suboccipitals. I also have them think about pulling their shoulder blades together and then down. Sometimes I get them to use a Theraband behind their back at waist level with the elbows bent and tucked into the waist, then pull apart their hands along the same line as the waist.

Permalink Reply by Allen Rubin on January 18, 2010 at 8:58am

When attempting to lengthen pec minor, I ask the client to reciprocally inhibit it by retracting and depressing the ipsilateral scapula ("put your shoulder blade in your back pocket") while I simultaneously strip through pec minor.

Permalink Reply by Erik Dalton, Ph.D. on January 18, 2010 at 9:24am

I dig it Allen...no pun intended!

Allen Rubin said:

When attempting to lengthen pec minor, I ask the client to reciprocally inhibit it by retracting and depressing the ipsilateral scapula ("put your shoulder blade in your back pocket") while I simultaneously strip through pec minor.

Permalink Reply by Barbara Kardokus on January 18, 2010 at 10:58am

I have a question regarding this also... I sit at a computer all day and am starting to see not only forward head posture, but also the beginnings of dowager's hump... Are there exercises I can do myself to get rid of and/or keep from getting my mother's dowager's hump and stooped posture.