So, You Walk Like An Ape

 Hi, my name is Jackie.  I’m a personal trainer, sporadic blog writer, life enthusiast and avid book reader.  I noticed you walking around the other day, like a silverback gorilla.  You Tarzan, me Jane, you walk funny.

You’re probably asking yourself, “is she drunk?” Well, no, but I am drinking some chardonnay, which is delightful thank-you-very-much.  But seriously, this a super structural problem that afflicts many men.  Am I being sexist?  No, guys aren’t working out properly, so they’re being stupid. 

Go stand in front of a full-bodied mirror.  Face forward, feet hip width apart, arms dangling at your side.  Now casually glance at your hand position (you don’t want to scare yourself).  Which way are your palms facing?  Are they facing inward (towards your body), are they facing forward (towards the mirror) or are they facing outward (freakily away from your body)?  Chances are your palms are facing backward.  This, my dear readers, is NOT NATURAL AND IT DRIVES ME CRAZY!  So I am going to attempt to bring awareness to ape-arms and help you help me fix it.

So there are two main reasons for ape arms; super-tight pectoral (boob-region) muscles, or weak rhomboid (back) muscles.  I also have the hypothesis that because we spend so much time typing on a computer our SITS (supscapularis, supraspinatus, infraspinatus, teres minor) muscles get extended from their regular position, shortening the greater and lesser tubercle muscles, causing a “natural” rotation of our shoulders to this unnatural position.

So what do you do to combat ape arm? It’s an easy fix, really.  Takes time, as do most things with training, but again, relatively easy.  First, you need to make sure that you are shoulder packing when you are doing ALL arm workouts.  Second, make sure you are working out your upper and mid back muscles (again, while shoulder packing).  You can do this by doing some form of row, including the row machine, upright row, or my favorite “the bow and arrow” (patent pending).  Third, it’s most likely that you aren’t stretching your pectoral muscles after you work out.  To do this, find the corner of a wall, or a structural beam and put your wrist and elbow on it.  Make sure your elbow is at a 90-degree angle and straight out from your body (don’t let it slant down or up).  Twist your body out away from your arm, causing a stretch in the front of your shoulder region.  You can also feel this in the back of your shoulders, and pectorals.  Now take a step out, extending your arm to feel a deeper stretch, mainly in your biceps, but it will also affect your shoulder muscles.  If you don’t feel it, then twist body, leaving your arm in place, and you should eventually feel it.  Hold each position between 15-20 seconds doing each stretch 2-3 times. 

The final thing that you should do is work out your SITS muscles.  At first, only use 5lbs, because it’s a son-of-a-bitch move.  This is a VERY limited range of motion move, so if you move your elbows too much it loses it’s power.  

To do this:

-      -- Grab your weights

-     -- Lock your elbows in at your side

-     -- Make sure you keep a 90-degree angle at the elbow

-     -- Move your hands out and in, AGAIN keeping your elbows locked in at your side.  This is very difficult at first especially rotating outwards, but as you progress your range of motion will improve.  Do 3 sets of 10-15 repetitions.  After three weeks you can increase your weight by no more than 2 lbs (these muscles are sensitive and you don’t want to injure yourself!).  

You can also do the “space invaders” move to work the SITS muscles. 

-     -  Grab the weights

-     -  Bring your arms out in a “T” position

-     -  Bend at the elbow so the top of your hand is toward the ceiling, your palms are facing forward

-     -  Lower them down so your palms are facing the floor, then bring them back up. 

-     -  You are essentially rotating your arms in a 90-degree, frontal plane movement.  HOWEVER, if your shoulder is clicking or making a popping noise you need to reduce the range of motion.  As the muscles get stronger, your range of motion will increase.  DO NOT go past the 90-degree range of motion seen in the video.

These exercises are not only a great way to combat ape-arms, but also to strengthen your rotator cuff muscles to help prevent injuries associated with tennis and golf.  And remember, most important is that you spread the word to your friends so we can stop this devastating and preventable issue.