by Brian Wolfe, DPT, OCS
We talked about the importance of overhead mobility and stability here, but what are some exercises you can perform to actually improve it? Here are my top 3 shoulder mobility exercises for OH athletes.
Shoulder Mobility Exercises
Open Books (10 reps each side)
Lying on your side with your arms fully extended to the front, rotate your body to fully rotate your thoracic spine until you feel a stretch, opening the top arm as you rotate. Hold the stretch for a couple of seconds and return to start.
Straight Arm Overhead Flexion w/ Contract-Relax (3 reps x 5-10 sec hold each side)
Find a wall or squat rack to use for this exercise. Standing in the rack while reaching OH, use the wall or squat rack to stretch your arm as fully flexed OH as possible. Place 5-10 pounds of pressure into the wall/rack then relax further into the stretch.
Foam Rolling Overhead PVC Flexion
While lying on your back on a foam roller, use a PVC pipe and stretch both of your arms fully OH. Slowly roll back and forth on the foam roller to feel the stretch in the mid-back with both shoulders stretching OH. Perform this exercise several times until you have an improvement in full shoulder OH range of motion.
Watch the following video to see these 3 overhead mobility exercises in action:
Understanding Overhead Shoulder Mobility
Overhead shoulder mobility is all about how freely and effectively your arms move above your head. It’s essential for solid performance in lifting, reaching, and even maintaining an upright posture. Having good overhead mobility isn’t just an advantage—it’s a necessity to help prevent injuries and keep your upper body moving like a well-oiled machine, allowing you to move, play sports, and maintain a normal and healthy lifestyle.
Try these exercises out and let us know what you think!
