Thoracic Spine Stiffness
THORACIC SPINE OR MID BACK STIFFNESS
The thoracic spine or your mid-back is the middle section of your spinal column. Your thoracic spine connects your neck to your low back. It contains 12 separate bony segments that act as connections points for your ribs.
WHY IS THORACIC MOBILITY IMPORTANT?
It is essential that you have good movement in your thoracic spine because of its’ connection to your neck (cervical) and low back (lumbar). If you are stiff in your mid back, your nervous system will rely more on your neck and lower low back to compensate for your lack of mobility. This stiffness in your thoracic spine is often playing a contributing part to why you have neck pain or lower back pain.
OVERHEAD SHOULDER MOBILITY
You need movement in your thoracic spine in order to reach your shoulders up to their natural end range of movement. If you are very stiff in your thoracic spine, you put excess strain on your glenohumeral joints (the ball-and-socket joint) of your shoulder. If you are too stiff in your thoracic spine there is often a compensatory increase in movement in your shoulder joints that could lead to excess strain on the soft tissues surrounding your shoulders. Over time this may lead to wear and tear or injury. If you lift weights at the gym you may know you require thoracic flexibility to perform the overhead press exercise. By not keeping your thoracic spine extended to a neutral position (straight spine with no not hunching over), means a compensation in your low back would occur. Extending your lumbar spine (bending your low back backward). This position places an increase in pressure on your lumbar spinal discs. The more weight you lift the greater the load and potential risk of spinal disc degeneration.
BREATHING AND RIB MOBILITY
Because your thoracic spinal segments connect to your ribs via a cartilaginous joint, it makes sense that thoracic mobility is essential for normal expansion of your ribcage when you breathe. When you take a large breath in (inhale), your thoracic spine extends (the spinal segment rotate backward). This movement allows your ribs to create a greater area or space for your lungs to expand. When you breathe out (exhale), your thoracic spine flexes so it can return to its resting position (flexion = rotating spinal segments forward). If you are stiff in your thoracic spine and can’t extend your thoracic spine properly, it limits the amount of air that can expand your lungs. This is vitally important for the regulation of your parasympathetic nervous system as well as of course your cardiovascular system.
THE IMPORTANCE OF YOUR THORACIC SPINAL MOBILITY TO YOUR LEGS AND LOW BACK DURING SQUATTING
Your body requires good thoracic extension so that it can perform loaded lower body movements like squatting. Think of resting the weighted bar on your shoulders. When you have a stiff rounded thoracic spine your centre of gravity shifts further forward. This may seem small, but it completely alters your body biomechanics during the squat. It will often be more difficult to keep your heels down and keep your buttocks back, placing an imbalanced load on your hips and spine. Your lower back is then required to make up for this and will overextend and take on a greater load than it would normally have to.
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