Stuck on PE2 Shoulder Extension for 6+ months

I'm looking for some advice on how to work past a mobility limitation.  HS PE2 "Static Standing Shoulder Extension with Weight" is something I've been stuck on for about 6 months.

Currently I can get to approximately 60 of the 90 degrees with a wooden dowel.  

I've been working on an assisted stretch with a box which gets me to the 90 degree mark and holding for 2 minutes at a time while I relax into the stretch but I'm not sure how frequently I should be doing this or what kind of repetition to avoid overdoing it.

Can anyone recommend a plan on how to progress through this?  I'll be honest, being stuck on the same exercise for this long without moving forward is becoming discouraging.

HI Bill can you post a video? how much it is the hands distance?

My hands are shoulder width apart.

Hey Bill, this is the problem. The first goal it is not the shoulder width BUT the 90° of extension. this means that the grip and the weight of the bar MUST BE ADJUSTED in function of the amount of extension. if you cannot reach the 90° then:

-increase the grip;

-reduce the bar weight.

Thanks for asking this, I have the same problem here!

Good tips @Alessandro Mainente! Can't it lead to dislocates if the grip is too wide however?

1 hour ago, Étienne Lajeunesse said:

Thanks for asking this, I have the same problem here!

Good tips @Alessandro Mainente! Can't it lead to dislocates if the grip is too wide however?

Yes it can. I think the goal is to find that width where you can just reach the 90 degrees shoulder angle, but not wide enough to pass that. As your shoulder mobility improves, this width will become narrower (your grip width for the shoulder dislocate will get narrower as well).

31 minutes ago, Jin Liu said:

Yes it can. I think the goal is to find that width where you can just reach the 90 degrees shoulder angle, but not wide enough to pass that. As your shoulder mobility improves, this width will become narrower (your grip width for the shoulder dislocate will get narrower as well).

Thanks Jin

This is great guys. Thank you for the input.

It doesn’t really solve this issue though. I guess what I’m looking for is a program to get past this limitation.  Simply holding shoulder extension for 5 sets of 10 seconds once per week (as the program suggests) isn’t getting me anywhere. 

Should I be doing something longer? Different stretches?  

What complimentary work should I be doing?

Hey Bill, 

I suggest two things:

1. Add a second Handstand workout to your weekly schedule.

2. Send in form checks to video review or to the form check section of this forum. 

1 hour ago, Bill Martin said:

Should I be doing something longer? Different stretches?  

You maybe do it already, but the Thoracic Bridge series work also on shoulder extension…  I am thinking if you improve your passive flexibility (in TBS) that should help with the active one in this exercise  :-) 

I agree with Suzanna, the TB series is great for shoulder mobility if you want extra work. I highly recommend it if you're not already doing it.

However, what Alessandro wrote is very important -- get to 90 degrees first regardless of grip width, then work on grip. If you're not practicing at that 90 degree mark currently, you're not building in the right direction. There is a big difference between keeping my hands shoulder width and going to 60 degrees, and widening the hands so I can reach 90 degrees. Different muscles kick in to get to the final position, so you're currently missing that work if you haven't made that adjustment to your practice yet.

I made the same mistake for several weeks. The refocus on the height of the bar did help progress.

Good luck!

Excellent advice @Suzanna McGee and @Jennifer Marie. Thanks for mentioning TB Stretch 

Thank you very much for this explanation Jennifer!   It makes more sense when you explain it that way. I am going to incorporate this into a weekly regimen. I’ll let you guys know how it goes. Thanks.

You're welcome for further clarifications.

Definitely keep us updated Bill. The progress of other athletes keeps me inspired when I feel like I've hit a plateau.

On 1/2/2018 at 1:43 PM, Bill Martin said:

This is great guys. Thank you for the input.

It doesn’t really solve this issue though. I guess what I’m looking for is a program to get past this limitation.  Simply holding shoulder extension for 5 sets of 10 seconds once per week (as the program suggests) isn’t getting me anywhere. 

Should I be doing something longer? Different stretches?  

What complimentary work should I be doing?

@Bill Martin give this supplementary exercise a try

1. Lie prone (i.e face down), and grab the bar in exactly the same position that you would've had you been standing.

2. Try to do a shoulder extension while in this prone position, preferably with the arms at shoulder width. If your shoulders aren't too tight you should be able to raise it to 90 degrees. Try to do this with somebody spotting you to make sure that your arms are indeed rising to 90 degrees (difficult to see that with your head facing down).

3. Make sure your shoulders are depressed before you raise the bar. (Depressed is the opposite of shrugged.)

4. Try to engage your traps before raising the bar.

5. Once you've done a few reps, return to the standing position and give it a try. Hopefully, you would have gained a few inches from this exercise.

5 minutes ago, John Kiggundu said:

@Bill Martin give this supplementary exercise a try

1. Lie prone (i.e face down), and grab the bar in exactly the same position that you would've had you been standing.

2. Try to do a shoulder extension while in this prone position, preferably with the arms at shoulder width. If your shoulders aren't too tight you should be able to raise it to 90 degrees. Try to do this with somebody spotting you to make sure that your arms are indeed rising to 90 degrees (difficult to see that with your head facing down).

3. Make sure your shoulders are depressed before you raise the bar. (Depressed is the opposite of shrugged.)

4. Try to engage your traps before raising the bar.

5. Once you've done a few reps, return to the standing position and give it a try. Hopefully, you would have gained a few inches from this exercise.

 

That's not a bad idea!

I like that suggestion John. Sounds like it would really help isolate the proper position for the movement.

Have you tried the facilitated variation?

-grab the bar behind you

-bend over

-reach the 90° angle

-extend your hips

-hold the bar.

4 hours ago, Alessandro Mainente said:

Have you tried the facilitated variation?

-grab the bar behind you

-bend over

-reach the 90° angle

-extend your hips

-hold the bar.

 

Won't it be easy to compensate here?

Why should it be? the change of hips angle does not change the other parameters and cue points. the shoulder should be depressed, hips should be open. the facilitation comes from the CNS, not from the position itself. 

7 hours ago, Alessandro Mainente said:

Why should it be? the change of hips angle does not change the other parameters and cue points. the shoulder should be depressed, hips should be open. the facilitation comes from the CNS, not from the position itself. 

I'll try it and come back to you. Thanks!

The Tim Urban stick figure representation is exactly what I needed.  Thank you.  

Will add that to plan.  Been on PE1 and PE2 for way too long.

I've tried this set up -- to bend at the hips and let gravity help get the arms away from the back. When I stand up straight again, it's difficult to hold the arms at that angle, and I lose some of the height. I definitely do better than when I raise my arms to that angle without the bend though. So it's a great way to confirm it's not necessarily a lack of mobility. Instead, I need to focus on activating (and strengthening) the right muscles to get to that angle while standing up straight.

I've been stuck on the same iM... with arms shoulder width, I can get the bar to about 45 degrees. So, I tried @Alessandro Mainente's "facilitated variation". In the variation, I have no issues while bent over getting the bar to 90 degrees. Once I've made it back up to fully upright, the bar is at about 75-80 degrees and my triceps are burning.

Given the above, would you recommend I start using this variation and hold the bar as high as possible for time? I have been performing the recommended approach of using a wide enough grip to get the bar to 90 degrees and slowly decreasing the grip. However, progress has been extremely slow. Thanks for any advice.